their gifts decline, and their profession dies away, till at length, they are cast into the fire and consumed." Awful the state! awful to be thus exposed! dreadful, beyond description, such an end! These solemn truths are taught us in other places beside the passage before us: see Matt. iii. 10. Hebrews vi. 8. Surely, surely then, we should enter on the investigation of our state, of our character and prospects, with great seriousness, impartiality, diligence, and prayer ; "lest any man fail of the grace of God." May we be one with Christ, and possess the delightful, animating hope, that, united to this true vine, we shall, as branches, flourish with vigour, and yield celestial fruit to all eternity!

SERMON XVI.

And he is the Head of the body, the church.-COL. 1. 18.

THE dignity of the Son of God is clearly stated in this chapter. The glory of his nature and perfection, as the image of the invisible God, and the head of every creature by his work as the Creator, and Preserver of all things seen and unseen, and also from the relation to his church, and the benefits flowing thence to his people. His relation is spoken of as that of a head to the body. It is sometimes considered politically, at other times naturally.

Political bodies have their head, chief, or president. As the king is the head of a monarchy, as the general is the head of his army, whoever holds the supreme power, or possesses the chief dignity in any society, is considered as the head in this view, Christ having "all power in heaven and earth," universal government and influence, is the head "Head over all things unto his church," "He is the head of every man," 1

over all. Ephes. i. 22. Cor. xi. 3.

:

But it is used also in a natural sense; that, as the other expresses power, this latter is more expressive of union, or more intimate relations; such a head is Christ to his church, that alone is spoken of as his body, and he is represented not only as a head over, but unto his people. It appears, therefore, to be a metaphor taken from the human body, and shows us that what the head is to our body, that Christ is to his people.

I. I shall offer some remarks upon Christ as such a head to his people.

II. Consider the Christian church as his body. I. Remarks upon Christ as a head to his people. First. The head is sometimes representative of the whole. In anointing persons, the consecrated oil was poured upon the head. So in Scripture, "blessings are upon the head of the just:" &c., Prov. x. 6. In this view, Christ the head represents the whole body. What he received, what he performed, what he endured, in what he now possesses as Mediator, he must be considered as our representative.

Second. The head possesses peculiar excellency. It is the most excellent in order, in perfection and power. Hence in danger, there appears a natural tendency to guard, or defend that; there, is the brain, the organ of sensation and thought; the eye, the ear, the taste, the smell, have their seat in the head; so the Lord Jesus "has in all things the pre-eminence :" to compare ourselves with him as God, would border upon blasphemy; and to do

so if we consider him as Mediator, would be too bold, presumptuous, and absurd; rather say,

"O'er all the sons of human race

He shines with a superior grace," &c.

or with the psalmist, "Thou art fairer than the children of men." Psa. xlv.

Third. The head exercises a diffusive and universal influence upon the body. The head may be considered as the source of sensation, activity, and nourishment to the body; for anatomists tell us, that the nerves descend from the brain by the spina dorsi, and from the vertebræ they branch out over the whole body, and this is necessary to the growth and prosperity, for where the vertebræ are displaced the growth is prevented, as in deformed persons, &c. So in the church of God, the members may be compact together, &c. but it is from the head, that the effectual working in every member proceeds, and maketh increase of the body, as in Eph. iv. 15, 16; and look at the verse following the text, where, speaking of some who were departed from Christ and his cause, it is observed, "they did not hold the head, from which all the body, by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God;" as one writes: "Here Christ is the head, and believers the body; here the body is fitly joined together and compacted, there is in all the members a congruity, and a close conjunction unto the head, and unto one another; here are joints

and bands; here is an effectual working in the measure of every part, the Holy Spirit stirs up the principles of grace in believers, the principles of grace stir up the soul, the soul in the virtue of those principles stirs up itself, all is set in motion from Christ the head; lastly, here is an edifying of the body, an increase with the increase of God, believers grow up into Christ in all things, their faith is more radicated, their love is more inflamed, their union with Christ becomes closer, their likeness to him grows more lively than before, in every part of the new creature there is a divine increase, and all is because they are united to the head. Oh what a head is Christ, how happy are believers who are in conjunction with him!"

Fourth. The head consults the welfare of the body. As the body depends upon its care, for preservation, and prosperity, so its thoughts are employed for these purposes; and you know the gracious regard of the Lord Jesus for the members of his mystical body, and how tenderly and daily he provides for their safety, support, and comfort; surely it may be said, "He careth for us."

II. Let us view the church as his body.

It is not my design upon this part of the subject, to run the parallel in many particulars, nor to enlarge upon those we may notice, but just to hint at such as most naturally present themselves to our view; as,

First. It is composed of many members; as in the human body we have many members, " so we