there were some so fond of this old Yoke as that they would have imposed it upon those that had received the Christian Faith Now saith the Apostle Now therefore why tempt ye God to put a Yoke upon the neck of the Disciples which neither we nor our Fathers were able to bear Yet they were forced to bear it till God removed it And in Gal. 5. 1. Stand fast therefore in the Liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free and be not entangled again with the Yoke of Bondage 'T was a Yoke of Bondage How a Yoke of Bondage The Rites and Ceremonies of the Law they were painful and burdensom chargeable and burdensom to all the people to have all their Male-children circumcised which was to have their Fore-skin pulled off which was painful To have the first of their Flocks given to the Priests for Sacrifices To go three times a year to Jerusalem to appear in the City of Jerusalem In a word the Ceremonial Law was so painful and burdensom that the carnal people of that Church did complain of it Mal. 1. 7 8. Ye offer polluted bread upon mine Altar and the blind and the lame and the sick And in v. 13. Ye said Behold what a weariness is it ye have snuffed at it saith the Lord and ye brought that which is torn and the lame and the sick Thus you see the Law was so burdensom as they snuffed at it They were called upon for Sacrifices and they would bring the lame and the torn and the weak They were loth to bring to best of their Flocks when God required it But our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ by his coming the Priesthood and Law is abrogated And saith Christ My yoke is easie and my burden is light Why for he hath taken the burden upon himself Our dear Lord Jesus instead of calling for the best of our flocks to be offered for Sacrifice he offered himself a Sacrifice for sins for ever and he accepts of our lame and weak performances that are done with a humble sincere heart relying upon his perfect Righteousness He hath offered up himself his blessed self for a Sacrifice for sin My yoke is easie and my burden is light Yea our Lord Jesus Christ by the change of the Priesthood doth not impose upon us a going three times a year to a certain place at a great distance to worship but he left us to our liberty to worship him in spirit and truth in any place As Christ said to the woman of Samaria in John 4. 21. The hour cometh when ye shall neither in this Mountain nor yet at Jerusalem worship the Father This is the sum of Christs Law that you should come to him by Faith and receive the Gospel and repent of your sins and to be holy as he is holy The Law of Christ calls for Faith calls for Repentance It also gives power to believe A true Believer he knows that he doth not only command a duty but he gives power also to perform it in some measure to his people The Apostle here gives you the reasons of the change of the Priesthood and of the Law and we are bound to bless the Lord for his new Law and this his new Priesthood and therefore they do very ill that do mingle the Worship of God with the Jewish Ceremonies when the Lord Jesus Christ hath abrogated them SERMON V. Hebrews 7. 13 14 15 16. For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another Tribe of which no man gave attendance at the Altar For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda of which Tribe Moses spake nothing concerning Priest-hood And it is yet far more evident for that after the similitude of Melchisedeck there ariseth another Priest Who is made not after the Law of a carnal commandment but after the power of an endless life HAving undertaken through the Lords assistance briefly to go thorow this chapter Last day we concluded the 12th verse of this chapter The change of the Priest-hood and so of the Law Now in these words which I have read we have that great point proved namely That Jesus Christ and his Priesthood is of another kind differing from the Levitical Priesthood And the Apostle proves it thus The Priesthood under the Law was of the Tribe of Levi But Jesus Christ and his Priesthood sprang out of the Tribe of Judah Two different Tribes therefore two different Priesthoods The Priest-hood of Aaron was after the Law of a carnal commandment the Priesthood of Christ after the power of an endless life It is of great concern to all our Souls to have a right apprehension of the Priesthood of Jesus Christ for therein lies our Salvation To begin with the 13th verse For he of whom these things are spoken pertained to another Tribe These things are spoken That is the things spoken of before in this chapter Our Lord Jesus Christ who was prefigured by Melchisedeck who was the Priest of the most high God without beginning of days or end of life without Descent he of whom those great and excellent things are spoken This Jesus Christ he pertained to another Tribe not to the Tribe of Levi what is that A Tribe in Scripture signifies all those that spring out of one Stock Jacob had twelve Sons and the people that came of them were called twelve Tribes distinguishing one from another The Tribe of Levi and the Tribe of Judah c. Now Jesus Christ of whom these