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The substance of it was preached to his Congregation, last winter, in a series of Sermons on the Proper Employment of Human Life. At the conclusion of the series he was requested to grant them for publication ; and, after considering it, he consented to do so, reserving to himself the liberty of making whatever alterations or improvements might appear to him to be necessary. In writing them for the press, he has, accordingly, availed himself of this privilege. He has altered their form ; and has added greatly to the last of the series, as those who heard it preached will at once perceive. His desire is, that it may be the humble means of doing good. If, by the Divine blessing, it shall lead any individual to make a right employment of the time and faculties that God hath given him, by " consecrating himself unto the Lord;" his labour shall be amply rewarded. Montreal^ May 10, 1838. -'*■ ; »._^Vi— •S.jv^ V, •^^A'-rn^" •V..»V»*M»'.^'''*'-*^-^'*- f -■J*' 1 f .;}».. CONTENTS. Introduction. Page. CUAPTER I. Question Proposed-Means of Reply-Nature of Man_La,r of Exercise 13 CHAPTER II. Man not chargeable with inactivity generally—His active powers employed in the pursuit of unworthy ol.jects— The acquisition of wealth as a means of selfish and sensual gra- tification—The disposal of Children-The distribution of worldly honours ^ CHAPTER III. The proper employment of Life— Described by its QujUities— First Quality— Second Quality— Third Quality—Remarks. 33 CHAPTER IV. Employment of Human Life ought to lead to some distinct Result-Qualities of that Result-First Quality-Second Quality-Concluding Remarks-Solomon-Nebuchadnez- zar— The Rich Man 43 CONTENTS. CIIAPTEK V Pagi:. iiecapitulation — (>uestion answered more directly — Proper business of ISIun is to be a " Follower of God" — By eom- jtrebendin^' his works already done — And laliourin^ fur what yet remains to be accomplished — This pobsesses ull the forc-nieiitioncd Qualities — Uemorks 65 CHAPTER Vr. Self-Examination — Four Ilcfisons urginj,' us to make a Proper Employment of Human Life — First lieason — Second Rea- son — Third Reason — Fourth Reason 82 CHAPTER vir. Objoctions anticipated Explanation Objections state:! — First Answer — Second Answer — Third Answer — Conclu- sion 102 CHAPTER VIII. Tlie Foregoing Principles applied to Education — Design of Education — la what it consistti — Its importance — Conclu- sion 118 INTllODUCTION. Of all the gifts that proceed from the Divine hand, the gift of life is one of the most valuable. It is a glorious manifestation of infinite benevolence and power. And, as none of the gifts of God are given without some end in view, we cannot suppose, for a moment, that a gift, of such transcendent excellence as this, is without an object. On the contrary, as the gift stands so high in respect of its worth, it is reasonable to conclude that the object contemplated by the giver stands equally high in respect of its importance. To know that ob/ecty and the means by which it may be attained, is the first lesson which we ought to learn ; to employ these means is the sum of our duty. "When we look back on the manner in which the life of man has been spent in past times^ or around us on the manner in which it is spent at the present day, we find that but few ofour race display a proper knowledge of the end of their being. There are few who seem to be at the trouble of taking even a moment's thought upon the subject, and fewer still whose speculations arrive at any practical result. Indeed, were we to infer the opinions of mankind from their conduct; and this A 1 ,_»-~t*-^«.*»— r'* ^w^-— INTRODUCTION. M is the only method by which they can be accurately ascertained, might we not suppose that the majority of the human race consider themselves ushered into this wonderful existence, armed with all the powers, bodily and mental, by which the nature of man is distinguished, just that they might possess themselves of greater wealth, or power, might sit at more sumptuous tables, own larger estates, and have more to serve and obey them, than others? Is it not, for the most part, on such filings as these that the life of man is expended ? " All ^eek their own." It is not merely in a state of barbarism that man has prostituted his life; to such ignobU* purposes. It is done in the most enlightened and Chrisliun nations. It is the sin of man, wherever place'd, and with whatever advantages, or disadvantages, he may be surrounded. liVen tiie churchy though professing a religion whose main feature consists in denying mV/ for the sake of some higher good, is as deeply involved in this guilt as the world. The numbers of the church have, with few exceptions, devoted their active life on earth to the pursuit of the same objects with the men of the world, and have, ecpuvlly with them, considered their life spent to good purp()s(>, if these objects have been attained. TJiis defection on the part of the church has been attended with the most lamentable consequences. For, had the error in question been confined to worldly men, there would still have been room for doubts to arise respecting it. But since the church, which, in all Christian countries, enjoys the high prerogative of fixing the standard of public morals, has given it the sanction of her example, it has, as a necessary conse- quence, set these doubts completely at rest ; and induced •""-<- =^^c*i*) M ome the few the orid, spent ed. boon For, men, arise in all ve of it the conse- duced INTRODUCTION. 9 the unnuRpccting belief that such a mode of t^pendin^ the life of man is perfectly consistent with Christian obligation. This again hus presented a barrier, which is all but insunnuuntable, to the extension of the Kedeemer's Kiiij^dom, and the improvement of the human ruee. There can be no doubt that it is agreeable to thc will of (iod that all men should possess knowledge, religion, and happiness. lie desires these things on behalf of the world, and seeks to realize them ; nay. in the exercise of his abundant grace, he hath determined that they shall yet become universal. But this determination is carried into effect only through the employment of a prescribed system of means, suitable to the nature of man, and the circumstances in which he is placed. The church has been appointed to employ these means. She has been raised up for this vj-ry purpose, to " attend continually upon this very thinj: ;' and has thus enjoyed the high privilege of " working together with (iod" in extending knowledge, r»'ligion, and happiness. But, alas! the church has abandoned her employment. Casting her eyes on the pursuits of the world, and the tempting objects which worldly ambition seeks and obtains, she has coveted them also ; has embarked in the pursuit of them, and vied with the greatest worldling in devotedness and perseverance. She has envied the men of the world their dress, and furniture, and equipage, and the various items of fashionable extravagance and display ; and has rushed headlong into the struggle for riches, and honour, and rank, and power. Need we wonder, then, that the Christian religion, eighteen centuries after its publication, should yet be confined to a very small portion of the A *> -\h^-;- 10 INTRODUCTIOS. habitable globe. The church, though raised up for the sole purpose of extending that religion, has neglected it, and occupied herself with the pursuit of worldly objects. She has thus fallen into tlte very error, from which she was intended by God to be the instrument of reclaiming others — the misemployment, or misdirection of human life. And the consequence is, the error has not only become sacred, but the person who should now presume to condemn it, and call upon the church to return to her original, and only lawful employment, is in danger of being denounced as an enthusiast or fanatic, and is likely to meet with the fiercest opposition from those who ought to give him the most effectual aid. Some may, perhaps, be inclined to ascribe the small progress which Christianity has hitherto made, to the corruptions in doctrine and worship which the Church has embraced, and the controversies by which she has been distracted, rather than to the worldly life which she \\t,o led. But, while it cannot be denied that the former have exerted a very pernicious influence, the writer of these pages is i)ersuaded that they must be reckoned far inferior to the last; perhaps, indeed, they are to be included amongst its effects. The root of the error lies here, that the members of the Church have lived like worldly men, and devoted themselves to the acquisition of worldly objects. They have considered it of the first importance to possess themselves of those very things on which the life of worldly men is expended, and have adopted the same methods to acquire them. A deep conviction of the truth and importance of these things has led to the production of the following treatise, the object of which is to give some hints res- pecting THE PROPER EMPLOYMENT OF THE LIFE OF , t»^ — . ^. 4* INTRODUCTION. 11 -MAN. The writer is aware that the subject is attended with difficulties which would require greater abilities than he possesses : yet he entertains the hope that the reader will find these " hints" worthy of a perusal ; and it is his prayer that, by the blessing of the Divine Spirit, they may be the means of leading him to make such an employment of his present life, as will consist with the design of God in bestowing it, and prepare him for the higher employments of the life that is to come. A3 •! I t HINTS, &c. CHAPTER I. QUESTION PROPOSED— MEANS OF REPLY- NATURE OF MAN— LAW OF EXERCISE. " So God created man in hia own image; in the image of God created he him." Gen. i, 27. " Exercise thyself unto Godliness." 1 Tim. iv. 7. It has been already stated that the Ahnighty Creator gave existence to man, and the world which he inhabits, as the means which seemed best, in the judgment of Infinite Wisdom, for accomplishing 'iome purpose which he had in view ; and that, to know that purpose, and labour for it, comprehend " the whole duty of man." All things, both within us and around us, conspire to declare that God has some design to answer by our existence ; to this consequently all our powers, and the time allotted us for exercising them, should be faithfully consecrated ; for no portion of either of these, however small, can be devoted to any other object without ff 14 MEANS OF REPLY. f sacrilege. It is, therefore, of the utmost importance to know what this design of God is, and what are the means of its attainment ; to know for what reason he hath made us what we are, and placed us where we are ; and in what manner we may best fulfil his wise, and holy, and benevolent intentions. We are not left without the means of returning an answer to these questions. Reason and Revelation, the " two great lights" of the moral world, conduct us to a safe and satisfactory conclusion. The latter declares, on the authority of God himself, that he hath made all things ybr his own glory ; and the former, by inferring the intention of the Creator from the nature and capabilities of his work, arrives at the same con- viction. .What Revelation teaches on this subject is doubtless to be preferred to what Reason teaches ; for, coming directly from " the Father of lights" himself, it is impossible that it can contain any false principle, or erroneous conclusion; imputations that may always be preferred against the deductions of human reason ; but, if it is free from error, it seems more liable to corruption and abuse. For, although, by means of a correct religious education, men may be taught that they have been called into being in order to show forth GocCs glory, yet how few seem to understand what this means I Does not the conduct of too many of the professors of religion make it evident that, if they have ever attempted to comprehend the foregoing phrase, they have not only failed to do so, but, by affixing a false interpretation to it, have even made it the innocent cause of leading them farther from the truth, and confirming them in delusion ? They admit, as undeniable, that the Divine glory is to be served, in ' % N»r^., \..m;^smtff^ NATURE OF MAN. 15 \ % some way, by thdr existence, but have no idea that they ought to labour for it, as the end of their being. They seem to imagine that what they contribute to the Divine glory is to be yielded passively on their part; that, instead of resulting from their active endeavours, it is to be brought about by the wise disposals of Divine Providence respecting them, and that this involuntary contribution is to be yielded not in the present life, but in that which is to come. In short, they regard it as what they cannot prevent, rather than what they ought to choose and prefer. In instituting some inquiries into the proper employ- ment of human life, the writer of these pages prefers to follow the a posteriore method of induction, rather than the a priori method of Revelation, not because the former is safer, but because he considers it easier. What Revelation teaches on this point has been much abused by popular superstition, as has juSt been observed; and no task can be more difficult or ungrate- ful than to remove an abuse which superstition has consecrated. By following the method of induction this ditficulty will be wholly avoided ; at the same time, the aid which we derive from Revelation will as effectually preserve us from error. We will, in short, arrive ultimately at the same end ; but, by taking a different road, we may approach it with different impressions. One obvious method by which we may discover the design of God in creating man, and, by necessary con- sequence, the manner in which God would have him to employ his existence here, is to examine the nature of man, and find what powers and capacities have been conferred upon him. By examining an instrument we \ 16 NATURE OF MAN. can often discover what it has been made for, and can determine, in any given case, whether it is applied to its proper uses or not. In the same way, by examining the nature of man, M-e may ascertain the purpose for which such a nature has been given him, and learn something respecting the objects which all his energies should be spent in acquiring. The nature of man is compound. It is neither wholly earthly, like the nature of the inferior animals, nor wholly heavenly, like the nature of angels; it consists partly of both — of bodty and soul, united so intimately as to constitute one perso?i. From the union of these two opposite extremes, the terrestrial and the celestial, in the composition of man's nature, it may be safely inferred that his proper sphere lies between both; it being always admitted that the higher ought to give law to the lower, and assume the direction of it. A larger number of terms, however, is sometimes employed in describing the nature of man ; thus we read of his corporeal nature, of his social nature, of his intellectual nature, his moral nature, and his immortal nature. These epithets are employed by writers of all classes, according as they view the nature of man in different lights, or refer to different subdivisions of it, for the purpose of illustrating different subjects. We prefer to make use of them throughout the following treatise, not only because they are perfectly consistent with truth, (which, yet, were a sufficient reason,) but because they present a plainer and more popular view of the subject before us, than the division first men- tioned. They describe the various apartments, if we may so speak, of " the earthly house of this taber- nacle ;" which apartments are appropriated to certain \ NATURE OF MAN. 17 »g occupants, and are, by them, always used for certain purposes. The first is the corporeal^ which is the residence of the external senses, and the various mechanical powers of the human body. The second is the social^ the seat of those affections which bind us together in communities, or in families. Out of this depart- ment arise those domestic relations, which tend so much to sweeten or to embitter life, and to which an important place must be assigned in all our specula- tions respecting human happiness. Above these we find, in the third place, the intellectual department, which is the seat of our intellectual faculties. These are celestial in their nature, and furnish the most 'con- vincing evidence of the unsearchable wisdom, and benevolence, and power, that must reside in Him who created them. Higher still, we find the moral depart- ment of man's nature. Those powers reside here by which we distinguish between right and wrong, feel the force of moral obligation, and in general are rendered capable o{ religion, and of receiving the likeness of the Divine image. This corresponds to the " holy of holies" in the Jewish temple, Avhere the Sliechinah, or symbol of the Divine presence, remained ; but as this was taken away, and probably destroyed, by the King of Babylon, who, in prophetical language, is frequently used to personate an evil power, so the soul of man has been robbed of its resemblance to the Divine Being by the introduction of sin. It is yet necessary to observe that the whole, which is formed by the union of these various elements, is immortal. For the Divine Artificer never makes any thing one moment, which he finds it neces- sary to destroy the next, as men often do, either from i 18 NATURE OF MAN. I \ inability to finish what they have begun, or from mistakes committed in the process. It is true that it will soon undergo the change which takes place in death, but no part of it will be destroyed. Death has no power over the soul ; and even the body will be under its power only for a time. Perhaps it is liter- ally true that " not a hair of man's head shall perish ;" the grave shall restore all that it receives. At the resurrection, the powers of the body shall be perfected, so as to fit them for conveying to the mind the most intense sensations of happiness or of pain. Such is a brief view of the Nature of Man, or rather, of the various sets of powers of which it is composed. In the view of these, may we not say with the Psalmist, " I am fearfully and wonderfully made ?" Frail as man confessedly is, yet, by means of the powers conferred on him, he is capable of performing the greatest ex- ploits. Though chained to a small speck of earth, he can calculate the distance of the farthest planet, ascer- tain its bulk, and the velocity with which it flies through space. His imagination can ascend into heaven, or descend into hell ; or, taking the wings of the morning, it can dart to the uttermost parts of the sea, and erect there a creation of its own. He is able to love good and hate evil, to perceive the beauty of holiness, and the supreme excellence of Him who " only is holy." How wonderful is man ! what a monument of the incon^)rehensible perfection of him who breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and made him a living soul ! But we took this view of the nature of man, to ascertain if we could thence learn what man has been sent into this world to do ; ^nd, we think, this appears -»•:-»,. .. I LAW OF EXERriSE. 19 or to be ail evident deduction from the foregoing summary ; that these various powers have been conferred upon man, with the design t/iat he should exercise them. Man is, as it were, a magazine of power: a vast number of faculties and capabilities are crowded into the narrow limits of his nature, which, if kept in constant and full operation, might perform an almost indefinite amount of labour. He may be compared to a powerful machine, which is capable of accomplishing much good, if it keeps in its due course, but never fails to cause much destruction if it goes out of it. Vrom these things the inference seems obvious, that these powers have not been given that they might remain in a state of quiescence : the law of exercise is one of the laws of our being. 1. This may be argued,^/'5^, from the nature of our powers. For what do we mean by a power or faculty, but just, the ability to perform a certain exercise? What is the power of memory, for example, but the ability to perform the act of remembering ? And the very fact that this ability has been given us is decisive evidence that it is the will and design of the donor that we should put it in requisition. The foot has evidently been made for walking, the eye for sight, the ear for hearing, &c., and the hand, for the almost indefinite variety of mechanical operations which it can perform with so much dexterity. The intellectual powers have evidently been given with the design that they also should be exercised upon their several appropriate objects. The power of thought is of such a nature that we cannot keep it inactive, even if we would : it wakes even in sleep. In short, the mind itself is known to us only by its various modes of action. When its Bl 2() LAW OF EXERCISE. I I' t powers* are unemployed, its existence is, in a manner, Ru^pendccl. These powers are tools put into our hands that we should labour with them, '* till we accomplish, as an hireling, our day." Upon all of them the words " occupy till I come" arc legibly inscribed. And it ought to be re membered, that all these powers derive a high degree of pleasure, and a great increase of strength from exercise, as we shall afterwards observe ; which farther corroborates the remark we have just submitted. 