for him, Col. i. 15, 16. But now, if I may so speak, there hath entered one thing into the world, that hath marred all the creation; that is sin: Our Lord came to repair this with advantage. For be persuaded of it, that unles the Lord had contrived to have brought more glory to his name by sin's entrance into the world, than its entrance could bring dishonour to him, it had never entered: for he does all things for himself; and the very permitting of sin was an act of infinite wisdom in God, willing his own glory; and by Jesus Christ, as the great High Priest, is this end reached; he is made the head of the whole creation; all things are reconciled, all things are set to rights in him, all things are to be gathered together unto an head in him as the head.

(2.) There is this glory to our Lord as Priest, that makes him a great one, that the everlasting salvation of all the elect and redeemed is purchased by him. What an unspeakable honour is this? He is the proper cause of the salvation of all that are saved; he becomes the captain, head, and author of our salvation: He is the author of eternal salvation, Heb. v. 9. He hath obtained eternal redemption for us, Heb. ix. 12. This I would consider a little more particularly, namely, the glory that comes to our great High Priest, by his being the author of eternal salvation.

He

[1] We find that all faith in approaches to God is to be made through him; all acts of trust Godward are to be made through him: No man cometh to the Father but by him. saves them that come unto God by him, Heb. vii. 25. By him we believe in God, that raised him from the dead, and gave him glory, 1 Peter i. 21. This is proper divine honour to be a mean of peace with God; and that person that is the mean of approaching to God, and that is the object of our faith, is always divine. We can approach to God by no creature, it is an honour too big for them: but we may approach to God by Christ Jesus, for the Father hath consecrated him in this station: He suffered the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, 1 Peter iii. 18.

[2.] All the gracious communications that are betwixt God and men, is all through this great High Priest. This is his glory, this makes him a great one. All the gracious commu

nications and fellowship, either of God's giving to us, or our returning again to him, are all through this great High Priest; the communications, and blessings, and privileges to us, and the return of praise to God again, are all through Christ.

1.] The communications that are from God to us, do all come from Christ. If you receive them, you know which way they come, for they taste of the channel.

[1. Our justification. This is by the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, Rom. iii. 24. Whenever a sinner stands accepted before God, that state of acceptance is owing to this great High Priest; if God look graciously upon him, if we may stand with confidence in his presence, it is all through Jesus Christ.

[2. Our sanctification is by the Spirit of Jesus. Whenever sanctification is begun, Christ is formed within; whenever sanctification goes on, conformity to Christ is advanced, and we are going on towards perfection. What is perfect holiness, but only conformity to the image of his Son? And to this the Lord hath predestinated all his chosen, Rom. viii. 29. [3. Our adoption is through this great Priest also: He hath redeemed them that were under the lary, that they might receive the adoption of sons, Gal. iv. 5.

[4. Our perseverance is only owing to Christ's grace and power. He is able to make us stand, and he will make us stand. See what the apostle says concerning the poor weak tottering Christian, that is weak in the faith, Rom. xiv. 4. Our supports and encouragements under all our temptations and difficulties are owing to Christ; and eternal glory at last is owing to him also; he purchased it for us, he hath possessed it in our room, and receives us to himself at last; that where he is, there we may be also, as his own words are. So,

2.] Is it as to all returns of service unto God again. These are all to the honour of our great High Priest; that as God dispenses all his good-will and favour through Christ, we are to return all service and worship to God in him. This I would explain to you in these things:

[1. That all the adoration, and worship, and obedience, and service, call them by what name you will, that is now given.

by Christians, is given at the command of our Lord Jesus, We must take this great High Priest's will as the rule of our worship. So the Lord hath commanded, is enough for a Christian's conscience; and where the Lord hath not commanded, no tender conscience will act. Let men talk what they will,

let the authority of men, either of churchmen or statesmen, work as they will, if they be in matters of the worship of God, our great High Priest must command it, or we dare not do it. It had been a great deal better for the interest of Christ's church in the earth, if the great High Priest had been better consulted. Consider, says the apostle, the High Priest and Apostle of our profession. How many names hath the Lord Jesus Christ in the word? He is called the Apostle and the High Priest of our profession; he is the Lord our righteousness. We must profess nothing but what he enjoins, believe nothing but what he reveals, do nothing but what he commands.

