8. SERM. VIII. The Fifth Sermon on the Excellency of Christ.
SERM. VIII. The Fifth Sermon on the Excellency of Christ.
A nd his Name shall be called Wonderful. – Isa. 9:6.
The point that we are upon you may remember is this, That Jesus Christ is the great Wonder of the world; As is his Name, so is he Wonderful.
9. There is yet more wonder in it if we consider that God the Father was well pleased with all this, it pleased him, so you may find in Isa. 53:10. It pleased him to bruise him. It pleased the Father; For God the Father taking such delight in his Son, and seeing him brought into such a low condition, not only to be in the form of a servant, but in the form (I say) and similitude of an evil servant, to be beaten, and so beaten by himself, and all this to please him, certainly there was some great matter in it, that God the Father should be well pleased with making his own Son to be a curse for man's sin, and yet this we find in Scripture, that it was a thing that well pleased
God, certainly were it not for some great and wonderful design that God had to bring about, God the Father could not have been well pleased with such a thing, with the death of his own Son, and putting him to death, and
that to an accursed death, yet he was well pleased; certainly there was a wonderful design that God had to bring about by such a way.
10. And then further, the humiliation of Christ is wonderful in regard of the efficacy of his humiliation, that by his death, all the wrath, and the Justice of God should be as it were swallowed up in reference to all the elect, that the wrath and justice of God should be swallowed up in a few days suffering of Jesus Christ (of this man Jesus Christ) that God should account it as much as if all the elect had been under his wrath to all eternity, the efficacy of Christ's suffering is a wonderful efficacy, for it is an infinite efficacy, it is infinitely satisfactory.
11. Yea further, not only satisfactory to God's Justice, but it is that that takes away the sting and venom of all the sufferings of the Saints to the end of the world; the efficacy of Christ's humiliation it is in reference unto God the Father, and it is in reference unto the Saints; I say in reference unto the Father, it satisfies all his Justice and Wrath; And in reference unto the elect ones, it is that which takes away the sting and the venom of all their humiliations and sufferings to the end of the world; though God hath so appointed that his Saints that he sets his heart upon to do good unto forever, should here in this world suffer many hard things, be under grievous afflictions, yet there is such a way taken, as that Jesus Christ's sufferings should take away all the sting, the venom, the evil of their sufferings, and so Christ was wonderful in his sufferings in that regard: There was never sufferings, nor such a death in the world, that it should take away the sting of all sufferings, and death too, for so many thousands of people, and yet this did it.
12. And further, Christ is wonderful in his sufferings, because he suffered as a common Person, he did not suffer as a particular man, but we are to
look upon Jesus Christ in all the work of his humiliation as a common Person, and so all the elect from the beginning of the world to the end are looked upon by God the Father as suffering in him, as dying in him, as being made a curse in him; as the first Adam was a common person, and God looked upon all mankind as dead in him, in Adam, so the second Adam was a common Person, and in his death all the elect are looked upon as dying, and so as satisfying God's wrath for their sins in their own person, but virtually in him as in a head. And in this Christ was wonderful in his humiliation, and indeed we do not understand Christ's humiliation aright, except we understand it thus. We sometimes speak of the great sufferings of Christ, and so far we understand perhaps that this was for us, that he died for us, but we do not understand that we died in him, and that he was a common Person, and all the elect were looked upon as in him, as suffering in him, and satisfying God's wrath in him, why thus we are to exercise our faith upon Christ's humiliation; and indeed this is the mystery of the humiliation of Jesus Christ.
13. And further, Christ was wonderful in his humiliation in this, that by such a way he enters into his glory; that when God intended the greatest height of glory to a creature that ever was, or ever should be, that yet he would have such a way to lead unto it, as that Christ should first be brought into such a low condition, to be a worm, and no man, to be so accused, to be made a scorn of men, to be indeed in the lowest estate that is almost possible to conceive a creature here to be in, and yet that God should intend this to be the way to the highest degree of glory that is possible for a creature to attain unto, here was the wonderful counsel of God, the wonderful work of God; now you know that so it was in Christ, the Scripture saith, Ought he not to suffer these things, and so to enter into his
glory? God manifested in him what way he would have to bring us unto glory, that is by the way of suffering, by the way of Afflictions, by the way of trouble, to pave the way to glory by such kind of pavement as this, this was the wonderful work of God.
