cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee and comest thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him, suffer it to be so now, for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water and lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting upon him: and, lo, a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

It was immediately after this glorious manifestation of his exalted dignity; that our Saviour was "led into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil." Satan perhaps might imagine that such a miraculous declaration of his glory, would throw him off his guard; for he knew by experience, that there was no time when human nature was less watchful, than when elated by an abundance of either temporal or spiritual blessings.

The sin to which he tempted our Saviour, was unbelief, and he threw the temptation before him in such a form and at such a time, that the natural passions of his human nature would strongly induce

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him to comply with it. The tempter begins his address by raising a doubt of that truth, which a voice from heaven had so lately proclaimed. If thou be the Son of God;" and he then urges him to put it to the proof-" command that these stones be made bread;" exactly in the same manner did Satan tempt our first parents. The Almighty had pronounced a sentence of death upon them, if they should eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. *"But the serpent said unto the woman ye shall not surely die;" and she believed the word of the devil, before the word of God, and fell an easy conquest to the tempter. For want of faith in God's word is the source of all disobedience. But our Lord resisted the temptation. And how, my brethren, did he resist it?-it was by "wielding the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." "He answered and said, it is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, and saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is

written, "He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone."

Satan having failed in tempting our Lord, to disbelieve God's word, and distrust his providence; now assaults him in a totally different manner, and endeavours to induce him to rush madly, and needlessly into danger; because the protection of heaven had been promised to him. Thus he frequently attacks us when he has drawn our observation and attention to one temptation, where we have been enabled to resist him, he retreats, but like a skilful general, he suddenly makes a charge in the opposite direction, where perhaps we are unprepared to oppose him.

We may observe, however, that in our Saviour's second temptation, his enemy persists in his efforts to make "him doubt the word of God, well knowing that as faith is the foundation of all godliness, if he could destroy that foundation, his victory would be easy and certain. He begins his address to our Lord in the same words as in his first temptation-" If thou be the Son of God;" he then quotes the word of God, and quotes it correctly.

*Ps. xci. 11-12.

He is transformed into an angel of light, and assumes the form of a preacher of righteousness. Thus also, he sometimes appears to us, when he would induce us to put off our repentance, he tells us from the holy Scriptures, that the thief on the cross was saved in his dying moments; and that those who were called into the Lord's vineyard at the eleventh hour received the same recompense, as those who had borne the burden and heat of the day. When he would tempt us to trust in our own righteousness for salvation, he tells us from Scripture, that we shall all be judged by our works, and if he would lead us to sin on, that grace may abound, he will tell us from the holy Scriptures, that our Salvation is by grace, not by works; and that our Heavenly Father is abundant in mercy. Thus he often persuades us, to wrest the Holy Scriptures to our own destruction, and to make that truth, which might be the savour of life unto life in our souls, the savour of death unto death.

Our Saviour gained a victory in this second temptation, with the same powerful weapon with which he had conquered in the first. He struck Satan with "the sword of the Spirit," he said unto him "it is written again, thou shalt not tempt the

Lord thy God. Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them. And saith unto him, all these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me." Here Satan makes his grand attack, he no longer pretends to doubt the exalted nature of our Lord; he seems even to acknowledge him as the Son of God, by the magnificence of the bribe which he offers him. Perhaps, my brethren, this eventful moment was the most important point of time to our fallen world that ever existed. The fate of mankind depended upon our Saviour's answer! for if he had been overcome; if he had accepted the offer of the tempter; and become the prince of this world, and the worshipper of Satan, the whole human race must have been lost for ever. If we were to give the rein to our imaginations on such a subject, we might well suppose, that the angelic host of heaven laid aside their golden harps, and ceased their song of thanksgiving, and that the powers of darkness repressed their weeping and wailing, all in eager and anxious attention, to catch our Saviour's answer, as he thus repulsed his enemy.

"Get thee hence Satan, for it is written,