Sermons

PRINCETON, N. J.

No. Case, /aj

No. Shelf, ^ec^" "^'^

No. Book,

The John M. Krebs Donatioo.

SERMONS,

rniXTED BY
I. AND n. SEET.f-y, THAMES rilTTON.

SERMONS

BY THE LATE

REV. THOMAS SCOTT, M. A.

RECTOR OF WAPPENHAM, NORTHAMPTONSHIRE,

AKI) FOBMEELY INCUMBENT OF GAWCOTT, BUCKS.

WITH A BRIEF MEMOIR OF HIS LIFE.

EDITED BY

THE REV. SAMUEL KING, M. A.

RECTOR OP LATIMER, BUCKS,

PUBLISHED BY R. B. SEELEY AND W. BURNSIDE ;

AND SOLD BY L. AND G. SEELEY,

FLEET STREET, LONDON.

MDCCCXXXVII.

TO THE RIGHT REVEREND FATHER IN GOD,
JOHN,

LORD BISHOP OF LINCOLN,

CI)i5 Wolnmt of ^ermxittg

IS, BY PERMISSION,
MOST RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED,

UNDER A GRATEFUL SENSE
OF

HIS lordship's kindness

TO

THE AUTHOR
AND HIS FAMILY.

PREFACE.

The present volume of Sermons is not published
with any special intent of benefiting the family of
the author in a pecuniary point of view ; such a
step is rendered unnecessary by the late tribute of
gratitude and respect offered by the Christian
public, to the labours and memory of the vene-
rable Commentator on the Bible, and divided
amongst those of his descendants who stood most
in need of the kind aid thus liberally and sponta-
neously afforded. At the same time, whatever
profit may accrue by the sale of this volume will, of
course, be devoted to the service of the widow and
family of the Author. The chief object in pre-
senting the w^ork to the public, is to place an
useftd book in the hands of those to whom it may
be acceptable, and especially to furnish the con-
gregations of its lamented author, with a memorial
of his faithful and affectionate addresses to them.

The Editor had a very large number of sermons
to choose from ; so many indeed, as almost to
bewilder him ; and now that the selection is printed.

Vlll PREFACE.

he has some fears that a better might have been
made ; — a feeling, however, which would not per-
haps have been avoided under any circumstances.
He will only add, that he has taken much pains in
discharging the trust committed to him ; and he
hopes that, under the Divine blessing, the volume
will prove of great benefit to many persons. One
or two of the sermons have especial reference to
the duties and responsibility of the pastoral office ;
these have been inserted, because discourses upon
such important points, rarely find admission into
modern collections of Sermons, while at the same
time, they are peculiarly interesting to Clergymen
from the circumstance of their so seldom having
the opportunity of hearing such subjects discussed ;
a disadvantage which ought perhaps more fre-
quently to be taken into consideration, and, as far
as possible, remedied.

It is right to mention, that Mr. Scott very sel-
dom wrote out at length the apphcation of his
discourses, so that many comprised in this volume
will appear somewhat incomplete ; the Editor
choosing rather to allow an abrupt termination in
some instances, than to add any thing where it
could, with propriety, be avoided.

CONTENTS. .. : "

■^*

SERMON I.

THE SUBJECTS OF THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY.

2 CORINTHIANS IV. 5.
Por we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord ; and
ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. . . _

SERMON TI.

THE CHRISTIAN SACRIFICE.

ROMANS XII. 1.

/ beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that
ye presejit your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable
unto God, which is your reasonable service. - - 19

SERMON III.

OBEDIENCE THE EFFECT OF TRUE LOVE OF GOD.

1 JOHN V. 3.

For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments:

and his comtnandments are not grievous - - - 37

X CONTENTS. _,

SERMON IV.

PACE

THE AID OF CHRIST SOUGHT AGAINST UNBELIEF.

MARK IX. 24.

And straightway the Father of the child tried out, and said

with tears, Lord, I believe ; help thou mine unbelief - 53

SERMON V.

THE HAPPINESS OF THE HEAVENLY STATE,

PSALM XVI. 11.

In thy presence is fulness of joy, at thy right hand there are

pleasures for evermore - - - - - - 72

SERMON VT.

THE CHARACTER AND PRIVILEGES OF THE TRUE CHRISTIAN,

JOHN X. 27, 28.

Mxj sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow
me : and I give unto them eternal life ; and they shall
never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of

my hand ~ - - - - - - -91

SERMON VII,

THE WAY OF HOLINESS,

ISAIAH XXXV. 8—10.

And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be
called the way of holiness ; the unclean shall not pass over
it ; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though

CONTENTS. XI

PJSOB

fools, shall not err therein. No lion shall be there, nor
any ravenous beast shall yo up thereon, it shall not be
found there ; but the redeemed shall walk there. And the
ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion
with sonys, and everlasting joy upon their heads ; they
shall obtain joy and yladness, and sorrow and sighing
shall flee away - - - - - - -IJO

SERMON VIII.

JACOB BEFORE PHARAOH.

GENESIS XLVII. 7—10.

And Joseph brought in Jacob his father and set him, before
Pharaoh : and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. And Pharaoh
said unto Jacob, How old art thou? And Jacob said
unto Pharaoh, The days of the years of my pilgrimage
are an hundred and thirty years : few and evil have the
days of the years of my life been, and have not attained
unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the
days of their pilgrimage. And Jacob blessed Pharaoh,
and toent out from before P haraoli - - ~ - 130

SERMON IX.

DIVINE AND HUMAN AGENCY IN THE WORK OF SALVATION.

PHILIPPIANS II. 12, 13.

Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my
presence only, but now much more in my absence, work
out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it
is God which norketh in you both to will and to do of his
good pleasure - - - - - - - -140

xii CONTENTS.

SERMON X.

THE CHRISTIAN CONFLICT.

1 CORINTHIANS IX. 26, 27.

PACK

/ therefore so run, not as uncertainly ; so fight I, not as one
that heateth the air : hut I keep under my body, and
bring it into subjection : lest that by any means, when I
have freached to others, I myself should be a cast-away 169

SERMON XI.

THE OBJECT OF THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY.

2 CORINTHIANS XII. 14.

For I seek not yow's, but you - - - - - -188

SERMON XII.

ENCOURAGEMENT TO PRAYER.

HEBREWS IV. 15, 16.

JFor we have not an high pi'iest, which cannot be touched with
the feeling of our infirmities ; but was in all points temp-
ted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore
come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain
mercy, and find grace to help in time of need - - 202

SERMON XIII.

THE GOSPEL ADDRESSED TO ALL NATIONS,

LUKE XXIV. 47.

That repentance and remission of sins, should be preached in

his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem - 220

CONTENTS. xiii

SERMON XIV.

PAT, K

THE CLAIM OF GOD TO THR HEART OF MAN.

PROVERBS XXIII. 26.
My son, (five me thine heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways 239

SERMON XV.

SELF-DENIAL AND SUFFERING FOR CHRIST's SAKE.

MATTHEW XVI. 24, 25.

Then said Jesus unto his disciples, if any man will come after
me, let him, deny himself, and take up his cross, and
follow me ; for whosoever will save his life shall lose it :
and whosoever will lose his life for my sake, s kail find it 2.58

SERMON XVI.

ON FORMALITY IN RELIGIOUS WORSHIP.

MATTHEW XV. 8, 9.

This people draweth nigh unto me with their month, and hoji-
oureth me with their lips ; but their heart is far from me.
But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines
the commandments of men ------ 277

SERMON XVII.

THE NATURE OF FAITH IN CHRIST.

JOHN IX. 35
Dost thou believe on the Son of God .' . _ - - 294

XIV CONTENTS.

SERMON XVIII.

PAGE

DELIVERANCE FROM THE WORLD BY THE CROSS OF CHRIST.

GALATIANS I. 4.

Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from
this present evil world, according to the will of God and
our Father - - - - - - - -312

SERMON XIX.

EXHORTATION TO BACKSLIDERS.

JEREMIAH III. 12, 13.

Go and proclaim these words towards the north, and say.
Return thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord, and I
will not cause my anger to fall upon you : for I am mer-
ciful, saith the Lord, and I will not keep anger for ever.
Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast trans-
gressed against the Lord thy God - - - 331

SERMON XX.

THE CHRISTIAN WARNED AGAINST UNDUE ANXIETY.

MATTHEW VI. 34.

Take therefore no thought for the morrow : for the morrow
shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto
the day is the evil thereof. - - - - - 346

SERMON XXI.

THE minister's EPISTLE OF COMMENDATION.

2 CORINTHIANS III. 2.

Ye are our epistle, written in our hearts, known and read of
all men _.._..--- 363

MEMOIR.

The author of the following Sermons was the second
and last surviving son of the Rev. Thomas Scott,
Rector of Aston Sandford, the venerated and well
known Commentator on the Holy Scriptures. He was
bom at Weston Underwood, in Buckinghamshire,
November 9, 1780, and had the advantage, in common
with his brothers, of being educated at home, under the
care of his pious and learned father. About the age of
sixteen he was attacked with severe ophthalmia; and
a residence by the sea-side being recommended by the
late Mr. Pearson, the surgeon, he was kindly re-
ceived into the family of Captain Hooper, of Margate.
During this season, in which all his ordinary occupa-
tions and pursuits were suspended, it appears that those
deep convictions on religious subjects, which abode with
him ever afterwards, and influenced all the steps of his
future life, were implanted in his soul ; and his bodily
loss of sight was thus, by the blessing of God, made
conducive to that spiritual illumination which rendered
him the exemplary Christian and faithful labourer in
the Gospel, which he afterwards became.

XVI MEMOIR OF THE REV. THOMAS SCOTT.

On recovering his sight, he resolved to dedicate him-
self to the work of the ministry ; and accordingly, in
his twenty-first year, he entered at Queen's College,
Cambridge. For the first two years of his college life,
he gave himself diligently to the studies of the place ;
and there can be little doubt, from the progress he then
made, that, had he been enabled to persevere in read-
ing, he would have attained high academical honours ;
but, his eyesight again failing him, he was obliged to
give up all hope of this distinction. He however pro-
ceeded to his B. A. degree in 1805, when he had the
satisfaction of receiving an intimation from the tutor
of his college, that, if he thought it desirable to sit for
a Fellowship, the fact of his not having taken an honour
would, under his peculiar circumstances, and from the
exemplary manner in which he had conducted himself
as an under-graduate, prove no bar to his success. This
measure however, for various reasons, he declined ; and
at once proceeded to take upon himself those sacred
obligations, to the discharge of which he ever afterwards
assiduously devoted his labours. He was ordained
deacon shortly after leaving Cambridge, and became
curate of Emberton, Bucks. The following year he
was admitted to priest's orders, and was presented as
the first Incumbent to a chapel at Gawcott, near
Buckingham, by the pious and excellent patron, Mr.
John West, who had built and endowed it.

In this obscure village, containing a population of
six or seven hundred persons, who, with very few
exceptions, were in a state of the greatest poverty, Mr.
Scott lived and laboured for twenty-seven years ; and he
will long and deservedly be remembered by them, as

MEMOIR OF THE REV. THOMAS SCOTT. XVll

their principal benefactor and friend. Feeling the great
importance of residing in the midst of his flock, his first
object was to build a parsonage-house. This he effected
by the aid of various friends, and at an expense to him-
self of more than five years' income of his benefice,
which he could ill afford ; but by this means the advan-
tage of always having a resident clergyman was secured
to the place.

In a mere worldly point of view, a more undesirable
piece of preferment could hardly have been met with.
The endo^vment, £100. per annum, was to include all
expenses, the clerk's salary, and the repairs of the
chapel. It might have been supposed that this latter
pro\asion would have little affected the first Incumbent ;
but the case was far otherwise, for the builder employed
by Mr. West had performed his work so badly, that in
less than twenty years from its erection, the chapel
became too ruinous to admit of repair, so that it was
necessary to take it down and erect a new edifice.
This, of course, was utterly out of Mr. Scott's power
to effect himself; he therefore once more appealed
to his Christian friends, who came forward liberally and
cheerfully to his assistance ; and a substantial new
church, of which he himself w^as the architect, was
built (at the cost of about £1,700.) which for elegant
simplicity and convenience may serve as a model for
other similar erections. In addition to this, by advanc-
ing a sum of money himself, aided by Pynson's charity
and Queen Ann's bounty, he added between £30. and
£40. per annum to the endowment ; so that he may
justly be considered as a co-foimder with Mr. West of
the chapelry, having been the means, by his own private

b

XVlll MEMOIR OF THE REV. THOMAS SCOTT.

contributions, and by his exertions in exciting the libe-
rality of his friends, of rebuilding the Chapel, erecting
a Parsonage house, and materially increasing the origi-
nally small endowment of the living.

With these and other expenses, and with the wants
of a large and increasing family to provide for, it is not
surprising that Mr. Scott, notwithstanding his unceas-
ing labours as a tutor, should have had to struggle with
poverty. When however, early in 1833, the bishop of
Lincoln, who had long regarded him with esteem, on
account both of his ministerial labours and his personal
qualities, presented him to the rectory of Wappenham,
in Northamptonshire, the income of which is about
£350. per aimum, his family and friends fondly hoped
that many years of comparative comfort, as well as of
increased usefulness, lay before him. Alas ! these hopes
were very soon destroyed. He preached his first sermon
to his new flock, Feb. 10, 1833, and his brief ministry
amongst them was terminated in the space of little more
than two years, he being suddenly removed to his hea-
venly rest, on the 24th of February, 1835, in the
fifty-fifth year of his age. For a considerable time previ-
ously, he had suffered much from apparently dyspeptic
symptoms, but neither he nor his family suspected the
real disease from which they originated. On the morning
of the day of his death he went to Brackley, and called
upon two or three friends in the neighbourhood. On re-
turning home he seemed better and more cheerful than
for some time past ; but shortly after dinner, a violent
paroxysm of the distressing symptoms to which he was
subject came on, and he went groaning up stairs to bed,
unable to speak. Severe sickness followed, and he

MEMOIR OF THE REV. THOMAS SCOTT. xix

breathed his last in the arms of an affectionate pupil,
who was supporting him. The fatal complaint proved
to be organic disease of the heart.

Before Mr. Scott came to Wappenham, there had not
been an Incumbent residing in the place, for nearly a
hundred years. It was necessary that here also he
should build a Parsonage-house, to enable liim to dwell
amongst his people ; and this he was enabled to do, by
the amount received for dilapidations, and by borrow-
ing on the living from Queen Ann's Bounty, but still
not without incurring considerable expense to liimself.
The house, a plain but commodious and respectable
edifice, was completed but a very short time before
he was removed to those heavenly mansions, which the
Lord hath prepared in heaven for his faithful servants.

Such is a slight sketch of the uneventful, but useful
life of my departed friend and brother. His lot was
cast in places little known, and amongst the poorest and
most uneducated people ; though his talents were such as
might perhaps have been advantageously employed in
populous and refined situations. But the great Lord
of the vineyard, who appoints to each of his labourers
that station in which his efforts will be most productive
of good, saw fit to assign him, no doubt for the wisest
purposes, these obscure fields of labour. And unques-
tionably his exertions were eminently blessed ; and the
state of moral and spiritual cultivation to which, by
long and assiduous toil, he brought a place, once nearly
a heathenish waste ; in addition to his usefulness as a
tutor — an usefulness to which many excellent Clergymen
and others now living, will be ready to bear ample tes-
timony, and from which he would have been nearly

XX MEMOIR OF THE REV, THOMAS SCOTT.

precluded in a more active sphere of clerical exertion —
forms an ample compensation for a retirement, which
his friends were sometimes disposed to lament, and
which occasionally cast a degree of gloom over his own
mind.

The character of Mr. Scott was particularly calcu-
lated to shed a lustre upon his reHgious profession, and
to attract the regard and confidence of those who might
be opposed to the humbling and holy nature of the
doctrines he taught. He had a remarkably pleasing
address, and the happy faculty of at once winning the
hearts of those he conversed with. A kind enquiry, or
a cheerful remark, was ready for every one he met, and
often opened the way to some useful instruction or ad-
vice. Nor was his kindness confined to words : he
greatly interested himself in every thing relating to the
comfort and welfare of others, especially of his poor
people, and was ever wilKng to afford them assistance
to the utmost of his ability, often indeed beyond it.
This readiness to undertake labour and trouble for the
advantage of others, formed a conspicuous part of his
character, and many have in this way been greatly in-
debted to him.

As a minister of the gospel he was much blessed.
His discourses were generally of a powerful and awaken-
ing nature ; combining earnestness with much affection,
and displaying a thorough acquaintance with the scrip-
tures, united with an understanding and judgment
more than ordinarily vigorous and sound. His diligence
in this respect is attested by the very large number of
sermons he has left ; for, though quite capable of what
is called extemporary preaching, and having an abun-

MEMOIR OF THE REV. THOMAS SCOTT. XXI

dant flow both of words and ideas at command, as his
regular family expositions proved, he always preached
written sermons: indeed, he had a particular fondness
for the act of writing, and often had recourse to it — too
often for his health — as a relaxation after his long and
laborious day's work with his pupils. His correspon-
dence also was very extensive ; and judicious advice or
well-timed reproof, conveyed by him in a letter, has
proved of important service in many instances. It is
indeed rather remarkable, that, with the particular
facility for composition which he possessed, he never
became an author to a greater extent than writing a
few occasional papers for periodical works, and two
brief memoirs — one of Mr. West, his early patron ; and
the other of his brother, the Rev. Benjamin Scott,
prefixed to a volmne of his Sermons, which he edited.
But liis time was fully and usefidly occupied. The
necessity which he was under of taking pupils, in order
to provide for the wants of his family, has been already
adverted to. This laborious and burdensome occupa-
tion, which of late years he particularly felt to be such,
was continued to the time of his death ; no one, how-
ever, can tell the amoimt of good which his truly evan-
gehcal mode of instruction has, under the Divine bless-
ing, already produced, and will continue to produce,
through the instrumentality of those who had the ad-
vantage of being educated under his roof.

It is unnecessary to dilate upon other parts of his
character : not only as a minister and tutor, but as a
husband, parent, and friend, Mr. Scott's conduct was
most exemplary, and becoming the gospel of Christ. It
is not, however, pretended that his was a faultless

XXll MEMOIR OF THE RfV. THOMAS SCOTT.

character : — far from it ; but he had no promineyit
faults. Whatever he might feel in his own mind, and
confess before his God upon his knees, there did not
appear, to those who knew him, any thing that might
be pointed to as his " easily-besetting sin." By the grace
of God he became what he was. This led him con-
stantly to place before him, as his great ruling motive,
the honour of God, the credit of the religion he pro-
fessed, and the spiritual welfare of his family, of his
pupils, and of the people committed to his charge; and
though his natural temper was kind, affectionate, and
conciliating, in no ordinary degree, and he was ready to
become all things to all men, as far as he consistently
could — scrupulously avoiding to give unnecessary offence
to any one — still, where his principles were concerned,
he was most unbending, and would never shrink from
declaring them, and acting up to them, be the conse-
quence what it might.

The suddenness of his removal from this world, pre-
vented his bearing that testimony to the efficacy and
truth of the faith he professed, on his death-bed, which
has been so edifying to survivors in the cases of many
of the faithful servants of Christ. But for a consider-
able time he had been impressed with a conviction that
his life was drawing to a close ; and though it does not
appear that he apprehended so speedy a dissolution,
or was aware of the nature of the disease under which
he laboured, he felt that his days were numbered, and
he lived and conversed like one habitually expecting,
and prepared for the solemn event. Continued allu-
sions, indicating the state of his mind in this respect,
pervaded, for some time past, his sermons, expositions

MEMOIR OF THE REV. THOMAS SCOTT. XXlU

and prayers ; as well as his letters and conversation :
and while finisliing his house, and stocking his garden
with fruit-trees, it was his frequent remark, that he
was doing this for others. His anxiety that every
thing in this respect should he substantially and use-
fully done, was another indication of his amiable and
conscientious character ; for there is not the least rea-
son to believe, that the idea of his son's succeeding him
in the living, ever entered his mind.

It is a painful consideration, and amongst the myste-
rious dispensations of pro\'idence, that a man so ta-
lented, so laborious, and so exemplary, should be, as he
was, constantly oppressed with poverty, and harassed
with pecuniary difficulties : nor can it be doubted, that
distress of mind, arising from this cause, served mate-
rially to shorten his days. He is, however, now at
rest, and his worldly cares and sufferings, " blessings in
disguise," sent to him in infinite love by his heavenly
Father, will serve to render more vivid the enjoyment
of those pleasures which are at God's right hand for
evermore.

Mr. Scott married, in 1806, Euphemia, the only
daughter of Dr. L}Tich, of the Island of Antigua, and
niece of the Rev. Nathaniel Gilbert, Vicar of Bledlow,
and few unions have been blessed with a greater por-
tion of domestic harmony and comfort. He had in all
thirteen children, of whom six sons and three daugh-
ters survive. The eldest son has been most kindly
presented by the Bishop of Lincoln to the li\'ing so
prematurely vacated, out of respect and regard to the
memory of his excellent Father. Shortly before his
death, to his great satisfaction, the trustees appointed

XXIV MEMOIR OF THE REV. THOMAS SCOTT.

by Mr. West, conferred the perpetual curacy of Gaw-
cott upon his son-in-lav^^, the Rev. J. H. Oldrid. He
was interred in that place, in the Church which he
himself built, amidst the tears and lamentations of his
affectionate family and friends, and of his loving and
beloved flock, from whom he had been separated so
short a time. May the additional conviction, which
the perusal of the short narrative is calculated to pro-
duce, of the uncertainty of life, lead us all to increasing
watchfulness — to more careful preparation for death, — ■
and to more diligent attention to our blessed Saviour's
solemn exhortation, " Let your loins be girded about, and
your lights burning, and ye yourselves like unto men
that WAIT for their Lord."

*^* The preceding Memoir is reprinted, with some necessary alte-
rations from a paper sent by the Editor to the Christian
Observer, and which appeared in that periodical in the
Number for April 1835.

SERMONS.

SERMON I.

2 CORINTHIANS iv. 5.

FOR WE PREACH NOT OURSELVES BUT CHRIST JESUS THE
LORD; AND OURSELVES YOUR SERVANTS FOR JESUs' SAKE.^

Such is the language in which that most eminent
servant of God, the Apostle Paul, describes the
manner in which he discharged the office of the
Ministry. We pretend not to place ourselves on a
level with him ; we claim none of his infallibility ;
we boast not of a zeal like his, or of success like
that which attended him ; the purpose, however,
for which we are appointed to the ministry is ex-
actly similar, and, by the blessing of God, we hope
to see some of the same happy effects. But if we
would accomplish this, we must use the same

1 Preached at Wappenham, the first Sunday after Institution
to the living.

B

2 SERMON I :

means, and must preach the same doctrines as St.
Paul did.

When, a few days ago, I received from the Bishop
of the Diocese, the charge of this Parish ; there
was one clause in the deed of Institution which
deeply affected my mind ; it was this, ' And we do
by these presents commit unto you the cure and go-
vernment of the souls of the Parishioners of the said
Parish.' Consider, my brethren, the force of these
.words — the cure — the government — of the souls —
the never-dying souls of all the inhabitants of the
Parish ! To the same effect did Almighty God
speak to the Prophet Ezekiel, " Son of man, I
have made thee a watchman unto the house of
Israel, therefore hear the word at my mouth, and
give them warning from me. When I say unto
the wicked. Thou shalt surely die, and thou givest
him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked
from his wicked way to save his life : the same
wicked man shall die in his iniquity ; but his blood
will I require at thine hand." ^ Such has been the
nature of the ministerial office in all ages. Every
one who bears that office has the care of immortal
souls intrusted to him ; the souls of men who have
sinned against the Lord, and therefore are in danger
of perishing ; these souls must be sought, and
brought back to the fold of God. The work, you
see, is intrusted to us, and woe to us if we do not,
to the best of our power, fulfil the solemn charge.

' Ezekiel iii. 17, 18.

2 CORINTHIANS IV. 5. 3

But the question arises, How is this to be done ?
What means must he employ, to whom the cure
of souls has been confided ? In other words, how
are we to seek and save that which is lost ? — how
are we to make full proof of our ministry ? In no
way can we answer these questions, but by re-
ferring to the word of God. There we find rules
laid down, and examples given, to teach us the
manner in which we may accomplish the great end
of our appointment. In St. Paul's two epistles to ^
the Corinthians, these subjects are most plainly
set forth. In his first epistle, the Apostle says,
** And I, brethren, when I came unto you, came
not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, de-
claring unto you the testimony of God. For I
determined not to know any thing among you save
Jesus Christ and him crucified." ^ And again,
" Other foundation can no man lay than that is
laid, which is Jesus Christ."^ And again he says,
*'But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a
stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness ;
but unto them which are called, Christ the power
of God and the wisdom of God." ^ In perfect ac-
cordance with all this, is the language of the same
Apostle in the passage before us. "Therefore,
seeing we have this ministry, as we have received
mercy, we faint not : but have renounced the hid-
den things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness,

• I Cor. ii. 1, 2. - I Cor. iii. 11. » 1 Cor. i. 23,24.

B 2

SERMON I

nor handling the word of God deceitfully ; but by
manifestation of the truth, commending ourselves
to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are
lost ; in whom the god of this world hath blinded
the minds of them which believe not, lest the light
of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image
of God, should shine unto them ; for we preach
not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and our-
selves your servants for Jesus' sake." In taking
these words as the subject of my discourse on this
interesting occasion, I desire to preach as much to
myself as to you. I wish to recal to my mind
what were the subjects upon which the holy
Apostles preached, whereby they converted mul-
titudes to God and saved immortal souls. The
same weapons, I know, when rightly wielded, will
still be " mighty through God." I wish, in fact,
on the commencement of my ministry in this
place, solemnly to pledge myself to those whose
souls are intrusted to my charge, that, so far as I
am able, I will endeavour to preach to them the
same doctrines as St. Paul preached. And I pray
to God so to enlighten my mind and guide my
heart by his Holy Spirit, that I may keep back
nothing that is profitable for you, nor shun to
declare the whole counsel of God. And let me
beg your most fervent and unceasing prayers that
the divine blessing may so follow all my minis-
trations among you, that many may hear and wel-

2 CORINTHIANS IV. 5. 5

come the truth from my lips, and be led diligently
and successfully to seek for the salvation of their
souls.

The words of the text simply teach us,

I. What St. Paul and his brethren did not
PREACH ; and,

II. What THEY did preach — " We preach not
ourselves ; but Christ Jesus the Lord, and our-
selves your servants for Jesus' sake."

I. Let us then inquire what St. Paul did not

PREACH.

In a passage to which I have already referred,
the Apostle tells the Corinthians, that when he
came to them, he " determined not to know any thing
among them, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified."
He could, had he been so minded, have dwelt on
many subjects which would have been highly pleas-
ing to numbers of his hearers ; but they would
have derived no advantage from them ; their souls
would not have been brought into the way of sal-
vation by them ; and therefore the great end of his
ministry would not have been answered. But there
was one overwhelming subject, in comparison with
which every other was as nothing, and for the sake
of which he would renounce them all ; this subject
was '' Jesus Christ and him crucified." As in this
passage he renounced all other topics, so in the
text he renounces every other object.

Of all things, nothing is so near to man as self.

O SERMON I :

It pervades us in all our employments ; and in
all our pursuits we have a continual eye to our
own interest, ease, or reputation. And to a
certain extent this is allowable. In other business
and in other occupations, a man may be permitted
to keep in view what he considers likely to be
advantageous to himself. But St. Paul here
teaches us, that every thing of this kind must be
excluded from the ministrations of him who is
sent forth to " preach Jesus Christ and him cruci-
fied." " We preach not ourselves."

1. A man may be said to preach himself, when
he is aiming thereby to promote his own ivorldly
interest. The apostle has indeed taught us, that
as under the Mosaic law, an ample provision was
made for the priests, and they who ministered at
the altar, lived by the altar ; so also in the Chris-
tian church, they who preach the gospel, should
live of the gospel. The minister is a man of like
feelings with others. He needs, and naturally
desires a supply for the necessities of himself and
of his family. But still on this point, moderation
should mark his character. He should look only
for such plain and simple support, as may free his
own mind from anxiety, and enable him to do
something toward relieving the distresses of his
poor neighbours : much beyond this he ought not
to desire. But when, for the sake of inducing his
hearers to enlarge his income, he shapes his doc-
trines, and arranges his discourses, and regulates

2 CORINTHIANS IV. 5. 7

his behaviour in that way which may please them,
and secure their favour, then is he most flagrantly
preaching himself. He is not considering how he
may advance the glory of God, or promote the
salvation of the immortal souls committed to his
charge. He is taking the oversight of the flock of
God for filthy lucre, and not of a ready mind.
Not so St. Paul ; he suff^ered the loss of all things ;
he voluntarily endured poverty and want, and
laboured to support himself and those that were
with him, working at the business of a tent-maker
by night, that he might preach the gospel by day,
and make it without charge to those who heard
him. In our time and in our country, the neces-
sity for such labour has ceased. The benevolence
and piety of our ancestors has made a provision for
the support of the ministers of religion, of which
they cannot be deprived, without the same injustice
that would take away the property of any other
class of persons in the kingdom. But if this be
so, we are the more bound to give ourselves
wholly to the work of the ministry. We have a
provision made for us, on purpose that we should
the more devotedly seek the everlasting good of the
souls committed to our charge. We are therefore
under the less temptation to preach ourselves, or
to suff^er our minds to be occupied w^ith worldly
interests, while discharging the sacred duties of
our calling.

2. In the expression "we preach not ourselves,"

8 SERMON I :

the apostle no doubt meant to intimate also, that
a life of ease and enjoyment was not what he and
his brethren sought after, when they became min-
isters of the gospel. If we look through the his-
tory of St. Paul, as we find it in the Acts of the
Apostles, and in the Epistles, we shall at once see
that such could not have been his object ; for no
other man ever went through such labours and
fatigues, such trials and distresses as he did.

But circumstances are now changed. With us
persecutions have ceased ; the most faithful of all
Christ's servants are not exposed to such things as
St. Paul had to encounter. In consequence of
this change, it is to be feared that too many have
entered the church as ministers, with the idea that
in this way they should live a more easy, genteel,
and self-indulgent life, than they could otherwise
do ; that they should have more leisure for their
favourite studies or amusements, and more oppor-
tunity for enjoying refined society. But here
again we must be on our guard, lest we should be
influenced by unworthy and unchristian motives.
The orders of the ministry were instituted for the
benefit of others, and not of those who are admitted
into them. We are shepherds over the flock — we
are watchmen over the souls committed to our
care — we are labourers in the Lord's vineyard — we
are soldiers in the army of Christ. All these re-
presentations teach us that we have a work to do, a
labour to perform, and trials and difficulties to

2 CORINTHIANS IV. 5. 9

encounter, quite inconsistent with a life of ease and
indulgence. To this work we ought to give our-
selves— to it ought we to devote the best of our
time and of our talents ; none of us should live
unto himself — none of us should die unto himself.
In the expression, " We preach not ourselves,^'
the apostle may be considered as also including ano-
ther declaration, namely, that it is not the object
of the minister to gain the approbation, or win
the applause, or even acquire the affections of his
people, unless he can do so by the faithfulness of
his preaching, and the holiness of his life. We
are indeed " to please all men to their edification."
We are to seek to win the attention of our people.
We are to endeavour to make not only the poor-
est, but also the most ungodly persons in our par-
ishes feel that we are their friends, that we are
affectionately desirous of their good, both in this
world, and in that which is to come ; that we are
willing to do all in our power to promote their
welfare, yea, that we deem ourselves bound to act
always for their benefit ; — still we must not think
that we have obtained our reward, when we see our
churches well attended, or find that our preaching
is acceptable to the people ; or that they look upon
us with respect and esteem. Were we satisfied
with this, we might well be considered as preaching
ourselves. Much higher objects are placed before
us ; we are to seek the approbation of Him who
hath put us into the ministry ; we are to seek the

10 SERMON I :

everlasting welfare of those to whom we preach.
These are the only things which ought to satisfy
the minister of Christ. If he gain not the first of
these objects — if the great Head of the church do
not approve him : after he has preached to others,
he may himself be a cast-away. If he prove not
the means of saving the souls of those who hear
him, he may indeed, as is said of Ezekiel, be unto
them as " the very lovely song of one who has a
pleasant voice, and can play well on an instru-
ment," but he will have none who will be " his
joy and crown of rejoicing in the day of the Lord
Jesus."

But I must now proceed,

11. To consider what the apostle did preach
" We preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the
Lord ; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake."

There were two parts, it appears, into which the
preaching of St. Paul and his brother apostles
might be divided ; let us consider each of them
separately.

1. The Apostle says, we " preach Christ Jesus the
Lord." He says on another occasion, " We preach
Jesus Christ and him crucified." And again, " A
dispensation of the gospel is committed unto me ; "
and " woe unto me if I preach not the gospel."
We see then, that preaching Christ Jesus the
Lord ; preaching Jesus Christ and him crucified ;
and preaching the gospel, are ail one and the same

2 CORINTHIANS IV. 5. 11

thing. Each describes the grand subject of the
Christian ministry'.

We cannot read over the expression of the text
without being reminded of the words of the angel
who was sent to tell the shepherds of the birth
of Christ. " Behold, I bring you good tidings of
great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you
is born this day in the city of David, a Saviour,
which is Christ the Lord." ^ The message of the
angel, and the preaching of St. Paul were precisely
the same. They both preached the gospel, for
the word gospel means ^foorf tidings — " good tidings
of great joy to all people. They each proclaimed
a Saviour which is " Christ the Lord." And our
errand to you, my brethren, is the same. We too,
if we perform our duty, " preach Christ Jesus the
Lord."

The Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God,
by whom all things that are in heaven and on the
earth were made ; who upholdeth all things by the
word of his power— He whom all the angels of
God were commanded to worship, came down
from heaven, was born of a woman, and in order
to be the Saviour of mankind he lived on earth a
life of suffering and contempt, and at last died like
a malefactor upon the cross, for us men, and for
our salvation. This was the subject on which the
apostle tells us he dwelt in his ministry, this was

' Lukeii. 10, 11.

12 SERMON I :

his favourite theme, this was the topic on which
he every where insisted, and this he lived and died
to make known to mankind. Have you, my
brethren, ever allowed your minds to dwell upon
this all-important subject with that seriousness
which it deserves ? You have read of it in your
Bibles, you have heard of it in the Church, you
have avowed your belief in it, when you have
repeated the creed, or rehearsed your catechism.
Yet it may be that you have never felt that it was
good tidings of great joy. You may perhaps have
never considered how deeply you are concerned in
it ; how entirely all your hopes of eternal happiness
depend upon it. The apostle calls it " a faithful
saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sinners. '^ The
angel said it was " good tidings of great joy which
should be to all people, that to them was born a
Saviour, Christ the Lord." All therefore, are
concerned — deeply concerned in the fact.

And why is it a saying worthy of all acceptation ?
why is it good tidings to all people ? why are all
so deeply concerned in it ? The apostle's words
will answer the question, " There is no difference,
for all have sinned and come short of the glory of
God." And thence he argues that none can be
saved otherwise than freely — by grace, through the
redemption that is in Christ Jesus. My dear
friends, we have just been on our knees confessing
before Almighty God, that this declaration of his

2 CORINTHIANS IV. 5. 13

word applies to us, that we are miserable sinners ;
' that we have erred and strayed from his ways like
lost sheep ; that we have left undone the things
we ought to have done, and have done the things
that we ought not to have done, and that there is
no health in us.' We, then, are sinners ; and if
sinners, we are in danger of eternal misery. We
therefore want a Saviour ; and " there is salvation
in none other, for there is none other name under
heaven given among men whereby we must be
saved," but that of " Christ Jesus the Lord,"
whom St. Paul preached, and whom all the minis-
ters of the gospel are commanded to proclaim.
" God so loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him
should not perish, but have everlasting life." ^
Such was the language our Lord used to Nico-
demus. Let us reflect upon this for one moment.
Men are likely to perish through their sins, but
God so loved them as to give his only begotten
Son — " Christ Jesus the Lord" — " that whosoever
believeth in him should not perish but have ever-
lasting life." This, brethren, " is the word which
by the gospel is preached unto you." When the
jailor at Philippi, filled with terror, cried to Paul
and Silas, " Sirs ! what must I do to be saved ? "
they said unto him, " Believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ, and thou shalt be saved." They preached

' Johniii. 16.

14 SERMON I :

to him " Christ Jesus the Lord." And such, my
brethren, is the errand on which we are sent unto
you. We cannot conceal from you our full per-
suasion that both you and ourselves are sinners
against God. Our consciences tell us that this is
the case ; we see death and judgment before us,
and we tremble at the thought of what will be
the consequence of sin in that world to which we
are going. And we are persuaded that there is no
means whereby we can escape the wrath of God
ourselves, or by which you can escape it ; but
through Christ. We are assured that he is able
to save to the uttermost all them that come to God
by him. We therefore preach unto you Christ
Jesus the Lord. We set him forth as the Saviour,
' ' the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the
world." We beseech you to look to him for sal-
vation, to believe in him that you may have ever-
lasting life. If we have any of that mind in us
which was in St. Paul, we can say, " We seek not
our own profit, but the profit of many, that they
may be saved." \ For this purpose we preach
to you the Lord Jesus Christ ; for we are sure that
he is able to save you from sin and from hell, and
to bring you to heaven ; and we are equally sure
thatyou can find no salvation but through him.

If then, brethren, in my future ministry among
you, I should say much upon the subject of Christ

' 1 Cor. X. 33.

2 CORINTHIANS IV. 5. 15

and of his salvation, I trust you will believe that
I do so, because I am fully satisfied that thus only
I shall rightly discharge my duty amongst you ;
that I shall best consult your advantage by direct-
ing you to this only source of happiness and peace.

I shall have much, very much to say to you,
should God spare me, of the need of repentance,
and of the necessity, the absolute necessity, of good
works, of leading a sober, righteous, and godly
life — without which no one can be a Christian, a
traveller in the way to heaven ; in this also I would
follow the example of St. Paul and his brethren,
and most earnestly do I hope that I may be able
to say as he did, " we preach not ourselves, but
Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants
for Jesus' sake."

2. To this last clause of my text I must now
briefly call your attention.

In his first Epistle, the Apostle declares to
the Corinthians, — " All things are yours, whether
Paul, or ApoUos, or Cephas." These eminent
ministers of Christ were all of them, as it were,
the property of the church, for the advan-
tage of which they were willing to spend and
be spent. And in the ninth chapter of the
same Epistle he says, " For though I be free
from all men, yet have I made myself servant
unto all, that I might gain the more. And unto
the Jews I became a Jew that I might gain the
Jews : — to them that are under the law, as under

16 SERMON I :

the law, that I might gain them that are under the
law: — to them that are without law, as without
law, . . . that I might gain them that are without
law. To the weak became I as weak, that I
might gain the weak : I am made all things
unto all men, that I might by all means save
some."

In these passages we have a striking com-
ment upon the last clause of the text. " I
have made myself the servant of all — I have be-
come all things to all men, that I might save
some." I am willing to sacrifice every interest and
every pleasure, and to submit to any degradation
and self-abasement ; if I may but save some.
Such was the spirit which glowed in the breast
of St. Paul— such was the feeling that led him
from kingdom to kingdom, " preaching to the
Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ."

Such too should be the feeling with which the
Ministers of the Gospel engage in their duties.
The love of Christ should constrain them to live no
longer to themselves but to him " who died for us
and rose again." The love of the immortal souls
for whom Christ died, should make them willing
to undertake any service, however mean, any duty
however laborious or distressing, by which they
may save some.

In this sense, brethren, we preach ourselves as
your servants for Jesus' sake. We deem ourselves
bound to labour for your good — to promote your

2 CORINTHIANS IV. 5. 1 7

best, your eternal interests — to seek the salvation
of your souls. We cannot indeed allow our
people to tell us what we are to preach, or in
what manner we are to discharge our ministry.
For these matters we have another Master to
whom we are answerable. He has given the rules
by which we are to proceed ; he has told us what
doctrines we are to preach ; and " if any man,
yea, even an angel from heaven, should dare to
preach any other Gospel," he would be accursed.
We must speak God's word, whether men will hear,
or whether they will forbear. Here we can admit
of NO dictation from others — we must, as we shall
answer for it at the great day, preach what we
believe to be the word of God, and not alter it
even to please those, whose favour and esteem we
might naturally be most anxious to secure. With
this one exception however, our duty is "to
preach ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake."
It was the pious intention of the Founders of
our Church, that there should be constantly re-
siding in every parish one individual at least who
should have no other business than to do good
of every kind to every person. His property
might indeed be small, his income scanty, and
he might have to witness much distress, which
it would not be in his power to relieve — but, by
kind condolence, by friendly advice, by visiting
the fatherless and the widow in their affliction, by
keeping himself unspotted from the world, by

c

18 SERMON I.

endeavouring to check ungodliness and evil, by
trying to lead the young into the paths of religion
and truth, by pointing the sick and dying to
Him who alone is able to save ; a man of scanty
income and no great talents might, under the
divine blessing produce much benefit to the people
of his charge.

I am aware that in speaking thus I may be
raising expectations respecting myself, and my
conduct, when I become resident among you,
which it may never be in my power to realize.
But as 1 before said — I wish to preach to myself —
I wish to pledge myself to you, not to preach
myself but Christ Jesus the Lord, and myself your
servant for Jesus' sake. And there is one thing
more that I wish to do ; I wish to direct and call
forth the fervent prayers of every inhabitant of this
place and neighbourhood on my behalf, that I
may be enabled, by divine grace, to act up to my
professions — to follow St. Paul as he followed
Christ — to " make full proof of my ministry" —
that so 1 may " come unto you in the fulness
of the blessing of the Gospel of peace," and be
the happy instrument of " turning many unto
righteousness," — of bringing many sinners to
Christ, many wanderers back to the fold of God.

SERMON II.

ROMANS xii. J,

I BESEECH YOU, THEREFORE, BRETHREN, BY THE MERCIES OF
GOD, THAT YE PRESENT YOUR BODIES A LIVING SACRIFICE,
HOLY, ACCEPTABLE UNTO GOD, WHICH IS YOUR REASONABLE
SERVICE.

How Strangely erroneous are the opinions which
men take up of the genuine doctrines of the
Gospel, and of the effects they have a tendency
to produce; true indeed, there are some, who
have strangely separated between the doctrine and
its fruits, who have supposed that the free sal-
vation of the Gospel could have nothing to do
with the holy lives and practice of its professors ;
and from a dread of diminishing the glory of
God as displayed in the gratuitous justification and
salvation of a sinner through Christ — have treated
with much disregard, that renewal unto holiness
which is the never-failing attendant on justifying
faith. We would hope however, that few have
carried these notions into practice, and have lived
m sin almost on principle; as though, because
the infinite mercy of God sometimes has caused

c 2

20 SERMON II :

grace more to abound where sin had previously
abounded, we were to be allowed to sin on, that
an opportunity might be afforded for the more
surprising exhibition of divine mercy. On the
other hand, many, having seen and heard some-
thing of this vile perversion of the doctrines of
the Gospel, have entertained a jealousy of them ;
forgetting that the most useful and valuable things
are always most dangerous when abused, and yet
are not on that ground to be rejected ; they would
conceal those principles on which all our hopes of
heaven must depend, because men of perverted
minds have made a bad use of them. No wise
man ever refused to take medicine when he was
sick, because his neighbour had, through mistake,
poisoned himself by using a wrong drug ; no man
ever refused to admit the use of fire in his habita-
tion, because his neighbour's house had been con-
sumed ; the injury thus sustained by others, is a
fair reason for our employing caution, but not
for rejecting the use either of medicine or fire.

As we see how easily in these and other in-
stances, the use may be maintained, and the abuse
avoided, so is the case in respect of the doctrines
of our holy religion. We need but go to the same
divine source whence we derive them, and we
shall there learn what their genuine application is.
None ever stated more strongly the doctrine of free
and gratuitous salvation, and all the other doc-
trines connected with this, than St. Paul ; but

ROMANS XII. 1. 21

none was ever more practical, more strictly prac-
tical, in enforcing every duty than he ; and he
enforces them, not as something detached and
separate from his statements of doctrinal truths,
but as the result of these truths ; as the effects
which naturally and certainly flow from their being
really embraced from the heart.

The subject before us will illustrate this remark.
In speaking upon the text, I shall simply follow
the order in which it lies, and consider —

I. The argument used by St. Paul.

II. The object for which he urges it.

I. We will look at the argument used by
St. Paul, or the motive to w^hich he appeals, as
one which would affect the heart of every Chris-
tian. " I beseech you, brethren, by the mer-
cies OF God."

There is something well calculated to keep us
humble, in the perpetual reference made in the
Scriptures to mercy. We read of nothing granted
us on the ground of merit ; of nothing that comes
from the hand of God as the reward of our good
deeds, or obtained by us as matter of desert ; but
the MERCY of God meets us at every point : the
food we eat, the air we breathe, the garments we
wear, the domestic comforts we enjoy, our civil
advantages, and our religious privileges, are all
represented as matters of mercy, undeserved mercy.
This I say is humbling, yet it is just y mercy

22 SERMON II :

must be the plea of the sinner, mercy must spare
from day to day, the man who deserves to be cast
into hell ; mercy must supply the daily bread of
the man, whose very life is forfeited to the justice
of his offended creator. And as we are spared,
and our wants supplied ; and ten thousand sources
of comfort are opened to us, and not to us only,
but to all the sinners of our race ; we may well
say that " the earth is full of the goodness of the
Lord," and '• that goodness and mercy have fol-
lowed us all the days of our life."

And, my brethren, it would be well for us to
habituate ourselves to look at all our comforts in
this light ; they are continued to us in mercy ;
since by sinning against God, we have forfeited
every one of them ; this would silence many a
murmur, and produce delightful feelings of grati-
tude under circumstances, which excite us now to
any thing rather than contentment and praise ;
our language would often be like that of Jeremiah,
" Wherefore doth a living man complain ; a man
for the punishment of his sin ? ^

But though a most powerful argument in sup-
port of a duty like that of the text, might be
drawn from the consideration of the innumerable
temporal mercies bestowed upon us by our gracious
God ; yet these are not the things to which St.
Paul here alludes. He is drawing this epistle to a
close, which, while it is highly practical, is also

' Lament, iii. 39.

ROMANS XII. 1. 23

most highly doctrinal. In its commencement,
after friendly salutations and expressions of Chris-
tian affection to his brethren in Christ residing at
Rome, he exhibits in all its awful nature, the
depraved condition of the gentile world ; he then
urges home upon the Jews, the question whether
they were at all better than the gentiles, and having
shown that they were not, he draws the melan-
choly conclusion, that " there was no difference,
for that all have sinned, and come short of the
glory of God."

Having thus established the universal sin and
consequent condemnation of the whole human
race; he proceeds to meet the grand inquiry,
" How may man be just with God?" Had he
remained spotless, innocent, and pure, in the state
wherein he was created, the answer would have
been easy, he will be justified by his works, by his
own acts and deeds, his constant, never-failing obe-
dience to the divine law ; but when that law had
been violated again and again by every child of
Adam, no conclusion could possibly be clearer than
that by the deeds of the law could no flesh living be
justified in his sight ; justification could not, there-
fore, depend on the law, or on merit. The apostle
then goes on to shew, that though man cannot
justify himself, and is consequently in a state of
condemnation, he is not on that account to be shut
up under despair ; but he proceeds to prove, that
there is a righteousness imputed without works.

24 HERMON II :

even that righteousness which Christ hath brought
in, and which he hath provided by his own perfect
fulfilment of the law, and by his obedience unto
death in our place. This is by grace, all of un-
merited favour, free goodness, mere mercy, "We
are justified /reeZy by his grace." In this righteous-
ness we obtain a part through /«i^A ; faith receives
the record which God hath given concern-
ing his Son ; faith stretches out the hand to
" receive the things that are freely given to us of
God ; " faith relies on the promise, and applies in
assured expectation of receiving that which it
asks, and which it knows God is ready to give ;
so important is the grace of faith, that we are said
to ho. justified by it, and by it alone ; yet faith has
m itself no merit, it is no work which will compen-
sate for failures in other things ; it only receives
with firm reliance those promises and those gifts
which God bestows on the sinner, of mere mercy,
and free grace.

The apostle then shows how blessed is the state
of those who have thus received righteousness
without works ; salvation by grace ; justification
by faith in Christ, " for them there is no condem-
nation," their happiness is certain, " all things are
now w^orking for their good," they are " made the
children of God," and " receive the spirit of
adoption ; " none shall dare " to lay any thing to
their charge," or to demand their condemnation,
for it is God who justifieth them, it is Christ who

ROMANS XII. I. 25

hath died for them and risen again, and " nothing
shall separate them from the love of God which
is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Time will not allow me to follow the subject
further ; but such is the view of the mercy of God
which St. Paul takes, on which he grounds the
argument of the text. And can we conceive of any
thing on which a stronger argument can be
grounded? of any thing which is so well suited to
reach, and bring into action, the best feelings of
our hearts ? Apply the subject to yourselves, my
brethren. Do you trust that you are Christians ?
have you hope that you are in the way to eternal
glory ; have you now some cheering anticipations
of heavenly happiness ? some of . the fruits of
Canaan brought to you in this dreary wilderness ?
Now to what do you owe all this present consola-
tion, and all these hopes for futurity ? what has
made you to differ from what others are, and from
what you once were ? once you were dead in
trespasses and sins ; once you were walking ac-
cording to this world, " a child of wrath even as
others;" " without Christ, having no hope, and
without God in the world ; " an utter stranger, in
short, to religion, and utterly thoughtless about
your eternal inheritance ; or else the prey of many
fearful forebodings of the wrath to come. What
then has awakened your souls ? what has delivered
you from these fears and inspired these hopes?
You will answer, ' it is the mercy of God, mercy

26 SERMON II :

shewn to me through Christ Jesus my Lord ; he
loved me, and came down from heaven to seek
me. He " gave himself as a sacrifice to God'^
for me ; " he bare my sins in his own body on
the tree ; " he sent his Holy Spirit to renew my
soul, and that Spirit now imparts comfort and
hope, while he " witnesses with my spirit that 1
am a child of God." Yes, the whole from first to
last is mercy ; it was mercy which pitied my ruined
state ; mercy which brought the Son of God from
heaven ; this mercy inclined me to listen to the
proclamation of the gospel ; and to embrace it as
*' all my salvation, and all my desire;" it was
mercy which brought me into a state of recon-
ciliation with God ; it is mercy which daily sup-
ports my feeble steps ; and on that mercy I rely to
keep me to the end : when I go down to the
grave it will be "looking for the mercy of our
Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life," and my last
prayer, when I quit the world to meet my God on
his judgment seat shall be, that " I may find
mercy of the Lord in that day."

Thus, every Christian, from the hour when first
under the feeling of penitential sorrow, he "smites
on his breast and cries, God be merciful to me a
sinner," to the last moment of his earthly exis-
tence, will say that mercy is his only stay, his
only hope ; but that the mercy of God in Christ
is so infinitely great that he can want nothing
else, either for time or eternity.

ROMANS XII. 1. 27

And can there be this sure dependence on the
boundless grace of our God ; without our feeling,
that the offended Creator who thus shews mercy to
his guilty creatures, has the most strong claims on
our gratitude and love ? Can it be that any man
can hope in God's mercy to this amazing extent,
and yet not often ask himself, " What shall I
render unto the Lord for all the benefits he hath
done unto me?" It cannot be ! The heart which
does not feel the mercy of God, and " the love of
Christ constraining it," can know nothing of true
religion ; it must be a stranger to the hopes of the
gospel ; and all pretences to such hopes must
be a delusion.

Such was the opinion of St. Paul, and therefore
when addressing many practical instructions to his
Christian friends, and when exhorting them to
cultivate the highest degree of holy abstraction
from the w^orld, and the utmost devotedness to the
service of God, he felt that he needed no other argu-
ment than that which would at once suggest itself
on the review of the mercies of God towards them.

I now proceed,

II. To consider the object for which the Apos-
tle urged this argument :

" 1 beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of

God, THAT YE PRESENT YOUR BODIES A LIVING
SACRIFICE, HOLY AND ACCEPTABLE TO GoD,
WHICH IS YOUR REASONABLE SERVICE."

28 SERMON II :

In some parts of the writings of St. Paul, the
word hody, like the other term the flesh, is used in
a figurative sense to represent the corrupt and
wicked nature ; but here it seems to be used in a
literal sense. In the former case, we are taught
that we must mortify, crucify, and utterly destroy
it, as an accursed thing that must be sacrificed to
the justice of God, against whom it has rebelled,
and to whose laws it cannot ever be subject ; but
here it is not to be a slaughtered, but a living sacri-
fice; not, like Agag, " hewed to pieces before the
Lord" as his implacable enemy; but like Samuel,
who was from his infancy lent unto the Lord, to
be a living sacrifice, and to serve him in his courts
all the days of his life. The Apostle gives us
something of the same idea, when he describes his
own conduct in the first Epistle to the Corinthians.
" I keep under my body, and bring it into sub-
jection, lest at any time when I have preached to
others, I myself should be a cast- away." ^ That
body which others pamper, and to whose appetites
they are enslaved, he " kept under," reduced to a
state of servitude and submission, that it might be
prepared to execute the commands, and obey the
impulses of the soul with alacrity and effect.

In what manner the members and faculties of the
body may be made subservient to the purposes of
the renewed soul, we may learn in the way of con-

' 1 Cor. ix. 27.

ROMANS XII. 1. *29

trast, by observing how St. Paul has described
them as under the government of the corrupt
nature. " Their throat is an open sepulchre ; with
their tongues they have used deceit ; the poison
of asps is under their lips : whose mouth is full
of cursing and bitterness : their feet are swift to
shed blood." ^ There is also another passage
illustrative of the subject before us, wherein the
members of the body are represented as being the
instruments by which the soul, both in the regene-
rate and unregenerate, carries on its purposes ;
" Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal
body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
Neither yield ye your members as instruments of
unrighteousness unto sin; but yield yourselves unto
God as those that are alive from the dead, and
your members as instruments of righteousness unto
God." 2 Jn the former of these passages you
perceive, that the body and its different members
are the instruments by which the unrenewed soul
accomplishes its wicked and unrighteous purposes ;
in the latter they become the instruments by means
of which those works of righteousness are per-
formed, which are by Jesus Christ to the glory of
God the Father.

The Apostle, in the text, assumes that he is
speaking to those who had undergone a change
of heart ; to men who were well prepared to feel

• Rom. iii. 13—15. » Rom. vi. 12, 13.

30 SERMON II :

the deep obligation under which they lay to the
mercy of God and the love of Christ; and who
felt an earnest desire to " shew forth the praises
of him who had called them out of darkness into
his marvellous light." The address is to Christ-
ians,— to believers in Christ ; to those whom an
Apostle would call his brethren. It will indeed
well apply to all who know " the good tidings
of great joy" revealed in the Gospel ; the mercy
of God ought to affect all who have ever heard
of it, in the same manner ; since it is offered to all
indiscriminately ; but, none will feel the force of
the motive, and consequently none will yield to the
call, except those who have " tasted that the Lord
is gracious."

To such the Apostle says, "I beseech you, there-
fore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye
present yourselves a living sacrifice." " Ye are not
your own," he says in another place, "for ye are
bought with a price : therefore glorify God in your
body, and in your spirit, which are God's." ^ The
soul is as it were called upon to act as the priest,
and to bring the body, with all its members and with
all its powers, and to present it an offering — a living
sacrifice to the Lord, that it should be wholly and
entirely devoted to the service of God, to doing his
pleasure, till it shall " return to the dust whence it
was taken," there to rest till the morning of the

' 1 Cor. vi. 19, 20.

ROMANS XII, 1. 31

resurrection, when the trumpet of the Archangel
shall again call it to live, and to enjoy an immortal
existence.

The service of God is always spoken of as a
spiritual service ; as valuable and acceptable just
in proportion as it is the service of the heart, with-
out which " bodily exercise profiteth little." But
still, as the body is the instrument by which the
soul of a wicked man practises iniquity, so is it
the instrument by which the godly man practises
righteousness, and by holy actions exhibits the
purity of his heart. Those feet which were
naturally " swift to shed blood," now are employ-
ed in executing errands of mercy and kindness to
men, and conveying their possessor to the courts
of the Lord — the hands by which iniquity was
practised, and robbery, and plunder, and violence
were committed; now are engaged in "working
that which is good," that they may relieve the
poor and distressed,— the ear which once was
open to listen only to that which would corrupt
and defile the mind, and call every evil dispo-
sition into exercise, now hearkens with reverent
attention to the word of God, to gather from
it those holy truths which may transform the
soul into the Redeemer's image ;— the tongue, that
" unruly evil,"— that " setteth on fire the course
of nature, and " is set on fire of hell "—which
once loved to speak all manner of words that can
do hurt, no more permits any filthy communi-

32 SERMON II :

cation to proceed from it — any word that may
kindle the evil tempers or pollute the imaginations
of others ; but it speaks " that which is good to
the use of edifying, that it may minister grace to
the hearers," and become the instrument of doing
them good. These brief notices may serve to
shew how the body may be presented as a living
sacrifice by the soul ; how it may exhibit the work
of grace in the heart, and become the instrument
of glorifying God and conferring benefits on man
for the Lord's sake.