2. The same thing may be argued, secondly ^ from the wants to which our lUiture is liable. These wants are all but innumerable, and they are perpetually recurring. They arise from each of the component parts of our nature that have been enumerated : — the bodily, the social, the intellectual, and the moral, have all their respective nec(\ssities which must be satisfied. Now, whenever this feeling of want is superinduced, it makes an appeal to our powers of action to exert themselves to procure the requisite supply. It can be viewed, therefore, in no other light, than as an expedient, which the Divine Creator makes use of, for communi- cating an impulse to the powers which he hath given ns, and setting them in motion. And as this feeling arises necessarily from the constitution of our natures, and is scarcely for a moment interrupted, except it be during sleep, it hence becomes evident, that one part, at least, of God's design in bringing us into existence, is, that we should exercise the powers M'hich he hath given us. By the very frame of our natures, he hath, in fact, taken security beforehand that we shall do so. 3. This brings us to observe that the same thing may be argued, thirdly^ from the pleasure attending the gratification of these wants. If any should think, that ■.*. ts LAW OF EXERCISE. '2\ what is stated under the for(?goiiig particular represents human nature as railed into existence only to be placed under the yoke of necessity, we would have them to remember that the gratilication of its wants is attended with the highest degree of enjoyment, when it is pursued in obedience to the will of the Creator. Indeed, under- standing tva/it in the highest s(?nse of the term, it may be said that the gratification of it is the only pleasure of which our nature is capable. The due exercise of the powers appertaininj; to any of the component part* of our nature leads to a state of health in that department, if not counteracted by vice. For example, the due exercise of the bodily powers leads to a state of bodily health. The same remark may be made respecting all the sets of powers which we possess ; and a state of health in all of them must be perfectly synonymous with a state of happiness. If this is kept in view, it will remove all appearance of severity in the appointment which raises up ivcint to compel us to action, and show it to be in full harmony with the Divine benevolence. Such action is not a task, but an enjoyment ; and it is as proper to say we are bribed to it by the pleasure to which it leads, as compelled by the necessity of the case. Lastly. The same thing may be inferred from the circumstances in which man is placed. This world, in which God hath placed him, is such, that it is impossible for him to take a single step in it without meeting with something which infallibly sets some of his powers in operation. The visible works of God around him constantly stimulate his intellectual powers, by address- ing his curiosity, or thirst for knowledge; and his religious powers, by the evidences which they exhibit b2 •-*•'— ««v.«^,. I V I 'I ;■} H .1 22 LAMT OF EXERCISE. of " liU eternal power and Godhead." In society he meets unavoidably with ohjt'cts that excite his sympathy or aversion ; his love of what is good, or his hatred of what is evil. In short, external objects are constantly transmitting, through the channel of the bodily senses, some influence to the powers that reside within, and impelling them to act. Tiiese facts then, that the powers which God hath conferred upon man are powers of action^ that he hath made him liable to the sensation of want, that the highest pleasure is connected with the legitimate gratification of that wnnt, atid that he hath placed him amid circumstances which unceasingly prompt him to action, are sufKcient to show that one object, at least, which God liud in view in making us what we are, and placing us where v»'e are, is, that wo might exercise the powers conferred on us. Indolence will, therefore, appear to be a sin against the fundamental law of our being: it is a frustration of the design for which we were created. If any of our powers, whether corporeal, social, intellectual, or moral, are suffered to remain in a state of inactivity, the will and intention of the Creator are, so far, set at nought ; and he marks his displeasure at the sin ^y punishing it, invariably and immediately. ^1 rJ ■f.-f --«#-, CHAPTER II. MAN NOT CIIARGEAnLE WITH INACTIVITY GEN- ERALLY— HIS ACTIVE POWERS EMPLOYED IN THE PURSUIT OF UNWORTHY OIJJECTS— THE ACQUISITION OF WEALTH, AS A MEANS OF SELFISH AND SENSUAL GRATIFICATION— THE DISPOSAL OF CHILDREN— THE DISTRIBUTION OF WORLDLY HONOURS. " What shall wc eat, and what sliall we drink, and wherewithal ■hall we be clothed? After all these things do the Gentiles seek." Matt. vi. 31, 32. We consider it, then, as established, that one part of God's design in calling us into being, and bestowing upon us sucli a nature as we possess, is that we might exercise the various powers of which it is composed. Some, however, may consider this but a small point gained in an inquiry into the proper employment of human life. For the mere exercise of a power is of little importance in itself, — the object intended to be accomplished by it is the great thing to be ascertained. It is possible that our powers may be kept in a state of incessant activity, and, at the same time, the purpose bS if • i 'I V 1^' 24 TH. PURSUIT OF UNWORTHY OBJECTS. for which they have been given by God be, nevertheless, completely defeated. There is much truth, we apprehend, in this remark, as applied to mankind at large. The charge of total indolence is one which cannot be brought against them. On the contrary, when we look around us, we find that ** all things are full of labour." The sinews of toil are seldom relaxed — the mind of genius is ever on the stretch — the noise and bustle of commerce never cease — there is no pause in the hurry, and din, and sickening confusion, which the various projects and enterprises of man create. In entering such a scene of turmoil, we feel as if we were placed in a similar situation with Noah's dove, when she went forth over the tossing and heaving billows of the deluge, and could find no rest for the sole of her foot. But the great point is, tor what purpose is this lavish expenditure of human energies made ? Alas ! we fear that the words of Scripture, which we have placed at the head of this chapter, furnish a full explanation of the whole : " What shall we eat, and what shall we drink, and wherewithal shall we be clothed? After all these things do the Gentiles seek." We do not suppose that these words of Christ are to be so literally interpreted as to make him declare that the Gentiles laboured only for food and drink and clothing, but rather that the object of their labours was some sensual or selfish gratification. They put forth their ingenuity in devising schemes, and their strength in executing them, to obt'iir possession of something which could be of advantige to none but their own individual selves, and could be acceptable only to the lower propensities of their nature. And, viewed in »x ,, k*.>c ••^yr-^^'-. i*-«3B 30 DISTRIBUTION OF HONOURS. V I 1^ meet with strong temptations from tiie laxity of morals prevailing in a heathen country, but will be deprived of the assistance of Christianity in resisting them. The result is not doubtful. Physical influences, of a malig- nant kind, have there ruined many a constitution, but moral influences have done greater injury to the soul. We shudder when we think of the cruelty of parents in former times, who sacrificed their children to Moloch, casting their innocent babes into the fiery arms of a monstrous idol ; but is not the cruelty of Christian parents greater, and fur more inexcusable, who expose, in this manner, the immortal souls of their children to almost certain perdition ? And for what is this tremen- dous ri:ath the (li<;uitv of a moral and intellec- tual being. This opinion is not the less offensive, that it is mingled with some degree of pietism ; and with the pompous, yet absurd, pretence, that those who hold it have conquered the earthly «>lements of their nature, and live habitually in the hijiher regions of rational or devotional speculation. Such mysticism may be in- tended to honour the Cn-ator, but it appears 'to' us to throw an injurious rcHcetion upon his handy work. It avows that God hath given powers of action, which it is not proper for us to emy)loy — nay, which it is praiseworthy to extinguish. We are informed on the highest authority that every work of God is " good," but those who hold this opinon find some exceptions ; there are some imperfections which ought to be amended. In oi)position to this, let it be considered that the inferior power is as evidently the gift of God as the higher ; and, if the design of exercise is evident in respect of the latter, it is no less evident in respect of the former. Man is a terrestrial as well as a celestial being, by the very constitution of his nature ; and the attempt to make him only the latter, in the present state of existence, will ever be found impious and absurd. 2. But, lest any should confound powers of action, with appetites and passions, and imagine we are teaching that the will of man ought to be his law, we proceed to mention a second quality of the proper employment c3 8RC0ND QUALITY. fi ! of our life : namely, it must exercise our powew in tuit- able proportion to their respective importance. All the powers of man do not possess equal importance ; there are higher and lower. The constitution of man's body furnishes an apt illustration of this; we there find members superior and inferior, such as the head and the foot, the eye and the hand, &c. All these powers are necessary to constitute a perfect body, yet all of them do not possess the same degree of importance ; for the body could exist, and perform the functions of existence, though, for example, the eye were extin- guished, or the foot, or the hand, cut off: just so far, however, would it be reckoned a defective body. The very same remarks are applicable to man's active powers. They are not all of equal importance, nor is the exercise of all of them equally necessary to the attainment of the end of our creation. But just so far as any of them is unemployed there is defect, either in the amount of happiness which we enjoy, or good which we accomplish. There are plain marks by which we mjiy distinguish between the higher and the lower powers of our nature, and ascertain how far the exercise of any of them is necessary ; it would be aside from our object, however, to enter into the discussion of this point here. Passing over this, therefore, we take the liberty of ranking the powers of man in the following order, according to their excellence and value. Lowest in the scale, unquestionably, stand his bodily powers ; next in order, perhaps, those which belong to the social department ; above these tower man's intellectual faculties; and high over all stand his moral powers, " a little lower than the angels." These last are evidently the crown and glory I I SECOND QUALITY. ST of our naturp. How h'l^h is the honour to which we have been raised, and how groat the gratitude wliicb we owe to '* tlic Former of our bodies, and the Father of our spiriN," in that he hath created us in such a manner an to make us capable of receiving tite imprest of his own unapprcciable excellencies I According to the order in which we have placed the active powers of man, we would determine the degree in which the exercise of any of them is necessary to the accomplishment of the end of our being. Those of the ^rst class are the least necessary : some of them, indeed, may remain altogether unemployed, and that end be, nevertheless, substantially gained ; though defect of fiome kind will, in this case, be found existing some- where, as already remarked. Those of the second class are more necessary than the former ; the law of exercise admits here of fewer exceptions, though some must undoubtedly be granted. Those of the third class are more important still ; the exercise of them is, conse- quently, more imperiously demanded; and the excep- tions, if any can be admitted, are extremely limited. But those of the fourth class are the most necessary of all ; and no exception whatever can be supposed admissible in respect of them. To spend our lives in an employment which exercises only the corporeal powers of our nature would be brutish. It would be to rise somewhat higher, if to this were added the exercise of the social affections — higher still, if a second addition were made of the intellectual faculties ; and a still higher ascent would be gained, if to this were added the exercise of the moral powers. But the most excellent enrspliiyment of which we can form any conception is one which not only exercises ■.,f^ S8 SECOND QUALITY. all these powers, but exercises them suitably to their respective importance, and assigns the greatest amount of labour to the most worthy : that is, which depends primarily on the exercise of the moral powers, in a secondary degree on the intellectual, still less on the social, and least of all on the corporeal. None of them ought to be so exclusively cultivated or employed as to thrust out another, but the higher ought certainly to take the precedence, and exert a controlling influence over the lower. If the life of that man is brutish who employs onl?/ the bodily powers, the life of another cannot be considered m\ich superior who exercises them chiefly, and places the higher in subordination to them. This is to invert the order of nature — it is to throw aside the superiority with which man was invested at his creation ; it is to " turn things upside down" to our own shame. Yet we fear this is precisely the manner in which life is spent by the majority of man- kind at the present day. The chief place is assigned to the exercise of some bodily power ; the understanding is seldom called into exercise except when it is needed by the former, to discover or perfect some invention, or for some similar purpose ; while the moral capabilities of our nature are almost systematically neglected. Let any one that reads thes^e pages reflect for a moment on the manner in which his past existence has been occupied, and inquire which of his powers have been most frequently and fully exercised*. Let him extend the same inquiry to others; and his mind will be impressed with the melancholy fact, that we lead, in general, an animal life. While God has given us spiritua' faculties, by the due exercise of which we might rise almost above our proper sphere, we yet sink > .^ ' THIRD QUALITY. 39 .i. :h I ? far beneath it, by giving to the animal part of our nature the governing voice in directing and prescribing the employment of life. 3. Lastly, We observe that the proper employment of our life must be such as to offer violence to none of our powers. This remark is evidently included under the first, or, at least, is a corollary from it ; but on account of its importance it seems entitled to a separate consideration. Violence may be done to the bodily powers by over-exertion ; to the intellectual by neglect. The social affections are hardened and des- troyed by being frequently brought into contact with objects that are repugnant to them. The moral powers suffer a similar injury from a similar cause — the conscience becomes " seared as with a hot iron" by a systematic disregard of its sacred admonitions. These are sometimes regarded as sins of little turpitude, (that is, where their sinfulness is admitted) because they ter- minate upon ourselves, or because they are of a negative rather than a positive kind ; but there can be no doubt that they are sins of very high aggravation. For, the effect of such conduct upon the powers in question is as opposite to the will of God as it possibly can be — its tendency is to destroy them. Like all " sin, when it is finished, it bringeth forth death," so far as its influence extends. The course which God intends the human powers to run, is from nothing onwards to perfection, rising higher and higher, in endless progression ; but the course referred to carries them backwards to the point from which they started. And can any thing be moro directly in opposition to the will of God ? Whatever tends to weaken or destroy any of the powers which he hath given us, is of the nature of suicide — it is a 40 RENfARKS. deliberate undoing of his work, and a contemptuous undervaluing of the end which he designed thereby to accomplish. Having presented these characters or qualities by which the proper employment of human life is distin- guished, let us, in concluding this chapter, apply them to some of the favourite pursuits ot man, in order to discover what judgment ought to be formed respecting them. . ' , Will the pursuits o^ amhition bear the application of these tests ? No ; ambition employs only the inferior powers of our nature. It is true, it requires the assistance of the intellectual ; but it does not use them intellectually — it employs them only for the purposes of political intrigue; while the social and moral feelings are syste- matically outraged. Will the pursuit of the sensualist abide the scrutiny ? No ; he can scarcely be said to em- ploy any of the powers which the Divine Being hath given him : — he lives only for the gratification of appetite, — he descends from the level of man to that of the brute. Will, then, the great pursuit, in which we have already said the human race seem, as a body, to have embarked, whether prince or peasant, Atheist or Christian, savage or civilized, bear this examination. No ; when " weighed in the balances" the pursuit of wealth is " found wanting." It does not exercise all the powers of man ; it requires only the corporeal and the intellectual ; and, of the latter, the power of invention alone seems to be necessary in the service of Mammon. It does not employ them suitably to the degree of their respective importance — it lays the heaviest burden on the cor- poreal. For it is the pursuit o^ wealth, not o^ subsistence^ which renders the life of man a perpetual toil. The • V REMARKS. 41 latter would be easily obtained ; for God is not niggard of his bounty ; but we refuse to be contented with the sufficiency that he gives, and lay " lieavy burdens" upon our own shoulders, to satisfy our pride, or sensu- ality, or caprice. It frequently over-exerts and destroys the bodily powers. Many examples of this were to be seen in the bondage of the slave, an evil which is now huppily extirpated from the British Empire ; and some, perhaps, may yet be discovered in some of the manu- factories of Great Britain. Perhaps, also, the excessive toil of the day-labourer and artisan are to be considered examples of this, who, in consequence of the unnatural state into which society has been brought by the universal pursuit of wealth, is necessitated to labour, almost to exhaustion, to obtain a mere pittance. It offers violence to the wor«/ powers ; for, as formerly observed, it impinges upon the conscience, almost at every step. It offers violence also to the social affections ; for it renders man a selfish being. As rust corrodes iron, so the pursuit of wealth seems to eat out the soul of man, if such a mode of expression may be permitted. It consumes every thing that is noble, or generous, or lovely, and leaves nothing but rust and dross behind. Reader, let me now ask whether the employment, in which your life has hitherto been spent, will bear the application of the foregoing tests ? Have you brought into action all the powers conferred upon you by God ? Have your moral and intellectual powers been exercised more than the inferior? And have you abstained from every enterprise which would lead you to do violence to any of them ? If you have not, I trust your own judgment will now testify that you have counteracted, fundamentally, the purpose of 4e REMARKS. employ U in low and »-« ^^ PX^ffieient to have CrL thyself rather unto jodft""'- y *: CHAPTER IV. EMPLOYMENT OF HUMAN LIFE OUGHT TO LEAD TO SOME DISTINCT RESULT— QUALITIES OF THAT RESULT— FIRST QUALITY— SECOND QUA- LITY—CONCLUDING REMARKS— SOLOMON — NE- BUCHADNEZZAR—THE RICH MAN. ■ " Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for the meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man shall give unto you." John vi. 27. " Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which satisfieth not ? " Isaiah Iv. 2. The Apostle James compares human life to " a vapour, which appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away." But this beautiful and expressive figure des- cribes only the brevity of its course, and is not intended to teach that our life ought to terminate like a vapour, — without leaving behind any trace of its existence. On the contrary, it is obviously the design of our Creator that the employment of our life should lead to some solid and permanent result. We trust that what has been already advanced is sufficient to produce a conviction of the truth of this, in the mind of the reader ; yet it is perhaps necessary D 1 • "I ( I 14 EMPLOYMENT OF HUMAN LIFE ■' .