14. And in this further, here was the most wonderful Argument of God's hatred to sin that possibly can be imagined, and wonderfullest pattern and example of self-denial that ever was in the world, Christ was wonderful in this, in that in him there was held out the most wonderful Argument of God's hatred of sin, as if God would say, I will set mine infinite wisdom on work to find out an Argument to manifest my hatred to sin; there could not have been a greater, an infinite wisdom could not have found a greater manifestation of the hatred of sin.
And then he was in his humiliation, I say the pattern of the greatest selfdenial that ever was, or ever can be. God holds forth his own Son to be the pattern of self-denial to all the world; the Lord sees how we are altogether for ourselves, how hard it is for us to deny ourselves; Well, saith God, I will not only require of you that you shall deny yourselves for me as your duty, and bound as creatures to do it to your Creator, but I will send into the World such a pattern of self-denial, as it is impossible for men or Angels to imagine a more wonderful pattern of self-denial, My Son, that is equal with myself, to come in the form of a servant, although he had right to all things, he shall empty, and deny himself to the extremity of all kind of misery.
And then that that makes up all the wonder is this, that all this should be done for us, for such poor worms, for such vile base creatures as we are; why might not men and Angels have thought thus? Why Lord, had it not been better for ten thousand thousand, and hundreds of thousands, and millions of such creatures to have perished to all eternity, than that thy Son
should be brought so low, to suffer so as he did? But no, saith God, I will manifest a great wonder in the world in this, that all this shall be done and suffered for poor worms (men) in whose eternal destruction I might have glorified myself forever; though it is true, I could as well have honored myself in their ruin and destruction, as I did in the eternal destruction of the Angels that sinned against me, yet I will show forth a wonderful work, that men and Angels shall wonder at to all eternity, that such and such things shall be done and suffered to save them, so unworthy, so vile; thus Christ is wonderful in his humiliation: And these things have been but briefly presented to you, that so I might give you a general view of the mystery of godliness that there is in the humiliation of Jesus Christ.
Christ Wonderful in his Conquest.
But now it follows further, that Christ likewise is wonderful in his Conquest, he is the most glorious and wonderful Conqueror that ever was in the world.
For first, What did he conquer? What doth he triumph over? What? He hath conquered even Divine Justice itself, as I may so speak; the Law,
God's wrath and justice came even fighting as it were against Jesus Christ, and Christ encounters with them, yea he encounters with the Devil, and with Hell, and with Death; all these are enemies that Jesus Christ encounters withal. And certainly had any one but seen Christ go into the Lists to encounter with these Combatants, he could not but have stood amazed at it, Oh what will become of this Champion that is entered into such a combat as this is! But stay but a little, and you shall see him leading
Captivity captive, you shall see him Triumphing over all, you shall see him conquering and saying, I have the Keys of Hell, I that was dead, am risen, and have the Keys of Hell and Death, you shall see him Triumphing over
Wrath and Justice, and the Law, and the Devils, you shall see him fetching all that he came for out of the hand of the Devil, yea here is the wonder of the Conquest, never was there a man that did conquer death but only Jesus
Christ that had power over Death: All other Conquerors they may conquer men, and kill them, but they cannot conquer Death itself; now Jesus Christ's
Conquest was over Death its self, to have the very keys of Death, and that follows, Death and Hell.
And further, which makes the wonder of his Conquest, he doth conquer death by dying, that is the wonder of it. What man conquers his enemy by being slain himself? Jesus Christ did so, he conquers all his enemies that came against him, he conquers them by dying, and therefore in Col. 2, it is spoken of Christ's coming to die upon the Cross: And having spoiled
Principalities and Powers, he made a show of them openly, Triumphing over them in it. When Christ was brought upon the Cross, one would think he had been triumphed over himself then, for he was brought very low indeed when he was brought there to hang between two Malefactors, as if he had been the greatest Malefactor of all; now one would have thought that Devils and wicked men, and Death, and all had triumphed over him; but mark, the Text saith, That he did there spoil Principalities and Powers, and made a show of them openly, Triumphing over them in it. We can imagine somewhat of Christ's Triumph now in heaven sitting at the right hand of the Father, when he ascended into heaven, there he Triumphed; but to imagine a triumph of Christ in his Cross, when his enemies were scorning and contemning him, that then he should spoil Principalities and Powers, and upon the Cross Triumph over them, this is a great mystery of godliness, and herein is the wonder of Christ's Conquest, of Christ's Triumph.