" By the mercies of God," my Christian breth-
ren, says St. Paul, " I beseech you thus to present
your bodies a living sacrifice ; " consider what
God's mercies have been ; view generally what he
has done for our race ; consider particularly what
he has done for you individually ; how far he has
been from " dealing with you after your sins,
or rewarding you according to your iniquities."
Had he done this, where would you have been ?
In how" different a state from that dispensation of
grace and mercy, of peace and hope, under which
you are now ! What will you then render to the
Lord ? what can he ask for, which is not already
his own ? He asks for your heart, for your
supreme affection, for your highest love ; is this
an unreasonable demand ? Surely not. He asks
for your body also — he promises that though now
it is a body of humiliation — a vile body — the
source of many cares and troubles, and sentenced

ROMANS XII. 1. 33

to fall a prey to worms and corruption, yet he will
raise it a glorious body, — the fit companion of the
renewed soul in heavenly worship and in heavenly
glory. But in the mean time he calls on thee, O
Christian, to lend its powers to him — to devote
it to God's service — to employ it for his glory.
And can you withhold it ? Can you say no ? Will
you say, My body and all its powers must now be
employed about the business and the pleasures of
this life — I cannot spare time for it to be devoted
to God ? No Christian would ever dare to har-
bour such an idea — though those worldly-minded
beings of whom there are so many bearing the
name of Christians, seem to feel, if they do not
actually speak thus. And this leads to the in-
quiry, why, since God's " service is perfect freedom,"
Christ's " yoke easy and his burden light," the
Apostle should use the word sacrifice'? The term
seems to import the giving up of something which
we value, sustaining the loss of something which
we deem precious ; but how can this apply to that
decided service of God, which we are always taught
to esteem a source of enjoyment and happiness ?
Were the exhortation addressed to some holy being
in whose heart no sinful propensity ever had a
place, there would not be room for applying such a
term ; this perfect and complete surrender of all his
powers to God his Creator, would be the very
thing he would choose naturally ; he would have
no idea of happiness to be derived from any other

D

34 SERMON II :

source. And such indeed is the fact with regard to
us ; we can find no true gratification elsewhere,
but we have not the same full conviction of this
truth on our minds ; nature in us runs the other
way ; it is only when faith is in full exercise,
that we feel sure that our enjoyment is in God.
We hanker after worldly and carnal pleasures ;
such pleasures as the body craves at the expence
of the soul's peace. Now while this is the case,
we shall feel as though we were sustaining a loss
and making a sacrifice, when we refuse to afford
the body any further gratification of this sort, and
determine, by God's help, to force it into his ser-
vice, to keep it under, and bring it into subjection ;
— the attempt is wholly against nature.

But further than this. That surrender of all
our powers to God, of which I have been speak-
ing, must not only be made in opposition to the
sinful lusts of the flesh, but it must also be in
defiance of the world. This is one of the great
enemies we have to contend with, when working
out our salvation. It will frown and it will smile ;
it will threaten and it will allure ; it will oppose
and it will tempt us, that it may turn us out of this
path of duty. We must make up our minds to be
considered singular, and be willing to be laughed
at and even hated, if we will thus be decidedly on
the Lord's side. Hence in the following verse,
the apostle says, " Be not conformed to this world."
Now this gives it still more the character of a

ROMANS XII. 1. 35

sacrifice ; and though no circumstances will excuse
any one for neglecting it, yet we must allow that
some persons are so situated, as to render it no
small sacrifice. But as the sacrifices of Israel,
however costly, were never lost, but returned to
them an hundred fold in blessings from above ;
so is it with this sacrifice : it may be costly, it
may require much self-denial, yet it shall never
be repented of.

My brethren, you who profess to be the servants
of God, what has caused you most uneasiness ?
What has done most to diminish your happiness ?
Has it been the sacrifice you have been called to
make ? has it been the scorn, contempt, and hatred
of the world ? or has it not rather been this, that
your conscience has been disturbed, and your fears
excited by a conviction, that you were not following
the Lord fully ? You see then that whether you
consider the mercies of your God, or the efi"ect it
will have on your own happiness, it is a reasonable
service which is required of you ; such St. Paul, in
the text, pronounces it to be. Carry your ideas
of the devotedness of heart and life here demanded
from you, to the highest extent you can reach, and
you can hardly carry them too far, still you must
feel that it is no more than God has a right to
claim ; still it will not amount to an adequate
return for that infinite mercy which God has
showed to you ; still it will call for nothing which
will not ultimately produce comfort and satisfaction

D 2

36 SERMON II.

to yourself, even in this life, and infinitely more in
that which is to come. Is not then this a reason-
able service ? Oh, learn to view it as such, and
be thankful that with all its imperfections, it is an
acceptable sacrifice. We wonder not that the man
of the world should look on religion as a task ; but
that Christians should allow any such idea to lurk
in their breasts, is strange indeed : yet when we
see how much they hang back from this full sur-
render of themselves to God ; when we see how
worldly they are, we cannot but fear that there is
this feeling still concealed within. My Christian
brethren, let us examine ourselves as to our con-
duct and feelings in this respect ; and when we
find, as no doubt we shall, how much we fall short
in that unlimited surrender of ourselves which we
ought to make to God, let us humble ourselves
before him, and pray that our hearts may be pene-
trated with a more lively sense of his mercies
towards us, and that the contemplation of the
unspeakable love of Christ, may constrain us to
live no longer to ourselves, but unto him that died
for us and rose again.

SERMON III.

1 JOHN V. 3.

FOR THIS IS THE LOVE OF GOD, THAT WE KEEP HIS COM-
MANDMENTS : AND HIS COMMANDMENTS ARE NOT GRIEVOUS.

There is something very humiliating in the reflec-
tion, that the human heart is not only " desper-
ately wicked," but that it is " deceitful above all
things," so that " none can know it," none can
arrive at any certainty that his heart is not prac-
tising some gross and fatal deceit upon him. This
is so humiliating, that few will allow it as respects
themselves, though they are very forward to make
their observations on the want of self-knowledge
which is betrayed by their neighbours. No one,
however, will be able in this respect to cast the
first stone at his brother, if he is to stay his hand
till he can prove that he is without sin himself.
We are continually showing that we think our-
selves pure, on points where those around us most
clearly discern our defilement ; w^e are perpetually
taking credit for virtues, in which those who know
us best, see that we are remarkably defective, so
that we are startled, and conceive ourselves injured.

38 SERMON III :

when by any means we discover the estimate
formed of us.

But well would it be for us, if this system of
deception extended only to those things of which
our neighbours are cognizant ; it follows us also
into matters, in which we have immediately to do
with God ; and where therefore self-flattery, when
carried to its utmost extent, can afford us no last-
ing comfort ; for soon, very soon, we must be
naked and open to our own view, just as we are
now to that of God ; these false and deceitful imag-
inations are the refuges of lies, which shall be all
swept away in the ' ' day of wrath and revelation of
the righteous judgment of God.'' To discover what
we really are, will then be of no other use than to
show us the justice of God in our condemnation ;
but if we can detect the error now ; if we can dis-
cover our mistakes while opportunity is afforded of
correcting them, we shall be infinitely gainers,
though the discovery will in some respects be pain-
ful ; hence all those exhortations to diligent watch-
fulness, and self-examination, which abound in the
Holy Scriptures ; hence all those minute displays
of the fruits and effects of Christian graces ; — all
are intended to assist us in guarding against self-
deception, to enable us to ascertain what manner
of persons we really are ; that thus we may know
to what points we have special need to pay the
closest attention. Such is the nature and design
of the text ; it is intended to show us whereby we

1 JOHN V. 3. 39

may distinguish true love of God, from every spu-
rious imitation, and from every delusive feeling.
There are, we see, two particulars which charac-
terize this principle, by which we may be enabled
to judge whether it exist in our hearts or not.

I. It keeps God's commandments.

II. It renders those commandments easy

AND pleasant.

I. This is the love of God, that we keep his
commandments. The apostle here puts the effect
for the cause : the two are inseparable, and there-
fore the substitution of the one for the other is
productive of no mistake.

As the love of God is the first and great com-
mandment of the law, it might be considered as
the sum total of the religion of a creature. So long
as this principle existed, and bare rule in the heart
of man, every thing else that was holy and good
naturally followed ; but when these right affections
toward the Creator ceased to prevail in his breast,
then rebellion and disorder immediately ensued.

But not only is the " love of God the first and
great commandment of the law," it holds an
equally important place, under the gospel dispen-
sation. The Son of God was not merely mani-
fested, that he might make provision for pardoning
sinners, and saving them from everlasting woe,
but that he might destroy the works of the Devil,
that he might bring back man to God, " redeem

40 SERMON III :

him from all iniquity," and save him from that
state of moral and spiritual decay, into which he
had fallen by sin. We are told therefore, that
again shall the law of God be written in the
soul of the true believer in Christ, and the first
and great commandment, the love of God, will of
course be engraven in indelible characters on the
fleshly table of the heart. No sooner does a man
become possessed of true faith ; no sooner does the
Holy Spirit, as the sanctifier of the elect people of
God, commence his work in the soul ; no sooner
is the rebellious creature reconciled to his God,
than he beholds in the divine character every
thing that is calculated to excite his fullest admi-
ration. If he views it as displayed in Jesus Christ,
and so sees that God is love, the very per-
fection of all that is kind, compassionate, long-
suffering, and bountiful ; this awakens in him the
deepest sense of his own obligations and depend-
ance ; the strongest feelings of gratitude for mer-
cies already received, and the fullest reliance on
him for supplies of future mercy and grace ; united
with adoration, wonder, and love. If again he
looks on God as perfect in holiness, abhorring
iniquity, and determined that it shall not go un-
punished, though thus he appears as a consuming
fire ; yet even the dread with which he contem-
plates the perfections of the godhead, is mingled
with admiration ; they excite no hard thoughts, no
rebellious murmurs in his breast ; they produce

1 JOHN V. 3. 41

fear indeed, but a fear which, mingling and uniting
with love, forms that which is the right disposition
of a creature toward his Creator.

Dispositions like these, the law required, and the
gospel is intended to produce ; they are as neces-
sary under the covenant of grace, as they were
under the covenant of works ; for there can be no
religion without them. Every man's heart and
conscience allow this ; every one knows that it is
only so far as he is possessed of these feelings, that
he can indulge the hope that he is in the favour of
God, and in the way to heaven. And, here occurs
that danger of self-deception, of w^hich I spoke
at the commencement of mv discourse. We feel
that it is right and just, that we should thus love
God, and delight in the contemplation of his per-
fections ; we know indeed that if we be strangers
to this, we cannot be in a state of preparation for
the company and the worship of heaven, and of
course cannot be admitted there ; this is a reflec-
tion we wish to shun ; we naturally " speak
peace " to ourselves ; w^e dread the idea of disco-
vering that we " have not the love of God in us,"
because that would blast all our hopes ; and as we
easily persuade ourselves of the truth of any thing
we wish to believe, we think we can trace some
feelings in our breasts not quite consistent with a
total destitution of love to God, and so we per-
suade ourselves, that all is right. Thus are we in
perpetual danger of ' ' deceiving our own hearts ; "

42 SERMON III :

and of indulging ideas which may lull us to sleep
in false security.

Now it is to remove such dangers that the Holy
Scriptures are so careful to trace out the effects
and tendencies of things. Do they speak of repent-
ance ? they shew us what " the fruits meet for
repentance " are ; that we may not be deceived by
" the sorrow of the world." Do they speak of
faith? they tell us that it is a " faith which work-
eth by love ;" which purifies " the heart ;" w^hich
" overcometh the world;" and all this, that we
may not rest our hope upon that "faith which
hath not works," and is therefore "dead being
alone." Do they speak again of hope, that
" anchor of the soul ; " they tell us that it is con-
nected with " the love of God shed abroad in the
heart ; " and they add that " every one who hath
this hope" in Christ " purifieth himself even as he
is pure ;" thus do they guard us against " the hope
of the hypocrite," which shall perish " when God
taketh away the soul."

So with respect to the love of God. We might
easily be deceived by some lively transient natural
affections ; and therefore we are taught in our
text, that it is inseparably connected with obedience
to His commandments. " This is the love of God,
that we keep his commandments." There is, I
trust, my brethren, no need for me to enter very
widely into the consideration of these command-
ments. As they were given to Israel at Mount

1 JOHN V. 3. 43

Sinai, they are read to such as will attend the
Morning Services of our Church, every Lord's day.
You know how these are expounded and applied to
a multitude of particulars, in different parts of the
Holy Scriptures ; and you are well acquainted w ith
the manner in which they were shown by our
Saviour to extend to the very thoughts and intents
of the heart.

Now to all these, both in the spirit and in the
letter of them, true love to God pays universal
respect. As the commands of God they carry
with them an irresistible claim to the reverential
regard of every creature ; the sanctions and
penalties by which they are enforced, may well
make us afraid to disobey them ; but it is the love
of God shed " abroad in the heart," which secures
our submission. The slave dares do no other
than fulfil the orders of his master, the undutiful
son is awed into subjection by the chastening rod
of his parent ; but the affectionate wife, and the
loving child, wants nothing more than an intima-
tion of the husband's or the father's will, to make
them hasten to execute it with alacrity. Such is
the nature of the love of God w^hen shed abroad in
the heart by the Holy Ghost. The person under
its influence requires nothing more than to " know
the will of God;" he has his loins girded, prepared
for action, asking with St. Paul, " Lord, what
wilt thou have me to do ? "

We see at once that this is a principle which will

44 SERMON III :

produce an universal obedience. In many instances
we meet with persons, who act like the young
man, who, when our Lord told him to keep the
commandments, asked w;A.fcA ? One precept seems
so opposed to a man's natural disposition, that it
would cost him more self-denial to obey it, than it
w^ould some of his neighbours, and therefore he
trusts he may be excused in neglecting it ; while
to others, not so difficult to him, he is willing to
pay due attention ; another commandment requires
something which would cause him to offend so
many of his friends, if he were to act up to its
spirit, that he hopes he may be permitted to lower
it down so as to make it more easy for him to
practise. Another man says, I wish to perform
my duty towards God, but some of the commands
and regulations of scripture, seem to have been
given, when society was in a very different state
than it is now ; were I to attempt to obey
them to their full extent, I should be a laugh-
ing stock for the whole circle of my acquaint-
ance ; surely then, it cannot be required of me to
be so very strict as to adhere quite to the letter of
scripture under such circumstances. And another
declares, that business and trade in all their
branches are so conducted in the present day, that
he must do as do others, for the attempt to adhere
to the rules laid down in the Bible would cause
him ruin.

Thus is it the almost universal cry, how much

1 JOHN V. 3. 45

of God's law must we obey, and how many of its
precepts may we violate ? But such is not the
language of love ; such is not the inquiry of the
man whose pleasure is to please God. No ! — where
these reasonings prevail, God is not loved so much
as our own indulgence, or our ease and character,
and worldly interests. Whatever that is, for the
sake of which, we should be willing to neglect
even one of God's laws, that thing, whatever it
may be, is loved and served by us more than God.

Where this is the case, we can meet with no
acceptance. God demands the whole heart, and
the whole soul. Every interest and every affection
must be subjected to this one ruling principle, the
love of God. When our blessed Lord was on
earth, as God manifested in the flesh, he made a
demand of the same kind ; " He that loveth
father or mother more than me is not worthy of
me : and he that loveth son or daughter more than
met is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not
his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy
of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it, and
he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it."^

Such was the regard — the supreme regard which
our Saviour demanded ; and such does our Crea-
tor require of us all : the affection we bear to the
nearest and dearest of our earthly relatives must be
subjected to this ; the desire we feel to please them

> Matt. X. :37— 39.

46 SERMON III :

must give way to the still stronger desire to please
God, by keeping his commandments ; our most
valued worldly possessions must be sacrificed, when
his glory may be promoted by the sacrifice ; yea,
life itself must not be esteemed dear to us, when
it cannot be retained without disobeying and of-
fending God. Such was the love of God which
inspired all the noble army of martyrs, who like their
divine Master were " obedient unto death ; " and
with Shadrach, Meshech, and Abednego, " yielded
their bodies" to the burning fiery furnace, " that
they might not serve nor worship any God except
their own God."

Say not, brethren, that these were extraordinary
instances ; doubtless they were so, but the principle
is the same ; the love of God produces similar
effects, whether the possessor stands before a raging
monarch like Nebuchadnezzar, or whether he be
exposed to the more ordinary persecutions which
befal those " who will live godly in Christ Jesus*; "
in either case it produces obedience, a firm and reso-
lute determination to do the will of God, and keep
his commandments, whatever may be the conse-
quence. Here then is the balance in which our
professed love to God must be weighed ; by this
means we may ascertain how far this grand and
fundamental part of religion exists and rules in our
hearts. Let me beg of you, my brethren, to bring
yourselves to this test, review each day and its
transactions according to this rule ; ask yourselves

1 JOHN V. 3. 47

in what instances you have acted in opposition to
the maxims of the world : in what you have re-
nounced your own gratification, made a sacrifice
of your interest, and braved the scorn and con-
tempt of your connections, because, and simply
because you desired to please God, and would not
offend him by breaking his commandments. It
is this which makes true Christians so unlike the
rest of mankind ; motives such as the world knows
not of, influence them to love God, and to shew
that love by doing whatsoever things they perceive
are according to his will and acceptable in his sight.

II. But we must proceed to consider the second
characteristic of love to God — it renders his

COMMANDMENTS EASY AND PLEASANT: " His

commandments," says the Apostle, " are not
grievous/'

This expression reminds us of our Saviour's de-
claration, "My yoke is easy and my burden is light."

In both cases the sentiment is directly contrary
to all that human nature suggests. The first com-
mand ever given, though accompanied with so large
and free a grant — "of every tree of the garden
thou mayest freely eat, but of the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil thou shalt not eat of
it,"^ even this, was, at the suggestion of Satan,
thought to be so hard, that it was doul)ted
whether such a precept could have come from

» Gen. ii. 16, 17.

48 SERMON III :

God ; and was at last rejected as too grievous to
be regarded. And such still is the case ; there is
scarcely a precept in the whole scripture which at
one time or other we have not felt to be too severe
a restraint on our liberty, too great a mark of
subjection, or against which our hearts have
not risen, and disobedience been the result. But
right reason shews us that this is the view
which passion and love of present indulgence
alone takes of them. With respect to each, God
may say, " Come now and let us reason together."
The strictest injunctions, the most spiritual com-
mands are such as God might most justly give
to his creature ; none of them require a holiness
and purity beyond what was natural to a being
formed after the image of God ; even that which
says "be ye holy for I am holy," only bids us
continue what God made us, and not only so —
they all conduce to our good. Each one says,
" Do thyself no harm." We need only trace back
most of the misery we have seen in the world, and
which we have even felt in ourselves, to its true
origin, and we shall find that it sprang directly
from a departure from God's laws ; and that a
return to a strict obedience, and universal regard
to them, would immediately remedy half, and more
than half the evils that exist on earth. Command-
ments therefore which tend thus directly to the
good and happiness of those to whom they are
given, cannot justly be considered as grievous.

1 JOHN V. 3. 49

Yet in this light they are viewed hy the bulk of
mankind, insomuch that they " are not subject to
them, nor indeed can be." At the very time that
they are forced to confess them "holy, and just,
and good," they feel an invincible dislike to them ;
every attempt to obey them is irksome : even ex-
ternal submission is a most heavy task, and per-
fectly to keep them (were it possible to beings in
such a state of mind) would be perfect wretchedness.

We have the opportunity, in a few instances, of
seeing this contest between judgment and feeling ;
between the convictions of the conscience, and de-
praved inclination ; and we cannot fail to observe
how generally the latter obtains the victory. The
drunkard, for instance, is in his sober hours,
thoroughly convinced that the prohibition of ex-
cess is perfectly reasonable ; he is often miserable
because of the ruin which he knows he is brino-ine;
on himself and his family, as w^ell as on his future
prospects. And we might therefore hope to see
some marks of improvement, to see his evil prac-
tices abandoned, since he approves the law which
condemns them. But exactly the reverse is the
case : he loves the sin and he follows it, even with
ruin before his eyes ; the commandment is grievous
to him — so grievous that he cannot, he will not,
he does not submit to it.

In this instance, the whole process is open to
our inspection, we see the whole without any dis-
guise ] but the same passes as really, though more

E

50 SERMON III :

covertly in a thousand other ways, with regard
even to every precept of the word of God. The
man who loves the gaiety of the world, or its
splendour, or its applause, is in his serious moments,
forced to acknowledge its vanity, its utter unsuit-
ableness to a being like himself, standing on the
verge of eternity; yet the commands, " come
out and be separate," " love not the world,
neither the things that are in the world," are
grievous to him, and he pays them no regard.
There is scarcely a person who has ever given
one moment's serious attention to the grand
doctrines of revelation, who does not admit the
propriety of the command to repent and believe
in Christ, and so to " work out his salvation with
fear and trembling" — scarcely one who does not
allow that this is right and proper ; and yet how
few are there who act accordingly ! The general
case is, that all live in neglect of these precepts, and
if they are urged upon them from the pulpit, they
are looked on as too grievous to be obeyed, and the
preacher is too often considered as bigoted or
enthusiastical.

But where, by the renewing influences of the
Holy Spirit, " the love of God is shed abroad in
the heart," a total change is produced. " Two
cannot walk together," as " Enoch walked with
God," and as every true believer walks with him,
" except they be agreed." — Christians are " made
partakers of a divine nature," and that produces

1 JOHN V. 3. 51

not only external agreement between the new crea-
ture and his God — not merely a conformity of
judgment even, but a conformity of feeling. That
which God loves and approves, is loved and
approved by him who is born of God ; hence,
instead of deeming these commandments grievous,
he cries with David, " Oh, how I love thy law, it
is my meditation all the day." " I delight in the
law of God." A man in such a state of feeling
looks at every precept with pleasure ; and even
when most distressed with the consciousness of the
imperfection of his obedience, and most pained by
thinking on that law of sin and death which is in his
members and frustrates all his efforts to do good,
he would not have " one jot or one tittle" taken
from the law, to make it more easy for him to
practice, or less opposed to the inclination of his
corrupted nature. No ; it is good and only good,
though " he is carnal, sold under sin."

Here, my brethren, is the great work of true
religion ; here are the fruits of salvation " by grace
through faith ; " here we see what genuine recon-
ciliation to God is ; and here consequently we see
what an ample field for self-examination is pre-
sented to us. If such be the love of God — if it
keep God's commandments, and render them not
grievous, but pleasant and satisfactory — if it recon-
cile the mind to the strictest and most self-denying
injunctions ; and make the soul to long after
perfect holiness ; what must we think of much that

E 2

52 SERMON III.

passes for religion ? Nay what must we think of our
own religion ? If our faith were genuine, it would
work by such love as this ; if our hope were what
it ought to be, it would lead to such purification of
heart as this ; if our repentance were sincere these
would be its fruits ; if our reconciliation to God
were complete, such would be our perfect accord-
ance to his will. What need then have we for cir-
cumspection and holy jealousy over ourselves, lest
we should "fail of the grace of God ! " What
need to watch and pray, lest after all we should be
destitute of this " meetness for the inheritance of
the saints in light," and so be excluded from hea-
ven because not fitted to enter there through the
want of the love of God.

SERMON IV.

MARK IX, 24.

AND STRAIGHTWAY THE FATHER OF THE CHILD CRIED OUT,
AND SAID WITH TEARS, LORD, I BELIEVE ; HELP THOU
MINE UNBELIEF.

The evangelist commences this chapter with an
account of our Lord's transfiguration. He ascended,
what is called by St. Peter, the holy mount, ac-
companied by only three of his apostles as specta-
tors and witnesses of the glorious scene. They had
been used to behold him in the form of a servant,
as the " man of sorrows and acquainted with
grief; without form or comeliness, and having no
beauty that they should desire him;" but upon
this occasion Peter, James, and John, the three
most favoured of his attendants, were permitted to
behold him, in something like his native glory.
His whole appearance underwent a most surprising
change, his very raiment became shining, exceeding
white as snow ; while Moses and EHas, the two
most remarkable characters under that dispensa-
tion which was just vanishing away, attended on
him and talked with him ; and that decease which he

54 SERMON IV :

was shortly to accomplish at Jerusalem ; that most
mysterious subject which angels desire to look into,
formed the topic of their conversation on this ex-
traordinary occasion. This scene was so delightful
to the minds of the three apostles, that they said,
" It is good for us to be here ; " and fain would
they have persuaded our Lord to lengthen out these
cheering, happy moments : but they knew not
what they said ; delightful as were the feelings of
their souls, it would not have promoted their ad-
vantage had this blissful scene continued long ;
and their enjoyments, if they had been permanent,
would have frustrated that wonderful design of
mercy on which Moses and Elias had just been
conversing. The splendid vision speedily vanished
from their view ; again they saw their master as a
poor man divested of all his glory ; again was it
needful for them to return, and encounter the sor-
rows of a vexatious and troublesome world.

On reaching their brethren, they found them in
circumstances, which rendered the return of their
Master peculiarly welcome. They had just failed in
the attempt to work a miracle, and the Scribes and
Pharisees had availed themselves of this discomfi-
ture, to increase their anxiety by reasoning and
disputing with them ; no doubt with the intention
of persuading them, that their faith in Christ was
a delusion, and that he was only a deceiver. A
man we find had, during our Lord's absence on
the mount, brought his son, who was tormented

MARK IX. 24. 55

with a devil, from whose power he suffered more
than was customary even in those dreadful cases.
His design seems to have been to bring him
to Jesus, but as he was not to be found, he
applied to his disciples for a cure. From our
Lord's answer to them, when they asked the cause
of their failure, we may perhaps gather, that they
had become negligent and slothful in religious
duties, and it pleased God to punish them by ex-
posing them to shame before the multitude ; they
attempted to cast out the devil, as they had often
done before, but they could not ; for a time, the
Spirit of the Lord had departed from them, and
Satan scorned their unavailing efforts.

Just at this critical moment our Lord appeared,
and having ascertained the cause of the tumult, he
ordered the youthful demoniac to be brought to
him. The afflicted father described the dreadful
state of his child. " He hath," said he, " a dumb
spirit, and oft times it hath cast him into the fire
and into the waters to destroy him: but if thou
canst do any thing " — the failure of the disciples
seems to have made the man distrust the power of
Christ himself — " if thou canst do any thing, have
compassion on us, and help us." " Jesus said
unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are pos-
sible to him that belie veth." These words of our
blessed Lord, are remarkable. Such is the effect
of unbelief, that it seems even to disarm almighty
power itself. Our Lord could do no mighty works

56 SERMON IV :

among his own countrymen because of their un-
behef. And in the present case, the possibility of
the unhappy youth's being dehvered from the bon-
dage of Satan was made to depend upon the faith
of the father who had brought him to Christ.
God saith, " Them that honour me I will honour,
but they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed : "
unbelief dishonours God. He that believeth not
maketh God a liar ; he shall receive no blessings
at his hand, for God will be believed and relied
upon by those who seek mercy from him. And
the more we expect, and the firmer is our confi-
dence in his power and goodness, the more we
honour him, and the greater benefits we shall re-
ceive. Such is clearly the doctrine of the passage
before us, and of every part of the divine word.

This declaration of our Saviour seems to have
produced a different effect upon the mind of the
distressed father, than might have been expected ;
the benefit he sought was apparently placed within
his reach, — it depended upon his faith, " ?/ thou
canst believe ; all things are possible to him that
believeth." Easy however as the condition seemed,
it was beyond the man's ability to perform it.
So he felt it to be, and therefore we read, that
" straightway the father of the child cried out with
tears. Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief."

Having thus brought before you the circum-
stances connected with the words of our text, I
propose, in the further consideration of them,

MARK IX. 24. 57

I. To dwell more at large upon the circum-
stances AND FEELINGS OF THE FATHER OF THE

CHILD, and

II. To INQUIRE HOW FAR THE LANGUAGE HE
EMPLOYED IS SUITABLE TO OURSELVES.

I. Let US consider the circumstances and

FEELINGS OF THE FATHER OFTHIS POSSESSED CHILD.

He had as we see a great object in view ; an
object which called all his parental and all his
pious feelings into action. His son, perhaps an
only one, and tenderly beloved by him, was in a
state which harrowed up his soul ; for he was
possessed by a foul spirit ; Satan had entered
into him, — driven him utterly frantic. He neither
thought nor spake, nor acted rationally ; and oft
was urged to the very brink of destruction by the
devil, that murderer from the beginning. To lose
a child by ordinary disease wrings the heart of a
parent with an anguish which none but a parent
can conceive ; but to lose a child by the direct
agency of Satan — to see him hurried on to de-
struction by an evil demon, who had seized on all
his powers of body and of mind, and aimed to
ruin both, was unspeakably dreadful to think of ;
while at the same time to see him live under the
dominion of Satan — to behold day after day his
mad and frantic actions — was if possible still worse
than death : living or dying, the condition of such
a child must go well nigh to break a parent's heart.

58 SERMON IV :

We can hardly form a conception of exactly such
a source of anguish as this, though alas ! there is
many a family where a sight too much akin to it
is to he seen ; many a son, and many a daughter,
whom a pious parent weeps over, because he can-
not help seeing that Satan dwells within them,
and is driving them on to destruction. And many
more such tears would be shed, and many more
fervent prayers would be offered, if the same evil
spirit that worketh in the children did not exert
his power in the parents also.

This afflicted father had doubtless tried many
remedies, but he had tried them all in vain ; he
had just brought his son to the disciples in hopss
that they could cast the devil out ; but they too
had failed : now however he had brought him to
Christ ; this was his last, his only remaining hope.
He had earnestly besought him, if he could do any
thing, to have compassion on him and help him.
He did not meet with a repulse — Christ did not
refuse his petition ; yet he proposed a condition to
him which went to his heart — which damped his
hopes — which almost made him sink into despair.
" If thou canst believe." The health, the happi-
ness, the deliverance of his child from present and
future misery, was thus made, as it were, to depend
upon himself ; if his faith w^avered ; if his reliance
on Christ did not prove firm ; if there were any
want of sincerity in his application ; Satan would
still hold fast his prey : the beloved child would

MARK IX. 24. 59

still be led captive by him at his will, and at last
be plunged into destruction.

Where, my brethren, is there one of us who
could bear to have the life, the health, the happi-
ness of one of our children, thus made to depend
on the sincerity of our prayers, or the stedfastness
of our faith ? The trial would be dreadful ; so it
was to this afflicted parent, for he not only felt
that our Lord's reply made the great blessing he
sought for his child to depend in a sense upon
himself, but he also manifestly felt conscious that
his faith was not such as could be relied on.

A view of the importance of his faith doubt-
less produced an examination of it — an inquiry
into the state of his own mind, such as he
had never before made, and never before thought
necessary. He had brought his son to Christ in
hope that he might be cured ; but he had never
examined into the grounds on which his hope and
expectation rested ; and when asked whether he
could believe, — whether he could and did rest on
Christ^s power and love, in full assurance that he
was both able and willing to do that for him,
which was so near his heart ; he was filled with
alarm, being conscious of the weakness of his
faith. The question of our Lord came home to
his soul ; he felt that he stood in the presence of
one with whom he could employ no disguise ; his
heart condemned him of weakness of faith, and
feebleness of reliance, — and there is an implied

60 SERMON IV :

consciousness that Christ was " greater than his
heart and knew all things."

His faith was so deficient that he scarcely dared
to expect anything from it ; if that were the foun-
dation on which his hopes were to be built, they
must fail ; but for hope to fail — utterly to fail in
such a case, was dreadful to his parental feelings.
What then was the result of this conflict in his
soul ? His distress led him to the only unfailing
source of consolation to every troubled mind : it
led him to prayer, — " Lord, I believe, help thou
mine unbelief."

Though his faith was weak, and he was ashamed
and confounded to think how feeble it was, and
how much it had been staggered by the inability
of the disciples to cure his son ; yet he could not
say that he was wholly unbelieving. As Peter
afterward, though he had had lamentable proof of
the weakness of his love to Christ, could yet say,
*' Lord, thou knowest all things ; thou knowest
that I love thee ; " so this man could, with deep
conviction of the weakness of his faith, still say,
" Lord, I believe." Yet could he not trust to
that, his faith was too feeble to deserve our Lord's
regard ; he felt that he could himself rise no
higher in faith and calling upon God : and if his
faith were feeble so was he himself ; he could not
give it such an increase of strength as should
make it meritorious in Christ's esteem ; yet he
dared not^ he would not wish that the demands of

MARK IX. 24. 61

God should be lowered down to meet the powers
of his feeble mind. If the honour of the Almighty
and the glory of the Redeemer, required that his
faith should grasp the blessing God's mercy be-
stowed, he would not that the just and holy rule
should be changed, that without faith he might
obtain his heart's desire. No ; rather would he
once more betake himself to the Saviour's mercy ;
"Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief." He
that could rescue his son from the dominion of
Satan, could take from himself the evil heart of
unbelief; — he could cause him not to stagger
through unbelief, but to be strong in faith, and to
give glory unto God.

That prayer was heard. The faith of the afflicted
father was helped — unbelief was overcome ; he
rested with an unshaken confidence in the powder
and love of the Saviour, and the favour he asked
was granted to its full extent, for we read in the
following verse, that Jesus "rebuked the foul
spirit, saying unto him. Thou deaf and dumb
spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter
no more into him."

II. And now, my brethren, we will proceed to
inquire, in what respects the language and

FEELINGS OF THIS AFFLICTED FATHER ARE SUIT-
ABLE TO OURSELVES?

That this narrative was intended for the benefit
of all who should in after ages become acquainted

C2 SERMON IV :

with it, we cannot doubt, for " all scripture is
profitable." There are however some portions
which are more clearly and evidently so than
others ; some from which we can derive advantage
with ease, while other portions can only be made
useful to us individually, by careful study, or by
indirect application. The passage we are consider-
ing, appears to belong to the former class ; and
perhaps there never was a Christian, who has not
adopted as his own, the impassioned exclamation
and prayer which it contains: "Lord, I believe,
help thou mine unbelief ; " and the more we con-
sider the subject, the more we shall feel, that the
language suits us ; that there are many occasions
on which we might utter the prayer, with tears as
sincere, and feelings as painful, as those of this
distressed parent when he brought his afflicted
child to Christ.

We will first consider it in a way exactly agree-
ing with the case before us. We are often called
on, indeed it is our daily duty, to intercede for
others. On every side we behold persons who
need our prayers, and in proportion as we come
nearer home and contemplate the state of those
with whom we are closely connected, the more are
our feelings excited, and the more do we find our-
selves constrained to pour forth our prayers to
Almighty God on behalf of those whom we love.
Many an anxious thought has the husband respect-
ing his wife, and the wife respecting her husband,

MARK IX. 24. G3

under which they can find no rehef, except at the
throne of grace ; thither does the pious parent
carry his heloved children, and there does he pour
forth for them a petition such as Abraham offered,
" Oh that Ishmael might live before thee : " when
he sees his offspring, the objects of his tenderest
love, forgetting their Creator in the days of their
youth, neglecting religion, and running into sin ;
w^hen he sees that example, and advice, and cor-
rection, produce little effect, and cannot change
their hearts or renew^ their souls, he does, he must
retire into his closet, and pour out his soul before
God. Thus is a Christian an intercessor with
heaven ; he pleads for his family — he pleads for his
neighbour — he pleads for his country — he pleads for
the church of God ; oft does he say with pious
Samuel to the ungrateful Israelites, " God forbid
that I should sin against the Lord in ceasing to pray
for you,"

But on w^hat does the success of prayer depend ?
We are taught in the passage before us, as well as
in many others, that it must be the prayer of faith.
" Let him," saith St. James, " ask of God, who
giveth to all men liberally, but let him ask in
faith, nothing wavering, for he that wavereth is
like a w^ave of the sea driven with the w^ind and
tossed. For let not that man think that he shall
receive any thing of the Lord." ' Our Lord also
makes use of this remarkable language when speak-

' James i. 6.

64 SERMON IV :

ing to his disciples — "Therefore I say unto
you, what things soever ye desire, when ye pray,
believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have
them." All this clearly implies that it is the
prayer of faith which hath power with God and
prevails ; faith which honours God by placing a
full reliance on his power and love, and feels as-
sured that he is ready to give all we ask, if only it
be consistent with our good, or the good of those
for whom we venture to intercede.

But alas ! how seldom do our prayers and inter-
cessions rise to this ! How wavering are we in
our hopes and expectations! How many doubts
do we entertain of God's mercy, and loving kind-
ness, and power ! How do we thus limit the Holy
One of Israel — and in consequence, how cold and
languid are our prayers even for those whom we
most love, and for whose happiness in time and
eternity we are most deeply concerned ! Which
of us could bear the thoughts of the blessedness of
our children or friends being made to depend upon
the vigour of our supplications on their behalf?
Should we not feel as the man in our text did ?
If Christ were to say, " if thou canst believe," thy
child or thy friend shall be saved and blessed, would
not the conscious languor of our faith make us
tremble as being accessary to their eternal ruin ?
We should feel it so ; and so we ought to feel it ;
and the dread of all our prayers for those for whom
we plead proving ineffectual through our want of

MARK ix. 24. f)5

faith, joined to the conviction, that for this cause
many of our prayers still remain unanswered,
should draw from us a supplication like his, accom-
panied with tears like those he shed, " Lord, I
believe, help thou my unbeUef." It is not by such
unfeeling, unbelieving prayers that we shall " stand
in the gap, to turn away the indignation of the
Lord " from those we love. Not such were the
prayers of Abraham in answer to which Sodom
itself would have been preserved, if only ten righ-
teous persons had been found therein. Let the
consideration humble us and make us more fervent
and earnest in seeking an increase of faith.

But important as this application of the subject
is, and nearly as it is connected with the narrative
we have been considering ; I feel inclined rather to
turn your attention to the passage as it relates to
ourselves personally, and to the vast concerns of
our immortal souls.

Brethren, in the dispensation of the Gospel of
the grace of God, every thing is made to depend
upon faith. It is by the exercise of faith in the
Lord Jesus, that we are to obtain pardon of our
sins ; by faith w^e are justified and accounted righ-
teous before God — by faith we overcome the world
— by faith the heart is purified — by faith we work
righteousness : in short every part of our salvation
depends upon it. For all is the gift of God's
mercy, and is obtained only through faith in the
promises of his holy word ; through a firm reliance

F

66 SERMON IV :

on that record which he hath given us of his Son ;
we are therefore taught that we must " heheve to
the saving of the soul."

Thus we may apply the words of our Saviour in
a higher sense than that in which they were used
on the occasion we have been considering. " If
thou canst believe, all things are possible to him
that believeth." " He that believeth shall be
saved." " Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and
thou shalt be saved.'' Such is the language of the
holy Scriptures ; such is the way in which it has
pleased the God of all mercy and grace to answer
the trembling sinner, who alarmed at the danger
of coming short of eternal life, asks, "what he
must do to be saved ? "

But merciful as is the answer — gracious as is
the provision — easy as the condition (if I may be
allowed the term) seems to be ; often does the
man whose conscience is awakened, and who is
used to try himself by the standard of God's word,
feel even this beyond his reach ; he cannot (as our
church expresses it) turn and prepare himself to
faith and calling upon God. ^

Brethren, we assign no merit to faith even when
in most vigorous exercise ; we consider it not as
putting away sin or deserving God's favour, which
we have lost by the failure of our obedience to the
law. Were it otherwise, so feeble, so mingled with

' Art. V.

MARK ix. 24. 67

infirmity is this principle m all, that even the best
of men might well yield to sorrow and despair. But
viewed only as the means whereby we receive God's
mercy, — whereby we rely on his gracious pro-
mises,— whereby we come to Christ to accept the
blessings he purchased by his blood ; considered
only in this way, and this is the only point of view
in which we regard it, we see that it is a firm
reliance on God's promises, an assured confidence
that Christ, and Christ alone is able and willing to
save us both from sin itself and from all its conse-
quences. And where is there one, who does not
tremble at the idea of his eternal happiness depend-
ing on the strength and sincerity of his faith ?

The man who is striving to work out his salva-
tion with fear and trembling, know^s that this faith
is a principle to which all the temptations of Satan,
the world, and the flesh, and all the corruptions
of a depraved heart, are steadfastly opposed. How
hard does he feel it to suppress every idea of his
own works and deservings, so as to rest wholly on
the merits and atonement of Christ, and to forbear
the attempt to lay other foundation than that which
is laid ! How difficult to act up to the convictions
of his judgment, and keep a constant, firm, and
fixed reliance on Christ ! to overcome the careless
thoughtlessness of his nature, that forge tfulness of
spiritual things, and that carnal security into which
he is so prone to fall, so as to " live a life of faith
in the Son of God ! " so to feel his own weakness
F 2

68 SERMON IV :

as to rely on Christ's strength — his own corruption,
so as to rest entirely on the Saviour's promises
of grace to enable him to resist temptation, to
renounce sin, to serve God in righteousness and
holiness of living ! The man that will content
himself with a dead faith, which does not change
the heart and purify the life, may speak of it as an
easy thing to attain and support ; but he who
understands, and feels its spiritual nature, who
knows the steady reliance on Christ, the unshaken
dependence on divine mercy, the constant and
habitual application to the Redeemer which is
implied in " believing on the Son of God," he
will be sensible that to a corrupt heart, faith is
most difficult to attain, and most hard to support
from day to day, and from year to year. The
recollection of past sin would fill him with terror
and despair, were he under a covenant of works ;
but even under the covenant of grace, the feeble-
ness and the unsteadiness of his faith fills him with
alarm ; if that fail, it cuts him off from the foun-
tain of mercy ; if that give way, even the grace of
God, as displayed in the gospel of Christ, will
prove in vain ; he can obtain no pardon, no justi-
fying righteousness, no sanctifying Spirit ; no sense
of God's favour on earth, and no meetness for his
presence in heaven.

From this source the deepest distresses and the
darkest gloom that the Christian knows often take
their rise. When he would "examine himself

MARK ix. 24. 69

whether he be in the faith," the point, at times,
seems so doubtful that he is filled with dread : he
enjoys so little of " the substance of things hoped
for, and of the evidence of things not seen." The
important realities of the eternal world aflfect him
so much less than they ought, and " the things
which are seen and are temporal " so much more
than they should ; his hold of the exceeding great
and precious promises of God is so feeble, and his
dependence on, and his expectations from them so
unsteady, that he stands in doubt of himself ; he
feels as though the means of salvation were placed
within his reach but he cannot use them ; he is
astonished at the deadness of his heart, and that
it should be only now and then that he can rise
heavenward and rejoice in the glorious prospect
that faith opens to his view. And when he goes
on to contemplate the awful consequences that
must follow, if his faith, feeble and unsteady as it
is, should quite fail — if God at last should pro-
nounce it insincere, dead, and worthless, it is more
than he can bear. This reflection drives him again
to the throne of grace ; and the language of my
text describes what occurs there. " He cries out,
and says with tears. Lord, I believe, help thou m}-
unbelief."

If I am speaking to any who are earnestly
engaged in working out their salvation with fear
and trembling, they will enter into the subject, as
one with which they are experimentally acquainted.

70 SERMON IV :

Though they can truly say that they would not for
ten thousand worlds give up the hope which their
faith, feeble as it is, inspires; yet, when they reflect
on the awful magnitude of those subjects on which
it is employed, the dangers on the one side, and
the glorious hopes on the other, they cannot but
wonder at their want of feeling and earnestness ;
they cannot but be ashamed and confounded as well
as alarmed. If God were to say to them, " Be it
unto you according to your" faith, they would
almost look upon it as a sentence of judgment
rather than of mercy, with so much less earnest-
ness do they seem to ask for spiritual good from
Christ, than, when he was on earth, men shewed
in seeking temporal relief from him. But how
cheering the thought, that he who gives other good
to those who believe, will give faith to those who
seek it. This endears the throne of grace to the
true Christian ; he may " come with boldness to
obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of
need ; " he shall be heard and answered when he
cries " Lord, I believe, help thou my unbelief." Let
us not then, with such encouragement, rest satisfied
in this low and debased state, let us urge our plea
that the Lord would increase our faith. If our
soul cleave unto the dust, let us pray, " quicken
thou me according to thy word ; " and in propor-
tion as we do this will our joy in God abound, and
we shall rejoice* in hope by the power of Christ.
But though, as I have remarked, every Christian

MARK ix. 24. 71

present will enter into the subject, and feel it one
in which he is deeply interested ; may I not fear
that there are some with whom this is far from
being the case? The grand, the all-important
subject oi faith is one to which they have given no
attention. They have never seriously asked them-
selves whether they believed or not, nay perhaps
they have even ridiculed and scoifed at the idea.
You, my unhappy friends, (for most unhappy you
will at last be found,) know nothing of those
anxious feelings, those deep lamentations over
weakness of faith, of which I have been speaking.
And beheve me, you are on that account objects of
my unfeigned pity. Ere long, that distinction
between the believer and the unbeliever, at which
you scoff, will be the very distinction which will
separate the inhabitants of heaven and of hell, a
great gulf which none can pass. Are you pre-
pared for this ? Are you wilHng to abide by it ?
O then, let me call upon you to be wise, to remem-
ber these things, to consider your latter end. Now
is the accepted time, pray earnestly while the
opportunity is afforded you, to Him who is the
author and finisher of our faith, for this all-impor-
tant Christian grace — pray that you may believe
to the saving of your soul ; and remember for your
encouragement, that he is always more ready to
hear than we are to pray, and that he has gra-
ciously declared, " He that cometh unto me, I will
in no wise cast out."

SERMON V.

PSALM xvi. 11.

IN THY PRESENCE IS FULNESS OF JOY, AT THY RIGHT HAND
THERE ARE PLEASURES FOR EVERMORE.

This Psalm presents to our view one of those
instances, in which the ancient prophets and ser-
vants of God were led to make use of language,
of which they did not themselves fully comprehend
the meaning. The writer evidently considered
himself as describing his own case, and the happy
experience he had of the Lord's goodness toward
him ; and the cheering and delightful prospects
which lay before him in that state on which he
should enter, when after his flesh had slumbered
awhile in the grave, it should be aroused to life and
immortality by the voice of the Archangel and the
trump of God. ^ But though the Psalmist thus
described his own state and cheering prospects, he
was unconsciously using language, brought by a
divine impulse to his mind, which represented the
glorious termination of our Saviour's woes and

' Psalm xvi. j — 11.

PSAL.M XVI. 1 I . 73

sufferings on earth. We are not here proceeding
on mere conjecture, — for what the Holy Ghost
once spake by David, he a thousand years after-
wards explained by St. Peter. ^

But in speaking on the verse I have read, there
is no occasion to advert to this distinction ; the
text, if it relate to David, is an expression of the
full satisfaction with w^hich he contemplated the
prospects faith presented to his view beyond the
grave. If we rather consider it as used by the
divine Redeemer, then is it an exhibition of that
joy which awaited him as the Captain of our salva-
tion ; and for the sake of w^hich he endured the
cross and despised the shame. But in this the
true believer has a deep concern ; the delight of
Christ, as the Head, belongs to each member of his
mystical body ; and he has assured us that he will
at last say to those who have done his will and sought
his glory, " well done good and faithful servants,
enter ye into the joy of your Lord." " To him that
overcometh," he says in another place, " will I grant
to sit wdth me in my throne, even as I also overcame,
and am set down with my Father in his throne."

Our minds are therefore led by the words before
us, to a contemplation of the joys and pleasures
which are possessed by Christ himself, and which
in virtue of their connection with him, shall be
possessed by all true believers in the presence, and

' Acts ii. -23—31.

74 SERMON V :

at the right hand of God. It is unnecessary to
inquire whether these terms are ever employed in a
lower sense ; here the " presence " of God evidently
means Heaven, and his right hand is the place of
favour, where He vouchsafes to receive the dis-
ciples of the Lord Jesus for the sake and through
the merits of their divine Redeemer.

That heaven is a place of happiness, no one
doubts. That the presence of God, when he
smiles upon his people, imparts delight, we cannot
hesitate to believe. But when we venture to speak
upon that happiness, we soon find ourselves in
danger of darkening counsel by words without
knowledge. Heavenly things can only be ade-
quately spoken of in heavenly language, and of
that we understand nothing. We must, therefore,
be contented with a little information conveyed in
terms descriptive of what here creates pleasure and
gives satisfaction ; and wait with patience till that
day, when faith shall be lost in sight, and hope in
full enjoyment of those things which " eye hath
not seen nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into
the heart of man " to conceive, but '^' which God
hath prepared for them that love him."

The text does not at all aim to remove the clouds
that rest upon a subject which to us at present
must be mysterious and incomprehensible ; it tells
us of joys in the presence of God, and pleasures
at his right hand, but it does not tell us what their
exact nature is — or how they will l)e imparted ;

PSALM XVI. 11. 75

that would be beyond our conception ; we feel
assured, however, that since they are possessed in
" the presence " of God, and at his " right hand,"
they must be holy in their nature ; and we are
assured that they are satisfying — and tl^at they
are lasting ; it is to these three points then, my
brethren, I wish now to call your attention.

The joys of heaven are holy — they are satis-
fying— they are eternal ! Let iis meditate
a little upon them, and may the Holy Spirit,
from whom all good counsels and holy desires
proceed, so direct our minds that we may con-
template the joys of heaven till our hearts and
affections are fixed upon them, and we are stirred
up to use all diligence in making them our own.

I. The first remark the words suggest, is that
the joys and pleasures of heaven are all holy.

This is manifest, because they are enjoyed in
the presence, and before the throne of God ; and
since he is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity,
and cannot look on evil without abhorrence,
nothing impure, nothing polluting, nothing con-
trary to the most spiritual interpretation of his
holy law, shall ever approach him. Accordingly
we are told of the new Jerusalem, the city of our
God, " there shall in no wise enter therein any
thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh
abomination, or maketh a lie." ^

' Rev. xxi. 27.

76 SERMON V :

The fulness of joy is therefore a holy joy, the
pleasures at God's right hand are holy pleasures,
such as holy beings can enjoy in the immediate
presence of a holy God. Alas ! how little can we
conceive of this ! How hard do we find it to
unite the ideas of joy and holiness, of pleasure,
and the presence of God ! Is not this the case,
my friends ? I would hope that I am not speaking
to many who are in the habit of allowing them-
selves in what are called criminal pleasures, even
by the world, but I believe that there are some
persons who preserve a good moral character, who
yet think, that in abstaining from such pleasures,
they are making no small sacrifice of delight and
enjoyment, and who are kept back from these
criminal gratifications more by dread of conse-
quences, than from want of inclination to follow
them. Here then there is a most clear and mani-
fest opposition between their ideas of holiness and
pleasure.

But to say nothing of such characters, do not
many feel that even in the more correct and moral
sort of pleasure-taking, in which they allow them-
selves, there is, there must be something very
adverse to holiness ? Those who often ask what
harm is there in this amusement, or in that scene
of gaiety, which are condemned by such as they
think " righteous over much ; " are yet forced to
acknowledge, that their amusements are very little
allied to holiness, that there is something in them

PSALM XVI. 11. 77

not at all connected with, though they would foin
hope not altogether opposed to religion. The
theatre must therefore be shut in passion-week ;
the scenes of gaiety must be suspended during the
week's preparation for the sacrament.

Nay, do we not all feel, that on almost every
occasion when we intend to enjoy a little pleasure,
however innocent we think it, we make a sort of
suspension of pursuits of a religious nature. We
hope there is nothing wrong in our gratifications,
but we know not how to unite them with spiritual
affections, with a mind fixed on things above, with
devotedness of heart to God, with a realizing
impression of His eye upon us, with a supreme
desire to please him, and to do all to his glory,
and in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

To unite the ideas of pleasure and holiness, is
then what we scarcely know how at all to effect.
And why is this ? Is our Creator a foe to our
happiness ? Is he only to be pleased by melancholy
and gloom ? Is his service a slavish drudgery ?
Is religion ' with gloomy horrors overspread ? '
Oh no, brethren ! corruption of our nature lies at
the bottom of all this. When God made man in
his own image, he afforded him abundant sources
of pleasure, which he might have enjoyed, while
the Lord God beheld, approved, and blessed them
all ; but man cast them all away when he ate the for-
bidden fruit; no indulgence could satisfy him, but
that which his Maker forbade him to touch. This

78 SERMON V :

was the first instance in which holiness and plea-
sure were set in opposition to each other ; and it
is still from the forbidden tree, that men expect
the sweetest fruits. Thus is he fallen away from
God, he is become an enemy at heart to his Maker,
and seeks his gratification in that which God for-
bids and disapproves.

But the gospel of God our Saviour is intended
to repair the ruins of the fall : to recover man, to
renew him unto holiness ; and in the case of every
true believer, this is actually effected ; with him
" old things pass away, and all things become
new." ' Again, a life divine he feels, despises
earth, and walks with God.' Now he raises his
trembling eye to heaven, and says, " In thy pre-
sence is fulness of joy." Now holiness and happi-
ness are reunited in his thoughts, though not in his
experience, to the full extent of his wishes and his
hopes.

But in heaven the union shall be perfect ; then
every remainder of sinful nature shall be done
away ; never more shall the idea cross the mind,
that sin can afford delight. Never more shall the
soul of the redeemed sinner feel a desire which he
cannot express before God, with full confidence of
his gracious approbation.

Though, as I have already observed, we cannot
expect, with our present scanty perceptions to un-
derstand distinctly wherein the happiness of a glori-
fied saint consists, there are a few things which we

PSALM XVI. 11. 79

may readily conceive of, as tending to produce this
perfect enjoyment; and these are all holy both in
their nature and effects. I will just touch on some
of them.

1 . I apprehend all will feel that one source of
the happiness of heaven, is a confidence of perfect
security.

To this even, Adam in paradise was a stranger ;
his w^as a state of probation and trial, and therefore
it was a state of danger. The Christian upon
earth too, is in a state of trial, and though, while
living near to God in the exercise of faith, and
walking in holiness, he may rejoice that it is said,
that He who hath " begun the good work, will
carry it on until the day of Christ :" and be cheered
by the hope that " he is kept by the power of God
through faith unto salvation ; " still while he has
daily to contend with the world, the flesh, and the
Devil, while he is conscious of the power tempta-
tion has over him, and feels the evil heart of unbe-
lief in departing from the living God, still exerting
a dangerous influence ; the utmost he can reach is
a state of hope, sometimes indeed an assured hope ;
but more frequently a hope that is but feeble, and
mingled with many a fear and unknown apprehen-
sion, lest he should finally come short. But in
heaven, the danger, the fear, the anxious appre-
hension are known no more. Those who reach
that blessed place, have their iniquities forgiven,
the days of their mourning are ended, their con-

80 SERMON V :

flict is finished, the conqueror's crown is awarded
them, they sit down at the marriage supper of
the Lamb, they shall go no more out, and there-
fore all tears are wiped away from their eyes.

2. Joined to this is a second source of happi-
ness, arising from a consciousness of their perfect
holiness, their complete conformity to the will of
God.

Men who know nothing of religion by experi-
ence, cannot judge what this is ; they cannot
comprehend it as a source of happiness ; but he
who has known what it is to suffer being tempted,
who has cried with the apostle, " Oh wretched
man that I am," because he could not do the
things that he would ; who with Isaiah has said,
" Woe is me, I am undone, for I am a man of
unclean lips;" or with Job, " I abhor myself;" —
the man who has often retired to his closet to
weep, because " when he would do good, evil was
" present with him." That man can conceive of
nothing, even in heaven itself, that can be more
delightful, than that he shall sin no more ; no
more offend God ; no more grieve his Spirit ; no
more wound his own conscience ; no more have a
thought in his heart that shall not be acceptable in
the sight of his God. Oh ! who can ever conceive the
joy of being conscious of perfect freedom from all
evil of every kind ; of knowing that our whole souls
are so sanctified that there is nothing in us which
God will not behold with satisfaction and delight.

PSALM XVI. 11. 81

3. This is connected again with an assurance
of Gocls favour, — of his complete approbation.
Here, alas ! though we call God our Father, though
we are encouraged to come to him with all the
confidence of children, and have the fullest assur-
ances of his kindness and love ; yet we feel our
sins separating between us and him ; we cause
him to frown and correct us, and the conscious-
ness of having deserved his displeasure, makes us
to feel as did the Psalmist, Mhen he said, " I
thought of God and was troubled." But in hea-
ven all this too shall finally cease. The work
of sanctification being completed ; the Christian
being " changed into the same image from glory
to glory ; " the whole mass of natural corruption
being done away and every pure and holy affection
raised to full maturity ; he shall for ever live under
the smile of his God and enjoy all the blessedness
which the high favour of the Almighty can bestow.
Here however "we cannot order our speech by
reason of darkness." That the saints in glory are
the objects of divine love and approbation we
know ; and that a consciousness of that love and
approbation must be productive of the most ex-
quisite delight, we are sure ; but of the way in
which divine love will bless those who are and
shall be its objects for ever, we can form no con-
ception. I will only add on this part of my
subject,

4. That it clearly appears that the pleasures

82 SERMON V :

of the redeemed in glory are heightened by the
recollection, that they owe them all to Christ.

This forms the theme of all the songs of the
saints in light ; — once they were enemies, but they
were " reconciled to God by the death of his
Son ; " once they " were far off, but they were
made nigh by the blood of Christ ; " once they
were "dead in sins" but they were "quickened
by his grace ; — " all that blessed company who are
" before the throne, washed their robes and made
them white in the blood of the Lamb ; " he re-
deemed them to God by his blood, and therefore
they " sing a new song, saying, Thou wast slain
and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of
every kindred and tongue and people and nation."
Now all this employment, is holy ; all this
pleasure is holy pleasure ; and it is perfect, exqui-
site, such as is worthy of God to bestow, and
of the sons of God to receive. But I must pass
on to the

II. Second observation deduced from the text.
The pleasures of heaven are satisfying.
" In thy presence there is fulness of joy."

