reminded of that divine favour, confeffed the author of it: Rabbi, faid he, thou art the Son of God, thou art the King of Ifrael. Our Lord pleafed with his ready confeffion, promised that he should fee greater things, enjoy brighter manifeftations, than thefe; that he fhould even fee heaven open, and the angels of God afcending and defcending upon the Son of man.

The bare outward fight of our Saviour's perfon and miracles rather confounded than converted the beholders. What glorious beams of his Godhead pierced through the veil of his mean appearances, when, with fupreme authority, he turned the buyers and fellers out of the temple: When he entered Jerufalem in triumph, and all the city was moved, faying, Who is this? And when he faid to those who apprehended him, I am he, and they went backward, and fell to the gronnd! Nevertheless, we do not find, that one perfon was bleffed with the faving knowledge of him, on any of thefe folemn occafions. The people of Galilee faw moft of him, and yet believed leaft in him."What wifdom is this, which is given to this man, faid they, that fuch mighty works are wrought by his hands? Is not this the carpenter the fon of Mary? and they were offended at him." Some went even fo far as to afcribe his miracles to a diabolical power, affirming, that he caft out devils by Belzebub the prince of the devils. Hence it appears, that if he had not in fome degree, revealed himself to the hearts of his difciples, when he said to them, Follow me, they would never have forfaken all immediately and followed him. He manifefted forth his glory, fays St. John, and his disciples believed on him; and yet, when the manifeftation was chiefly external, how weak was the effect it produced even upon them? How was our Lord, after all, obliged to upbraid them with their unbelief, their little faith, and, on a particular occafion with their having no faith? If we know, favingly, that Jefus is God with us, flesh and blood, i. e. mere man with all his belt powers, hath not revealed this to us, but our Father, who is in

heaven. As no man knoweth the Father fave the Son and he to whom the Son will reveal him; fo no man knoweth the Son but the Father, and he to whom the Spirit proceeding from the Father does reveal him. For no man can favingly fay, that Jefus is Jehovah, the Lord, but by the Holy Ghoft: and he, that hath feen me, by this divine revelation, fays Jefus, hath feen the Father alfo; for I and the Father are one.

Had not our Lord revealed himself in a peculiar manner to finners, no one would have fufpected him to be God manifeft in the flesh. Till he difcovers himfelf, as he does not unto the world, he hath no form nor comelinefs, fays Ifaiah, and when we fee him, there is no beauty in him, that we should defire him; we hide as it were our faces from him; he is defpifed, and we esteem him not. He was obliged to fay to the woman of Samaria, I that speak to thee am he; and to fay it with a power that penetrated her heart, before he could believe with her heart unte righteoufnefs. Then, indeed, divinely wrought upon, the ran and invited her neighbours to draw living water out of the well of falvation fhe had fo happily. found.

If our Lord had not called Zaccheus inwardly as well as outwardly; if he had not made him come down from the pinnacle of proud nature, as well as, from the fycamore tree; if he had not honoured his heart with his fpiritual, as he did his houfe with his bodily prefence; the rich publican would never have received him gladly, nor would the Lord have faid, This day is falvation come to thy house, forafmuch as thou art a fon of faithful Abraham.

Salvation did not enter into the heart of Simon, who admitted our Lord to his houfe and table, as well as Zaccheus. The penitent woman, who kiffed his feet, and washed them with her tears, obtained the bleffing, which the felf-righteous Pharifee defpifed. It was to her contrite fpirit, and not to his callous heart, that the Lord revealed himself, as the pardoning God.

The blind man, reftored to his bodily fight, knew not his heavenly benefactor, till a fecond and greater miracle was wrought upon the eyes of his blind underftanding. When Jefus found him, fome time after he was cured, he faid to him, "Doeft thou believe on the Son of God? He anfwered, Who is he Lord, that I might believe on him?" And Jefus, opening the eyes of his mind, and manifefting himself to him, as he does not unto the world, faid, "Thou haft both feen him, and it is he that talketh with thee." Then, and not till then, he could fay from the heart, Lord, I believe, and he worshipped him.

Both the thieves, who were crucified with him, heard his prayers and ftrong cries; both faw his patience and his meeknefs, his wounds and his blood. One continned to make fport of his fufferings, as though he had been a worfe malefactor than himself; while he other, bleffed with an internal revelation of his godhead, implored his mercy, trufted him with his foul, and confeffed him to be the King of glory, at the very moment, when he hung tortured and dying as the bafest of flaves.