* lU to be reminded of it again ; for we are ever prone to imagine that we are free from all censure, if we are not chargeable with the commission of positive evil, though, at the same time, we should never have performed any ])ositive good. How natural is it to indulge the hope, that, if our life does not end in some mischievous effect, we are beyond the reach of the condemnation of God's tiery law, though we should have nothing really good to refer to, as an evidence that the gift of life has not been conferred upon us in vain ! Now, although salvation is " not of works, but of grace," we ought to recollect, that, as God sent us into this world to accomplish ^omeMin^, we shall expose ourselves to his displeasure if we accomplish nothing, as really as if we wrought great and extensive evil. He did not furnish human nature with the array of powers which she possesses, and provide such afield for their exercise, that all this preparation might at last i^iid in nothing — it was in order to realize some great and permanent result, worthy of himself, and the means lie has adopted. And he who suffers his life to come to a close without effectuating such a result, is, even upon the too favourable supposition which we have already admitted, chargeable with defeating the purpose of his creation. He passes through life as the arrow passes through the air, or the keel through the waves, and, when he arrives at the end of his course, he is " as il' he had never been," — nothing remains to tell, on (^arth or in heaven, that God or man has gained anything bv his life and labours. But, perhaps, there afe none, except idiots and infants, whose life is such a blank as this ; and terminate at last in such an absolute negative ; the generality of mankind conduct it in such a manner as to make it OUGHT l(> LEAD TO SOME DISTINCT RliSUI/l". i'fl rone to are not though, led any le hope, IS effect, 3f God's good to not been vation is [ect, that, tMiw5',we iconaplish extensive the array ich a field ght at last ome great the means fe to come It, is, even we have he purpose J the arrow the waves, ie, he is " as to tell, on ed anything idiots and lid terminate Tenerality of 5 to make it issue in some resi.lt ; but alas I that result is, in most cases, in direct variance with the purpose and will of God. Some make it the end of their life to realize a fortune^ others to conquer a country, others to build a house, others to discover an invention. Some labour for the accomplishment of one object, and sonic for another ; " their ends as various as the ways they take, in journeying through life." But where is the indi- vidual whose life is spent in an endeavour to realize th^ true object for which it was given ? This leads us to observe, that a knowledge of the proper employment of human life may be gathered, not only from the characters or qualities of the employment itself; but also from the characters or qualities of the end to which it leads — the object which it is designed to accomplish. It is obvious that the result, which alone will prove acceptable to the Author of our being, when our various labours shall be brought to a close by death, must possess some qualities by which it is distinguished from all others ; and, if the way in which we are now spending our lives is not likely to lead to that result, the undeniable inference is, that we ought to " turn from it." The present chapter shall be occupied with the consideration of these qualities. 1 . In the f.rst place, then, we observe, the proper employment of life will lead to the attainment of a result, which will be found perfectly suitable to our natures. We doubt not that every person will at once admit, in a general sense, the reasonableness of this qualification ; but some difference of opinion may perhaps exist as to what things are to be considered suitable or unsuitable to our nature, and the data on which we ought to proceed in judging of them. We d2 ; 1 II' ' ' ' ' \ > .' i 1-6 FIRST QUALITY. submit that this point is to be determined only by a reference to human nature itself, to ascertain the wants which it may have to satisfy, and the capacities of enjoyment whioh it may have to exercise. Without resuming the discussion of these things, we take the liberty of recalling to the mind of the reader the following classification, to which we have again and again referred in the progress of this inquiry : Human nature consists of powers or faculties, corporealy social, rntellecttialf and moral. The union of these several parts constitutes human nature, and, upon the whole which is formed by their union, zmmorto/i/^ is inscribed. Each of these departments has its own demands for gratification and enjoyment; and that object is alone suitable to our nature, which is>^capable of satisfying a// these demands, and thereby communicating happiness to the wJiole man. To the attainment ofsuch an object us this, all our energies should be directed ; and it is only in the pursuit of such an object that the proper employment of life consists. In forming a judgment, from these data^ of what will be suitable or unsuitable to our nature, it is necessary to observe that, although each of these component parts has its own demand for gratification and enjoy- ment, yet, as they are not all equal in point of importance, the satisfying of that demand is not, in each case, equally necessary. If, for example, we were to instance only some inferior order of our powers, and, having found an object which will be suitable to them, were to rush to the conclusion that it is suitable also to our nature at large, and consequently that all our endeavours should be bent to the attainment of it, it is evident we would be judging most erroneously. For, V- PtnST QUALITY. 47 ly bya e wants sities of A^ithout ake the der the ;ain and Human ;/, social, several le whole nscribed. ands for is alone sfying all lappiness an object and it is be proper what will necessary omponent ,ud enjoy- point of ot, in each e were to wers, and, e to theui, ble also to at all our at of it, it usly. For, before we can draw such a conclusion, we must take into account the wants, not merely of one, but of all the component parts of our nature ; and if they appear to clash, one requiring what another rejects, so as to render it necessary to set some of them aside, it is evident that the demands of the lower must be made to yield to the demands of the higher. It would be subversive of all order to make the more noble give way to the less worthy ; yet this, we apprehend, is the verv error which mankind commit in the conduct of m human life; they make it the business of life to satisfy the wants of the lower part of their nature, or its demands for gratification and enjoyment. But the demands of that which is first in point of excellence and dignity must evidently be taken first into considera- tion ; and whatever object is best calculated to satisfy them must be considered most suitable to our nature. Although there are corporeal elements in the con- stitution of man's nature, yet he is not a corporeal being : such a sentiment would be a libel on our nature, and Him who placed it at the head of this world. If, therefore, any person spends his life in the pursuit of an object, which, when attained, will prove acceptable only to a corporeal being ; it is evident that such a person would be guilty of perpetrating a gross libel upon the dignity of his own nature, involving as great wickedness and cruelty as the conduct of the father who would offer a stone to his hungry child instead of bread. But the social element prevails to a greater extent, in the nature of man, than the corporeal. Selfishness is not a />ar^ of human nature. In the state in which man was created it had no existence; and although, since man became a fallen being, it seems to have been d3 i; ' 48 FIRST QUAi-tTY. u n the ruling principle, it is not to be viewed as an integral part of his nature, but as an evil adiiering to it, which the grace of God is able to remove. Yet, so great is its ascendancy, that it seems to have the springs of liuman activity completely undc^r its controul. It is the universal object of pursuit to gain some superiority over others. Every one is endeavouring to get upon the shoulders of his fellow ; and he who has been most successful in making others his inferiors, is regarded as the man who has employed his life to the best advantage. To guard against such an abuse of our time and our faculties, God hath infused the social element so largely into our natures, as to make our happiness depend, in a great measure, on the happiness of others. To make others happy is tire condition of being happy ourselves, in the full sense of the term ; and this is a law which furnishes us with a very striking manifesta- tion of the benevolence of God. Though we should pay the most diligent attention to our own personal interests, both temporal and spiritual, and adopt the wisest measures to secure both ; yet if we were care- lessly to leave our neighbour in his wickedness and misery, his condition would inevitably affect ours, and permit us to be only partially happy. Though we ourselves should be strictly honest and just, yet if our •leighbour is a thief or a robber, he deprives us, in a i^rreat measure, of the enjoyment which might arise from ur own observance of the laws of morality. All this evidently teaches, that if we are spending oiu* life in the pursuit of an object, which, when attained, would be of advantage to none but ourselves, we are mis-spending them ; and are mistaking the desi;,Mj for which God gave us this existence, and these i^ .'•MmMi ^*i"'n FIRST QUALITY. 49 active powers, and planed us in this world, where we have such a favourable field for exercising them. For though our pursuit were to be crowned with success, yet the prize which we seek will be " found wanting" when we possess it : our nature will reject it as unsuitable ; because it would be unable to satisfy the wants which arise from our social afl'ections, which receive happiness from seeing others possessed of it. Man is essentially a social being ; and the attempt to derive sufficient happiness from his own personal condition, irrespective of the condition of others around him, will ever be found impracticable. He, then, who spends his life in endeavouring to diffuse the elements of happiness amongst mankiml at large, while he acts most consistently with Christian tluty and obligation, acts at the same time most suitably to his own nature, and takes the best method to make himself, as well as others, ;.appy. Such " mercy is twice bless'd." But man is more distinguished by the intellectual and moral departments of liis nature than any of the preceding. His mind has been formed for the investi- gation and love of truth ; and the pursuit of what is good, and the hatred of what is evil. His capacity to perform these exercises is the chief feature in his character. Hence, when the inspired penman describes man, such as he was in the day that God created him, he mentions his capability of knowledge and morality as the chief characteristic of the newly formed creature. " So God created man in his oiv?i image^ in the image of God created he him." I ask then, of all possible objects which the life of man may be spent in acquiring, what is that object which will prove most suitable to a being whose nature is distinguished by these high and 50 riHST (JUALITY. :ri ^ T fl. 1 i\ \ glorious qualities? Is it wcnltli ? — is it fauK! ? — is it command? No. In tlu! words of an insplrcil Apostle, *' VViiatsoi'Vcr tlun}j;s arc fruc, wliiitsocver tilings are iionrsly wliatso('V(!r things are Ji/.sf, wliatsocver thitigs arc pure, wliatsoovor things are Imr/t/, whatsovor tilings an oi' f/ood nport ; if tlicre b(! any virtue, and if there be any praise," — these are the things wliich will be found most suital)l(? to his nature; and, in the acquisi- tion of this spiritual wealth, his time and energies should be consumed. A brute will naturally desire something that is capable of gratifying its brutish appetites; such an object would be suitable to its nature. A merely intellectual being, if we may conceive of such, will desire something that is caj)al)le of gratifying his thirst for knowledge ; his nature would not feel the want of any thing more. Ikit a moral creature, whose chief glory (.onsi:-ts in loving what is ffnod and hating whtit is evil, if he acts from nature and not fioni depravity, will desire, above all things, a field for the execcise and display of these godlike perfections. He will desire that sin should be ev'erywhere put down, and that righteousness should be everywhere triumphant; and its benignant influence diffused on every side, producing at every step its blessed and appropriate eft'ects, till it shall be co-extensive with the empire of the Alnnghty, and shall make the whole universe a heaven. Such an object as this would alone be suitable to his nature ; every thing else would be too low. In fine, it ought to be recollected that the nature of man is immortal: from which it is evident that, if the object which we spend our lives in acquiring, does not possess the same attribute of immortality, and is not / ,! •;■ FIRST (iUALITY. .'51 capable of furnisliiiig for ever tin; gratification and enjoyiiunit which our natun^ will for ever re(|uirc, it i-s unsuitable to uh ; and the time and labour which we Hpend upon it fxw lo.it. I do not w ish to be understood aa uttering any thing so chinierieal, as to teach that the faculties of man ought never to be exercised in tin; pursuit of any temporal object. Perhaps, if man had continued the god he was created, he might have con- temned all employment connected with *' the beggarly elements of the worldj" and looked upon it as a piece of menial drudgery; but he has fallen, and he must stoop " to grind in the prison-house," like Sampson in his humiliation. But, what we condemn is, making the acquisition of any temporal object the business of our life, — devoting to it so much of our time, and thought, and active exertions, as to Justify others in accounting it our paramount employment, ^'ov although, in this case, all our plans were to be completely successful, they would issue in a result which could be of little advantage to us. To spend our lives in the pursuit of an object which we can enjoy only for a few years at farthest, instead of raising our aim to " a better and an enduring substance," which will co-exist with us in eternity, and continue for ever to realize the expecta- tions which we form from it, is a folly so great that words have not power to describe it sufficiently. What an outrage opon our nature I what a gross perversion of the design for which God created us, and placed us here! We just now referred to the cruelty of the parent who offers a stone to his hungry child instead of bread ; but this folly equals the conduct of the madman^ who refuses the bread, and attempts to appease his own hunger with a stone I 52 SECOND QUALITY. . t ' [ These remarks, it is hoped, will be sufficient to lead when jrposely eit pains, ution of le prodi- mployed vantages xn might forward, tainment deration, which is King of devoted, " it was [)t a few." d project igs ; and wheresoever the children of men dwelt, the beasts of the field, and the fowls of the heaven were given into his hand, and he became ruler over them all. All people, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him : whom he would he slew, and whom he would he kept alive, and whom he would he set up, and whom he would he put down." And was this great result, on which his heart had been so long set, and for the attainment of which he had spent so "."*>•' days and nights of anxious thought and patient laucur, and committed so many enormous crimes, found at last equal to his expectations ? When he grasped it, and presented it to his soul as the issue and fruit of all his labours, and as the intended means of making her supremely and permanently happy, did his soul accept of the prize, and rejoice in it, as all that was necessary to satisfy her ardent and ceaseless longings ? Was it capable of furnishing happiness to a being whose nature consists of those various parts, already described ; every one of which has its peculiar wants, which must be satisfied before full happiness can be enjoyed ? Or was it capable of furnishing happiness to a being whose nature is immortal 9 These inquiries need no reply. The result of his " sore travail" yielded the imperious monarch no enjoyment. Nay, the contemplation of it drove him even to madness; being accompanied, no doubt, with the agonising recollection of the iniquitous means by which he had attained it. While he boast- ingly exclaimed " Is not this great Babylon that I have built for the house of the Kingdom, by the might of ray power, and for the honour of my majesty," his reason departed from him, and he was driven from men, to herd with the beasts of the field ! Alas ! was it for e3 ■F 60 CONCLUDING REMARKS — THE RICH MAN. I' > ) this he had toiled so long I Was it for this that his restless and proud spirit had diiven peace from the earth — had vexed itself with forming plans of invasion and conquest, and filled the world with turbulence and blood in executing them I Oh, how egrf'^ious the folly, — to have fretted himself sc -nuch for the attain- ment of a result, which, instead of yielding him either happiness or honour, drove him to desperation, and degraded him to the level of the brutes I Let us now turn, for a moment, to consider another example of the employment of life, furnished by one, whose conduct is described by Christ in the following words : " The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully : and he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because 1 have no room where to bestow my fruits ? And he said, This will I do : I will pull down my barns, and build greater, and there M'ill I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years ; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool ! this night thy soul shall be required of thee." It matters not whether this language is to be viewed as strictly parabolical, or as giving an account of a real occurrence ; for the purpose for which it is used by the Saviour is such, as to give us assurance, that it contains a faithful description of the manner in which life is sometimes spent. The sordid wretch, therein referred to, seems to have sup- posed that the end of life was gained when his " barns" were filled I This was the only result h^contemplated or desired. Let us suppose that when the various talents which he had received from God were surrendered, and it was demanded what result he had *"■! r "- »•— •*» ' CONCLUDING REMARKS — THE RICH MAN. 61 hat his >m the ivasion ice and >us the attain- either pn, and another by one, )llowlng brought saying, ^here to I will re M'ill I ill say to or many py. But thy soul ther this al, or as : purpose I to give iption of at. The ave sup- " barns" emplated various )d were It he had effected by the use of them, he dared to refer to his " barns" bursting with plenty, — what a mockery ! to insinuate that God had put the wonderful machinery of that man's nature into operation for such a purpose. If, then, such a result could not be offered unto God without blasphemy, could it be presented to his own nature with greater acceptance ? No ; a beast might rejoice at the j)ro§pect of having such a store of " fruits and goods" to consume, but it could yield no real pleasure to a moral and intellectual being. It is true, that this man seems to have looked forward to it with the highest delight ; for his M'hole disposition seems to have been most brutish. He had exercised only his animal powers in raising these immense crops, and he proposes to gratify only his animal appetites in con- suming them. Yet, although the higher parts of his nature, the conscience and the understanding, seem to have been held in complete subjection by the loMJer ; and though we were to admit that they would never have interfered with his pleasures, nor disturbed him, in the le.ast, while " enjoying his portion," he was still an immortal being; and the fatal error which he com- mitted, in never having taken this into the account, was pointed out to him by the terrible annunciation, " Thou fool I this night thy soul shall be required of thee, then whose shall those things be which thou hast provided ?" How fearful I to have lived like a brute ; and to learn at the end that he cannot die like a brute, but must drag out an endless existence of misery and pain I Withf#bat tremendous emphasis does the epithet "fool" apply to him, who had spent his life in the pursuit of an object, which, after having acquired it, he finds he must leave without being permitted to I ^>¥*,*». -«4„^.