visible; the unbeliever is convinced by his senses, the only witnesses above reproach in his account. From hence Nicodemus addresses himself to Christ," Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God; for no man can do those miracles that thou doest, except God be with him ;” John iii. 2. That is, no inferior agent can perform them, without the special assistance of the divine power; and it is not to be supposed that God will lend his omnipotency to the devil to work a real miracle, to confirm a falsity; and thereby necessarily induce men into error in a matter of infinite mo`ment: for such is the doctrine of salvation that Christ preached.

The working of miracles was necessary to convince the world that Jesus Christ was sent from God, whether we consider the Jews or the Gentiles.

It was necessary to convince the Jews upon a double account ;-because the performance of them was one of the characters of the promised Messiah. For this reason when two of John's disciples came to inquire whether he were the expected prophet, he returns his answer to the question; "Go and show John those things which ye do hear and see, the blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them," Matt. xi. 4, 5. Thus he described his office, and verified the commission he had from God, by representing his miracles in the words of the prophecy, Isa. xxxv. 5—9.—Our Saviour came to alter the religion of the Jews, that had been confirmed by many illustrious miracles; therefore to assure them that he was authorized from heaven, he wrought such and so many, that for their greatness, clearness, and number, exceeded all that were done before his coming. Our Saviour tells the Jews, "If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin :" that is, in rejecting him; for if he had exercised only a power like unto that of Moses and the prophets, in his miraculous actions, they had been obliged to have honoured him as one of their rank, but not to have attributed an incomparable dignity to him, John xv. 24. But he did those which neither Moses nor the prophets had performed; and in those that had been done, Christ excelled them in the manner of doing them. This the Jews could not contradict, and from hence, their infidelity was made culpable.

Miracles were necessary to convince the Gentiles;-for the gospel forbids the various religions among them, and commands all to worship God alone in Christ Jesus; so that without a sensible demonstration, that that was the way wherein he would be served, their prejudices had been invincible. The gospel propounds threatenings and promises that regard a future state, where no living eye can see their effects; so that without an extraordinary confirmation it was not likely that men should yield a firm assent to them. If it be said, our Saviour did his miracles only in Judea, where very few of the Gentiles saw his person or works; I answer, his miracles were primarily designed for the conviction of the Jews, and, in. a secondary intention, to disarm infidelity among the Gentiles. Therefore the testimony of them was conveyed by those who were eye-witnesses and most worthy of credit, and who did many great wonders in the name of Christ, to verify the report of his famous miracles and declare his power and divinity. Of this more afterwards.

Now I will briefly consider the miracles wrought by Christ, that were the certain signs of God's favouring him, and made his commission authentic. Before his coming, the hand of the synagogue was dried up, and impotent to produce miracles. The Holy Spirit was withdrawn, and for the space of four hundred years, no prophet nor worker of wonders appeared. John the Baptist, though the angel deputed to signify the coming of Christ, yet did no miracles. But our Saviour was invested with power from above, and performed many.

Their quality and number is considerable.

1. Their quality. They were not mere signs, as the conversion of Moses' rod into a serpent; nor destructive and punishing, as the wonders in Egypt; but advantageous and beneficial to men, the equal demonstrations of his mercy and power.

He cured diseases that were absolutely desperate, without means, by his omnipotent will, as the son of the nobleman who was sick at Capernaum, when himself was at Cana in Galilee; or by such visible means, that the spectators might be fully convinced, that it was not the external application, but his sole virtue and divine power that produced the effect. Thus by anointing with clay and spittle the eyes of him that was born blind, who never had any natural possibility of seeing, he wrought an un aralleled cure: "Since the world

began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind," John ix. 32. Therefore he that was healed, inferred from that, as a most pregnant proof, that our Saviour was from God.

He raised the dead. This effect exceeds the power not only of men, but of the angels. It is true that one angel destroyed in a night a hundred four-score and five thousand of the Assyrian army; but it is as true, that all the angels together cannot raise from the dead one man. It is wholly the work of the Lord of nature, who holds the keys of life and death in his hands. It is only his light can dispel the darkness, his voice can break the silence of the grave. And it is observable, that our Saviour who sometimes concealed his miraculous works and forbad the publishing of them, yet performed this kind before many witnesses, that they might publish and verify it, as being most conclusive of his mission from God. He raised to life the ruler's daughter, to the astonishment of all that were present to attend her funeral, Mark v. 42. The widow's son of Nain was carried without the gates of the city to his grave; Jesus stops the sad train, and restores life to the young man, and to his mother something more dear than her life, Luke vii. 15. And the more signally to triumph over death, he pursued it to its fort, the obscurity of the grave. Lazarus was buried four days, his carcase was corrupted; Jesus calls him from the bottom of his tomb with that powerful voice that created the world; the dead answers, and comes forth to the amazement of all that saw the glory of God so clearly manifested, John xi. 44. The evangelist reports, that the people afterwards were as desirous to see Lazarus as Jesus. Add to these his casting out of devils. Before the fall, the unclean spirit was incorporated with the serpent, but now with man himself. He seizes on the external organs and internal faculties, and rules him at his pleasure. In the time of Christ great numbers were possessed; for the devil perceiving the ruin of his kingdom approaching, would extend the limits of it here, and by the perfect possessing of sinners, begin their torments, which is one act of his principality. The case of those persons was most compassionable; for in that close fight the soul was disarmed of its defensive weapons, being hindered in a great measure of the free use of its faculties. Whereas in other temptations he works by outward objects at a distance, here he makes a violent assault