things are spoken pertained to another Tribe than that of Levi. Whence first observe The great condescention of our Lord Jesus Christ in associating himself with the Children of men That he that is the Eternal Son of God was willing to be reckoned among men amongst the Tribes of men For you read of him Prov. 8. That he was with the Father from Eternity Yet he rejoiced in the habitable parts of the Earth and his delight was with the Sons of men in v. 31. That the Eternal Son of God should so far abase himself to be reckoned among the Tribes of men This is great condescention But. saith the Apostle It is evident that our Lord sprang out of Judah i. e. that he took his Humanity out of that Family which did belong to the Tribe of Judah it is evident And how is it evident that Jesus Christ according to flesh came out of the Tribe of Judah It is evident in the Genealogy in Matth. 1. There you may read that Jesus Christ came out of the Tribe of Judah That chapter and other such chapters in the Scripture may seem to be unprofitable places of Scripture to them that do not understand the scope of them But such Scriptures are as necessary as any thing in the Bible to prove by the Genealogy that Jesus Christ the second person of the sacred Trinity did come out of the Tribe of Judah And for this he is called The Lion of the Tribe of Judah having power to
and Man and therefore it was impossible for him to be holden of death Thirdly Christ's death was but to do the great part of his Priestly Office and so there was no intermission of his Priestly Office The Apostle tells us that he being a Priest he must offer something as other Priests had done Now he offered himself as the great Sacrifice for our sins to the Justice of God so that in his death his Priestly Office was so far accomplished and therefore he is said to abide for ever and to have an unchangeable Priesthood Fourthly and Lastly Jesus Christ is Risen again and Dies no more and therefore he is said to live for ever Rom. 6. 8 9. Now if we be dead with Christ we believe that we shall also live with him knowing that Christ being raised from the Dead Dieth no more Death hath no more dominion over him hence you read in Rev. 1. 18. I am he that liveth and was dead and behold I am alive for evermore This he spake when he appeared to John walking in the midst of the Golden Candlesticks in his Priestly attire I am he that liveth and was dead and behold I am alive for evermore Death hath no more dominion over Jesus Christ therefore he is said to continue for ever And saith the Apostle be continuing for ever he hath an unchangeable Priesthood i. e. he hath a Priesthood that can never be separated from his Person to pass from one to another so the word signifies and therefore our Translators put it so in your Margent He hath a Priesthood that passeth not from one person to another Our Lord Jesus Christ his great High-Priest-hood passeth not from one to another and there are these three Reasons for it First Because he is all-sufficient to finish the work of our Redemption He is Almighty and therefore in Psal 89. which is a Prophesie of Christ under David as his Type in the 19. ver Then thou spakest in Vision to the holy one and saidst I have laid help upon one that is mighty I have exalted one chosen out of the people So Isa 9. 6. For unto us a Child is born unto us a Son is given and his Name shall be called Wonderful Counsellor the Mighty God the Everlasting Father the Prince of Peace There is none ever able to take up the work of Christ if he should lay it down but our Redeemer he is mighty and alsufficient to finish the work of our Redemption And then Secondly As he is Mighty and All-sufficient in his Person as God-man so also his death hath a perpetual virtue in it and therefore it is said he offered up himself once for all Heb. 7. 27 the latter part of the Verse for This he did once when he offered up himself he took away sin when he offered up himself Thirdly Christ hath an Everlasting Priesthood an unexchangeable Priesthood For he is admitted to sit at the Lords right hand for ever Heb. 10. 12. So that you may see he hath an unexchangeable Priesthood And thus much for the opening and explanation of this Verse For application these things are divers ways useful First For the Comfort the unspeakable Comfort of them that truely believe in the Lord Jesus Christ Here we have an unexchangeable Priesthood to rest upon Christ for our hope The Apostle tells us that he is our hope of Glory And Oh what a mercy and blessing it is that our hope is not in Man whose Breath is in his Nostrils but in the Eternal Son of God! In him who continues for ever Look into the World and there you will find abundance that live in their Worldly hope but where are their hopes built but commonly upon Men whose Breath is in their Nostrils When their Friends die their hopes die But here we have an Immortal Saviour to build our hopes upon one that continues for ever And this was Jobs comfort in the midst of his affliction as you may see in Job 19. 