This too, my brethren, is what we have little or
no conception of. In the world men have their
joys, but there is no fullness of joy ; no complete
satisfaction in them. It is very rare to hear a
person say — ' that matter afforded me all the satis-
faction I looked for from it ; I was better pleased

PSALM XVI. 11. 83

than I expected.' This language is uncommon, the
general complaint is, ' I have been disappointed ; T
expected much, but found little. Sometimes the
fault is in the thing, or in the person on whom we
depended for satisfaction, but more commonly in
ourselves. I have been often struck with mark-
ing the countenances of those who are flocking
to some place where amusement and pleasure
is expected ; and then comparing them with the
same persons on their return. When going, life
and animation and cheerful expectancy are ex-
pressed in their looks, but how changed on their
return, almost every face seems to denote disap-
pointment, weariness, dissatisfaction. The dif-
ference is much the same as that which exists
between the cheerful countenance of youth, and
the dull and weary expression of age. And what
does all this mean ? Why all this anxious inquiry
'* who will show us any good ? " Why this per-
petual call for something new — for some fresh
pleasure — some new amusement ? It is that " man
has forsaken the fountain : " it is that our cisterns
are all broken : it is that we are ' ' seeking the
living among the dead : " it is that we are putting
the creature in the place of the Creator.

Yes, my friends, this is the source of all your
disappointments. The world and the things of it
would answer every purpose they were intended to
answer ; but you look to them for what they
cannot afford. You put them in the wrong place,

G 2

84 SERMON V :

and therefore you have so much to complain of.
Would you but return to God the fountain of
living water : would you but attend to his word, and
hearken to his advice, you would not be unhappy
as you are. The Christian has joys which satisfy
as well as sanctify the mind to a certain extent.
He is not, it is true, fully satisfied with the degree of
his enjoyment, but he wishes for no change in the
nature and source of it. He knows he is come to
the spring of living water, though he sometimes feels
as though the well were deep and he had nothing
to draw with ; but he does not therefore return to
his broken cisterns ; he waits — he prays — he uses
all the means of grace, and at length he draws
with joy from the wells of salvation. But in
heaven this living water of life flows in a broad
and open stream, where it may be enjoyed to full
satisfaction without labour and without fear of
exhausting its mighty current. " In thy presence
is fulness of joy." There the blissful spirit of the
redeemed sinner shall have unmingled happiness
shed upon him without measure from his God and
Saviour. There, not one want shall ever be felt —
not one desire that shall not be perfectly satisfied.
Oh what a change from a world where everything-
is hollow and deceitful — where every gratification
carries with it disappointment, and every flower
has a thorn ; for a world where all is solid and
substantial joy — where there is no fear of ex-
haustion— no dread of change ; where every power

PSALM XVI. 1 1. 85

shall find full employment — every passion its cor-
responding gratification — every faculty an object
on which it can fix with full delight, and yet never
be satiated, never be wearied with enjoyment !

But this, brethren, is above our thoughts ! it is so
unlike anything we have ever experienced that we
cannot realize it.

III. Lastly our text teaches us that the hap-
piness OF HEAVEN IS ETERNAL. "There are
pleasures at thy right hand for evermore.'"

Here again we feel ourselves confounded so
soon as we attempt to grasp the full meaning of
the words we use. We speak of eternity ; — yet
when we endeavour to form an idea of endless
duration, of age succeeding to age, in perpetual
succession, and yet drawing no nearer to a termina-
tion we feel utterly lost ; we are forced therefore to
rest where we set out, with an assurance that the
happiness of heaven, as well as the miseries of
hell, shall last for evermore.

But how striking the contrast between this, and
the pleasures of the present world ! These com-
pared even with our lives, seem but momentary ; —
few enjoyments, with long intervals of pain or
sorrow, or vacuity : the more exquisite our delight
in general the more speedily is it ended ; such
are all our bodily pleasures ; nay, such also are the
higher gratifications of science and of intellect, as
well as all other worldly enjoyments, — all perish

86 SERMON V :

in the using; — our very capacities for receiving
pleasure gradually wear away as life advances, till
with Barzillai, every old man is forced to say,
' Can thy servant taste any more what I eat and
what I drink ? Can I hear any more the voice of
singing men or of singing women ? "

But I will not dwell longer on the contrast be-
tween the everlasting pleasures of heaven, and
those mean and paltry gratifications which depend
on our frail and feeble bodies ; there are pleasures
that better deserve to be compared with the former
and yet are to be enjoyed even in the present world.
Such are the delights the Christian feels, when,
withdrawn for a season from the cares and business
of life, he communes with his God and Saviour ;
when retired to his closet, he pours out his soul
before the Lord, and feels the love of Christ shed
abroad in his heart ; when going to the house of
God with the assembly of the saints, his affections
are warmed, his thoughts raised heavenward, his
strength renewed by waiting upon God. Then
does he say with the disciples, " it is good for me
to be here ; " he can hardly conceive of enjoyments
more pure, or pleasures more exquisite than those
he feels in these happy moments, when " the Lord
lifts up upon him the light of his countenance, and
gives him peace." But all these joys, alas ! are
transitory ; the hour of prayer soon ends ; the
sabbath closes ; duty soon calls him back to the

' 2 Samuel xix. 35.

PSALM XVI. 11. 87

bustle, the trials, and the snares of the world.
The liveliest affections soon die away, the tear
of penitence is soon dried, and too often succeeded
by a hard unfeeling state of soul ; the light of God's
countenance is soon withdrawn, because the world
and sin reassert their power ; thus darkness
succeeds the light, and a gloomy night often fol-
lows the brightest day.

This, my brethren, is the reason why the Christ-
ian is not constantly a happy man ; this is the
source of those sudden and surprising changes
which take place in him ; could he always live
near to God, could he keep his faith, his hope, his
love in continual exercise, his joy would flow like a
river, witli full and uniform course. But alas ! this
cannot be, while he is in this world of sin and
temptation, and w^hile he is so imperfectly sanctified.
From this cause he " groans being burdened ; "
and often when he thinks his *' mountain stands
strong," the " Lord hideth his face and he is
troubled." ,But in heaven it shall not be so.
There

' No groans shall mingle with the songs,
Which warble from immortal tongues ;
No midnight shade, no clouded sun,
But sacred, high, eternal noon.'

" At thy right hand there are pleasures for ever-
more ;" these pleasures flow direct from God him-
self, and "he is the same yesterday, to-day, and
for ever." And there they will not as now, be

88 SERMON V :

vouchsafed to beings changeable in their state and
feelings, who destroy their own happiness and
peace as we do here; but " when this corruptible
shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal
shall have put on immortality," then we shall be
as capable of enjoying unchanging, eternal plea-
sure, as God is of bestowing it ; it shall therefore
flow on without diminution, yea continually in-
creasing for ever and ever.

We have thus, my brethren, taken a slight
glance at those glorious prospects which the word
of God presents to our notice. The view I have
led you to, is, I know, very confined ; and I
have thrown but little light upon it, yet we have
seen enough to lead us to make one inquiry that is
most interesting and important to us all. Since
such are the prospects which open to us beyond
the grave, how is it that we feel such repugnance,
such chilling horror at the thought of death ? Since
we know there is no real happiness in this world,
while in " His presence there is fulness of joy, and
at his right hand are pleasures for evermore," how
is it that we are not ready to ' hail the sharpest
pangs of death, that break our way to God?'
This inquiry brings with it many painful reflec-
tions. It is not because these holy, satisfying, and
enduring pleasures are out of our reach. No, they
are the joy set before us ; they form the con-
querors crown held out to us, they are the joy of
the Lord, into which the faithful servant shall

PSALM XVI. 11. 89

enter. It is not because " we have sinned and
come short of the glory of God." Such indeed is
our case, but the gospel brings us a remedy for
this our misery. Christ has made an atonement
for us, and through his blood we may rise from the
ruins of the fall ; as our Redeemer, he has pur-
chased for us the inheritance we had forfeited, and
is now ready to restore it to us ; all is offered
freely without money and without price. To what
then is it owing that we can look forward with so
little comfort ? Why

So low our hopes of joys above, so few affections there?

alas ! my brethren, is it not because our con-
sciences reveal a painful truth to us. We know
that these treasures are laid up in heaven, but we
do not know that they are laid up for us. We
know that the faithful servant shall enter into the
joy of his Lord, but he must be 3. faithful servant,
and alas ! we dare not presume to take that title
to ourselves. Our hearts misgive us while we
make the attempt. Our activity and zeal in the
service of God are so small that we can hardly hope
that they will be accepted at all by him who de-
mands our whole heart — our whole soul ; our
faith is at so low an ebb — it does so little in over-
coming the world — so little in purifying our hearts
— it works so little by love, that our hope must
necessarily be very low also, and low as it is we
must fear that even the portion we have, may be

90 SERMON V.

presumptuous. Hence it is that we feel so little
encouraged by meditating on such a passage as that
now before us ; this is the reason why the fear of
death is so little overcome ; why we have so little
appearance of happiness to comfort us in the pros-
pect departing hence.

And shall we be contented to let things remain
so ? Shall we willingly pass on toward the awful
hour of dissolution, without any thing to cheer us ?
Shall we be satisfied to go down to the grave
without knowing whether we are about to enter
upon everlasting joy or endless woe ? No, my
brethren ! let us arouse ourselves from this state
of stupid insensibility. There are cordials pro-
vided for us in this melancholy vale. There are
supports to be had under all our troubles. The
valley of the shadow of death may be made light
about us. Death may be made gain. We may
rise to a state in which we may be always confident.
We may fix our minds on the joys above, with an
assurance that they are all our own. But it will
not be attained by dull inactivity, or by stiff for-
mality in religious duties. It must by careful
keeping of the heart — by steady watchfulness
against sin — by constant faith in the Lord Jesus
Christ — by abounding in love — by " holding fast
the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the
end." .

SERMON VI,

JOHN X. 27, 28.

MY SHEEP HEAR MY VOICE, AND I KNOW THEM, AND THEY
FOLLOW ME : AND I GIVE UNTO THEM ETERNAL LIFE ; AND
THEY SHALL NEVER PERISH, NEITHER SHALL ANY MAN
PLUCK THEM OUT OF MY HAND.

The parables of our Lord are most beautiful
representations of heavenly things, by means of
similies taken from scenes and incidents with
which we are well acquainted. But beautiful as
they are, they were in some measure connected
with that shadowy system of instruction, by which
God was pleased for many ages to teach his people
the grand truths of religion. Had not the sub-
sequent parts of the New Testament more clearly
revealed the things signified, we should probably
now feel the same difficulty in comprehending
them, that they did to whom the parables were
first spoken. To this, allusion is made in the
sixth verse, " this parable spake Jesus unto them :
but they understood not what things they were
which he spake unto them." Accordingly we find

92 SERMON VI :

our Lord giving several intimations that he em-
ployed this figurative style, because there were
some of his hearers so much prejudiced, that either
they could not, or they would not understand him,
had he used ever so great a degree of plainness in
his expressions. On persons of this character,
the obscurity of the parables was intended to act
as a punishment ; that ' ' seeing they might see
and not perceive, and hearing they might hear
and not understand." But there was also another
reason why our Lord spake in this obscure man-
ner ; — as yet the mystery of redemption was not
fully completed ; and to have more clearly dis-
played its nature, and the means by which it was
to be effected, would have been improper, and
would in fact have thrown insuperable obstacles
in the way of its accomplishment. But our Sa-
viour intimated that the time was coming " when
he would no more speak unto them in parables,
but would shew them plainly of the Father ; "
there would then be no more occasion for those dark
and figurative forms of instruction ; but the whole
counsel of God should be fully unfolded. This
took place after our Lord's resurrection from the
dead, when " he breathed on his disciples, and
said, receive ye the Holy Ghost ; " and still more
fully " when the Spirit was poured upon them
from on high," to " guide them unto all truth."
From that period, the language of parable was
laid aside ; and we find no traces of the Apostles

JOHN X. 27, 28. 93

having ever imitated their Master in this particular
kind of address.

While then we have great cause for thankful-
ness, that we are blessed with the full display
of gospel truth, we may, if we become diligent
students of the Bible, derive infinite benefit from
the careful perusal of these parables of our blessed
Lord, illuminated as they now are by the clearer
light of the dispensation of the Spirit.

May that Holy Spirit enlighten our minds while
we proceed to consider the figurative language
used by our Saviour in this passage — " My sheep
hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow
me : and I give unto them eternal life ; and they
shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck
them out of my hand."

These words appear to teach us

I. The character and conduct of the

TRUE DISCIPLES OF ChRIST. And

II. The unspeakable happiness belonging

TO that CHARACTER.

I. We have a peculiar view given us of the
character and conduct of the disciples of
Christ.

Our Lord in this chapter shews that He is the
true Shepherd, who has displayed the amazing
extent of his love by " laying down his life for
the sheep." This flock, which the Shepherd pur-
chased with his blood, is the whole company of

94 SERMON VI :

true believers and real Christians, wherever they
are scattered throughout the v^orld, or in whatever
age they may chance to live ; these constitute the
church of God, which his ministers are to feed
as a flock, and which he purchased with his own
blood.

In the preceding verses, for the sake of illus-
trating the character of the under shepherds of this
flock — the ministers of his church, — and the source
whence they derive their authority, our Lord uses
a difl^erent emblem, and says, " I am the door
of the sheep," thereby teaching us that none can
enter into the fold of God, and become an heir of
heaven and of immortal happiness, but by him :
nor can any one become a shepherd over the
flock of God, or a true minister of his church,
unless he be appointed by Christ, and moved by
his Holy Spirit, to take that office upon him.

The emblem of sheep is so constantly employed
to represent the people of God, both under the
Old Testament dispensation and the New, that
there must be something peculiarly appropriate in
it. Man, as a sinner, is a sheep that is gone
astray. The sinner reconciled to God through
Christ, is a sheep whom the good Shepherd has
sought and brought back again to the fold. ^

Let us then inquire what there is in this emblem
which particularly suits and illustrates the charac-

1 1 Peter ii. 25.

JOHN X. 27, 28. 95

ter of a Christian. There are many points in
which the similarity is striking, but I will only
mention a few.

1. In its harmlessness and purity, the sheep is
an apt emblem of the Christian.

For these qualities this animal has always
been proverbial. And surely they ought to
be equally conspicuous in the followers of him
*' who did no sin, neither was guile found in his
mouth : Who when he was reviled reviled not
again, when he suffered, threatened not. " ^ True
indeed if we choose to misapply the term, and
make the name of Christian a kind of national
distinction, whereby those who profess the religion
of Jesus, are distinguished from the followers of
Mahomet or the worshippers of idols ; if we choose
to call all the inhabitants of such a country as this
by the title which was first applied to the disciples
at Antioch ; if every man is to retain the name of
Christian because he has been baptized, though he
habitually violates every one of his baptismal vows
— then the emblem fails — then harmlessness and
purity form no distinguishing feature of the people
so called. Among those who are permitted to
bear that sacred name, we may find the ambitious
tyrant and destroyer of mankind ; the hard-hearted
oppressor of the poor ; the man who keeps the
scant measure, the false balance, and the bag of

' 1 Peter ii. •2-2, '2.'J.

96 SERMON VI :

deceitful weights : the quarrelsome contentious dis*
turber of family and social peace, the covetous
man, who is an idolator, and the malicious, who
is a murderer : in short among Christians, com-
monly so called, we may find every degree and
every species of whatever is impure, unjust, and
abominable. But such is not the Christian cha-
racter ; and however now mingled together, all
that do such things shall be finally separated from
the disciples of Christ, by that great gulf which
forms the impassable barrier between heaven and
hell. No ! such are not Christians ; not men who
have "put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make
not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts
thereof;^' whose tempers are subdued, whose
passions are calmed, whose lusts are mortified ;
*' who put oif all these, anger, wrath, malice, blas-
phemy, filthy communications out of their mouths"
— " who lie not one to another, but have put off
the old man with his deeds" — who have put on
as the elect of God bowels of mercies, kindness,
humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suff^ering ;
forbearing one another, and forgiving one ano-
ther." ^ Such is the harmlessness and the purity
of the Christian, which is represented under the
emblem of the text.

2. When the sheep is made the emblem of a
Christian, there is no doubt a reference intended

' Col. iii. 1-2, 13.

JOHN X. 27, 28. 97

to its weakness and helplessness, in which re-
spect its similarity to the believer in Christ is
striking.

Of all the animals with which we are acquainted
there is none that seems so little able to defend
itself against enemies and dangers as the sheep,
and hence arises the need for the constant w^atch-
fulness and care of the shepherd. In a country
like our's, where there are no widely extended
deserts, the abodes of ravenous beasts of prey, this
character of sheep is not so conspicuous as it was
in Judea ; but even here, the life of the shepherd
is one of constant labour and care. If absent from
his flock only for a few hours, he is sure to find
something which requires prompt attention ; and
where lions, tigers, wolves, and such like animals
abound, the sheep are their constant prey : while
their proneness to wander from the fold, and their
indisposition and inability to return to it when
strayed, exposes them to innumerable dangers
which they cannot resist, and from which they
cannot escape.

How apt an emblem is this of the state of the
disciple of Christ upon earth, where Satan, " as a
roaring lion, goeth about seeking whom he may
devour;'' where the world, the flesh, and the
devil are always plotting his destruction ; where
every connection in life and every situation in
which he can be placed, abounds with tempta-
tions and incitements to evil ; while in every hour

H

98 SERMON VI :

of trial he feels his best resolutions broken, and his
firmest determinations, weak as flax touched by the
flame. Every one who with a sincere desire to
serve God, has made the attempt to do it, knows
by sad experience how utterly weak and helpless
he is ; while he knows also, that his wayward
foolish heart is perpetually leading him into diffi-
culties and dangers from which he cannot escape,
unless the great Shepherd of the sheep interpose
for his rescue.

3. The sheep notwithstanding the weakness and
feebleness of its nature, is yet of great value, and
as such is used as the emblem of a Christian.

No animal renders more extensive benefit to man-
kind than the sheep ; and in consequence in almost
every country it has been tended with the greatest
care, and been esteemed a very valuable species of
property. The language of Scripture authorizes
us in applying this emblem to the believer in
Christ. He knows indeed that in himself he is
worthless, and undeserving of that high regard
which his gracious God and Saviour pays to him ;
yet when he reflects on the infinite price at which
he was redeemed, he perceives that he is valuable
in the sight even of the Almighty. " He was not
redeemed by corruptible things as with silver and
gold, but with the precious blood of Christ." Who
indeed can set a value on the immortal soul of man ?
Who can tell what the worth of that soul is, when
after having gone astray from the way of peace,

JOHN X. 27—28. 99

it is brought back again, pardoned, reconciled, and
saved ; prepared to spend eternity in the worship
and enjoyment of its God, and in everlastingly
praising and exalting its Redeemer. It is beyond
our conception. We may learn something, by
contemplating, even according to our feeble powers,
the price paid for our salvation, and the glorious
inheritance for which the Christian is kept by the
power of God ; but we shall never understand
what the value of that soul is, which was first
formed in the image of God ; when lost, was
redeemed by the precious blood of Christ ; and
when saved, shall be the companion of angels and
archangels, and shall join all the host of heaven in
everlasting praises and in everlasting joy.

4. But the text leads to the consideration of
another quality of the sheep, in which our Saviour
teaches us, it bears a strong resemblance to his
people ; — its docility.

This too, is a circumstance in the natural history
of the sheep, with which, living as we do, in an
inclosed country, we are little acquainted ; but in
open and extended plains and wild mountainous
regions, it is well understood. The shepherd's
voice is known — his call is obeyed by the whole
flock, and they follow him whithersoever he goeth-
But " they know not the voice of a stranger," and
give no heed to him. Such is the point to which
our Lord here particularly refers. " My sheep,"
he says, " hear my voice, and they follow me."

H 2

100 SERMON VI :

And such, brethren, is the conduct of the
Christian. He hears his Saviour's voice : for this
he reads the Scriptures daily, for this he attends
the house of God ; for this he retires from the world
into the privacy of his closet, that he may hold
communion with his Saviour, and learn his will ;
his object is to hear Christ's words ; the language
of his heart is, " Speak, Lord, for thy servant
heareth." " I am a stranger upon earth, O hide
not thy commandments from me." " I am as
glad of thy word, as one that findeth great spoil."
" Lord, to whom shall we go, thou hast the words
of eternal life." Whether the Lord speaks in in-
vitations or in warnings, in promises or in pre-
cepts, the Christian stands with listening ear to
hear whatever he may say ; for he knows that
" by every word of God doth man live." His
language is — ' On thy word do I rest, on that word
I confide in every time of danger or of fear ; on
that word do I hope, when all other circumstances
would drive me to despair.' On that same word
does he ground all his opinions ; it matters not to
him how learned or how talented men may be,
"if they speak not according to this word, it is
because there is no light in them," and he there-
fore rejects them all, that he may keep close to
the word of his Saviour, who is the truth and
the life.

But, " they follow me," saith our Saviour con-
cerning the sheep of his fold. They not only listen

JOHN X. 27, 28. 101

to, and make themselves acquainted with Christ's
words, they obey his voice. O, my brethren, let us
never lose sight of this fact, that knowledge, even
the knowledge of Christ's words, is worthless un-
less it be accompanied wdth obedience. In the
path of obedience, the Christian follows his Sa-
viour ; in this way he puts on the Lord Jesus ;
this forms the peculiarity of his character; he
follows Christ, he imitates his example, he treads
in his steps : as Christ was in this world, so is his
servant ; his inquiry in every case is, how would
the great shepherd of my soul have me act ?
whither would he have me to go ? how would he
do were he again upon earth, leaving me an ex-
ample that I should follow his steps ?

Let us, brethren, apply this part of the subject
to ourselves. Have we these marks whereby the
sheep of Christ's flock are distinguished? It is
not enough that we say in the church, " we are
thy people, and the sheep of thy pasture — ;" that
little flock bears a very peculiar character — a
character grounded on hearing Christ's words, and
following him. Is this our character also ? Oh !
let us not be deceived ; religion is not a name, but
a reality ; it is not calling Christ Lord, Lord, but
doing the things that he says.

But I must proceed to speak,

II. Of the PECULIAR PRIVILEGES and HAPPY

STATE of those who belong to the fold of Christ.

102 SERMON VI :

This is expressed by our Lord in two distinct
particulars. "I know them," and, " They shall
never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of
my hand."

1. I know them, "I know my sheep and
am known of mine," The expression seems to
imply that our Lord, as the searcher of hearts,
can distinguish his people from all who have the
appearance of Christianity without the reality ;
according to what we read in another part of
this gospel, " Jesus knew from the beginning,
who they were that believed not, and who
should betray him," ^ When we look abroad
into the Christian church, we see much that per-
plexes and confounds us. We observe many for a
time maintaining a steady profession of religion
and seeming to adorn it by a holy conversation
and blameless behaviour ; but within a while all
this fair appearance vanishes ; they abandon their
profession, and return to the world. We see again
others strangely mingling correct notions and
warm feelings, with a conduct far from that purity
and holiness which the scriptures describe as es-
sential points of religion.

And if we turn our thoughts homeward, and ex-
amine ourselves, we shall find a great deal that is
contradictory and inconsistent ; a little of what is
right, mingled with so much that is wrong ; that

' John vi. 64.

JOHN X. 27, 28. 103

we shall be almost as much at a loss in forming
an opinion of our own case, as we are in making an
estimate of that of others. Then again the Chris-
tian, while diligently labouring to " keep a con-
science void of offence," finds himself often cen-
sured and condemned by his brethren, who pass
their sentence upon him with as much confidence,
as if they were capable of diving into the deep
recesses of his soul, and discovering what is known
only to himself and to his God.

Amidst all this doubt and confusion, " the Lord
knoweth them that are his." He search eth the
hearts and trieth the reins " — every character is
fully known to Him ; no secrets can escape His
eye ; so that with the same unerring accuracy, the
great Shepherd now distinguishes his flock, as that
by which he will separate between them and others
at the last day. There is no danger of mistakes ;
no goat will be found among the sheep, nor shall
one of Christ's flock, that multitude which no man
can number, be condemned with the goats ; no
wicked man shall stand in the congregation of the
righteous, nor shall one righteous man have his
portion with the wicked ; the marks of distinction
to us may be small and obscure, but they are
not so in the eyes of him with W'hom we have
to do : this is a most consolatory thought to the
humble believer, the good Shepherd knows his
sheep.

But when he says, " I know my sheep," it

104 SERMON VI :

doubtless also means, that they are the objects of
his constant care. The shepherd makes himself
acquainted "with his flock, and sets his mark upon
them, that he may watch over them more effec-
tually, and the more fully supply all their wants.
It is for this reason that our blessed Saviour ap-
plies to himself the emblem. He is the good
Shepherd, who laid down his life for his sheep,
and thus, having purchased them with his blood,
now considers them as his most valued property ;
he protects them from danger — he supplies all
their wants — he aff'ords them every comfort. How
beautifully is this emblem explained and illustrated
in the twenty- third Psalm.

Such, my brethren, is the happy state of the
true Christian, though he is of his own nature
weak and feeble, and apt to turn aside from the
right way, and to wander from the fold of God.
In his ordinances, both public and private, the
Lord meets his people ; the Saviour imparts the
solace of his favour, and gives unto them the joy
of his salvation.

But however great the consolations of the true
Christian may now be, they would all vanish before
the dread of a final departure from God, a final
and complete prevalence of sin. The believer
knows something of his own weakness ; experience
has shown him the power of temptation, and the
treachery of his heart ; his secret fear, like that
of David frequently is " I shall one day perish."

JOHN X. 27, 28. 105

Nothing can be more clear than that such a state
of doubt and anxiety must cast a deep cloud over
the mind of the servant of God ; now our Lord
meets this by another most consolatory assurance
in the text.

2. " I give unto them eternal life, and they shall
never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out
of my hand." The word man is not in the ori-
ginal, and its introduction too much restricts the
meaning of the passage ; the declaration extends
to every creature — neither fallen man, nor fallen
angel, shall ever be able to pluck from the hand of
our great Shepherd one whom he knows and re-
ceives as the sheep of his fold. Our Lord, aware
that his disciples, who had only as yet seen him in
his humiliation, had very inadequate ideas of his
native glory and dignity, in order to confirm their
feeble faith, adds, " My Father, which gave them
me, is greater than all ; neither can any one pluck
them out of my Father's hand."' So saith St. Peter,
** Ye are kept by the power of God, through faith,
unto salvation."

Oh I what consolation is there in these de-
clarations to him, who with humble faith and
obedience is listening to the voice of the good
Shepherd. "They shall never perish, none shall
pluck them out of my hand." What though Satan,
as a roaring lion is going about seeking whom he
may devour — what though the world spread its
dangerous temptations around him — what though

/

106 SERMON VI :

the evil of his own heart often fills him with
gloomy apprehensions — still he hears his Shep-
herd's voice, and that voice says, that such ' ' shall
have eternal life, shall never perish ; " it tells him
that none can pluck him out of his Saviour's hand
— none can pluck him out of the hand of the
Almighty and everlasting God, who is his heavenly
Father; the same unfailing mercy which first
gave him to the Saviour, and made him to belong
to the flock of Christ, will still preserve him
from either being carried away by Satan, that
roaring lion, or being persuaded to quit the
fold of God, and turn into the road that leadeth
to destruction.

True, were he to depend upon the firmness of
his own resolution, the strength of his own prin-
ciples, or the goodness of his heart, he would soon
fail ; he could not support himself even for a single
hour ; but it is the hand of his Saviour that holds
him fast ; of that Saviour whose voice he hears,
whose commands he obeys, in whose love he con-
fides ; of that Saviour who, when hanging on the
cross, displayed his compassion and power in saving
the dying thief, and assuring him that he should be
with him, that day, in paradise. It is the arm of
that Saviour, who being one with the Father, has
all power in heaven and in earth committed to his
hands. That arm, my Christian brethren, is
engaged to secure your salvation. Go on then,
listen to your Shepherd's voice, and follow him ;

JOHN X. 27, 28. 107

rest entirely in his love, trust to his atoning sacri-
fice, seek his sanctifying Spirit, press onward in
the way of his commandments, and you will be
enabled in due season to make the Apostle's
exulting language your own, " Who shall separate
us from the love of Christ ? Shall tribulation, or
distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness,
or peril, or sword ? — Nay in all these things we
are more than conquerors through him that loved
us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor
life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor
things present, nor things to come, nor height,
nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to
separate us from the love of God, which is in
Christ Jesus our Lord. ^

And oh ! what glories shall that day reveal,
when the final division shall take place, and all
the sheep of Christ's flock shall be for ever sepa-
rated from amidst the goats ; when the true
believers shall no more be found mingled amidst
the people of this wicked world ; when the roaring
lion shall no more even seek to devour them,
because they are placed wholly and for ever out
of his reach. Then will be understood, but not
till then, the full import of this word^ *' I give
unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish."
" Over them the second death hath no power."
Their eternal happmess shall be secure, not one

' Rom. viii. 35, 37—39.

/

108 SERMON VI :

more fear will ever cross their minds, but unmin-
gled joy and perfect peace shall be their portion for
ever. " Lo ! thus shall the man be blessed that
feareth the Lord."

My brethren, you have now had brought before
you in some feeble measure the high privileges of
the people of God, let me, in conclusion, warn you
against the attempt to separate these privileges from
the character they are assigned to. All the bles-
sedness I have been describing does indeed belong
to some, but to whom ? Who are they whom the
Saviour knows and watches over with a Shepherd's
care ? Who are they who '* shall never perish : — "
shall never be " plucked out of the Saviour's hand ? "
They are those who hear Christ's words and follow
him. Is this your case ? Is such your character ?
If so, claim and exercise the privilege. But take
care that you be not deceived ; many profess and
call themselves Christians, who are, alas ! desti-
tute of the Spirit of him whose name they bear ;
many there are, who have outwardly been "bap-
tized into Christ," who are far from having '* put
on Christ ; " who are far from exhibiting those
fruits of faith, by which God is glorified, and the
sincerity of their profession attested. While there-
fore I would exhort you, to take to yourselves, for
your support and encouragement, the comfort
which the passage we have been considering is cal-
culated to afford, if upon careful self-examination
you find reason to trust that you are the faithful

JOHN X. 27, 28. 109

followers of Christ ; I would at the same time
caution you not to suffer self-love, to which we
are all so prone, to induce you to form a wrong
judgment upon a matter of such infinite import-
ance. Let it then be your prayer in the words of
the Psalmist, " Search me, O God, and know my
heart ; try me and know my thoughts ; and see if
there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the
way everlasting."

SERMON VII.

ISAIAH XXXV. 8—10.

AND AN HIGHWAY SHALL BE THERE, AND A WAY, AND IT
SHALL BE CALLED THE WAY OF HOLINESS ; THE UNCLEAN
SHALL NOT PASS OVER IT ; BUT IT SHALL BE FOR THOSE :
THE WAYFARING MEN, THOUGH FOOLS, SHALL NOT ERR
THEREIN. NO LION SHALL BE THERE, NOR ANY RAVENOUS
BEAST SHALL GO UP THEREON, IT SHALL NOT BE FOUND
THERE, BUT THE REDEEMED SHALL WALK THERE. AND
THE RANSOMED OF THE LORD SHALL RETURN AND COME
TO ZION WITH SONGS, AND EVERLASTING JOY UPON THEIR
HEADS ; THEY SHALL OBTAIN JOY AND GLADNESS, AND
SORROW AND SIGHING SHALL FLEE AWAY.

The preceding chapter foretells, under the emblem
of the vengeance of God which was about to fall
on Idumea or Edom, the final destruction of all
the enemies of his church. This we are taught,
will make way, as might naturally be expected,
for the universal spread of true religion over all
the earth. It is foretold, according to the figura-
tive language of prophecy, under the emblem of
the wilderness, and the solitary places being filled
with fruitfulness and joy ; as though the forests of
Lebanon, or the different productions of the rich
lands of Carmel and Sharon, should be seen flou-

ISAIAH XXXV. 8 10. Ill

rishing in the midst of the sandy deserts of Arabia.
Such were the effects produced, when the apostles
and the first ministers of the Christian church,
*' preached among the gentiles the unsearchable
riches of Christ." In consequence of this, the
desert became as a fruitful field ; the genuine char-
acter of Christianity and true piety began to be
manifested, by the cruel and corrupt worshippers of
abominable idols becoming the worshippers of
the living and true God, waiting for his Son from
heaven, while their holy practice agreed with their
altered profession. The prophet then proceeds to
utter another prediction, which, while in its full
import, it describes the spiritual effects of the
gospel ; in its literal meaning may be considered,
and indeed must be considered, as foretelling the
astonishing miracles, which Christ, from whom
all these blessings would flow to the world, would
work while dwelling in human nature. " Say to
them that are of a fearful heart, be strong, fear
not ; behold your God will come with vengeance,
even God with a recompense ; he will come and
save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be
opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstop-
ped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart,
and the tongue of the dumb sing ; for in the wil-
derness shall waters break out, and streams in the
desert. And the parched ground shall become a
pool, and the thirsty land springs of water ; in the
habitations of dragons where each lay, shall be

112 SERMON VII :

grass with reeds and rushes." Then follow the
words of the text. The connection of which, with
the verses I have read, appears to me to be this ;
— when we are told that " in the wilderness shall
waters break out, and streams in the desert," it in
figurative language assures us that the blessings of
tnie religion should be afforded to the gentiles,
who had been as destitute of all the fruits of righ-
teousness, as the sandy desert is of vegetation.
Then the text referring to Jerusalem, and the
temple built on Mount Zion, the centre of all true
religion, the place where men ought to worship,
and whither the pious and holy people flocked up
on the sacred festivals, tells us that an high way
should be cast up, by which the newly-created
worshippers of Jehovah might come even from the
most distant parts of heathen lands, to worship
the Lord in the beauty of holiness. Almost all
the predictions of the spread of religion throughout
the earth, which we find in the Old Testament,
have a reference to the Jewish forms of worship,
and to Jerusalem as the place where the Lord
especially met his people ; this was necessary, in
order to meet the ideas of those to whom the pro-
phets spake ; but we know that now, " all who in
every place call on the name of the Lord Jesus,
shall be saved." But then the question occurs,
" How shall they call on him, in whom they have
not believed ? and how shall they believe in him,
of whom they have not heard ? " Alas ! this is

ISAIAH XXXV. 8 — 10. 113

the state still of hundreds of millions of the inhab-
itants of the world ; for them the highway into the
church of Christ on earth, is not yet opened, and
they see no path conducting them to the heavenly
Zion. Let us never forget to pray for these our
brethren in the flesh, our companions in sin and
condemnation ; but with our prayers, let us mingle
our thanksgivings to that God of grace, who hath
made us to differ ; who to us in this distant part
of the gentile world, hath fulfilled the promise of
the text ; and may he of his infinite mercy grant,
that we, to whom these blessings are afi'orded, may
walk in the way of holiness till we " come to
mount Zion, the city of the living God, the hea-
venly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company
of angels ; to the general assembly and church of
the first-born, whose names are written in heaven ;
and to God the Judge of all ; and to the spirits of
just men made perfect ; and to Jesus the mediator
of the new covenant."

You see then, my brethren, that our text is a
description of the way to heaven, the way of true
religion, the way in which the redeemed of the
Lord all walk. And in considering the account
of this way, there are three things which especially
call for our attention.

L The description which is given of the

WAY itself.

n. The company which is met with in
that way.

in. The end to which it leads.

114 SERMON VII :

I. Let us consider what is said about the way —

ITS CHARACTER AND DESCRIPTION.

This I think may be considered in four points of
view. 1. It is a free and open way. 2. It is a
w^ay plain and easy to find. 3. It is a way of
safety : and 4. It is a cheerful road. Such is the
way of holiness.

1 . The text intimates that it is a road that is
free and open to all. Not a bye path, a private
road, on which only a few individuals are permitted
to go ; it is a highway, a public road, as free to
the poor as to the rich, to the ignorant as to the
learned, to the child as to the old man, to the
most unworthy as to him whom we should be
ready to esteem deserving of higher favour than
others enjoy. There is no distinction : it is the
king's high-way, and open alike to all.

My brethren, who can conceive the mercy and
goodness that is contained in this idea ! the way
of religion, the way from misery to happiness, the
way from destruction to glory, is closed to no
one. Our natural state is one of awful guilt and
misery, a state of tremendous danger ; guilt,
misery, and danger, increasing every hour ; the
place in which we dwell may well be called, in the
language of the author of the Pilgrim's Progress,
the City of destruction, for soon shall it be burned
up, and all the works that are therein ; but there
is a warning voice that cries. Go ye up out of it,
" flee from the wrath to come," — which speaks to

ISAIAH XXXV. 8— 10. 115

every sinner here, and says "vengeance is coming
to the uttermost," escape without delay from the
accursed land, the land devoted to destruction.
Does any one ask, " Whither can I flee?" how
shall I escape ? the text tells you ; the highway is
there, it is cast up on purpose, enter upon it, flee
in that direction, there is no obstacle to impede
you, the stumbling-blocks are removed out of the
way, the path is made smooth, the road is free.

Is not this, my brethren, the exact manner in
which the gospel addresses itself to all, without
exception. Does not Jesus Christ, who is " the
way, the truth, and the life," speak thus ? Does
not he say, " Come unto me, all ye that labour and
are heavy laden, and I will give you rest?" Does
not he say, " him that cometh to me, I will in no
wise cast out?" Is it not declared that "he is
able to save to the uttermost, all that come unto
God by him?" Are we not assured that " his
blood cleanseth from all sin ? " Is not the invita-
tion universal, " let him that is athirst come, and
whosoever will, let him take of the water of life
freely." Can any thing be more explicit than
this ? The king's highway is not more open to
every passenger that chooses to walk in it, than is
the way to heaven to every sinner who is willing
to tread therein.

2. It is a plain path : such a path as David
prayed for, when he said, " Make thou thy way
plain before my face."

I 2

116 SERMON VII :

When Israel was come into the lot of their
inheritance, they were commanded to appoint, or
rather God himself appointed, certain cities, as
cities of refuge, that the man who had accidentally
caused the death of any person, might flee thither
and be safe ; but the nearest relation of the slain
man, the avenger of blood, was allowed to put the
man slayer to death, if he overtook him before he
reached one of these cities ; it was therefore neces-
sary that the roads leading to them should be free,
and not only free, but also plain ; there must be
no intricacies, no difficulty in finding them ; and we
are informed in fact, that great pains were taken
to make them so : and wherever there was the
least danger of a mistake being made, a guide-
post was erected pointing out the road, and marked
in large letters with the word Refuge.

And was all this care used, where the life of
man was at stake, and all these means employed to
render the gracious provision of the city of refuge
effectual ; and shall we suppose that when ven-
geance, eternal vengeance is pursuing the soul of
the sinner, and just ready to strike him down into
the pit of destruction ; — and when God has pro-
vided salvation for him, — shall we, I say, suppose
that the road to it is such, that the soul fleeing
from the wrath to come, cannot find it ? Shall
we believe those who would tell us, that the Bible,
which was written for the very purpose, is so
dark, so obscure a book, that a poor, or unlearned

ISAIAH XXXV. 8 — 10. 117

man, must not be intrusted therewith, lest he
should not only get no good, but, on the contrary,
injury from it ? No, thanks be to God, the way to
heaven revealed therein is so plain, that " the way-
faring man, though a fool, shall not err therein ; "
and he, who anxious to do the will of God, and to find
the salvation of his soul, takes up his Bible with the
Psalmist's prayer upon his lips, " Open thou mine
eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy
law," shall never make any fatal mistake, " he
shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God,"
he " shall hear a voice behind him, saying, this is
the way, walk ye in it, when he turns either to the
right hand or the left."

My friends, what an unspeakable mercy is this !
no such light shines on the paths of science and
literature, or on the road to honour, or on the way
to wealth. It is not necessary that men should be
highly learned, or be extolled by the trumpet of
fame, or be rich and increased in goods. But it
is necessary that they should find the way to
heaven, if not, it had been better for them that
they had never been born. And therefore God
himself has undertaken to be their guide. He has
drawn the map, he has made the road, and he has
made it so plain, that the wayfaring man, though
a fool, shall not err therein. No man ever missed
the way to heaven and perished, because he wanted
scholarship, or because he wanted talents ; but
thousands, and tens of thousands miss it, and are

118 SERMON VII :

lost, because they have none of the spirit of the
'^ wayfaring man," they are not intent on reaching
home, they are occupied in choosing smooth and
flowery paths, in finding present amusement and
present pleasure, and so wander from the " narrow
way that leadeth unto life."

3. This way is also described as a way of safety.
" No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast
go up thereon, it shall not be found there."

This part of the text seems to have a special
and peculiar reference to that happy period, when
the church of Christ shall enjoy a complete rest
from the attacks of all her enemies ; when Satan,
that roaring lion who goeth about seeking whom
he may devour, shall be bound for a thousand
years. We need not, however, confine the inter-
pretation to this glorious period. True indeed,
Satan does now go about hunting for souls ;
and the world spreads its snares about the
Christian's path, and many a professor of re-
ligion has fallen a prey to these ravenous beasts ;
but is it equally certain, that such persons were
actually walking in the way of holiness ? The lions
and the ravenous beasts crowd about the path in
which the Christian walks, but God hath set an
hedge along it, they cannot "go up thereon;"
and therefore our Lord says, " My sheep hear my
voice, and I know them, and they follow me : and
I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never
perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand,

ISAIAH XXXV. 8 — 10. 119

my Father which gave them to me is greater than
all, and none is able to pluck them out of my
Father's hand."^ No doubt Satan is always on the
watch, and ofttimes does terribly harass and alarm
the true believer, but w^hile in this high way of holi-
ness he need fear no evil ; the path is perfectly
secure, " no lion shall go up thereon, nor any
ravenous beast ; it shall not be found there."

4. But it is not only a safe way — the text in-
timates that it is also a pleasant and a cheerful
road, for it tells us that the travellers go on their
way singing. " The ransomed of the Lord shall
return to Zion with songs."

My brethren, this is what the men of the world
will not believe ; and many who seem not wholly
worldly, give them too much reason for not be-
lieving it. The prevailing idea of mankind is that
religion is safe, and that it is necessary ; but that
it is a gloomy and sad necessity w^hich obliges men
to attend to it ; and they will ask whether repentance
be not a gloomy thing ? and whether conversion,
and sacrificing all our natural inclinations, be not
gloomy ? and whether coming out from the world
does not import something very unlike cheerfulness ?
Now to all this we have but two things to oppose :
the one is scripture, and the other experience ; but
again they appeal to fact, and they refer us to
instances, as they think, fully sufficient to overthrow
the declarations of scripture and the results of ex-

1 John X, 27, 28.

120 SERMON VII :

perience. They name men whom all have deemed
religious, whose religion has assumed a most
gloomy aspect, and spread melancholy over their
whole character. Now we do not deny that such
persons are to be found, but we must remark with
respect to many of them, that the gloom arises not
from religion, but from their nature and constitu-
tion ; they would have been equally melancholy
had they never set one foot in the way of holiness.
The only blame that can in this case be cast on
religion is, that it has not worked a miracle ; that
it has not effected what medicine and the skill of
physicians, and the efforts of friends have attempted
in vain — it has not changed the constitution — it
has not counteracted the natural effects of the
structure both of their minds and bodies.

There are other cases where religion does seem
to have produced an effect opposite to that which
we ascribe to it; but " is there not a cause? '
Too generally would it be found, that it was not
the prevalence of religion, but the deficiency of it
which occasioned the depression complained of.
The sadness arises from the consciousness that
there is something, (so secret it may be that no
eyes but those of God and the man's own con-
science ever saw it) in which the demands of re-
ligion have not been, and are not complied with.
" The faith that hath not works," may well pro-
duce gloom ; this it is which makes the devils
tremble ; the more a man believes of the Bible,

ISAIAH XXXV. 8 — 10. 121

while he does not obey it, the more wretched must
he be ; his very faith pronounces sentence of con-
demnation upon him.

But where nothing of this sort intervenes— where
the mind is sound, the conscience clear and the
heart right with God, there the road is peaceful and
pleasant, the traveller passes along it with songs of
joy and exultation on his lips ;— but as it will be
necessary for me to recur to this subject again, we
will leave for the present.

We have thus considered the description of the
way itself, let us now proceed to notice,

II. The characters whom we may expect

TO MEET WITH IN THIS ROAD.

1. We are first told whom we shall no^ find
there. *' The unclean shall not pass over it ; " and
who are they?— plainly, all the great company of
those who are living in sin ; following the lusts
and corruptions of their depraved nature and of
this evil world. Such as these may be found in
the visible church, for that is " like a net cast into
the sea, which gathered of every kind, both bad
and good : but it is one thing to belong to the
visible church, and another to be in the way to
heaven. When the net is drawn ashore, a sepa-
ration shall be made— the good are gathered into
vessels, and the bad are cast away ; and almost all
the descriptions of the day of judgment dwell on
this point — the separation — the eternal separation,

122 SERMON VII :

that shall take place between those who were
members of the same church and professed the
same religion.

It matters not whether a man be a member of
the church of Christ or not — if he be unclean,
defiled, and polluted by sin, he is not walking in
the road that leadeth unto life. Exactly the same
remark is made in the book of Revelation, rela-
tive to those that shall be admitted into the new
Jerusalem, as is here made respecting those who
are travelling the road that leads to it: "And
there shall in no wise enter into it anything that
defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination,
or maketh a lie, but they which are written in the
Lamb's book of life." ^ Oh listen to this, all you
who are conscious that sin — sin unrepented of —
sin unresisted, unsubdued, and therefore unpar-
doned, still defiles you. In this state you cannot
enter heaven, nay in this state you cannot take
one step in the road that leads to it ; sin defiles
you and renders you too unclean to find admission
among the sons of God. The unclean shall not
pass over the way of holiness.

2. But the text goes on to say, " it shall be for
those " — for those who had before been spoken
of — for those for whom the way had specially been
prepared — for those who " once were far off from
God, but now were returning to him — who once
were Gentiles led away by dumb idols, but now

1 Rev. xxi. 27.

ISAIAH XXXV. 8 — 10. 123

were turning to God — for those who had in earnest
set out for Zion, way-faring men, who w^re intent
on this one object, namely to find the road to
heaven, and were prepared to encounter every
difficulty, and to listen to every instructor, ready
to learn of any one who could answer the all-
important inquiry — " What must 1 do to be
saved ? " Brethren, let this ever rest with due
weight on your minds, that as God has in his
providence rendered labour and exertion necessary
to the attainment of any good and important
object, so is it also in the dispensations of his
grace. Though his gifts are bestowed without
money and without price, they are still only given
to the diligent. It is the way-faring man, though
a fool, that shall be the happy and successful
traveller on the way to Zion.

But those who are travelling along this road are
more particularly described in the terms — " the
redeemed," " the ransomed of the Lord." Such
terms were employed respecting Israel when brought
out of the bondage of Egypt. These however were
only types of the true Israel of God — of those
whom he hath redeemed from all iniquity — re-
deemed from this wicked world — ransomed from
everlasting destruction. Once they were the slaves
of Satan, tied and bound by the chains of their
sins — earning the wages of sin which is death —
condemned already, and on the very verge of eternal
ruin. In themselves they were utterly helpless

124 SERMON VII :

and, of consequence, entirely without hope. But
God, the Most High God, was their Redeemer,
not however with '' corruptible things, as with
silver and gold, but with the precious blood of
Christ." This, is the first, the only source of
hope and happiness ; — all the company of those
before the throne ascribe the glory to him who
redeemed them to God with his blood ; all the
saints upon earth, though with feebler notes and
weaker voices, take up the same song of praise to
him who loved them and gave himself for them ;
this merciful, this glorious Redeemer, is the theme
of all those songs which are sung by Zion's travel-
ers as they are passing along this new and living
way to the mountain of holiness ; — the Saviour
is precious to them all — all their hearts glow with
love and gratitude, with affections which constrain
them " to live no longer to themselves, but to him
who loved them and gave himself for them."
Brethren, such is the company we shall meet with,
if we are ourselves travellers on this high way.
Allow me then to ask, Is this the sort of company
in which you can find delight and satisfaction ?
Can you enjoy the society of those whose favourite
theme is Christ and his salvation ? Whose songs
are the songs of Zion, whose conversation is in
heaven ? or must you have recourse to the world
for pleasure, to the sinful and unclean, for such
intercourse as cheers your spirit ? If the last be the
case with you, away with all pretences to religion ;

ISAIAH XXXV. 8 10. 125

such as you seek are not to be found in that way
which we have been considering ; you must look
for them in a road which bears a far different
character, and which has a far different termination,
in a road of which it is written, " wide is the gate
and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction
and many there be which go in thereat." But
this brings me to consider,

III. The end to which the way of holi-
ness, MENTIONED IN OUR TEXT, LEADS. It Icads

to Zion the city of the living God.

Zion was of old the seat of religious worship ;
there was the tabernacle — there was the ark — there
were all the ordinances which rejoiced the hearts
of the people of God. Glorious things were
spoken of Zion the city of their solemnities. With
what animation does the Psalmist describe the
alacrity with which they surmounted all the dif-
ficulties and bore all the privations of the long
journey which many had to take when going up
to Jerusalem to worship. " They go from strength
to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth
before God." ^ So again, when lamenting his own
banishment from the courts of the Lord, in con-
sequence of the persecutions of his enemies, he
says — " O God, thou art my God; early will I
seek thee : my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh

• Psalm Ixxxiv. 3 — 7.

126 SERMON VII :

longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where
no water is ; to see thy power and thy glory, as I
have seen thee in the sanctuary." ^

But the highest spiritual enjoyment which the
most pious person ever experienced, in the most
favoured seasons, while waiting on God in his
courts on earth, are all nothing, compared with
what he expects in heaven. Out of the heavenly
*' Zion, God shall shine in perfect beauty," there
he shall display his glory so as no mortal eye
could bear to look upon. But " when this mortal
shall have put on immortality — when this corrup-
tible shall have put on incorruption" — when we
shall " be changed from glory to glory," then
shall we " see as we are seen, and know as we are
known," — no more clouds and darkness shall ever
intervene. " The sun shall no more go down," —
the days of " mourning shall be ended," — the
ransomed ' ' of the Lord shall return and come to
Zion with songs, and everlasting joy upon their
heads ; they shall obtain joy and gladness, and
sorrow and sighing shall flee away."

I have thus, brethren, endeavoured to shew
you the road which is pointed out to us in the
text. We have seen that it is open and free
to all who choose to walk in it ; that it is
a way perfectly easy to find : a way of complete

> Psalm Ixiii. 1, 2.

ISAIAH XXX.V. 8 — 10. 127

security : and that it is a cheerful and happy road.
We have seen too, that it is frequented by the
best of company ; and leads directly to heaven and
everlasting joys.

Now since such is the case, how is it that it is
said, and that the saying is so fully borne out by
observation, that " few there be that find it?" Is
it that mankind at large are so well pleased with
the way in which they are walking — and so fully
satisfied that it will lead to a happy end, that they
want and seek no other path, and wish for nothing
else ? Far, far indeed is this from being the case.
On the contrary, the universal cry is, who will
shew us any good ? Who will tell us where we
may find peace and happiness ? Who will teach
us how we may get rid of the fear of death, and
meet the terrors of eternity with composure ?

My brethren, I may make my appeal to some
of you ; I fear, nay, I may say I know that there
are many of you, who are conscious that you are
not walking in this road. Now, I ask, are you
happy ? Is it not true that your minds are very
ill at ease ? Why then do you not turn into the
way which God has set before you ? Here is the
very thing you are seeking for : peace, cheerful-
ness, and enjoyment now, and complete and ever-
lasting happiness at the end. Why do you hesi-
tate to set out? Why do you so cleave to this
' city of destruction,' which you know is doomed
with all its inhabitants to eternal ruin ? Alas !

128 SERMON VII :

my friends, there is one word in the text on which
I have not yet dwelt, and which, I think, affords
the true reason of all this delay. " It shall be
called the way of holiness." This it is which
makes the gate so straight that few enter it ; this
which causes the road to seem so narrow that few
walk in it. " The unclean shall not pass over it: "
the impenitent sinner can find no admission ; he
who would carry any one favourite iniquity with
him shall never set foot on it. It affords no pros-
pect of pleasure to him whose heart is not renewed
so as to delight in the enjoyments of heaven ; the
very thing which renders it pleasantness and peace
to all the people of God, makes the sinner recoil
from it. Is not this the cause, brethren, why some
of you cannot be persuaded to set out for Zion ?
why with all your present uneasiness, with all
your trouble of conscience, with all your deep
conviction that you must some time enter on this
road, if you mean to be happy for ever, you yet
hang back — you put off the day — you wait for a
more convenient season. Oh I know the reason.
You see that it is the way of holiness ; you cannot
walk there without undergoing a great change, of
nature, of habits, of practice. Were a way pointed
out that was less holy, that promised to conduct to
heaven without leading you so far away from the
world and sin, we should see no such delays then
though it required you to do some great thing ;
yea, even to give your first-born for your trans-

ISAIAH XXXV. 8 — 10. 129

gression, the fruit of your body for the sin of your
soul." But the " carnal mind is not subject to
the law of God," and therefore it shrinks from a
way of holiness.

See, then, the true cause why so many have not
in earnest set out in religion ; — you are afraid to
allow the thought, but it is the dislike of holiness ;
this keeps you in the road you are travelling. But
** let thine eyes look right on, let thine eyelids
look strait before thee ; " see where you are going,

• A thousand ways in ruin end — one only leads to joys on high.'

Oh then turn your steps to this blessed road,
and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your
souls.

K

SERMON VIII.

GENESIS xLvii. 7—10.1

AND JOSEPH BROUGHT IN JACOB HIS FATHER AND SET HIM
BEFORE PHARAOH : AND JACOB BLESSED PHARAOH. AND
PHARAOH SAID UNTO JACOB, HOW OLD ART THOU ? AND
JACOB SAID UNTO PHARAOH, THE DAYS OF THE YEARS OF
MY PILGRIMAGE ARE AN HUNDRED AND THIRTY YEARS :
FEW AND EVIL HAVE THE DAYS OF THE YEARS OF MY LIFE
BEEN, AND HAVE NOT ATTAINED UNTO THE DAYS OF THE
YEARS OF THE LIFE OF MY FATHERS IN THE DAYS OF THEIR
PILGRIMAGE, AND JACOB BLESSED PHARAOH, AND WENT
OUT FROM BEFORE PHARAOH.

I THINK we may venture to say, that if we were
to search all the books that were ever written in
ancient or in modern times, we should scarcely
find any thing equal for tenderness, simplicity, and
beauty, to the narrative of Joseph, of which the
text forms a part. My time will not allow me to
enter upon it, but I would recommend it to your
repeated perusal, and I can hardly conceive that
any one will not admire and feel it more and more
every time that he reads it ; — its equal is no where
to be found but in the Bible. For this sacred

' Preaclied the last Siindaj' of the year.

GENESIS XLVII. 7 10. 131

volume, written under the inspiration of the Al-
mighty, not only contains matters infinitely more
important than all other books, but it abounds also
with the most admirable specimens of fine writing ;
the most interesting histories and the most sublime
poetry : so that were not the subjects of which the
Bible treats, uncongenial to the depraved heart
of man, it would be held up to admiration by all
persons of elegant and refined taste.

Jacob having discovered his favourite and long
lost Joseph, who had by a wonderful combination
of circumstances risen to great wealth and honour
in Egypt, is now brought down into that country
with all his family, in order that they may be pre-
served from the dreadful seven years' famine that
was desolating Canaan and the neighbouring na-
tions. Lands having been assigned by the king
to all the brethren of Joseph, Jacob is brought
before Pharaoh. Abraham the grandfather of
Jacob had been very wealthy and very powerful ;
the people of Canaan called him a mighty prince
among them. Isaac, too, had great possessions,
and lived in a style of splendour peculiar to those
countries ; but Jacob had, partly in consequence
of his improper conduct, to encounter many
difficulties, and with his large family was reduced
far below the rank and opulence of his father and
grandfather. And had not Joseph brought them
down into Egypt, he, and all his, would through
the famine, have come to poverty. We are not,

K 2

132 SERMON VIII :

therefore, to consider the interview between
Pharaoh and Jacob as a meeting between two
persons nearly equal in rank ; it was the intro-
duction of an apparently very aged, and in some
respects, poor man, to the mighty monarch of one
of the then most celebrated kingdoms upon earth.
From this prince, Jacob had already received much
kindness, and on his power and bounty he depended
for the future protection and support of himself
and his family.

Yet there is one point in which Jacob assumes
a superiority over Pharaoh, when he enters into his
presence ; and again when he leaves it, he solemnly
gives Pharaoh his blessing — -"Now," saith the
Apostle, " without all doubt the less is blessed of
the greater." Jacob had the God of Abraham for
his God. He was surnamed Israel, because as a
prince he had power with God and prevailed.
Jacob was conscious of the high privilege he
possessed; — Pharaoh amidst all the splendour of
royalty had nothing like this ; and it is therefore
deeply interesting to see the poor old man standing
before his royal benefactor ; and repaying him for
all his kindness, by pronouncing a blessing on
him — by offering up his prayers to God — the God
of Israel on behalf of the king of Egypt.