St. Peter fpeaks fo highly of the manifeftation, with which he and the two fons of Zebedee were favoured on mount Tabor, that we ought not to pafs over it in filence. They faw the kingdom of God coming with power; they beheld the king in his beauty. "His face did fhine like the fun, and his raiment became white as light; a bright cloud overfhadowed him, and behold, a voice out of the cloud, which faid, This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleafed; hear ye him."

Nor did our Lord reveal him felf lefs after his refurrection. Mary fought him at the grave with tears. As fhe turned herfeif, fhe faw him ftanding, but knew not that it was Jefus. He faid unto her, Why weepeft thou? Whom feekeft thou? She, fuppofing him to be the gardener, enquired after the object of her love; uncil Jefus, calling her by her name, manifested himself to her as alive from the dead. Then the

cried out, Mafter! and in her transport, would have taken her old place at his feet.

With equal condefcenfion he appeared to Simon, that he might not be fwallowed up with over much forrow. True mourners in Sion weep, fome for an abfent God, as Mary, others for their fins as Peter ; and they will not be comforted, no not by angels; but only by him, who is nigh to all that call upon him, and is health to thofe that are broken in heart. He, that appeared firft to weeping Mary, and next to forrowing Peter, will fhortly vifit them with his falvation. He is already with them, as he was with Mary, though they know it not; and he will foon be in them the fure and comfortable hope of glory.

ed them.

This obfervation is farther confirmed by the expe. rience of the two difciples, who walked to Emmaus, and were fad. Jefus drew near, joined and comfortHe made their hearts to burn within them while he talked with them by the way, and opened to them the fcriptures. But ftill their eyes were held, that they fhould not know him, before they were prepared for the overwhelming favour. And it was not until he fat at meat with them, that their eyes were opened, and they knew him in the breaking of bread. By a fatal mistake, many profeffors in our day rest fatisfied with what did not fatisfy the two difciples. They understood the fcriptures, their hearts burnt with love and joy; Jefus was with them, but they knew him not, until the happy moment, when he fully opened the eye of their faith, and poured the light of his countenance on their ravifhed fpirits. Happy thofe, who, like them, conftrain an unknown Jefus by mighty prayers to tarry with them, until the veil is taken away from their hearts and they know in whom they have believed.

Frequent were the manifeftations of Jefus to his difciples before his afcenfion. An angel appeared to two of the holy mourners, and faid to them, "Fear not; for I know, that ye feek Jefus who was cruci, fied. He is rifen from the dead. As they ran with

fear and great joy to tell his difciples, Jefus met them faying, All hail and they came, held him by the feet, and worshipped him." The fame day in the evening, when the doors were fhut where the difciples were affembled for fear of the Jews, came Jefus, and ftood in the midft. They were terrified, but with his wonted goodness he faid, Peace be unto you! He fhewed them his hands and his feet; ate with them as he had done of old with Abraham; and, to testify an inward manifeftation of the Holy Ghoft, which he imparted to them, breathed upon them, as his Spirit breathed upon their minds and thus he opened their understandings, that they might understand the fcriptures. Out of condefcenfion to Thomas he fhewed himself to them a fecond time, in the like manner; and a third time at the fea of Tiberias: and afterwards he was feen of above five hundred brethren at

once.

:

You will perhaps fay, Sir, that these manifeftations ceafed when Chrift was afcended to heaven. This is true with respect to the manifeftation of a body of fuch grofs flesh and blood, as may be touched with material hands. In this fenfe believers know Chrift after the flesh no more. Our Lord, by his gentle reproof to Thomas, difcountenanced our looking for carnal manifeftations of his perfon, and I have declared again and again, that they are not what I contend for.

But, that fpiritual manifeftations of Chrift ceafed at his afcenfion is what I muft deny, if I receive the fcripture. On the contrary they became more frequent. Three thoufand were pricked to the heart on the day of Pentecost, and felt their need of a visit from the heavenly Phyfician. He then came revealed in the power of his Spirit, with whom he is one. They received the gift of the Holy Ghost, whofe office it is to manifeft the Son. For the promife was unto them and their children, and to as many, as the Lord our God fhall call; witnefs the last words of Chrift in