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and know the blood of Christ to cleanse us from every sin.

Now I don't want to direct your attention to any thing which is external. I don't want to turn your attention to that unparalled act of atrocity, which crucified one of the most righteous of beings. No, surely; for we can never be saved by any act of wickedness. The crucifixion of Christ was a piece of unparalleled wickedness, in which they said, "his blood be upon us and our children." And it was eminently upon them, and it has been upon their children, and upon their offspring upon all those who have continued in the same state of hardness and unbelief. And wherever we continue in this state of hardness and unbelief, we as assuredly shed the blood of Christ as it was shed without the gates of Jerusalem. And what is the blood of Christ? Has it relation merely to the outward animal body? No: for it is a truth, that the blood is the life; and unto this very circumstance all the bloody offerings under the law had evident allusion. The blood is the life-the circulating medium which gives vitality to the whole system. It is only the life of Christ—a life of purity, of holiness; a life which was produced by a daily obedience to his Father's spirit-which can enable

us to worship him acceptably, or to adopt the language, Abba, Father.

And what are the operations of this spirit, and how are they to be felt in the mind? We may be querying after this manner, not knowing where to look, and ready to say, "Who shall ascend into heaven to bring Christ down from above? or who shall descend into the deep to bring him up from the dead?" But what saith the spirit? "The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart; that is the word of faith which we preach." But, alas! we have often fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah. We have despised and rejected him in his spiritual appearance. "He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and we hid, as it were, our faces from him: he was despised, and we esteemed him not." And wherefore? Because we want something of a more splendid nature. We want something better adapted to our own wills and inclinations. We want a saviour by whom we can be indulged in the gratification of our animal passions and propensities, and in the fulfilling of those principles which lead us to follow our senses. Here we have formed our ideas of Christ, and given him those miserable transformations by our own more miserable inventions; which, instead of

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bringing us to a knowledge of God, have enveloped us in darkness till confusion is worse confounded.

And many are ready to deny the operation of this divine principle, which speaks in every soul. Many say that revelation has ceased, and that all the revelation which we are now to look for, is contained in the scriptures of truth. But the scriptures speak of a priest-an high priest. And is he not called our king, priest, and prophet? Our king to govern us, our priest to instruct us in our duty to God, and our prophet to open divine mysteries to us. And of what order is he? He is not after the order of Aaron, but after the order of Melchisedec-after the order of an everlasting and unchangeable priesthood. "Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life, but made like unto the Son of God, abideth a priest continually." As he is, thus are all his followers, partakers of the same nature, not founded on systems formed by prejudice and tradition, but begotten of God, and him alone, into the same divine life, and brought forth in the same divine power. And here it is, that unity is maintained and experienced, because, being partakers of the same faith, we are go

verned by the same spirit, and every opposing disposition, every evil spirit, is cast out.

However diverse our opinions may be upon religious subjects, if we are under the influence of this divine and governing principle, and life of Christ, this circulating medium which gives vitality to the whole system, we shall be gradually knit together-our spirits will mingle, and we shall travail for one another's welfare in love, and we shall be enabled to bid each other God speed. But this depends on a daily attention to this principle; and one of the apostles laid this injunction: "Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith towards God." Leaving the principles and doctrines of Christ, and not depending verbally on the precepts which he gave: leaving them there was another resting place in view-"Let us go on unto perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith towards God, of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. And this will we do if God permit." Now if this is our individual care and concern-if our minds are above all things, endeavouring to come under the influence of this principle, which rectifies

every act and subjects all our affections, we shall be led into the situation of babes in Christ, then young men, then strong men. Our experimental knowledge will increase. And although children are as perfect as those of mature age, and the work of the same great Creator, and under his immediate care and providence, yet their minds are not developed. And while we are children, though we are not able to distinguish our right hand from our left, yet if we are preserved in innocency and in fear, light will be given us; and if we are obedient to the discoveries of truth, we shall thereby experience a growth in strength and wisdom, by which we shall experience peace equally with those who have attained to greater experience. And as every act of obedience gives experience, our minds will grow from that of babes unto that of young men, and our increase of experience will make us strong in love and in the power of God, in which we can testify of his mercy and of his judgments. This will produce that wisdom which stands not in length of years, neither is governed by number of months; but "wisdom is gray hairs unto man, and an unspotted life, old age."

These views will bring religion into a different form. It has been external, but it will become internal. It has been natural but it will

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