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has left us an example, that we fhould follow his steps ;" an example of holinefs, "Be ye holy, as he is holy," &c: an example of faith and truft under the darkeft clouds, Pfal. xxii. 1. &c. an example of meeknefs and humility of fpirit; Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly." Phil. ii. 5. "Let the fame mind be in you, which was alfo in Chrift Jefus." An example of patience in affliction and perfecution; Heb. xii. 2. "Let us run our race, looking unto Jefus," &c.: an example of conftancy and refolution; he " fet his face like a fint."

2. I exhort all the profeffed fubjects of Zion's King to "trust in him at all times; for bleffed are all they that trust in him," as you fee in the laft verse of this pfalm. Truft him with your all, and truft him for all you need. And to encou rage your truft, confider, (1.) His word is the word of a King, a royal word, and the subjects depend upon the royal promife. (2.) His word is the word of the King of Zion, is a well advised word, it is the effect of counsel. (3.) It is an invariable word; it "endures for ever: Heaven and earth fhall pafs away, but one jot of his word shall not fall to the ground." (4.) It is a faithful word; "truth is the girdle of his loins," it is established in the heavens. (5.) It is a tried word; "The word of the Lord is tried like filver in a fur nace," it abides trial. All the faints in heaven tried it, and found it firm; and therefore let all faints on earth truft it (6.) This puts honour upon your King, to trust his word, to fet to the feal that he is true. (7.) This is the way to obtain the promife, and the bleffings promised in the covenant.

3. I exhort you to be much at your King's throne as fupplicants; for you have continual bufinefs there. Confider, (1) His throne is a throne of grace, calculate for the poor and needy. (2.) There comes a joyful found out from his throne; "Whofoever will, let him come. Afk, and ye fhall receive. If any man lack wifdom, let him afk of God," &c. (3.) There are rivers of grace flow out of his throne, and bend their course toward you. (4.) There is a rainbow about his throne, the covenant of grace and promife, Rev. iv. 3. which alludes to God's covenant with Noah. (5.) Acts and inter locutors of grace are paffed from the throne, to encourage your approach," I will be their God, I will give them a new heart," &c. (6.) The King's throne of grace is founded on justice and judgement, &c. (7.) His throne and administra tion ftands by bounty and liberality; and therefore can never be exhaufted, no more than the fun lofes by giving light unto the world, and therefore, I fay, be much about your King's throne, come when you will, or for what you will, you are ay

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welcome,"In every thing by prayer and supplication make your requests known unto God," &c.

4. I exhort you to rejoice in your King. "Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King. The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice. Rejoice, O daughter of Zion, behold thy King cometh." (1.) Rejoice in his perfon; for "he is alto gether lovely;" his perfon is the joy and admiration of heaven and earth. (2.) Rejoice in his government and administration; for it is wholly calculate for your good. (3.) Rejoice in his equity; for he rules in righteoufnefs, whatever feeming crooks may be in his administration. (4.) Rejoice in the power and authority of your King; for he hath all power in heaven and earth; things in heaven, earth, and under the earth, bow to him. (5.) Rejoice in the law magnifying righteoufnefs that your King has brought in by his obedience unto death. (6.) Rejoice in the fulness and riches of your King; for all the fulness of the Godhead, unfearchable riches are in him." (7.) Rejoice in the bounty and liberality of your King; he will do for you above what you can ask or think. (8.) Rejoice in the love of your King; for it is unchangeable; he "refts in his love, and changes not.".

5. Obey your King's laws: have a regard to all his commandments; for all his commandments are ་ holy, juft, and good." Motive, (1.) He has obeyed the law himseif, in the days of his humiliation; he wore the yoke that it might not gall you. (2.) There is great peace in the way of obedience : "Great peace have all they that love his commandments : As many as walk according to this rule, peace fhall be upon them." (3.) A great reward in keeping his commandments; for "he meeteth them that rejoice to work righteousnefs." (4.) Hereby you will glorify your King, and commend him to others; Matth. v. 16. "Let your light fo fhine before men," &c. (5.) There is great danger in breaking his laws, he will refent it, and "vifit your tranfgreffion with the rod, and your iniquities with ftripes."