Has God made any of you, my dear brethren,
in his providence to be poor ? and has he in his
infinite mercy made you to know him as your God,
reconciled to vou through Christ Jesus '? think not

GENESIS XLVII. 7 10. 133

that you have no way in which you can reward
your benefactors. You have, you can bless them ;
you can pray for them ; "the effectual fervent
prayer of a righteous man availeth much ; " Kings
and their senators, are not above your prayers ;
the request of your ministers to you is, " brethren,
pray for us ; " neglect not this gift of God that is
in you; pray for us— for all that seek your good,
that we " may obtain mercy of the Lord in that
day."

But my main object at present is to call your
attention to the other part of the text; "and
Pharaoh said unto Jacob, how old art thou ? and
Jacob said unto Pharaoh, the days of the years
of my pilgrimage are an hundred and thirty years ;
few and evil have the days of the years of my life
been, and have not attained unto the days of the
years of the life of my fathers in the days of their
pilgrimage." This passage contains

I. A VERY COMMON QUESTION. And

II. A VERY UNCOMMON ANSWER.

1 shall call your attention to each, and I trust
we may be able to deduce from them some useful
instruction suited to the present season, when we
are bringing one year to a close, and entering upon
a new one.

I. We have a very common question, —
How old art thou ?

Often has this question been put to us, and

134 SERMON VIII :

often have we put it to others ; yet common as it
is, it often causes pain to those of whom it is
asked ; some indeed are not a httle offended when
inquiries are made respecting their age and time
of hfe ; while now and then we find one by whom
such inquiries are met with cheerfulness and plea-
sure, and apparently without exciting the least
uneasiness of feeling ; — perhaps we may be able to
discover some reasons for this difference as we
proceed. We can conceive of two men travelling
along the same road toward the same place, — the
one views each mile- stone as he passes it with
cheerfulness and satisfaction ; he reflects with
pleasure upon the decrease of the distance he has
to travel ; he is going to his home from which
he has been long absent — and he anticipates the
enjoyments which he shall possess when once more
he finds himself in the bosom of his beloved family.
The other too counts the miles as he passes over
them : the rapidity of his motion distresses him —
the shortness of the journey fills him with uneasi-
ness ; he has left all he loves behind him ; the
journey he is taking is the last remainder of his
liberty and pleasure ; he is a criminal and is going
to prison ; or to perpetual banishment and slavery.
Such a difference of feeling may be excited by the
question — How old art thou ? as addressed to vari-
ous persons according to the state of their minds,
and the difference of their prospects.

We meet with a person who has, during the

GENESIS XLVII. 7 10. 135

short season of youth, been the object of general
admiration for beauty, for wit, or for accomplish-
ments of some kind — a sort of idol in the circle
of friends and acquaintance. You ask the question
How old art thou? — a sudden gloom is seen to
spread over the before cheerful countenance, indi-
cating some internal uneasiness ; you have inflicted
a wound you never thought of; the question
suggested the reflection that youth is passing away
— that beauty is fading — that wit and accomplish-
ments are losing their charms — that admiration
will soon be transferred to younger and more
pleasing objects — that dull old age is creeping
on, and death with all its gloomy horrors is fast
approaching ; hence all the depression of mind
which was shown by the altered countenance. If
reflections like these are excited, can we wonder
that the question — How old art thou ? should be a
very unpleasant one, or that offence is given when
it is asked.

We meet with another person whose whole hap-
piness arises from pleasure and amusement, or
from those enjoyments in which the body must
take a large and an almost exclusive share. We
ask of him the question in the text ; and again, we
find that we have excited pain, or perhaps have
given offence. We have brought to his mind a
subject which of all others he wishes not to think
upon ; he is aware that his enjoyments cannot
last long ; the body will not long bear them ;

136 SERMON IV :

time will take away the capacity of enjoyment.
We have by our question forced this upon his
thoughts. When we said, how old art thou ? we
seemed to ask, how long will you be capable of
these indulgences, — how long will it be before the
style of Barzillai will be yours. " Can I taste any
more what I eat or what I drink ? Can I hear
any more the voice of singing men and singing
women ? " Oh ! how painful must such thoughts
be to one who lives only for enjoyment ! The
idea of the effects of time, as destroying the ability
to seek pleasure, must be most painful : and we
need not wonder that such a one shrinks back
from the inquiry that Pharaoh made of Jacob.

Again, you find a number of persons in such
a country as this, who set out with the impression
on their minds that he who increaseth riches in-
creaseth happiness ; they have therefore laboured
hard — and laboured successfully ; they have goods
laid up for many years, and are saying, *' soul,
take thine ease ; eat, drink, and be merry : " they
are surrounded by thousands praising their in-
dustry, their skill, their good fortune ; for "men
will thus praise thee when thou doest good unto
thyself." But some one asks such a fortunate
and enviable man, as he is called, the question we
are considering. In an instant he feels that
" vanity of vanities" is written on his whole life ;
all his days he has been toiling after riches — and
he has attained them ; he is rich, he is honoured

GENESIS XLVIl. 7 — 10. 137

and envied, — he is praised and he praises himself;
but the time for enjoying his wealth is gone, or
fast going. The question reminds him that he has
been toiling for others — few, very few years can
remain for him, and he wishes you had not and
would not ask him how old he is — for the answer
tells him that death standeth at the door ; and
that he is going to his long home — that the time
he has for enjoying his riches is, and must be,
very short.

We put the same question to another man. He
is one who in many respects differs from those
whom we have been speaking of, and yet we see the
inquiry has produced much discomfort ; it clearly
brings some painful thoughts into his mind. The
fact is, he is one whose heart has long been affected
by religious feeling ; he has felt the necessity of
repentance, of conversion, of faith in Christ. He
has long known that he ought to be employed in
working out his salvation with fear and trembling ;
and many have been the resolutions he has formed,
and the attempts he has made. But he has as yet
effected little. Years have passed away, and he has
continued to hear the gospel, to read the Bible, to
feel convictions, and to make resolves to little pur-
pose ; so that when the question is put to him,
how old art thou ? a distressing thought is forced
upon him ; many years are gone — and but few
remain, yet I have not made my calling and elec-
tion sure. Time with me is drawing to its close,

138 SERMON VIII :

yet I know not whither I am going, or what will
become of me. I fear that death will come upon
me, and I shall not be found ready ; I have not yet
obtained an interest in Christ, and I fear I never
shall. We might naturally suppose that a person
in this state could never enjoy any rest, that he
must be always unhappy ; but it is not so. He
contrives to occupy his thoughts with other things,
and quiets himself with indulging hopes, which he
takes no pains to realize. But when asked how
old he is, when reminded how time is flying, and
eternity is approaching, and the day of salvation is
drawing to its close, reflections most distressing
must occupy his mind.

Am I not speaking to some who have felt all
this ? to some who dare hardly allow themselves to
think of their age, or to look back on the past, or
forward to the future. Oh ! do not allow your-
selves thus to hide the truth from your own eyes ;
the past is bad, but a little more of this thought-
lessness, and you render it quite incurable ! Instead
of shunning reflection upon the flight of time, let
it be your constant meditation. Ask yourselves
often — how old am I ? how much of my time is
already run to waste ? that so you may seize the
moments as they pass, and turn them to good
account, by becoming more watchful, more instant
in prayer, more earnest in your applications to
Jesus as your Saviour, ^ and to the Holy Ghost as
your Sanctifier. By looking at instances like these,

GENESIS XLVII. 7 10. 139

we see both the importance of the question of the
text ; and the reason why so many shrink back
from the inquiry with pain and dislike.

We may however sometimes put the same ques-
tion to a person who shows a widely-different state
of feeling. The inquiry, it is true, brings many
painful reflections to his mind, yet painful as they
are, he does not shrink from them. ' How old am
I ? Through so many years I have been experi-
encing the mercy of God , for a large part of that
time I was constantly provoking him by my sins,
I broke his laws, I despised his grace, I neglected
his salvation : but blessed be his name, the time
past has sufficed me to have wrought the will of the
flesh ; through the goodness of God I trust I have
been led to repentance ; I have received Jesus as
my Saviour ; I am endeavouring to live a sober,
righteous, and godly life, and so am preparing to
meet my God, in hope that being found in Christ,
there shall be for me no condemnation.'

' When you ask how old I am, it leads me to
take a humbling view of myself and my past years,
but it is not all dark and gloomy ; goodness and
mercy have followed me all the days of my life,
and my hope is, that sinful as I have been, and
still am, I yet shall dwell in the house of the Lord
for ever. I feel an awe in thinking of my age, but it
is not an awe of despair, but of hope, — hope that
God " has not appointed me to wrath, but to
obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ ; "

140 SERMON VIII :

my hope is, that when this short and uncertain life
is ended, I shall enter on that eternal life which he
will bestow on all those who believe on him ; all I
now wish is, that, be the remainder of my days
longer or shorter, I may be enabled to serve my
God and Saviour in a better and more holy man-
ner than I have ever yet done ; and at last to hear
him say, " Well done, good and faithful servant,
enter thou into the joy of the Lord." '

This, brethren, may serve to show how many
and how important are the things which are con-
nected with the common question of the text. It
may show too how it is that such different feelings
are excited by the inquiry, How old art thou ?

Let us now proceed to consider,

IL The UNCOMMON answer which Jacob on
this occasion gave to the King of Egypt.

To us it would appear an unusual reply, when
he stated that he had reached the great age of one
hundred and thirty years. Man was not always
the short-lived being that he now is ; originally
even his body seems to have been formed for
immortality. It was sin which brought death into
the world. But for this, no sickness, nor pain,
nor decay would have ever attacked our frames.
But when man became a sinner, he became a dying
creature ; yet though sentenced to die, that sen-
tence was long deferred ; seven or eight, or nine
hundred, or even almost a thousand years, was

GENESIS XLVII. 7 10. 141

allowed to some of the early inhabitants of the
earth, as the term of their lives. To such a pitch
of wickedness however did they rise in consequence
of the length of their days, that to preserve the
world from intolerable corruption, the duration of
human life was shortened. This was done gra-
dually, and many instances were suffered to occur
of what we should now deem extreme old age.
Thus Jacob in the text did not consider that he
was a very old man when he had reached one
hundred and thirty years. And he observes that
he had not yet attained to the age of his fathers,
for Isaac was one hundred and eighty when he
died, and Abraham one hundred and seventy-five ;
and Jacob lived after this seventeen years. So that
he was one hundred and forty -seven years old when

he died.

In this answer we have Jacob's view of what his
life had been, and of what in fact the life of every
man is.

1. He calls it a pilgrimage.

A pilgrim is one who leaves his home, his
family, his native land, to travel or to wander
through distant countries in which he is a stranger,
unknown and disregarded, except as he is looked on
with a jealous eye by the people among whom he
sojourns, who suspect, it may be, the motives by
which he is influenced, and think that he either
has some bad design in view, or for his crimes is
compelled thus to become a wanderer and vaga-

142 SERMON VIII :

bond upon earth. A life of this sort must be a life
of much uneasiness, and of little pleasure. Pro-
bably Jacob made here some allusion to the com-
mand given to Abram to leave his father's house,
and to set out from home, not knowing whither
he went : and to his sojourning as a stranger in
the land of Canaan, which God promised as a
residence for his posterity. He was a pilgrim in
a strange land. Isaac and Jacob followed his
example, and "confessed," as St. Paul says, " that
they were strangers and pilgrims upon earth ; ''
that " they had here no continuing city, but were
seeking one to come ; " even " a city that hath
foundations, whose builder and maker is God."
The life of a pilgrim is a very apt representation
of the life of man. So the Psalmist, many ages
after the time of Jacob, says, " I am a stranger
upon earth, hide not thy commandments from me."

Such was Jacob's life, such too were the lives of
Abrahamand Isaac, in the days of the years of their
pilgrimage. Such too is our life ; it is a pilgri-
mage ; here we have no fixed abode — nothing that
we can call our home ; we are upon a journey ; it
is of no use for us to build, and furnish, and orna-
ment our house, and provide comforts for our-
selves ; for we are going away, to-morrow perhaps,
or perhaps to-day we shall be called to depart from
this strange land.

The great body of mankind endeavour to forget
their unsettled and wandering state ; in this land

GENESIS XLVII. 7 — 10. 143

of their pilgrimage, they find many things that
interest and please them — many things which afford
them gratification and which they wish to keep and
enjoy ; they cannot bear the thought of relinquish-
ing them ; they have given them their hearts ; and
that they must die and leave them all is a truth
that they would fain shut their eyes to. Do not
you, brethren, feel something of this ? and is not
this the reason you like not to hear the question
*' How old art thou ? " It reminds you of your state
of pilgrimage ; it reminds you that you must travel
onward, and leave this land where you are but
strangers, though you would gladly linger here for
ages if you might. But Abraham, and Isaac, and
Jacob confessed, and every godly and heavenly-
minded man confesses the same — that they were
strangers, that life was a pilgrimage ; they sought
not here a continuing city. This is one striking
difference between piety and worldliness. The
pious man would not on any account continue
here ; he finds nothing upon earth to satisfy his
mind ; he cannot be content to feed upon these
husks, to live in this strange land, this country so
far from, and so unlike that home, where his
treasure and his heart both are. He is habitually
waiting the call for his departure, and has his loins
girded ready for his journey ; if he finds himself
becoming so attached to w^hat he meets with here
as to forget his character as a pilgrim, and to
think little of his home, his eternal rest, he is

144 SERMON VIIT.

alarmed and ashamed. Oh, then, my brethren, let
us keep this in view ; let the years, as they so
rapidly roll by, teach us to be prepared for the call
which will soon come. Oh ! let us not love this
vain world and its broken cisterns of earthly enjoy-
ments, but let us look toward heaven, where is the
throne of God and of the Lamb, and where flows
the river of the water of life. Let this be our
home, this the place on which our hearts are
fixed.

2. In his answer to Pharaoh, Jacob intimates
that the time of his pilgrimage was but short —
*' Few have the days of the years of my life been."

Could we realize eternity — a never-ending dura-
tion— a space in which we should have just as
much to look forward to, when thousands of thou-
sands of ages have passed away, as we have now,
we should then enter fully into those expressions
which the eternal God has used in his word to
describe the shortness and vanity of human life ;
but we cannot do it fully, and are seldom inclined
to do it at all ; and therefore we attempt to keep
up the delusion, that life consists of a long space.
Yet, whatever the young may feel, we all as we
grow old are struck with the rapidity with which
time passes away. Ask the oldest man you know,
how life appears to him, and he will tell you as
Jacob does, "short, very short : each year seems
shorter than that which went before ; it seems but
the other day since I was exulting in childhood

GENESIS XLVII. 7 — 10. 145

and youth, and now I am become an old man
tottering on the brink of the grave."

Yes, such is life 1 a few days, a narrow span, a
shadow that passeth away, "vanity of vanities, all is
vanity." But there is one thing for which life is
always long enough if rightly improved ; — it is
always long enough to secure the great end for
which, as relates to ourselves, we live ; to secure
eternal happiness. It is not long enough to
gain and enjoy wealth ; it is not long enough to
pursue pleasure, or to possess the admiration and
applause of our fellow-creatures ; these things are
not necessary for us ; they will do nothing towards
securing our happiness as immortal beings ; but
life is always long enough for him who is seeking
eternal glory, through faith in the Lord Jesus. No
man ever perished because the days of the years
of his pilgrimage were so few, that he had not time
to repent, and to flee to the Saviour ; that he had
not time to give his heart to God, and renounce
iniquity ; but thousands lose their souls, because
they throw away these few precious days ; they
lavish away their lives in vanity and folly, and in
the love of the world, and sink down into the
grave, vainly complaining that they had not time
to seek salvation, or to attend to religion. Oh ! be
upon your guard, my brethren, redeem the time
from trifles, and apply it to the grand object for
which you ought to live.

3. But when Jacob tells us that the days of the

146 SERMON VIII :

years of his life had been few, he adds that they
were also evil, " few and evil."

Though the patriarch had been born in a situa-
tion in life possessed of many and great advantages,
yet had he experienced many and heavy afflictions ;
these cast a gloom over the review of his past
years. Read his history for yourselves, and you
will see that he had a large portion of sor-
row, some of it real, and some, the result of
his own misconception ; as when he said, "Jo-
seph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will
take Benjamin away also, all these things are
against me." His distress was founded on igno-
rance and mistake, but it was heart-rending.
Many such things rushed into Jacob's mind when
Pharaoh said, " How old art thou ? "

And is there one among us, in whose breast the
same question does not produce a similar feeling ?
It makes us call to mind our sicknesses, our times
of difficulty and want, the friends, the relations,
the children we have lost, the distress which the
unkindness of some, and the ill-treatment of others
have occasioned us. So many things of this kind
rush into our thoughts, that life seems to us like
Ezekiel's roll, " written within and without, lamen-
tation, and mourning, and woe."

But when Jacob said, " few and evil," I appre-
hend there was one thing more, which rested
heavily on his mind ; this was the evil he had
done in the few years of his pilgrimage. He could

GENESIS XLVII. 7 — 10. 147

trace back many of his troubles to his sins ; he would
never have been in the uncomfortable state in
which he was for twenty years in Laban's family ; he
never would have feared the wrath of Esau as he
did ; he would not have left his much loved mother
never to see her more ; he w^ould not have mar-
ried under such strange and uncomfortable circum-
stances ; he would not have had so many severe
trials in his family ; had he not sinned against the
Lord, in lying unto Isaac to secure the blessing,
this served to make a large proportion of his few
days very bitter to him ; — how many tears of
repentance must he have shed ; what a darkness
must this reflection have cast over his mind ; and
how must he have justified God in the chastisement
he inflicted upon him !

But is there one among us, who is not forced to
acknowledge, that here is the true source of much
of the sorrow which we have felt during the few
and evil days of the years of our pilgrimage ? Sin
has been the bitter root w^hence all this sorrow has
sprung. How difl^erent a character would life have
borne with most, but for the sin that has defiled
their days ; and how will they feel this when the
end shall come, and life shall be reviewed from the
bed of death ! — Blessed be the God of all grace,
though such may well be our feeling when
reflecting on the past ; and though our days must
be few ; still the termination of them need not be
evil. It was not so with Jacob. The clouds passed

L 2

148 SERMON VIII.

away, and in the eventide it was light, because he
could say, I have waited for thy salvation, O
Lord. — God, grant us all, my brethren, the same
happy experience, — the same gracious deliverance
out of the miseries of this sinful world !

SERMON IX.

PHILIPPIANS ii, 12, 13.

WHEREFORE, MY BELOVED, AS YE HAVE ALWAYS OBEYED,
NOT AS IN MY PRESENCE ONLY, BUT NOW MUCH MORE IN
MY ABSENCE, WORK OUT YOUR OWN SALVATION WITH FEAR
AND TREMBLING. FOR IT IS GOD WHICH WORKETH IN
YOU BOTH TO WILL AND TO DO OF HIS GOOD PLEASURE.

When St. Paul, writing to the Romans, alludes to
the state of his own countrymen, he says " My
heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that
they may be saved." And when speaking to the
Corinthians on the manner in which he had dis-
charged his ministry, he says, " I am made all
things to all men, that by all means I might save
some." This then was the subject that was
uppermost in his mind — to save some — to rescue
immortal beings from eternal ruin, to save them
from the condemnation they had brought upon
themselves by sin. It was the rejoicing of his
heart that he did not labour in vain ; but that
every where the Lord manifested his approbation
of his labours, by turning sinners " from darkness
to light, from the power of Satan unto God."

150 SERMON IX :

But though he could say, *' Now thanks be unto
God which always causes us to triumph in Christ,
and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge
by us in every place," ^ yet there were some in-
stances, in which he could contemplate the effects
of his ministry with peculiar satisfaction, not only
while he continued on the spot, but after he was
removed to distant parts of the world, and had no
longer the opportunity of personal intercourse with
those, who had by his means been converted to
God. This was eminently the case with regard to
the Philippians, of whom the Apostle says, " I
thank my God upon every remembrance of you."
" Being confident of this very thing that he who
hath begun a good work in you will perform it
unto the day of Christ."

When the Apostle wrote this epistle, he had been
for a great length of time prevented from holding
any personal intercourse with the churches he had
planted ; and was then a prisoner at Rome.
During his imprisonment he seems to have been
in want of many things necessary to his comfort.
The Philippians had heard of this, and had sent
Epaphroditus, one of their ministers, the long
journey from Macedonia to Rome, with supplies
for his necessities, and to assure him of their strong
affection, and grateful remembrance of his faithful
labours and successful ministry among them.
These tokens of their love to him, as the minister

■ 2 Cor. ii. 14.

PHILIPPIANS II. 12, 13. 151

who had first preached the Gospel among them,
and by whom they had been led to believe in the
Lord Jesus, were a refreshment to the Apostle's
spirit, and afforded him a happy assurance, that
the same docile obedience which had always been
manifested by them while he was at Philippi, was
increasing, and not diminishing by his absence.

But observe the use he makes of this circum-
stance. He does not seek to turn it to his own
advantage, but to theirs. The influence which
he had as the prisoner of the Lord Jesus, was
exercised for the advancement of their eternal
benefit; was turned into an argument for their
pressing forward toward the full assurance of hope
unto the end; and " making their calling and
election sure." " Wherefore, my beloved, as ye
have always obeyed, not as in my presence only,
but now much more in my absence, work out your
salvation with fear and trembling." — That which
was so near the heart of the Apostle with respect
to the Philippians, is the earnest desire of every
faithful servant of Christ, as to all the flock of God,
over which he is appointed an overseer ; but es-
pecially with respect to those among whom he has
been long engaged preaching the kingdom of God.
With this view, I would most earnestly press upon
you the important — the infinitely important ex-
hortation. " Work out your own salvation, with
fear and trembling, for it is God which worketh
in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure."

155 SERMON IX :

The text presents three subjects for our con-
sideration.

I. The duty which it enforces,

II. The discouragements to the performance
of this duty.

III. The encouragements to persevere.

I. Let me call your attention to the duty
which is urged upon us, " Work out your own
salvation."

The word " salvation" as here used, leads us
to the consideration of our real state ; it refers to
dangers to which man is exposed. We must look
to other parts of the scripture, to tell us what the
danger is, and whence it arose. There we are told
that " God created man in his own image," and
placed him in a situation of complete happiness
and apparent security. His happiness was, how-
ever, dependent on his holiness, and his security
on his obedience to the commands of his Creator.
The tempter assailed him, persuaded him that more
exalted satisfaction and higher honours were to be
gained by breaking the commands of the Almighty,
than by keeping them. The act of disobedience
followed, and thus the parents of the human race
fell under the curse of God's law. Then sin
entered into the world, and was propagated as fast
as the human species. Every man born into the
world has brought with him the disposition to dis-
obey ; and every one who has lived long enough

piiiLippiANS II. 12, 13. 153

to know good from evil, has done what was con-
trary to the will of God. Thus have we all of us
fallen under condemnation; and the sentence is tre-
mendous ; infinitely more so than any of us can
conceive ; — it is the everlasting wrath of God ; the
misery of hell ; " the lake that burneth with fire
and brimstone which is the second death ; "
" where their worm dieth not and the fire is not
quenched." Such is the language employed in
scripture to teach us what will be the misery of
those who die in their sins.

The word of God assures us that " there is no
difference, for all have sinned and come short of
the glory of God " — all, all of us, the whole human
race, have so sinned as to forfeit heaven, and entail
upon ourselves the inheritance of everlasting woe.

Hence then arises our need of salvation and a
Saviour ; of one who can deliver us from the
dreadful danger to which our sins have justly ex-
posed us. My dear friends, let me beg every one
of you to consider me as if speaking to you indivi-
dually. In many particulars I am aware you
difi^er much from each other ; but here is a point,
and that the most important one imaginable, in
which you are all alike. You are all sinners, all
condemned, all in danger of eternal misery, and
therefore you all need salvation ; and unless you
seek so as to find it, you will die in your sins and
perish for ever.

Here you must allow me to use great plainness

154 SERMON IX :

of speech. You must not be oifended if I utter
the full conviction of my heart, and say, that there
is not one person in this congregation — no, nor in
all the world, who is not so great a sinner, that he
will assuredly perish, if he do not seek and find
salvation. This then should be the first and
grand business of every man's life ; this is that
wisdom of which Solomon speaks, " Get wisdom,
get understanding. Forsake her not, and she shall
preserve thee ; love her and she shall keep thee.
Wisdom is the principal thing, therefore get wis-
dom ; and with all thy getting yet understanding."^
The wisdom of the world passeth away, but this
endureth forever, and " giveth life," eternal life,
" to him that hath it." Let us then give our
hearts to this one thing, to obtain the knowledge
of salvation ; to know what we as sinners *' must
do to be saved."

The attempt to search for this heavenly wisdom
and knowledge, elsewhere than in the Word of
God, will be utterly vain. It is that inspired and
holy book which teaches us at once our disease
and our remedy — our danger and our means of
deliverance. St. Paul therefore reminds Timothy
of his high privilege, " that thou," he says, " from
a child hast known the holy Scriptures, which are
able to make thee wise unto salvation, through
faith which is in Christ Jesus."

' Prov. iv. 5—7.

PHILIPPIANS II. 12, 13. 155

But, my brethren, when we have recourse to
our Bibles, to learn how we may be saved, we may
perhaps be struck with a seeming contradiction
between the manner in which the text speaks upon
the subject and the tenor of other passages. We
are continually taught, that it is to Christ alone
that we are to look, and that he alone can save
us; that our salvation is all ** of grace through
faith ; " that "it is the gift of God, not of works
lest any man should boast ; " while here we are
commanded to " work out our own salvation."
There seems therefore to be a complete contradic-
tion ; but I trust we shall see that it is only in
appearance and not in reality that St. Paul thus
contradicts himself.

In the first place, the language of Scripture is
too plain to be mistaken, that the only meritorious
cause of salvation is what the Lord Jesus did, and
suffered, when he came into the world to save
sinners. " This is a faithful saying and worthy of
all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the
world to save sinners." " Other foundation can ,
no man lay than that is laid, which is Christ Jesus."
By his sufferings and death, he made a full, per-
fect, and sufficient atonement and satisfaction for
our sins ; by his perfect obedience * ' he hath
brought in everlasting righteousness." And since
" God so loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son," thus to suffer and die for us ; and
since nothing that we had done or could do, could

156 SERMON IX :

deserve such a gift as this ; the blessings that flow
to us through him are all of grace, of free unde-
served mercy ; and therefore leave man nothing
whatever to boast of. And since these blessings,
thus bestowed upon us through Christ, are given
only to those who believe in, trust upon, and
apply to Christ as the Saviour, it is said that we
are saved hy faith, or by believing on the Son of
God.

Thus it is made most plain, that our salvation is
not effected by works of "righteousness that we
have done," but only " by grace through faith, and

'that not of ourselves, it is the gift of God, not of
works, lest any man should boast." But while we
humbly acknowledge that all our doings are nothing
worth, still there is clearly a work which man has
to do ; a work which must be done earnestly
and perseveringly, or he will not obtain that salva-
tion which he needs. This is what St. Paul refers
to in the text, when he says " work out your own
salvation ; — if the whole were to be wrought by our
own power and might, and we were to depend on
ourselves for salvation, stronger words could
scarcely be used. Nor are they only to he found
in this place, many other passages of Scripture
speak in the same manner, " Strive to enter in at

*the strait gate." And our Lord strikingly puts
the two together, " Labour not for the meat that

iperisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto
everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give

PHILIPPIANS II. 12, 13. 157

you." ' This ever-during nourishment of the soul
is the gift, the free gift of God, and therefore
it is all of grace ; yet we are commanded to labour
for it, as a poor man labours and eats his bread, as
the reward of his honest industry.

To a man then, earnestly inquiring what he must
do to be saved, the direction is, that he must
believe on the Son of God, who will grant salvation
to him without money and without price ; w^hile at
the same time, he receives commands, some of
which lay upon him duties of a very difficult
nature, requiring much exertion and much self-
denial.

The prophet Isaiah says to him who is asking
after deliverance, " Let the wicked forsake his way
and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him.
return unto the Lord and he will have mercy upon
him, and to our God, for he will abundantly par-
don." "^ This is a declaration of God's infinite
mercy, and readiness to grant salvation to the
perishing sinner ; but still there is a work for the
sinner to perform ; sin must be given up, neglected
duties must be fulfilled ; and this must be set about
at once. Not one step is taken in the way to
heaven, till the sinner is willing to give up his sins,
or in other words is converted, and manifests a
change of feeling and of character.

Again, we read that repentance is necessary to

> John vi. 27 * Isaiah Iv. 7.

158 SERMON IX :

salvation ; there is not a word in scripture which
gives any hope of heaven to the sinner till he re-
pents and mourns over his sins. The proclamation
of mercy is " repent and be converted, that your
sins maybe blotted out." " God now commandeth
all men everywhere to repent." Here then is a
work to be done, absolutely necessary, and till
the command is obeyed, and the work is begun,
the impenitent sinner remains still in the broad
road that leadeth to destruction. And, once more,
the call of the gospel, is to believe in the Son of
God. "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and
thou shalt be saved." And when our Lord was
discoursing with the Jews, and they asked him
what they must do that they might work the works
of God, he replied, "This is the work of God,
that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." Here
then, is a command to be obeyed, and a work to
be done before a man can be said to have come to
the Saviour.

Thus we see that there is a scriptural sense in
which faith, repentance, conversion, and a holy
and renewed life, are all a part of that great work
which we have to do in securing for ourselves that
salvation, which is nevertheless all of God's free
mercy and grace.

But no sooner does a convinced sinner attempt
to perform this necessary work, than he feels him-
self baffled. Something is required of him which
it seems utterly impossible that he should ever

piiiLiPPiANS II. 12, 13. 159

achieve. Are sins to be broken off ? are new
duties to be performed ? He immediately finds
that the temptations of the world, the flesh, and
the Devil, are too strong for him, and he is hur-
ried away into those very sins which he wished to
renounce. When he fain would weep over his
transgressions, it seems as if his heart was become
harder and more unfeeling than ever. When he
would believe in the Saviour and renounce every
hope but that which springs from faith in him,
he cannot bring his proud spirit humbly to accept
the offers of mercy — he cannot lay hold on the
hope set before him.

Hence then result new duties, new exertions to
be made in working out our salvation. God
knows our weakness — he knows the power of
temptation — he is acquainted with the evil of our
hearts ; and in his boundless mercy he has ap-
pointed means whereby these difficulties are to be
overcome. He has given us his holy word, and
he bids us to study it, and apply it to our own
state — to bring home its exhortations, its com-
mands, its threatenings, its promises to ourselves,
in order to stir us up to more diligence in the pur-
suit of salvation. He has given us the public ordi-
nances of religion that we should attend on them
and walk in them blamelessly, and so find our
strength renewed. He has set before us the throne
of grace and bids us come boldly thither " that
we may find mercy, and grace to help in time of

160 SERMON IX :

need." Now, brethren, if we are working out
our own salvation, these means, which the infinite
goodness of God has provided for us, will be
diligently and constantly made use of by us ;
while at the same time we shall come out from
the world and be separate from it, lest its alluring
snares should draw us away from the great object,
of escaping the wrath to come.

Thus in the command to work out our own
salvation, we see that all which constitutes a re-
ligious life, in the most enlarged meaning of the
word, is required of us. In a world like this, we
cannot thus serve God, without much labour and
watchfulness; we shall have a daily struggle to
maintain, while our treacherous hearts will be
always giving way, and deceiving us. Hence the
language used by our Lord " Strive to enter in at
the strait gate : " " Labour for the meat that en-
dureth unto everlasting life." And hence St.
Paul, when speaking of himself and his brethren,
says, " Wherefore we labour, that whether present
or absent we may be accepted of him." ^ And
hence the peculiar expression of the text, " Work
out your own salvation," and not only so, but
" work it out with/e«r and trembling.'' This im-
ports that there are peculiar discouragements and
difficulties, which may well induce us to fear lest we
should fail in accomplishing so important an object ;
let us then proceed as was proposed,

1 2 Cor. V. 9.

PHILIPPIANS II. 12, 13. 161

II. To consider the nature of these dis-
couragements.

How unlike is the language of our text, to that
which seems the general opinion of mankind.
People evidently think that nothing is more easy
than to make sure of salvation ; that if it do not
fall to the lot of him who has been baptized, and
who has led a tolerably regular life, as a matter of
course, yet that a very little pains will make all
safe and secure ! Aye, and that if a man be so
occupied with this world, as to make it impossible
for him to attend to religious matters with any
degree of devotedness, he may very safely put off
serious consideration to a sick bed, or to a time
when he will have nothing else to do ; and that
just before he leaves the world, will be soon enough
to make his calling and election sure.

Were this correct, there would be no room for
fear and trembling, except, perhaps, in the case of
a few very desperately bad characters. But the
Apostle addresses the exhortation to those whom
he never thought of without thankfulness to God ;
to those " who had always obeyed, not as in his
presence only, but now much more in his ab-
sence" nay, to those of whom he says, " We are
confident of this very thing, that he that hath begun
a good work in you, will carry it on until the
day of Christ." He felt what St. Peter did, when
he said, " If the righteous scarcely be saved, where
shall the ungodly and sinner appear ? " But we

M

162 SERMON IX :

maybe ready to ask, whence can all this arise?
why is our salvation to be worked out with all this
fear and trembling, when we know it is all of
grace, through faith in the Lord Jesus, who we
are assured, is able to save to the uttermost all
that come to God by him, and whose goodness
and love is so great, that he will cast out none that
come to him ?

Brethren, these are blessed truths, on which we
may place the fullest reliance, and but for this, our
fear and trembling must be turned into absolute
despair. If our Saviour were as fickle, changeable,
and weak as we are, there would be no hope what-
ever, but we should without all doubt fail of the
grace of God, and finally perish. When St. Paul
says " Let us fear lest a promise being left us of
entering into his rest, any of you should seem to
come short of it ; " ^ and when in the text, he calls
on us " to work out our own salvation with fear
and trembling '' he does not exhort us to distrust
either the power, or the love, or the faithfulness of
Christ. But all our fears spring from ourselves,
and the corruption of our own hearts ; from our
own instability and want of faith.

Would you see what need there is for fear and
trembling ? — look back at what has taken place
with regard to yourself. When first your attention
was drawn towards religion, and you set out in

' Heb. iv. 1.

PHILIPPIANS II. 12, 13. 163

the ways of God, could you have believed that you
should have made so little progress as you have
done ? Could you ever have thought that your
applications to Christ would have been so cold,
and your love of him so feeble ? Did you ever
suspect that temptation would have had so much
power over you, that you should have been over-
come as you have been ; that you should have had
so little the mastery over your easily besetting sin,
and your unholy tempers as has been the case
with you ? If it has been so in time past ; and if
it be so still, what confidence can you have for the
future ? surely you must feel, that if the time to
come should bear any resemblance to the past,
your prospects are but dreary ; and you may easily
conceive that Satan, encouraged by the victories he
has already gained over you, will make still more
furious assaults upon you. And shall not this
make you fear and tremble, even while you are
endeavouring to stir yourself to greater earnestness
in working out your salvation.

And when you have thus reflected upon your
own case, then consider that of others. What
strikes you, while you read the history of the
church? " How are the mighty fallen, the beauty
of Israel slain ! " How do we see the first become
last ; those who did run well hindered ! How
many of those, who seemed likely to have " an
entrance ministered unto them abundantly into
the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour

M 2

164 SERMON IX :

Jesus Christ," after awhile have turned aside to
vain jangling, embraced some damnable heresy, or,
sinking under the power of some secret iniquity,
have at length " made shipwreck of faith and of a
good conscience ! " The ancient church, and the
church in our own day, has produced multitudes
of such instances ; and each one of them says to
us, " Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed
lest he fall." " Watch and pray lest ye enter into
temptation." " Work out your own salvation with
fear and trembling." For what security do we
possess, that they had not ? Wherein are we
stronger than they, who have thus been seized
upon and carried away by that ' ' roaring lion that
walketh about seeking whom he may devour ? "

Then again reflect, my dear friends, on what
you have at stake. Think what a man loses, who
loses the salvation of his immortal soul — all, all is
lost, lost for ever ! Heaven is lost, and eternal
ruin alone remains as the sinner's portion ! On
this narrow neck of land, between the ocean of
endless happiness and glory, and the gulph of
perdition are we standing, while we are working
out our salvation ; and shall we not do it with
fear and trembling? Oh, my brethren, such fear
is rational, it is salutary. Our greatest danger
arises from want of serious thought, from careless-
ness ; — so that we may well say, " Happy is the
man that feareth always."

But if he who is engaged in working out his

PHILIPPIANS II. 12, 13. 165

salvation has such discouragements as may well
cause him to fear and tremble, he has at the same
time many things to animate and comfort him in this
arduous work. Let us then proceed to consider,

III. His encouragements to persevere.

These the text sets before us in the concluding
clause. " For it is God that worketh in you, both
to will and to do, of his good pleasure."

This passage is addressed to those, who already
had felt the importance of salvation, and were dis-
posed to seek it with some degree of earnestness,
but were ready to be disheartened by the difficulties
which lay in their way ; they were urged forward,
therefore, and excited to work out their own
salvation,

1 . By the consideration of who it was that had
already produced this conviction on their minds,
and inclined their hearts to seek after the salvation
of their souls. "It is God that worketh in you
to will." — Such is the corrupted state of man's
heart, such the enmity of the carnal mind, that
though every one dreads the thought of eternal
punishment, no one, if left to himself, would be
willing to seek for pardon and deliverance, in the
only way in which it can be found, even through
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Hence all that
neglect which we see of the "great salvation; "
men make light of it, because they like not the
humiliating nature of the terms proposed. Nay,

166 SERMON IX :

our Lord carries the matter still further ; he repre-
sents the corruption of the human heart, as placing
an insurmountable obstacle in the way. Not only
: does he say to the unbelieving Jews, " Ye will
not come to me that ye might have life : " but
he even says, " no man can come unto me,
except the Father which hath sent me draw him."
And again does he repeat it. " No man can
come to me, except it be given to him of my
Father."^ This apparently " hard saying " is turned
to a motive of encouragement in the text. Not
only is the sinner taught to cry with penitent
Ephraim, " Turn thou me, and so shall I be
turned," but he is led to reflect on what has
already been done for him ; on the extent to which
he has already been turned ; and to consider by
whom this was effected. Once, his whole soul
was careless and insensible ; he lived year after
year without even a desire after any spiritual good ;
the invitations of God's mercy, aud the threaten-
ings of his justice, were equally unheeded ; the love
of Christ to lost sinners, excited no constraining
influence upon him ; he seemed to have neither
hope nor fear upon religious subjects. But a
change has taken place ; — he has not indeed done
much toward working out his salvation ; but while
the consciousness of this, makes him fear and trem-
ble ; it excites in him more fervent desires, for in-
creased earnestness and diligence in this great work.

1 John vi. 44, 65.

PHILIPPIANS II. 12, 13. 167

Now whence did this change arise ? Who
inclined his heart to seek everlasting blessedness,
instead of this world's vanities ? When one who
has experienced this change, begins to think upon
its source, he cannot ascribe it to any thing else
than that to which it is ascribed in our text. " It
was God who wrought in him to will ; " it was
God who put this good thought, this holy desire
into his soul; — left to himself, he is convinced
that he should never have felt any thing of the
kind.

Here then is a strong ground of encouragement,
to work out his salvation. God has already begun
with him. He is already drawing the sinner by
his grace ; already is he making him willing in the
day of his power. Yield then, my fellow- sinner, to
these gracious influences of the Spirit; and encou-
raged by such tokens of the divine presence,
" work out your own salvation."

But the encouragement of the text reaches still
farther, and the apostle, being confident, as he
says in the beginning of the epistle, that '* he who
had begun the good work, would carry it forward,"
adds to his working in us to mil, that he worketh
in us also to do. The Christian is here taught
that every thing depends upon the grace and good-
ness of God. He it is who disposes him to
commence the all-important work, and will enable
him also to bring the same to good effect. The
(Ufiiculties that we have to overcome in securing

168 SERMON IX.

our salvation are indeed many and great ; they
are such as we could never surmount by our own
strength, however powerfully our minds might
seem set upon our object. But that grace which
put into the mind the good desire, will alway
be ready to aid us in accomplishing it ; so that
while we can of ourselves do nothing, we " can do
all things through Christ who strengthens us."
Here is the true source of the hope of every Chris-
tian enduring to the end, and being saved ; so many
and so powerful are the enemies that oppose his
salvation, that, when fighting against them, he in
his own strength might well fear, and tremble, and
despair ; — he could not have one thought of victory.
But he is fighting " the good fight of faith."
Faith relies upon unseen, but promised support,
support such as will render him more than con-
queror. By his grace and power, the Lord who has
wrought in him to will, will also work in him to do.
See then, my dear friends, what encouragement
there is for you ! There are no such hopes and
assurances of support and success held out to you
in other pursuits. But in the all-important object
of attaining the salvation of your souls, there is no
fear but you will succeed, if only you comply with
the call of the text, and work out your salvation
with fear and trembling, with earnestness and
diligence ; relying upon the Saviour, whose strength
shall be made perfect in your weakness, and
through whose grace you shall be made victorious
over all your enemies.

SERMON X.

1 CORINTHIANS ix. 26, 27.

I THEREFORE SO RUN, NOT AS UNCERTAINLY ; SO FIGHT I ,
NOT AS ONE THAT BEATETH THE AIR: BUT I KEEP UNDER
MY BODY, AND BRING IT INTO SUBJECTION : LEST THAT BY
ANY MEANS, WHEN I HAVE PREACHED TO OTHERS, I MY-
SELF SHOULD BE A CASTAWAY.

There are few things so interesting and instruc-
tive, as a near view of the internal feelings, and
the private conduct of an eminently pious Christ-
ian. In general it is expedient even for such, to
keep themselves in the back ground, and to con-
ceal their experience, lest they should " cast their
pearls before swine ;" and appear rather to boast
of themselves, than to set forth the Lord Jesus,
and the power of his grace as manifested in them ;
but there are some occasions when it is proper and
necessary for a man to say, as St. Paul does, " Be
followers together of me, and mark them which
walk so as ye have us for an ensample." ^ There
are seasons, when one who has had long experi-
ence of the power and influence of religion, should

' Phil. iii. 17.

170 SERMON X :

tell what he has seen and felt ; for the purpose
of instructing and encouraging his brethren.

When such a man as David says " Come and
hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what
he hath done for my soul ; " or when a Christian
like St. Paul tells us of his internal conflicts and diffi-
culties, this is an occurrence of no ordinary kind ;
and we ought to be thankful that a few such nar-
ratives are left upon record in the word of God.
Did we know St. Paul only as the bold and in-
trepid preacher of " the unsearchable riches of
Christ " among the gentiles ; as the man who
" from Jerusalem round about unto Illyricum, had
fully preached the gospel of Christ, in nothing
moved," though " the Holy Ghost testified, that in
every city, bonds and afflictions abided him ; — " or,
had we only heard him saying, " I am ready to be
off^ered up ; " ' we should be disposed to look upon
him as almost of a superior order of beings ; we
should say of his example, " it is high, we cannot
attain to it." But when we hear him cry, "O
wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me
from the body of this death," or in the language
of my text, " I keep under my body and bring it
into subjection ; " we see him standing upon our
own ground ; we look at him as a man like our-
selves, though of immensely higher attainments.
We are not discouraged by our conscious inferiority,

' 2 Tim. iv. 6, &c.

1 CORINTHIANS IX. 26, 27- Hi

when we hear him say '' by the grace of God I
am what I am ; " though we are chided for our
sloth and neghgence, in not seeking as he did for
help from above, to enable us "to run with pa-
tience the race set before us," and to fight the
battle in which we are engaged.

The words of our text are evidently full of most
important instruction. May we be enabled to
improve them for our own advantage. I propose

I. To consider the quarter from which the

APOSTLE APPREHENDED DANGER.

II. The means he employed to avert that

DANGER.

III. The peculiar reason which he gives
for his earnestness.

I. Then we will consider the quarter whence
the apostle apprehended danger.

There is, throughout the whole passage, a refer-
ence to the public games and sports which were
exhibited in the immediate neighbourhood of
Corinth, and which were called the Isthmian
games. In these, prizes were proposed, amongst
others, to those who excelled in running and in
boxing; to these especially the apostle refers in
the text, as illustrative of that spiritual race and
conflict in which he was engaged. '* I so run not
as uncertainly," or obscurely} He did not run as

172 SERMON X :

the racer did when privately exercising himself for
the course, when he cared not if his exertions were
occasionally suspended, or his attention drawn
aside : but he ran as the racer when actually
conflicting, when the prize was in view, his com-
petitors by his side and ready to leave him behind,
when the eyes of all the spectators were turned
toward him, and when a few more efforts were to
decide whether he should be crowned with glory,
or depart disgraced from the field. " So fight I,
not as one that beateth the air," not as the boxer
strikes to the right or to the left, when he is only
exercising for the conflict with an imaginary foe :
but as when his formidable antagonist is before
him, parrying his blows, and endeavouring to
strike him to the ground ; when the slightest
failure in watchfulness may produce defeat, dis-
grace, or even death. Such is the emblem which
St. Paul makes use of, to represent the conflict he
had daily to maintain, in " making his calling and
election sure." " They did it to obtain a cor-
ruptible crown, but he an incorruptible." And
the contest belongs not, my brethren, to St. Paul
alone, it is ours also ; to us the prize is exhibited ;
to us the enemies are opposed ; we too are
" made a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to
men ; " to us, victory is glory, eternal glory ; de-
feat is "shame and everlasting contempt."

The apostle tells us who the enemy was he had to
contend with, from whom he apprehended special

1 CORINTHIANS IX. 26, 27- 173

danger. It was not indeed the only foe he had to
combat, but it was one always ready for the conflict,
always at hand to avail himself of every opportunity;
— this foe is the body. The terms the flesh, the
body, the members, are often used by the Apostle
to represent the corrupt and carnalized state into
which the soul of man as a fallen creature is sunk.
With this no parley is to be held, no quarter given
to it ; it must be destroyed without mercy, its very
existence is inconsistent with the happiness and
almost with the safety of the Christian. But here
the apostle does not speak of an enemy that is to
be utterly destroyed, but of one who is to be mas-
tered, kept under, and reduced to a state of sub-
jection and servitude. This is then the body with
all its members, which was originally given to the
soul as its servant, capable of performing the most
important services, but which, in our present fallen
state, has risen in rebellion, and even ventures to
usurp dominion over the soul desirous of return-
ing to God and being reconciled to him. While
the soul continues to be subject to Satan, the body
readily yields all its members as instruments of
unrighteousness unto sin ; but no sooner does the
work of regeneration and renovation commence,
than it shows the utmost unwillingness to render
them instruments unto holiness ; it is perpetually
throwing obstacles in the way of the man who
desires that God may be glorified in him and by
him ; hence it becomes the source of much danger

174 SERMON X :

to every one who is "■ working out his salvation
with fear and trembling." This is a subject with
which all must be in some degree acquainted, who
have ever applied themselves to the work of religion
with seriousness. Yet it is necessary that it should
be illustrated a little more fully.

The apostle in the passage before us, is asserting
the right of the minister of the gospel to a proper
maintenance from the people of his charge ; but
then he observes, that owing to peculiar circum-
stances he had never insisted on this right, while
preaching Christ and his salvation among the
Corinthians ; but he had * ' laboured with his
hands " as a tent-maker, to support himself and
those that were with him, lest the people should
say, that he "sought not them but theirs," and
was turning the gospel into a source of wealth.
This led him to refer to other sacrifices which he
made, and other hardships which he endured in
the discharge of his ministry. Now to all this the
body would raise opposition ; it would call for
indulgence, it would require ease, it would shrink
from suffering, and so persuade St. Paul to relax
his exertions and to consult his ease, enjoyment,
and respectability. Complied with in one instance,
it would have advanced fresh demands for indul-
gence, till it had robbed him of all his glory and
joy, and left him a self-indulgent useless minister,
of no use to the church, and of no benefit to the
world. Such alas ! has been the case in unnum-

1 CORINTJ[IANS IX. 26, 27. 175

bered instances, with those who ought to have been
zealously engaged in preaching the unsearchable
riches of Christ, to a perishing world. St. Paul
was aware of the danger, and repelled it ; and such
also, you will readily say, ought to be the conduct
of all who are put in trust of the ministry. You
easily see, that we ought not to confer with flesh
and blood. Without doubt it does apply to us — but
my dear friends, the danger attaches to you also.

Are there not many things, which in your con-
sciences you know you ought to do — things in which
the honour of God is concerned — things whereby
you might be of signal service to your brethren —
things whereby you might do much good to your
own souls ? but they are not done, — and why ? — Be-
cause your body advances a claim to indulgence
incompatible with the performance of these duties :
and therefore they are neglected. Take an instance
or two to explain what I mean, and to enable you to
apply it to other cases. You are, it maybe, neces-
sarily engaged in business, so as to have little time
at your own command ; you feel that your soul
does not prosper and remain in health, for want of
more retirement, more leisure for searching the
Scriptures, for meditation, and prayer. That time
you might obtain by rising earlier in the morning or
giving less of your evenings to company ; — but
here the body wars against the soul — it claims
indulgence and gratification ; — sloth and love of ease
prevail, and you go on, year after year injuring

176 SERMON x:

your soul, and living in darkness and in doubt,
because the body cannot bear to be denied. — You
look around you, and see many suffering from
poverty, or you see many important designs failing
from want of support. You acknowledge the
Christian duty of being ' ' ready to distribute and
glad to communicate," but you live so nearly to
the extent of your income, that you can save little
to give to the poor, little to help forward any pious
design, unless you commence a system of economy
such as you have never been used to. You must
deny yourself many indulgences, which the body
desires, but which the conscience says ought to be
renounced. These may serve as instances to show
how the body endangers the welfare of the soul, by
sloth, and what is called innocent indulgence.

But we cannot look into the history of the
church of God, without seeing that many both of
ministers and private Christians, have found im-
mense danger from other cravings of the body.
What are called the pleasures of the table,
the love of rich and delicate food, and of wine
and strong drink, have made terrible havoc.
Many an one by means of these, has made ship-
wreck of faith and of a good conscience. And
where it has not proceeded to the full extent of the
evil, it is well worth inquiry, whether numbers who
are poor as well as those who are rich do not carry
their desire of indulgence both in eating and in
drinking, especially the latter, beyond that mode-

1 CORINTHIANS IX. 26, 27- l77

ration and sobriety, which ought to mark the
Christian's conduct. The " man of might to min-
gle strong drink," is as much condemned in Scrip-
ture as he that is overcome by it ; and it is not easy
to calculate how much is expended on these excesses,
how much which ought to be employed in feed-
ing the hungry and clothing the naked ; the body
is indulged, while the soul is robbed and injured.
Nor can we help adverting to the desire which the
body feels after those grosser sensual indulgences,
which are procured by a departure from the origi-
nal institution of marriage ; gross as they are, and
destructive, as experience has abundantly proved
them to be, to all true peace and enjoyment, even
in this world, yet do they form a source of dreadful
temptation : and by them have many fallen, whose
rank and station in the church of God, as well as
their age and religious experience, might have led
us to suppose them placed quite out of danger.
The melancholy history of David's fall, as well as
numerous instances exhibited in the church in later
days, all serve to add force to the exhortation
which St. Paul addressed to Timothy, " Flee
youthful lusts." ^ Lusts which, as St. Peter tells
us, "war against the soul."

In these, and numberless other ways, the body,
always shrinking from pain and self-denial, always
hankering after ease and indulgence, becomes a

' 2 Tim. ii. 22.
N

178 SERMON X :

most dangerous enemy to the soul. It is impossi-
ble for me to describe the various ways in which it
carries on its destructive warfare. I have endea-
voured to illustrate it by a few examples, but you
can carry it into more particulars for yourselves.
Let each man carefully consider his habits, his
peculiar constitution, his accustomed indulgences ;
let him consider what those things are which most
disturb his conscience, and which he feels it most
difficult for him to renounce, and he will easily
discover how, and in what respects, his body becomes
the enemy of his soul, and exposes him to perpe-
tual danger of coming short of everlasting life.
Let us now —

n. Consider the means which the apostle

RESORTED TO, TO SECURE HIMSELF AGAINST
THIS DANGEROUS ENEMY.

" I keep under my body and bring it into sub-
jection." The word rendered, "I keep under"
is rather peculiar, and seems to be taken from the
practice of the combatants to whom the apostle had
before referred ; it literally means, to strike under
the eyes. ^ In this way these persons assailed each
other, each endeavouring to render his adversary
incapable of seeing, and so unable either to direct
his own blows, or avoid those of his antagonist.
Such is the emblem St. Paul employs to show the

^ iiitwnid'^u.

1 CORINTHIANS IX. 26, 27. 179

earnestness he used to overcome the hody, to
render it incapable of mischief, and to force it to
submit to, and obey the spirit.

It is most certain that Christianity knows
nothing of self-denial, for self-denial's sake ; it
says nothing about self-inflicted austerities ; it
attaches no merit to penances and mortifications,
such as the church of Rome has extolled in her
imaginary saints. It teaches us that God hath
given us all things richly to enjoy ; and that while
all is to be used with moderation, yet that every
creature of God is good, and to be received with
thanksgiving, of them that believe and know the
truth.

But though all things may thus be lawful, there
are times when all things are not expedient ; and
all things edify not : and therefore we are to take
care, that we are not so " brought under the
power of any," that we cannot at once give them
up, when we find them leading us either to dis-
honour God, to injure our brethren, or to expose
ourselves to danger. " I am persuaded," saith the
apostle, " that nothing is common or unclean ; but
to him that thinketh any thing to be unclean, to
him it is unclean," and therefore must be shunned
by him with the utmost caution, lest he should be
guilty before God. And on another occasion he
says, to a member of the Church of Corinth, who
asserted his Christian liberty, and would not be
brought in bondage of another man's conscience,

N 2

180 SERMON X :

but would eat the meat that had been offered to an
idol, without regard to the feelings of a weaker
Christian; "Now walkest thou not charitably,
destroy not him with thy meat for whom Christ
died." And declaring the determination of his
own mind, he says, " I will eat no flesh while
the world standeth, lest I make my brother to
offend." ^ With a similar disregard to his own
ease and indulgence, he avows in the passage before
us, that nothing should induce him to forego his
practice of labouring with his hands to " support
himself, and those that were with him," that he
might throw no obstacle in the way of the gospel :
nature would recoil against all this, the body
would crave the indulgence of support and repose,
but it must be kept under, its claims must be dis-
regarded, its clamour must be stilled.

Take one more instance from the history of St.
Paul. The prophet Agabus had taken the apos-
tle's girdle, and having bound himself with it, he
said, " Thus saith the Holy Ghost, so shall the
Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this
girdle, and deliver him into the hands of the gen-
tiles." In consequence of this prediction, the
disciples, and other friends who were with him,
besought him with the most affectionate entreaty,
that he would not go up to Jerusalem ; his reply to
them however was, " What mean ye to weep and
break my heart ? for I am ready not to be bound

1 Rom. xiv. 15. 1 Cor. viii. 13.

1 CORINTHIANS IX. 26, 27- 181

only, but also to die at Jerusalem, for the name of
the Lord Jesus." ^ Here we see a man who con-
ferred not with flesh and blood, a man who kept
under his body, and all the feelings and the demands
of nature, and brought them into subjection,
when the glory of God, and the good of his fel-
low-creatures, called for the sacrifice of ease and
liberty, yea, of life itself. My brethren, these
things are written for our instruction ; they are
designed for our imitation. What then are the
lessons which we are to learn from them ? We
should learn that there are other objects, for which
we are to live, more important than the indulgence
of our mere animal nature. The pleasure which we
can enjoy from sloth, or the gratification of our
passions, is common to us with the beasts that
perish ; but we were formed for nobler pursuits, for
delights of a higher and more exalted character.
The present life is of infinite moment to us, for
short, uncertain, and full of trouble as it is, it is
the space, the only space allowed us for securing
our everlasting bliss : it is the only opportunity we
shall ever have of doing good, either to the bodies
or to the souls of our fellow men : but while we
are seeking to gratify the appetites and passions of
our bodies, while we are indulging in ease and
slothfulness, the precious season is fast slipping
away ; soon it will be all gone, gone for ever, and
eternity will alone afford us space in which to

' Acts xxi. 10—13.

182 SERMON X :

lament our folly. And what are all these enjoy-
ments, which the body craves of us, and would fain
receive, though purchased at the price of present
comfort and eternal bliss ? Are they not unworthy
of our regard ? Are they not all things which can
produce no real good to us. Yes, they are all in
reality of little value, and must " perish in the
using," while the good they hinder us from gain-
ing is eternal and infinite, — good, such as the Lord
of glory, in his infinite compassion, died to obtain
for us, and in his boundless mercy, invites us to
seek for, in the certainty of obtaining.

When therefore the body lets and hinders us in
running the heavenly race ; when it acts as an
antagonist, a formidable enemy in the good
fight of faith, we must keep it under ; every in-
dulgence it demands that impedes us in our spiri-
tual course, must be denied firmly and resolutely ;
and this, not because we attach any merit to self-
denial, or would put it in the place of the Saviour's
meritorious obedience and perfect oblation, sacri-
fice, and atonement ; but because we feel, that if
the body be not thus kept under, it will inflict the
most serious injury on our spiritual interests, that
while we are caring for its gratification and in-
dulgence, we are endangering the eternal happiness
of the soul.

