I not turned your faith into fight? See now, and examine carefully, whether it is, as I have made you believe it would be. Here I prefent myself unto you really and truly as I am. Say, are we like each other? if not, prove it and make me a liar. But if we are truly like each other; if I can be seen in you, and you may be seen in me, believe and adore my love for ever. Say, and

admire what manner of love the father hath beftowed upon us! how great! how marvellous! how matchlefs!

This furnishes a powerful motive to endeavor to imitate him now in our deportment. He that believes that the entire character of the Savior is by imputation upon him, and is affured of being hereafter made like him in his outward perfon, will purify himself also as he is pure. He, and he only will do it. He has powerful reasons to induce him, which others have not. So alfo reafons another apoftle, who fays, Our converfation is in heaven; from whence alfo we look for the Savior, the Lord Jefus Chrift: who fhall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is

able to subdue all things unto himself.

The converfation of the apostles was in heaven. They endeavored to live in holiness, meekness and wifdom, as if they had been there already, and ftrove hereby to imitate the heavenly life. The reason was, that they expected the Savior to come from thence to change the present body, and give it a ftate of exiflence equal to the fublimity of a celeftial life. While they were waiting for this happy event, they fancied and believed that they were in heaven, and tried to imitate the life there as well as they could, in the body as it then was.

But, as I said, they expected the body to receive fuch improvement in this change, as would make

all the scenes and move

it able to keep pace with ments of a celeftial life. In the refurrection it is to undergo fome of the grandeft impreffions and operations of almighty power; and to be refined and raised to a pitch of exiflence, in form and movements like that of Chrift. The apoftle speaks, as if he, carefully viewing his own form, will be framing and drawing ours after the fame model; correcting, changing and fubduing, all that, wherein

we

we are unlike, till by extraordinary labors and exertions of wisdom and power, he has transfigured our bodies, and forced them out of their present weakness and deformity, into that fublime and tranfcendent mode of exiftence which he himself poffeffes.

But though it is thus reprefented, to give an idea of the workmanship which is to be bestowed upon it, yet this change will be brought about fuddenly. Upon the founding of the trumpet in the last day, the body will be metamorphofed; and will, by the exertions of almighty force, inftantly pass into a celeftial and spiritual mode of existence, in form and activity like that of God. For it fhall be fafhioned, fays the apoftle, like unto his glorious body, by the energy of the power whereby he is able to fubdue all things unto himself.

Many of the pagans formerly mocked at the doctrine of the refurrection, as a thing in its own nature impoffible and ridiculous. And they are not without their fucceffors among nominal chriftians The outcry then was, How are the dead raised, and with what body do they come? It appeared

unto them a doctrine impoffible to be true; and therefore it was only neceffary to afk, how it could be, to make it confute itself. This was the former, and is the present objection of fools. They reasoned thus, that a dead body divided and fcattered, as many of them are, through earth and fea and all the elements, can never be gathered together again. How can it be? Who can find out the contents of many dead bodies, and be able to separate them from the earth, water, air and animals? I anfwer, he that weighs the mountains in fcales, and the hills in a balance. He that knows every atom that he has made; who joins, or feparates them at pleasure. The great Chemist, whose operations are fo admirable through the the creation, is able to throw all nature into that conflict, that every particle will naturally leave its foreign and accidental connection, and tend to a ftate of union and

contact with its homogenial atoms. Upon this principle it appears, that the contents and fubftance of every human body however fcattered or connected with other bodies, may be brought together without doing any thing but what, in its own nature, is very common and familiar to men. For

if a chemift can take fubftances or bodies composed of various and contrary particles, and by his chemical art, feparate them, and caufe thofe of the fáme nature to unite together, who can deny the fame power unto God? He is the real artift, and man but a mimick. He will therefore in the laft day, cause the mixture to separate, and make the fcattered parts of the human body incline to unite till all the congenial particles are come together into a distinct, though crude flate. And out of this mass a new body will be formed.

It is not therefore what was buried only, that will contribute to the production of the new body, but all that the old, as its own contents, ever really poffeffed. The human body now, is a mixture of other men's bodies; and of beafts, birds and all the elements. By breathing, eating, drinking, dying, and then being fcattered and evaporated, we are mixing, and mixed with each other, and all things above and beneath; ever borrowing and lending fubstances to, and from each other, and all the elements. But when this chemical force, fhall pervade all nature, and throw her into a general conflict, it will difpofe and incline all congenial