And then further, the wonder of the Triumph of Christ consists in this, That he hath not only vanquished all the enemies of his people, but he hath vanquished them by his own power: Conquerors have use of the strength of others, but Christ had strength enough of his own without any addition, and he did not only quell the Adversary, but he turns all into good to his people:
It is one thing for a Conqueror to overcome an enemy, so as an enemy shall not be able to do anymore hurt to those that belong to him, and another thing to subdue them so far as to make them all to be servants to him, that is a greater Conquest. Man by a strong Army may be a Conqueror by killing his enemies, and so never to hear of them more, but if he can subdue and bring them all to be useful and serviceable to himself and his people, this
Conquest is a great deal the more glorious; now such is the Conquest of Christ, that he hath not only quelled their power, but hath brought all to be serviceable to his people, the Law is serviceable to them, and now God's
Justice is for good to them, and the very wrath of God is now for their good, and the Devil, and Death, and Hell, and wicked men, they are all made useful unto Jesus Christ, and so unto his people.
Lastly, Christ is wonderful in his Conquest in this, that he conquered likewise as a common Person, as a head, and in him he hath made all his
Saints Conquerors, yea the Scripture saith that they are more than Conquerors through Jesus Christ, in him they are looked upon as having overcome all those: Thou that art the weakest in thyself, and art able to do least, art afraid of every expression of God's wrath, and terror of the Law, of the threats of wicked men, of the temptations of the Devil, of the very thoughts of Death or Hell, yet I say, if thou beest a believer, thou hast conquered all these already, they are not only conquered to thy hand, but thou hast conquered them all, that is, virtually in thy head, thou art made a
Conqueror over Sin, and Death, and Hell, and as in Christ thy head, so in some measure in thyself, that is, Christ hath put such a principle into thy heart as will conquer all thine enemies that come against thee, in due time, so that this is the glory of Christ's Conquest, and he is wonderful in it.
Now more particularly there is following the Conquest of Christ, Christ's Resurrection, and his Ascension, and his sitting at the right hand of the Father, and his coming to Judgment: In all these we have a wonderful
Redeemer. I very briefly present all these before you, but in a few words to show you a little of the mystery of godliness in every one of these, that so I might in a very little narrow compass, present the chief glory of Jesus
Christ unto you, I mean the heads of it; though we cannot tell you the thousandth thousandth part of the glory of Christ.
Christ Wonderful in his Resurrection.
Christ was wonderful in his Resurrection; there was never such a Resurrection, nor never shall be, as Christ's was. That Christ rose from the dead, I suppose you all know, but now the mystery of godliness in this, and the wonderful work of God in it, In Rom. 1:4, it is said, That Christ was mightily declared to be the Son of God in his Resurrection from the dead.
You will say, Why, others rise too, both godly and wicked shall rise, how is Christ wonderfully and mightily declared to be the Son of God by the Resurrection from the dead?
Why thus, Christ he undertaking to satisfy for man's sins, to pay the debt that man did owe to God for his Sin; God the Father comes upon him, sues out the Bond, casts him into Prison, into the Gaol: Now when Jesus Christ did arise from the dead, there was a declaration to all the world that he had satisfied the debt fully to God the Father, that he had paid fully what Divine
Justice did require for the sin of man; now this was a mighty declaration of
Jesus Christ to be the Son of God; had he not been the Son of God, he could never have rose again, having died upon such terms as he did; Christ did die to satisfy God's wrath, and undertook this, Lord I am content to come under the bonds of death till thine infinite Justice shall say, That it is satisfied, that it hath enough: If all the Angels in heaven, and men on the earth had undertook such a work, and said, Lord, Let us all die, and abide under the power of Death, until thine infinite Justice shall say, It is enough, they must have abode to all eternity under it, they could never have come out of Prison, but have lain there; but now Christ he undertook this work, and was content to be under the power of Death till God should fully discharge him, as being satisfied; God saith at length I am satisfied, Let the prison doors be opened, let him go; so that when Christ comes out of the Grave, now he is declared before men and Angels mightily in a wonderful manner to be the Son of God; and it is upon this that the Scripture saith in Psal. 2. Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee, which is applied by the Apostle in Act. 13, and some other Scriptures unto Christ's Resurrection.
This is now, as if so be that Christ had been begotten but that day; why Christ was the begotten Son of the Father from all Eternity.