25. He knew his Redeemer lived his Children were all dead and gone but his Redeemer lived and that was his comfort his estate was gone but still his Redeemer lived and that was his comfort his Friends had left him still his Redeemer lived and he knew himself must die and Worms consume his Body yet still his Redeemer lived Oh Soul rest thou in the Faith of our Lord Jesus Christ and take comfort of Gospel Truth That Jesus Christ liveth for ever As Jesus Christ liveth for ever So he liveth for the good of all Believers He liveth for our good if we Believe in him and therefore saith the Apostle he is able to save to the uttermost all those that come unto God by him seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for us Our Lord Jesus Christ doth live everlastingly for our good our life is bound up in the Everlasting life of Christ saith the Apostle in Col. 3. and the beginning Our life is hid with Christ that is the life of our Souls And when he shall appear then shall we also appear with him in Glory I remember the words in 1 Sam. 25. when that wise Woman Abigail came to David to appease his wrath against her Husband and Family she used this expression in ver 29. But the Soul of my Lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the Lord thy God I allude to it that the Lord Jesus Christ is the bundle of life for all the Saints the Eternal life of every Believer is bound up in him he is the great bundle of life for saith he because I live ye shall live also And again This is the Record which God hath given that he hath given Eternal life and this life is in his Son Oh make Faith of this or else all the Preaching of Christ will not be profitable to you if you cannot make Faith of it And as this doth speak comfort so it also speaks duty And what is that Why that we live to him that liveth for ever remember that Scripture 2 Cor. 5. 14. For the love of Christ constraineth us because we thus judge that if one died for all then were all dead and that he died for all that they which live should not henceforth live to themselves but unto him which died for them and rose again As Christ did die for us for our Sins so he did rise again for our Justification Oh shall we not then live to him Many are apt to forget their dead Friends and Relations tho they have done much for them and they know it not as Solomon speaks in Eccles 9. 5. for the living know that they shall die but the dead know not any thing neither have they any more a reward for the memory of them is forgotten and they know it not and if their Sons come to honour they know it not and if they be brought low they perceive it not But our Living Redeemer he knoweth all he knows all the Souls that
then the Grace of God by which we are saved signifies nothing to us For if it be of works it is not of grace But on the other hand If we be saved by grace then not by works Works is no more works See therefore look that you live wholly and solely upon the grace of God in Jesus Christ And that you do your work not from your self and not for your self As for example If a man do receive an Estate or an Inheritance of his Father as a free gift then he pays nothing for it If a man says he deserved it or that he wrought for it this takes away the freeness of the gift If it be of gift it is not of duty If it be of duty it is not of gift So if it be of grace 't is not of works and therefore cease from your work in the matter of your Justification that is stand clear from resting on your works Look at free Grace in Christ for all for he ever liveth to make Intercession for us 'T is when we are saved by Grace that we are able to work and God doth graciously accept of our work But how as we are united to him by his Son Jesus Christ our great Intercessor Hence you have that Col. 3. 17. And whatsoever you do in word or deed do all in the Name of the Lord Jesus giving thanks unto God and the Father by him How when you pray pray in the Name of the Lord Jesus and believe in the Name of the Lord Jesus for acceptance and when you praise the Lord praise him in the Name of the Lord Jesus and trust in him for acceptance Do all in the Name of the Lord Jesus because he is the great Intercessor for our Souls And he takes away the iniquity of our holy things that they may be accepted And he offers up his own Intercession with the prayers of the Saints and therefore whatever you do do all in the Name of the Lord Jesus This is the Spiritual Lesson that we are to learn from this Doctrine or Truth that we are now upon That if Jesus Christ be able to save to the uttermost all those that come unto God by him then rest upon him with full and entire Faith and cease from your own works and rest wholly and alone upon the Lord Jesus Christ 2. Here is great encouragement and comfort for them that believe in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ Such are our sins and we have so much of guilt upon us and defilements in us as we know not how with any face to make our appearance before a holy God And many Christians upon occasions are ready to despair of finding mercy with God 'T is true if there were not a Mediator an Intercessor for us there were reason to despair indeed But God hath put a great Office upon his Son that he shall make Intercession for Transgressors Isa 53. 