O seek, my friends, to be delivered from the strange delusions, the strange deities, the strange gods of the time wherein you live. Besides, the evident errors of this time, some that profess to be contending against errors, which is so far right and well done; yet are plunged over head and ears, in the gulf of new imaginary doctrines of their own; particularly, that strange doctrines of imaginary ideas of Christ as man. O beware, beware, of an imaginary idea of Christ as man, and of reckoning this to be knowledge or faith! For, that is nothing but a dead image of Christ in the brain, and is no part of rational knowledge, far less of revealed religion. As long as you have but an imaginary idea of Christ, as man, you have no view of the person Jesus Christ; for Christ, as man, was never a person; the eternal Son of God, in our nature, is the person of our Immanuel. While you look to a Christ painted in the fancy, as man, his voice will never quicken your dead souls; but when, by faith, you look to the man Christ, as Immanuel, God man, and listen to his voice, as it is the voice of the Son of God, then the dead shall hear, and hearing, shall live.§O cry mightily to God, that the hour which Christ says is coming, and now is, may not pass over without your hearing the voice of the Son of God. The hours of the natural day are passing; and so are the hours of the gospel-day. The conjunction of the word and Spirit of Christ makes up that blessed hour, that happy nick and season of salvation, the time of love, and the time of life; “There is a river, the streams whereof make glad the city of God; this river of the water of life, that proceeds out of the throne of God and of the Lamb: every thing liveth whithersoever the river cometh,” Ezek. 43:9, 10. Therefore, cry for the promised Spirit, the promised run of that river; " I will pour waters on the thirsty and floods upon the dry ground,” Isa. 44:3. There are signal periods of the Spirit, and happy seasons wherein Christ utters his almighty voice in the word. When such a season cometh, it is an hour that is ever to be remembered; it opens up secrets that were in God's bosom from eternity, and brings to light the cabinet counsels of heaven; "Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God; for our gospel came not to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost,” 1 Thess. 1:4, 5. This is the hour of spiritual resurrection; a greater and a more glorious resurrection than that of your bodies at the last day; even as much greater as the value of the soul is above that of the body; and because the blessedness of your bodily resurrection depends upon this spiritual resurrection by the voice of Christ: and terrible will the voice of Christ be at the resurrection of your bodies, unless you first hear this vital voice of Christ quickening you to a spiritual life.—Therefore, O cry to God, that the gospel hour may not pass over without a quickening power coming along with the word, making it sink deep into your heart, as well as sound in your ear. If a heart-concern of this sort were created in you, it would argue some beginnings of life from the dead, and some hope in Israel concerning you.
§ We had occasion formerly to observe, Vol. VII Serm. CXXV. entitled The true Christ, no new Christ, that the promoters of what was called an extraordinary work of conversion at Cambuslang, and some other places, were led, in order to support the visionary representations that attended that work, to defend, among other absurd propositions, That imaginary ideas of Christ as man belonged to saving faith. Our author laid open the absurdity of this doctrine in his above mentioned treatise of Mental Images, which the reader may consult. And also, if he pleases, the Preface to the second edition of Mr. Fisher’s Review of that work. [Cf. Ralph Erskine, Faith no fancy: or, A treatise of mental images, discovering the vain philosophy and vile divinity of a late pamphlet intitled, Mr. Robe's fourth letter to Mr. Fisher: and shewing that an imaginary idea of Christ as man, (when supposed to belong to saving faith, whether in its act or object), imports nothing but ignorance, atheism, idolatry, great falsehood, and gross delusion (Philadelphia, 1805).]
Ralph Erskine, “Sermon CXXX: The Happy Hour of Christ’s Quickening Voice,” The Sermons and other practical works (Glasgow: John Bryce, 1778), 190–192. This sermon is not in the 2 volume folio works (Glasgow: Robert Urie, 1754, 1755)