^.^',ai^^ ^^^ , 62 CONCLUDING REMARKS— THE RICH MAN. I • } enjoy ; and enter upon an eternal state, wholly unpro- vided for. " So is evety one that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God." These remarks may prepare us for judging, in the next place, of the conduct of him, whose life is devoted to the pursuit of wealth. We have said that this is almost the universal pursuit, so that we do not need to travel to a distance in quest of examples. Let us then suppose that the devotee of wealth gains all that he wishes ; or, as this is perhaps a literal impossibility, let us suppose that he is completely successful in his efforts. His stately mansion rises amidst groves and gardens, his table is loaded with the richest delicacies, a crowd of servants wait upon him, ready to anticipate his wants ; and when he rides abroad, every one is ready to do him honour. This is the result, on which, during a life of labour, his eye and his heart have been set ; and now, when he has it, what is it worth ? Is it a fit portion for a being who has been formed for knowing and enjoying God ? Is it one which he may carry into eternity with him ; and, if so, what estimate is likely to be formed of it there ? At every step, the man and his conduct are condemned. We feel amazed that any one can be so foolish, as to toil hard for a shadow, and reject, for its sake, the " durable riches and righteous- ness" revealed in the gospel — that a man should voluntarily punish himself in seeking an object, which, when attained, will punish him a thousand fold more ! Transgressors sometimes go astray in search of pleasure ; if they eat forbidden fruit, like our iirst pirents, it is yet fruit that seems " good for food, and is pleasant to the eyes ;" but the covetous man goes astray in search of an object which his own nature rejects as unsuitable T • »-.*., COKCLUDING REMARKS. 63' and inadequate; and which God, at the same time, cannot view witiiout displeasure. Let us, finally, examine our own conduct by the principles which have been stated. It is possible that we may be spending our lives without any dcterniinate object in view. If this is the case, the foregoing truths will condemn us ; for it is dishonourable to the character of God, to suppose, that what he hath done in our creation and preservation, is not designed to end in some specific, and worthy result. Moreover, such aimless conduct argues a weak and trifling mind ; and as a means of counteracting it, it will be of eminent use, as we formerly stated, to regard our life as a means which God has thought proper to employ, in effecting his own wise, and holy, and benevolent purposes. But, supposing that our life is directed to the attainment of some specific result^ is it one which will bear to be examined by the foregoing principles? Suppose all our schemes were successful, and the business in which our life and vigour are spent, were to end in the desired issue, let us ask, as in the presence of that God who sees all our actions, and the ends we seek by them, if the result will be suitable to the immortal natures which he hath given us, and honourable to his own character? Reader, if it is so, let me exhort you to persevere. " Be steadfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour shall not be in vain in the Lord." What- ever sacrifices such a course of conduct may lead you to make in this world, they " are not worthy to be compared with th^; glory which shall be revealed." But if it is not so, let me exhort you to repent, and follow " a more excellent way," For, in this case. M ft,-, *^ *».if»,. ♦ 64 JONCLUDINU REMARKS. ff however pleasant the path, along which you proc<>eUt may be now, be assured that ^'the end thereof is (/«oM." " Seek first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all other things shall be added unto you." « -, i., f ' i - hyii \i '3 1 kli WJlM -I •I I. |.-..' CHAPTER V. RECAPITULATION— QUESTION ANSWERED MORE DIRECTLY— PROPER BUSINESS OF MAN IS TO BE A "FOLLOWER OF GOD"— BY COMPKEHEND- INO HIS WORKS ALREADY DONE— AND LABOTJR. ING FOR WHAT YET REMAINS TO BE ACCOM- PLISHED THIS POSSESSES ALL THE FORE- MENTIONED QUALITIES— REMARKS. i fUD - 1 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children. Ephes. v. I . ■■» ,'; In enumerating the qualities of the proper employmer^t of man, we have said that it ought to exercise all the powers which God htith given us, — to exercise them suitably to their respective degrees of importance, — and to do violence to none of them. And, in enumerating the qualities of the result, to the realizar, js» of which this employment ought to lead, we have said, that it ought to be suitable to our natures, and honourable to the character of God. It is to be lamented that the active life of man has, for the most part, been employed hitherto in the pursuit of objects, widely different from those that have been described ; — in many cases, diametrically opposite 111 ■^ 66 RECAPITULATION. to them ; and hence arises the fact, that the greater part of the world remains, at this day, in a state of brutish ignorance and wretchedness. For, if but one half of that amount of human energy, which we see so lavishly expended on improper objects, had been directed to the great work of evangelising the world, heathenism, with all its attendant evils, would long ago, have existed only in the pages of history. And when we take such a result as that, and compare it with the actual result, which man has preferred and brought about, how painful is the contrast I God has been so bountiful to the race of man, as to confer upon them faculties which, when united, render them capable of accomplishing almost any object under heaven. If, for example, the amount of intellectual and moral power, distributed amongst the present generation of mortals, were combined, — if all the mighty minds, now existing, were to concentrate their strength, and direct their energies to one object, what ffreat thing is it, which the human race would be unable to achieve, or what diffi- culty would be too hard for them to surmount ? But alas ! while man has it in his power to ascend to the " things that are above," he prefers to descend to things that are beneath, being " earthly and sensual." Perhaps the most painful part of the above reflection is, that the most gifted men have been the most faulty, and those distinguished by the highest endowments, chargeable with the greatest abuse of them. Look, for example, at the life of Shakspeare, or Napoleon, or Byron, or Burns, or Scott, and ask if these men employed their extraordinary powers in realising any suitable or proportionate object. For now, since their life has closed , it has become the property of posterity ; ^ •A PROPER BUSINESS OF MAN, ETC. 67 and we have a right to inquire whether it ended in any positive result ; of what nature that result is ; and whether in greatness and value, it corresponds with their superior abilities. Is it not matter of painful regret that the genius of Shakspeare, which, if properly employed, might almost have revolutionized the world, confined itself to endeavours to tickle and please the frivolous crowds that usually frequent a theatre I We can scarcely conceive of a greater prostitution of time and talents, or of the possibility of spending them more directly in opposition to the purpose and intention of their Author; except perhaps it be surpassed, in these respects, by the life of Napoleon, or Byron, or Burns. The cause of man sustained an irreparable loss by the folly of these persons, and other men of griius. If their prodigious abilities had been directed to the attainment of some worthy object, how much higher would the human race have stood at the present day, in knowledge and virtue I If these great minds had been actuated by the spirit of Paul, what would the present state of the world have been I y The great question, to which we have all along been endeavouring to find a suitable reply, wherein consists the proper employment of the life of man, admits, we think, of a more direct answer than has yet been given to it. Besides describing that employment generally, by its qualities and results, we think Ave can lay our hand upon the specific occupation, and say, tlie business and duty of man lie here. We find it in these words of the Apostle, which we have placed at the head of this chapter, " Be '^e followers of God, as dear children." To " follow God" is to walk in the same way with him, and, consequently, to have the same end in view. Fl ;t I 68 BY COMPREIIENDIMC It is to choose the same object, and adopt the same means for attaining it. The mere statement of these things seems to be all that is necessary to convince us, that, to follow him is the highest, and the only worthy employment of the life and faculties of man. In this way, we are assured, we shall find a result suitable to our nature, and honourable, and therefore acceptable to God ; and, at the same time, an infallible plan for attaining it, in the execution of which, all the powers of our nature shall find full and proper exercise. When our nature came into existence, under his creating hand, it was its highest honour that it bare his image ; and still, in the developement of its active powers, its highest honour consists in imitating him ; — this is man's proper sphere. There are various aspects in which the duty of following God may be viewed; we shall briefly mention two of them. 1. With respect to those works of God that are already accomplished, such as creation ; and with respect also to his operations in providence, it is plain that we can follow him here, only by investigating, and comprehending, and approving, and admiring what he himself does. Here M'e cannot work, but we can keep our eyes fixed upon the Workman, and narrowly observe his operations ; and if we understand and approve what he does, and regard it with suitable emotions, ire virtually work along with him. To learn what God is from these his works, is one important branch (if not the most important) of the business in which the life of man ought to be employed. This seems to have been the original purpose for which man was created ; and the design of the remedial dis- pensation of grace, under which man was subsequently WHAT HE HATH ALREADY DONE. (>9 I i placed, i» to remove obstacles out of the way ; that the original purpose migiit yet go fully into effect. Every thing on this earth, and in these visible heavens, has been formed for the purpose of telling something concerning God. Man has been endowed with intel- lectual powers, which render him capable of under- standing what they tell ; and with moral powers, which render him capable of deriving from it the most exquisite enjoyment. A natural thirst for knowledge has been implanted in his mind, which continually prompts him to investigate ; and the richest subjects of investigation press him on every side, as if eager to attract his notice, and impart unto him the heavenly lessons which their Creator has inscribed on them. And why are these works of God, and the nature of man, so exquisitely adapted to one another, but to show that they have been formed for one another. Light and the eye are not more adapted to one another, than the works and ways of God are adapted to the moral and intellectual powers of man. And on this we build the safe conclusion, that, as light has been formed for the eye, — as this is its element, so the human powers just named find their proper element, in the display of Divine character, contained in the works and ways of God. This was the employment of Adam, in his state of innocency ; and there is reason to suppose it would have been his employment for ever, if sin had not entered, and perverted his mind. To this employment the children of God shall return, when sin and its effects shall be done away. By considering man, and the other works of God, in this light, we obtain a clearer view of the Divine power and benevolence displayed in the creation and preser* f2 I 70 BY COMPREHENDING I'li 1 1 vation of all things. For, it is the highest and holiest exercise of power, of which we can form any couceptioDy to create beings capable of knowing God ; and of benevolence, to furnish them with opportunities of acquiring that knowledge ; opportunities so frequent and advantageous as those which we possess. While, availing ourselves of these opportunities, M'e follow the footsteps of the Divine Being, by investigating and comprehending the displays of himself which we find in the various walks of nature ; so great is the felicity, and so high the honour, which we enjoy, that they are inferior only to those of heaven. In a thousand different forms, " he shews himself" to us " through the lattice" of his works, and every discovery is " altogether lovely," and is calculated to till our minds with delightful and strong emotion. ,, On tiiis subject, a great and pernicious mistake prevails, even amongst well instructed Christians. There are some, who suppose that man has nothing to do with any thing but his £ibte ; who not only neglect the works of God, but set up his word in opposition to them, and even consider it a mark of evangelical sentiment and strict orthodoxy, to do so. This can proceed only from a mixture of ignorance and super- stition. As the works of God, and the word of God, have the same original, it is impossible they can be opposed to one another. Both are illustrations of the same glorious subject ; and both have the same end in view. The display of Divine ciiaracter, contained in the scheme of grace, revealed in the Bible; though far higher and more impressive than what is to be found within the bounds of creation, is yet not intended to supersede the display of Divine character contained in the latter, ■' v^ f^r WHAT HE HATH ALREADY DONE. 71 and render the study of it useless. So far is this from being the case, that it may rather be said, that the first is intended to prepare the way for the second. The study of the second was man's original destination and employment, as was already observed ; but he disquali- fied himself for it by sin ; and, since God, in the exercise of his boundless grace, hath introduced the first, the object of which is " to put away sin," is it not, we might ask, with the ultimate design of enabling man to resume his first and proper business ? Man is now in a state of disease^ to borrow a scriptural metaphor: and the dispensation of grace reveals and applies the medicine^ which is prepared for his recovery. But the use of medicine is always understood to be temporary ; so long as a man requires it, he is in an unnatural state; and in every case, it is designed to enable the patient to resume the functions, and return to the duties, of health. This world is at present in process of cure ; and, when the cure shall be completed, may we not suppose that it shall resume its wonted healthy course, and that man shall return to his proper employment ? What is there to prevent us from sup- posing that the " new heavens and the new earth" shall begin their course from the very point at which sin led the old into transgression ; and that, having " returned to the good and the old way," they shall be carried forwards through an endless progression of knowledge, and holiness, and happiness ? 2. But we proceed to observe, that, with respect to those works of God that are not yet performed, but exist only in purpose, we ought to " follow God" by choosing the same object which he hath in view, so far as this hath been revealed to us, and taking an f3 n 72 LABOURING FOR WHAT TET REMAINS '•' r active part in employing the means which he hath prescribed. Different views may be taken of the object which (tod hath in view, or the end which he intends to serve, by the creation and preservation of man. It is sufficient for our present purpose to observe, that his immediate object, as regards this world, is to bring about the universal practice of righteousness, as the means of uni ersal happiness — " to fill the earth with the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea." Now, the man who chooses the same object, who embraces it with his whole heart — renouncing not only every thing that is at variance with it, but every thing also that is of no service to it — and that keeps his aim steadily directed towards it alone ; spends his life upon an object that is su{iremely worthy of all his efforts. If any iissitate to admit this, it is only necessary to remind him that it is the object which God hath chosen ; and, if He considers it the best on which his perfections can be exercised, (if such language may be permitted, in such a connection,) assuredly it is the best on which the faculties of those, whom he hath created in his image, can be exercised also. It hath not been left to the errin.- judgment of man to devise and arrange the means by which this great result may be gained. The universal diffusion of the gospel is the means which God hath appointed for that ])urpose ; and is consequently the only means which a " follower of God" will feel himself authorised to employ. This is an ordinance which hath long proved an offience to the wisdom of the world, and excited its opposition ; but the " wrath of man," in this, as in every other case, hath only contributed to render the truth more trium- TO BE ACCOMPLISHED. 73 phant, by proving its powerful efficacy, and the utter futility of every thing else ; so that now, though the hatred of it still remains, the expression of it is kept more under restraint, lest it should recoil upon the heads of those that utter it. " For after that, in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God, by the foolishness of preaching, to save them that believe." And since it hath been the pleasure of God to constitute this the means of salvation to man, it is the duty of man to acquiesce in it, and reject every other. Yet it frequently happens, that, even when the world acknowledges the superior excellence of the result which God labours to bring about, and seems almost ready to express its determination to "strive" for the same end also ; through a self-sufficient conceit of its own wisdom, it arraigns the fitness of the means which he hath prescribed ; nay, it even presumes to charac- terize them as " foolishness," and to substitute in their stead, some benevolent suggestions of its own. It is manifest, however, that to " follow" these suggestions is not to " follow God," but to depart from him. It is to leave the path which he hath pointed out, for some other which we ourselves have espied; and which we pre- sumptuously consider to be easier and more advan- tageous. For, however loudly we may protest in such a case that we are still travelling towards the same object, this cannot save us from a judgment of condemnation, when we prefer a different way. In all parts of religious obedience, it is man's province to follow God, not to take the lead; and he who refuses to do so, is an opposer of God's gracious designs, however strongly he may declare himself to be friendly to their issue ; as really as the person who openly n i 74 THIS POSSESSES ALL i. I condemns that issue ; or who indulges, or countenances practices that prevent it from taking place. The duty of following God binds us not only to go along with him in the pursuit of the same result, but also in the employment of the same means for attaining it. The man who " follows God" in these respects, can alone be held up as one who properly employs the few years of existence allotted to mortals on earth. But here, as in every other branch of duty, it is necessary that the servant of God follow him fully — not with hesitating and faltering steps, but with cheerfulness and confidence ; or, as the Apostle expresses it, " like dear cmldren" Such a person will make the preaching of the Gospel the business of his life, if God should be pleased to call him to it. Or if, in the allotments of Providence, the station of a private Christian should be his, he will still make it his endeavour to help forward the great cause, in which Heaven, and all who love it, are engaged ; by contributions, by prayers, by stirring up himself and others << to love and to good works/* and by a practical exemplification of the principles of the Christian religion. Every thing will be rendered subordinate to this ; with such a person the great inquiry will be, in what manner he may lay himself out, so as to make all his actings in life bear most effectually upon this great object. We have said that the immediate result which God has in view, with respect to this world, is the universal diffusion of righteousness, as the foundation of universal happiness ; that the means which he employs for attaining it, is the promulgation of the Gospel; and that the person who " follows God," embraces the same object, and makes use of the same means. The simple THE PORB- MENTIONED QUALITIES. 