12. The Father there speaking of his Son with which I shall conclude He hath poured out his Soul unto death And he was numbred with the Transgressors and he bare the sin of many and made Intercession for the Transgressors These expressions shew that God the Father loved his Son because he bare our sins and made Intercession for the Transgressors therefore will I divide him a portion with the great and he shall divide the spoil with the strong because he made his Soul an offering for sin and bare the sin of many Let this be comfort and encouragement to every poor Believer And say thus Well I have many sins and many infirmities but thanks be to God the League is broken I do not love them but I hate them I am one that hangs upon Jesus Christ And seeing I have heard that he is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by him seeing he ever liveth to make Intercession for all those that come unto God by him I will come unto God by him SERMON XI Hebrews 7. 26. For such an High-priest became us who is holy harmless undefiled separate from sinners and made higher than the Heavens I Have through Divine Assistance gone thus far through this Chapter where the Apostle treats so largely of Jesus Christ and of his Priestly-office As we are to live by Faith and to be saved by Faith so it is of great moment to every one rightly to understand and to be instructed by Jesus Christ and his Priestly-office For as we are sinners there is no coming to a holy God but by him By him we are said to draw nigh to God in verse 19. as hath been shewed And he is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by him in verse 25. which was the last thing was handled He is able to save to the uttermost them that come unto God by him So that the Knowledge of Jesus Christ and Faith in him is that Knowledge that is absolutely necessary to Salvation Therefore the Apostle doth so much inlarge upon it in this Scripture and in other Scriptures Now in these words which I have read for our present meditation we have a further Argument and Demonstration given by the Apostle to prove that Jesus Christ our great High-priest is far more excellent than the High-priests under the Law And the Argument is drawn from his purity and their sinfulness His purity being holy harmless undefiled separate from sinners Whereas the Priests under the Law they were guilty of sin and therefore they did offer Sacrifices first for their own sins in verse 17. But our Lord Jesus Christ is one separated from sinners so that the Argument lies thus That Priest that High-priest pure and undefiled and hath no sin in him must needs be more excellent than they that had sin and did offer Sacrifice for their own sins I begin now with verse 26. For such an High-priest became us who was harmless i. e. such an High-priest was needful for us and suitable for us in our state and condition for if we have had an High-priest that was not Holy and Harmless how should he carry on the work of an High-priest How should he save us from our sins How should he bring us from Misery if he had not been Holy and Harmless But such an High-priest became us who was Holy If any other had undertaken to appear in the presence of God for us he could never have brought this work about Therefore it became us to have such an High-priest It was not for a sinner to appear in the presence of a Holy God if we had not such an High-priest we could not have had acceptance with God if we had not a Holy Advocate You know what old Eli said to his Sons said he If one man sin against another the Judge shall Judge him 1 Sam. 2. 25. But if a man sin against the Lord who shall entreat for him There is no man fit to treat with a Holy God that sins against the Lord. But
you will object and say Did not God appoint Job to pray for his Friends and interceed for his Friends And did not Abraham pray for Sodom And they were sinners and yet they were injoined to pray for them For that we must distinguish between the Prayer of the Saints and the Intercession of a Mediator By the Intercession of Jesus Christ the Prayers of the Saints are accepted of God why Because they come to him as a reconciled God by Jesus Christ And their Prayers are made at the Throne of Grace But the Intercession of Jesus Christ is not to a reconciled God without Christ but to reconcile God by Christ by his Death and Suffering Christ he appears in the presence of God for us to present his Blood as the means of our reconciliation Jobs Prayer was not to make reconciliation between God and his Friends by his Merits But it was to draw out that Mercy he was willing to bestow upon them It became Jesus Christ to be Righteous to be our Advocate saith the Apostle If any Man sin we have an Advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the Righteous who is a Propitiation for our sins It was suteable to our condition that he that should appear in the presence of God for us should be perfectly Righteous But then here we have the purity of Christ set forth in four Branches 1. He is said to be Holy 2. Harmless 