But as I said before, though the body may be-
come one of our most dangerous enemies, it is not
an enemy that is to be utterly destroyed and ex-

1 CORINTHIANS IX. 26, 27. 183

tirpated. No, it is only to be " brought into sub-
jection." It shall live, but in a state of sub-
mission and servitude ; such is the language of the
text. Its members shall all become the instruments
of righteousness ; the feet shall be shod w^ith the
preparation of the gospel of peace, ready for every
errand of mercy and of kindness ; the hands shall
labour, working that which is good, that there may
be to give to him that needeth ; the eyes shall be
engaged in perusing the word of God and looking
out for opportunities of benefiting man ; the ears
shall listen with fixed attention to the commands
of God, and the truths of his blessed gospel; the
tongue by nature an unruly evil, and full of deadly
poison, shall " speak that which is good, to the
use of edifying, that it may minister grace to the
hearers." Thus the body and all its powers, its
health, its strength, and its energy, shall be all
brought into subjection to God, and his most holy
law ; and in this way did the apostle shew the
sincerity of his own language, " I desire that
Christ may be magnified in my body, whether by
life or by death." But I must pass on to speak
briefly,

III. On the peculiar motive which influ-
enced St. Paul, in thus keeping under his
body, and bringing it into subjection.

It is a motive, which, it would at first sight ap-
pear, could only be felt by the ministers of the

184 SERMON X :

gospel ; but though it belongs principally to them,
yet it bears an application to every Christian, in
whatever station of life he may be placed. It is
this, "Lest, vs^hen I have preached toothers, I
myself should be a cast away."

The word rendered " cast away," is the same
which is elsewhere rendered " reprobate." ^ It
signifies any person or thing which is disapproved
and rejected. " The stone which the builders
rejected," — cast away as reprobate and worthless.

The apostle here evidently carries his view
forward to the great day, when we shall all appear
before the judgment seat of Christ, to undergo the
final trial, by which our eternal state shall be de-
cided. He was one who evidently " set the Lord
always before him," and lived under the impression,
that ' ' every one must give account of himself to
God." He did this as related to himself as a
man, and as a minister. In that day, when the
judgment shall be set and the books shall be
opened, and every man shall be judged according
to those things that are written in the books ; all
whose names are written in the Lamb's book of
life shall be accepted ; but all whose names shall
not be found there shall be rejected and cast away.
Who can conceive what will then be the force, the
dreadfal force of that word cast away — reprobate —
eternally reprobate: to hear the Judge say, "I

1 aSoKj/AO? — 2 Cor. xiii. 0, 6.

1 CORINTHIANS IX. 26, 27. 185

never knew you ; depart from me, ye workers of
iniquity." How terrible for every one ; but how
unspeakably terrible to him w^ho has " preached to
others," whose whole employment has been about
religion — whose business was to conduct others in
the way to heaven, to bring them acquainted with
Jesus the Saviour, whose blood cleanseth from all
sin — for him to be cast away — to have it declared
that he never truly believed in the Saviour he
preached to others, never practised the repentance
and the holiness of life he inculcated on them —
never kept under his body and brought it into
subjection, but while he preached self-denial, and
mortification, and renunciation of sensual grati-
fications to others, was secretly under the power
of those very things himself, and is only fit to be
rejected and cast away from God, and from Christ,
and from heaven, into the lake that burneth wdth
fire and brimstone, to be for ever the companion
of the Devil and his angels.

My brethren, you, perhaps, are sometimes ready
to look up to those who are ministers, with a kind
of envy, as if we had peculiar advantages, — and
so undoubtedly we have, if we have but grace to
improve them. But we have also peculiar dangers
and disadvantages, which counterbalance our pri-
vileges. We have temptations, which others know
nothing of, and who can tell how much more
awful will be our doom, should we " fail of the
grace of God." No zeal in preaching the gospel,

186 SERMON X :

no nor the most enlarged success in converting
sinners, will do any thing towards saving a man's
own soul. His very preaching may prove his con-
demnation ; the very persons he has been the
means of bringing to Christ, may rise up against
him and cover him with confusion, because he did
not for himself keep under the body and bring it
into subjection. What a motive then do these
considerations supply, to urge us onward in imi-
tating the conduct of St. Paul, as set forth in my
text.

But, as I said before, though the motive applies
with special force to those who sustain the minis-
terial office, it is not their's exclusively. Every
man who knows anything of religion, and can
answer the question, " What must I do to be
saved?" ought in his station to be, if not a
preacher, yet a teacher and instructor of the
ignorant, and so he shares in the peril of teaching
others, and being himself " a cast away,"

I trust that there are here before me parents,
who feel something of the awful charge given
them (alas ! how little is it generally felt) to bring
up their children in the nurture and admonition of
the Lord. You endeavour to teach them the fear
of the Lord — to make them know the Saviour —
to lead them away from sin, and to serve the Lord.
As masters and mistresses of families, I trust that
others of you feel that the souls of your servants
and domestics are committed to your care ; and

1 CORIiXTHIANS IX. 26, 27- 187

that therefore you maintain a constant habit of
family worship, and endeavour to render that wor-
ship as instructive and impressive as you know
how. Others again, I hope, are occasionally em-
ployed in visiting their poor and afflicted neigh-
bours, and leading them to the fountain of mercy
and comfort ; or endeavouring to instruct their
children to read the Holy Scriptures — all these are
important duties, duties which I would urge upon
you in the strongest manner. Yet at the same
time they bring you under the influence of the
motive which governed St. Paul.

These children — these servants — these poor
persons — these sick neighbours, may all receive
incalculable benefit from your instructions, and yet
you may be " cast away." They may all learn from
you to know the " only true God and Jesus Christ
whom he hath sent," and yet you may have no
practical saving acquaintance with him. And it
will be so, if, with your superior knowledge, you
fail to keep under the body and bring it into sub-
jection.

Oh ! then, my brethren, let us all cultivate per-
sonal, practical, experimental religion. Let not
knowledge, nor even warm and excited feelings
satisfy us. But let all our lusts and passions, yea
even our most lawful desires, be brought into sub-
jection, into captivity to the obedience of Christ.

SERMON XI.

A

2 CORINTHIANS XII. 14.

FOR I SEEK NOT YOUR's, BUT YOU.

There was one part of the Apostle Paul's conduct
which appeared strange to the Corinthians, espe-
cially as it evidently was not intended that other
ministers should be required in this respect to
follow his steps. This, was a fixed determination,
that while he preached the Gospel at Corinth, he
would take no reward or emolument from the
people, but would do it freely without putting
them to any charge. As he was a poor man
possessed of no worldly property, he could only
do this by spending a considerable part of his
time in working as a tent-maker to support him-
self, and those who were with him. His determi-
nation was evidently owing to something which
he had observed in the Corinthians — for we know
with what pleasure and thankfulness he received
the supplies sent him by the Philippians. He
even tells the Corinthians that he had robbed

2 CORINTHIANS XII. 14. 189

other churches, by accepting their liberality, while
preaching the gospel at Corinth without any re-
muneration ; and he tells them further, that as
it had been ordered that the priests who ministered
at the altar, should be supported out of the offer-
ings and sacrifices, so the Lord had ordained that
they who preached the gospel, should live of the
gospel ; yet he was determined that at Corinth at
least, it should not be so done to him, but he
would make the gospel without charge to them.

We are not very exactly informed of the reasons
which induced St. Paul so determinately to adhere
to this resolution ; but he takes occasion to tell the
Corinthians, in the words of my text, that he
had a much higher object in view than the obtain-
ing any portion of their wealth, however ready
they might be to impart to him of their abundance ;
*' Behold the third time I am ready to come to
you, and I will not be burdensome to you, for
I seek not your's but you."

Our text affords much important instruction
both to ministers and people. May the Lord
enable us to derive that instruction, and to apply
it to our own cases.

The passage before us teaches us

I. What the ministers' object should
NOT BE ; and

IL What it should be.

After having briefly considered these two points,
we will,

190 SERMON XI :

III. Notice a few matters which result

FROM THEM.

Then let us observe,

I. What was not the object of St. Paul in
HIS MINISTRY. " I Seek not your's."

Disinterestedness is so very rare a virtue in this
selfish world, that where it does really exist, it is
scarcely believed ; some deep project, some dark
design is suspected, where disinterestedness, gene-
rosity, and benevolence are professed : such seems
to have been the case at Corinth with respect to
St. Paul ; the people would not believe that he
acted as he did, from a noble and Christian disin-
terestedness of spirit ; they suspected that St. Paul
had his means of making up, what he seemed to
lose by preaching to them without any recom-
pense. There is something very painful and mor-
tifying in being thus suspected ; yet we see St.
Paul meeting the imputation with wonderful calm-
ness, and complete command of temper. He
challenges them to shew any instance of an attempt
to turn the preaching of the gospel into a source
of gain.

It is undoubtedly very pleasing to witness such
a spirit of kindness and affection subsisting be-
tween a minister and his people, that while he
faithfully dispenses to them spiritual things, they
cheerfully impart to him of their carnal things ;
while he is earnestly seeking to do good to their

2 CORINTHIANS XII. 14. 191

souls, they feel pleasure in shewing their love to
him, by promoting the comfort of him and of his
family by kind attention to his wants. I say
there is something very pleasing in all this —
something very consistent with Christian feeling —
something which we should be sorry to see wholly
done away with, even by a general and adequate
provision being legally made for the support of the
clergy. To borrow the emblem in the conclusion
of this verse ; if the children are not to lay up for
the parents, but the parents for the children ; yet
it is fitting and right that the children should lay
themselves out, for the comfort and support of
their parents.

Yet still this point must be carefully looked to,
and cautiously, nay suspiciously watched. If ever
it should happen, that a person in one of our con-
gregations should, by expressions of attachment to
his minister, or admiration of his ministry, or by
the kindness of his attentions, or the liberality of
his presents, begin to feel that his minister ought
to speak to him smooth things, to keep back
what he does not like to hear, and to dwell only
upon such topics as are pleasing to him ; then
things are arrived at a most dangerous state
indeed. The man is endeavouring to bribe his
minister to give him poison, instead of food — to
cause the way of the Lord to cease from before
him, that he may walk in a smooth and easy road
to destruction.

192 SERMON XI :

Or if, on the other hand, the minister should
feel the kindness, and attentions, and the liberality
of his people so grateful to him — so conducive to
the comfort of his life — or even so necessary to
his support — that he should begin to think within
himself, how may I best keep up the good- will of
my congregation ? — how may 1 so conduct my-
self in the pulpit and in the parlour, as shall be
most pleasing to them, and draw forth more
marks of their approbation, and keep up the
stream of their benevolence, that already flows so
sweetly and refreshingly to me and my family ?
When I say this is the case, danger, awful danger,
is nigh. Soon will such a minister be tempted to
think, that gain is godliness — soon will " the love
of filthy lucre" defile his ministrations : the
poorer members of his congregation will be ne-
glected, because they possess not the means of
satisfying his covetousness — while the rich and
the liberal will be flattered — their sins will be
unreproved — their worldliness will be connived at —
and they will be encouraged to believe themselves
true Christians, because they are kind and liberal
to their minister, though they shew few other to-
kens of the Christian character. But such was not
the conduct of St. Paul. Rich as were the Corin-
thians— ready as they would have been to extend
their bounty widely to him in his poverty ; yet,
when he saw that he would be expected to deviate
a little from his faithfulness, he would labour with

2 CORINTHIANS XII. 14. 193

his hands, he would submit to any privation,
rather than cast the shadow of a doubt over his
conscience, when he would say, " I take you to
record, I am pure from the blood of all men. I
have not shunned to declare unto you the whole
counsel of God ; " not the smallest contribution,
not one token of aifectionate attention would he
accept on such conditions. He was not seeking
theirs— he did not seek their money or their ap-
plause, no nor their affection and good will, as the
objects for which he was labouring ; he might gain
all these, and yet be disappointed— deeply disap-
pointed—so much so as to feel that he had la-
boured in vain, and spent his strength for nought.
II. What then did he seek? Hear his own
words, " We seek not your's, but you.'' As if he
had said, if you mean that I should be satisfied, I
must have more than a share of your riches ; more
than your praise, or than your affectionate atten-
tion. You must " give yourselves unto the Lord
and to us : " nothing less than this can satisfy me.
If we saw a man drowning in the waters, it would
not be enough for us that we gathered up some of
his property, which he threw away while he was
sinking ; or that our efforts received the applause
of the by-standers, or even the thanks of the
dying man. No, we must have the man him-
self; we should think that we had done nothing
till we had rescued him and placed him safely
on the shore. We should say. We sought not

o

194 SERMON XI :

his but him. So saith the Apostle, " I desire
above all things that you may be saved." " I
became all things to all men, that by all means, I
might save some." With what delight w^ould a
man of truly benevolent mind look back on the
time, when he saved the life of some fellow crea-
ture, who was just sinking in the waters, or con-
suming in the flames ! He would put that down
as one of the happiest days of his life, though per-
haps he did not effect his purpose without much
danger, or even suifering, to himself. But if a man
could say, this is the business of my life ; my
time and my strength are devoted to this one
object, the rescuing of my fellow-creatures from
destruction, and scarcely a day passes without my
succeeding in saving the life of one or more who
were ready to perish ; we should say that such a
man must be one of the happiest of mortals. And
yet, what would he effect ? Those very men whom
he has rescued, in a very short time must fall into
sicknesses, which will terminate in death, perhaps
immensely more agonising than that from which
he was the means of saving them. But when St.
Paul said " I seek not your's but you." When he
said to the Romans, " I am sure that when I come
unto you, I shall come in the fulness of the bless-
ing of the gospel of Christ." Or to the Corin-
thians, " now thanks be unto God which always
causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh
manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in

2 CORINTHIANS XII. 14. 195

every place." ^ When, I say, the Apostle used
such language as this, he referred to things im-
mensely more glorious, than the preservation of
thousands of human lives. He was glorying in
the salvation of immortal souls, in delivering them
from eternal death, in rescuing them from ever-
lasting misery, and placing them in heaven's un-
ceasing joys ; this is what he meant when he said,
" We seek not yours, but you." And oh ! how
mean do all other objects appear, compared with
this ! " They that be wise shall shine as the bright-
ness of the firmament, and they that turn many to
righteousness as the stars for ever and ever." ^

Those, my brethren, who now endeavour to
follow in the steps of St. Paul, and who, like him,
esteem it a token of God's grace and good-
ness to them, that they are permitted to " preach
unto the Gentiles" and to all their fellow-sinners,
" the unsearchable riches of Christ," place before
them the same object that he did. They look
round on their congregations, and say, " We seek
not your's," though you should give us houses full
of silver and gold, though you should receive us as
the angels of God, we shall not be satisfied ;
we are seeking you; you have gone astray like
sheep that are lost, and w^e must bring you back
again. You are sinking under the billows of divine
wrath, and we must try to save you. You are

' Rom. XV. -29. -1 Cor. ii. 14. = Dan. xii. .3.

O 2

196 SERMON XI :

" without Christ, without hope, and without God
in the world," and we must hring you to the Sa-
viour, that you naay know him, " whom to know
is life eternal."

Think not, my friends, that we are harsh and
uncharitable in thus judging of your state as one
of great danger. We must either consider, that
every man born into the world, is exposed to the
peril of eternal destruction, or we must disbelieve
our bibles, and declare that it is not " a saying
worthy of all acceptation, that Jesus Christ came
into the world to save sinners." If we really
believe that you are in danger of perishing, it is
only charity and love to tell you our convictions
and our fears, and to persuade you to flee " from
the wrath to come." He is not the charitable
man, who sees his neighbour's house on fire, and
will not disturb his slumbers, lest he should alarm
him ; — but he shows charity and love, who rushes
through the flames to awake him, and will not
cease till he has brought him safely out of the fire.
Such are our feelings towards you, if we are worthy
of being called the " ambassadors of Christ." We
seek you, and till we have reason to hope that your
souls have been brought to Christ, and are placed
out of danger, we must not, we cannot rest.

III. Let me now notice as the result of
THESE CONSIDERATIONS some of the peculiar
eff^ects and feelings, which will be produced on him
who can say, " we seek not your's, but you."

2 CORINTHIANS XII. 14. 197

I have already said enough to show you,
that a man who in this respect enters into St.
Paul's feelings, must experience great anxiety
with regard to the success of his ministry. His
object is so high, so infinitely important, that
the very idea of a failure is beyond measure dis-
tressing. To lose money, to lose reputation, to
lose the affections of his people is painful, but to
lose them, to fail of winning their souls to God,
not to have them for his joy and rejoicing in the
day of the Lord Jesus, not to have to present them
before the glory of his presence with exceeding
joy, this is the heaviest calamity which can befal
the minister of Christ.

If such then be his feelings with regard to the
ultimate success of his work, he must have some
seasons of great joy, but many more of deep sor-
row. I will advert to a few of these.

Thoug-h we know that the success of our min-
istry is by no means proportioned to the numbers
collected together to hear us ; and though we
should guard, with the greatest care and w^atchful-
ness, against that pride and vanity, which would
cause us to rejoice in popularity, and to be elated
by seeing large congregations assembled to listen
to us ; yet the man whose heart is full of love to
the Lord Jesus, and is anxious to see good done,
cannot but feel thankful when a wide door is
opened and effectual ; when the numbers are
large, to whom he has the opportunity of recom-

198 SERMON XI :

mending the gospel of Christ, as the means of their
everlasting salvation.

Nor, on the other hand, can he refrain from being
grieved, when he perceives that the number of people
who come to the house of God, is small, compared
with the number of inhabitants in his parish ; or
when he sees that they are unsteady in their habits
of attending on divine worship, and are easily
drawn away to parties of pleasure, and are willing
to give up the sabbath to employments and pur-
suits, wholly at variance with the intention of that
holy day.

But how painfully does he feel this, when those
are thus drawn away, whose attention, whose ear-
nestness, whose strong feehngs, nay, whose very
tears, have attracted his notice, and excited a hope
in his mind, that he should soon have to rejoice in
seeing them give themselves unto the Lord. To
find that such an one is absent from his place on
the Lord's day, to be told that he is gone to join
the Sunday party, that for one sabbath at least he
has laid aside all thought of religion ; this is
painful indeed to him who can say, " we seek not
your's, but you." Perhaps the minister had on that
very day taken into consideration the peculiar state
of such a person's mind, and with much thought
and care had prepared a discourse suited to his
case, something which he judged hkely to lead him
forward in the road to heaven ; but on entering
his pulpit, he finds all his designs frustrated, and

2 CORINTHIANS XII. 14. 199

his hopes disappointed. The person he had in
view, whose benefit he was specially seeking, is
gone, he knows not whither.

I will mention another thing, which is often a
source of much discouragement to those, whose
desire it is to save the souls of the people com-
mitted to their charge. This is, the difference
which is too often seen between the morning and
the afternoon congregations. I am quite aware that
there are many circumstances which, apparently will
combine to prevent some persons from attending on
both services ; but we well know that where men's
hearts are thoroughly engaged in religion, they
generally contrive to surmount these hindrances.
They are glad when it "is said unto them, let us
go up to the house of the Lord," and therefore
they will " not forsake the assembling of them-
selves together, as the manner of some is." Only
consider, my friends, how short is the time we
give to religion, how small is the space allotted to
all our public services, compared with what we
give to business, to sleep, or even to pleasure.
And shall not the minister's heart be grieved, when
he beholds how grudgingly his people, the per-
sons he is seeking, give even that little to God
and their own souls, and hears how miserably
unsatisfactory are the reasons they give for their
neglect. He cannot help it, he must grieve ov^er
this proof of his want of success. And when a
large congregation is assembled, when the field

200 SERMON XI ;

seems already ripe for the harvest ; and the
minister is ready to hope, that he shall sow the
seed of the kingdom in many an honest and
good heart, that he shall give the hread of life to
many an hungering soul ; — how sadly disappointed
does he feel, on casting his eye around the
church, to see numbers of the people either fast
asleep, or so drowsy as to be utterly incapable of
hearing, with any profit, the truths of the everlast-
ing gospel which are preached to them.

But let us turn from these painful subjects,
from these sources of disappointment and sorrow,
with which the faithful servant of Christ is, alas,
too well acquainted. There are, indeed, many things
which have a tendency to make his hands hang
down, and his knees wax feeble : but there are
others which fill his soul with joy and gladness, and
cause him to prefer his employment, to all others
in which man can be engaged. Here he is a
worker together with God, and when he works
successfully, his heart rejoices.

But what is it which so cheers the spirit of the
minister of Christ ? It is when he sees the sinner,
listening with earnest attention to the calls of
his dying Saviour. When he sees the tears of
sorrow and penitence, flowing from the eyes of one,
whose heart has heretofore been hard and impeni-
tent. When he is told, that " the wicked is for-
saking his ways, and the unrighteous man his
thoughts." Then he seems to share the joy which

2 CORINTHIANS XII. 14. 201

fills all heaven, when it is heard there, that a
sinner is brought to repentance, to faith in the
Lord Jesus, to holiness of heart and life.

In such a one, the servant of Christ rejoices, he
sought him, and he is found. That repenting
sinner shall be his joy and crown of rejoicing, in
the day of the Lord Jesus. Nay, more, he shall
shine at last as a bright jewel in the Saviour's
crown. This is joy that shall continue through
everlasting ages.

May God in his boundless mercy grant, that
during the short period which I may hope to live
among you, I may be enabled to keep this in view,
that I seek not your's, but you, and may I have
to rejoice that my labours are not in vain in the
Lord.

SERMON XII.

HEBREWS iv. 15, 16.

FOR WE HAVE NOT AN HIGH PRIEST, WHICH CANNOT BE
TOUCHED WITH THE FEELING OF OUR INFIRMITIES ; BUT
WAS IN ALL POINTS TEMPTED LIKE AS WE ARE, YET WITH-
OUT SIN. LET US THEREFORE COME BOLDLY UNTO THE
THRONE OF GRACE, THAT WE MAY OBTAIN MERCY, AND
FIND GRACE TO HELP IN TIME OF NEED.

This Epistle does not bear the name of the writer,
yet the voice of antiquity, and much internal evi-
dence, serve to satisfy us that the title given to it
in our Bibles is correct, and that it was written by
St. Paul ; who, aware of the hatred borne to him
by some of his countrymen, and the prejudices
entertained against him by others, judged that it
would be more favourably received if it appeared
without his name. The chief object of the epistle
was to shew the Hebrews or Jews, that Christianity
was the completion and perfection of the Jewish
religion ; that if they had understood the writings
of Moses and the prophets, they would have been
prepared to expect exactly such a change as Chris-
tianity had produced.

One principal feature of the Levitical system

HEBREWS IV. 15, IG. 203

was the establishment of the office of the High
Priesthood, which was confined, under the law, to
the family of Aaron ; while the regal power, " the
sceptre," was " not to depart from Judah." This
arrangement, as far as regarded the priesthood,
was only temporary, because God had foretold
by the Psalmist, that there should be ano-
ther priest, not after the order of Aaron, but of
Melchisedec, who united in himself the offices of
priest and king ; offices which could never be
united in the same person so long as the Levitical
priesthood lasted. The promise therefore of a
priest for ever after the " order of Melchisedec,'*
imported a change of the law, which took place
when Christ appeared. When he took upon him
the priestly office, the Aaronic priesthood passed
away ; the Temple was destroyed, and now for
eighteen hundred years there has been no temple,
no priest, no more oflfering for sin.

It is to this High Priest, that the Apostle refers
in my text. Let us then consider —

I. The character of our High Priest.

H. The consolation thereby afforded

us, AND THE DUTY TO WHICH WE ARE IN CON-
SEQUENCE CALLED.

I. Let me call your attention to the character

OF OUR GREAT HiGH PrIEST.

In the commencement of this epistle, the inspired
wi;iter exhibits the native glories of our Lord Jesus

204 SERMON XII :

Christ. He sets him forth as the Son of God, by
whom, in these last times, God has spoken unto
us, instead of addressing us through the prophets,
as in times past he had spoken to the Fathers.
This Son of God, he shows us, is the same " by
whom the worlds were made ; " who is the object
of the worship of all the holy angels, and conse-
quently ranks above them and all created beings.
To him is given everlasting power and boundless
authority, so that the language of the holy Psal-
mist is to be applied to him, " Thy throne, O God
is for ever and ever : a sceptre of righteousness is
the sceptre of thy kingdom." ' Yet he who thus
ruleth over all worlds, is the very same as is here
described as the high priest of his church, " the
priest for ever, after the order of Melchisedec."

Before we enter upon the consideration of other
particulars of the character of Christ, as the high
priest, it will be necessary first to advert to some
of the peculiar duties of the office which are
referred to in the passage before us.

Particular allusion appears to be made to the
service of the high priest on the great day of atone-
ment. " Every high priest," as the apostle says
in the beginning of the next chapter, " taken from
amongst men, is ordained for men in things per-
taining to God, that he may offer both gifts, and
sacrifices for sins." He was accordingly to offer

' Heb. i. 8. Psalm xlv. 6.

HEBREWS IV. 15, 16. 205

the sacrifice, which was to make the atonement.
One day in the year he took the blood within the
veil and sprinkled it before the Lord, and so made
an atonement for the sins of the people. On
Aaron and his sons in succession also did it devolve
to take the scape goat, and after laying their hands
upon its head, to confess over it all the sins of the
people, and send it away into the wilderness, typi-
cally bearing the iniquities of Israel.

By the sacrifice which was slain and burned upon
the altar, was represented Christ bearing the wrath
of God for us — " suffering the just for the unjust,"
because " the Lord had laid upon him the iniquity
of us all." By the scape goat which figuratively
bore the sins of the people into the wilderness,
into a land of utter forgetfulness, was represented
the full and complete manner in which the Lord
Jesus takes away and removes out of sight the
transgressions of those who believe on him. Their
sins are " blotted out," " remembered no more,''
*' washed away," " buried in the depths of the sea,"
*' covered as with a cloud."

But when the high priest, taking the blood of
the burnt offering, went within the veil, and having
there sprinkled the blood, offered his prayers and
supplications on behalf of his offending people, we
have another view given us of the work and office
of Christ. We here see Aaron and his successors
acting as mediators for Israel. They indeed dared
not approach unto God without shedding of blood

206 SERMON XII .

— they relied on the hlood of others. But when
Christ, having offered himself a sacrifice to God for
the sins of the people, ascended into that holy
place, which w^as only feebly typified by the holy of
holies in the Tabernacle, he entered into the
presence of God, not with the blood of others, but
with his own blood, whereby, as the apostle says,
" he obtained eternal redemption for us."

It is to this peculiar employment of Israel's
high priest, that the Apostle has a special reference
in the text. Aaron and his sons were the inter-
cessors and mediators for Israel. Christ, as the
high priest, is the mediator between God and man,
the advocate and intercessor of his people.

In the preceding verse, the Apostle says, " See-
ing then that we have a great high priest, that is
passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God,
let us hold fast our profession." How great Jesus
our high priest is, had before been shewn, when he
was exhibited by the Apostle, as the Creator of the
world, and the object of the worship of the heavenly
host. There is at the first view somethins: in the
greatness of our high priest w^hich might seem to
appal the mind. To approach such an exalted
being, is to approach God himself, and we are ready
to shrink back and say, we are not worthy. We
can indeed perceive that to have for our advocate
and intercessor, one infinite in power, is an im-
mense advantage ; but when to his boundless
power we add his infinite holiness, we are ready to

HEBREWS IV. 15, 16. 207

shrink back, and we feel as though we dare not
spread our cause before our advocate himself, lest
he should upbraid us, and despise us because of
our infirmity and sin. Such a feeling would be
natural enough, had we only a knowledge of our
mediator as our great high priest, the Son of God ,
but every such idea is chased away from our minds,
when we read the words of the Apostle in the text.
Here we find that he is not only great, but merciful,
not only merciful, but that he enters into all our
feelings, sympathises with us in all our temptations,
and even feels compassion toward us, when those
temptations have overcome us and filled us with
guilt and remorse. Mark, my brethren, the de-
claration, " We have not an high priest, who
cannot be touched with the feeling of our in-
firmities, but was in all points tempted like as we
are, yet without sin." What an extraordinary
union of apparently contradictory qualifications do
we here behold. He is touched with the feeling
of our infirmities, and therefore able to sympathise
with us. He took part in our nature, and was
made like unto us in all things ; as sensible of
pain and weakness, of hunger, and of thirst, as
we are, He had felt the pressure of poverty and
want, and endured the distress which unkindness
and contempt occasion, more than any of us. Nor
has he lost the recollection of them, now that he
hath entered into heaven for us. He remembers
that he was man upon earth, that he was in the

208 SERMON XII :

form of a servant, that he was hungry in the
wilderness, and faint and thirsty at the well Oi.
Sychar, that he had to encounter the slight and
scorn of those whom he came to save. He remem-
bers all this, and knows how hard it was to bear.
But more than this, he remembers how wants and
privations and sufferings, were made by Satan,
the occasions of temptation ; — of temptation to sins,
the very suggestion of which to his mind, filled him
with horror and distress almost intolerable ! What
force is there in the expression of the Apostle,
" He suffered being tempted," as it is applied to
the Son of God, the holy Jesus. We are tempted,
but we do not suffer, because we have not that holy
abhorrence of sin which he felt ; our evil hearts,
even in those instances in which we do not yield,
are too often on the tempter's side, and place
before us the delights of compliance in such a
way, as to make us long for the forbidden pleasure.
But with Jesus sin was odious, and therefore
temptation to sin was suffering. And the more
he felt of agony from the assaults of the tempter,
so much the more does he feel for and compassion-
ate us, when he sees us engaged in an unequal
contest with an enemy, whom he himself could not
conquer without the severest conflict.

Still, however, he did conquer ; the efforts of
Satan wholly failed. When the prince of this
world made his most furious attack, he found that
there was nothing in him, from which he could

HEBREWS IV. 15, 16. 209

gain any advantage ; no evil heart of unbelief, no
hard thoughts of God, no inclination to oppose his
will to that of his heavenly Father ; but all was
purity and holiness, and though Satan could cause
him to suffer by his temptations, he could not
cause him to sin ; here his malicious efforts failed ;
though " tempted in all points, he was yet with-
out sin."

Let us now observe how all this qualified him
for the office which he holds in heaven, as our
high priest, our intercessor, our mediator.

Were w^e taught to address ourselves to one of
the glorious company of angels that surround the
throne of God, and to employ him as our high
priest and intercessor, we might feel that we had
a holy and exalted advocate ; but we should
be sensible that he had no communion, no
common feeling with us ; he could not put himself
in our place ; he could not realize the force of the
temptations which assault us ; he could not feel
for our weakness, or pity us when fallen, because
he had never partaken of our nature, never ex-
perienced our trials, never felt our infirmity. He
would be kind and merciful, no doubt, but we
should feel as a sick man sometimes feels, when he
is talking to one who has enjoyed uninterrupted
health ; or as a poor man, when he is spreading
the distress of his family, before one w^ho never
knew a want ; the healthy man may be kind, but
he is not tender, as one who himself has felt the

210 SERMON XII :

sorrows of a sick bed ; the rich man may be
liberal, but he cannot realize the feelings of the
poor, as could one, who has himself been forced
by poverty to ask, what shall I eat and what shall
I drink ? But when we turn to Jesus the Son of
God, the one, the only mediator between God and
man, we find that he is a high priest " who can
have compassion on them that are ignorant and
out of the way," because he himself was once com-
passed with infirmities, — was once subjected, in the
depth of his humiliation, to the same trials and temp-
tations which we now labour under ; and though he
never failed, nor was ever overcome, yet, standing
as he now does at the right hand of God, in human
nature, he remembers how hard the conflict was
even to him ; and he looks with pity on our weak-
ness, over which Satan has again and again pre-
vailed ; he does " not break the bruised reed, nor
quench the smoking flax ; " he does not upbraid the
penitent, but speaks peace to his troubled breast.

Again : were we bid to look to some one of
our fellow-creatures, and rely on him as a me-
diator ; we should feel at once, that however such
a high priest might suit the typical and shadowy
system of the mosaic law, he could aiford no com-
fort to the perishing sinner. He might enter
within the veil of the tabernacle, after having offered
a sin-offering for himself; but such a one could
not enter into heaven, the true holy place, to appear
before God for us. No ! he would himself want

HEBREWS IV. 15, 16. 211

a mediator ; he dare not approach the throne of
God, even to plead his own cause ; conscious
guilt would stop his mouth ; how, then, could we
rely on such an advocate ? How could we commit
our immortal souls into the hand of one, who
himself was not only " encompassed with infir-
mities," but w^ith sins also, as is the case uni-
versally with even the best of Adam's posterity.
When, therefore, St. John would describe the
Christian's hope, he says, "If any man sin, we
have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the
righteous, and he is the propitiation for our sins,
and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the
whole world." ^ "Jesus Christ the righteous,"
" who was without sin," and yet was the pro-
pitiation for the sins of the whole world. His
righteousness was pure and spotless, and his blood
was the propitiation. Here is the distinction be-
tween Christ, and all other intercessors. We
may, we ought, to offer up our prayers and in-
tercessions for one another ; but those prayers and
those intercessions must be presented through the
great high priest, and in dependence on his merits ;
from us they derive nothing ; no one of us is
without sin — no one of us ever made any propitia-
tion even for ourselves, much less for any of our
brethren.

But we want, we ask for, no other mediator
than him who is gone into heaven, after having

» 1 John ii. 1,2.
P 2

212 SERMON XII :

offered himself as the sacrifice for us ; and who
now sitteth at the right hand of God, where he
ever liveth to make intercession for us. Let me
beseech you, then, my Christian brethren, to
" consider the apostle and high priest of our pro-
fession, Christ Jesus," reflect much and frequently
upon the inestimable privilege you possess, in
having such an advocate ; one who has shed his
blood to purchase your salvation — who is great,
as the Son of God — who having been man, is
touched with the feeling of our infirmities — who
having been tempted like as we are, enters into all
our feelings, and is acquainted with all our strug-
gles— who being without sin, can plead his own
perfect merits, as well as his expiatory sacrifice of
himself on our behalf. Seek for no other me-
diator, but commit the care of your immortal
interests into his hands, in the full assurance that
" he is able to save to the uttermost, all them that
come to God by him."
This brings me

11. To consider the consolation afforded

us, BY THE STATEMENT OF THE APOSTLE, AND
THE DUTY WE ARE CALLED ON IN CONSEQUENCE
TO PERFORM.

" Having such an high priest, let us come boldly
to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy,
and find grace to help in time of need."

Prayer is ever spoken of as one of the highest

HEBREWS IV. 15, 16. 213

privileges, as well as the bounden duty, of every
man. That a sinner should be permitted to ap-
proach his offended Creator, and ask blessings
which he wants, both for his body and his soul,
ought to appear marvellous in our eyes. But still
we must feel appalled, notwithstanding the per-
mission, at the idea of presenting ourselves imme-
diately before Almighty God —before that God
who is a Spirit, whom no man hath seen nor can
see. The mind is lost in reflecting on the immortal,
eternal, and invisible God. Man, however holy,
would feel as though he could maintain no inter-
course with his Creator ; but God hath conde-
scended to our infirmities. He doth not alarm us
by his uncreated glory, but sets before us as the
object of our prayers and of our dependence, his
own Son bearing, even in heaven, our nature.
We are taught to address the Father through him,
to expect all from his hands ; and of him we are
assured that he enters into all our concerns, feels
for all our sorrows, and takes the deepest interest
in our welfare.

Having then such an high priest ; having such
an access to the Father, we may regard him as
seated on a " throne of grace." Having appointed
as our advocate, one who feels for us, and is so
deeply concerned in all that relates to us, w^e may
be assured that God is love toward us his guilty
creatures — that he willeth not the death of a
sinner, but that he should repent and live. A

214 SERMON XII :

Monarch, who should visit a rebellious province,
and make proclamation that on a fixed day he
would appear in public, and having taken his seat,
would admit to his presence every rebel who was
willing to lay down his arms, would grant him a
free pardon, and confer on him honours, and
estates ; might be said to be a " throne of grace."
Such is the conduct of the Lord our God toward
us, who have spent a large portion of our lives in
rebelling against him and setting his authority at
defiance ; he is on a throne of grace ; but still
we need an advocate, one to plead our cause — our
case is so bad — our rebellion has been so com-
plicated, so aggravated, so inexcusable, that we
dare not ourselves even plead before a throne of
grace. But we have such an advocate as we want —
one who is so kind, who takes such an interest in
our case, that he will be sure to urge our petition
with earnestness, who is so high in the favour of
our God, that " the Father heareth him what-
soever he asks," and therefore he cannot plead
in vain.

Having then such an high priest, we may come
boldly to the " throne of grace." We may come
with humble, yet unshaken confidence, that we
shall not be driven away with indignation ; but
that we shall be accepted and blessed of our God
for the sake and through the merits of our Re-
deemer. Surely, had we not met with that word
"boldly," placed in such a connexion by the pen

HEBREWS IV. 15, 16. 215

of inspiration, we dare never have so employed it ;
we should have thought that, coming with David's
petition on our lips, " O Lord, for thy name's
sake pardon my iniquity, for it is great ; " we could
never have risen to a higher degree of boldness
than was evinced by the humbled publican, when
*' he would not so much as lift up his eyes to
heaven, but smote upon his breast, and said, God
be merciful unto me a sinner." True humility
arises from a strong sense of our unworthiness of
the blessings we ask, and not from a fear of those
blessings being refused us ; in this sense, while we
have all the publican's humbleness of mind, we
may still "ask in faith nothing doubting;" we
need not feel as he did, who once said to Christ,
" Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean ; "
but we may come boldly to God on a throne of
grace, confident that his love is as great as his
power, and that he will not send us empty away.

But for what may we, and for what ought we,
to come thus boldly ? It is for mercy. Surely this
is enough to keep us from all presumption ; we
have one thing above all, that we want to obtain
of God, through Christ ; it is mercy. We are
rebels, condemned already for the highest crimes ;
and we want mercy to stay the uplifted sword
of justice which is just ready to fall on our guilty
heads ; — we have committed numberless sins,
and we call for boundless mercy ; such mercy as
will pardon them all. Nor have we only to look

216 SERMON XII :

back upon sins committed in past years, the recol-
lection of which fills our souls with alarm ; but
there are the transgressions of every day as it
comes. Here is nothing right — nothing done as it
ought to be — while in many things there is clear
and open guilt. The penitent will say, ' It would
be wondrous mercy that would blot out all the
transgressions of my past life ; ' but were God for
Christ's sake to do this — to do it fully — to bury all
these sins in the depths of the sea ; and then to say,
' ' here my mercy must end ; I have forgiven thee
enough, now take care — go and sin no more : " even
though that word — "go and sin no more" — ex-
presses the ardent desire of his most inmost soul, yet
the sentence would drive him to despair. He knows
that he cannot serve God as he ought, — his past ex-
perience assures him, that he shall want mercy every
hour — the mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ unto
eternal life ; and that when the period approaches
which shall decide his eternal state, his prayer will
be like that of St. Paul for Onesiphorus, "The
Lord grant that I may find mercy of the Lord in
that day." Oh ! were the fountain of mercy
closed, so that the best Christian upon earth could
no more drink of it, his soul would sink at once
into misery and despair. My dear brethren, have
you ever felt the inestimable value of the privilege
which the text calls on you boldly to exercise ?
Have you been used to look on yourselves, as so
ruined by sin, and so deeply plunged into guilt

HEBREWS IV. 15 — 16, 217

that mercy is your only hope ? Until this is the
case, you will not perceive the value of such an
high-priest, such an advocate as can secure mercy
for you.

But our petitions are not to be bounded by calls
for mercy. We are taught that we are, at the
throne of grace to '* find grace, to help in time
of need." The word grace is used in the Scrip-
tures in a very extensive sense. Every blessing,
temporal or spiritual, which we receive from God
is grace — it is all undeserved favour — good be-
stowed not only without our deserts, but contrary
to what we have deserved. In the passage under
consideration, it seems to refer to those supplies
of wisdom and strength, which the Christian feels
his need of, in his intercourse with the world, and
when he is labouring to attain the salvation of his
soul, or to glorify God upon earth. Such are
times of need — times when unsupported he will
fail, and make his weakness and his folly apparent.
At such seasons he finds that of himself he can
do nothing — God must be his helper, prayer must
be his resource, the throne of grace his refuge.
But who can conceive the comfort there is, when
he recollects that he has a high-priest, — an all
powerful advocate standing by the throne of grace
to plead his cause ! one who is touched with the
feeling of his infirmities, and can supply all his
deficiencies ! with such an intercessor, he may in
" every thing by prayer and supplication with

218 SERMON XII :

thanksgiving let his request be made known unto
God — and the peace of God which passeth all
understanding shall keep his heart and mind
through Christ Jesus." Am I then speaking to
one who, after having lived for years in neglect
of God and of rehgion, has now begun to feel the
importance of becoming a Christian, a penitent,
a believer, a new creature ; but who, when he
makes the attempt, finds such hindrances and diffi-
culties in his way, as make it seem utterly im-
possible that he should succeed. Here is a time
of need — all your difficulties must be overcome
by prayer. Come then boldly to the throne of
grace.

Are you one who is seriously inquiring after the
way of salvation ; and desiring to know the right
path ; but when you look into the Christian world,
find such a diversity of opinions as perplexes your
mind, so that you cannot tell what is truth and
what is error ? so that you fear lest even when you
go to the Holy Scriptures, the fountain of religious
knowledge, you should thence make out some
heresy — some false religion for yourself? Here
is a " time of need," a time when you want the
gracious teaching of the Holy Spirit. Go then to
the throne of grace ; go, as feeling your ignorance,
to your high priest, who is made of God unto you
wisdom. Religion studied without prayer will
never be studied effectually, even by men of the
highest talents ; they may obtain a knowledge of

HEBREWS IV. 15 — 16. 219

it as a science ; but they will never feel its sancti-
fying and consoling influence on their hearts.

Or are you struggling under severe temptations ;
terrified at the power of Satan, and expecting one
day to fall by his wiles ? Remember your high
priest who has himself been tempted, and has
learned to feel for you. He who prayed for Peter
when Satan desired to sift him as wheat, will now
intercede for you. Come then boldly to the throne
of grace in this your time of need.

These times of need are continually occurring ;
and they will never cease while we are in this
world. The command is therefore " to pray
without ceasing ; " " to watch unto prayer." With-
out prayer nothing will prosper ; but if we come
boldly to the throne of grace, all will go on well
with us, and our eternal blessedness will be secure.

SEEMON XIII.

LUKE xxiv. 47.

THAT REPENTANCE AND REMISSION OF SINS, SHOULD BE
PREACHED IN HIS NAME AMONG ALL NATIONS, BEGINNING
AT JERUSALEM.

The passage from which these words are taken
derives a pecuHar interest from the circumstance
of its containing the last conversation which our
Lord held with his disciples, previously to his
being received up into glory. Within a short
period, their minds had been most grievously har-
assed and perplexed. Indeed it is almost impos-
sible for us to conceive to what a degree this must
have been the case with those who had been
taught, from their childhood, to expect the coming
of that glorious personage, of whom so much had
been said, for ages, by the holy prophets. The dis-
ciples were indeed too spiritually-minded to look
only for temporal benefits from his appearance,
as almost all their countrymen did ; but they
were also too carnally-minded to look only for
spiritual advantages ; so that while they had wil-
lingly become the disciples of a master as poor,

LUKE XXIV. 47- 221

nay, poorer than themselves, and were most cor-
dially attached to him, and believed that he " had
the words of eternal life ; " and listened to his
heavenly instructions with unfeigned delight ; they
nevertheless cherished the idea that he would
" restore the kingdom to Israel." They most
valued the spiritual blessings he proposed to them ;
but yet they anticipated others of a worldly and
temporal nature. They conceived that their poverty
and debasement were to last only for a little time,
and then he would take to himself his great name,
and reign gloriously. Such were the ideas they
seem to have entertained, and so deeply fixed in
their minds were these expectations, that their ears
and their understandings were completely closed to
all the intimations our Lord gave of his approach-
ing rejection, sufferings, and death. When there-
fore these things came to pass, they were thun-
derstruck. Events so totally unlooked-for, so
directly opposed to all their expectations and hopes,
so contrary to every thing which they thought had
been uttered by the unerring voice of prophecy,
as the true sayings of God, completely overwhelmed
them ; their faith was staggered, and their hopes
were sunk. And even when they saw him risen
from the dead, their faith and hope scarcely
revived. They were like men awaking from a
dream, and knew not what to believe or what to
hope for. They were ready to think that the pro-
mises of God had failed ; especially when they

222 SERMON XIII :

perceived that though risen from the dead, their
master still took no pains to establish his kingdom,
and even spoke of another speedy and lasting
removal from them. All this was calculated to
perplex them ; though their perplexity and dis-
tress arose from their not understanding the
Scriptures, and from their being slow of heart to
believe.

But our Lord would not leave them in this state
of doubt and anxiety. He opened their hearts, we
are told, " to understand the Scriptures ; " he
showed them, that the sufferings through which
he had passed, were all foretold ; " that thus it
was written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer,
and rise again the third day ; that without this, the
great end for which he came into the world, could
not be answered ; that in this way, and in this
way alone, could he be a Saviour, able to " save
his people from their sins." But that now, having
undergone all the suffering that was appointed
him : having made a full, perfect, and sufficient
oblation and satisfaction for the sins of the whole
world ; " repentance and remission of sins might
be preached in his name to all nations, beginning
at Jerusalem."

Such is the connexion in which the words of the
text are found. They present to us three points for
our consideration.

I. The subjects of the Christian minis-
try, " repentance and remission of sins."

LUKE XXIV. 47. 223

II. The ground and authority on which
THEY ARE PREACHED, " in my name."

III. The OBJECTS to whom they are ad-
dressed, "to all nations, beginning at Jeru-
salem." I

Let me then call your attention,

I. To the leading subjects of the christian
MINISTRY — *' repentance and remission of sins."

St. Mark, in detailing the same conversation,
tells us that our Lord delivered this command to
his disciples — " Go ye into all the world, and
preach the gospel to every creature." To preach
repentance and remission of sins, is therefore to
preach the gospel ; though there are some, who in
their zeal to maintain the perfect freedom of salva-
tion, would represent the preaching of repentance
as legal. But the law knows nothing of repent-
ance. It speaks only wrath to the transgressor,
and never utters a syllable which can infer encou-
ragement to him to repent ; nothing was said to
this effect, till a revelation of mercy was pro-
claimed. Then was it said, " let the wicked forsake
his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts,
and let him return to the Lord, and he will have
mercy on him, and to our God, and he will abun-
dantly pardon ; " such is in fact the exact language
of the text.

Though the subject of repentance is so common,
that we all think we understand it, yet at the same

224 SERMON XIII :

time it is so important, that it needs to be conti-
nually explained and enforced ; for necessary as it
is to every human being, yet, since it is a thing
from which our corrupt nature recoils, we ar€ apt
to give so little heed to it, that many have very
indistinct notions of what is meant, when the voice
of the Almighty " commands all men every where
to repent," and says to each individual, " except
ye repent ye shall perish." The doctrine then,
which we as ministers of God's word are to
preach, is a doctrine in which repentance is to
form a leading and most important point.

But what are we to understand by repentance ?
the question seems easy to answer, because in
respect to temporal things we all know some-
thing of it by experience. There is not one, who
when he looks back on his past life, does not fix
upon certain parts of it, and contemplate them with
regret. There was something in his conduct
which, he now feels, disgraces him in the eyes of
those whose esteem he values ; something perhaps
which has affected his circumstances in life ever
since ; something of which he will suffer the efiPect
to his dying day. We say we repent of it ; it costs
us many an anxious thought, and many a vain
wish that it never had been done ; we cannot re-
flect on it without feeling vexation and disgust.
And these feelings will keep pace with our con-
sciousness of the evil of such actions. If, in re-
viewing our history, there shall be found a case in

LUKE XXIV. 47- 225

which some part of our conduct has entailed upon
us many painful consequences, and yet we are
conscious that we acted right ; that we obeyed the
impulse of honourable feehngs and upright prin-
ciples, we may regret the effects which followed ;
we may wish that our circumstances had not been
such as to make it our duty to act as we did ; but
we shall feel no shame, no self-abasement, no re-
pentance. The consequences may be painful, but
like the wounds received in vahant fight, they are
tokens of honour.

It is the criminal, the foolish, the dishonourable
actions of life on which we look back with shame,
and of which we repent ; and this may lead us to
see something of what " repentance toward
God" is.

As God is our Creator, his will and his law
ought to be the rule of our conduct ; and how-
ever we may dislike the idea of submission, we all
know and feel that it ought to be so ; we know
besides, that in no one thing is that law otherwise
than perfectly what it ought to be, " holy, just,
and good ; " for though in the tumult of passion,
and when our ungoverned inclinations lead us to
wish to do what is wrong, we endeavour to per-
suade ourselves and each other that we are ex-
cusable in doing that which pleases us, without
regard to God ; yet we cannot thus satisfy our-
selves ; and on this account most men live and die,
in the vain attempt to defend themselves against

Q

226 SERMON XIII :

the remonstrances of their consciences, which will
upbraid them with their transgressions.

Now our object as ministers is to add force and
permanency to these convictions of conscience,
to shew the justice of God's demands, to display
the baseness of man's ingratitude in breaking his
laws, and to set forth the tremendous conse-
quences which must follow, where this is done.
And thus we prove that a man ought to experience
the same feeling of regret and shame, only in a
far higher degree, when he reflects on the offences
he has committed against God, that he does, when
he recollects those parts of his life, wherein he so
acted as to injure his worldly interests, and to dis-
grace his character.

My brethren, allow me here to ask whether you
have ever felt any thing of this kind ? I do not
ask whether you have committed such things as
you ought to repent of. Without any hesitation
I charge every one with having done this, and
with having done it repeatedly and extensively ;
listen but for a moment to your consciences, and
they will urge home the charge quite as strongly,
nay, far more strongly than I can do. But I ask
whether, when you review the past, you feel sor-
row, shame, and humiliation at the remembrance
of your transgressions? God demands this of
you, and it is the very first thing which he does
require, and it is the first step you can take toward
obtaining pardon and reconciliation with Him.

LUKE XXIV. 47. 227

He can forgive no one, he can be reconciled to no
one who is not sorry for his transgressions. I
will not stop to argue the justice of this demand ;
you know and feel that it is right : and after all
the efforts you use to palliate your sins, you are
conscious that you are inexcusable, if you are not
ashamed, confounded, and grieved at the remem-
brance of them. Has then, I ask, your closet
been witness to your cries of penitential sorrow ?
Have you, with David, watered your couch with
your tears? Have you, like Peter when he thought
of his sins, gone out and wept bitterly ? With
the prodigal have you confessed, that you have
so sinned against your heavenly Father, as to be
** no more worthy to be called his Son ? " With
the publican, have you cried " God be merciful to
me a sinner ? " Alas ! 1 fear there are many pre-
sent, who are experimentally unacquainted with
this feeling. Let me not appear uncharitable to
you for intimating such a suspicion ; I have
indeed no right to judge, no right to say what has,
or what has not passed between God and your
own consciences ; rather would I lead you to form
an accurate judgment of yourselves. True repent-
ance then is an active principle. He who is sin-
cerely sorry for any thing he has done, takes care
not to repeat the action, over which he grieves.
He who is sorry for having offended God, will
endeavour to do so no more. He who repents,
will, by breaking off his sins and leading a new

Q 2

228 SERMON XIIT :

life, " bring forth fruits meet for repentance."
The penitent thief becomes an honest man ; as far
as is in his power, making restitution to those whom
he has injured. The repentant profligate not only
becomes outwardly moral, but inwardly pure ;
shunning the most distant approach toward his
former transgressions. So it is with every one
who repents ; all sin becomes the object of his
dread, but more especially that sin which has most
power over him, and into which he has most
deeply fallen.

Now my brethren, let me pray you to inquire
and search diligently, after these fruits meet for
repentance in your own experience. This is that
conversion, that practical repentance of which so
much is said in Scripture. Deal fairly, I pray
you, with yourselves. There may be a variety
of sins in which once you lived, but you have
abandoned them because time has taken away your
inclination for them ; or because your circum-
stances having changed, your inducements are
removed ; or prudential motives may have led you
to relinquish them ; or it may be that the woes
pronounced in Scripture on those who do such
things has made you afraid to do them any more ;
all this may have taken place, and you may be
congratulating yourselves on your improvement, and
at the same time be utterly heedless of the calls to
repentance addressed to you by the Scriptures and the
ministers of God's word. You may have forsaken

LUKE XXIV. 47. 229

some of your former sins, but probably you have
exchanged them for others more suited to your
time of life, or altered circumstances, or such as
you can commit without that alarm which made
you renounce your former practices. At any rate
you have not forsaken them, because you were
grieved and distressed at the thought of having
offended God by them ; you did not feel humbled
and abased at the vileness of your conduct in
committing them ; notwithstanding all that which
you look upon as reformation, there has been no
conversion, and of consequence no real repent-
ance unto salvation. We are, therefore, still bound
to call on you to repent, to urge you to consider
your ways, and turn unto the Lord your God ; and
till we have done this, with the utmost earnestness,
we have not discharged our duty to you ; until you
have complied with the call, you have derived no
advantage from our ministry, nor from any part
of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ ; for this
repentance is necessary to every man living, before
he can have any share in that remission of sins,
which is the second particular mentioned in our
text as the subject of the ministry of the gospel.

The chief inquiry of the man who is aw^akened
to see and feel the guilt and misery of his situation
as a sinner is. How may my sin be forgiven and
its penalty remitted ? or in other words, " what
must I do to be saved ? " All other things appear
to him as of comparatively trifling importance.

230 SERMON XIII :

The object which the preaching of repentance is
designed to effect is, to bring men into this state
of mind ; to cause them to see their guilt, their
misery, and their danger, that they " may flee from
the wrath to come;" that they may receive the
offers of divine mercy, as they are made to us by
God himself. Accordingly, when the angel was
commissioned to announce the birth of Christ to
the Shepherds, he said, "behold, I bring you good
tidings of great joy which shall be to all people ;
for unto you is born a Saviour — one who shall
save them from their sins." Now my text says
that remission — pardon of sin is to be preached to
all nations. This is what renders the gospel so
suited to us all — " all have sinned," but it offers
pardon and remission of sins to every one. It
assures us that every penitent sinner shall have all
his sins put away — buried as in the depths of the
sea — that they shall be no more mentioned unto
him. " Though they be as scarlet shall they be as
white as snow ; though they be red like crimson,
they shall be as wool." "I am he" saith the
Lord, " that blotteth out thy transgressions, for
mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins."
" I have blotted out as a thick cloud thy trans-
gressions, and as a cloud thy sins : return unto me,
for 1 have redeemed thee." ^

No language that we can use, can come up to the

" Isaiah i. 18 ; xliii. 25 ; xliv. 22.

LUKE XXIV. 47. 231

extent of that full and free forgiveness of all sin
which the Gospel assures us shall be granted to the
true penitent. But since it might be said, that
though remission of sin would fully exempt a man
from deserved punishment, it would not entitle
him to the reward of righteousness ; the language
of Scripture goes far beyond this ; — it speaks not
only of pardon but of justification, not only of
remitting sins, but of conferring righteousness,
perfect and complete in every part. A righteous-
ness without works, distinct and separate from all
merit of our own ; " the righteousness which is of
God," " unto all and upon all them that believe." ^
So that at the last day, the humble penitent shall
not only stand before God as a pardoned sinner,
delivered from eternal punishment ; but as righ-
teous, as made " the righteousness of God in
Christ," and he will enter heaven claiming and
receiving the reward of righteousness, not indeed
his own, but reckoned to his account and imputed
to him, through Him who was emphatically called
by the prophet " the Lord,'^ or Jehovah " our
Righteousness.''
This leads me

II. To the consideration of the ground on

WHICH THE WHOLE DISPENSATION OF THE
GOSPEL, AND SUBJECT OF THE CHRISTIAN

' Rom. iii. 22.

232 SERMON XIII :

MINISTRY RESTS. It is conveyed to us in the
clause "his name," for Christ's name-sake.

This is, in fact, the pecuhar characteristic of the
Gospel. It abounds in promises and in blessings
of the most exalted kind. It displays God, as
merciful in the highest degree ; it encourages the
largest hopes even in the most guilty, when they
become truly penitent ; but all is for Christ's
name sake ; that is, for the sake of what he, as our
mediator, our atoning sacrifice, our gracious inter-
cessor in heaven, has done, and is still doing for us.

It is, brethren, of the utmost importance that we
should keep this in view. We hear many talking
of God's mercy in a general manner, as if it flowed
a stream so rich, so free, so spontaneous, that all
might, nay that all would, in some way or other
partake of it. But rich, free, and spontaneous as
that stream of mercy is, which maketh glad the
city of our God, none shall be refreshed by its
waters, but the humble penitent ; and even he only
for Christ's name sake. This applies to each of
the grand topics on which I have been speaking ;
for though, as was observed, there may be some,
who looking upon repentance as a work to be
performed by man, are ready to think it opposed
to the covenant of grace, and therefore call it
legal; yet even this is to be preached in "his
name." But for Christ, and his free salvation,
repentance would never have been preached, it
would have been of no avail ; it could have done

LUKE XXIV. 47. 233

nothing toward appeasing the anger of God, or
removing the curse of the law. And even now, it
is only acceptable to God through Christ. Were
we to preach repentance as making atonement for
sin ; were we to say that the tears of the penitent
washed away the stain of his transgressions, and
purchased his pardon ; then indeed we should
"frustrate the grace of God;" we should infer
that " Christ was dead in vain." Important there-
fore as repentance is, and essential to salvation, we
ascribe to it no such merit or efficacy as this ; it is
a return to a right state of mind, and as such, is
necessary, but it can make no atonement, no com-
pensation for the past ; that can only be effected
by Christ and his sufferings, to which every peni-
tent sinner looks by faith, as the ground of his hope.
There is a peculiar force in the expression,
" that repentance should be preached in his name ;"
inasmuch as we are told, that " Him hath God
exalted to give repentance," as well as " remission of
sins." ^ To this every true Christian adverts in his
own case, with feelings of unmingled gratitude ; and
every awakened sinner may refer to it with delight.
The believer will say—' Once I was a proud and
obstinate enemy of God ; my heart was hard and
unfeeling ; in vain did the divine word sound in
my ears, calling on me to repent ; I was deaf to
every warning, to every threatening, to every invi-
tation. But at length that same Saviour who met

• Actsv. 31.