[2. Not only must all worship, and service, and obedience, be done as obedience to him, but it must be all done in his name; that is more, not only at his command, but in his name. If we pray, it is in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, John xiv. 13. If we offer up spiritual sacrifices unto God, it is by Christ our great High Priest, that we are to offer them, Heb. xv. 15. To offer worship to God in the name of Christ, is another sort of business than people commonly imagine'; it is to set about the performance with an eye to the great undertaking of this great High Priest.

[3. It tends to his glory not a little, that the eternal praises of the saints in heaven will all depend, and border, and rest upon this great Priest our Lord Jesus; that when the heirs of glory are come to the possession of the inheritance that is purchased for them, the praise of this grace will be eternally sung by them. That song in Rev. v. 9, 11. is a song of praise to this great Priest, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdem, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. Thou hast redeemed us to God by thy blood, says he. Must not then Christ be a great Priest, when all the salvation that is dispensed on earth is all owing to him, and all the praise that will be given in heaven will be all paid to him? Thereupon the apostle hath that word, 2 Thess. i.

17. When he shall come, (speaking of our Lord's second coming), to be glorified in his saints. The greatness of Christ's priesthood will never appear so fully, as when the whole virtue of his sacrifice shall be seen, when all the heirs that his blood has bought shall appear together, and all the glory and the possessors thereof.

in

APPLICATION. Our Lord Jesus is a great Priest. 1. Then let him be great in your eye. He is great in himself, great in his office, great in his Father's eye; let him be also great yours. Low and common, and mean thoughts of Christ are very ordinary, and very sinful. If people would take the apostle's exhortation, Heb. iii. 1. Consider the High Priest of our profession; if people would take a more near and close view of Jesus Christ in his office of a priest, what a beautiful sight would they see? Christ always rises in mens esteem, according as he is bright or dark in their eyes. Every man esteems Christ highly, that knows him clearly. It is impossi ble, but the beams of the saving discovery of Christ must imprint upon the soul unspeakable apprehensions of his greatness and value. See how the apostle speaks of him; that very word is enough to make one have high thoughts of Christ, if they were heard by faith: Heb. i. 2, 3. God-hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds. Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power. Must not this be a great person now, that is the very brightness of the Father's glory? that is, another person, but the same God? and exactly like him? What does this great one now? He upholds all things by the word of his power; he made all things of nothing in the beginning, and, by the same word of power, keeps all things from dropping again into nothing. What more stately can be said in the word of the divine dignity of his person? Now, in the next word, he comes to speak of his office, when he had by himself purged our sins. How marvellous was it so great a person should come down for so mean and sordid an employment as to purge our sins? A prince removing dung from his own stable is a mean thing

in regard of this: he did not commit this great work to another, but he did it himself; he purged our sins by himself, that is, himself offered in sacrifice for sins.

2. Have a care that you make use of Jesus Christ as a great Priest.

1st, Bind this matter upon your consciences, that the greatest sin, or the greatest duty, that is committed or performed by men, lies here. The greatest sin is not improving Christ, the greatest duty is using him in that station the Father hath set him in. See, says the apostle, that ye refuse not him that speaketh,Heb. xii. 25. Pray, observe what the connection is. Ye are come, saith he, ver. 24. unto Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. See then that ye refuse not him that speaketh. If Christ come to speak to you as a Priest, if Christ come to you by his blood; take heed, that you refuse not him that speaketh : there is no escaping, if you turn away from him that speaketh from heaven.

2dly, As you would be careful to make use of Christ as a Priest to you, so you should learn to do it confidently. We shall have further occasion to speak of the confidence of faith which is allowed, in the next verse; yet I would not pass it now, when it is so needful to speak of this great duty, this great grace of making use of and improving of this great Priest. It should be done with confidence.

greatness of his office, and

1. With confidence as to the the sufficiency of his sacrifice. Lay that down and settle upon it, whenever you come to act faith on Christ for the pardon of your sins, and bringing you into the favour of God. Remember, you come before God in the name of a High Priest, whose sacrifice is great. There are many great objections that hinder confidence; I will name a few of them, and I will tell you where their answer only lies. You may try and search for other answers, and the answers may please sometimes for a little while.

The first objection is this, "Shall I draw near to God? I "have to do with a great God." So you have; in all your dealings with God about salvation, you have to do with a