regation of Israel.* The Apostle shows us that this typical of Jesus Christ, who " is not entered into the place made with hands, which are figures of the true: nto heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God s." And he points out the superior advantage of this sthood on account of the holy character and the endurcontinuance of our High Priest: "Wherefore," he says, is able also to save them to the uttermost that come God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make interon for them." While his "people are praying with' our High Priest is interceding within, and offering ur prayers. deed, other offices which Christ bears, are full of comin our approaches to God. He is "the Way, the Truth, the Life," by whom we go to the Father. He is "a het" to teach us to pray, and "a King who shall deliver needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that no helper." nsider, then, his redemption-Man was afar off from sider the situation of the Intercessor. He is "at the we stand upon our own merits and deserts, we shall be shamefully disappointed in our expectations: we have no merit to take place in heaven, but only the merit of the Lord Jesus Christ."* Ah! how absurdly do they act, who, when such an Intercessor pleads for us, put their cause into the hands of any creature, saint, or angel. Consider his character. He is the beloved Son of God, the elect in whom his soul delighteth." He is "holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens." And with all this, he is full of compassion, tenderness, and love. "We have not an High Priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin." He is one who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way. Seeing, then, that we have such a great, such a compassionate "High Priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in timeof need." Consider, farther, the nature of his Intercession. St. John seems to give us an emblematic view of this:T "And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand." Even the prayers of the saints are so defective, that they need the incense of our Redeemer's merit to make them acceptable anto God. Jesus Christ intercedes by personally appearing for us before God. In heaven itself he now appears "in the presence of God for us. This man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sin, for ever sat down on the right hand of God."** "By his own blood he entered in once into the holy place." The virtue, merit, and power of that blood still remain. How sure may we be, then, that he will ob what he asks, when he pleads that he died to procure He ascended into heaven with the body in which he red; and we may imagine, when he makes intercesthat body silently and yet powerfully urges his plea ar behalf. Hence, St. John, who saw the glory of the r temple of God, says, "I beheld, and lo, in the midst e throne, stood a lamb as it had been slain." This view he subject has been well illustrated by the story of ntas and Echylas related by the historian Elian. ylas was condemned to death by the Athenians, and about to be led to execution. His brother Amyntas signalized himself in the service of his country, and ne day of a most illustrious victory, in a great measure ined by his means, had lost his hand. He came into Court, just as his brother was condemned, and without ng any thing, exposed the stump of his arm from under Farment, and held it up in their sight; and the historian us, "that when the judges saw this mark of his sufferthey remembered what he had done, and for his sake arged the guilty brother, whose life had been forfeited." wounded body of the Savior, though there may remain isible marks of his humble state, is, in the sight of thus perpetually pleading for his sinful and guilty ren. Not that God the Father is severe, austere, diffito be entreated, or hard to be won: this would be a mistaken view of him whose name is Love. r appoints this way of approach in infinite compassion ove to us, that we may "come boldly unto the throne ice:"* and though his holiness be such that he canidure the approach of sinners without a Mediator, yet The his own free grace which moved him to provide a tor, and disposes him to accept his mediation in our Hence the Father himself is represented as willing r us, when we pray in the name of Jesus. Thus our says to his disciples,† "At that day ye shall ask in my and I say not unto you that I will pray the Father 1, for the Father himself loveth you." Is Christ intercedes for his people by praying for Does he see them exposed to the just vengeance of ly almighty God? Is the sentence gone forth, "Cut , why cumbereth it the ground?" he prays, "Let it alone tl by me."1 office of unto God on the alt cession, m prevailing even whe tainted wi tions, as to has assure my name, that your It is del alone this year also, and I will dig about it, and dung it, and if it bear fruit, well; but if not, after that thou shalt cut it down."* Are any of his disciples exposed to peculiar temptations and dangers, so that it may be said of them, as it was of Peter, "Satan hath desired to have you that he may sift you as wheat?" he adds, "But I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not."+ Indeed, we could never pray ourselves, we could never approach unto God so as to be accepted of him, but through the intercession of Christ. "No man," saith our Lord, "cometh unto the Father, but" by me." By his prayers we receive the Holy Spirit, and many other spiritual blessings. In the 17th of John, you have a delightful specimen and example of the prayers which Jesus our Lord himself makes for his people. Jesus Christ also offers up our prayers. It was the office of the Jewish priests to present the prayers of Israel unto God at the time they burned incense before the Lord on the altar. And thus our High Priest, by his own intercession, makes even our poor and imperfect sighs and groans prevailing and effectual. The very best prayers we make, even when aided by the Holy Spirit of our God, are so ainted with our sins, and so mingled with our imperfecions, as to need his mediation for their acceptance. He as assured us,|| "Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in ny name, he will give it you; ask, and ye shall receive, hat your joy may be full." This name of Christ enabled hose who used it, through faith in his name, to work mirales, cast out devils, speak with new tongues, and oppose and overcome Satan, the world, and the flesh; and by it ve shall assuredly prevail in all our petitions. Our persons nd our prayers are accepted of God, in and by Jesus Christ. T It is delightful to consider further, that the intercession f our Lord is all in our behalf. It is said of the prophet Clijah, "Elias made intercession to God against Israel." He was," says Trail, "a severe prophet, and had severe ervice put into his hand; but our great Prophet and High Priest makes no intercession against his Israel, but all for hem." In that pattern of what he is doing,** we may ob *Luke xiii. 8, 9. John xiv. 16. † Luke xxii. 32. John xiv. 6. Eph. i. 6:1 Pet. ii. 5. * ely. is also an intercession for sinners.-It was foretold of have stated thus fully and plainly, from the Holy Scripes, the doctrine of the intercession of Jesus Christ, bese it is not only a most delightful truth to those who the burden of their sins, but is highly profitable to us en duly improved. To this end it should be considered re, at the time of, and after, your prayers. Before prayers. Make it the only ground of your enagement to draw near to God. Do not, on the one d, trust in any preparation which you may have made, in any dispositions which you may have acquired; on the other hand, whatever your former transgress,¶ or aggravated wickedness, may have been,** tever is the conviction of your present sinfulness,†† or Isa. liii. 12. Heb. vii. 25. † John xvii. 20, 24. John vvii. 9. TPs. xxv. 7. or your in with fr the Fat pitiation At th encour of grac ever w grace, ter for may ten cient gr through gracious faith in mind, an tion with After many wan of former your petiti Christ is y tion of any of Jesus C writer obs upon his n of an ansv to keep us waves of th faithful, an not, and ca "He," st dress the 1 hands, by whose med the least in *1 John ii Brown or indebted. |