75 fact, that such is the work of Gody should be sufficient, we think, to recommend it to all his intelligent creatures for their adoption : it leaves them no other alternative between this, on the one hand, and, being accounted the enemies and opposers of his hoi}' will, on the other. When God was incarnate, his life on earth was employed exclusively in this work, and, if God were to become incarnate again, the same work would employ him still. Were it consistent with his purposes, again to manifest hit self in flesh, and " dwell among us;" the business which he would select, for the employment of his faculties and his time, would neither be the pursuit of wealth, nor pleasure, nor renown : upon all this turmoil, in which our bustling race are engaged at the present day, the blessed Saviour would look with pity and contempt; and would again devote himself, with holy ardour, to the establishment and promotion of " the Kingdom of God." And, with this fact before us, shall we presume, for a moment, to turn our attention to any other object, not to speak of objects that are directly hostile to it ; shall we do so, and yet practise upon ourselves the gross deceit that we are Christians ! This ought to be sufficient, we say, to prevail upon us to make this the end to which our lives shall be devoted : yet it may be proper, at the same time, as an additional persuasive, to take a view of its admirable adaptation to the powers of action, and capacities of enjoyment, which God hath given us. Let us suppose that this object were attained, (and there is here, none of the uncertainty which attaches, generally, to the pursuits of mortals) — let us suppose that God's purpose were fulfilled — that this world were become one vast habitation of righteousness, in which sin and misery are i 76 THIS POSSESSES ALL known no more, how worthy is such an object as this of the lite and labours of man ; and how well calculated to afford him, in the contemplation of it, all the happi- ness which his nature can receive I Compare with it the fame of a Solomon, or the exploits of an Alexander, or any other hero, whose memory the world hath delighted to honour ; nay, let us suppose that the long talked-of fable of universal empire were at last realized — that some future Nimrod, more successful than all former competitors, were in very df d to " gain the whole world," — compare this result with the result sought and obtained by the humble " follower of God/' and tell me which of them is the most valuable, .and suit- able to our nature ? It is said, that even one sincere follower of God is a spectacle which angels bend down from their spheres, and contemplate with interest ; but a world of such characters, washed from their sins in the blood of Christ, and conformed to his image, how inspiring is the bare anticipation ! Surely such a scene as this would afford a favourable field for the exercise and display of all those high powers by which the Creator hath distinguished man, and prove a fresh source of happiness to him for ever. Our moral powers would here receive the highest gratification from the clearest and most attractive discoveries of the *' un- searchable" God ; our intellectual powers would be satisfied with draughts from the Fountain of all Wisdom ; and our social affections would receive all the blessedness which they can admit, from the universal prevalence of heavenly love. The supply of our bodily wants would then be left, where Divine mercy and power have placed it, in the hands of God ; whence it cannot be taken without impiety to God, and ruin to ourselves. I^verjr THE PORE- MENTIONED QUALITIES. 77 want would then be satisfied ; every channel, by which happiness can be coinmiinicated to man, would then flow with a full tide, and fill the soul " with joy unspeakable, and full of glory." But, perhaps, some one is ready to object that this result, though rendered certain by the purpose of God, is yet too distant for us to enjoy ; for although we were to make it the employment of our life, from this time forward, to advance it; laying aside every thing else, except what is subservient to it, either directly or indirectly ; yet death would remove us long before we could enter upon the fruit of our labours. But to this it is sufficient to reply, that although death must soon put an end to our personal labours in the cause of God, it can never put an end to the interest we take in its progress, nor deprive us of the enjoyment which is to be derived from its success. The Kingdom of God occupies more attention in the church above, than in the church on earth. Even in heaven, the minds of the saints turn towards that object, which engrossed 80 much of their regard during their sojourning on earth : and when they learn its triumphs, they express their happiness in their songs. " We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come, because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned." " Alleluia ; for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad, and rejoice, and give honour to him." This reminds us of one of the immense advantages attending such an employment of our life as we have been recommending. Solomon bewails it as a " vanity" that, in whatever labours men may embark, they are liable to be called away by death in the midst of their purposes, and thus to be compelled i( ;i n THIS POSSESSKS ALL THK I » to leave them " unto tiie man that shall be after" them, and cease to have any more a portion in all that is done under the sun. But this is an evil, M'hich he who embarks in the cause ofCiod can never experience: he will be for ever connected, nay identified with that cause ; and shall participate in all the happiness which its ever growinj* pros|)erity can yield. Death may call him away, apparently in the midst of his usefulness, but he is not called away from " following God :" he is only ushered into a higher state of existence, to prosecute the delightful employment with greater advantage and success there. Though he " rests from his labours," he is not separated from his work ; for his " works follow him :" and death cannot come between him and the fruit of his labours. But to return from this digression. We merely remark farther, that while the result^ to which this employment loads, possesses all the characteristic qualities formerly mentioned ; the exercise^ which is implied in the pursuit of it, possesses these qualities also ; — it exercises all our powers, — it exercises them suitably to their relative importance, and offers violence to none of them. The life of him who *' follows God" is not a life of mere contemplation, nor of idle senti- mentality ; it is one of holy, beneficent labour. We see this exemplified in the history of the Apostle Paul, after his conversion ; his mind Mas never at rest, nor even his body, except when he was imprisoned. He was now engaged in long journeys, or dangerous voyages ; at another time, in addressing an audience ; at another time, in labouring at a handicraft trade ; but his object was ever the same. The inferior powers of his nature were employed in subordination to the rORB- MENTIONED QUALITIKS. n ))ighcr ; and they were employed no qftener, and no farther^ than was necessary to the attainment of the result which the higher powers of his mind iiad in view. He yifQS walking with God; and tlie greatness of the reflult at which he aimed, imparted to him an elevation of character, of which no employment, however humble, and no situation, however mean, could divest him. Whether he was addressing the court of the Areopa- gites, or working at the trade of tent-making, with Aquila and Priscilla, he was still the same person, — great, venerable, and commanding. It almost seemed as if his mind had never descended from the third heaven^ to which he had been " caught up" in a trance ; or as if there had been more truth in the exclamation of the men of Lystra than, at first, may be apprehended, " the gods have come down to us in the likeness of men." Although no person is to be expected to fill up such A history as that of the Apostle Paul ; perhaps no person is under an obligation to do so ; yet the life of every " follower of God" will be the same in respect of its distinguishing qualities. It will be directed to the same result, and governed by the same law ; conse- quently, the real exercise of the active po.vers will be characteristically the same. The higher pou ers of the mind will make choice of the object, on which the labour of life shall be expended, and will employ the services of the inferior, only so far as they may be necessary for realizing that object. This is exactly th« reverse of the mode in which the life of man is generally spent at the present day. The inferior powers take the command, and do not suffer the higher to be brought into exercise, except when they have need of them to help them to attain their purpose. Instead of G 1 i i '? 80 REMARKS. " aeeking^rst the Kingdom of God, and the righteous^ ness thereof," men seek "all other things" besides- And even with professing Christians, seeking the Kingdom of God is not their employment, but an inferior, and apparently accidenial adjunct of it, to which they pay no more regard than is absolutely necessary to give their profession an ordinary degree of currency. Reader, let me intreat you to make it the business of your life to " follow God." This is the only employ- ment which is worthy of the nature that God hath wiven you ; and the only way in which your life can be spent so as to receive his approbation at the last. Renounce every thing that is inconsistent with it. Renounce the low, contemptible pursuit of wealth ; and the pitiful struggle for worldly honours and preferment ; and let it be the business of your life to work together with Gody in endeavouring to regenerate and save a lost world. "' ' Follow him, in his works; by investigating and com- prehending the treasures of wisdom and knowledge which they contain : for many " pearls, of great price, are hid in that field." And when your minds are filled with delight at the scientific wonders which you discover, let your hearts be raised in gratitude and praise to Him who " spake and it was done, who com- manded and it stood fast." Oh, for what purpose have those high moral and intellectual powers, by which your nature is distinguished, been conferred upon you, but that you might look on, while Heaven is performing its mighty drama; might comprehend the various parts as they are successively developed, and derive from the whole the purest enjoyment. , 1''. REMARKS. 81 ghteou9« besides, ling the but an }f it, to >solutely legree of siness of employ- ith wiven be spent enounce unce the e pitiful ; and let \hRr with e a lost Follow him especially in the dispensation of his grace, by making his object your object, and the means which he employs, the means which you employ also. Here you will find a pursuit, which will exercise all the faculties of your nature to the full ; which will exercise them most suitably, and beneficially ; and will prove to yourself, at the same time, a source of the purest satisfaction. And, when your course shall be finished, when the various channels, in which your labours have flawed, shall unite, and produce the long wished- for result ; that result will be found most suitable to your nature, and most honourable to God. He will smile upon it with Divine complacency and say, " Well done, good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." ■ ■■is \i-i 9'J •; nd com« iowledge at price, ire filled ch TOU ude and ho com- ose have y which 3on you, •forming )us parts from the • , ' >** p ^ , 15 KV .if' o% f CHAPTER VI. i SEI.F-EXAMINATION— FOUR REASONS URGING US TO MAKE A PROPER EMPLOYMENT OF HUMi|N LIFE—FIRST REASON—SECOND REASON—THIRD REASON— FOURTH REASON. " If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them." John xlii. 17. M'-, In the foregoing chapters I have endeavoured to describe, to the best of my ability, what appears to me to be tlte only proper, and therefore the only lawful^ employment of the life of man ; — co-operation with God, in endeavouring to bring about the design which lie had in view, when he formed such a creature as man, and placed him in sucii a world as this ; which design he seeks to realize in the dispensations of his providence and his grace. The simple fact that God has endowed man with faculties by which he is able to take a part in this design, is sufRcient evidence that these faculties were intended to be exercised in the pursuit of it. This is the highest employment to which they can be devoted ; and anything beneath this implies degradation, more or less, which confessedly could not ,^« SELP-EXAMINATIOW. 83 have entered into the intention and purpose of the Creator. To that great object, on which the wisdom, and power, and moral attributes of the Godhead are unceasingly employed, the energies of human nature ought to be unceasingly directed also. Whatever interferes with this object, or is not subservient to it, either immediately or remotely, is sin. It now remains that we bring this treatise to a close, by endeavouring to enforce in the first place, upon various considerations, such an employment of our life as has been already explained ; and, in the second, to remove objections. To these objects, therefore, the two following chapters shall be devoted. But, before doing 80, it seems proper to address to the reader a few questions for self-examination. Perhaps some young men may cast their eyes on these pages, who are just entering on the business of life. Let me intreat you, then, to stand still for a moment on the threshold, and commune with your own hearts, and ask yourself whether that employment, to which you are about to devote your active life, is consistent with the design for v•hio^ (iod ?7ave you these powers of action? and vvhethic, if youv present schemes and projects were to be hit up succei fu' as you desire, they would lead to a rvs-dt which »vo\ild be suitable to your own nature, pnd ac^' ptable to (.lod, and would afford evidence tliat you had not been sent into the world in vain ? If you cannot answer these questions in the affirmative, I inlreat and charge you to abandon your present intentions ; for to proceed would be to rebel. The fact that you are about to embark in some active business, is decisive evidence that, in your estip ation, g3 A %i n I i ! > « 8« SKLF-EXAMINATION. man was not designed for a state of inaction ; but it ii equally evident, that it is not every kind of employment that will be found worthy of him. The chief glory af your nature, — that which distinguishes it most honour- ably from the nature of inferior animals, consists in your possessing moral and intellectual faculties; and your conduct, or mode of life, ought to be distinguished as highly by the same qualities. While inferior natures lead an animal life, you ought to lead a moral and intellectual life ; and if you do not fulfil this obligation, you sin against the very glory of your nature, and diminish the distance which separates you from the brutes. Now, will the employment on which you pro- pose to enter, permit such a mode of life? Will it bring you more frequently into contact with such ohj'^cts as truth, and justice, and charity, and the fear of God ; or with such objects, on the contrary, as riches, honour, place, or rank, or rivalry ? Will it thus be likely to deepen your impressions of the supreme excellence and value of the former, and so to mould your life and character gradually by their influence ? Or will it be more likely to weaken whatever impres- sions of these things you may receive from other quarters ; to harden your heart, and lead you to spend your life in a struggle for some worldly prize? According as the path, on which you are now proposing to set out, will lead you amongst objects of the first or of the second class, is the likelihood that you will live a virtuous or a vicious life, and reap their respective fruits hereafter. It is not without reason, therefore, that I ask you to deliberate; for, in all probability, your eternal destiny depends upon the decision at which you arrive. If you determine to take your course through U ^ A... ^,^ .^^^ji* - SELF-EXAMINATION. 85 life, amongst objects from which a moral influence will emanate ; what can be more likely than that you will be brought under it, and be carried forwards by it; but if you determine to turn to objects from which an immoral influence, or an influence unfavourable to mo- rality, emanates ; what can be more likely than that you will be carried thereby to destruction ? Many young men of excGllent character, and amiable disposition, have set out in life with their impressions wholly in favour of religion ; but after being for some time " immersed in business," have thrown their religion aside, — have become gradually more careless and profane, and, at last, died the death of the ungodly. And the cause why these early favourable appearances did not lead to any satisfactory result, is doubtless to be found in the nature of the employment on wiiicii they entered. Perhaps it familiarised them with disingenuousness, or the secret violation of honesty or justice ; perhaps it threw them amongst a set of men whose ambition rose no higher than — success in business, and whose conversation, and example, and opinions would naturally lead the young also to regard that as the perfection of human merit ; the ne pliu^ ultra of ability and enter- prise ; perhaps it was carried to such an extent as to harass and perplex their minds, and leave them no time to cultivate their understanding, and attend to the calls of religious duty ; or, perhaps, the business was directly immoral and corrupting. Upon any of these suppositions it is not difficult to account for the miserable end of those young men, to whose case we have been referring ; nay, it would be difficult to conceive how any individual could go through such a course, and come to any other end. And yet the same u;i i . I ^ li 3 ('•1 ,-v Ml; ^ r If 86 SELF-EXAMINATION. career is run by generation after generation ; and even professors of religion are frequently to be seen setting the example, and beckoning others to follow. Oh ! when will the professed friends of religion do it the justice to obey its command, " Lay not up for your- selves treasures on earth ?" When will the church do the world the justice to deprive the covetous of the cloak of religion which they wear; and which puts it into their power to do the more extensive mischief? -" Young men, if my voice can hi'.ve any weight with you; or rather, if trutii ; if religious obligation ; if your own happiness, in time and eternity ; or the honour of Him who gave you being; — if considerations such as these can have any weight with you, I entreat you to spend your life after ♦ lid V k k u back, and bless God that you were sent into the world ? Will your history be regarded as a matter of joy and triumph, in heaven or in hell ! As one interested in your happiness, and desirous that not only you, but all men should be happy, consistently with the honour of God ; and that all should unite their exertions, and spend their lives, in promoting universal happiness^ I entreat you to take these things seriously into consider- ation ; and to go forward, as you have hitherto been doing; or return, as duty may demand. ^ -.'» v,',*. Let me now lay before the reader a few considera- tions, urging him to devote his life to such an employ- ment as we have attempted to explain. 1. And the^r*^ consideration which we would pre- sent for this purpose, is, the happiness which will accrue to you, from employing yourself in such a manner. A desire of happiness arises spontaneously in the human breast; and it would be unnatural violence to repress it. It is evidently the design of the author of human nature that this desire should be gratified ; and if, in any case, it is not gratified, the evil does not arise from him ; he has " no pleasure in it." But the great question is, how is tliis happiness to be attained? One principle must evidently be admitted here, namely, that the nature of man, as well as all other natures, whether superior or inferior; can enjoy happiness only by keeping in the course prescribed to it by the Creator ; whenever it deviates from that course, it must meet with misery, and pain, and death. And it will not be denied, we presume, that the employment, which we have attempted to delineate, is fully co-incident with that course ; and marks out the career which a being possessing corporeal, and social, and intellectual, and FIRST REASON. 