234 SERMON XIII :

Saul in the way to Damascus arrested my progress.
The arrow of conviction pierced my soul ; — in
terror of conscience and in dread of destruction I
cried, " Lord what wouldest thou have me to do? "
Then old things passed away and all things became
new ; — then did Jesus my Lord give me " repent-
ance unto salvation, not to be repented of." In
the same manner may every awakened sinner, when,
under the terrors of a wounded conscience, he still
feels his heart hard and desperately wicked, look to
Jesus, for this gift of his grace ; nor shall he look
in vain. He will give him repentance, and that
repentance shall be accompanied by faith : even
that faith by which we receive remission of all our
sins.

These are the things which are to be preached
in Christ's name. These are gifts, which his hand
bestows without money and without price, on all
who are willing to receive them.

IlL But I must say a few words on the latter
portion of the text — the objects of the chris-
tian MINISTRY " ALL NATIONS."

This part of the subject occasions conflicting-
feelings in our minds. In one respect the sen-
sations are painful, for what can be more grievous,
than to regard the state of the whole world, as a
state of apostacy from God ? to think of every
man upon earth as being so criminal, that unless
he repent, and receive gratuitous remission of his

LUKE XXIV. 47. 235

sins, he must perish. Yet this is the view of the
situation and character of all men, which is forced
upon us, not only in those passages of Scripture
which directly describe the wide-spread depravity
of our race, but in those also which exhibit the
extent of divine grace and mercy. Why did
Christ die for all ; but because all were dead in
trespasses and sins. Why is the saying worthy of
all acceptation that Christ Jesus came into the
world to save sinners ; but because all have sinned
and come short of the glory of God, and therefore
if saved at all, must be saved by grace. And why
was the charge given to " preach the gospel to
every creature," but because every creature under
the whole heaven was lost without it. And why
are repentance and remission of sins to be preached
to all nations ; and why doth God command all
men everywhere to repent ; but because all are in
such a state that except they repent they must
perish.

It is indeed painful to be compelled to make
such^ reflections as these, respecting the whole race
of mankind ; it is painful to think that we must
include in them all whom we hold dearest to us,
and whom our affection would make us wish to
think exempt from the general depravity ; but it is
most painful of all to apply such reflections to
ourselves, to be forced to acknowledge that if the
Bible be the word of God, he hath there declared
that we are in this alarming state of guilt and

236 SERMON XIII :

danger, that we must repent and find remission,
or our eternal ruin is certain. Oh, my brethren,
how awful is this thought ; and how strangely in-
fatuated are we, that it produces so little effect
upon us.

But if the text is suited to produce melancholy
reflections, both with respect to others and our-
selves ; it is also intended to afford us inexhaustible
consolation and delight. Be the state of the human
race ever so bad ; be our own situation ever so
deplorable ; there is no reason for despondency, so
long as " repentance and remission of sins are
preached to all nations." "This is a faithful
saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sinners." And
there is something peculiarly encouraging in the
idea, that it was at Jerusalem that the proclamation
of mercy was first to be made. Jerusalem had
indeed for ages been favoured above all other
places ; at Jerusalem they had killed the prophets
and stoned them that had been sent unto them.
That generation had just filled up the measure of
their father's iniquities, by crucifying the Lord of
glory. And a short time before, our Lord, when
he beheld Jerusalem, had wept over it, as being in
the most hopeless state ; they had not known the
day of their visitation ; the things belonging to
their peace had been hid from their eyes. Every
thing therefore that could aggravate guilt — every-
thing that could render their case hopeless — seemed

LUKE XXIV. 47. 237

to combine : still however the gospel was to be
preached to Jerusalem ; still its inhabitants were to
be told that they need not despair ; that if they
would repent their sins would be blotted out ; nay,
that if they would ask, a spirit of repentance should
be given them, for " Christ was exalted as a Prince
and a Saviour to give repentance unto Israel and
remission of sins."

But though the gospel was first to be preached
at Jerusalem, it was not to be confined to that
city : it was to spread over all nations. We,
my brethren, have lived to see the fulfilment of
this injunction as to ourselves. There is not,
among all the nations on earth, one apparently
further off from God, than was our now favoured
land, at the time that these words were spoken by
the Redeemer. It was a land of darkness and of
the shadow of death ; but now are we light in the
Lord. Already have thousands and tens of
thousands of the inhabitants of this country heard
and obeyed the call of the gospel ; they have
repented, they have found remission of sins, and
are numbered among the saints, in glory ever-
lasting.

It is for this end that the ordinances of religion
are established and preserved ; we, brethren, enjoy
the clearest light of divine truth to direct our feet
in the way of peace. Let us bless God for this
inestimable privilege, and rejoice in his goodness
towards us ; but let us " rejoice with trembling,"

238 SERMON XIII.

knowing that if the gracious message, declared to
us in Christ's name be not received by us, and
acted upon, and appropriated for our own indi-
vidual benefit, it would have been better for us
that we had never heard this ministry of recon-
ciliation.

And while we rejoice, that " unto us is the word
of this salvation sent," let us shew our gratitude for
our distinguished advantages, by striving with all
our power to spread the glad tidings far and wide,
to cause repentance and remission of sins to be
preached to those nations which are now sitting in
darkness and in the shadow of death, that so the
knowledge of the only true God and of Jesus
Christ whom he hath sent may be extended all
over the world, and that happy time arrive, which
we are encouraged to look forward to, when "the
earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the
glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." ^

' Habakkuk ii. 14.

SERMON XIV.

PROVERBS xxiii. 26.

MY SON, GIVE ME THINE HEART, AND LET THINE EYES OBSERVE
MY WAYS.

Though the writer of this book was the wisest
of all mere men, yet if we read it only with that
reverence which this consideration would inspire,
we shall fail of obtaining all the benefit which
it is intended to convey. Wise as Solomon was; —
when left to follow the way of his own heart, he pro-
ved a sad example of the weakness of human nature.
But there is in the book of Proverbs more than
human wisdom, even such wisdom as Solomon
evinced, when, having learned the folly of leaning
to his own understanding, he prayed to God for a
wise and understanding heart, and in consequence,
received such a supply of the Spirit of wisdom and
knowledge, as fitted him to become an infallible
teacher of others. Though we may therefore in one
view consider the text as an address of Solomon to
his son Rehoboam, yet in another we must consider
it as not the wisdom of Solomon, but the wisdom
of God ; not as a call upon Rehoboam to love and

240 SERMON XIV :

obey his father, and to mark the conduct he would
have him pursue, but as the call of God our
heavenly Father, requiring us to give him our
hearts, and yield him our constant regard and
obedience. And in this way I shall now recom-
mend the passage to your attention, while I

I. Consider the claim God has to our

REGARD.

II. Explain the nature of the demand

HE MAKES UPON US.

III. Point out what will be the result of
OUR obedience to the call.

I. Let us consider THE claim which' God has

upon our REGARD,

In this and many other passages, the Most High,
who inhabiteth eternity, and is from everlasting to
everlasting, deigns to speak to us fallen and depraved
creatures in the language of endearment. He speaks
to us as his children, and vouchsafes to invite us to
consider him as our Father, and to feel toward him as
children feel toward a kind and affectionate parent
In this we see a striking instance of what he him-
self says — " my ways are not as your ways, nor
my thoughts as your thoughts." It is not after
the manner of men, that a mighty prince should
address a slave and rebel as his child, and invite
him to call him Father, and tell him to expect
and ask from him all that a parent can bestow on
a dutiful and affectionate child. Yet thus does

PROVERBS XXIII. 26. 241

our Father which is in heaven address us ; and
though he knows all our wickedness, and is per-
fectly acquainted with all the aggravating circum-
stances that have attended it, and has seen the
" evil heart" from whence it sprung; yet he passes
it all by, and calls us his children, and asks, " wilt
thou not from this time say unto me, my Father,
thou art the guide of my youth." This is indeed
wonderful ; but there is perhaps one thing still
more wonderful — and it is this ; — though God is so
kind to us, and offers us every thing that almighty
power can do, and that infinite riches and love can
bestow, to make us happy both now and for ever ;
there is scarcely any one who will pay regard to
his gracious offers, " all day long hath he stretch-
ed out his hand to a disobedient and gainsaying
people." Though " the wages of sin" is known
*' to be death," yet most men seem deliberately to
prefer it to that " gift of God which is eternal life."
It was so of old, when God spake to Israel by his
prophets. It was so when the Son of God himself
spake " gracious words," as " never man spake."
It is still the same among you, to whom God now
speaks by his word, by his ministers, by the con-
victions of your own consciences and the striving
of his Spirit. Whether the Lord speak in mercy
or in judgment, still he is unheeded ; as the voice
of a kind and indulgent father is often unheeded
by an ungrateful and rebellious child.

Hence, my brethren, results the need there is

R

242 SERMON XIV :

of this first division of my subject, the exhibi-
tion of the claims which God has upon our regard.

When God graciously assumes the character of
our Father, there seem to be three things implied.
1. That to him we owe our being. 2. That from
him we receive our support. And 3. That all our
expectations and hopes for the future, must rest
upon him. Let us inquire how each of these
considerations should influence us.

1. God, as our Father, is the author of our
existence. "He made us, and not we ourselves ;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture."
The connection between the two cannot be dissolv-
ed. If he made us, we are not our own but his ;
and he has a right to dispose of us in what manner
he pleases. This is the foundation of the authority
which a parent has over his children ; an authority
which God has confirmed and established by com-
prising it in the moral law, assigning to it a chief
place in the second table, and making it the first
commandment with promise. " Honour thy father
and thy mother, that thy days may be long in the
land which the Lord thy God giveth thee." How-
ever young people may dislike the restraint this
law imposes, and may rebel against it, in a way
which exposes them to the wrath of almighty God ;
yet I am fully persuaded that there is no man who
does not in his heart acknowledge that the com-
mand is perfectly consistent with right reason, that
children ought to honour and obey their parents,

PROVERBS XXIII. 26. 243

because to them they owe their existence. Yet it is
true only in a very subordinate sense, that we owe
our existence to our parents ; but it is true in the
largest and most extensive sense, of God. " In him
we live,- and move, and have our being." It was He
who bestowed upon us our bodies so " fearfully
and wonderfidly made." It was He who " breathed
into our nostrils the breath of life, and made us
living souls." By his power it was that we com-
menced an existence which shall know no end.
He gave us those faculties of body and mind by
means of which we become capable of glorifying
him, as well as of providing for our own neces-
sities. In short, as all we have and are, come
from his hands, so he has a claim upon us im-
mensely higher, and more irresistible, than any
earthly parent can advance, to the love and obedi-
ence of his child.

2. When God calls himself our Father, there is
a reference to the constant support and provision
which like a parent he has made for our ne-
cessities.

Though men be " evil," yet, generally speaking,
they " know how to give good things unto their
children," and are disposed to give them. Now
and then, indeed, we meet with an unnatural parent
who abandons his offspring to want and wretched-
ness, and seems by his conduct to renounce all
claim to their love and obedience : but oftener is
the behaviour of children such as almost to

R 2

244 SERMON XIV :

compel their parents to give them up, in utter
hopelessness of doing them any good, so obsti-
nately bent are they on their own ruin. But
neither of these cases bears the least resemblance
to God's dealings with us. His perfect holiness
and goodness, rendered it utterly impossible that he
should act like parents of the former character ;
and his infinite compassion and long-sufifering has,
blessed be his holy name ! prevented him from act-
ing as the latter. Our sins indeed have been such
as would have fully warranted him in casting us
off for ever. Day by day have we " grieved and
vexed his Holy Spirit.^^ He might most justly
have made the earth iron, and the heavens brass,
that they might bring forth no support for us ; He
might have let loose every kind of misery, to sweep
like whirlwinds through the world, till every spot
was made empty and desolate ; but, more than all,
He might have pronounced a curse upon our souls,
which should have sunk them without remedy into
the pit of everlasting woe ; and all heaven would
have owned the sentence just. But there is nothing
of the kind ; the very threatenings of God are
designed not to destroy, but to save. He seems to
speak to us as he did to Israel of old, " How
shall I give thee up, Ephraim ? how shall I de-
liver thee, Israel ? how shall I make thee as
Admah ? how shall I set thee as Zeboim ? mine
heart is turned within me, my repentings are
kindled together. I will not execute the fierce-

PROVERBS XXIII. 26. 245

ness of mine anger, I will not return to destroy
Ephraim : for I am God and not man ; the Holy
One in the midst of thee." ^

Such has been the tenderness of God to us.
Look, my brethren, through all his dealings with
you. Remember how he has fed you all your life
long ; how every want has been supplied ; how
every danger has been averted ; how every sickness
has been healed ; and every fear removed. Re-
member how many domestic comforts you have
had ; how many kind friends he has raised up for
you ; in how many instances success has attended
your plans ; and where this has not been exactly
the case, how many alleviating circumstances have
soothed your disappointment. These have been
instances of God's fatherly care over you, as to
temporal things.

But stop not here — remember that you are also
immortal beings, and sinners. The one renders the
wants of your soul, immensely greater and more
difficult to be supplied, than those of your body —
the other makes you perfectly unworthy of any
supply ; a meet object of the divine displeasure for
ever. Yet has God been a father to you — yea,
immensely more than ever that relation implies.
He saw you, as his rebellious child, rushing im-
petuously into every thing that was odious to him
and destructive to yourself. Then it was that he
called to you — that he warned you of your danger ;

' Hosea xi. 8, 9.

246 SERMON XIV :

then he sent his Holy Spirit to strive with your
spirit, and to stop you in your mad career. And
when nothing else could avail for your salvation,
he sent his Son, his only beloved Son into the
world to suffer and to die for you.

And if he has seen in you at any time a dispo-
sition to turn and repent, he has then been to you
as the Father to the prodigal son, when he said,
" Father, I am no more worthy to be called thy
son." He has spoken of you at those seasons of
compunction and penitence, as he did of old to
Ephraim, " Is Ephraim my dear son ? is he a
pleasant child ? for since I spake against him I do
earnestly remember him still : therefore my bowels
are troubled for him : I will surely have mercy upon
him, saith the Lord." ^

And now, my brethren, when we take even a
hasty and slight review of what our heavenly
Father has done for us, do we not see that he may
advance the strongest imaginable claims on our
gratitude and love ?

3. But once more, as God is our Father, all our
hopes for the future depend upon him. This is
what the child feels with respect to his parents —
ask him whence he expects his supplies for the
future, the simple answer is, ' my fatiier has sup-
plied my wants hitherto, and he will do the same
till I am able to take care of myself.' Just such is
our dependance upon God, with this only differ-

' .Terem. xxxi. 20.

PROVERBS XXIII. 26. 247

ence ; the child may expect a time when he shall be
able to provide for himself, and live without the
aid of his parents, but we can look forward to no
such state of strength or skill, as will make us
independent of God. In his hand our life and
breath have hitherto been, and so they will be to
the end of our existence. And not with respect
to our bodies only, but equally with respect to
our souls, our expectation must be from him. If
our future life be like the past, and internal
corruption still remain to harass us, and Satan
still spread his snares across our path, and the
world still assail us with its dangerous frowns,
and more dangerous smiles ; all our dependence
must be on mercy and on grace ; on mercy to
pardon, and on grace to uphold us. And even
when we are sinking into the grave, and flesh and
heart are beginning to fail, still this trust will be
our only security ; we must still look for the
mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life ;
still must we pray — ' Suffer me not, O God, suffer
me not, in my last hour, for any pains of death, to
fall from thee.' Nor need we fear thus to live,;and
thus to die, fixing all our hopes on almighty grace ;
For he in whom we confide is our father, our
friend, our strong salvation ; and he has promised,
*' I will never leave thee, no, nor ever forsake thee."
If God were to leave us, if our heavenlv Father
were to forsake us, if he were to close his boun-
teous hand ; all his past mercies, great and innume-

248 SERMON XIV :

rable as they have been, would avail us nothing ;
our prospects would be dark and miserable, and
would close in the blackness of everlasting despair.
Here then, my brethren, we see, that the recol-
lection of the past, our present experience, and our
expectations and hopes for the future, combine to
enforce those just demands which the Almighty
advances to our regard and obedience. And this
leads me —

II, To consider the claim which God as
OUR Father makes upon us. " My Son, give
me thy heart, and let thine eyes observe my ways."

The latter part of the passage seems to be only
a recapitulation of the first ; a sort of practical view
of the result of giving our hearts to God ; — this
would manifestly be, a diligent observance of God's
commands, an attempt at conformity to him, an
aim to be like him. If we much love and admire
any one, we naturally catch his manner ; we almost
unconsciously imitate his example ; and are never
better pleased with ourselves, than when we think
that, in any instance, we have acted just as our
friend would have acted, and have so observed his
ways as to have become somewhat like him ; and
such is the effect of that cordial love of God and
admiration of him, which is implied in the claim
which God here makes on each of us — " My Son,
give me thy heart." It has been given to sin, to
vanity and folly ; every trifling interest, every vain

PROVERBS XXIII. 26. 249

amusement, every alluring pleasure has seized on
our aflfectlons, and has held our whole soul in sub-
jection ; on these our waking thoughts have been
fixed ; and in the sleeping hours of the night, like
gay phantoms, they have danced before our eyes,
and made our midnight dreams partake of our
mid-day pursuits. And yet we are conscious that
none of these things can profit us, they are so vain,
they are in themselves unworthy the affections
of an immortal being, and the advantage they can
confer on one soon passing into eternity, is too
small to be regarded. In my text, the Lord calls
on us to abandon these unprofitable pursuits, and
to place our affections on real excellency, and on
that which can put us in possession of real good.
We have been hewing out to ourselves cisterns,
that have all proved broken cisterns, and God
invites us to return to Him, the fountain of living
waters. " My Son, give me thine heart." Let
us then inquire what this command comprizes.

1. The most evident meaning of the demand
is. Supreme Love.

Whether we contemplate the perfections of the
divine character in general, or dwell on the Lord's
gracious and merciful dispensations toward us, the
conviction of our hearts is, that God deserves our
highest love. And such love does he require —
" Give me thine heart." The heart, the centre
and residence of all our affections, must be sur-
rendered to him. He asks not for a share — he

250 SERMON XIV :

will be satisfied with nothing less than the whole.
Other regards and other affections may dwell there,
but none must rule, but the love of God only. It
never was meant that we should not love our
relatives and friends ; nor that the enjoyments and
interests of life, should have no place in our
regards. But it was meant, and God will never
relax from this demand, that every regard we may
have for any creature, should submit and yield and
be subordinated to the love of God ; therefore he
says, " Give me thine heart," and " Thou shalt
love the Lord thy God with all thy heart."

It is here that men's estimate of themselves, and
God's estimate of them, are so irreconcileably con-
tradictory. God charges them with not loving
him at all ; they are quite sure they do love him,
and are angry when told that they do not. The
fact is, that if there be any regard at all to God in
them, it is quite secondary — quite subordinate to
self-love, or to the love of their friends, or to
their love of the world, and the things thereof ; so
that when their duty to God, and their attachment
to these things come in competition, they imme-
diately shew which rules in the heart, by neglect-
ing and disregarding their Maker. How very
hard would those persons, who are so offended by
being told that they do not love God — how very
hard, I say, would they find it, to point out even a
solitary instance, in which they have really sacri-
ficed any interest or any pleasure, or have refused

PROVERBS XXIII. 26. 251

compliance with the wishes of an earthly friend,
simply because they considered the thing required
of them, as displeasing and dishonourable to God.
Yet this ought not to be a merely occasional sacri-
fice to the love of God — it ought to be the hourly
practice of our lives ; and where it is not the case,
God will not allow that he is loved at all, any
more than a prince would acknowledge that man
as at all a loyal subject, who was in the habit
of transferring his obedience to an usurper, when-
ever he found that his interest or pleasure could
be promoted by the transfer ; such conduct would
manifest a treasonable and rebellious disposition.
Now God as the searcher of the heart, looks not
so much at the outward act, as to this inward dis-
position ; the thoughts — the intents — the motives.
When he says " give me thine heart," he calls
for a constant and uniform intention and wish to
make every other feeling of the soul submit to the
love of God as the ruling principle. As the miser
has his passions, and attachments, and inclinations,
but every one of them completely subjected to the
love of money — so in the godly man, every thing
will be made subservient to the supreme love of
his heavenly Father.

2. The surrender of our hearts to God, implies,
a full and cordial approbation and acquiescence
in God's appointments.

That surrender of the heart which God claims
of us, is a reasonable service. It is just what his

252 SERMON XIV :

divine character, and all his dealings with us,
authorize him to claim from us as his creatures.
The authority of God is not supported by infinite
power alone, but by infinite excellency — and the
reason, why we do not at once find our contempla-
tions on the divine perfections, producing this effect
upon us, and why we do not admire and delight
in all his precepts and in all his appointments,
is, that we are in our nature corrupt, and our
hearts are depraved. It is not thus that his will
is done in heaven ; it is not thus that angels feel.
No. They contemplate the works, and consider
the ways of God, till they are lost in wonder, love,
and praise ; they approve and admire, and adore
all they see and all they know of God, and only
wish that they could find out the Almighty to per-
fection, that they might admire and adore him still
more. And so it ought to be with us, for we
were formed in the very image of God, and there-
fore prepared to love him, and to approve of all his
ways ; and though we have fallen from our first
estate, and are very far gone from original right-
eousness, and have lost the image of God; this
cannot alter the nature of true holiness, or admit
of God's suffering us to love him less. His law
and his gospel both say, " be ye holy, for I am
holy." Love is the fulfilling of the law in both.
And why should this seem a hard command ?
Why should it seem a burdensome task ? Is there
any creature, in heaven or on earth more worthy

PROVERBS XXIII. 26. 253

of our love ? Is there any one of the ways and
appointments of God which is not holy, just, and
good ? Does not perfect wisdorti, perfect justice,
and perfect love direct every one of them ? And
if we do not approve them, and love them, is it
not most clear that we have given our hearts to
another, than that holy God who made us — that
gracious God who hath upheld us, and on whom
we must depend for ever ? The call, thus to give
him our hearts, may disturb us by reviving our
convictions of guilt ; but our consciences will never
allow us to say, that it is unreasonable to require
us, as rational creatures, to love and admire what
is worthy of all love and admiration.

3. A hearty and cheerful obedience to God's
will, and attention to his service are also required
by the demand made in the text.

The law of God is, like himself, of perfect ex-
cellence ; the ordinances he has instituted, are just
such a modification of the employment of heaven,
as suits our situation in this w^orld. Were our
hearts in a right state, compliance with the one,
would give us such pleasure as angels feel, in obey-
ing his commandments " hearkening to the voice
of his word," and attendance on the other, would
be as delightfid to us, as it is to the redeemed in
heaven to crowd around the throne, singing worthy
is the Lamb that was slain. And accordingly we
find David and St. Paul both speaking of the
delight they felt in the law of God. The language

254 SERMON XIV :

of the man after God's own heart is, "I was glad
when it was said unto me, let us go into the house
of the Lord." I have " loved the habitation of
thy house, the place w^here thine honour dwelleth."
*' One day in thy courts is better than a thousand."
And why was this, but because they had "given
their hearts to God." They were, hke Zecharias,
and Elizabeth, " walking in all the ordinances and
commandments of the Lord blameless." The ser-
vice of a man in this state of mind, is a hearty,
diligent, constant service, his worship is that
"worship in spirit and in truth" which God,
who is a spirit, seeks for and accepts. This is
not making religion a task, or the ordinances of it
a burdensome ceremony — no, it makes it a sort of
heaven below. Oh ! could we but feel this, we
should then fully understand what our Lord meant
when he said, " the sabbath was made for man,"
— for his benefit, his comfort, his delight. Then
should we enter into the feelings of the Psalmist
when he said, " my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh
longeth for thee, in a dry and thirsty land where
no water is ; to see thy power and thy glory, so as
I have seen thee in the sanctuary." ^

Now then, brethren, can we, in taking this view%
both of what God has been to us as a Father, and
what he is in himself; and also of what he requires
of us — can we say that his requirements are unrea-
sonable or unkind ? can we say that here is anything

• Psalm Ixiii. 1, 2.

PROVERBS XXIII. 26. 255

like a powerful superior exacting the extremity of
right from an inferior ? can we even think that God
would have appeared more gracious, more kind, or
more compassionate, had he said nothing of our
giving our hearts to him ; or of our being holy
and iike himself? Do we not see, do not our
consciences testify, that it is the very thing we want
to make us happy, and that therefore it was love
and goodness which wrote it, as the first and great
commandment of the law, that we should love
God with all our hearts ? But this may appear
yet more fully when we consider,

III, The effect which will follow from

COMPLYING WITH THE CALL of my text.

This is not indeed stated in the words before
us ; but it is suggested to us by w^hat follows,
when Solomon goes on to show the misery and
ruin, which uniformly flow from connections with
bad women, and from habits of excess, which he
adds as a reason why his son should give him his
heart. Without entering into these particulars,
we may make the reasoning general, and put
it into the form of an appeal to the conscience
of every one.

' Look back, my friends, on the time past of your
life. What is it that has been the most fruitful
source of trouble to you in the years that are gone
by ? what is it that makes the recollection of the
past most painful to you ? why do you sometimes

256 SERMON XIV :

say, I wish 1 had my time to come over again ?
Is it not, because there are some things you have
done, which have destroyed your peace ; some duties
neglected, some transgression committed which
you cannot forget, and which you can never re-
member without distress and anguish ? And if
you could live your time over again, you think you
would avoid these ; but why do you think so ?
Could you trust yourself? Experience you say has
made you wise ; — it perhaps has, on the one point
which affects you most, but it has not done it with
regard to all sin. You commit transgression daily,
so that if you shunned that evil, the consequences of
which inspire your soul with dread, you would fall
into others.

Now look back once more, and ask whether a
surrender of your heart to God, would not have
secured you. Had the fear and the love of God
reigned within, instead of being harrassed with
sorrow and regret, you would now be rejoicing in
the testimony of your conscience ; instead of being
filled with forebodings for the future, you would
have had a cheerful hope of blessedness in reserve
for you.

Thank God, there is a remedy, — a sovereign
remedy — for the past. The blood of Jesus Christ
cleanseth from all sin ; the Father is willing to
meet the returning prodigal and to speak peace to
his troubled breast, even " that peace of God
which passeth all understanding."

PROVERBS XXIII. 26. 257

And in gracious love, to keep you from falling
into the same evils and the same distresses in
future, he says, " my son, give me thy heart,
arid let thine eyes observe my ways." Close at
once, my brethren, close at once with the invi-
tation, " give God your heart," so shall you " re-
move sorrow from your heart, and evil from your
flesh;" so shall you be held up and be safe;
so shall you walk in ways of pleasantness, and
paths of peace ; so shall your conscience be at
ease ; you shall enjoy present happiness, and be
cheered with the assured hope of eternal glory ;
for you shall '* be kept by the power of God,
through faith, unto salvation."

SERMON XV.

MATTHEW xvi. 24, 25.

THEN SAID JESUS UNTO HIS DISCIPLES, IF ANY MAN WILL
COME AFTER ME, LET HIM DENY HIMSELF, AND TAKE UP
HIS CROSS, AND FOLLOW ME. FOR WHOSOEVER WILL SAVE
HIS LIFE SHALL LOSE IT : AND WHOSOEVER WILL LOSE
HIS LIFE FOR MY SAKE, SHALL FIND IT.

When we read of the sufferings and persecutions,
endured by many of the most holy and eminent of
the servants of God in former ages, we are ready
to suppose, that some extraordinary change must
have taken place in the character and disposition
of the world, since we neither hear, nor read of,
nor do we fear any thing of the kind, in the pre-
sent day. And undoubtedly it ought to be one
subject of our daily praise and thanksgiving, that
we can worship God in the way our consciences
approve, and profess our religion as we please,
without being molested by any one ; the good
laws of our country affording us full protection.
But if we suppose that the world has undergone
such a change, as to render passages like the text
quite unimportant to us, we shall greatly err. Of

MATTHEW XVI. 24, 25. 259

such persecutions as awaited St. Paul, in almost
every city ; or which, in former times, kindled the
fires that consumed such men as Ridley, and Lati-
mer, and Cranmer, in our own country, we happily
know nothing, in the present day. Still, however,
the same enmity exists in the heart of man, to the
pure and holy religion of the Bible, though it
shews itself in a different manner; still, even
amongst ourselves, there is a sense in which the
declaration of the Apostle is true, " If any man
will live godly in Christ Jesus, he must needs suffer
persecution." It is therefore still right to call upon
every one to " count his cost," before he commences
a profession of being the follower of the Lord
Jesus. There is then a sense, in which the words
of the text belong as much to us, as they did to
the persons to whom our Lord spoke them, when
he was upon the earth. He said then, and he
says now, " If any man will come after me, let
him deny himself, and take up his cross, and fol-
low me. For whosoever will save his life shall
lose it, and whosoever will lose his life for my
sake shall find it." I propose,

I. To NOTICE THE STATE OF MIND OF THE
PERSON REFERRED TO.

II. The direction given to him.

III. The consequences of his obeying or
neglecting this direction.

I. Let us consider the state of mind of the

S 2

260 SERMON XV :

PERSON ALLUDED TO. " If any man will come
after me."

When our Lord was upon earth, and went
about preaching the gospel of the kingdom, there
were an immense number, who were eager to hear
his discourses, and to witness the miracles that he
wrought in confirmation of his doctrine. Of these,
many were influenced merely by curiosity ; they
were inquiring after some new thing, and as the
ministry and works of Christ were all new and
unheard of before, they were eager to see and
know all about them. But there was not in this,
one spark of seriousness ; they went to see and
hear Christ, just in the same spirit as that in
which they had before gone out to hear John the
Baptist, with the same unconcern as they would
have looked on a reed shaken by the wind, or on
a man clothed in splendid apparel. Others, again,
listened to our Saviour, from mere hatred to him
and to his doctrine, hoping that they might hear
something, on which to found an accusation that
would prove destructive to him and his cause.

Though such as these formed a very large pro-
portion of his hearers, they did not comprise the
whole. There was another class, who were fully
convinced that he was a teacher sent from God ;
that he " had the words of eternal life ; " and that
though at present, he had nothing to give to those
who accompanied him, as his disciples, yet ulti-
mately, none would be blessed but they ; that

MATTHEW XVI. 24, 25. 2G1

though now in the form of a servant, and despised
and rejected of men, he would hereafter come in
** his own glory, and all the holy angels with him,
and would render unto every man according to his
works." The result of this conviction was, that
they wished to come after Christ ; they would fain
be his disciples, and partake of all those blessings,
which, they were satisfied, would at last belong to '
his people.

With such a feeling, we are ready to ask, why
did they hesitate? Why should they delay to
comply with their inclinations, by avowing that they
intended to follow Christ and enrol themselves
among his disciples ? The answers to these ques-
tions involve many matters, in which we are as
much concerned as they. You, my brethren, have
not indeed seen Christ, or witnessed his miracles,
or heard the gracious words that proceeded out of
his mouth, when he was on earth in fashion as a
man ; but you have his words, as they are written
in the Bible, Those words have been opened,
explained, and applied to you by his ministers ;
and I have no doubt but there are several among
you, who have felt that all this was very important
to you, that it would be very greatly for your
present and future happiness to attend to what
you hear, and immediately to become the fol-
lowers of the Lord Jesus, or in other words,
that it is your duty and your wisdom, without
delay, to become real and decided Christians,

262 SERMON XV :

making the care of your immortal souls your grand
business ; renouncing every sin, and living in
holiness and righteousness all the days of your
lives ; you feel that this would be wise and right,
and that it would tend greatly to your happiness ;
you, therefore, like the persons here spoken of,
will wish to follow Christ. But there is some
hesitation, some want of decision ; you feel that
you ought to do it, you wish you could do it ; why
then do not you follow your inclination ?

The answer, in your case, must be exactly the
same as in that of many of the Jews who heard
Christ — " There is another law in your members,
warring against the law of your mind," — you love
your souls, but there is something you love more ;
you fee 1 the importance of following Christ, but
there are other things which exert a higher influ-
ence upon you. Now, what are they? They
vary in different persons, according to their out-
ward circumstances, and their constitutional dis-
positions.

When Nicodemus was convinced that Jesus was
a teacher come from God, and therefore felt a
desire to follow him, his natural timidity of dis-
position, and wish to stand fair with the Scribes and
Pharisees, held him back : he would come to Jesus,
but it must be by night ; and afterward, when he and
some others were disposed to plead the cause of
Jesus — the question, asked by his associates,
checked him, " Art thou also of Galilee ? Search

MATTHEW XVI. 24, 25. 263

and look ; for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet."^
In his case, this cowardly disposition was subse-
quently overcome ; but with many who thus be-
lieved in our Lord it was not so, "because they
loved the praise of men, more than the praise of
God." There was a young man who came to our
Lord — a most amiable, and excellent, and, as we
sometimes say, a good-hearted young man, — who
seemed to want but very little to make him all that
could be wished. He came to Christ with a most
interesting question — " What good thing must I do
to inherit eternal life ? " He thought that question
occupied his whole heart, he fancied that he was
prepared to do for this purpose, whatever Christ
should require of him ; but when our Saviour, who
knew what was in his heart, required him to shew
his sincerity by selling all that he had, and giving
to the poor, he " went away sorrowful, because he
had great possessions." He was sorrowful, de-
jected, and low-spirited, because he could not
" serve God and Mammon : " could not come after
Christ without denying himself, and taking up his
cross ; such was the case in times of old ; and if
we examine carefully, we shall see that so it is still.
I said that I had no doubt that there were some
present, who felt a strong inclination to be religious,
and to follow Christ noiu. Yet there are reasons,
such perhaps as they are scarcely conscious of,
which hold them back from doing what they

' John vii. 52.

264 SERMON XV :

know they ought, and in some sense vnsh to do.
These reasons are often very similar to those I
have referred to. The world at large ; and that
society in particular, in which they live, are opposed
to so much strictness in religious matters ; they
think it is unnecessary and absurd. The doc-
trines which they feel they ought to embrace, as
those which Christ and his apostles taught, are
unfashionable, they are held only by a few, and are
scouted by the majority, or branded by some oppro-
brious name. And the people too, who, the person
is convinced, are the most like Christ, and with
whom he must associate if he would follow Mm,
are so peculiar, so unlike the rest of the world,
that to have much intercourse with them, is looked
upon by many, as a disgrace and reproach.

Now, by thoughts and feelings like these, many
an one who has a secret wish to follow Christ, is
held back ; he is afraid to do what he knows to be
right ; he is sorrowful and dejected ; he wishes
that he was more favourably situated ; he is
alarmed with the consciousness that he is not
right, that things will not end well, but still he
dare not, and he does not, follow Christ.

To persons in this state of mind, our Lord
speaks in the text. Let us then proceed,

IL To consider the direction given to them.

When we reflect how many amiable qualities,

how many good wishes and intentions there are.

MATTHEW XVI. 24, 25. 265

in persons of this class, we might be ready to
suppose that a Master so kind and compassionate,
so condescending to our infirmities as Jesus was —
one who said that his " yoke was easy, and his
burden light," — would be ready to make many
excuses for them. We might have expected to
hear him speak something that would soothe them,
that he would have said, people so well disposed
must have some allowance made for them, the
timidity of their characters must be considered,
we must wait awhile, and perhaps they may become
more bold ; or a favourable change may take place
in their circumstances, and that which is now so
difficult, may become less so to them. Such ex-
cuses, and such allowances, perhaps, we should
have expected our Saviour to make for them ; but
we find nothing of the sort, not one intimation
that such conduct can in any case be excused ;
even in that of the young man w^hose character
was so good, and his disposition so amiable, that
"Jesus loved him;" even with respect to him,
the demands of our Saviour were not lowered in
the slightest degree ; but a sacrifice to conscience,
and to the love of his soul was required, which our
Lord knew would be harder than all others. So
likewise in the text, he in the most unqualified
manner says, " If any man will come after me,
let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and
follow me." Here is a duty to be performed, and
a burden to be borne, by every one who is willing

266 SERMON XV :

to be a disciple and follower of Christ, which can
by no means be avoided ; for our blessed Lord,
who was all kindness and gentleness ; who never
" broke the bruised reed, nor quenched the smoking
flax," would never have spoken in this strong and
decided manner, if it had not been a matter of
essential importance. Whatever then is meant by
" denying ourselves," and by " taking up our
cross and following Christ," it is something, with-
out which we cannot be Christ's disciples, and
therefore cannot be in the way to heaven ; and
this you will find fully confirmed by a reference to
other passages, where he who refuses to do this, is
said not to be worthy of Christ ; and where it is
added, to language like the text, " Whosoever
shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this
sinful and adulterous generation, of him also shall
the Son of man be ashamed when he cometh in
the glory of his Father with the holy angels." ^

Let us then seriously inquire into the meaning
of the expressions here used.

1. " Let him deny himself." Let him refuse
compliance with his own inclinations and propen-
sities, when he feels that he cannot yield to them
without offending God, and doing violence to his
own conscience. I apprehend every one of us
must know what this means, especially those who
are in the state of mind I have been describing.
A man under such circumstances, will recollect

' Mark viji. 38.

MATTHEW XVI. 24, 25. 267

that he has again and again held a conference with
himself, something to this effect — * I wish I could
follow Christ, that I could be really and truly his
disciple ; I know I ought, and that, if I would be
happy, I must do so ; but so much is required I
Here is this source of pleasure that I know is not
right.; I cannot keep it and yet follow Christ, but
I cannot part with it. I have so long indulged in
it, that it seems quite necessary to me ; to give it
up would be as painful, as to cut off my right hand,
or to pluck out my right eye.' Or a man says to
himself, ' I have been engaged in such and such
practices which, I know, a truly religious man
would avoid, and I fear that I cannot be a Chris-
tian while I do such things, yet I have found them
so very advantageous to me, that if I abandon them,
I hardly know how I am to live.' Or, again, a
man may say, ' I do earnestly wish to follow
Christ, and be saved by him ; but if I be zealously
engaged in religion as I ought to be, I cannot keep
the company I now do. The society in which I
have been used to find my delight, is quite irre-
ligious and ungodly ; I know how dangerous such
company and such friends are to my soul, but
how can I bear to give them up ? What a dull
and unhappy creature I should be without them.'

Here then, is the very point to which our Lord
alludes ; in these matters you must deny yourself ;
you must oppose your inclinations and refuse to
yield to them. That pleasure, that practice, that

268 SERMON XV :

habit, that company, is the very thing which stands
in the way of your salvation ; it has your heart ;
and till you have learned to deny yourself, you
cannot give your heart to God. I have only
mentioned two or three things, but the number of
cases in which we must deny ourselves, if we would
be followers of Christ, is great indeed. Every one,
who will commune with his heart, will discover
what they are in his own case ; he will soon find
out what it is that makes him backward in becom-
ing religious. In every man, many things com-
bine ; but there is in each individual the master
sin — " the sin that most easily besets him." In
one it is pride and vanity, in another it is covetous-
ness and love of money, in another it is lust, in
another drunkenness, in another the desire of plea-
sure. Here then must we begin to deny ourselves,
to bring our passions and inclinations under con-
troul, to refuse compliance with our most earnest
desires and wishes, whenever those desires and
wishes are fixed upon any thing, which we feel to
be inconsistent with the commands and example
of Christ. Much of this work must be done in
secret ; the effects may be public, but the main
contest with corrupt nature craving indulgence,
must be carried on, when no eye sees us but that
of God ; and when we have no motive for carrying
it on, but a wish to please God, and to maintain a
conscience void of offence.

But how hard a work, brethren, is this, which

MATTHEW XVI. 24, 25. 269

our Lord calls on us to perform ! To deny the
request of a beloved relative or friend, when urging
us to do that on which their enjoyment and com-
fort seem to depend — to say to them, it is of no
use to plead or beseech, I never can grant this
request ; this is so difficult, that few men have
resolution to stand out, even when compliance may
be as ruinous, as was* Samson's yielding to Delilah.
But when the request is urged by one's own heart
— when every passion and feeling of our soul
craves the sinful pleasure ; when the plea is urged
not once nor twice, but on every occasion, and
almost constantly ; when the denial must be made
every day, and almost every hour ; who has fortitude
thus to persist in striving against sin ? Have you,
my brethren, ever made the trial ? If so, you have
found that it needed more than your own strength
and power to enable you to succeed. You have
found that without constant application to " the
throne of grace for mercy, and grace to help in
every time of need," you have no chance of so
denying yourself as to follow Christ. It is the
severity of this conflict, and the consciousness of
failure, which often makes the Christian " groan
being burdened." It was with reference to this
that the Apostle Paul said, " I keep under my
body and bring it into subjection, lest that by any
means when I have preached to others, I myself
should be a cast-away." Thus did he deny
"himself," well aware that without it, he should

270 SERMON XV :

be in danger of being disowned and rejected of
God.

But the sayings of our Lord go still further than
this — we must not only deny ourselves, but we
must " take up our cross, and follow him," and if
we refuse this we cannot be his disciples, or be
admitted to share with him in those glories that
surround his throne. For as St. Paul says — " It is
a faithful saying ; for if we be dead with him, we
shall also live with him ; if we suffer, we shall also
reign with him ; if we deny him, he also will deny
us." '

It was the custom amongst the Romans, that the
miserable man who was condemned to be cruci-
fied, should bear the cross to which he was to be
nailed, to the place of execution. In this manner
did our blessed Lord go forth from Jerusalem to
Calvary, bearing his cross, till, exhausted by his
agonies of body and mind, he sank under the load;
when a disciple named Simon was met with, and
compelled to carry the cross of his Master to Gol-
gotha. Thus did our Lord Jesus Christ take up his
cross, for us men and our salvation. Thus did St.
Peter, and many others of the apostles, take up the
cross, and bear it to the spot where they died, as
their master did. Such was the way in which a
man was taught that he must be prepared to follow
Christ. The primitive church could shew its
thousands " who loved not their lives unto the

' 2 Tim. ii. 11, 12.

MATTHEW XVI. 24, 25. 271

death, but took up their cross and followed him."
The church also to which we belong has produced
multitudes "who did not count their lives dear
unto them," when the question was to be decided,
whether they would renounce the pure gospel of
Christ, *br die for the truth.

Times, my brethren, are so changed, that we
seem as if we could have no idea of its being pos-
sible that we should ever be called thus to take up
our cross, and follow Christ even to death ; and
God grant that neither we, nor our children may
ever be put to this fiery trial ; we must how-
ever possess the spirit that would cause us, should
it be so, not to hesitate, but to be willing to lose
our lives for Christ's sake.

But though there seems no present probability
of our faith and love to the Saviour being put to
so severe a trial ; yet they will be tried, the cross
must be borne, figuratively if not literally. Let me
endeavour to illustrate this, so as to render the
matter plain to you — A person who has been living
a life of thoughtless gaiety, is brought by some
means to think seriously upon religion ; he feels
that if he means to be a Christian, and to save his
soul, he must renounce many things which have
afforded him much pleasure, and perform many
duties which he has always considered very bur-
densome. He sees all this is right, and begins
this work of denying himself. As he proceeds, he
finds a peace of conscience, which he was before a

272 SERMON XV :

stranger to ; the denial of self, the consciousness
that he is doing right, produces satisfaction and
comfort, which counterbalance all his pain. But
while he is going on peaceably and happily, he is
suddenly troubled by finding that he has become
the laughing stock of his neighbours, the jest of all
his former companions and friends. Some call
him a fool, and others say with Festus, *' thou art
beside thyself." He feels so conscious that he is
acting more wisely and rationally than ever he did,
that he is not prepared for this. To be accounted a
fool for Christ, he finds hard to bear ; and he is
strongly tempted to give up his religion, because
of these trials of " cruel mockings." But here is
the very thing our Saviour meant ; he must " take
up his cross and follow Christ." The Lord him-
self was treated so, " he endured the contradiction
of sinners against himself ;" "he endured the cross,
and despised the shame."

After a while perhaps, he gets over this feeling,
but again he is agitated ; he is told that some per-
son on whom he placed much dependance, and
whose friendship is of the greatest importance to
him, is greatly offended by the change that has
taken place in him, perhaps a valuable customer
is offended, because he will not sell on the Sabbath
as he used to do ; or some wealthy relative from
whom he had expectations of property, declares
that he will have no more to say to him ; or
some other prospect, opening to wealth or honour,

MATTHEW XVI. 24, 25. 273

is closed against him : or perhaps he finds the
truth of what our Lord says, " Think not that I
am come to send peace on earth : I came not
to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set
a man at variance against his father, and the
daughter against her mother, and the daughter-in-
law against her mother-in-law, and a man's foes
shall be they of his own household. " ^ His
domestic comfort seems likely to be destroyed
because of his religion, and he is brought to a
stand ; but the declaration of the text strikes
his mind ; ' here,' he says, ' is the very thing my
Saviour has spoken of, I must take up my cross,
or I cannot be his disciple ; now I see what the
Scriptures mean, when they say that through much
tribulation we must enter into the kingdom of God.'
There must be no parley ; the cross must be taken
up, or we cannot be Christ's disciples.

Enough has, I hope, been said to explain the
meaning of our Lord, and to enable each one to
see in what respects he must deny himself, and take
up his cross if he would follow Christ. Let me
call upon you, my dear friends, to apply what has
been set before you, to your own particular circum-
stances. But I must hasten to consider —

III. The CONSEQUENCES of obeying or neglect-
ing the direction of our text.

This is pointed out to us in the concluding

' Matt. X. ;34-.'}G.
T

274 SERHlON XV :

verse, " For whosoever will save his life shall lose
it, and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake,
shall find it." And afterwards it is added, " For
the Son of man shall come in the glory of his
Father, with his angels, and then he shall reward
€very man according to his works."

Our Lord does not enter into any argument to
show the reasonableness of what he demands from
us ; he only tells us what the event will be. Does
he seem to require hard things of us ? and do we
hesitate about complying ? He bids us then count
our cost. We may shun all this self-denial ; we
may refuse to take up the cross ; we may think
that we are great gainers, that we have found out
a religion that is easy to practise ; but let us not
deceive ourselves ; he who in this way escapes the
cross and saves his life, shall at last lose it irre-
coverably, while he who for his Saviour's sake,
out of faith and dependence, out of love and grati-
tude to him, is willing to part with every thing he
possesses, yea even to lay down his life, shall live
for ever in the world above. The grand subject
of inquiry at the approaching day of judgment will
be, whether we have submitted to and loved the
Saviour — in what manner we have shewn our love
to him — what we have been prepared to do and to
suffer in his cause — what sacrifice we have been
ready to make in his service — whether we were
willing to deny ourselves and take up our cross.
If this do not prove to have been the case, we did

MATTHEW XVI. 24, 25. 275

not follow him ; we called him Lord, Lord, but
did not do the things that he said, and therefore
were not his disciples.

Brethren, I know well that much is demanded
of us ; but I know also, that the reward of obe-
dience is infinitely great. Let us keep the end in
view. Let us choose this day whom we will serve.
The world will hold out many gratifications to
allure us, sin will promise many pleasures to blind
our eyes to the things which belong to our peace,
but the end is death. Our Lord and Master says
much to us about the self-denial we shall be called
to exercise, and the crosses we shall have to bear ;
but he "is coming, and his reward is with him, to
render to every man according to his works ; "
and when those who refuse to obey his call to
"follow him," to "take his yoke upon them,"
(which after all, is " easy, and his burden light,"
when the " everlasting consolation and the good
hope through grace" accompanying it are taken
into consideration), when to them shall be awarded
" indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish;' —
" to those who by patient continuance in well
doing, seek for glory, honour, and immortality,"
shall be given " eternal life." Oh ! let us then at
once hearken to our Saviour's voice, and follow
him through whatever paths of trial or affliction
such determination may lead us, so shall we find
mercy of the Lord in that day ; so shall we
become interested in all those unspeakably great

T 2

276 SERMON XV.

and precious promises, which are given for the
support and consolation of his people. We may
have the world, the flesh, and the devil to contend
with, but if we are earnest and sincere, we shall be
made more than conquerors through him that hath
loved us ; and let us remember for our encourage-
ment, the gracious declaration of our Lord — " To
him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in
my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set
down with my Father in his throne." ^ " Be ye
therefore," my Christian brethren," stedfast, un-
moveable, always abounding in the work of the
Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is
not in vain in the Lord."

1 Rev. iii. 21.

SERMON XVI.

MATTHEW XV. 8, 9.

THIS PEOPLE DRAWETH NIGH UNTO ME WITH THEIR MOUTH,
AND HONOURETH ME WITH THEIR LIPS ; BUT THEIR HEART
IS FAR FROM ME. BUT IN VAIN THEY DO WORSHIP ME,
TEACHING FOR DOCTRINES THE COMMANDMENTS OF MEN.

When our Saviour was upon earth, and residing
amongst the Jews, he had not much to contend
with, of open and avowed irrehgion ; nor was he
surrounded by idolaters ; but he had to contend
against a body of people, who were very strict in
their external duties, and in general very correct in
their creed. This was not indeed the case with
respect to the Sadducees, but it was eminently so as
it regarded the Pharisees, who yet seem to have
been the most constant, and the most bitter, of
our Lord's opponents. It was therefore a matter
of prime importance with him, to shew how wide
is the difference between external forms, and inter-
nal piety ; between a strict and punctihous atten-
tion to ceremonials, and that religion of the heart,
which can alone satisfy the demands of the " God
of the spirits of all flesh." The Jews, indeed,

278 SERMON XVI :

seemed as if they were determined to compel him
to speak upon this subject ; they intruded their
forms, and their ceremonies, and their traditions
upon him, in such a manner as forced him to
shew how far they all fell short of forming a ser-
vice, acceptable to God.

Thus, in the passage before us, they came to our
Lord, and laid a formal charge against his dis-
ciples, who had '' eaten bread" or taken their
meal, without having first complied with the cus-
tom, the religious custom, as they deemed it, of
washing their hands : a practice adopted by the
Jews, not merely as a cleanly habit, but as a sacred
rite. But though many washings and ceremonial
purifications had been instituted by God, when he
gave the law to Moses, this was not one of them.
It was a mere tradition of the elders, which was
exalted by the Pharisees to an equality with the
laws of God ; and thus, that was made a duty,
which God had never commanded, and that was
constituted a sin, which God had never condemned,
displaying an unwarrantable assumption of divine
authority, by vain and fallible man. But it would
have been well had they done nothing worse than
this ; for though they had no authority to make
even such a custom binding on the conscience,
they had still more directly invaded the prerogative
of the Most High, and had " made void the law
of God " by their traditions. Thus, when Jehovah
had said "Honour thy father and thy mother",

MATTHEW XV. 8, 9. 279

and had denounced the punishment of death against
any person who should utter curses against his
parents, and had thereby placed parental authority,
and filial reverence and obedience on the firmest
basis ; these perverters of the truth maintained,
that if any person should choose to dedicate to the
purpose of repairing or beautifying the temple, that
portion of his property, which ought to be given
to relieve the wants of his aged parents, he would
be blameless, even though they should suffer the
greatest distress. All this arose from the habit of
putting the outward shew of piety, in the place of
genuine and practical holiness. Our Lord having
exposed the hypocrisy of the Jews in this instance,
proceeds to apply the words addressed, by the
prophetic spirit, to them by Isaiah, " Ye hypo-
crites, well did Esaias prophesy of you. This
people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth,
and honoureth me with their lips, but their heart
is far from me. But in vain they do worship me,
teaching for doctrines the commandments of men."

My object in the following discourse, will be to
offer some observations, upon the nature and

EFFECTS OF FORMALITY IN RELIGIOUS WORSHIP.

When man was first created, and still bore His
image, after whose likeness he had been formed,
it appears that there existed a free and uncon-
strained intercourse between him and his Creator.
Free and unconstrained however as it was, it no

280 SERMON XVI :

doubt partook of the nature of worship ; and sur-
rounded, as our first parents were, with all that
was necessary to supply every want, and to gratify
every wish ; and strangers, as they were, to pain
and sorrow, and even to the fear and anticipation
of evil, we may suppose that prayer formed some
part of that free intercourse which they held with
their God. It was more like the worship of the
heavenly host ; adoration of the divine glory and
perfection; and grateful acknowledgment of enjoy-
ments and blessedness^ not indeed yet forfeited, but
still unmerited.

Alas ! such communion between the world and
heaven, was soon closed. Yet, through divine
goodness, it was not wholly cut off. Man was
taught, almost immediately after he became a sin-
ner, that he was not to consider himself an utter
outcast from God, and heaven, and happiness;
intimations of mercy were made ; the seed was
promised, which should " bruise the serpent's
head," and be " manifested to destroy the works
of the devil." That promise opened again the
communication between earth and heaven : again
was man invited to draw nigh to God. The inter-
course was, indeed, widely different from that which
subsisted between the holy Creator, and his pure
creature ; — yet, though mingled with awe and fear,
till then unknown, it was hailed as an intercourse
of mercy by fallen Adam and his corrupted chil-
dren ; while, on the other hand, it was on their

MATTHEW XV. 8, 9. 281

part, an act of submission, of reverence, and of
adoration.

That the permission thus to draw nigh to God,
was accepted by man as a token for good — a sort of
recovery of some of the privileges of Paradise, —
we may gather from the readiness with which even
Cain, as well as his more pious brother Abel, came
to present his offering unto the Lord. And we,
in fact, may trace the same feeling, as pervading the
whole human race, in every age and in every
country. However deeply men may be sunk in
ignorance and vice, yet do they all seem to con-
sider it as a privilege, belonging to human nature ;
to offer him some kind of worship ; and to claim
him as their friend in the hour of distress and
alarm. So strongly is this engrafted in the mind,
that even atheism itself cannot resist its impulse.
He who, in the time of prosperity, has boldly said
there is no God ; in sickness, in danger, or when
the hour of death was approaching, has been heard
to call on that very Being, whose existence and
providence he had before denied.

My brethren, is not thiS' a feeling with which
you are all acquainted. I fear I may be speaking
to many, who are practically strangers to all re-
ligion— strangers — entire strangers to all real
prayer, and to all communion with God; and,
now that your health remains unimpaired, and
your means of enjoyment are abundant, stu-
diously neglect every thing of the kind. Yet I

282 SERMON XVI :

verily believe, there is not one, who would not feel
shocked at the idea that he were excluded from
all intercourse with God, and that he would never
be permitted to pray. Nay, I believe that it is
only to some such feeling as I have been speaking
of, that we are to attribute the regularity with
which many attend places of worship ; they cling
to the notion that there is a sort of friendly inter-
course still open between man and God.

Now there can certainly be nothing more pleas-
ing, than to behold a number of people, in decent
order, with devout appearance, assembling them-
selves from time to time, for the avowed purpose
of honouring that God, to whom they are in-
debted for their existence and support, by render-
ing him the glory due unto his name. Nothing
can be conceived more proper — nothing more
beneficial for man, than that an intercourse with
heaven should thus be maintained, in the way
which God himself hath appointed. And again,
when we consider this appointment, as resulting
from the merciful provision which God has made
for reconciling sinners to himself, the sight of
numbers flocking to draw nigh to God in this
manner, would give one a cheering view of the
state of the world ; it would lead one to hope, that
the depravity of man, and the alienation of his
heart from his Maker, was not so great, nor so
deeply seated, as had been represented. Take, for
instance, the present state of this country. We

MATTHEW XV. 8, 9. 283

allow, — we are forced to allow — that there is an
immense mass of wickedness and ungodliness in
every part of it. Yet, look at the multitude of
places of worship which exist in it ; consider how
these are increasing every year ; and reflect again
upon the number of persons, who on every Sunday
are assembled, throughout the kingdom, avowedly to
draw nigh to God, and to honour his holy name.
The impression left upon the mind, after such a
survey, at first might be, that there was a great deal
of religion in the country — that the people had not
departed from the living God — but were disposed
to seek his favour and to serve him. But, my
brethren, how different will be our feelings on
making careful inquiry into the true state of things !
The number of bur places of worship , or even of
those who frequent them ; is, alas ! no distinct
evidence of the number of spiritual worshippers ; —
such " worshippers as the Father seeketh to wor-
ship him." It is true, that where many frequent
the house of God, we have ground to hope that
there are some, who offer him the worship of the
heart ; but there is too much reason to believe, that
the amount of such is comparatively small. Oh !
if all, who attend even here, were such, what a
happy, what a holy place would this be. But
alas ! this is by no means the case, — the text shews
us, what 1 believe many of you feel to be, the real
state of things. " This people draweth nigh unto
me with their mouth, and honoureth me with

284 SERMON XVI :

their lips, but their heart is far from me." This,
I fear, is but too apt a description of what passes
among many for rehgious worship. They seem to
take dehght in approaching unto God ; they
are regular in the external act of devotion ; the
words they employ in their addresses to the throne
of grace are excellent ; and, perhaps, their beha-
viour when in the house of prayer, may be highly
proper. But still there is something wanting ;
the heart is not in it ; the language — the gesture —
the deportment — does not correspond with the feel-
ings of the soul.