3. Undefiled And 4. Separate from Sinners And then we have his Exaltation follows in these words made higher than the Heavens These things we shall briefly explicate as God shall assist and then come to some Application First saith the Text He was Holy It became us to have such an High Priest who was Holy Now Holiness as it here stands in distinction from Undefilement it signifies that Holy Consecration which Christ was under in his Priestly Office For the Apostle hath reference in this word Holy unto the Holiness of the High Priest which was his dedication and consecration to God And therefore if you look into the 106. Psalm v. 16. You find there that Aaron is called the Saint of the Lord or the Holy one of God How is that Moses was as much the Saint of the Lord in respect of Spiritual Grace as Aaron was But this is not spoken in reference to their Graces but in reference to their Office Aaron was the Saint of the Lord the Holy one of God by Consecration For God took him out of Israel and set him apart for his Holy Service and as he was to approach to God he was to have Holiness written upon his Breast-plate as you may see Exod. 28. 36. Thou shalt make a Breast-plate of pure Gold and Grave upon it with the Engraveings of a Signet HOLINESS TO THE LORD This was to be Graven on the Breast-plate Holiness to the Lord because he was to go into the Holy of Holies where God manifested himself and God will be Sanctified by all those that draw near to him And therefore he must have a Breast-plate upon him with this Engraving upon it Holiness to the Lord. Why Because he was Consecrated to appear before the Holy God So when Christ is said to be Holy He is the person that is Sanctified and set apart to appear in the presence of God for us Therefore you have those words of our Saviour Joh. 17. 19. And for their sakes I Sanctifie my self that they also might be Sanctified through thy Truth What is the meaning of this Christ was Sanctified from the Womb by the Holy Spirit But saith he for their sakes I Sanctifie my self i. e. I do set my self apart for their service and do give up my self for their sakes to appear in the presence of God for them And such an High Priest became us who is Holy to appear in the presence of God for us Secondly The Text saith he is Harmless Every one of these four words have their particular signification All drives to this to set out the Lord Jesus Christ in his personal excellencies He is Harmless the word signifies one that never did any wrong and therefore in another place it is translated Innocent one that did no wrong either in thought word or deed And saith the Apostle He knew no sin 1 Cor. 5. and the latter end and saith the Apostle Peter there was no guile found in his Mouth 1 Pet. 2. 24. he was harmless He was one that could never be charged with wrong done to the Name of God or to the good of Man-kind he was Innocent and therefore when the Scribes that were his bitter Enemies and always Quarreling with him saith he in way of challenge he made against them which of you convinces me of Sin As if he should say you make great opposition against me of this and that but which of you convinces me of sin Joh. 8 46. and Joh. 14. 30. For the Prince of this World cometh and hath nothing in me If the Devil could have found any thing in Christ but Innocency he would have taken the advantage of him This is the second Branch of the purity of Christ He was Holy and Harmless Thirdly Vndefiled He was undefiled i. e. his Humane Nature was never polluted with Original Sin and Corruption never took hold on the Person of Jesus Christ so he is said to be undefiled We are unclean and we come into the World unclean But our Lord Jesus Christ tho' he took our Nature upon him yet he did not take the sinfulness of our Nature He was undefiled in respect of all Original Sin and Corruption there you read in the first of Luke when the Angel came to Mary to bring her the first Tidings of Christs conception and Birth he said to her in the 35 Verse The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of the highest shall over-shadow thee Therefore the Holy thing that shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God He was Holy Pure and Undefiled in his Conception David confessed in his Penitential Psalm That he was conceived in Sin and brought forth in Iniquity as all men are but our Lord Jesus Christ he was conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost And he is Holy and Undefiled He hath nothing of the Corruption of Mans Nature upon him And that is his third excellency And then Fourthly It is said he is separate from Sinners This is still to hint out to us that he came not of the sinful Race of Mankind He came of the Race of Mankind but not of the sinful Race For God separated him from the sinful Race of Mankind The Man Christ Jesus separated from sinners i. e. from all sinners that came out of Adams Loins That tho' he was a Man he was separated from Man as a sinner separated from sinners But here it may be objected How can it be said that Christ was separated from sinners when he converst so much with sinners when he was here