I but Christ coming under the charge of man's sin, and under the power of death, all the while he was in that low estate of humiliation, he doth not appear like the Son of God before the world, but when he comes and gets the power over all, and is acquitted and rises again, now he doth appear like himself indeed, the only begotten Son of the Father, he is now mightily declared to be the Son of God; and in this the Resurrection of Jesus Christ was wonderful, for the wonderful power and efficacy that there is in it;
Christ being acquitted, all the elect were in him acquitted, all were acquitted in him virtually, though there is another acquitting personally when they
believe: At the very time of Christ's Resurrection, all the Elect were acquitted as in a head, yet I say, There is another acquitting from God in one's own person, that is upon believing: From hence that notable Scripture we have in 1 Pet. 3:21. The like figure whereunto, even Baptism doth now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience towards God) by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
What answer is this that the Apostle speaks of? And how is this answer by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ?
The answer that here the Apostle speaks of, it is an answer unto all demands that God's Justice, that the Law, that the Devils can make, for any punishment that a sinner hath deserved: If God's Justice should say to a sinner, Thou hast sinned, and therefore thou must die, thou must be punished, thou must satisfy Justice.
If the Devil should come and demand that the Threats of God should be fulfilled because here is a sinner.
If thine own conscience should in the Name of God demand that thou shouldest answer for thy sin.
A good conscience by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, is able to make answer to all these demands: A good conscience, that is, one that hath a good conscience can make answer through Christ's Resurrection, and say,
Why are these things demanded of me? Christ hath satisfied for all, he hath satisfied for my sin, and paid my debt, and is risen again. Hath not God the Father acquitted him in raising him from the dead, and therefore in him all is satisfied, and this is the answer I make to all the Bills that are put in against me. If there be Bills put in against men in any Court, they come and make answer; Whatever Bill can be put in against a believer, if the Law of God, or any Temptation should put in any Bill, saith a believer, here is my
answer, That all is satisfied in Christ: Now this is by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ; if Christ had died, yet if he had not risen again, thou couldest not have made answer, That all is done, all might have been doing, but thou couldest not have made answer that all is done; but by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, thou canst make answer to any demand.
And observe, That this is the answer of a good conscience. Men and women that talk so much of faith, and yet have evil consciences, they cannot make this answer by the Resurrection of Christ: Those that tell you we are to believe, and God looks at nothing else but believing: It is true, if they understand it aright, in the point of Justification, that is the thing that is for the justifying of a person, but there is somewhat more that is required of a justified person, and therefore no person can make this answer, by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, but such a one as hath a good conscience: The answer of a good conscience (saith the Text) by the Resurrection of Jesus
Christ: If thou hast a corrupt and vile wicked conscience, thy conscience flies in thy face for sins that thou livest in, know, that thou canst never make answer (to those demands that shall be made against thee) by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, with any comfort, till thy conscience comes to be purified by faith: That is the wonder of Christ's Resurrection, mightily declared to be the Son of God.
And in his Resurrection, there is a Resurrection of all the Saints, all the elect ones; for the Scripture saith, That he was the first fruits from the dead, that is, that look as the first fruits did sanctify all the rest, and all were consecrated in the first fruits being offered to God: So all the elect ones in Christ's Resurrection did rise again, I say, virtually in him, and it was a pledge of their Resurrection, the Resurrection of their souls spiritually to life here, and their Resurrection to eternal life, and so we are to exercise our
faith upon Christ's Resurrection; this is the mystery of godliness in Christ's Resurrection, and hence is that known place in 1 Tim. 3:16. Without controversy, saith the Text, great is the mystery of godliness, God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit.
A wonderful mystery there is in godliness; why what mystery?
God was manifested in the flesh, the Son of God came and took our nature upon him, that was wonderful, but this is as great a wonder as the other, Justified in the Spirit, it is all one as by being justified upon his
Resurrection, by the power of the Spirit he was quickened, and life was put into him, and so he rose again, and thereby was declared before all the world to be justified, to stand acquitted from all the charge of our sins that was upon him; and so if you compare that place Justified in the Spirit, with that in 1 Pet. 3:18. Put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit, that is, by the power of his God-head he was quickened, upon his Resurrection; now that that one Apostle saith (quickened) another saith (justified) to show, that when he was quickened, that is rose again by the power of his
Deity, then both he, and all the elect ones stood just in the presence of God, acquitted of all their sins, and this is the mystery of godliness.
There is abundance in every one of these, but it is not my purpose to handle the Resurrection of Christ, or his Ascension, but merely to give you a little glimpse of the mystery of godliness that there is therein, that you may understand him aright, so as you may be able to exercise your faith upon him, not only Dying and Humbled, but Conquering and Rising.