Queft. What fort of obedience fhould we yield unto the laws of the King of Zion? Anf. (1.) A willing and cheerful obedience, fuch as he yielded unto his Father, when he faid, "Lo, I come: I delight to do thy will." (2.) Univerfal obedience to all his commands, not picking and choosing, obeying one and cafting at another; Then fhall I not be afhamed, when I have refpect unto all thy commandments." (3.) An inward as well as an outward obedience: "I delight in the law of the Lord after the inner man." Obedience, when it is not with the heart, is naufeous to the King of Zion, who "fearches the hearts;" his laws reach the inward,

as well as the outward man." (4.) A difinterested obedience, felf-denied, reckoning yourselves unprofitable fervants, when you have done all, do not think that your King is in your debt for your obedience and fervice, &c. (5.) It must be the obedience of faith; for "without that it is impoffible to pleafe God." A faith in the promise uniting the foul to God is the foundation of all true obedience to Chrift, or God in him. (6.) A conftant and stedfaft obedience; not by fits or starts, but continually: 1 Cor. xv. ult. "Be ye con ftant, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord," &c.

6. Yield not only an active, but a paffive obedience to the King of Zion, fo as to fubmit unto his difpofing will, even when his adminiftrations run cross to your worldly interest and inclination. When he fends the rod of affliction, con, fider, (1.) That cross difpenfations are for your good, &c. Many advantages rife out of afflictions. (2.) He will not keep his anger for ever. (3.) This is the fpirit and temper of his true fubjects, to be dumb with filence when he afflicts. (4.) Confider how fubmiffive he was unto his Father's heavy afflicting-hand, yea, avenging hand, &c. (5.) Your "light afflictions work for you a far. more exceeding and eternal weight of glory."

7. I exhort all the subjects of the King of Zion to keep the King's courts, I mean kis ordinances for worship. David, though he was a great king, yet we find, Pfal. 1xxxiv. he made confcience of attending the tabernacles of the King of Zion, and reckoned it his honour fo to do; and when driven from the place of public worship, through the perfecution of Saul, or Abfalom's rebellion, he envies the happinefs of the very fwallows or fparrows, which were allowed to neftle about the fanctuary, while he was driven away from it, and had not accefs to attend his Lord and King there, Pfal. lxxxiv. 1. 2. 10. &c. What fhall we think of those, who have the doors of the fanctuary of the King opened, the ordinances of the New Teftament difpenfed at their door; and yet either through pride, or heart-contempt of the ordinances, or love to the world, or floth, or other carnal caufes or pretences, turn their back on the courts of the great King; and yet take it in very ill part, if minifters tell them they do not act the part of loyal fubjects unfo Zion's King? Is it to be fuppofed, that people ever opened their hearts unto him, who contemn and difregard his inftitutions, where he has required his subjects to attend upon him, and do him homage? They may fancy they are his fubjects as well as others, but they have reafon to fear, that the day is coming, when the King of Zion will fay to them, or of

them,

them, "Bring forth thofe mine enemies who would not that I fhould rule over them, and flay them before me." See what became of these men who were bidden to the fupper, when all things were made ready, and yet excufed themfelves from attending, with thefe and the other pretences; why, Luke xiv. 24. the Lord declares, that "none of thofe that were called," and refufed (whatever were their pretences), "should ever taste of his fupper."