Such, our Lord, who searcheth the hearts, de-
clared was the case with the Jews of that gene-
ration ; and they have had many followers and
imitators. But as it may seem harsh and un-
charitable thus to speak of others ; let me beg of
you to pass them by, and turn your attention
wholly to yourselves. Let each one ask himself
what his religious services are ; whether he be a
spiritual, or a formal worshipper. The inquiry is
a very important one — affecting that, on which
our hope of the divine favour, in some sense, de-
pends. If we are spiritual in our worship, if our
hearts are engaged in it, we may expect that our
prayers, and our other religious duties, as means of
grace, will draw down a blessing upon us. If we
are mere formalists, all our services will be of no
avail ; nay, rather will place us farther out of the
way of happiness and peace.

MATTHEW XV. 8, 9. 285

The text suggests to us some matters for serious
inquiry.

1. It tells us of some, whose hearts did not at
all accompany their lips, in their acts of devotion.
This was formality.

How then has it been in this respect with you ?
You have to-day been professedly joining in the beau-
tiful and devout prayers of our church ; you have
been confessing before God, your sinfulness and
misery ; you have been deploring the numberless
transgressions you have committed ; you have ac-
knowledged that by them you have deserved God's
wrath and indignation ; and you have prayed him
to forgive you, and to save your souls from destruc-
tion, not for the sake of your own merits, but for
the sake of that Saviour, whom God, of his infinite
mercy hath '* set forth to be the propitiation for
your sins." And you have further praised and
blessed God for his inestimable love, in the re-
demption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ.
This you have done to-day, and for years past, you
have been in the habit of doing the same ; and
were any one to make objections, you would de-
fend the practice, as both reasonable and scriptural
— a duty which you owe to God, and from which
you look for great and important advantage. So
far is well; you have " drawn nigh to God with
your mouth, and honoured him with your lips."
But the great point is — was all this sincere ; or was
it not in part at least, hypocritical? Your Ian-

286 SERMON XVI :

guage and your deportment shewed that you were
drawing nigh to God ; but are you sure that
" your heart was not far from him ? " Did you
feel the sins you deplored ? Did you lament them
as you professed to do ? Was there that deep
humiliation of heart on account of them, which
your words implied ? And are you quite clear,
that your thoughts were not following other sub-
jects, employed about other things ? Are you
conscious, that there was no insincerity while
you avowed that all your hopes rested upon
Christ, and that you asked for nothing but for his
sake, and in his name, and in dependence on his
merits. If you were indeed drawing nigh to God,
in sincerity and in truth ; if you intended to
honour him with an holy worship; this was the
case. But if your thoughts did not follow
your words ; if they were rambling abroad after
vanity, while your lips pronounced the language
of prayer and praise ; if, while your tongue was
uttering expressions of deep humility, your feelings
were proud and self-confident ; if, w^hile you de-
clared your simple reliance on the merits and
atonement of Christ, you were secretly trusting to
the goodness of your heart, or the excellence of
your life — what can we say but that you were a
formalist — drawing nigh to God with your mouth,
and honouring him with your lips, while your
thoughts and affections were " far from him."
Nay, brethren, if we thus examine carefully into

MATTHEW XV. 8, 9. 287

the nature of our worship, and of all our religious
services, we shall every one, I apprehend, obtain
a much more humbling view of ourselves, and of
our holiest actions, than we are used to take. We
shall find that we have need of mercy, where we
fancied ourselves deserving of favour ; and discover
the want of a Saviour, even where we were ready
to boast of our excellences.

But again,

2. Formality leads a person to employ a
language, and adopt a deportment, when in the
house of God, which is, not only inconsistent with
his feelings at the time when he uses it, but
directly contrary to his habitual life and conduct.

As I have before observed, the mind of man
naturally clings to the idea of having some inter-
course with his Maker, and keeps up an expectation
of some benefit to be derived in this way. Hence
we very often meet with cases of persons of most
manifestly irreligious character, who still pay great
attention to external duties of religion.

Now it may be so, my friends, even almost
unconsciously, with you : and therefore, on this
point, also I would call you to the work of self-
examination. Ask yourselves whether there be
not a clear and manifest inconsistency between
your language and deportment in the house of
God, and your behaviour, temper, and spirit in
other places, and at other times. When you have
been at church, your devout appearance, and

288 SERMON XVI :

language seemed to show, that you were earnestly
engaged in religion, that you feared God, and
desired his favour, that you felt this world was all
vanity, and that you were anxiously employed in
seeking an inheritance in heaven, and in preparing
for it. But, should we find this to be the prevailing
feeling, were we to follow you home, and mark your
conduct, your temper, your language, when in your
family, when pursuing your business, or when in
company ? There are many, I am persuaded, who,
with all the self-flattery they are used to practise,
could by no means bring themselves to believe
that they are, at all, the same manner of persons at
other times, and in other places that they are in
the Church. Indeed, I apprehend that some will
find on examination, that a consciousness of this
want of religion on other days, is the very reason
why they pay the attention they do, to the externals
of it on the Sunday. They indulge the secret hope,
that by attending punctually at the house of God,
they may make up for the deficiency they are
aware of, in their ordinary practice.

Now my brethren, if there be this wide difi'e-
rence between the character which you bear in
your daily walk and conversation, and that which
you assume in the house of God, can we hesitate
to say, that the latter is but a mere form, an exte-
rior show. Can you pretend to deny that you are
exactly described in my text, " This people draw-
eth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth

MATTIIRW XV. 8, 9. 289

me with their hps, but their heart is far from me."
If your heart were right with God, so would your
conduct be, not only on the Lord's day, but on
every day of the week. In that case you would
" set the Lord always before you : " and your aim
would be, whether you ate, or whether you drank,
to do all to the glory of God. And when all this
is wanting, or nearly so, can you imagine that two
or three hours on the Sunday, spent in the out-
ward duties of the Church, can have such a value
as to stamp a new character upon you, and make
you in the sight of God a religious man ; though
your language, and your actions, and your thoughts
are habitually irreligious? Oh, be not deceived in
this manner. All such worship is mere formality.

But I must carry the enquiry a little further.
There are some among you, whose general charac-
ter and deportment is such, that they would not
easily be led to suspect, that it is inconsistent with
their profession and appearance, when engaged in
religious duties. Such have need of a closer kind
of examination, before we can be satisfied that
they are exempt from the formality of which I am
speaking.

While then you are engaged in the worship
which is conducted in our Church, you use the
language of deep humiliation, you declare that you
have erred and strayed from God's w^ays ; that you
have no health or strength in you ; that you are
tied and bound by the chain of your sins : — again

u

290 SERMON XVI :

and again do you speak of yourselves " as miser-
able sinners," and call on God the Father, God
the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, three persons
and one God, to have mercy upon you ; and you
profess that you have no other hope but in that
mercy. Now all this may be either mere formal
compliance with the customs of the Church to
which you belong, or it may result from the deep
feeling of a soul, conscious of its corruption, and
lamenting its sinfulness. If the latter be the case,
these confessions will not only describe your feel-
ings when on your knees in the Church, but those
which are habitual with you : every day, and at all
times, will you feel this humiliation and sorrow.

Again — in these same beautiful services of our
Church, you must have observed how constantly
the Lord Jesus Christ is brought before us, as the
object of our faith, and hope, and love. We are
therein taught, and we avow, that we renounce all
hope from any good works of our own, to trust only
upon him, " who of God is made unto us wisdom,
and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemp-
tion." I scarcely know whether our blessed Lord
be exhibited more prominently, as the only source
of a sinner's hopes, in the services of our Church,
or in those Holy Scriptures from which they bor-
row their language, and on which they ground
their doctrines. Allow me then to ask the mem-
bers of this our Church, whether they enter into
and feel all this? " To you," saith St. Peter,

MATTHEW XV. 8, 9. 291

" that believe, he is precious." The Church takes
it for granted, that her worshippers are what they
profess to be, " believers in the Lord Jesus,'" and
as such, she provides prayers, and praises, and
thanksgiving for their use, all importing that they
do indeed rely upon Christ, that they expect jus-
tification and salvation only through him, that
they seek the help of his grace and Spirit, to enable
them to seek God, and walk in his ways. Now,
my dear friends, do you feel toward this divine
Saviour as, when you join in these services,
you profess to do ? Are you in the habit
of speaking and thinking thus ? Is Christ, and
Christ alone, your hope, your comfort, your salva-
tion ? Are you in heart and soul devoted to him,
and living to his glory ? If you are, then, when
you draw nigh to God in your Saviour's name, and
in reliance on his merits ; you do not honour him
ofily with your hps ; your heart is in the service ;
you worship God as in Christ, with sincerity. But
is there no misgiving of mind among you upon this
point? Is there no one whose conscience tells him,
that though he ended all his petitions, by pleading
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, he never con-
sidered what the Church meant by it, never consi-
dered himself unworthy to approach God, but
through a mediator ; never felt his heart expanded
in love to that Saviour, who came down from
heaven, and bled and died for us men, and our
salvation. What formality, what thoughtlessness,

u 2

292 SERMON XVI :

yea, what hypocrisy there must be in such ser-
vices ! I might lead the enquiry into many
more particulars, but enough has been said to
show you the nature of formality. I will now
conclude my discourse, by saying a very few words,
to show the utter uselessness of such services as
these.

It is not necessary, in fact, to say any thing in
proof of it; every one feels and knows, that such
services cannot be of any value. Had we a man to do
with as our judge, such services might perhaps avail.
He could look only at the outward appearance, and
when that bore the stamp of seriousness and devo-
tion, and the words employed were holy and good,
nothing more could be demanded. But He who
will accept, or reject our services, is he " who
searcheth the heart, and require th truth in the
inward parts." And what honour will he esteem
done to him by the excellence of our language, or
the devoutness of our looks, when he sees that our
thoughts are fixed on other objects, that our words
do not utter the language of our hearts, but
express ideas we feel not, and refer to doctrines
we believe not. Is not this worse than offering
the blind and lame in sacrifice, which of old drew
down a curse from Jehovah on the guilty deceiver
who did so ! All such heartless worship is vain, and
vain are all the expectations which men ground
on such useless, empty, religious ceremonies ;
they will bring down no pardon of sin from God's

MATTHEW XV. 8, 9, 293

mercy, no supplies of grace to serve him, no
cheering hope of heavenly joys, nor even present
comfort to om- souls. And how awful must be
the case of that man whose very prayers are vain !
are even turned into sin, by their heartlessness,
a mere lip labour, a taking of God's name in vain.
Yet may not many fear, that up to the present
hour, they have never offered any better service
than that which the text condemns ? "Be not
deceived, God is not mocked. Whatsoever a man
soweth, that shall he also reap."

Let us look back, my brethren, with shame, on
our formal, empty services ; let us seek the for-
giveness even of our holy things; let us beg of
God to pour on us the spirit of prayer and suppli-
cation, that so we may escape the doom of dissem-
blers with Him.

SERMON XVII.

JOHN ix. 35.

DOST THOU BELIEVE ON THE SON OF GOD?

The narrative, of which these words form a part, is
highly interesting. Our Lord had met with a man
who was born blind ; and had conferred upon him
not only the power of vision, but the ability of at
once employing the newly acquired faculty. A
miracle so remarkable, probably the first of the
kind that Jesus had performed, excited much at-
tention, and produced, we may suppose, a convic-
tion in the minds of many, that he was indeed the
promised Messiah. The rulers of the Jews, dread-
ing the increase of our Lord's influence among
the people, had the man brought before them,
with the intention, as they professed, of enquiring
into the truth of the miracle ; but in reality, with
the design of finding some pretext for pronouncing
it an imposture. In this, however, they com-
pletely failed. The man replied to some of their
insidious and captious enquiries, by the plain and
simple declaration, " this one thing I know, that

JOHN IX. 35. iDi)

whereas I was blind, now I see." The change had
been effected by "a man called Jesus," and since
it never had been heard that any one had opened
the eves of a person born blind, he concluded,
from what he had experienced, that he who had
done this must be from God. Baffled in their
design by this simple argument, yet in no degree
disposed to admit, that Jesus of Nazareth was from
heaven, they vented their anger upon the man,
whose eyes had been opened. They told him that
" he was altogether born in sin," and asked if he
would presume to " teach," or dictate to them :
and forthwith put him out of the synagogue, as
an excommunicated person.

Our Lord, having been told of the treatment
which the poor man had received from the Scribes
and Pharisees, went out to seek him, and having
found him, he put to him the question forming
our text, " Dost thou believe in the Son of God ?"

This question, in itself a very simple one, in-
volves in it subjects of the deepest interest, to
everyone of us. I propose then,

I. To MAKE SOME REMARKS UPON ITS SCOPE;

and

II. To CONSIDER THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING
ABLE TO ANSWER IT IN A SATISFACTORY MANNER.

I. Let US, then, consider the scope of our
Lord's question.

The man to whom the enquiry was primarily

296 SERMON XVII :

addressed, had some faint and inadequate no-
tions of the dignity and power of him who had
opened his eyes. He declared his conviction that
Jesus was " a prophet," that he must be " from
God," or otherwise he would be able to do no-
thing. Still, however, his conceptions of our
Lord's character and powers were very low, for he
did not know whether he was " a sinner " or not,
though this one thing he knew, that whereas he
himself had been blind, he then could see.

Here was then a grievous deficiency in know-
ledge and acquaintance with spiritual things. He
did not really as yet believe in Christ, because he
did not know him ; he had not heard of him, or
been instructed in the things which related to his
everlasting peace. Yet still, deficient as was his
knowledge, we discover traces of a right state of
mind ; there was a disposition to embrace the
truth, wherever it might be found. Our Lord puts
the question to him, that he might be made to feel
his ignorance, and apply for instruction ; and, con-
scious of his ignorance, he did immediately apply
for instruction, " who is he, Lord, that I might
believe on him ? " And no sooner did Christ assure
him, that he, who was then speaking to him, was
the Son of God, than he felt the full force of the
miracle which had been wrought on him, as de-
monstrating the truth of our Lord's declaration, and
cried, " Lord, I believe; and worshipped him."
The question, as addressed to a Jew, was in fact

JOHN IX. 35. 297

this, " Dost thou believe that Jesus of Nazareth
is the true Messiah — the Son of God — the Sa-
viour of the world — Emmanuel, God with us ?
Dost thou recognize in him all those excellences
which were to characterise the long promised
Redeemer, in whom all nations were to be blessed ;
and whom Isaiah announced as the " child born,"
vet the " mighty God, the everlasting Father, the
Prince of Peace, of whose government and do-
minion there would be no end." The Christian
beholds all this in him, who was once " despised
and rejected of men," when he took upon him
the form of a servant, and appeared in the like-
ness of man. — The Jew denies all this, he says
that Jesus was a deceiver, that his nation did right
in condemning him to die, and that all who
worship him as God, are guilty of idolatry. But
it would not be at all to our profit, to follow out
the argument as relates to the Jews, on whose
heart " the veil still remains untaken away."

The question " Dost thou believe in the Son of
God ? " as addressed to the members of a Christian
congregation, assumes a very different aspect, and
gives rise to enquiries of a very different nature.
Were we indeed to give full credit to all that passes,
in the course of the services of our own Church, we
should without hesitation say, it was answered, as
regards all its members ; for all in the most
open manner avow, that they do believe in the
Son of God — in all that he did on earth — in all

298 SERMON XVII :

he now does in heaven, for us men and for our
salvation. But alas ! declarations of this sort, are
frequently made with little consideration, and often
in total ignorance of the matter to which they
relate. It becomes then the duty of the ministers
of the Church, to call the attention of the people to
their own avowal ; to enquire how far they under-
stand and believe their own creeds, and really
mean what they say. It will not therefore be un-
seasonable to apply the text in this manner. You
have, my brethren, to-day said ' I believe in Jesus
Christ his only Son our Lord.' — And again you
said, ' I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only
begotten Son of God.' Now I ask, and I would
have each one seriously ask himself, whether he
has ever well weighed and considered his own
words ? — whether he understands them ? — whether
he does heartily and cordially believe them ?

I . You have said that you ' believe in the only
begotten Son of God, begotten of his Father be-
fore all worlds — that he was very God of very
God ' — that by him all things were made ; in
short, that before he appeared as an inhabitant
of this lower world, he was one with the Father,
by an indissoluble union, and possessed of all the
power and attributes of the Deity ! I do not wish
to lead you into any nice and abstruse speculations,
on points, whereon men may easily wish to know
more than God has revealed, and more than their
finite powers can enable them to comprehend ;

JOHN IX. 35. 299

but our Lord lias declared " that all men should
honour the Son even as they honour the Father
that sent hhn," and again, " he that honoureth
not the Son, honoureth not the Father," and of
course can be no true and acceptable worshipper
of God. The whole Scripture teaches us, that
Christ, as the Son of God, is himself the proper
object of our love, adoration, and obedience ; and
the Church of England absolutely requires her
ministers, and all her members, to maintain the
deity of Christ, as an essential part of the Catholic
faith. It becomes then a matter of serious enquiry,
whether you receive this doctrine of the Scripture
and of the Church, and are satisfied that he whom
we call our Lord and Saviour, is indeed, " the
brightness of his Father's glory, the express image
of his person, and upholdeth all things by the
word of his power? "

" Dost thou believe in the Son of God ? " also,
as having come into the world in human nature,
and suffered and died, in order that he might save
mankind from everlasting misery ? This is the
very foundation of Christianity as a religion ; but
for this, the gospel would be nothing, — the very
word would never have existed. It means good
tidings — the " glad tidings of great joy, which are
to all people," because that " to them is born a
Saviour, which is Christ the Lord — the Lord of
heaven and of earth, of angels and of men. If no
Saviour had been born, no such good tidings had

300 SERMO'N XVII :

ever been heard. Man would have received with-
out mitigation or rescue, the whole penalty of his
sins. But the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son
of the Father, came on an errand of boundless
mercy and compassion. He came to satisfy the
divine justice, and to put honour on the law, by
bearing the punishment due to transgression. Thus
he was made an expiation — an atonement — a satis-
faction for the sins of the whole world ; thus did
he taste death for every man, and become the
author of eternal life, to all that believe.

Now my brethren, let me ask you, whether you
truly and sincerely believe all this. Is your expec-
tation of everlasting life grounded on this ? Is
this the foundation of all your hopes of eternal
happiness, and of deliverance from guilt and sin ?

This leads us to a second subject of enquiry
relative to the text. There is something peculiar
in the expression, " Believing on the Son of God."
There are a multitude of facts of various kinds,
confirmed to us by testimony which we cannot
doubt ; these facts we believe, yet we should not
think of saying, we believe on them. This is the
peculiar term employed relative to that faith which
the true Christian places on the Son of God. It is a
faith, implying confidence and dependence on him
and his work. Were there among the children of
Adam, any who did not share in the effects of his
fall, whose hearts were not corrupted, whose prac-
tice was free from the least violation of the divine

JOHN IX. 35. 301

law, and who, as the natural consequence, feared no
condemnation, and needed no Saviour ; should
such sinless beings hear the gospel of Christ, and
read the records of God's love toward their fallen
brethren, they would believe, admire, and adore :
but they would not believe on the Son of God ;
they would see in the gospel nothing that con-
cerned them, though it was "a saying worthy of
all acceptation " to every individual under heaven
but themselves. Now, brethren, I fear that many
of those who repeat the creed with confidence, and
think themselves firmly established in the Christian
faith, so forget their own state and circumstances,
as only to believe the gospel, as these holy and
sinless beings would believe and admire it, while
they had no concern in it. And I fear that they
put this kind of belief, in the place of that,
whereby God purifies the heart, and whereby we
overcome sin, and the world, and are made par-
takers of all the blessings the Saviour came to
bestow, as the purchase of his blood. But when
the question is put to us, " Dost thou believe on
the Son of God ? " it is addressed to us as sinners
in danger of eternal woe, but who are informed
that there is, in the Son of God, full pardon and
complete deliverance to be obtained, and that there
is no other foundation, on which man can ground
a hope of everlasting life. And the question is
not generally, dost thou believe this — but dost thou
believe on it, so as simply to trust your soul's

302 SERMON XVII :

everlasting interests to Christ, the Son of God.
Do you believe on his atonement, so as to expect
that for the sake of it, and of it alone, your sins
shall be pardoned and you shall be accepted of
God, and accounted righteous before him, and so
receive the reward of righteousness ? Do you so
believe in Christ, as he is now the intercessor and
advocate of his people, as to feel satisfied that he
will keep that which we have committed to him till
that day, when he will come to be our judge ; and
is it in this confidence, and in this alone, without
any reliance on yourselves, or on your good works,
that you mean to abide till death ; fully satisfied
that this simple dependence on the Son of God, is
the only effectual preparation you can make for
another world ? If so, then it may be said that
you " believe on the Son of God." You not only
give some general credit to those doctrines which
the Scriptures contain, relating to what Christ
accomplished by coming into the world, but you
make those doctrines the basis, the foundation of
your hopes. What important consequences will
result from thus believing on the Son of God, I
shall endeavour to show in the sequel of my dis-
course ; but I now wish to impress upon your
minds, that this simple and complete reliance upon
the Saviour, is the only thing that amounts to
"believing on the Son of God." And I would
urge you to enter upon a serious and impartial
examination of yourselves on this essential point.

JOHN IX. 35. 303

Most essential it certainly is ; for if the view I
have given of the matter be correct, and according
to the Scriptures, very much of that, which often
passes for faith, and believing on the Son of God,
will be found delusion ; and many who have said
that they believed on Christ, will appear to have
possessed a faith which is dead, being alone.

Oh, let us, my brethren, pray constantly and
fervently, that we may not err in this matter. If
we do not receive Christ as he is revealed ; if we
do not rely upon him, and give him our full and
undivided confidence ; committing our immortal
spirits into his hands, as " able to save to the
uttermost, " all them that come to God by him,"
we may come short of eternal life, while we think
ourselves most staunch supporters of the faith of
the gospel.

I will now pass on

II. To SHEW THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING
ABLE TO GIVE A SATISFACTORY ANSWER TO THE
QUESTION OF OUR TEXT.

That there is some lamentable deficiency in the
religion of many professors, is manifest from the
circumstance of there appearing to be no result —
nothing following from it. There is no perceivable
difference between them, and others who reject all
the doctrines they hold, and deny every article of
their creed. Surely, my brethren, this ought not
to be the case ; surely the difference between a

304 SERMON XVII :

believer and an unbeliever, between a man who is
a Christian, and a man who is not, should be
something distinct and apparent. Religion is a
plant that never can grow and flourish without
producing some fruit. The faith of which the
scriptures say so much, is always represented as an
efficacious principle, implanted in the soul.

If then, my brother, thou dost truly believe
in the Son of God, the effect will be seen in
various ways.

First, it will produce in thee a serious diligence
and activity, in every part of thy religion.

Nothing can be more clear than that many who
yet seem to think themselves religious, shew very
little seriousness and anxiety about religion. It
receives a sort of formal attention on the Sunday,
and, perhaps, on a few other occasions ; but be-
yond this, it is little noticed. There is a general
coldness to the subject ; it is scarcely ever touched
upon in conversation, unless it be to raise an
argument, or to afford the opportunity of railing
at the enthusiasm and bigotry of those who feel
more than themselves, and act more decidedly than
they do, on this all-important subject. Now I do
not hesitate to say, that all this cold indifference
results from want of faith, and will always be
done away, where a person does truly " believe
in the Son of God." This chilling state of
heart on religious matters, arises from the want of
just ideas of the evil of sin, — of the danger of the

JOHN IX. 35. 305

sinner — of the difficulty of his salvation — and of
the dreadful consequences of a failure. I appeal
to you, brethren, if it be not so ; you know how
little these subjects interest the feelings, or awaken
the fears of most men.

But where shall we learn the evil of sin, and the
danger of a sinner, as we learn them, by calling to
mind the agonies the Son of God endured, when
" the Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all"?
Where shall we so behold the difficulty of sal-
vation, as when we look to the Son of God " pour-
ing out his soul unto death and making interces-
sion for the transgressors," that they might not
reap the reward of their deeds. Where shall we
better perceive the dreadful consequences of
perishing among the unbelievers, than by behold-
ing the anguish of the Redeemer, when the
punishment of sin, only for a few hours, rested
upon him? Oh, my brethren, let us but once
look by real faith to the Son of God, bearing the
divine wrath for us, and all these things will be
so impressed upon us, as to effectually remove the
cold insensibility which by nature rests upon us.
Then our religion will assume a warmth and vigour
to which we have hitherto been strangers. We
shall not fear the reproach of singularity, nor the
imputation of enthusiasm ; but we shall sanctify
the Lord God in our hearts, and let him be our
fear. We shall " not labour for the meat that perish-
eth,but for that meat which endureth unto eternal

X

306 SERMON XVII :

life." We shall " work out our own salvation with
fear and trembling," and " count all things but
loss that we may win Christ and be found in him."
To him that believeth in the Son of God, all else
appears as nothing, less than nothing, and vanity,
compared with the great object which Christ came
into the world to accomplish — the salvation of the
never-dying soul of guilty man. This faith infuses
earnestness into our prayers, and puts life into every
Christian ordinance. Yes ! it is the believer on
the Son of God who "pours out his soul before
the Lord" in secret, and wrestles, like Jacob, to
obtain the blessing, which saves from sin and
death and hell. It is he that believeth on the Son
of God, who does not forsake or negligently at-
tend the public services of the Church ; but waits
on the Lord in them, that he may "renew his
strength " for running the race set before him.
It is the believer on the Son of God, who with
humble faith draws near to the table of his Master
and only Saviour who died for him, to commemo-
rate his unspeakable love, and afresh to seek those
benefits, which, by his precious blood-shedding he
hath obtained for us. It is the want of faith on
the Son of God, prevailing, alas ! to a lamentable
degree among the population of all our towns and
villages, that too often makes our congregations
so small, and our services so cold and lifeless.

" Dost thou then believe on the Son of God ? "
Canst thou trace out these evidences of genuine

JOHN IX. 35. 307

faith ? Is thy heart thus warmed with a lively ap-
prehension, and feeling view, of the importance of
reliffion, and of all that relates to it? If it be not
so, call not thyself a disciple — a believer on the
Son of God.

But, secondly, the effects and consequences of
the faith, of which I have been speaking, will be
clearly discerned in the conduct and character.

We sometimes speak of Christ having come
into the world, to accomplish the salvation of
mankind, in a general way, having our minds only
occupied with what shall take place hereafter ;
but we must not forget that this salvation is pre-
sent as well as future. The captain of our salva-
tion was made " perfect through suffering," that he
might "bring many sons to glory:" but still
they are here " prepared afore unto glory." ^ And
this preparation is present holiness — the purifica-
tion of their hearts through faith, the sanctification
of their nature by the truth; they are " predesti-
nated to be conformed to the image of Christ." 2

*' Dost thou believe on the Son of God ? " then
a great and manifest change has been effected in
thee : thou art in Christ a new creature ; thou art
one who denieth ungodHness and worldly lusts, and
liveth soberly, righteously, and godly in this present
world. " Dost thou believe on the Son of God? "
then thou lovest him, and keepest his command-

^ Heb. ii. 10. Rom. ix. -23. - Rom. viii. 29.

X 2

308 SERMON XVII :

ments ; and though these commandments may
call thee to self-denial, and to take up thy cross
and to follow Christ, yet still they are not grievous,
but the joy of thy heart. " Dost thou believe on
the Son of God ? " then thou art one who hath
overcome the world, and is no more enslaved by
its customs, and its fashions, and its false prin-
ciples, by the desire of its smiles, or the fear of its
frowns, or by wishes for its luxuries and indul-
gences, its riches or its honours ; thy affections
are set on the things that are above, where
Christ sitteth at the right hand of God. "Dost
thou believe on the Son of God?" then art thou
copying his example, treading in his steps, and
studying to become daily more like him, in holi-
ness of heart, in purity of conversation, in blame-
lessness of life.

Such are some of the visible results of that faith
on the Son of God, of which we have been speak-
ing. Now let me ask, my brethren, whether you
can say that such effects are to be found in you ?
This is the touchstone to which you must bring
your profession of the Christian religion. If effects
like these have been produced, then may you hope
that you have not believed in vain. But if not,
the danger is great of your being " weighed in the
balance and found wanting."

But from considering these visible effects of
believing on the Son of God, let me lead you to
some others, which are very different in their

JOHN IX. 35. 309

nature, but equally important, though, in some
degree, themselves objects of faith.

" Dost thou believe on the Son of God ? " Is
it so, that after thou hast communed with thine
own heart, and thy spirit hath made diligent search,
thou canst say, "Lord, I believe?" Then may
we pronounce thee a happy man. It may be thy
lot to be poor, or sick, or oppressed with family
sorrows and cares ; thy way may be hedged up with
thorns, and thy worldly prospects dark and gloomy :
thy spiritual trials also may be great, and Satan
may be permitted to assault thee wdth many and
painful temptations : yet, as a partaker of faith,
precious faith, thou art still a happy man ; thy
hope is fixed on an unseen but Almighty Saviour,
w^ho declares, " he that believeth on me shall never
perish," and " none shall pluck him out of my
hand."

" Dost thou believe on the Son of God," then
are thy sins all forgiven thee ; they no more shall
have dominion over thee, but thou shalt be made
triumphant over them all. The days also of thy
mourning shall soon be ended. Death shall come,
not as the king of terrors, but despoiled of his
sting ; nay, like a friend, w^ho shall put a final
period to all thy sorrows, and lead thee to that
eternal rest, that heavenly kingdom, that habitation
in thy Father's house, which the Saviour on whom
thou hast believed, is gone before to prepare for
thee; to that " inheritance incorruptible, undefiled.

310 SERMON XVII :

and that fadeth not away," for which thou art now
" kept by the power of God, through faith unto
salvation."

How happy, how unspeakably happy is the man
who is partaker of this precious faith ! And
how important therefore, my brethren, that we
should carefully attend to the apostle's exhortation,
" Examine yourselves whether ye be in the faith,
prove your own selves." Consider for a moment
what must be the result if we are not. If thou
believe not on the Son of God, thou hast no
share in all the blessings that he was manifested
to bestow. If thou art an unbeliever, if Christ be
not " precious " to thee, if thou dost not " live a
life of faith in the Son of God," thou art still an
unpardoned sinner, thy transgressions are all still
recorded against thee, nay, more than this, thy
condemnation will specially result from the very
circumstance, that thou hast not " believed on the
Son of God."

Oh then, dear brethren, let us not for one
moment leave the important question undecided ;
either we are believers or we are unbelievers. The
difference, is the difference between being the
servant of God, and the servant of Satan ; between
a pardoned sinner, and a sinner unpardoned ;
between an heir of heaven, and an heir of hell.
" He that belie veth on him is not condemned,
but he that believeth not, is condemned already,
because he hath not believed in the name of the

JOHN IX. 35. 311

only-begotten Son of God." " He that believeth
on the Son hath everlasting life, and he that
believeth not the Son, shall not see life, but the
wrath of God abideth on him." ^

> John iii. 18, 36.

SERMON XVIII.

GALATIANS i. 4.

WHO GAVE HIMSELF FOR OUR SINS, THAT HE MIGHT DELIVER
US FROM THIS PRESENT EVIL WORLD, ACCORDING TO THE
WILL OF GOD AND OUR FATHER.

There are some topics in religion, to which we
shall have occasion continually to advert. They
are to our system, as the foundation to the
building ; every thing rests upon them ; if they
be removed, the whole falls to the ground,
and becomes worthless. And it is well worth
while, occasionally to compare our views of re-
ligion, with those which are given us in the Scrip-
tures, in order to ascertain whether we attach a
sufficient degree of importance to those points,
which are made thus prominent and influential in
the inspired volume. If this be not the case, the
danger is great of our laying another foundation
than that which God has laid ; or even if this be
not so, we shall be found raising a superstructure
of "wood, hay or stubble," instead of "gold,
silver, and precious stones." So that though we

GALATIANS I. 4. 313

may " be saved as by fire," our " work will be
burned" and we ** shall suffer loss."^

There are several of these essential points ; but
that which gives name and character to our re-
ligion, is the work and office of the Son of God :
the very expression, Christianity, imports that
Christ is the grand subject, the foundation of the
whole ; the preaching of the gospel, is called
" preaching Christ." But it is still more dis-
tinctive,— it refers to the peculiar w^ork of Christ ;
his giving-himself for us ; his suffering and dying,
for us men, and for our salvation. Hence the
Apostles not only preach Christ, but Christ cru-
cified. And this gave character to their sermons,
though it was, " to the Jews a stumbling block,
and to the Greeks foolishness ; " for so important
was this point, that the reception, or rejection of
it, made all the difference, between those who were
saved, and those who were lost. " The preaching
of the cross is to them that perish, foolishness ;
but unto us which are saved, it is the power of
God." ^ However little a person may be in the
habit of attentively reading the Scriptures, he must
have observed that this subject is continually
brought forward by the Apostles, and that an
essential prominence and importance is given to it.
But, my brethren, the world has undergone no
change ; men are still lost and ruined by trans-

' I Cor. iii. 12—15. - 1 Cor. i. 18.

314 SERMON XVIII: *

gression ; they still want a Saviour, and the only-
Saviour is the Lord Jesus Christ. His sufferings
and death are as much the means of salvation noWy
as they were of old ; the same gospel ought to be
preached to people in the present day, and in the
same manner, as was preached by the Apostles.
Still, " he that believeth on the Son of God hath
everlasting life ; but he that believeth not, shall not
see life." We ought therefore in our ministry, to ad-
vert to this all important subject, in the same manner
that St. Paul and the other Apostles did ; if we, do
not do this, we do not preach the gospel as we ought.
I have been led into these remarks, by reflecting
upon the manner in which the text is introduced
by St. Paul. He commences his epistle to the
Galatian church, in his accustomed manner, by
wishing the blessings of grace and peace, from
God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ ; — but,
no sooner had he mentioned the Redeemer's name,
than all that he hath done for us sinners, imme-
diately rushed into his mind, and he adds in the
language of holy exultation and gratitude — " Who
gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us
from this present evil world, according to the will
of God and our Father." Let us endeavour to
make the Apostle's feelings our own, and pray that
with him we may be enabled to say, " God forbid
that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord
Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto
me, and I unto the world."

GALATIANS I. 4. 315

In speaking further on the passage before us, I
propose to follow the order in which the words occur.

I. We have A most important and interst-

ING FACT stated.

So important, so interesting, and at the same
time, so astonishing is this fact, that were we not
accustomed to hear of it, and to speak of it as a
thins: with which we have been familiar from our
childhood, we could not read the text without
wonder and amazement. A Personage is spoken
of, so high in dignity, and so exalted in glory, as
to be joined with God the Father, in conferring the
blessings of grace and peace ; and as such, the
object to whom the Apostle hesitated not to offer
his prayer. Yet we are told that " he gave him-
self for us." What, we must be ready to ask, can
this mean ? The information afforded us in other
parts of Scripture is calculated to increase our dif-
ficulty ; for there we learn, that when he gave him-
self for us, he quitted the throne of his glory ; he
laid aside all his majesty ; he left the bosom of his
Father, and the adoring hosts of cherubim and
seraphim ; and was made in the likeness of man,
and took upon him the form of a servant, and be-
came the object of the world's execration and con-
tempt ; and wandered about as a homeless stran-
ger ; doing good indeed, wherever he went, yet
always treated with scorn and hatred ; till at length,
amidst every circumstance of internal anguish, and

316 SERMON XVIII :

external suffering, he was nailed as a malefactor to
the cross ; and there expired, as rejected and
accursed, both of heaven and earth. Yet the
language of the text assures us, that all this was
voluntary ; other passages teach us that the Father
loved us, and " spared not his own Son, but freely
gave him up for us all ; " but here we see that of
his own free-will, Christ submitted to all he had to
endure — " He gave himself;" his will was in per-
fect accordance with the will of the Father : " God
so loved the world, as to give his only begotten
Son," and the Son so loved the world as to give
himself for its salvation and deliverance.

But again, the text adds another circumstance
suited to excite still higher admiration and won-
der. When we read of the Son of God giving
himself for men, we should naturally suppose that
it was for such of our race, (if such could be found)
as were recommended to his kind regard, by the
peculiar excellency of their character ; such as
shared in the calamity which the fall of Adam had
entailed upon mankind, while they were free from
the corruption that had spread over the world, and
brought this suffering and woe on the descendants
of the first transgressor. But neither Scripture
nor reason lead us to believe that there are any
persons thus circumstanced ; we read of no inno-
cent sufferers, except indeed we choose to consider
as such, the infants on whom pain and death have
come, though they have "not sinned after the

GALATIANS I. 4. 317

similitude of Adam's transgression." All others
suffer, because they are actually sinners ; and
till they fear with regard to the future, is the just
reward of their deeds. There was then no reason
of this sort, to induce the Son of God to give him-
self for us ; the language of the text indeed, fully
removes all idea of the kind ; it says, " He gave
himself for our sins ; " it does not say, for our
distress, or for our misery, or danger ; there would
be indeed truth in that, but it goes at once to the
root of all our fears, distresses, and dangers, " for
our sins." Sin had brought us into a state of the
most awful wretchedness ; it had darkened all our
prospects for eternity ; it had left us nothing, " but
a fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indig-
nation," that would consume us, both body and
soul for ever ; — every hope was blasted ; every
effort we could maake to rescue ourselves, was utterly
unavailing ; — death was approaching, and with it,
all the horrors of condemnation. Such was the
state of all men, a state of utter despair. O, my
brethren, meditate I pray you upon the dreadful
condition, into which sin had plunged our race;
apply it to yourselves. Such a helpless and hope-
less condition would you be in, if the Son of God
had not given " himself for our sins ;" and such
is still your condition, if you are treating, as I fear
many do, the offers of his love and mercy, with
careless indifference, or contemptuous disregard.
But what are we to understand by the words,

318 SERMON XVIII :

" who gave himself for our sins?" Picture to
yourselves a malefactor, condemned, justly con-
demned, to die for his crime ; but when the sen-
tence is about to be carried into effect, a person
high in rank, and unimpeachable in character, comes
forward, and says, * Let that man go free ; he
deserves to die, but I will give myself for his
crimes ; I will bear the penalty which the laws
denounce against him ; I will suffer, the just for
the unjust, that so the guilty may escape, and for
my sake the King may pardon him, and receive
him into his favour.' What this kind and excel-
lent person does for the single criminal, that the
Lord Jesus Christ hath done for the whole world.
All were condemned to die eternally ; the law they
had broken was holy, just, and good ; the sentence
was righteous, but it would sink the sinner into
utter and everlasting destruction. But the Son of
God gave himself for our sins, he died that we
might live ; on the cross, he bore the wrath of
God in our stead : — " he suffered, the just for the
unjust, that he might bring us unto God." He
was so great, so glorious a person, that there was
no need for him thus to die for each, whom he
would save out of our guilty race. The sufferings
of the Son of God were so infinitely precious, that
there was no limit to their value and efficacy. He
could taste death for every man. He could give
his life a ransom for many. He was " the Lamb
of God that taketh away the sin of the world."

GALATIANS I. 4. 319

" By his one oblation of himself once offered, he
hath perfected for ever, them that are sanctified."
This, brethren, is the way, in which God has been
pleased to save our ruined race. " He so loved
the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that
whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life." *

The great question now, with regard to each of
us, is, " Dost thou believe on the Son of God? "
True, indeed, he gave himself for our sins, but ere
we can derive any advantage from this, we must
believe so as to apply to him for the benefit, which
by his precious blood-shedding he hath obtained
for us. It is true, that the death of Christ was
sufficient to procure pardon for all the sins of the
whole world, and that on this ground the ofi^er of
pardon and salvation is made to every individual ;
but that offer will be of no avail to those, who do
not accept it. And since none will accept a gra-
tuitous forgiveness, but those who feel that their
transgressions are inexcusable, and who are sorry
for their disobedience : so we are taught that it
will be bestowed on none but such as, repenting of
their sins, and believing in the Lord Jesus Christ,
come to God through him, for deliverance from
that wrath which they have deserved.

My dear friends, let me beseech you not " to
stumble at this stumbling-stone." The wicked

' John iii.

320 SERMON XVIII :

heart of man is not easily brought to sorrow over
sin. The proud nature of man is most unwilling to
believe, that salvation can only be obtained for the
sake of what another has done and suffered, and
not by any works of righteousness which he him-
self has performed, or can perform. But God has
purposely arranged it so ; no sin shall be pardoned
but that which is repented of, and even then, it
will only be forgiven for the sake of what the
Saviour has done and suffered. Oh ! take heed
not to attempt to " lay another foundation, than
that which God has laid ; " not to rest on any other
hope, than that " Christ gave himself for our sins."
Our text declares

II. That Christ gave himself for our sins, that

HE MIGHT DELIVER US FROM THIS PRESENT EVIL
WORLD.

Hitherto I have only led you to consider the
Son of God, as giving himself for us, that he might
make an atonement for our sin, and so deliver us
from the condemnation which we have deserved,
and procure for us admission into the kingdom of
heaven. But the Scriptures teach us to take a
much more extensive view of the objects which he
gave himself to effect. We are told that " he gave
himself for us, that he might redeem us from all
iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people,
zealous of good works." ^ A sinful nature is like a

1 Tit\isii. 14,

GALATIANS I, 4. 321

diseased body, it renders the suflFerer wretched, and
unfits him for the enjoyments of hfe, and the
society of those who are in health. Could you
procure a pardon for a criminal condemned to die,
and send him from the prison, labouring under
some loathsome and painful disease, you would do
but little for him. Such is the state of the sinner.
He is infected with a loathsome disease ; a disease
represented in the Scriptures, by that most dis-
gusting of all maladies, the leprosy : such is sin !
it corrupts and defiles both body and soul. To
give pardon to a sinner, and leave him under the
dominion of this disease, would afford him little
comfort, and no enjoyment. To say to a sinner,
your sins are forgiven, but you shall remain under
their dominion, and be still the same wicked crea-
ture that you have been ; you shall be admitted
into heaven, but you shall enter there the same
proud, rebellious, malicious being that you are,
having the same corrupt heart, the same enmity to
God, the same dislike to holiness ; — what would
such pardon be worth? The sinner would indeed
be redeemed from hell, but he would carry a hell
within him, which would render him miserable,
amidst the joys of heaven. But nothing so unholy
as man unrenewed, shall ever enter there. Heaven
is the abode of a holy God, of a holy Saviour, of
holy angels ; an unholy being shall never be
admitted into such society.

Man therefore, as a sinner in heart, as well as

Y

322 SERMON XVIII :

practice, wants something more than pardon and
justification ; and when the Son of God gave him-
self to be the Saviour of the world, he undertook
more than merely to pardon the sinner. " He
gave himself for us, to redeem us from all iniquity."
He bursts the bonds, in which sin holds us all as
his slaves, and gives us liberty. He takes the
hard and wicked heart away, and gives the heart
of flesh — tender, feeling, and holy. He makes
those who are in him new creatures, partakers of
a new, yea a "divine nature;" and the nature
being thus restored to the image of God, a life of
purity, and holiness, and good works, is the neces-
sary consequence.

But the passage before us puts the subject in a
light somewhat different, though the grand outline
is the same. "He gave himself for us, that he
might deliver us from this present evil world,"

What havoc, brethren, has sin produced ! The
world as God made it, was pronounced " very
good," and man who was to inhabit it, was made at
first in the " image of God." But so is it altered
and defiled by sin ; so dangerous has it become to
those who are passing through it ; that it is
declared to be one of the grand objects for which
Christ came, to deliver his people from this present
evil world. And how necessary this is, we may
judge, for the pen of inspiration hath recorded
the awful fact, that " If any man love the world,
the love of the Father is not in him." And again

GALATIANS I. 4. 323

it is said, " The friendship of the world is enmity
with God ? whosoever therefore will be a friend of
the world, is the enemy of God." ^

Yet, wicked as the world is, wicked as we know
it to be, still it exercises a most extraordinary
power and dominion over us. We know not how
to bear its frowns, or to resist its smiles. Its sooth-
ing: blandishments allure us with an almost irresis-
tible power ; and its contempt and reproach,
seem intolerable. How rarely do we meet with
a man, who dares to be singular, and to refuse
compliance with the customs or the solicitations
of that little world in which he moves, even w^ien
he knows that present sin, and future unhappiness,
must be the consequence. How few, I say, dare to
be thus singular, and resist the world for the sake
of keeping a conscience void of offence. Dare we,
my brethren, thus act ? What does the history of
our past life testify on this point. I will not lead
you far back, I only ask you to review more recent
times ; times when religious convictions have had
some place in your minds. Have you dared to
follow those convictions, in the face of your irre-
ligious friends ? When they have laughed at you,
and ridiculed you for being scrupulous, have you
not feared their sneers and mockings, more than
you feared the wrath of God ? There are some
amongst us, I doubt not, who need look but little
l)ack, to learn how feeble they are, and what a

' Jolin ii. 1.3. .lames iv. 4.
Y 1

324 SRRMON XVIII :

dangerous and powerful enemy they have, in this
present evil world. Oh ! how many would now
be in the way to heaven, instead of being in the
broad road to destruction, if they dared but to
follow conscience, in opposition to the maxims of
this evil world.

But, powerful as is this source of evil, and strong
as is the influence it exerts over us, it must be
overcome, or we shall have our portion with it.
Its customs must be broken through, where they
are contrary to God's word ; its practices must be
renounced — its temper and spirit must be laid
aside, or we must be content to be numbered for
ever among the enemies of God. Of no avail is
it to speak of the power which it exercises over
us all. True, that power is immense, but, it is
opposed to the authority of God. We may choose
to which we will submit, but we cannot be subject
to both. " No man can serve two masters." " Ye
cannot serve God and Mammon." Free as is
the salvation of the Gospel, it is not made
thus free, in order to enable us to live in a
worldly spirit, and walk in a worldly course ; and
spend our time and money in a worldly manner,
and then, having been joined with the world all
our lives, just to be separated from it at the last
hour. No, the separation must take place now ;
the command is, " Come out and be separate, and
touch not the unclean thing."

One grand object, for which the Son of God

GALATIANS I. 4. 325

gave himself for our sins, was to effect this sepa-
ration— " to redeem us from this present evil
world, according to the will of God, and our
Father." " This is the will of God, even your
sanctification." See, my brethren how the whole
design, both of our heavenly Father, and of his
beloved Son, in the great work of redemption, is
to produce a holy nation, to shew forth his praise.
For this purpose Christians are placed in the
world ; but O let us never forget, though in the
world, " the Christian is not of the world." For
Christ gave himself for our sins, to deliver us from
it : — he did not come down from heaven to effect
a salvation, which should leave us under the domi-
nion of the corrupt maxims, fashions, and princi-
ples, which prevail in this wicked world, and so
suffer us to remain in a state of enmity to God,
and of rebellion against his authority. Such is the
case with every one, who walks according to the
course of this world, and shapes his conduct by the
rules and customs of the great body of mankind.
But, it was the design of the Son of God, to
deliver us from this state, and to take to himself a
people, out of this wicked and ungodly mass, who
should be zealous of good works. Accordingly,
such is the change uniformly effected in all who
truly believe on the Son of God. It is the direct
and unfailing effect of the gospel, rightly received,
to overcome the love and the fear of the world,
to cause the believer to renounce that dominion,

326 SERMON XVIII :

under which he has so long lived, and give him-
self up to God, and his service. St. John there-
fore says, " This is the victory that overcometh
the world, even our faith. Who is he that over-
cometh the world, but he that belie veth that
Jesus is the Son of God." ^ Let this fact be but
once cordially and really believed, that the " Son
of God gave himself for our sins," and it will give
such a view of the evil of sin, will display it before
the soul in such a horrid malignity, while it exhi-
bits God as so holy, so just, and so good, and as
having so unquestionable a demand on our obedi-
ence, and faithful services ; that we shall feel that
we are, and ought to be his ; and the desire of
our hearts will be, to give up ourselves to him,
who so loved us as to give his Son for our re-
demption.

But though such desires must and do prevail in
the breast of every Christian, yet still he finds it no
easy thing to gain this victory over this present
evil world. So strong is the hold which it has on
corrupt nature, and so numerous are the tempta-
tions which it employs, that it is an arduous matter
to break loose from its grasp. But here the Christian
is taught to live, and walk, and fight by faith.
Believing that Christ gave himself for us, to deliver
us from this present evil world, he looks to him
for strength and grace according to his day, and he
derives from him, by prayer, the help of the Spirit

' 1 .Toiin V. 4, 5.

GALATIANS I. 4. 32?

of Holiness, And thus, though himself far too
weak for the contest, he is enabled to maintain the
fight, and to come off victorious. God, who
" bruises Satan under his feet," enables him also
to trample upon this evil world, and all its alluring
snares and deceitftd pleasures. Faith enables him
to set his affections on things that are above ;
and thus the things that are on the earth lose their
influence, and so he is delivered from this present
evil world.

I will now bring the subject to a conclusion, by
a few words of application. I imagine that I am
speaking to none who hesitate to admit the fact
recorded in my text. You all allow that Jesus
Christ is come in the flesh. This is a subject with
which you have been familiar from you childhood.
You will go further, and allow that he gave him-
self for our sins ; let me then put the question
to you, — Have you ever considered your own per-
sonal concern in this matter ? Is it the habitual
and deep-rooted conviction of your souls, that to
this fact you owe all your hope of escaping the
everlasting fire of hell, the eternal wrath of God ?
I fear that there are many, very many, who profess
to believe that the Son of God came into the world
to save sinners, who have never yet been brought to
consider themselves as so lost and undone, by the
number and magnitude of their sins, as to be able
to do nothing for their own salvation. Hence all
the coldness of heart which they are conscious of,

328 SERMON XVIII :

in their application to the Saviour to wash them
from their sins in his own blood ; they do not rest
their hopes on him, on his merits, on his death and
atonement : they do not " count all things but loss
for Christ;" they do not feel him " precious" to
their souls ; they do not find their hearts glowing
with gratitude to him, who gave himself for their
sins, because they are not practically convinced,
that their sins have been so great, as to render such
a Saviour, such a sacrifice, such an atonement ne-
cessary. Oh, my brethren, beware lest you be thus
induced to build on another foundation, than that
" elect and precious corner-stone" which God has
laid in Zion. If ever you escape the eternal pun-
ishment of sin, it must be only through Christ,
and for his sake, and not for any goodness or merit
of your own ; and if ever you receive this benefit
from Christ, it must be by humble and penitent
application to him, through faith and prayer:
" He is able and willing to save to the uttermost,
all them that come to God by him ; '^ but they
must come by him, and in no other way ; the very
attempt to accomplish it by other means, frustrates
the grace of God, and makes it appear that Christ
died in vain. Let us then take heed that we mis-
take not on this all-important, this fundamental
point of Christianity.

But there is another danger equally great ; the
danger of a correct creed, without a correspondent
effect i^pon the character. What, my brethren,

GALATIANS I. 4. 329

presents itself to our view, when we look abroad
into this nation of professed Christians ? Do we
not see an immense multitude of persons, all ac-
knowledging that * ' Christ Jesus came into the world
to save sinners," and yet as evidently a part of this
present evil world, as if they were avowed unbe-
lievers ? And if we approach a little nearer to the
house of God, and examine a congregation, where
the gospel is plainly and faithfully preached, and
where there are a number of persons who profess
much to admire and value its doctrines ; what do
we too often see there ? A few holy and heavenly-
minded persons ; a few, whose faith has given
them victory over this evil world, and who are de-
livered both from the fear and from the love of it,
and pursue their heavenly course, and walk in holi-
ness before God, unmoved either by the smiles or
frowns, the commands or solicitations of the un-
godly, among whom they live. But these are,
alas ! only a few. The great body of the congre-
gation are, under a religious name, mere men of the
world, utterly unhke what the scriptures describe
as real Christians, real belivers in the Son of God.
And even of that number of whom we are disposed
to entertain a more favourable opinion, — who
sometimes seem as if they were at least escaping,
from them that live in error, how few seem to be
going forward, and how many return " as the dog
to his vomit, and as the sow that was washed to
her wallowing in the mire.^'

330 SERMON XVIII.

But why do I dwell on so painful a view of
what, with alas ! little propriety, we call a ' Chris-
tian congregation?' I do it, brethren, to lead you
to see how much need you have to watch over your
own hearts with godly jealousy. All these " fail
of the grace of God ; " they prove that they are
not partakers of salvation, because they are not
" delivered from this present evil world, according
to the will of God and our Father." Take heed
then, that you be not added to the number of those
who have a " name to live, but are dead."

SERMON XIX.

JEREMIAH iii. 12, 13.

GO AND PROCLAIM THESE WORDS TOWARD THE NORTH, AND
SAY, RETURN THOU BACKSLIDING ISRAEL, SAITH THE LORD,
AND I WILL NOT CAUSE MY ANGER TO FALL UPON YOU :
FOR I AM MERCIFUL SAITH THE LORD, AND I WILL NOT
KEEP ANGER FOR EVER. ONLY ACKLOWLEDGE THINE INI-
QUITY, THAT THOU HAST TRANSGRESSED AGAINST THE
LORD THY GOD.

The prophet Jeremiah lived at a period, when the
state of things in the nation of Israel was fast
coming to a crisis. He foresaw this, and was
commanded to declare it ; and to show the king
and the princes, as well as the people of Judah,
that nothing but a speedy and sincere repentance,
could save them out of the hands of the Chaldeans,
who were the instruments prepared by God, for
punishing guilty nations.

Israel and Judah had been a people loved and
favoured by Jehovah ; they were the children of
Abraham his friend, and He had shown his love to
them, not only by rescuing them from their bon-
dage in Egypt, and by bringing them into a land
flowing with milk and honey, a land which was

332 SERMON XIX :

" the glory of all lands," " a land which the Lord
cared for," and blessed with a fertility and beauty,
such as no other country could boast ; but more
than this, he had given to his favoured people,
statutes and ordinances which, had they been duly
attended to, would have done more for the happi-
ness of their souls, than the most fertile and beau-
tiful inheritance could do for the comfort and
enjoyment of their bodies. They might have been,
not only a rich and prosperous people, but also a
holy and religious people. But they were not so.
That same corruption of heart which has turned us,
my brethren, away from God, and led us into sins
and rebellions innumerable, was conspicuously
displayed in Israel. They departed from the living
God, not only by setting up their idols in their
hearts, as we have done, but by making to them-
selves images of silver and of gold, of wood and of
stone, on every high hill and under every green tree,
bowing down to them, and worshipping them, as
the gods who brought their fathers out of Egypt.

But sin always brings sorrow ; and he whose
heart departeth from the Lord, must be unhappy ;
for the wrath of the Almighty must needs rest upon
him. Such was the case with Israel, and the men
of Judah ; God sent his prophets to declare to
them that " the way of transgressors is hard," that
sooner or later, guilt will be followed by punish-
ment, whether it be the guilt of one man, or of a
whole nation that forgetteth God.

JEREMIAH III. 12, 13. 333

But awful as are the threatenings of the Al-
mighty against transgressors, and surely as they will
fall on the head of every impenitent sinner, they
are not so astonishing as is the tenderness of his
compassion toward the sinful children of men.
The severest threatenings are always accompanied
with some expression of love and compassion ;
some persuasion addressed to the sinner, beseeching
him to confess his sin, to forsake his iniquity, and
to be reconciled to God : some offer of grace and
mercy, something to show, that God " desireth
not the death of a sinner, but rather that he may
turn from his wickedness and live." Such is the
case in the words before us, w^hich, though ad-
dressed to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of
Jerusalem, are just as suited to the people of this
place, and to the inhabitants of England at large,
as to them.

Let us then,

I. Consider the character of the per-
sons SPOKEN TO BY THE LoRD.

II. The OFFERS made to them.

III. The conduct required of them.

I. We WILL consider the CHARACTER OF

the PERSONS addressed.

Jeremiah was commanded to proclaim his mes-
sage toward the north ; that is, toward the coun-
tries whence the Chaldean armies would come ; for
these regions lay to the north and north-east of

334 SERMON XIX :

Canaan. By thus turning his face toward Baby-
lon, he was to impress the people with the idea,
that he was expecting the speedy arrival of the
King of Babylon's armies, w^hich were just coming
to execute the Lord's vengeance on the sinners in
Zion, that he was already on the look out for
them. So ought those, who are set as watchmen
over the souls of the people of their charge, not
only to denounce the threatenings of the Almighty
against all who live in sin, and especially against
those who sin under a profession of religion ; but
we should show them, by every means in our power,
that we really believe our own message ; that we
have no doubt whatever that the wrath is coming,
even that wrath of the Lord, which " will burn
like fire to the lowest hell," against every one who
neglects the great salvation of the Gospel, and
refuses to repent and turn away from his iniquities.
This would cause us to feel more real pity and
compassion for the careless sinners in our congre-
gations, and so render us more faithful and earnest
in our warnings and exhortations, and would make
our people feel, that we do not speak to them in
formality, but that we really believe their situation
and their danger to be such as we describe.