Christ Wonderful in his Ascension.
And for the Ascension of Christ into heaven the manner of it was wonderful. There comes a cloud and carries him up, and the Disciples
stands gazing; it was a wonder to be gazed at, the Ascension of Jesus Christ, body and soul into heaven, in that glorious way.
But especially if we consider that Christ ascended likewise as our head, ascended into heaven as the High Priest went into the Holy of Holies: And it is said, that we are set together in heavenly places together with Christ, so you have it in Eph. 2:6. And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: For Christ went as in our names to take possession of heaven, this is the mystery of godliness in Christ's
Ascension: He went up to Heaven, but he went in the name of the Elect to take possession, as a man that hath bought house and lands, may have one appointed by him to go in his name to take possession of the house and land, Jesus Christ in the name of all the elect from the beginning of the world to the end, went up unto heaven to take possession there, and on purpose to prepare Mansions for them against their coming: Thus wonderful was Christ in his Ascension.
Christ sitting at the right hand of the Father.
And in heaven Christ sits at the right hand of the Father, thereby declaring that God the Father was well-pleased with all that he hath done, because he sets him at his right hand; after Christ had made an end of all his work, he is said to sit down, in Heb. 10:12. This man after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God; he had done his work, and God the Father approves of him, and so honors him in setting him at his right hand, and there gives unto him all power to rule together with himself, as you heard in his Kingly Office, and there he is to make Intercession continually for his Elect, and hath that weight of glory put upon him that is possible for human nature to have put upon him, that is the meaning of sitting at the right hand of God; these four things are meant by it.
First, When he came to heaven, God the Father, that he might acknowledge that his Son had fully done the work that he was sent into the world about, he doth honor him by setting him at his right hand.
Secondly, He gives unto him all Authority and Power to Reign together with himself.
Thirdly, There he is as the High Priest to make Intercession for his Saints, to be their Advocate continually at the right hand of the Father to make
Intercession for them.
And then fourthly, It is to signify that Christ hath the highest degree of glory, that it is possible for human nature to be capable of; Therefore you must not understand the right hand of God in a corporeal way, as if God had right hand or left, but sitting so in those four respects as I have named: And all these make Christ a wonderful Redeemer, he that shall come up to God the Father in Heaven, and to have God own his being fully pleased with what he did upon the Earth, and there setting him upon his own Throne, to reign with him, and there to be forever to make intercession for the Saints, and to have the height of all glory to be bestowed upon him; Certainly this is a wonderful Redeemer.
Christ wonderful in his coming to Judgment.
And then Christ shall in a wonderful manner come to judge the world again, then he shall come to be admired indeed; so you have it in 2 Thes.
1:10. When he shall come to be glorified in his Saints, and to be admired in all them that believe: Those that do believe in Christ, they see him to be wonderful; now they do admire at him; but when he shall come again in glory at the great day, then he shall appear so wonderful, as they shall all stand admiring, and saying, Well we indeed heard that our blessed Savior was the wonder of the world, and we saw so much as made us admire at his
glory; but we never thought that we had had such a glorious Savior, as now we see we have; wonderful and glorious is Jesus Christ now, but when he shall come with his thousand thousands of Angels, and when there shall be such a wonderful change in the world, the Elements melt with fervent heat, and the Heavens depart like a scroll, and the Heavens and Earth shaken, and all the Princes and Monarchs in the world, and all the children of men appearing before him: Oh wonderful then shall he be in his attendance, and then in his own person.
Wonderful shall he be then in the manner of his proceedings, in bringing forth all the books of God's forbearance, and the books of men's conscience, and the book of the word to proceed with men and Angels for their eternal estate, in this Christ will appear then to be wonderful: Thus
Christ is wonderful in his humiliation, and in his exaltation: But further, a word or two more.
Christ wonderful in his working towards his Saints, and in the high esteem that the Saints have of him.
Great and marvelous are thy works, O Lord God Almighty, who would not fear thee, O thou King of Saints! The great things that Christ doth in the world towards his Churches, are wonderful, and the great esteem his Saints have of him, they account all things as dung and dross for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ.
And he shall be wonderful eternally hereafter in the highest Heavens, and there he will be the matter of the wonder of all the Angels and Saints; and the matter of the admiration, and the praises that God shall have to all eternity, it shall be from what the Angels and Saints do see in Jesus Christ; therefore surely he will be wonderful in Heaven.