But to return: I fay, let all that love Chrift, the exalted King of Zion, attend carefully upon his royal courts and ordinances for worship, whether it be upon Sabbath day, or week day, particularly public preaching, public prayer and praise, and the administration of the facraments of baptifm and the fupper, folemn occafions for fafting, prayer, and humiliation. In thefe, or the like ordinances of the King of Zion, it is that he allows his fubjects fweet interviews with himself; "the King is held in thefe galleries ;" there it is that the King intimates his mind and will to the fubjects; there his precepts, promifes, and doctrines, are published ; and there it is that he drops fuch words of grace and love into their hearts, as makes their hearts to burn within them, &c.; there they are made to fay, "His word quickened me, and made my foul like the chariots of a willing people;" there King Solomon fhews himfelf with the crown upon his head, before the daughters of Zion; there the King covers a table of fat things, and makes them to fit down under his fhadow with great delight; there fometimes they get the fecrets of their hearts told them, and the fecrets of his covenant, and the fecrets of providence alfo opened, as David when he went into the fanctuary, Pfal. lxxiii. And therefore, I fay, attend the King's courts for worfhip.

8. Let all the fubjects of the King of Zion ftand up for the honour of their King, efpecially in a day when manifold indignities are done unto his royal authority. I had occafion already to fhew, in feveral particulars, what open indignities are done to him among us; his laws are counteracted both by civil and ecclefiaftic authority, the liberties of his fubjects are invaded, his Sabbaths are profaned, his profeffed ambaffadors throw ing up their Master's fovereignty and alone headship in his church, and yet fustained by others, that have not gone their length, as fellow-members in judicatories, without any cenfure or teftimony. There feems to be a faying a confederacy with open and avowed traitors to the royal crown of Zion's King, by a deep filence, and finful affociation with his enemies. I am afraid Chrift be faying at this day, "Thefe are the wounds whereby they have wounded me in the house of

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my friends:" I am wounded in my truths, in my members, in my prerogatives, as the fupreme God, and the fupreme King of my church; and yet no due teftimony or refentment fhewed against these wounds and injuries I have received.

afraid Zion's King be on his way to wound the head of his enemies, and the hairy scalp of them that are going on in their trefpaffes." But while others are injuring and affronting the King of Zion, let all that would be found among his loyal fubjects ftudy to put honour upon him. Queft. How fhould we do this? Anfw. (1.) We should put honour upon him, by believing in him, and trufting in him, particularly in his kingly office; trust that he will rule and defend his fubjects, and that he will reftrain all his and his people's enemies. Oh, Sirs, he never erred in his administration; and therefore whatever seeming confufions may caft up, yet truft that the wheel in his hand fhall caft up fuch glory to himself, and fuch good to his fubjects, as that it shall be faid of Jacob, and of Ifrael, "What hath God wrought!" (2.) Let us put honour upon him, by confeffing him with the mouth; Rom. x. 1o. "With the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confeffion is made unto falvation." This is a day wherein the devil and his emiffaries have laid a plot for banishing any profeffion of Chrift and religion. I condemn, as much as any, a hypocritical profeffion of Chrift and Christianity; but let us not caft away our King's livery, because a secret enemy may put it on, and mingle in among his loyal fubjects. (3.) Let us put honour upon him, by a confcious regard unto all his laws and commandments, "Then fhall I not be afha med, when I have respect unto all thy commandments :" and while others are breaking his bonds, and cafting away his cords from them, let us fay with Jofhua, "As for me and my houfe, we will ferve the Lord." (4.) By witnessing for him and his caufe in our fphere, and by owning a teftimony for him when it is lifted up. The ftandard of Chrift, particularly in Scotland, is a covenanted standard and teftimony; and whenever Chrift's covenanted ftandard and teflimony is lifted up, we are obliged, by the oath of God, to own it, and cleave to it; and it is not this or the other pretence of order, that will diffolve the obligation of the oath of God. (5.) By avoiding the fellowship and fociety of those who are the known enemies to the King of Zion, and his caufe and intereft, what ever be their pretences of friendship: "O my foul come not thou into their fecret; unto their affembly, mine honour, be not thou united," &c. It is dangerous to ftay in the camp where there is a mutiny and confpiracy against the King and his kingdom, efpecially when the King's fandard is lifted up without

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