on both parts. It is the true anticipation of hell; for the possessed person is not exempted from suffering, the privilege of death; nor enjoys the free power of doing, the effect of life. Now the rejecting of this enemy was above the force of any human means; no material applications had power over immaterial spirits. But our Saviour by a word commanded them forth of their garrisons: and the evangelists observe that the sight of it affected the people in an extraordinary manner above what his other miracles did. It is said, "They were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? what new doctrine is this? For with authority commandeth he even the unclean spirits, and they do obey him,” Mark i. 27 -29. His empire over evil spirits was more admired than over diseases, or death itself. Those who were insensible of his former miracles, received impression from this: "They were all amazed at the mighty power of God," confessing that "it was never so seen in Israel," Luke ix. 43; Matt. ix. 33. And another time they said, "Is not this the Son of David?" that is, the Messiah, Mat. xii. 23. The pharisees, his obstinate enemies, were more troubled about this, than any other action; and to elude the present conviction that he came from God, ascribed it to a secret compact with Beelzebub; as if there were a collusion between the evil spirits; a lesser devil retired that the prince might reign. But so great was the evidence of the Spirit of God in that act of jurisdiction over the devils, that our Saviour charges them with unpardonable guilt for their wilful denying of it. 2. Their number. The number of his miracles was so great, that St. John saith, if all were written, "the world could not contain the books." We may in part conjecture how numerous they were, by taking notice how many he performed in one day. He dined with Matthew at Capernaum; whilst he was there, Jairus intreats him to go to his daughter newly dead: as he went, the woman with the bloody issue touched the hem of his garment, and was healed; he raised the dead maid; in his returning he healed two blind men, and immediately after cast out the devil from one that was dumb, Matt. ix. And in all these miraculous operations, the glory of God's power was clearly manifested.

IV. The divine power admirably appeared in making the death of Christ victorious over all our spiritual enemies.

Now to show what an eminent degree of power was ex

ercised in the effecting of this, we must consider, that after Satan was cast out of heaven for his rebellion, he set up a throne on the earth, and usurped an absolute empire over mankind. His power was great, and `his malice was equal to his power. The apostle represents him with his black army, under the titles of "principalities and powers, the rulers of the darkness of this world, spiritual wickedness in high places," as in respect of the order among them, so in respect of the dominion they exercised in the world," Ephes. vi. 12. His principality hath two parts,-to tempt men powerfully to sin, and to execute the wrath of God upon them. He works effectually "in the children of disobedience." He fires their lusts, and by the thick ascending smoke darkens their minds, and hurries them to do the vilest actions. "And he hath the power of death," to torment sinners; God justly permitting him to exercise his cruelty upon those who comply with his temptations. Now in the time of Christ, seeing many ravished out of his hands and translated into the kingdom of God, he grew jealous of his state, and by his instruments brought him to a cruel and shameful death. He then in appearance obtained a complete conquest, but in truth was absolutely overcome. And from hence the glorious power of Christ is most clearly manifested. As he that will take the height of a mountain must descend to the lowest part of the valley, where fixing his instrument, he may discover the distance from the foot to the top of it; so we must descend to the lowest degree of our Saviour's abasement, to understand the height of his exaltation. By death he overcame him "that had the power of death, that is, the devil," Heb. ii. 14; for his cruel empire was founded in man's sin; his greatness was built on our ruins. All the penal evils he brings on mankind are upon the account of our disobedience, and his mighty power in temptations is from our inward corruption: otherwise he might surround, but could not surprise us. Now the Lord Christ by his death hath taken away the guilt and power of sin; the guilt, in enduring the curse of the law, and thereby satisfying eternal justice, which all the creatures in heaven and earth could not do; and the power of it, by crucifying 66 our old man with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin," Rom. vi. 6. By the cross of Christ the world is crucified to us; and we are crucified to the world, Gal. vi. 14. By it we are vindi