And then wonderful, when the understandings of the Saints shall be elevated to the highest pitch that they are capable of: sometimes we do wonder at things, because of our ignorance; ignorant people will wonder almost at anything; at the works of Arts and Sciences, they wonder, because they know but little, but now that, that the most understanding man in the world shall wonder at, certainly it hath some great excellency in it: Now
Christ shall not be the wonder of the Saints only while they are here in in this world, but when they shall be in Heaven, and have their understandings enlightened and enlarged to the height that possibly they can be enlarged to, and yet even then Christ shall be their wonder, and they shall wonder at Christ more than they do now abundantly: Certainly that hath real excellency in it indeed, and great excellency, that the more understanding a man is, the more he shall admire at it: perhaps poor people they may wonder at some men for their parts, yet if they had any great understanding themselves, they would see such a man's parts had little in them; but if a man had such parts, that the more any man came to understand him, the higher in degree their understandings were, the more they should wonder, certainly this man had a great deal of excellency in him indeed: So it is in Christ, that when the Saints shall be elevated to the height, they shall so much the more admire at him.
Further, In Heaven Christ shall be wondered at forever; many things are wondered at for the present, I but the wonder quickly ceases; we use to say of strange things, they are but of nine days wonder, but Jesus Christ is not only a wonder at first, when the soul comes first to embrace Jesus Christ: It is true, poor sinners at their first embracing Jesus Christ, for the very novelty of those things they see in him, they do admire at them, they never did understand such things before; but the truth is, if that grace be true, thou
shalt not only wonder when thou comest to Christ at first, at the excellency in him, but the longer thou continuest a Believer, the more thou wilt wonder; and when thou comest to Heaven, after thousand millions of millions of years, thou wilt wonder as much at him as thou didst the first moment; those men that have made profession of Religion, and seemed to come to Christ, they wonder at first hearing of the Gospel, like the stonyground, that received the word with joy, Oh how wonderfully are they affected at the first hearing of the glorious things of the Gospel! But now mark, their wonder quickly ceases, and their joy ceases within a little while; they do not now see so great excellency to admire at it, neither have they so great joy; but where there is true Faith, there the soul doth not only wonder at Christ, at his first coming to Christ, but still more and more to all eternity.
And now my Brethren, me thinks that all wonders in the world should lie by a while, upon this wonder of Christ's being presented to you; and as we read in Dan. 6, of one that came in a vision, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision; so shall I call to a Gabriel? No, to Jesus
Christ, to the Immanuel, he that is the great wonder; Oh blessed blessed Redeemer, make these souls to understand these things, to understand somewhat of this wonder; we have many wonders of our own, and we tell this and that news, but O that Christ would but show himself now to your souls, that you may understand somewhat of this wonder, that your hearts may be forever taken off from wondering at anything in this world: I have seen, saith David, an end of all perfection, but thy Law is very broad: So we may say, and the heart would say that were brought to Christ, Oh Lord, I have seen an end of all the great things in the world, but Jesus Christ is very great and glorious indeed, it is he that hath darkened all the glory that there is in the world, but now I may say of all these things, as it is said of Daniel,
in chap. 12, ver. 10. None of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand these things that are spoken of Christ; the wicked they will not understand, those that God hath not given unto Jesus Christ will not understand, but they will be content to part with Christ for anything for all this: O detestable wickedness that there is in the heart of man, that after this that hath been revealed to you about Christ, so much of his glory held forth for the wonder of the world, that after this yet thou shouldest prize thy base lusts before all the good and the glory that there is in Jesus Christ: certainly that man or woman must needs have the Angels in Heaven, and all the Saints to acknowledge the righteous judgment of God in the condemnation of them, that hath lived under the Gospel, and hath heard what a wonderful
Savior is come into the world, if such a one should yet go away, and prize a base filthy lust before all the good and glory that there is in Jesus Christ; take heed of this: certainly if it be so, if any of you be found at the great day still going on in the ways of known fins, this will be your charge,
You lived in such a place wherein you heard that my Son was the great wonder of the world, and glorious things were shown you, to allure you to believe in him, and yet he was nothing in your eyes, but your own vile lusts were more glorious in your eyes: O just and righteous is the condemnation of this creature forever; certainly the sin of unbelief, the sin of rejection of Jesus Christ must needs be a dreadful sin, because Jesus Christ is so great a wonder as you have heard.