89 moral powers, should run. And from thU it follows, that the happiness of our nature is to be found in that employment. < Every power which we possess is a channel through which happiness may flow into the soul ; and the higher the power, the greater is the amount of happiness which it is capable of transmitting. It is indispensably necessary, however, that the channel be kept open hy exercise, so that the enriching current may still flow into the soul ; indolence causes stagnation and death. It follows from this, that, if only the inferior powers be exercised ; as in those employments to which the life of man is, for the most part, devoted ; we shall enjoy only an inferior portion of happiness; and a larger portion of it, when the higher powers are called into action. But when all our powers are employed, as we have been supposing ; and employed, moreover, in the best manner, and to the best end ; what a full tide of felicity must pour into the enraptured soul ? When our various powers are employed in the manner intended by God when he conferred them ; that is, as we have shown, when we use them in " following" him, in the great moral enterprise which he has in view, as the Creator, and Governor, and Redeemer of the world ; is it not evident that, being engaged in a work that is divine, we shall receive a happiness that is divine also ? It was doubtless a rapturous moment for Moses, when he stood in the rock in Horeb, and saw " the glory" of the God of Israel pass by, though he beheld only the " back parts" of the Divine Majesty. But shall not our happiness be of the same nature, when we walk behind him, as his humble and faithful " followers ;" and behold him putting forth, on the right hand and on the left, It •If' ■ ^r^r^r- f^mm / 1* 00 SECOND REASON. 1^ 1' '■ , «• one display of excellence after another, in his purposes and their fulfilment? This is the pb.ne which man ought to occupy : — to follow the foc'i;»tep8 of him " who worketh all in all," and behold and enjoy the endless wonders which his wisdom, and goodness, and power produce; as he goes forwards with the aceomr plishment of the scheme of things which he has set in operation. So long as we continue here, our nature will enjoy " a continual feast." We shall feel, in some degree, as the Apostles did, when they " followed" their Divine Master " in the regeneration ;" and beheld, with grateful amazement, the " mighty works" which were done by him. 2. A second consideration, by which we would persuade you to make choice of such an employment as we have attempted to describe, is the happiness which would thereby accrue to the human race. That the race of man would be happy, if the life of man were V employed in such a manner as we have recommended, follows as a matter of course. For he who labours with God must succeed. While the business in which he is engaged, is the noblest that can occupy the mind of an intelligent being ; for it consists in elevating the race of man in knowledge and virtue, — in raising this earth nearer heaven, if you will admit the expression ; it is, at the same time, a pursuit which cannot mis- carry; — it rests not on a perad venture ; — no certainty can be greater, than the certainty of success here. For God hath purposed it ; and " the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand ; the thoughts of his heart are to all generations." We have just said, that the happiness which would pour into your soul> if all the faculties which God hath SECOND REASON. 91 ^ivnn you were ein])loyed conformably to his will, woulv* be all but inconceivable. But if each individual of the human race were to act in the same manner, he also would be equally happy. If, then, we add together the happiness which would be enjoyed by all the members of the human family, at what an astonisliing aggregate do we arrive I How worthy is such a result of the choice of God ; and even of the stupendous means he has employed, and the irice3i=nnt labour which he expends upon it I How worthy d the time of man ; and of the moflt ardent desire, ana most unwearied and laborious exertion, which the united faculties of man are capable of putting forth t Till the life of man shall be occupied in such an employment as this, it scarcely appears possible that the prayer, which Christ hath taught us, can be i ully answered — " thy will be done on earth, as it 16 in heaven." It is the will of God that we should love one another, and labour for one another ; " not seeking our own profit, but the profit of many, that they might be saved." But, through depravity of heart, we choose private ends of our own. Each man sets up his own interest, independent of the interest of society at large, in most cases directly opposed to it ; and each man seeks to support his own interest, by dexterously seizing and appropriating to himself, something which his neighbour is about to lay hold of. It is evident that, while this system is practised, the human race must con- tinue at its present low condition, in knowledge, and re- ligion, and happiness; or, rather, that it can only be pre- vented from retrograding, by some strong counteracting influences. It is evident also, that the gracious and holy designs which God entertains respecting this world, -I I ^. ^, ^^"i^. '^■Vs^< IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I l^|2£ 12.5 liilU ■ 2.2 140 Lil MLU ii.6 I V] 0% > y #?/ « ^'^ ■^ Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WIST MAIN STRUT WiBSTER.N.Y. 145S0 (716) S72-4S03 ^Z^ v\^ ^ % : 92 SECOND REASOK. ?• If «)f which he hath given us notice in his word, can never, on such a supposition, be fulfilled ; except by miracle, M-hich we have no reason to expect. And therefore, before these designs can be realized, a complete revolution mvst take place in the manner in which the life of man is spent. . . .m Who then ought, first, to set such an example of lioly benevolence and self-denial? Who ought first to break through the vicious, established modes of conducting human life, which at present prevail ; undaunted by the reproach or persecution with which the attempt will doubtless, at first, be resisted ; and proclaim that men ought not to live for thenuelveSj but for the world? To this we answer, The Church ; the members of which have voluntarily declared their readiness to serve God, and live for him ; and not only so, but have solemnly dedicated themselves to him, covenanting to be his ow/y, and,^ ever. Upon them the obligation lies to " follow God" in the work which he has in view, to whatever dangers or losses it may expose them. The example of none but the church possesses sufticlent influence and power, to break up the present system ; and it is, in fact, by the influence of that example, that this system has acquired its bane- ful ascendancy. The church can form and direct public opinion, either for good or for evil; she possesses a moral power over the world, we mean the Christian 7>art of it, before which the world quails ; and is com- pelled either to abandon its wickedness, or hide it under a "cloak of religion. Let her then exert her power in bringing about such a great and necessary reformation. It depends upon her, whether the present evils shall be perpetuated or amended. " He that loveth father or if! THIRD REASOK. 93 mother more than me, is not worthy of me, and he that loveth son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after mo, 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." 3. A third consideration, by which we would persuade you to spend your life in such a manner as we have attempted to describe, is, the glory which would thereby redound to God, Of all the phrases in common use, there is perhaps none, which is so frequently misunder- stood as this, " the glory of God." We hear it almost on every hand, and on every occasion ; yet there are few who seem to understand it, and fewer still, to feel its power. Though words always represent, they do not always express, ideas. The glory of God is his character ; — the display of his excellencies. Man acts in such a manner, that his real character is his greatest disgrace. When we advance any claims to honour on his behalf, we find it necessary to keep the greater part of his character out of view, and to select only a few points for exhibition. But as God is an infinitely perfect being, nothing can give him adequate glory, but the publication of his own character, —the revelation of himself, as he is. It is for this purpose that every thing has been made " that was made." Every thing which we see around us, in the Animal, or Vegetable, or Mineral kingdoms ; fromthe smallest object up to those ofthe most ponderous bulk, has been called into existence to declare some part of the character of the Infinite God. But this remark applies, in a particular manner, to the soul of man, with its wonderful array of faculties and powers. It is the 112 94 THIRD REASON. chief of God's creatures on earth ; and discloses mord of his character than all other creatures together. It was originally created in his oum image ; and, although that has been effaced by sin, yet, amidst the ruin which it has suffered, we find many remains of departed greatness. The character of God, however, is not displayed so much by the actual existence of the world, and the creatures, animate and inanimate, that it contains ; as by the end which they are intended to serve. For the world is but a labyrinth of means; the whole system is in a state of progression towards a certain result ; and it is to that result we must look, principally, for the manifestation of the Divine glory. It is true we obtain some disi^overies of it even now ; and these, it is probable will continue to increase, and wax brighter, as " the perfect day" approaches ; yet they will scarcely bear a comparison with the grand crisis itself, when " the mystery of God shall be finished." Now, in this system of means, man occupies the chief place ; the result, and the harmony of the various movements, depend chiefly upon him. For, being a moral agent, he is capable of assisting or retarding all the operations that are going on around him. He can lay his hand upon som& of the " wheels," and stop their motion, or turn them out of their path, and direct them to a very different issue from that which was originally intended. And, we apprehend, this is just what is done^ by the mis-employment of life to which we have already alluded. By sin, man has refused to perform his part, am Hi^fi-t ill. multiplicity of means which God employs, in contributing to the great result ; and not only so, but he endeav«)urs to prevent every thing, over which he caa THIRD REASOX. 95 it it the the exert an influence, from doing so also. He thus robs God of his glory, for he would lead things to a deplorable. and disastrous issue, instead of the boundless good, contemplated by God; and, although God cannot be finally baffled out of his purposes, yet the wickedness of man prevails to a very great degree, as is evident from the following language : " My well beloved Imtli a vineyard in a very fruitful hill : and he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein ; and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, atid it brought forth wild grapes" We have already shown that the only way in whieli our active powers can be employed so as to fulfil the design of our Creator; that is, as we l.ave just seen, so as to show forth the glory of his cliuracter, is to exercise them in " following" him. He certainly knows best how the glory '>f his character may be best displayed, and the methods by which this great object may be most effectually accomplished. So that, except we would be found amongst those who oppose him, we have no other alternative left to us than simply to " follow" him, as far as it is competent for our feeble natures to do. We are not capable of forming just ideas of the glory which would redound to the Divine Being from the proper employment of the life and active powers of man ; such a calculation, if it is not beyond the reach of human capacity, lies at the very farthest verge of it. W^e may, however, derive some assistance from com- parisons. To have created such a world as this uni- verse in which we dwell, which is so full of majesty, and beauty, and grandeur, redounds infinitely to tlx; II 3 96 THIRD REASON. glory of thr, Godhead. Hence the doxology of the church in heaven, " Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power ; for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are, and were created." But to have formed such a being as man, who is capable of thought and reflection, and of perceiving the immense difference between good and evil, and loving the one and hating the other; this is a glory, which seems as much superior to the former, as a divine attribute is supei ior to the limited resemblance of it, which we find in man. Hence, in the following sublime passage, in which the prophet enumerates various works in which the Creator hath shown us " his glory and his greatness," this work is mentioned last, as the highest part of the climax : " Thus saith God the Lord, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out : he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it : he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to theix :bat walk therein." And in the history of the work of creation, which is given in the first chapter of the Book of Genesis, we find that the creation of man ** in God's image and likeness" was the last and most imp'viant act. But, above all these, there is still " a glory that excelleth ;" it is the glory which ariseth not merely from having given such a capacity to man, but from securing the exercise of it, and the blessed result to which it must lead — from conducting the affairs of this worid in such a manner as to bring about the destruction ol sill, the universal iriumph of righteousness, and the consequent possession of happiness. This is that glory of God, which is to be secured by the promulgation of the gospel, and which is described in the prophetic writ- ingfi with such extraordinary eloquence and fervour. To -,*«►. FOURTH REASON. 97 this glory man is permitted to contribute, by " following God," and " working together" with him, in the accom- plishment of the wondrous phm. Tiie high honour is thus put upon him of assisting in ejecting a result, which is represented as filling the hosts of lieaven with amazement, and ineffable delight : rendering it thereby evident that it furnishes a briglitcr display of the excellencies of the Divine character, than any thing to be found even in tiie heavenly world itself. But, alas I man despises the honour; for instead of promoting this work, he throws difficulties and obstacles in the way, through the mis-employment of his life, and the mis- direction of his efforts. 4. A fourthi and the last consideration which we will present, to persuade you to employ your life in the manner, and for the purposes above specified, is the guilt which will be contracted by acting otherwise. We hope it will not now be supposed, that the description which has been given, in this treatise, of the proper em- ployment of human life, rests upon no higher authority than the imagination of the writer ; if this were the case, it would deserve no regard. But we have shown it to be comprehended in the purpose and design of God, as deducible from his works ; it is therefore sanctioned by his authority ; so that it cannot be disregarded without sin ; and there are many considerations to show that this is a sin of no ordinary aggravation. We are ever prone to imagine that our lives, as well as " our lips, are our own ;" and that we have full liberty to spend them in whatever employment it may be our pleasure to prefer. And there can be no doubt that man has no right to restrict our choice, in this matter, 10 long as we refrain from injuring society ; but duty :iz^ "* 98 FOURTH REASON. prescribes limits to it ; the law of God sets " bounds" to our choice, beyond which we " cannot pass," and be innocent. The " talent" is given by him for a certain specified purpose ; and if we employ it for a different purpose, or even if we " hide it in the earth," and make no use of it whatever ; we shall expose ourselves to bis condemnation : " Cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness ; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." The mis-employment of our life is a sin against God^ against the whole human family^ and even against our i/wn nature. It is a sin against God ; for it opposes his will, and attempts to frustrate the wise and holy purpose for which he made us what we are. It is a deliberate per- version of his best and highest gifts. It casts upon him the wicked imputation of having created a being, who is not only useless in the world, but highly injurious; and of having contemplated such a course of conduct from the beginning. Wltile God shows us, in his own example, the best manner in which our life can be employed, and the best objects to which our energies can be directed ; and invites us to labour along with him; yet, by refusing to "follow" him, we virtually condemn his example, as an unwise or an unprofitable outlay of our exertions ; we set up some other object which we dare to account more valuable and worthy ; and we have even the temerity, openly to counteract him. And, in what manner, I ask, is it possible for us to act, so as to be cliargeable with more aggravated impiety ? But it is also a sin against the whole human family. The human faculties have been given by God, that, by ir, FOURTH REASON. 99 their proper and legitimate employment, they might produce a result ^vhich would prove an honour to hini, and a blessing to mankind ; but, by employing them in an unlawful manner, we make our faculties a means of dishonouring God, and of rendering one another miserable. Such conduct not only deprives the world of the incalculable good, to which we already alluded, but is the direct cause of incalculable evIL^. It is not only a waste of time and of talents that have been given, and that ought to be employed, for the general good ; but a complete perversion of them, by which they become a curse, instead of a blessing to society. It increases the burden of human misery. It declares that it is better for each man to spend his life on earth, in endeavouring to appropriate to himself as large a share as possible of this world's good, for the gratification of his own pride, or avarice, or sensuality ; although this should be the means of perpetuating all the evils under which mankind groan ; than that each should endeavour to "disperse," and send abroad as much as possible, for the relief of human suffering. Tiiis is a mode of spend- ing life, which sets every man's hand against his brother; and can any thing be better calculo^ d to fiil the world with woe? We often hear our Miseries ascribed to the primeval curse which God pronounced upon our apostate world, but that curse is comparatively easy to be borne. The " hand of the Lord'* is laid gently upon us ; it is the hand of man that scourges without pity, — his oppression is " like a sweeping rain that leaveth no food !" In fine, it is a sin against our oivn nature. It places the more excellent and honourable parts of our nature, in base subjection to the lower; it is, therefore, to 100 FOURTH REASON. ll i i !i degratle ourselves ; and the result to which this leads is " shame and death ;" it is therefore to destroy ourselves. As man is designed for moving in a higher sphere than the irrational creatures, there is manifestly a larger share of happiness and of honour designed for him also; but by acting in the manner above mentioned, we basely descend beneath our sphere; and forego both our honour and our happiness in doing so. We dehumanize ourselves — we sin against the true glory and dignity of our nature, to obtain an object which will be a cause of misery to us for ever I How mon- strous and irrational is sin ! It dishonours God ; it injures mankind ; and it ruins ourselves ; yet we follow it in the expectation of profiting thereby I It does good to no one, but evil to every body, and to none more than the transgressor himself; yet he rolls it " as a sweet morsel under his tongue." By exhibiting some glitter- ing prize, it tempts him to descend from the high rank In which God placed him in the scale of being, to a level with inferior natures ; and, after he has thus given *' liis honour to the cruel," it bitterly mocks him ; by showing that the prize with which he was so highly fascinated, as to make such an enormous sacrifice for its sake, though " fair outwardly," yet, like a painted sepul- chre, is '' full of rottenness, and of all manner of unclean- ness within." By these, and similar considerations, which your own reflection may suggest, I trust you will be persuaded to employ your life, in the manner we have endeavoured to recommend. How high is the happiness which is within your reach, and within the reach of the human race; and how high is the glory which would redound to the Almighty Creator, from a proper employment of CONCLUSION. 