to this honourable and blessed connection with the heavenly family was the principal design of the Saviour's advent. "When the fulness of time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons." Accordingly, all who believed in him in the days of his flesh, were actually restored to this high and holy relationship. "As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe in his name."

The bestowment of a privilege so great and glorious may well excite the astonishment and thankfulness of all who enjoy it. It filled the beloved disciple with adoring wonder and glowing gratitude. "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed on us, that we should be called the sons of God!" It is a high and honourable distinction to be permitted to become the servants of God. It is higher still to be made the friends of God. How high and lofty then the distinction of being the sons of God! What are all worldly distinctions, all earthly titles and dignities, compared with being the sons of God! They dwindle into utter insignificance -they are wholly obscured in the effulgence of this exalted dignity and honour.

Nor is this an empty title-a mere honorary distinction, which imparts no benefit, or from which no real advantage is derived. It is significant of inestimable blessings and of glorious things. It gives access to God as a reconciled Father, imparts a title to the heavenly inheritance, and inspires a joyful hope of a blissful immortality. "If children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs

with Christ."

Can a knowledge of this exalted privilege-this blessed relationship, be obtained? Can those who are adopted into the heavenly family have an assurance of the fact? It will not be questioned that God can impart this knowledge or assurance to any whom he pleases thus to favour; and that he will bestow it upon those whom he admits into so intimate and endearing a relationship seems reasonable to suppose. As he bestows upon them such wondrous grace-such condescending love as to adopt them into his family and treat them as "dear children," it would be strange indeed if he did not impart to them a knowledge of the fact.

Appealing to the sacred Scriptures we find numerous instances recorded of persons being favoured with this blessed knowledge. In the first age of the world, while as yet the promises of the Saviour were but comparatively obscure, and religious light but dim, Abel "obtained witness that he was righteous," that he was justified and accepted of God, and adopted into the heavenly family. Enoch, before his translation, "had this testimony, that he pleased God," that he enjoyed the divine favour and approval. Noah received a

similar testimony. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were favoured with repeated assurances of the divine favour. David speaks in joyous strains of his sins being forgiven and his iniquities being pardoned. Many of the prophets enjoyed an assurance of the divine favour. And during our Saviour's public career he assured many who came to him that their sins were forgiven. Leaving the Gospel narratives, and coming to the epistles of the inspired apostles, we find "the knowledge of salvation by the remission of sins," or a consciousness of adoption into the family of God, represented as the common experience of Christian believers. In the epistle to the Romans the Apostle Paul says, "Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God:" language this, which manifestly implies a knowledge of adoption into the heavenly family, and of a consequent title to the heavenly inheritance. In the second epistle to the Corinthians the same apostle says: "For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." Similar language is scattered throughout his epistles, but we will quote only one other passage: "Ye took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance." The Apostle Peter speaks with equal certainty: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you." The Apostle John is not less clear and explicit on the subject: "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure." From these, and numerous other passages of a similar kind, it is evident that the knowledge of the divine favour was the common experience of the Christians of the apostolic age.

We have thus seen that an assurance of the favour of God was enjoyed by many under the patriarchal, the Levitical, and at the commencement of the Gospel dispensation. If, therefore, believers cannot now know that they are accepted of God and adopted into his family, their privileges are not only inferior to those of believers in the apostolic age, but also to those of the saints in former dispensations, which surely will not be admitted by any who understand the superior light and glory of the Gospel dispensation.

The question then arises, how, or by what means, is this knowledge of the divine favour obtained? Abel obtained it by some external

testimony; a testimony which was understood by Cain as well as he: for "Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell" because Abel was accepted of God and himself was not. Some outward testimony, too, appears to have been given to Enoch; and Noah was favoured with a direct and oracular testimony from God that he was righteous. Abraham appears to have received a similar testimony of the divine favour; God said unto him, "Fear not, Abraham; I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward." An angelic messenger said to Isaiah, "Lo, thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin is purged." The angel Gabriel said to Daniel, "O man greatly beloved, fear not: peace be unto thee." The same distinguished angel said to the Virgin Mary, "Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee;" or, as it is rendered in the margin, thou art "graciously accepted, or much graced." So to many whom the Saviour pardoned, he spoke directly, assuring them that they were forgiven.

But these extraordinary circumstances do not now occur; and the Saviour is not now with us in his bodily presence as he was with his disciples in the days of his flesh. No outward voice now gives information to believers respecting their acceptance with God; no angelic messenger is sent from heaven to assure them of the fact. Satisfactory testimony of their adoption is nevertheless afforded; this testimony is nothing less than the testimony or witness of the Holy Spirit. "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God."