Jeremiah was not commanded to speak these
things to the Philistines, or to the Moabites, or to
the men of Tyre and Zidon, the idolatrous nations
which dwelt around the Israelites. God had his
messages of wrath for them also. But here the

JEREMIAH III. 12, 13. 335

prophet has to do only with the men of Israel and
Judah ; with those who were the posterity of
Abraham, and had been blessed with religious
ordinances, and the knowledge of God, beyond all
other people. The judgments which Jeremiah was
looking for, and daily expecting, were such as the
Lord was about to send on those whom he had
taken for His people ; and it was to them likewise,
that the calls to repentance, and the offers of mercy
were to be addressed. Just so is it with regard to
us. Those who are now put in trust of the
ministry, are not in general sent to heathen nations,
sunk in idolatry and ignorance ; nor even to those,
who, though called Christians, are covered with
the dark night which popery has spread over a great
part of Christendom ; but we are sent, in general,
to people who are blessed with the knowledge of
religion as revealed in the Bible ; to those who
glory that they are members of the Protestant
Church of England ; who attend on her beautiful
and spiritual worship. It is to these that we are
to denounce the threatenings of the Almighty ;
these we are to tell of " the wrath to come," and
of the danger they are in; these we are to assure,
that if they do not " turn and repent, and seek
after God," they will surely perish.

This sometimes appears as strange to our people,
as did the language of Jeremiah and Ezekiel, yea,
of Christ and his apostles, to the Jews of old.
When they heard the prophets thus speak, they

336 SERMON XIX :

cried, " The temple of the Lord, the temple of the
Lord, the temple of the Lord, are these." ^ ' These
to whom you thus speak are the people of God —
they worship in his temple — they support the or-
dinances of religion ; why then should they be
thus reproved, and threatened ? ' And is there
nothing of the same kind of feeling among you,
brethren, when you hear language addressed to you
similar to that, in which the prophets spoke to their
countrymen ? Are you not sometimes ready to
tell of your good churchmanship, of your frequent
attendance at the house of God, and on the sacra-
ment, of your alms deeds, and the other good
things in your lives, and hence to conclude, as the
Jews of old did, that the ministers of God ought
to say, Peace, peace to you ?

Our text informs us of the reason why the pro-
phet was obliged to deliver such awful messages
to the professed people of God. It is expressed in
one word, ^^ Thou backsliding lsr3.e\.'' The name
of Israel was not denied to them, but they had
lost all claim to the character of " Israelites indeed
in whom there was no guile." They were back-
sliders. The idea seems to be taken from the un-
trained bullock when put into the yoke ; instead of
drawing the plough steadily and quietly forward, he
hangs back, and suffers himself to be dragged
forward by the other beasts, sliding his feet

• Jeremiah vii. 4.

JEREMIAH III. 12, 13. 337

along the ground, while resisting every effort to
make him draw. So, in another part of the book
before us, Ephraim is represented as making this
confession, " Thou hast chastised me, and I
was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the
yoke."^ Such is the representation given of the
conduct of Israel. They are described as being
first, " backsliders in heart;" they ceased to love
God, and to find pleasure in his service ; then, they
went on to commit more open sin ; till, as we read
their history, and the addresses of the prophets to
them, we discover that they practised the grossest
iniquities without remorse ; so that the Lord would
no longer bear with them, but denounced the most
awful judgments, which at last came upon them
like an overflowing tempest.

And can we see nothing in this which we may
take to ourselves ? Look through this highly
favoured Christian country as it is called ; this
country, which has succeeded to more than the
religious advantages once possessed by Israel ; this
country, which has the Church of God established
in it, with all its ordinances and sacraments ; this
country, which may be called the land of Bibles and
of Schools. Look through this country, I say, and
what do you observe ? Dininkenness, lewdness,
sabbath-breaking, lying, swearing, neglect of re-
ligion, iniquity of every kind. May we not call

' Jtr. xxxi. 18.
Z

338 SERMON XIX :

our country, backsliding- England, just as the pro-
phet says, " Thou backsliding Israel."

But, leaving others for a while, commune a little
with your own hearts, my brethren. Ask your-
selves whether the same does not apply to you in-
dividually, that applied collectively, to Israel in old
times, and to England now. The iniquity of a na-
tion is the amount of the sins of all the individuals
composing that nation. Have you not added
something toward making up the character of
England, as a nation that has backslidden from
God ? Your conscience will probably not charge
you with having openly renounced the vows of your
baptism, or given up all attendance on religious or-
dinances, or all profession of being Christians ; but
still you feel that your heart is not right with God,
and that in your conduct, you do not keep his com-
mandments. You may attend with considerable
regularity on Christian ordinances, but you do not
lead a Christian life. You " call Christ, Lord,
Lord, but do not the things that he says." There
are many things, many things, you know you
ought not to do, and yet you do them ; and many,
which you know you ought to do, which never-
theless you leave undone. Here, then, you are
backsliders from God.

But, perhaps, there may be some, to whom the
term still more accurately applies. Once they were
in earnest in religion, and seemed devoted to the
service of God ; tliose who observed them, saw

JEREMIAH III. 12, 13. 339

nothing, but what denoted a fixed determination to
fear the Lord, and work out their salvation. But
all, or nearly all, these favourable appearances have
passed away ; all feeling of religion has departed,
and sin has been yielded to, and iniquity has been
cherished, and practised, if not in public, yet in
secret : not known perhaps to man, but seen by
God, and testified of by conscience.

If this be the case with any , can they wonder, if
the ministers of God have heavy tidings for them ?
Can they be surprised, if, instead of its being said
of them, " Comfort ye, comfort ye my people,"
we should be bid " to tell the people their trans-
gression, and the house of Israel their sin?"

Yes ! my brethren ; the wrath of God is coming
upon all the workers of iniquity, and it is our duty
to "proclaim" it. We "have not desired the
evil day." We rejoice not in denouncing woe, yet
we must tell " the backslider in heart," that he
" shall eat of the fruit of his own way," for the
" day of the Lord is at hand, a day of clouds and
of thick darkness," " the day of wrath and perdi-
tion of ungodly men," wherever they are found.

Still, however, we are not messengers of judg-
ment, so much as heralds of mercy : this will ap-
pear while I proceed

II. To consider the offers made by Jeremiah
in the name of the Lord to backsliding Israel.
Though the commission of the prophet to his

7. 2

340 SERMON XIX :

apostate and ungodly countrymen, was, as might
naturally be expected, to denounce the wrath of
God upon them, yet we continually meet with the
strongest expressions of pity and compassion, and
anxious desire for their safety ; and with the most
striking assurances that it was not even then too
late, for that the Lord was " waiting to be gra-
cious," that he was looking for some favourable
change, some sign of repentance and amendment,
which might render it consistent with his glory to
turn away from his anger, and be merciful to them.
His wish was to save, and not to destroy ; this is
very strikingly displayed in the text ; for though
the Chaldean armies, the instruments of the Lord's
judgments were all prepared, and were even on
their march toward Jerusalem ; and it seemed
therefore, as if the doom of the people were already
fixed ; yet even then, it was not too late ; the mercy
of God was so great, that if backsliding Israel
would yet return, all might yet be well with them.
" I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you ; for
I am merciful, saith the Lord, and I will not keep
anger for ever."

What language could possibly be more gracious,
or more calculated to induce backsliding Israel to
consider their ways, and to turn, and repent, and
seek after God. And what could leave them more
completely without excuse, when they determined
not to forsake their iniquities ?

Brethren, the case of the people to whom this

JEREMIAH III. 12, 13. 341

message was sent, was rendered very awful by the
disregard, with which they treated such declarations
of love and mercy. But lue are in still greater
danger, and from an exactly similar cause. We,
like them, have transgressed against the Lord our
God, and have fallen under his severest displeasure ;
the threatenings of his justice, and the curses of his
holy law are already pronounced against us. We
hear him declaring, that " the soul that sinneth it
shall die," and that death, we know, is eternal
death. Our consciences tell us, that we have sin-
ned, and deserved all this woe and misery, yet the
voice of mercy is heard, even more clearly than the
voice of justice. The invitations and the promises
of God, though spoken in a still small voice from
mount Sion, are heard more distinctly than the
thunders of mount Sinai. " God, who at sundry
times, and in divers manners, spake in time past
unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last
days spoken unto us by his Son." ' He tells us of
the Father's love, who hath sent him into the world
to save sinners. He tells us how he has satisfied
divine justice, and taken away the curse of the law,
by bearing it himself, in our stead. He tells us,
that he is " able to save to the uttermost;" that
"his blood cleanseth from all sin;" that " he
will cast out none that come ; " that " he that be-
lie veth on him shall never perish," but shall be
saved with an everlasting salvation ; that he will
' Heb. i. I.

342 SERMON XIX :

help him by his grace, and deliver him from the
power of sin, at the same time that he blots out all
his iniquities. The language of the gospel is,
therefore, the very same as that of the text, " Re-
turn, O backsliding Israel, and I will not cause my
anger to fall upon you ; for I am merciful, saith
the Lord, and I will not keep anger for ever."

Where then is the danger, after this proclama-
tion of God's infinite mercy, and Christ's power
to save ? It is exactly the same, as that of Israel
and Judah. It was not their past idolatries and
iniquities, that caused their final overthrow ; but it
was their obstinacy, their hardness of heart, their
determination that they would not return and
forsake their sins. Just so it is with us. It is
not that our iniquities have been " as scarlet, and
red like crimson." No, the blood of Christ which
cleanseth from all sin, would make them white as
snow, if now we were but willing and obedient ;
but our danger is, that the '• goodness of God"
should fail of " leading us to repentance ; " this it
was that ruined Israel and Judah, and if we perish
at last in sin , it will be this that seals our doom.

This leads me

III. To CONSIDER WHAT THE LoRD REQUIRES
FROM THOSE WHOM HE PARDONS.

The wrath of God is what we have deserved,
his mercy is all contrary to our merits. " The
wages of sin is death ; the gift of God is eternal

JEREMIAH III. 12, 13. 343

life, through Jesus Christ our Lord." Our de-
struction is of ourselves, but our salvation is only
by grace through faith, not of ourselves, it is the
gift of God. This ti*uth cannot be too deeply
impressed upon our minds. But still, no man is
saved in his sins. The gate is straight, and the
w^ay is narrow, that " leadeth unto life," and no
man can enter and walk therein, who is not wil-
ling to part with all iniquity. Hence the language
of Scripture always imports, that there is some-
thing for us to do, even while we expect to receive
all our own salvation as the gift of God. This is
expressed in our text by two directions. " Return,
O backsliding Israel," and " only acknowledge
thine 'iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against
the Lord thy God." " He that covcreth his sins
shall not prosper, but he that confesseth and for-
saketh them shall find mercy." When the pro-
digal came to himself he said, " I will arise and
go to my father, and will say unto him, father, I
have sinned against heaven, and before thee, and
am no more worthy to be called thy son." Here
are the very things our text speaks of. He returns
to his father, he acknowledges his transgression.
No one would say that such conduct, on the part
of this wild and profligate youth — merited the love
and kindness shown him by his father. It was
not the condition, strictly speaking, yet had he not
returned, had he not acknowledged his sin, he
never would have been restored to his father's

344 SERMON XIX r

family. The want of disposition to return and
acknowledge his offences, places the sinner out of
the way of God's mercy ; he cannot ask it, he
cannot receive it. Were the Lord to pardon, and
receive the sinner to his favour, while he conti-
nued in a state of sin and rebellion, it would bring
dishonour upon God, it would operate as an en-
couragement to sin. What God cannot do, con-
sistently with the glory of his holiness, we may be
sure he will not do at all.

When therefore he says to Israel, " Return and
acknowledge thy transgression," or when he says to
the sinner, " Repent, and be converted," he speaks
of something that is absolutely necessary, in order
to his sins being blotted out, and the divine
wrath not resting on him eternally. But, what
mercy is that, which thus speaks to us ! that tells
us, all is done for us by the Son of God, all that is
wanting for the atonement of our sins, for the justifi-
cation of our persons, for giving us admission to
the favour of God here, and to happiness in heaven
for ever ; and that we have only to return to God,
and acknowledge our transgressions, and then,
every thing shall be ours.

But alas ! how hard is the heart of man ; how
difficult do we find it to bring our minds to this ;
how averse are we to say, " I have sinned." Just
as we have seen it a hard struggle in our children,
to acknowledge their faults, so is it with us to say
before the Lord, with right feeling, I have sinned.

JEREMIAH III. 12, 13. 345

But it must be done — done sincerely — done from
the heart, or it will meet with no approbation from
him, who " seeketh truth in the inward parts."

My dear brethren, let us no more stand 'out.
Stubbornness must bring us to ruin. Let us yield
at once, let us go into our closets, and there hum-
bly and fully make our confessions to Almighty
God ; let us pray for the help of his Holy Spirit,
to render those confessions sincere. Let us seek
his grace, that while we are acknowledging our
transgressions, we may forsake them all. And in
this spirit of deep humiliation, let us accept that
boundless mercy which is offered us in Christ, and
then the Lord " will not cause his anger to fall
upon us, for he is merciful, and will not keep his
anger for ever,'' but will redeem us from all evil,
will save us with an everlasting salvation.

SERMON XX.

MATTHEW vi. 34.

TAKE THEREFORE NO THOUGHT FOR THE MORROW: FOR THE
MORROW SHALL TAKE THOUGHT FOR THE THINGS OF ITSELF.
SUFFICIENT UNTO THE DAY IS THE EVIL THEREOF.

There is a stream of mercy flowing through every
part of God's word. The whole intent and design
of the Bible is, to teach man, as a fallen, and
therefore a miserable creature, the way in which
he may be happy. Its object is, the advancement
of his everlasting interests ; and it unfolds to
view such a boundless display of the love of God
toward our guilty race, as must fill the soul with
wonder. It tells us, that " God so loved the
world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that
whosoever believe th in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son
into the world to condemn the world, but that
the world through him might be saved. "^ The
main purpose of the Scripture is to set forth this
gracious Saviour, and to persuade men to come to
him, in order that they may be saved, and made
eternally happy.

' John iii. 16, 17.

MATTHEW VI. 34. 347

But though this be the prevailing object of
divine revelation, yet the temporal suffering and
sorrow, attached to human nature by sin, is not
passed unnoticed or unpitied. The godliness which
the Scriptures enforce, has the promise of the life
that noiv is, as well as of that which is to come.
All our present wretchedness is traced back to sin,
and with reference to this, the divine voice says,
" do thyself no harm," proceed no further along
the road that leadeth to destruction, but be wise —
be holy — be happy.

In various parts of Scripture, we have given us
lessons of the highest worldly wisdom, inculcated
on the authority of God. And in the passage con-
nected with our text, we find our Lord Jesus Christ
collecting his disciples around him on the mount,
and graciously giving them lessons of heavenly
wisdom, mingled with others which were calculated
to render them superior to the troubles of this pre-
sent life. So that we may venture to say, that
were this one discourse of our blessed Lord fully
attended to, many of the springs of human sorrow
and uneasiness would be completely dried up.

Of how many distresses, my brethren, is the
disposition to look forward to imaginary future
trouble, the fruitful source ? We have a burden
to bear to-day, yesterday also had its load, and we
expect that to-morrow will have its burden also.
To-day, our load may, or may not be heavy, at any
rate it would be supportable, but not content with

348 SERMON XX :

this, we go back to yesterday, and forward to the
morrow ; and when we have laden ourselves with
the burden of several days at once, we com-
plain that our load is heavier than we can bear.
But who laid all this upon us ? Not He, who bids
us " take no thought for the morrow : " we act in
violation of his command, and therefore we are
unhappy. As then, we all seek for comfort, and
all are inquiring " who will show us any good ? "
how may we escape the vexation of body and spirit
to which we are daily exposed ; let us devote a
little time to the consideration of the injunction
given us in the text, by him who bore our griefs and
carried our sorrows. He says, " Take no thought
for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought
for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is
the evil thereof."

The subject naturally divides itself into two
parts for our consideration,
I. The precept, and,

H. The reason of it.

I. Let us consider the precept of our text.

" Take no thought for the morrow." The pas-
sage is well known, and very often referred to.
But I apprehend that it is more frequently looked
upon as a good maxim, a piece of iiseful advice,
which it is difficult to follow, and which we may
attend to or not, as we please, rather than a pre-
cept of our Lord and Master, which we are bound

MATTHEW VI. 34. 349

to obey, and to carry out into practice. Such is,
however in fact, its real character : and common as
are our deviations from it, every one of those devi-
ations ought to be looked on as a sin ; a sin which
brings indeed present punishment with it, but
which needs as much to be repented of, and blotted
out by the blood of Christ, as those sins, of which
the penalty is looked for only in the eternal world.

Let us view the passage in this light. Man is
in reahty, wholly destitute of the power of fore-
seeing any thing. He " knoweth not what shall
be on the morrow." " He cannot tell what a day
may bring forth." This we all are aware of, and
often make it the subject of serious remark ; yet
how inconsistently do we act! We are look-
ing forward, and anticipating future events; not
only for days and weeks, but for months and years
to come: sometimes we promise ourselves plea-
sures, to be enjoyed at a distant period of time,
and sometimes we forebode evils, which will pro-
bably never occur, or which may occur to others,
when our heads are laid low in the dust. Now
much, very much of this is forbidden by our Lord
and Master in the passage before us. But in order
to our rightly understanding this precept, I think
it will be necessary, before we inquire what the text
prohibits, to consider what it does not forbid.

This is the more necessary, because the words
of our translation are apparently very strong, and
would seem to forbid all forethought, all prepara-

350 SERMON XX :

tion for the future. The original word ^ does not
imply this. It is literally, ' let not your minds
be divided,' be not full of care, be not anxious and
solicitous about the morrow. The word is the
same as St. Paul uses, when he says, " Be care-
ful for nothing, but in " every thing by prayer
and supplication, make your requests known unto
God.'^ ^ We are not therefore to understand
our Lord as forbidding all forethought with respect
to the future. We are told that " the prudent
man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself." We
are told, to " go to the ant, and consider her ways,
and be wise, which having no guide, overseer, or
ruler, provideth her meat in the summer, and gath-
ereth her food in the harvest."^ The providen-
tial appointments of God, moreover, render it
necessary that man should use forethought. The
husbandman and the merchant must look forward,
they must be making provision for future months
and years.

And, as prudent forethought cannot be forbid-
den in the text, so neither can active exertion and
steady diligence in our different callings ; these are
necessary for the well-being, and almost for the
very existence of man : yet they are only necessary
in making preparation for the future, a future
which we must look forward to, and provide for.
Again and again do the Scriptures inculcate this

1 fji-eptfAvrjavjle. • Philip, iv. 6.

* Proverbs vi. 6 — 8 : xxvii. 12.

MATTHEW VI, 34. 351

upon us : we are to be diligent in business, and to
provide for our own, or we shall be worse than the
infidels.

How important, how absolutely necessary, fore-
thought and activity are in securing our everlasting
happiness, we all know, though alas ! few among
us are prepared to make provision for our eternal
wants, as the Scriptures enjoin ; but with regard
to temporal affairs, we must look forward, and
make provision against days, which may yet, per-
haps, never come to us. This is not, therefore,
what our Lord meant to prohibit. To what then are
we to apply the words ? Our Lord clearly meant —

1. To forbid all such anxious attempts to pro-
vide for ourselves, or for our families, as would in
any way imply a forgetfulness of our entire de-
pendance upon God.

Such care is the natural tendency of our hearts.
We are proud, we like not the idea of depending
upon God. We employ certain means for attaining
our objects, and generally speaking, the means are
successful ; but we forget who made them so, and
take the credit to ourselves. We have found the
means answer the end, and the more so, in pro-
portion as we have been skilful and industrious.
We therefore say, we will be careful and indus-
trious for the future, and then we shall be sure to
succeed. The husbandman cultivates his land with
care, and is rewarded with an abundant harvest ;
and he says, here is my good management, and

352 SERMON XX :

forgets Him " who caused his sun to shine, and
his rain to descend." The fisherman spreads his
net, and toils all night, and collects a great draught
of fishes, and then, as the prophet says, " he burns
incense to his net and to his drag," and gives
them the thanks, that are due to the God of pro-
vidence. The tradesman carries on his business
successfully, and grows rich and great, and says,
" my hand, and the might of my arm hath gotten
me this wealth," and " forgets the Lord, who
gave him the power to get wealth," And not
content with what is past, these men, in the
ungodliness of their nature, all say it shall be the
same for the future. And they are taking thought
for the morrow, and for next year ; and to-mor-
row's plan, and next year's plan, and all their
schemes, are formed without any reference to God,
and are expected to succeed without him. To such
persons may be well applied the expostulation of
the apostle, " Go to now, ye that say. To-day or
to-morrow, we will go into such a city, and con-
tinue there a year, and buy and sell and get gain ;
whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow.
For what is your life ? It is even a vapour that
appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth
away. For that ye ought to say. If the Lord will,
we shall live and do this or that." ^

2. We may conclude, that all such care about

' James iv. 13 — 15.

MATTHEW VI, 34. 353

our future temporal state, is forbidden, as prevents
serious attention to our spiritual welfare.

The connexion of our text implies this. The
preceding verse is, " But seek ye first the kingdom
of God, and his righteousness ; " comprising in
these terms every spiritual benefit which man can
need. To " seek the kingdom of God," is to
seek admission into the true church of Christ, by
sincere repentance and living faith in the Lord
Jesus ; to seek to be numbered with his saints on
earth, as preparatory to being numbered with them
in glory everlasting. To " seek his righteousness,"
is to seek for justification through him, who " is
made of God unto us righteousness ; " who
" brought in everlasting righteousness," and is
" called the Lord our Righteousness." It is more-
over, " to hunger and thirst after righteousness,"
after holiness of heart, and holiness of practice, the
seal and evidence of our being " made the righte-
ousness of God" in Christ. It therefore compre-
hends all that he is seeking for, who is " working
out his salvation with fear and trembling." But
how is all this impeded — how sorely are we let and
hindered in running the race that is set before us —
by an over anxiety about the things of this present
world ! We cannot fix our affections on thino;s
above, when our thoughts are occupied by " what
we shall eat, and what we shall drink, and where-
withal shall we be clothed." Eternity, and its vast
concerns, will be thrown into the back ground,

2 A

354 SERMON XX :

while we take anxious and over eager thought for
the morrow, and its fading enjoyments. We all
know this, yet we regard it not ; our Lord has
therefore laid his command upon us ; he prohibits
all this solicitude, which we find standing in the
way of our spiritual progress ; religion cannot
flourish in the heart that is occupied with earthly
cares ; these cares therefore, must be kept under,
that the soul may be the object of our unceasing
regard.

3. But, once more, we are here forbidden to
permit our thoughts to be so engaged about the
things of the morrow, as to destroy the peace and
comfort of our minds.

As I before observed, God graciously intends the
happiness of even his sinful creatures. The import
of every part of his word, as addressed to us, is,
" Do thyself no harm." Man is in every way the
cause of his own unhappiness, he has ever been his
own worst enemy. How much this is the case with
regard to the subject before us, we are all in some
degree aware. Troubles we have, we are indeed,
" born to trouble, as the sparks fly upward," but
our present distress is enormously aggravated by
the anticipation of future evils ; by anticipating
disasters, which may never befall us, and then
making ourselves unhappy about them, just as if
they had already arrived. In the case of those who
are already seeking the Lord, and endeavouring to
serve him, this practice springs from forgetfulness

MATTHEW VI. 34. 355

of his word, distrust of his providence, and want
of faith in his promises. He has again and again
assured them, that his eyes are upon them, and that
his ears are open to their prayer; they are taught
that nothing can befal them without his appoint-
ment, that *' the very hairs of their heads are all
numbered ; " and that " all things shall work to-
gether for good to them that love God." For
them therefore, to look forward to the future, and
thence to derive causes for anxiety and trouble, is
unbelief and sin ; it is to distrust their heavenly
Father, as though his love and care were not to be
depended upon. Our Lord, therefore, when spe-
cially addressing himself to his disciples, has ex-
pressly forbidden them thus to take thought for the
morrow, thus to fill their minds with anxiety about
what may then occur.

Let us now proceed to consider,

IL The reasons assigned for this com-
mand.

1. The injunction of our Lord which we have
been dwelling upon, seems founded on some things,
of which he had before been speaking. On the one
hand, he had been shewing his disciples their utter
helplessness in themselves, and their entire de-
pendence upon God ; on the other, he had shewn
them the goodness, the love, and the power of their
heavenly Father, which were exhibited in his works
of creation, and in the care with which he supplied

•2 A 2

356 SERMON XX :

the wants of every creature His hands had formed ;
and thence he had deduced the plain and simple
inference, that this all-gracious and almighty God,
would undoubtedly take care of those, whom he had
made his children by adoption and grace. " There-
fore, I say unto you, Take no thought for your life,
what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink ; nor yet
for your body what ye shall put on. Is not the
life more than meat, and the body than raiment ?
Behold the fowls of the air : for they sow not,
neither do they reap, nor gather into barns ; yet
your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not ye
much better than they. Which of you by taking
thought can add one cubit unto his stature? and
why take ye thought for raiment? consider the
lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not,
neither do they spin : and yet I say unto you, that
even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like
one of these. Wherefore if God so clothe the
grass of the field, which to-day is, and to-morrow
is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe
you, O ye of little faith ? Therefore take no
thought, saying, what shall we eat, or what shall
we drink, or wherewithal shall we be clothed?
(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek :)
for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have
need of all these things." Then follow those words
which I have already quoted. " But seek ye first
the kingdom of God, and his righteousness ; and
all these things shall be added unto you. Take

MATTHEW VI. 34. 357

therefore no thought for the morrow ; " because
you can do nothing, either to supply your own
wants, or to preserve yourselves from danger, and
because your heavenly Father knoweth that you
have need of those things ; and while you are
seeking in the first place the kingdom of God and
his righteousness, he will add all these things.
Leave all in the hands of God, He that ** feedeth
the young ravens, that call upon him ;" — " he that
openeth his hand and filleth all things living with
plenteousness ;" — he that clothes the flowers of the
field with a splendour that Solomon in all his glory
could not equal ; — he who hath fed you all your life
long, and redeemed you from all evil ; He promises
that he will still provide for you, and that you and
your concerns shall be still the objects of his care ;
therefore take no thought for the morrow. My
Christian brethren, what reasons for repose have
you, in the gracious assurances of your Lord ! Why
then will you dishonour him, and break his com-
mands, and distress yourselves, by taking thought
for the morrow ? If you would have peace, attend
to his injunctions. He bids you be at ease, he bids
you be happy, but this can only be, by casting
all your care upon him that careth for you,
and giving yourselves up to your great work
of " seeking first the kingdom of God and his
righteousness."

2. Our Lord adduces another reason why we
should take no thought for the morrow, '* for,"

358 SERMON XX :

he says, " the morrow shall take thought for the
things of itself."

Were we endowed with the faculty of foreseeing
events, we should indeed perceive, that there would
be no part of our future lives, which would not be
attended with many sorrows and many difficulties,
though probably of a very different kind and cha-
racter than we now imagine. Our knowledge of
the future is so vague, that it is very probable that
even to-morrow will be passed, under circum-
stances totally unlike what we now conjecture.
How then can we expect to make provision for
future months and years. But here again, we
have the consolation of thinking, that when to-
morrow comes, with its train of unexpected diffi-
culties, it will take thought for the things of itself.
If it has new wants, it will have also its new sup-
plies ; if it has new difficulties, it will have also
new expedients. Look back, brethren, on the
history of your past lives. How often have you
met with trials that you never anticipated — diffi-
culties that you never expected — and sorrows that
you never so much as thought of ! How were you
brought through all these ? Most clearly not by
your own prudence and forethought, or by the
provision you had made against the time of trial.
No, but when the morrow came, it took thought
for the things of itself ; when the want came, God
sent the supply ; when the danger appeared, the
means of relief appeared also ; when the trouble

MATTHEW VI. 34. 359

began to press upon you, the everlasting arms were
put underneath, and you were supported through
the trial, and your sorrow was turned into joy.
Such has been the experience of your past life ;
and such will be also the experience of your future
years, if future years are reserved for you. Your
own anxious solicitude, has often increased your
sorrows, but it has never done any thing toward
relieving them ; and why do you refuse to believe
that it will be so for the future ? You have been
supported all your lives long, and delivered from
threatening difficulty and danger, and why do you
hesitate to trust God for the future, why will you
refuse to believe him, when he says, " the morrow
shall take thought for the things of itself."

3. There is one more reason given by our Lord
for the precept we have been considering.

" Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."
To the truth of this saying, we are all ready to
give our assent, though we have but little inclina-
tion to act upon the acknowledged fact. It is but
a sorrowful world that we live in ; and though we
appear to have portions in it, differing materially
one from another, yet " every heart knoweth its
own bitterness," and every one is ready to think
his own sorrow to be more acute than that of his
neighbour. The Scriptures say nothing to inva-
lidate this ; — on the contrary they tell us much to
show that man, as a sinner, is the child of sor-
row. The Saviour assures us that we have, every

360 SERMON XX :

day, a burden to bear, which is quite as heavy as
we know how to carry ; a burden, sufficient to
make us groan. Yet he sees us foolishly increas-
ing our own troubles, and making our burden
heavier than God ever intended it should be ; and
doing this, to no beneficial purpose whatever. If
we could take to-morrow's load of cares and sor-
rows, and so carry it to-day, that when to-morrow
came we should find it a day of ease and satisfac-
tion, a day free from anxiety and trouble ; then there
might be some wisdom, in taking thought for the
morrow. But this we cannot do ; and yet the
burden of to-day is grievously augmented with
anticipated evils, with fears and apprehensions ;
while the load of to-morrow is not lightened a
single grain. Thus, beside the burden God has
laid upon us, we make another of our own, and
groan and faint under the accumulated weight.
Compassionating, therefore, our unhappiness,
though it be all the result of our sin and folly,
our Lord graciously says, let to-morrow alone, —
leave to-morrow to take care of itself, — " sufficient
unto the day is the evil thereof."

We all, my brethren, acknowledge that this com-
mand is right, that it is wise, that it is good ; and
yet, connected as it is with our proper happiness,
we find it a hard command ; a command which we
scarcely at all know how to comply with, though
we see, that if we could, we might be comparatively
cheerful and contented. But why is this ? The

MATTHEW VI. 34. 361

answer to this question may serve for an applica-
tion, of our subject. It is because we are so worldly-
minded ; because our thoughts and affections are
so much fixed on the things below. Examine
yourselves, brethren, on this point. When your
minds are led to look forward with anxious care to
to-morrow, what are the things which most harass,
and distress you with fears and apprehensions. I
do not say that the subjects are wholly unimportant,
w^holly unworthy of your attention ; but I will
venture to say, that they are almost, if not entirely
relating to this present world. They may be im-
portant, but they are only important to you, as
an inhabitant of earth, and not to an immortal
being, standing on the verge of eternity. Is it not
so ? And could your thoughts and cares and
anxiety be thus confined to this spot, and to these
concerns, which you are just about to leave for
ever, if it were not that you were too, far too
w^orldly ? Have you not need, urgent need of the
exhortation, " Love not the world, neither the
things that are in the world ! "

Would you then get rid of this fruitful source
of unhappiness, look beyond to-morrow ! "Let
thine eyes look right on, and let thine eye-lids look
straight before thee ; ponder the paths of thy feet."
Consider thyself as not formed for time only, but
for eternity, not for this world, but for another.
It is only when the things of this life are spoken
of, that anxious care about the future is forbidden.

362 SERMON XX.

It is only then, that it becomes the source of unhap-
piness. There are subjects of infinite moment to
each of us, where forethought, and solicitude, are
not only allowable, but required of us. Such soli-
citude as will make us fear and tremble, even while
we are using the means appointed by God to secure
the prize set before us. Take thought for eternity,
labour to secure an inheritance beyond the grave,
to find pardon of sin through faith in the Lord
Jesus ; and then your most anxious solicitude
your most indefatigable exertions for the future,
will incur no censure. No, nor will they do any
thing towards diminishing your happiness, but the
more earnest you are, the more present peace will
you enjoy, and the brighter will be your future
prospects.

SERMON XXI.

2 CORINTHIANS iii. 2.

YE ARE OUR EPISTLE, WRITTEN IN OUR HEARTS, KNOWN AND
READ OF ALL MEN.

Never had any one a more painful task to per-
form, than that which was imposed on St. Paul by
the conduct of the Corinthians. Though he had
been the instrument of making them acquainted
with the gospel of Christ, and had imparted to
them those spiritual gifts, and miraculous powers,
in which they so much gloried ; yet certain per-
sons had come in among them, who taught them
to deny his apostolic authority, and to pour con-
tempt on his knowledge of the mysteries of Christ ;
while they represented him, as endeavouring to
exercise a tyrannical authority over them. Such
were the insinuations thrown out against him, when
he wrote his first Epistle to the Corinthian church ;
and he expected a repetition of the same charges,
now that he addressed them a second time.
He had not, however, undertaken the painful

» Mr. Scott had been upwards of twenty-five years at Gawcott,
when this sermon was preached.

364 SERMON XXI :

task of vindicating himself from these calumnies,
because he was anxious for commendation and ap-
plause, but because he was grieved to see the wrong
state of mind, into which the Corinthians had
fallen. There are few things, which more clearly
shew a sad declension in spiritual feeling, than
when those who profess the gospel, lose their
attachment to the ministers by whom they believed.
This vs^as the case at Corinth to an extraordinary
degree : and the Apostle dwells upon it, with feel-
ings, evidently of the most painful nature.

Among other points, he declares to the Corin-
thians, that he was not like some of their favorite
teachers, who were so little known in the Christian
church, or who were of so doubtful and equivocal
character, that when they went from one place to
another, they had need to carry with them letters of
recommendation. He wanted nothing of the kind.
If he came to Corinth, he was well known there,
as the minister who had first preached to them the
gospel of God. Their existence as a Church, was
the seal and evidence of his apostleship. If he
went to other places, still the Corinthians were his
epistle of commendation, written on his own heart,
so as never to be obliterated ; and was known and
read of all men ; all had heard of the church of
Corinth. And though, in some respects, he " had
had sorrow of them, in whom he ought to have
rejoiced," yet still, such an effect had been pro-
duced, there were so many thriving Christians

2 CORINTHIANS III. 2. 365

among them, that he could not but still rejoice
over them, as " manifestly declared, to be the
epistle of Christ, ministered by him, written, not
with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God ;
not in tables of stone, but in the fleshly tables of
the heart."

It is not my intention, to enlarge any further at
present on the subject, as it relates to St. Paul and
the Corinthians ; but to dwell on the fact, that
those who attend on the preaching of the gospel
in any place, and profess to embrace the doctrines
they hear ; form the minister's epistle of commen-
dation. And, in order to make a practical use of
the subject, I shall point out

I. What ought to be read in such an
EPISTLE. And

II. Apply the subject, by enquiring what may

THUS BE READ AMONGST OURSELVES ?

Since then, a congregation, hearing and profess-
ing to receive the gospel of Christ, is the minister's
epistle of commendation, we will proceed to consider,

I. What ought to be read in such an

EPISTLE.

The subject, as you must perceive, is immensely
broad; coextensive with all the doctrines and
duties of Christianity ; it is not therefore to be
expected that I should enter very minutely into it,
I will only touch on a few leading points.

366 SERMON XXI :

Our Lord says to his disciples, " Ye are the
light of the world. A city set on an hill cannot
be hid." And, speaking with particular reference
to the teachers of religion, he says, " Ye shall
know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes
of thorns, or figs of thistles?"^ We are hereby
taught, that where the gospel is preached, great
effects will follow — effects which will be known and
observed, both by friends and enemies, — by those
who see the grace of God, as Barnabas did at
Antioch, and are glad ; and by those who wonder
at, but hate the change. These effects will corres-
pond with the instructions given, and the doctrines
inculcated ; or, to keep to the allusion of the text,
an epistle will be written, such as may be " known
and read of all men." All will be able to discover
something of the instruction given, and of the man-
ner in which it has been received, by observing the
effects which are produced. The good seed, sown
in an honest and good heart, will bring forth good
fruit; so that by observing the crop, a judgment
may be formed of the nature of the seed, and of the
quality of the ground.

When Christianity was a new religion upon the
earth, and the apostles appeared, as they did to the
Athenians, to be " setters forth of strange Gods,"
no sooner did they begin to preach the gospel at
any place, so as to gain attention, than many eyes

1 Matt. V. 14; vii. 16.

2 CORINTHIANS III. 2. 367

were turned to the spot. Men looked to see and
to read the " epistle." They wished to know what
was going forward ; some for the sake of accusing
and blaspheming, and some from a desire to know
what the doctrine was, and what were the effects
produced by it.

In our day and country, circumstances are ma-
terially changed. That Christianity is preached in
any place, is not a matter that excites surprise ;
for it is professed every where, and is supposed to
be preached every where. But though, to a certain
extent, this is true, yet still there is a wide differ-
ence in the manner in which it is preached by
different persons. It cannot be denied, that some
insist, with much more earnestness than others, on
what may properly be deemed, the peculiar doc-
trines of Christianity, as the gospel of Christ, than
others do, who are, nevertheless, members of the
same church, and believers in the same creed.
From some pulpits, much more is heard respecting
the lost and depraved condition of mankind ; the
salvation and atonement of Christ ; the necessity
of repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ ;
respecting the new heart, and the new spirit, which
are produced in every true Christian by the Holy
Ghost ; aud the perpetual need we are in of divine
grace, to enable us to serve God ; than from others.
In some places these subjects are little spoken upon,
or are discussed in a cold, formal, unimpassioned
manner; while in others, they are dilated on, as

368 SERMON XXI :

matters of the highest imaginable importance, in-
sisted upon with the utmost energy, and apphed to
the conscience as things in which every individual
is concerned, as immediately connected with the
eternal happiness of his immortal soul : — such dif-
ference, is too plain to be denied. And where this
more earnest way of preaching and applying the
doctrines of the gospel prevails, it excites attention ;
larger congregations, generally, are collected, and
more effect seems to be produced. An "epistle"
is written, and many eyes are turned to read it.
The conduct of those, who regularly attend on such
preaching, and seem to prefer it, is watched, and
carefully observed.

The conduct and characters of such persons, is
the minister's epistle of commendation, novj, as
much as it was, when the apostle employed the term
with respect to the Corinthians, and their beha-
viour. The doctrines preached, and the tendency
of the instruction given by the preacher, will be
judged of, by the effects produced on the people ;
by his fruits he will be known.

Our enquiry then is, what ought a person, in
other respects ignorant of the subject, to learn by
reading this " epistle"? What impression ought
to be left on his mind, by seeing, and examining
the conduct of those, who thus hear the gospel
preached.

1. The first thing which ought to strike his
mind, and engage his attention, should be, that the

2 coRiNTJiiANS iii. 2. 369

people are more fully acquainted with the word of
God, and the whole system of religion, than those
are who have not the same kind of instruction.

It would astonish any one who had not been
accustomed to converse with* a variety of people, to
be told of the extreme ignorance that prevails, even
in such a country as this, upon every subject of a
religious nature ; questions, which one would sup-
pose a child would answer correctly, receive the
most absurd replies from those of mature years ;
and often do we meet with persons advanced in
life, who have scarcely a distinct idea on the sim-
plest points of Christianity ; they know not them-
selves, and therefore they cannot tell to others,
what a sinner must do to be saved. I am not
speaking of what is the case among men brought
up in heathenism, but of w^hat is the case with
multitudes in our own country.

Now here is an " epistle ; " and what do we
read in it ? We read, that either the appointed
teachers of religion, have been most criminally
negligent of their duty, or that the persons them-
selves have loved darkness rather than lisrht. These
things ought not to be so. The preaching of the
gospel was instituted on purpose to impart instruc-
tion to men, on subjects connected with religion,
" to open their eyes, to turn them from darkness
to light," as well as " from the power of Satan unto
God ; " the former is the means whereby the latter
is to be accompHshed. Till the mind is enlight-

2 B

370 SERMON XXI :

ened, till a man is made to perceive the truth, he
will not feel its power, he will not live under its
influence. The duty of the minister is, to give
instruction : " The priest's lips should keep know-
ledge," and should impart it to the people, giving
them " line upon line, and precept upon precept,"
so that every one should be well instructed unto
the kingdom of God, and there shall he no danger
that any one out of the whole congregation should
be " destroyed for lack of knowledge." Till this
is effected, an epistle cannot be written, which will
prove a commendation either to the minister or to
his people.

2. In reading this '^ epistle," it ought to be
seen by all, that the gospel, and its infinitely
important truths, are not received in a cold, heart-
less manner, but as things in which the people feel
themselves deeply interested.

In this manner St. Paul tells us, the Thessalo-
nians received the word which he preached to them.
" For our gospel" he says, " came not unto you in
word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost,
and in much assurance." And again he says, " For
this cause also thank we God without ceasing, be-
cause, when ye received the word of God, which ye
heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but
as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually
worketh also in you that believe." ^ When man

• ' 1 Thess. i. 3 ; ii. 13.

2 CORINTHIANS ill. 2. 371

speaks that which is the result of his own reason
and wisdom, we are allowed to receive what he
says, with caution and reserve. The subjects on
which he treats may be of small moment in them-
selves, or of no concern to us, or he may treat of
them in a manner that is not correct, or that
does not approve itself to our reason. But when
God speaks to his creatures, he speaks not of tri-
fles, but on subjects deeply interesting to every one
addressed, that is, to the whole race of man-
kind ; and he speaks on those things with perfect
truth and accuracy. If therefore what the min-
ister of Christ says, is received as the word of God,
it must be received without hesitation or gainsay-
ing, as infinitely momentous to those who hear it,
and as infinitely interesting to them.

Knowledge is undoubtedly, in matters of reli-
gion, of immense value, but it is not all we must
seek for. It is valuable only as a means to a
further end, as the scaffolding to the erection of
the building ; the scaffolding is, after all, no part
of the building, and shall soon be removed ; so
knowledge is no part of salvation, and " shall soon
vanish away," though as a means whereby salva-
tion may be attained, it is highly important.

The minister who should be satisfied when he
had imparted the knowledge of religion to his
people ; or the people who should be so well
pleased with the acquaintance they had obtained
with the truths of Christianityj and the skill they

2 B 2

372 SERMON XXI :

had acquired in defending them against the argu-
ments of objectors, would both come short of their
final reward. The facts and doctrines of our holy
religion, are of such a nature, that they ought to
excite the deepest and most intense interest in the
breast of every man who hears of them ; and unless
they do excite that interest, they will wholly fail
of their object. We may learn that the Scripture
hath concluded all under sin ; — that the promise of
eternal life is made to the believer in Christ; —
that God will give his Holy Spirit to renew his
heart, and make him fit for heaven ; — and will of his
faithfulness and love bring him thither. But what
benefit shall we obtain, if we only receive these
statements as mere facts, in which we do not feel
any personal concern ? To obtain any advantage
from the knowledge we have acquired, we must see
that we have a deep interest in it ; that we are
sinners who are shut up under sin, and are there-
fore like to perish. The promise of eternal life to
the believer in Christ, must be to us like the king's
pardon sent to the prisoner in the condemned
cell ; and so with all the other truths of God's
blessed word, they will do us no good till we feel
that we are personally, deeply, concerned in them.
They are pardon, and life, and eternal bliss ; if
therefore they are received aright, they must be
precious to the soul. He who preaches of man^s
lost estate, of the love of Christ, of the necessity
of faith, repentance, and the renewing of the Holy

2 CORINTHIANS ill. 2. 373

Ghost, of the happiness of heaven, of the misery of
hell ; without feeling that his subject is fearfully
interesting to his congregation, can never write
such an epistle as St. Paul alludes to in the text.
The people that hear in the same spirit of indiffe-
rence, will get no good ; they will not be the min-
ister's epistle of commendation ; they will not be
his glory and joy. To have this happy effect, the
preacher must himself be fired with supreme love
of the truth ; and the people must feel, that he is
declaring to them " the unsearchable riches of
Christ."

3. It ought to be clear to every one who reads
this " Epistle," that the doctrine taught, has pro-
duced the most happy effect upon the character,
tempers, and general conduct, of those who
have heard it.

We live in a world of extreme wickedness ;
iniquity abounds on every side ; and even where no
flagrant immoralities meet the eye, still we perceive
that God is not loved or served, his law is not
honoured and obeyed ; man is not loved by his
brother man, but made the prey of his passions, of
his avarice, or of his pride. Many have been the
confessions that have been made of this, many the
lamentations that have been uttered over the
melancholy fact ; yet every effort to mend the
world, to produce more reverence and love of God,
and more good will and kindness towards man, has
failed.

374 SERMON XXI :

But God has sent forth his gospel as the
remedy. So far as it has been truly received, it has
answered the end proposed ; wherever ** the grace
of God has brought salvation, it has taught men,
that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, they
should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this
present world."

This is the most legible part of our " epistle,"
all men can read and understand this, it comes
home to the feelings of all. If a person goes to a
place, in which the distinguishing truths of the
gospel are preached in that pointed, zealous,
earnest manner to which I have alluded •, if he
hears the people of that place, talking more about
religion than others do, and speaking of it as a
subject which they understand, and in which they
are deeply interested, he will immediately ask,
" What do ye more than others ? " The only way
in which he can judge of the excellence of the
doctrine taught, is by marking its effects on those
who listen to it. But if he can see nothing diffe-
rent from what he has been used to see in the
world ; if, when he has business to transact with
them, he finds that they are as ready to overreach
and to seize on every advantage as others ; if,
when he listens to their conversation, he finds it
polluted and polluting ; if, when he goes into their
families, he finds an air of ungodliness and worldly
feeling spreading over every thing ; if he sees that
they are not afraid of temptation, but running

2 CORINTHIANS iii. 2. 375

into, and yielding to it : if he hears them speak
against drunkenness, and yet venturing to the very
verge of excess ; if they censure covetousness, yet
are hard-hearted to the poor, and refuse to help
them in their distresses, or contribute with an unwil-
ling hand, and an unfeeling spirit ; if he hears them
talking of the meekness and gentleness of Christ,
and yet sees that they are harsh, censorious, quar-
relsome, unforgiving, and soon angry ; — if he finds
things in this state, what will he say? what can he
read in such an epistle, but that their religion is all
hypocrisy or delusion ?

But, should he find the reverse of all this : that
those who embrace the gospel, are strictly follow-
ing the apostolic exhortation, " Whatsoever things
are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever
things are just, whatsoever things are pure, what-
soever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of
good report, if there be any virtue, if there be any
praise, think on these things."^ If he finds that
they are careful to *' provide things honest in the
sight of all men ; " that they would much rather
suffer loss, than take an unfair advantage of any
one ; that they will submit to any self-denial,
rather than not render to all their dues. If, when
he visits their families, he sees that their children
are kept under due restraint, while they are treated
at the same time with the kindest affection ; that
children, and servants, are carefully instructed in

' Phil. iv. 8.

376 SERMON XXI:

the duty they owe to God and man ; while each
are treated with the mildness of the Christian
temper. If he sees them coming out from the
world, and not touching the unclean thing,
patiently enduring reproach and ridicule, because
they will not yield to any thing they deem
evil ; yet amidst all this, kind and compassionate,
ready to give up their own inclinations, and their
own interests, in order to please others, full of
mercy and good fruits ; — must not the man who
sees all this, be forced to acknowledge, that God
is with them of a truth ? must he not say, that
the seed was good, and the ground was good, or
such fruits could never have been produced. In
such an "epistle" he reads, that the doctrine
taught was divine ; the minister has not been
unfaithful to his charge, and the people have not
believed in vain." The man who has seen such
things, must go away with the conviction on his
mind, ' This is the doctrine I ought to believe, and
this the practice I ought to follow.'

II. I proceed now, to apply the subject, by
enquiring, what of this kind may be read

AMONG us?

Brethren, there is something peculiar in the
circumstances in which I stand in this place, which
brings home the enquiry on which we are about to
enter, in no common manner. In most of the
adjacent parishes, the people can recal to their

2 CORINTHIANS iii. 2. 377

recollection two, or three, or many, who have
discharged the office of ministers among them ;
various causes have removed one, and placed ano-
ther in his room; — the "epistle" we have been
considering has been written there by many hands.
In this place, it has not been so ; no minister was
stationed here, till it pleased God to place me
among you. I have been here so long, that a
large proportion of the inhabitants of the village
have grown up from infancy under my eye. The
epistle then is, if I may so speak, all my own.
This circumstance, I say, gives a very peculiar
force and character to the enquiry which now comes
before us. I am ready often to ask, what have I
been doing through this long course of years ?
Where is the fruit of the labours of my life ?
Where are those " who were sometime in darkness,
but now are light in the Lord ? " Where are
those, who once were ignorant, but who have now
at least learned what be the first principles of the
oracles of God ? Where are those, who have
received the " truth in the love of it?" Where
are those, who are turned from the power of Satan
unto God ? Or, according to the idea of the text,
what and where is the " epistle," that through so
many years I have been composing ? Where are
the hearts on which it has been written, and what
may be read there ?

Though circumstances may give such enquiries,
in my own case, a peculiar force, yet they are

378 SERMON XXI :

questions, which every minister who is anxious to
make full proof of his ministry will often ask.
** The hireling who careth not for the sheep " may
be indifferent to such matters, but not so he who
has before his eyes, the day, when he must give
account to the great Shepherd of the sheep. For
the sake of himself, and of the flock, over which
the Holy Ghost hath made him overseer, he must
examine into the result of his labours. If no
effect be produced — if the people remain as they
were, ignorant, unfeeling, unholy, there must be
an awful deficiency somewhere. ** If they had
stood in my counsel, and had caused my people to
hear my words, then they should have turned them
from their evil way, and from the evil of their
doings." ^ Where God's word is preached, some
holy and sanctifying effects will follow, if there be
no special hindrance thrown in the way, by the sin
of the priest or of the people. We must " be a
'' sweet savour unto God, in them that are saved
and in them that perish."

While then, my Brethren, I would bring the
enquiry home to myself, and to the manner in
which I have lived and preached among you, I
must beg you to do the same.

1. Then let me call on you to enquire how far
you have improved in religious knowledge.

I have said, that a man may be possessed of
much knowledge, and yet be destitute of true

' Jercm. xxiii. 22.

2 CORINTHIANS iii. 2. 37^

religion, still however there can be no piety with-
out some knowledge. I would therefore earnestly
intreat you to examine into this matter. Have you
a clear and distinct knowledge of the Scriptures,
and all the differtnt subjects on which they treat?
And is this knowledge always at hand, always
ready for use ? so that you can bring every thing
at once to the Bible, as the standard by which you
decide, whether it be right or wrong, true or false ?
And more especially have you obtained such an
acquaintance with the grand system of salvation,
that your own mind is settled upon it ; that you
can teach it to your children ; and when you meet
a poor ignorant fellow creature, who is enquiring
what he must do to be saved, you can at once
state to him God's plan of saving the guilty, through
Christ, and so point out the path to heaven, to one
who is in the road to destruction. Surely you
ought to have acquired such a knowledge as this,
after all the instruction you have had, and the
means of grace on which you have attended. And
if not, you have reason to suspect that you have
been very heedless, both in reading your Bibles,
and receiving the doctrines preached to you.

2. Again let me urge you to enquire into the
manner in which you have received the instruction
afforded you.

A failure here, is the reason that so many are
neghgent and irregular in attending on the means
of grace ; and also, that so many hear without

380 SERMON XXI.

acquiring knowledge. " A price is put into the
hands of a fool to get wisdom, but he has no heart
to it." But I will suppose that you do not neglect
the means of instruction, and that you have ac-
quired a fair portion of religious knowledge, still
you may never have received the doctrines of the
Gospel with all your heart and soul. You may
not have felt your own deep concern in it. Ask
yourselves then, whether the calls to repentance,
the invitations to return to God, the promises of
the Lord Jesus, promises of pardon, justification,
and eternal life, have been cordially accepted by
you. Have they led you to fervent prayer to the
Saviour ? Have they excited a fear, lest you should
fail of the grace of God ? Are you " working out
your salvation with fear and trembling?" Oh,
remember, that a cold-hearted reception of the
Gospel will be of no avail.

3. There is one more important subject of
enquiry — namely, as to the effect which your
reception of the Gospel produces on you.

If rightly received, it will purify your heart, and
the purity of the heart will evince itself, by the
purity and holiness of the life. Recall to your
recollection what I have said on this part of the
" epistle, which is read and known of all men''
where the Gospel is fully and faithfully preached
and received, and ask how it is w^ith you ? What
do others, and especially your own family read ?
The religion of the Bible is a holy rehgion, and if

2 CORINTHIANS III. 2. 381

it do not make us holy, it is because we are not
experimentally acquainted with it.

My brethren, let me call upon you to examine
yourselves seriously and impartially upon these
important points. Rest not satisfied with mere
profession, or with a barren and unprofitable
knowledge in religious matters ; be not content to
" know righteousness," but seek to be "a people
in whose heart is God's law ; " whose " conversa-
tion is such as becometh the gospel of Christ," who
are manifestly " the epistles of Christ .... written
not wdth ink, but with the Spirit of the living
God ; not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables
of the heart." Let the excellent eff^ects of true
faith, be conspicuous in you, and strive to adorn
the doctrine you profess, by all that is lovely and
of good report : so shall ye be my joy, and crovrn
of rejoicing, in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
" For God is my record, how greatly I long after
you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ ; and this I
pray, that your love may abound yet more and
more in knowledge, and in all judgment ; that ye
may approve things that are excellent, that ye may
be sincere and without ofl"ence till the day of
Christ ; being filled with the fruits of righteous-
ness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory
and praise of God.^' ^ '

' Phil. i. 8—11.
THE END.

I.. A>f» (!. SEKLEY, THAMES DITTON, SURREY.

RECTOR OF ASTON SaNDFORD.

THE HOLY BIBLE. With Explanatory Notes, Prac-
tical Observations, References, and Ten Maps. 6 Vols.
4to. £8. 8s.

— ^^— ^— — — ^^ without the Maps and references.
3 Vols, imperial 8vo, £4. 4s.

A New Edition of the octavo size is now publishing in Weekly
Numbers, price One Shilling, with a Map or Plate in
each.

The Holy Bible, with the Practical Observations only.
2 Vols, 8vo. £1. 16s. cloth.

TEN SCRIPTURAL MAPS, Engraved expressly for
the above Work. By Sidney Hall. 4to. 10s. Gd.

THE WHOLE WORKS OF THE REV. THOMAS
SCOTT, (except the Posthumous Volume of Letters.)
Complete in 10 Volumes. Reduced to £2. 12s. Gd.

LETTERS AND PAPERS OF THE REV. THOMAS
SCOTT. 8vo. With a fine Portrait. 6s.

SERMONS ON SELECT SUBJECTS. 8vo. 10s. 6d.

THE PILGRIM'S PROGRESS. By John Bunyan.
With Notes. 12mo. 5s.

ESSAYS on the most Important Subjects in Religion.
12mo. 5s. — or large type, 8vo. 10s. 6d.

THE FORCE OF TRUTH. An Authentic Narrative.
2s. boards.

THE ARTICLES OF THE SYNOD OF DORT,

with the History of Events which made way for that
Synod. Translated from the Latin, with Notes, &c.
8vo. 6s.

THE EVIL OF SEPARATION from the Church of
England considered in two Letters to the Rev. Peter
Roe. 1 s.

A REPLY TO PAINE'S AGE OF REASON. Is.

THEOLOGICAL TRACTS. 12mo. 4s.

Containing, The Force of Truth— Discourse on Repentance— The
Warrant and Nature of Faith— Discourse on Election— Growth in Grace.

Bj) t!)e ilfb» 301)11 ^tott, M* 9i.

VICAR OF NORTH FERRIBY.

SERMONS, preached in St. Mary's Hull. 8vo. Price

10s. 6d.

THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST,

particularly in its Lutheran Branch. From the Diet of
Ausburgh, A. D. 1.530, to the death of Luther, A. D,
1546. Volume r. 8vo. 12s.

Volume ii. Containing the sequel of the Lutheran Refor-
mation, and the earlier period of the Reformation in
Switzerland. 8vo. 12s.

Volume hi. Swiss Reformation continued ; life of Calvin,

&c. 8vo. 12s.

THE LIFE OF THE REV. THOMAS SCOTT.
Including a Narrative drawn up by himself, and copious
extracts of his Correspondence. With a Portrait. 8th
Edition. 8vo. 14s.

SEVEN SERMONS, chiefly addressed to Young Per-
sons, on Baptism, Contirmation, the Lord's Supper, and
the Sabbath. A New Edition. 18mo. 2s.

AN ESSAY on the Internal Evidence of Christianity.
Being an Hulsean Prize Essay for 1802. 2nd Edition.
2s.

ON SPEAKING AS THE ORACLES OF GOD.
In Two Sermons. Is. 6d. sewed.

THE FATAL CONSEQUENCES OF LICENTIOUS-
NESS. A Sermon occasioned by the Trial of a Young
Woman for the murder of her illegitimate child, 6th
Edition. 8d.

REFORMATION NOT SUBVERSION : or an Ap-
peal to the People of England on behalf of their National
Church. 3rd Edition. Is. fine, or 6d. common.

NARRATIVES AND CONVERSATIONS ON
PESTILENCE. Republished, with Notes and Obser-
vations. 2nd Edition. Foolscap. 3s.

THE PLAGUE AND FIRE OF LONDON, described
by an eye-witness. Extracted from Vincent's • God's
Terrible Voice in the City. 8d sewed.

SERMONS, by the late Rev. B. SCOTT. Vicar of Bid-
deford. Edited by the Rev. T. Scott, M. A. Rector of
Wappenham. Svo. 12s.