101 the life and active powers of man ! Be persuaded, I entreat you, to turn your attention in this direction. Leave the " gifts and rewards" of the world to those who forget themselves so far as to stoop to them, — let it be your business, through life, to " follow God" in the ways of justice and mercy ; and to labour with him in realising the vast and glorious purposes of his grace. ** For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dlcth to himself. For whether we live, we live unto the Lord, and whether we die, we die unto the Lord : whether we live therefore or die, we are the Lord's." W'ffi'^C' ' II < 'l '( ' > ll .»■(' CHAPTER VII. OBJECTIONS ANTICIPATED — EXPLANATION— OB. .TECTIONS STATED FIRST ANSWER — SECOND ANSWER— TUIRD ANSWER— CONCLUSION. I " And nil that believed were together, and had all things eooi' mon ; and sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need." Acts ii. 44, 45. f I Objections will be brought by some, perhaps, against the principles M^hich we have endeavoured to explain and inculcate in the foregoing treatise. Yet, we are confident, that what we have taught will recommend itself both to the conscience and understanding of the reader ; and consequently, whatever objections may be brought against it, they cannot be formidable. They will, perhaps, arise, in most cases, from misapprehension of our meaning and design ; to prevent which, if possible, it is proper to remind the reader, that the fundamental positions which we have assumed are the following,-— the proper business of man, in this world, is, to exercise the powers of action which God hath conferred on him — to exercise them in pursuit of an object, worthy of God, and suitable to himself, — and, that he who would EXPLANATION. 103 do so, must become a " follower of (lod ;" for it is only in pursuing the same object that he has in view, that we can ftnd suitable employment for the faculties of our nature ; and, in the attainment of it, a suitable result. Besides giving this brief retrospect, it is perhaps necessary to caution the reader against supposing, that we have attempted, directly or indirectly, to proscribe secular avocations, or to insinuate that they interfere with our proper duty. So long as man is subject to bodily wants, it will be his duty to follow some calling, or prosecute some secular business, to provide these wants with the requisite supply. But the evil lies in making the prosecution of that business, the employment of(mr life ; and success in it, the only result which wo seek ; whereas, all secular employments ought to be regarded as a subordinate means of accomplishing the true object of life, and should be followed no farther than is necessary to that object. The Apostle Paul was "by occupation a tentmaker;" and he sometimes wrought at this trade, even after he had received his Apostolic commission, without considering it inconsist- ent with his duty or his dignity : but he did so, only when it was needed to assist him in furthering his views as an Apostle, devoted to the cause of Christ ; and whenever it had served this purpose, it was immediately laid aside. ISo secular avocation ought to be carried a step beyond this; within this limit, it is not only harmless, but a matter of positive obligation ; beyond it, it degenerates into that covetousness, which consists in " laying up treasures upon earth." This remark, we fear, is applicable, in a high degree, to the manner in which business is conducted at the present day. Instead of giving the attention to business, only when the claims I 1 '. ., 1 'I ■ 104 OBJECTIONS STATED. !j ! of religion permit, we give the attention to religion, only when the claims of business permit. So universal is this rule, that men even of high Christian character and excellence, consider it & Gufficient apology, for their neglect of this or that part of religious duty, to plead — their business engagements. ** Why was you not at such a meeting ? why did you not allow your name to be put upon such a committee? or why would you not be one of such a deputation ?'* ** Not, I assure you, because I take no interest in these objects ; but. Sir, / have my business to attend to" This is a common excuse, and we ought to judge of it in the exercise of that charity " whif.h thinketh no evil ;" yet if the whole Christian community acted in this case, like this indi- vidual, those objects, which he professes so highly to value, would be lost. Before " the kingdom of God" mn come, the Christian world must suffer its claims to take precedence of all other engagements ; and consider themselves bound to renounce every thing that interferes with it. We have said, that objections will possibly be brought against such a mode of spending our life, as we have b^en recommending. We shall, therefore, as we formerly announced, devote some time to their consideration; and we shall do this at the greater length, inasmuch as the line of argument which we propose to follow in reply, will present an opportunity of illustrating and enforcing still farther, the leading principles that have been advanced. One class of objectors will perhaps maintain, that the scheme of life recommended in this essay, is visionary. It has a fair and beautiful appearance, when viewed at a distance ; but when narrowly examined, it is found to fr. OBJECTIONS STATED. 105 be destitute of substance or foundation. It requires that man sliall be more of a moral and intellectual being, than is consistent with the present constitution of human nature; and it requires a degree of disinter- estedness and self-denial in conducting the business of life, which appears to be utterly impracticable. Infidels have attempted something like it already ; but since human nature is made up of such gross materials as *' flesh and blood," as well as the high and spiritual elements appertaining to an immortal mind, such schemes have always proved, and ever will prove, miserable failures. Another class of objectors may, perhaps, urge, that it is impossible for ua to spend our lives in such a manner, at the present day, at least ; for society is so constituted, as to render it certain, that the person who first makes such an attempt, will expose himself to the reproach ot singularity ; or, what is still of greater consequence, would subject himself and his family to heavy and unavoidable losses. According to the manner in which business is now conducted, all our time and our powers have sufiicient employment in providing " for our own ;' so that, if we labour for the public welfare, in the manner recommended, which is, to make it the principal object of effort, we must necessarily sacrifice our domestic prosperity for its sake. These are the only objections which it is possible for us to imagine. We have placed them together, because the observations which we now offer in reply, are directed to both. On the second, however, we shall spend a few additional remarks at the close. 1. The first observation which we offer is this, that such a mode of employing human life has been already I 2 »*.M4..llh4H*^ ■■■».-».» _fc._ . *"*'., i I 106 FIRST ANSWER. exemplified. We do not refer to the example of Jesus Christ, nor of Paul, his distinguished Apostle ; because when urged with these, some might take refuge under the plea, that they are the examples of extraordinary persons. We refer to an example in common life, recorded in the following verses which we have placed at the head of this chapter : " And all that believed were together, and had all things common ; and sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need." Again : " Neither was there any among them that lacked, for as many as were possessed of lands or houses, sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, and laid them down at the Apostles' feet, and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need." Lest I should be misunderstood here, I beg to observe, that, in this account, we see &priiiciple, and the mode of its manifestation. The principle is that of entire devotedness to God ; the mode of its manifes- tation is this ; those who possess property, sell it ; and cast the price into a common fund, from which the whole church is supplied. Now, it is only with the principle that we have to do at present, for the mode of its manifestation has no connection whatever with any thing recommended in the foregoing chapters. The principle, however, is precisely that which is involved in such an employment of the life of man as we have endeavoured to explain and inculcate ; — spending our lives in seeking to accomplish the sanoe object that God has in view. Here we see a larie society devoted to such a pursuit ; living only for 8u>.h an object ; and sacrificing even/ thing for its sake ; ease, reputation, possessions, and ultimately even life itself. And let it be remembered that this splendid example is •t^'.. , FIRST ANSWER. 107 found in the ordinary walks of life, as already hinted ; and not only so, but in individuals whose previous character presented the least possible encouragement to expect it, — the crucifiers of Christ. The simple announcement of this fact is a sufficient answer to the first objection above stated; it proves most satisfactorily that the scheme of life, which we explained, is not visionary. In the conduct of the primitive Christians, we see all the disinterestedness and self-denial; and the high and holy morality, which such a mode of life supposes. And when we think of the change which had taken place in their character, — when we contrast their Christian benevolence, with the blood- thirstiness of disposition which they exhibited in the crucifixion of Christ ; we see still farther evidence that it is not visionary. For the same gospel which was able to produce such a transformation upon their char- acter, is able, still, to effect a similar change upon others. Before leaving this particular, I cannot help makinc: one remark on the manner in which the principle ot entirj devotedness to God was here manifested by the primitive Christians ; — the selling of their houses and lands, and devoting the price to the use of the whole church. An opinion seems to have gone abroad, not only that the church is under no obligation now to practise such extended beneficence ; which no person will deny ; but that it is the duty of Christians rather to avoid it as an indiscretion. The truth, however, is, that it is as obligatory on us at the present day, as it was on the persons of whom it is here recorded. For it was perfectly voluntary on their part ; no man could demand it of them, or censure them for neglecting it ; it was the spontaneous overflow of Christian love. i3 >V^.-iij , ! I? !' t < 106 FIRST ANSWER. Be it remembered, however, that it was higkly com" mended in them. No person, we think, can read this passage, in the exercise of common candour, without receiving the conviction, that this part of their conduct is recorded by the historian as really to their praise, as any other part which he takes notice of in the context ; such, for example, as their ^ continuing da^y with one accord in the temple," or in *^breaking bread i'rom house to house." The conclusion, therefore, at which we arrive is, that although Christians at the present day are not to be compelled to practice such charity as this ; though it is not to be required from them as a necessary evidence of the sincerity of their profession ; yet, if any Christian chooses to do so \aA conduct is not to be condemned.^ It will, on the con- trary, be as highly approved by God still, as it was in former times; and will be as justly entitled to the commendation of the whole church. The " prudent'^ world would very probably ridicule the man who should do so now, just as the same world, I have no doubt, ridiculed the Christians in Jerusalem ; they might tauntingly say that it was fanaticism, or hypocrisy, or Pharisaic ostentation; but God would judge of it now, as then, in a very different manner; and the church ought to do so also. To tell us, as some have done, that these Christians acted with a view to the approach- ing destruction of Jerusalem, when they would most certainly lose their possessions at all events ; and thereby to insinuate that they put into the hands of their neighbours to-day, at its full value, a property which they knew would soon become worthless ; appears to me to impeach their honesty, and even to reduce one of the brightest examples of charity, to a piece of > - SECOND ANSWER. 109 contemptible stockjobbing. And then to argue that, as we are not doomed to be visited with such a calamity, therefore we are under no obligation to practice this charity ; appears to be most inconclusive reasoning ; for if the obligation of the primitive Christians to do so, arose from the fact, that the destruction of Jerusalem was approaching, as this argument evidently supposes ; will not the fact that death is approaching us, lay us under a similar obligation also ? 2. But we proceed to observe, secondly^ that such a mode of employing life^ as we have recommended, shall be exemplified, again. He who believes the predictions contained in Scripture, respecting the prosperity of the church in the millennial age, will not call in question for a moment the truth of what has now been stated. They give us an assurance that God will yet fully accomplish the purpose which he had in view when he created this world. Sin may oppose, but it cannot prevent, his designs. " As truly as I live, saith the Lord, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord." And when this purpose shall be accomplished, the charity, which " seeketh not her own," shall again reign triumphant. War shall cease ; and, consequently, the " lusts" from which it arises. Selfishness shall then be extirpated from the church, probably from the earth ; and the life of man shall be again employed, as it ever ought to be, in seeking the glory of God and the hap- piness of his creatures. This proves, in our opinion, satisfactorily, that there is a time coming, when the life of man shall be employed according to the very principles which we have pro- pounded. And, if this be true, it follows again that these principles are not visionary. Nay more ; for we ---»--•- -» ♦^ ***«»^^-*-».*.^- ■■*^*^ 110 SECOND ANSWER. V F J} f i \L can here assume higher ground; it follows that the scheme of life which we have recommended alone possesses siAstance ; and that every thing which is contrary to it is visionaryy in this sense at least, that it will soon come to an end. If any are disposed to look upon what we have taught as too ideal to suit the fallen race of man, and to give their preference to some different schem^ let these remember, that it is absolutely certain, that every other method of employing life shall yet be discontinued. Those customs that are now so fashion- able, and so highly praised, shall yet become obsolete ; they shall be regarded in their true character, as sin/til, because they stand in opposition to the general happiness; and public opinion shall, therefore, every where give sentence against them. The time is yet coming, when the whole energies of mankind shall be employed in producing the highest possible degree of moral excellence that can be attained on earth, and the highest possible degree of happiness ; and then, every thing that interferes with this, shall be in a state of proscription, and disgrace, notwithstanding it may bear the palm now. Every thing that prevents such a consummation as this from taking place, whether it exist in the form of public opinion, or the rules of fashion and etiquette, or in systems of education, or modes of conducting secular business ; is an obstacle in the way of the gospel, which shall be trodden down by its increasing triumphs. I must make one remark farther in reply to the sneer respecting infidelUyt at which I have already hinted, and which I have no doubt will be made, in certain quarters, against the principles advocated in this treatise. No objection is more common at the present day, in religious controversy, than this, it is infidely in principle, SECOND ANSWER. Ill or tendency; the commonness of this objection has deprived it of the consequence which it once possessed. There can be no doubt that it is sometimes well urged ; but very frequently it is not so ; for there is no occasion on which we may calculate with greater certainty to hear it used, than when something is proposed which has a tendency to separate true religion from the form of it; the religion of the soul, from the religion uf fashion, or politics, or custom; the religion which is exemplified in action, from the religion which never comes beyond the boards of the Confession or Creed. If infidels have ever attempted to compass the object which we have recommended in these chapters, and we are far from granting they have ; it is yet evident that their principles would lead them to reject the means which we have pointed out ; and which we maintain to be the only means that can be used lawfully, or that will be efficacious. The use of these means is a vital part of our scheme. We have distinctly stated that, " to follow God" not only signifies to labour for the same object, but also to labour for it in the same way. Infidels have sometimes attempted to realize Utopian dreams of human virtue and happiness ; but, rejecting the gospel, and building on " another foundation," the failure of their measures has been the necessary conse- quence. They have not erred, however, in raising their expectations too high ; for, on the authority of God him- self, we believe this earth shall yet present " scenes surpassing fable ;" but they have committed a mistake of the greatest magnitude in supposing that the character of man was naturally so excellent, that a few barren regulations only were needed, to realize their hopes. They have thus been attempting to raise a mighty .. •....i»«...i.a.< .« *^-^'- ■■- . » 112 THIRD ANSWER. I* h I superstructure on an air-bubble. It is only by the gospel tiiat the mind of man can be reffenercUed, and the life of man effectually reformed. All the arguments that can be employed for this purpose are ad weak as the grasp of a child, except those which are drawn from the cross. Christ alone can say, " If I be lifted up from the earth, / will draw (til men unto m«." 3. I observe, lastly^ that such a mode of employing life as has been recommended, ought to be adopted now. This follows undeniably from the two foregoing remarks. If it has been already practised, with the evident approbation of God, and that in the purest state of the church in all past time ; and if it shall be practised again, when the church shall regain a state of similar, or perhaps, even higher purity ; it is obvious that what- ever prevents it from being practised now, b to be regarded as an imperfection, or corruption, in the church. And no person can, for a moment, pretend, that such a state of things ought to continue. It is manifestly not agreeable to the will of God that the church should have degenerated from her original purity; or that she should continue in that state of degeneracy ; or that, in consequence of it, the world should be left to perish, under the dominion of ignorance and vice. These things have taken place, it is true ; but it was because man would have it so ; not because such was " the good pleasure" of God. He bewails the re- sult, and labours to have it removed ; consequently, what- ever prevents that removal must be regarded by him as the doing of an enemy. And we have already shown, that the mis-employment of the life of man, which prevails so much at the present day, is one of the greatest obstacles that oppose the progress of his kingdom. -I i> ^■^' -tt»-M*»«irip*>«Hr**-^-«' * THIRD ANSWER. 