It has been matter of dispute, and still is, whether one or two witnesses are here spoken of. The language certainly favours the belief that two witnesses are meant, the witness of the Holy Spirit concurring with the witness of our own spirit. The original words seem to be still more explicit. The word rendered "beareth witness with," is not the simple form paprups, he witnesseth, but the compound form, ovμμaprνpeî; the preposition ovv denoting the concurrence of the witness of the Spirit with the witness of our own spirit. "The words clearly teach us," says Dr. Cooke, "that the evidence of our adoption is two-fold-the witness of the Holy Spirit and the witness of our own spirit. The meaning lies upon the surface of the passage, and is so obvious that we wonder that any theologian should have attempted to reduce the testimony to that of one agent, namely, the testimony of our own spirit. Certainly "the Spirit itself," which bears witness with our spirit, is as distinct from our own spirit as two men deposing in a court of justice are two distinct beings." Bishop Sherlock in his sermon on the subject speaks in similar language, and argues the point against Grotius and others. "As our translators have represented St. Paul's meaning, there is no room for dispute concerning the number of the witnesses, which are evidently two: The Spirit beareth witness

with our spirit;' The Spirit itself, that is, the Spirit of adoption, which Christians receive, is one witness; and our own spirit is the other witness. But the vulgar Latin, and several other translators render the words to this effect: The Spirit itself beareth witness to our spirit. According to this sense, which is maintained by Grotius and Crellius, and some others, there is but one witness, the Spirit of adoption, who bears evidence to our spirit. But the words of the original evidently imply the sense which our translators follow. Evμpaproper signifies to be a fellow-witness, or to witness the same thing that another does. And so the word constantly signifies in Scripture, and is never used but where there is a concurrent evidence of two witnesses. We meet with the same word in Rom. ii. 15. Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile accusing or else excusing one another. And to this place Grotius sends us to show that the word is used of one single witness only; as here the conscience only is said to bear witness. But a little attention will show us in this place another witness: the apostle proves from the evidence of conscience that the Gentiles had the work or matter of the law written in their hearts: the law testifies to men what is good, and what is evil: if conscience testifies the same thing to be good and just which the law does, then conscience proves the matter of the law to be written in the heart; if it testifies anything else, so be it; but no other evidence will prove the apostle's assertion, that the Gentiles have the work of the law written in their hearts. And, therefore, the apostle's argument stands thus; the Gentiles shew the work of the law to be written in their heart by the testimony of their conscience, which agrees with the testimony of the law; their conscience and the law both allowing and forbidding the same thing. So that the apostle's argument plainly supposes the concurrent evidence of the law and of conscience. And, therefore, even here the word ovμpaprupeîv points out two witnesses to us. The same word is used by St. Paul in the first verse of the ninth chapter of the Romans: I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness, ovμparvovens por But here evidently are two witnesses to the same thing. When a man does not speak the truth 'tis certain that he witnesses one thing, and his conscience witnesses another, and are therefore two distinct witnesses: so are they likewise when a man speaks truth; for the same evidence will not make two witnesses to be one witness. And, therefore, here also there are two witnesses. St. Paul, who witnessed his affection to his countrymen, and his conscience, which witnessed for his sincerity. The word is used but once more in the New Testament, and that is in the last chapter of the Revelations, and there it is used with respect to testimony, in which Christ, and his angel whom he sent to the churches, and even St. John, were

concerned. So that the word is everywhere used of the concurrent evidence of two or more witnesses. And, this being the constant

use of the word, there can be no reason given why it should not be taken in the same sense here, and rendered, the Spirit itself beareth witness, not to, but with, or, together with our spirit, that we are the children of God."

In harmony with these views, and with the English version, Beza in his Latin version renders the verse thus: "Qui ipse Spiritus testator unà cum spiritu nostro, nos esse filios Dei."-The same Spirit witnesseth together with our spirit, that we are the children of God. To the same purpose is the French version of Martin: "C'est ce même Esprit qui rend témoignage avec notre esprit, que nous sommes enfans de Dieu."-It is the same Spirit that bears testimony with our spirit that we are children of God.

That there are two witnesses to the fact of our adoption seems sufficiently clear, namely, the Holy Spirit and our own spirit. Let us examine each of these in order.

First. The witness of the Holy Spirit. We begin with this because it is first in the order in which the witnesses are named by the apostle, and also because it is first in the order of nature, it being the witness of the Holy Spirit which produces the witness of our own spirit, as we shall have occasion hereafter to show.

That it is the Holy Spirit, the third person in the ever-adorable Trinity, to which the apostle refers in the last quoted passage is as evident as it can well be. Crellius and others suppose, indeed, that it means our evangelical spirit, or evangelical temper; but the context shows that this supposition is without foundation, and is altogether erroneous. In the second verse of the chapter we read of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus which hath made us free from the law of sin and death, which cannot mean our evangelical spirit, since it is the agent by which our freedom from the bondage of sin and our evangelical temper is produced. In the fourth and fifth verses this Spirit is represented as the Spirit after which believers walk, which is the evidence of their regeneration. In the ninth verse he is called the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ as proceeding from the Father and the Son, and is represented as dwelling in the hearts of believers in conformity with another passage which says that believers are "temples of the Holy Ghost." In the eleventh verse the work of raising up Christ from the dead, and of quickening the bodies of believers is attributed to him, which surely cannot mean our evangelical spirit or temper. In the thirteenth verse he is represented as the agent by whose gracious help believers are enabled to mortify the deeds of the body. In the fourteenth verse they are said to be led by the Spirit. In the fifteenth he is called the Spirit of adoption which enables them to cry, Abba, Father. And it is the Spirit itself, or, as may probably