329

Ess. x.] the Church and the Universe, various parts of these divine communications which afford an evidence, that, even in matters of an external nature, these Christian communities were subject to the retributive government, and depended on the protecting providence, of the Messiah: see Rev. ii, 5, 16, 22, 23, 24; iii, 3, 9, 10. But, although the providence of Jesus Christ, in his reign of glory, may be ever especially directed to the edification and government of his peculiar people, yet it is far indeed from being confined within the limits of the church itself. That it is yet infinitely more extensive may be fairly deduced from the doctrine advanced in the Epistle to the Hebrews, that it is the Son of God who "upholdeth all things by the word of his power," Heb. i, 3; and, in the Epistle to the Colossians, Paul declares that "by (or in) him all things consist:"4 Col. i, 17. There is nothing in the apostle's context which imposes any limit on the meaning of these comprehensive expressions; on the contrary, they are, in both instances, introduced in immediate connexion with the declaration, that by the Son of God the worlds were created. It must, therefore, I think be allowed, that, within a very short compass, they contain a sublime description of that divine nature which maintains all things, visible and invisible, in their right order-which fills, supports, and animates, created things-which controls and regulates the universe of God.

VI. Since Jesus Christ, in his reign, rules over the church, and over all the creatures of God-since he exercises, over the souls of men, a moral and spiritual government-since he converts and pardons the sinner, and sanctifies the believer-since he dispenses those personal endowments by the use of which the

3 φέρων τε τὰ πάντα τῷ ῥήματι τῆς δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ. * τὰ πάντα ἐν αὐτῷ συνέστηκε.

330

By his Providence.

[Ess. x.

church is edified-and since he regulates not only the church, but even the universe, by his providence, -it appears to follow, as a necessary consequence, that he is a proper object of prayer, glorification, and all devout affiance and allegiance. Now, the inference, which I thus venture to deduce from our premises, is distinctly supported by various passages in the New Testament. We have scriptural authority for asserting that the earliest Christians were distinguished as a peculiar people, by this very circumstance-that they were accustomed to call on the name of Jesus. When Ananias was pleading with our Lord, respecting the newly-converted Paul, he said, "Here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name," Acts ix, 14; by which significant expression, he obviously intended to describe all the Christians of the place or district. The same terms are adopted by Paul himself, who addresses his first Epistle to the Corinthians, not only to the church of Corinth, but to all the Christians-" to all that, in every place, call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:" i, 2. So also, Rom. x, 9--14; 2 Tim. ii, 22. Now, since the phrase rendered to call upon the name of a person is frequently employed in the Greek Scriptures, (especially in the Septuagint version of the Old Testament) and uniformly signifies to offer up prayers to that person, and thus to invoke his assistance-since, indeed, the words admit of no other fair interpretation-the passages

331

Ess. x.] Jesus Christ, in his Reign, now cited afford an evidence, incidental indeed, but not on that account the less irresistible, that it was the custom of the apostles and their followers to offer up their prayers to Jesus Christ the king of glory.

As the earliest Christians received, from the circumstance of their praying to Jesus Christ, what may be regarded as one of their distinctive denominations, so are there recorded, in the Acts and the Epistles, certain plain instances of their practising this duty.

Soon after the ascension of our Lord, his disciples assembled together in order to appoint an apostle in the room of Judas; and having selected Joseph and Matthias, from those who had companied with them all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out amongst them, "they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, that he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place :" Acts i, 21-25. Now, since the disciples had so lately been beholding the glorious ascension of their master -since, while he was ascending, they had already been engaged in worshiping him-since, in the context of this passage, as well as in the book of acts generally, the title Lord is appropriated to Jesusand since the choice of the apostles plainly belonged to his peculiar office in the Christian economy, John xv, 16; Eph. iv, 11-it seems a reasonable and almost inevitable inference, that this prayer was addressed to the Son of God.

We read that Stephen, when on the point of martyrdom, saw "the heavens opened, and the Son of

Trajan, (circa A.D. 110) informs the Emperor, that the Christians of Bithynia were accustomed to sing hymns to Christ as to a God-" quod essent soliti ante lucem convenire, carmenque Christo quasi Deo dicere secum invicem:" lib. x, ер. 97.

332

Is a proper Object

[Ess. x.

Man standing at the right hand of God:" and while his persecutors were stoning him, he prayed, saying,6 "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit; and he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge:" Acts vii, 56-60.

When, in their epistolary salutations, the apostles invoked the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ on the churches which they were addressing, they virtually called upon his name, and made him the object of their prayers: see Rom. i, 7; 2 John 3; Rev, xxii, 21, &c. Lastly, of his own prayers to Christ, the apostle Paul, in particular, has related a defined and memorable instance. "There was given to me," says he to the Corinthians, "a thorn in the flesh; the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly, therefore, will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of CHRIST may rest upon me:" 2 Cor. xii, 7-9.

Such was the practice of the apostles, and other early disciples, of the Lord Jesus-to their risen and glorified Master they did not hesitate to address their petitions. And such also was their doctrine, as appears to be evinced by the following passage of the first Epistle of John: "These things," says the apostle to the catholic church, "have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. And this is

Ess. x.]

of Prayer,

333

the confidence that we have in HIM, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us; and if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him:" 1 John v, 13—15.7

Finally, it is the Lamb, before whom, in the Revelation, the four living creatures and the four-and-twenty elders are represented, by the same apostle, as falling down in the act of worship, "having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints :" Rev. v, 8.8

7 Καὶ αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ παῤῥησία ἣν ἔχομεν πρὸς αὐτὸν, ὅτι ἐάν τι αἰτώμεθα κατὰ τὸ θέλημα αὐτοῦ, ἀκούει ἡμῶν· καὶ ἐὰν οἴδαμεν ὅτι ἀκούοι ἡμῶν, ὃ ἂν αὐτώμεθα, οἴδαμεν, ὅτι ἔχομεν, τὰ αἰτήματα ἃ ᾐτήκαμεν παρ ̓ αὐτοῦ.