113 What can be more evidently agreeable to the will of God, than that his purpose respecting our world should be fulfilled ? And In what manner, therefore, can our active powers be employed so as to please him more, than by aiding in its accomplishment ? For, in the exercise of infinite condescension, he hath so formed his pur- pose that the help of man is needed ; and he hath thereby conferred an honour upon our race which angels might covet^ if such a feeling could enter heaven. But it is needless to reason, or to repeat reasons that have been already presented. We maintain, that if you let down the standard of man's duty a single remove lower than that Which has been described as his proper employment, you derogate so much from his honour, and his happiness ; you bring down human nature from the high place which it ought to occupy among the creatures of God; and offer dishonour to Him from whom all things proceed. " To follow God" is the only proper employment of man. Here only do the high faculties, by which our nature is distinguished, find adequate and suitable exercise. Every opinion which is contrary to this is an error ; every engagement which interferes with it is sin ; every portion of time, and of talent that is laid out upon any other object (if it is not conducive to this primary one, either directly or indi- rectly) is a species of sacrilege ; by which man is robbed of his proper happiness, and God of his glory. It is not to be disguised, therefore, that, however opposite such an employment may be to the manner in which society is constituted at the present day, and to the manner in which men think and act, the sincere Christian has only one alternative. If the manner in which hisiness is now conducted, and the extent to 114 THIRD ANSWER. ri} I 'which it is pushed, be such as to interfere with such an employment of life as this, they are then sinful ; they are obstacles which oppose the progress of the gospel, and which the gospel must overcome before its great triumph can be gained. They are like rocks, project- ing into the channel of the spiritual river i which confine its course, and prevent it from flowing freely, and spreading widely, to refresh and fertilize the world. They ought, therefore, to be abandoned; and the Christian is widely mistaken who supposes that, by doing so, he will make such a sacrifice as will bring ruin upon himself and his family. God will sustain the man who spends himself in his cause ; who first lifts his hand to break up a system that has long held the world in thrall, and proved a mighty barrier to the prosperity of his kingdom ; and who first sets before the world the blessed example of making a proper employment of human life. He may not have so much wealth in his family as other men, but he will have what wealth cannot purchase; true enjoyment; peace, which the world can neither give nor take away. The time, we would hope, is fast coming to an end, when men will judge of another man's happiness, and merit; and of his title to the love and esteem of his countrymen, by the wealth which he possesses. Let us hope that a new era is approaching, when " works of faith" will be a more certain passport to the praise, and cordial respect of the public, than riches, or titles, or equipage ; and when the man who converts a soul, or promotes educa- tion, or adds something to the stock of useful know- ledge, or puts a check on the progress of vice, will be thought entitled to greater and more excellent fame than the man who has conquered kingdoms. Till such CONCLUSION. 115 a revolution in public sentiment take place, " the King« dom of God" cannot " come." Let each individual, then, endeavour to bring it about; let him keep the true end of life continually in view; and regulate his own actions thereby, and the estimates which he forms of men and thingi^ around him. This is a cause in which every person of necessity takes a side ; let every person see that he stands " on the Lord's side." "He that is not with me is against me, and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad." I trust these observations are sufficient to satisfy the reader, that the objections which were proposed at the commencement of this chapter, do not rest upon any solid foundation. The^r^^, namely, that the scheme of life proposed is visionary y is refuted by fact, belonging to past time ; and also by fact, belonging to future time ; for the promise of God may well be considered equal to an existent fact. The second, that such a mode of em- ploying life would break up the present frame-work of society, is, properly speaking, not an objection. It does not enquire whether such a method of life is right or wrong, but simply states a difficulty in the way of its adoption, — a difficulty, moreover, which has all along been contemplated. Tt is always difficult to remove an evil, but the existence of the evil renders it necessary to adopt measures for that purpose ; and if any individual suffers loss by their execution, it can only be because he identifies himself with it, and connects his interests with its continuance. I shall not again urge the reader to spend his life in the manner recommended in these pages, for I have already devoted a chapter to this object. Yet when we think of the great and valuable ends which men might K 1 ]f 116 CONCLUSION. pfTect, with the time and the faculties that God hath ^iven them ; and compare it \>'ith the state of human Hociety at the present day, who is not pained at the contrast? — who does not feel a desire to call upon himself and his fellow-men to abandon the pernicious crrurs tiiat have hitherto prevailed, and spend life in tlie prosecution of a worthier object ? It was not long after the flood that the children of men attempted to build a tower, the top of which was designed to reach unto heaven. When will the human race unite to cunstruct a moral edifice, of similar magnitude and grandeur; which Jehovah will again descend to visit, not for the purpose of condemning the ambitious project, and its authors, but for the purpose of exprcMing his high approbation and delight I If men had but the ^race and the wisdom to make a wise use of the power and means which God hath committed to their care, this earth might become a scene which angels would ilelight to visit; nay, which the Lord of angels would condescend to honour with his presence. It might be transformed into a spiritual temple, infinitely more glorious and lovely than that which Solomon built on mount Zion ; and respecting which God would again be heard declaring, " This is my rest for ever, here will 1 dwell, for I have desired it." But, alas I the course of human life is directed in such a manner as to bring about a result of the very opposite description. Man considers it necessary to spend his life in labours which increase the moral degradation and misery of the race, instead of diminishing them; and which offend God, and vex his Holy Spirit. And not only so ; but such a mode of spending life is confirmed by the influence of custom and habit, and sanctioned by the voice of MMCLUSIOK. 11 fashion, — a power which, though wholly imaginary, rule« with resistless sway over the multitude ; and putx a veto on every pro]) >sed change, whether it be a reform or an innovation. Man has departed i'ur from his own happiness; and he has made laws which prevent him from returning. He wears fetters, which his own bands have forged. Instead of rising to the high and happy eminence, to which God, the Bible, and his own nature, invite and strongly urge him, he hath bound himself by chains to his present infamy and wretchedness. He hath hedged up the way by which he might return, with the greatest obstacles he could raise. When will " the scales fall from his eyes I" When will man know his own interest ; and pursue it, with the determination of one who has a sense of its value I " Return O Lord ; how long? Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast afflicted us, and the years wherein we have seen evil. Let thy work appear unto thy servants, and thy glory unto their children." ih k3 n i CHAPTER VIII. THE FOREGOING PRINCIPLES APPLIED TO EDU- CATION—DESIGN OF EDUCATION—IN WHAT IT CONSISTS— ITS IMPORTANCE— CONCLUSION. .... xv.m) ■■ • ■ " Fntbers, bring up your children in the nurture md admonition of the Lord." Ephes. vi. 4. .... ^, I CANNOT better bring this treatise to a close, than by attempting to show the importance of the principles advocated in it, as applied to Education. To this object, therefore, the following chapter shall be devoted. And I am not departing from my subject in doing so. For if I have succeeded in pointing out the "proper employment of life ; and if the whole design of Educa- tion is to fit man for that employment ; both of which, I apprehend, will be granted; it follows immediately that we are hereby furnished with a Rule for conducting Education. In what manner the Education of youth ought to be conducted, so as to fit them most effectually for their destined stations in life ; and enable them to fulfil the duties of these station:^ in such a manner as to secure the gradual, yet steady advancement of the human race, »■' % PRINCIPLES APPLIED TO EDUCATION. 119 '0t w; r-r. 3 EDU- BAT IT dmonition than by irineiples To this devoted, loiiig so. \e proper Educa- if vhich) ediately iducting rht to be [for their Ifulfil the to secure lan race> is a question of immense importance. It is one of thr signs of the times, of happiest omen, that minds of the highest order are now employed on this question. The press has teemed with treatises on the engrossing subject. Yet we can scarcely be said to have advanced farther, than just to have come in sight of its importance ; to have arrived at the conviction, that a true svstem of £ducation is the^r*^ thing that is needed, for securinj; the physical and moral improvement of human society. For, if we proceed to inquire what a true system is, the widely different answers which we receive from different quarters, render it evident that but little progress has been made in arranging its details. It is gratifying, however, to know that the discussion of it is not permitted to cease. On the contrary, men of the highest eminence, both in respect of rank, and intellectual great- ness ; and that not in one nation merely, but in Europe ; have taken a part in it, with so much earnestness and effect, that the attention of the civilized world is all but rivetted to the question at the present day. We do not mean to insinuate that nothing has been gained. To mention no more, the system of Infant- School Education has been invented, — a discovery which, I doubt not, will yet place the name of Wilder- spin amongst the greatest and best benefactors of man. But all that has been done, as yet, is local and circum- scribed ; and will bear no comparison with the general movement on this subject which seems about to take place ; and by which, not merely this or that town, or this or that neighbourhood,' but the nation shall be carried forward as one man, in the path of moral and intellectual improvement. Much practical ignorance, however, still prevails, k3 'UJ 120 DESIGN OF education; respecting the Education of the young. There are many parents ; some perhaps whose eye may light on these lines ; who, when interrogated on the nature of the education which they ought to give to their children, will be ready to give some such reply as the following : — If we feed them, and clothe them, and give them care and medicine when they are sicic ; if we send them to school, and see that they are taught to read, and write, and cipher, &c., and repeat their catechism &c. ; and if we are able afterwards to see them settled in the world in such a way as they are likely to do wellt as the phrase is, (which means, in such a way as they are likely to become rich) ; do we not discharge all the duties that can be required at a father's hand ? To this I answer, No. For although such a plan of Education is not to . be condemned, perhaps, on account of any thing that it contains ; it is yet highly objectionable on account of what it wants, and on account of the end to which the whole is to be directed — doinp well in the world. It is evidently based upon the idea that the education which fits a child for this, is a right education ; or, to proceed^ one step farther, that the proper employment of the life • of man consists in this form of well-doing j and, of course, all previous training ought to be directed to it. It is indispensably necessary to have a correct know- ledge of the end which is intended to be gained by Education. This remark, indeed, is applicable to every department of human effort : if we have but a confused notion of the end which is to be secured, we shall have also confused notions of the means which are to be used for it ; and in practice we shall handle thena but awkwardly. If you were travelling through a strange country. DESIGN OF EDUCATION. 121 where, besides being unacquainted with the way yourself, you had no one to point it out to you ; you would necessarily hd in a state of constant embarrassment and doubt. When you saw a path leading to the right hand, or the left, you would be at a loss what direction you ought to follow. But if, at some turning of the road, you were to gain sight of the city, or house, to which you were travelling, you would be immediately delivered from your embarrassment. Then, though you still had no one to inform you, you would be able to determine at once, which path you ought to prefer ; because you could judge whether it was likely to conduct you to your place of destination. Now, in regard to education, the principles recommended in the foregoing pages, are capable of performing a similar purpose. Thei^ hold the end up to view ; and enable you thereby ta judge of the means which may be proposed to reach it. They impress upon you the purpose for which your children have been sent into the world; and which it is God's will they should ^realize by the conduct of their life; and as it is the ^(cfesign of education to prepare them for this, you can easily determine whether any proposed scheme ought to be followed or rejected. Is it likely to conHnct your child, in the employment of his active life, to the issue contemplated by the Author of it? Does it make him acquainted with the best methods of securing that issue, and accustom him to the practice of them ? If not, it ought to be rejected ; however high the recom- mendation, or long the prescription which it may have enjoyed ; as being not only a waste of the precious time of your children, but a means of giving their life a wrong direction. 122 IN WHAT IT CONSISTS. H It has been already stated that the design for which your children have been sent into existence is, to exercise the powers of action conferred on them by the Creator ; and it belongs to education to fit these powers of action for their respective functions. It is particularly to be observed here, that it ought to undertake the training of all these powers, whether bodily, social, intellectual, or moral. It is true, at the same time, that it cannot superinduce the same degree of improvement upon them all ; yet the system which overlooks any of them must be regarded as imperfect. Your child has duties to perform in his future life, both of a corporeal, social, intellectual, and moral nature ; and he has been furnished with different orders of active powers, corresponding with these different orders of duties. It is the business of Education to fit and prepare them for these duties. 1. First. Your child has duties of a corporeal nature to perform ; in other words, he has bodily powers to exercise, and it is the business of education to see that they are in a fit state for it. The principal requisite for this purpose is bodily health. Let no person be startled at this announcement. Do not suppose that we are requiring you to confer upon your children a benefit which no human power can bestow; and which, perhaps, your parental tenderness has sometimes wished, but vainly, you could confer on some suffering child. I do not now speak of the cure of diseases; this belongs to the physician ; but I speak of treating the hu- man constitution in such a manner as to ward off disease ; at least, not to cause it. Instead of dwelling upon this idea, I take the liberty of recommending to the notice of the reader, a treatise upon tl^is subject by Dr. A. Combe, of Edinburgh, entitled, /Vi«c?ipfc* of Physiology IN WHAT IT CONSISTS. 123 appHed to Education ; and I am confident that, after pe- rusing this work, you will be convinced you have much more in your power, in this respect, than you are aware of; and are more frequently to blame for the unhealth- iness of your children. 2. But, secondly^ your child has social v'uties to per- form; for which purpose he has been endowed with social affections ; and it is the business of education to fit them for the performance of these duties. The social affections are capable of high cultivation, and ought, consequently, to occupy an important place in every right system of training for youth. It depends much upon the disposition of your child, whether he is to receive and impart happiness or misery from mixing with the society of others ; and this again depends on the training which his social affections receive. It is in your power to form his disposition, either for good or for evil ; and you are, in fact, the means of forming it whether intentionally or not. Let no parent complain of the incorrigibkness of his child ; let him rather study the methods by which the social affections may be .moved and directed, and put them in operation ; and let him rest assured that their sway over human nature is by far too potent for the child to resist. A ship does not more necessarily obey the helm, than a child the impulse of the affections. It must be obvious, therefore, that the system of education which neglects so great a power as this, instead of laying hold of it, and wielding it for its own purposes, is radically defective. 3. Thirdly. Your child has duties of an intellectual nature to perform, for which purpose he has been endowed with intellectual faculties; and it is the province of education to improve and instruct these faculties, and. 124 IN WHAT IT CONSISTS. :i I ! I thereby prepare them for their proper employment. It is your duty, therefore, to direct his education in Buch a way as to secure to him a clear understanding and a sound judgment. This is evidently necessary to enable him to perform his part in life with honour and success ; and it is as evidently within your power, generally speaking, to furnish him with it. Some may, perhaps, doubt how far they are able to secure the health, or to form the disposition of their children, by any system of training which they can adopt ; but none can doubt that they have it in their power to furnish their urider< standing with useful knowledge, — with infbrmatioa upon almost any subject, and to any ex,tent. School- masters and teachers are within the reach of all ; books can be procured with the greatest ease;, their number and cheapness constitute one of the remarkable features of our times, that contrast strongly with the past ; in short, the means of acquiring knowledge are so manifold that ignorance is " without excuse." Furnish your children, therefore, with knowledge. Open to them those stores of wisdom which are contained in the works and ways of God, — in those shining heavens which he hath " spread as a curtain" over our beads ; and in the earth which he hath stretched out beneath, with the various orders of its inhabitants, and its wonderful productions. Bring them to the intellectual " feast" which God hath presented to all people in these his works, and the scientific wonders which they conceal. In this way they will be prepared to feel the debt of gratitude which they owe to the wise and benevolent Creator of all things for having given tlit.n a nature so exalted ; and bestowed upon them faculties by which they are rendered capable of knowing Him L It is laway [ sound )le him iccess; nerally erhap8» \i, or to Item of I doubt under- rmation Sch'ool- ; books number features past; in lanifold ih your iO them in the leavens heads ; leneath, ,nd its lllectual in these they 'eel the Ise and Acuities Him IN WHAT IT CONSISTS. 125 from whom they came, and of comprehending and appreciating, in some measure, the wonders of his hand. 4. Fourthly, Your child has moral and religious duties to perform, and for this purpose he has been endowed with moral powers, or faculties. Now, it is a main branch of education to train these powers in such a manner as to fit them for discharging tiie above obligations. This is the highest part of man's nature, as has been formerly remarked. Many of the inferior animals surpass him in bodily strengtii ; many of them almost equal him in social affections ; and many of them manifest something which, at least, bears a resemblance to reason and reflection; but religion is peculiar to man, and the beings that stand above him, in the scale of creation. This part of our nature, therefore, ougiit to receive the higher cultivation, on account of its pre-eminent excellence; also because it has received greater injury by sin ; and because cultivation here is indispensably necessary tosalvation. You may be guilty of negligence, or may commit mistakes in training your child for the duties belonging to the other departments of his nature ; and you will, no doubt, subject him to suffering thereby ; but that suffering will terminate with his mortal existence. But if you act with similar carelessness or culpability in training him to the duties which arise from this department of his nature, the suffering to which you subject him is endless ; it extends throughout the whole of his being I How lamentable is it to find, notwithstanding, that this is the very department of education to which the least attention is generally paid ! How many are there who imagine that, if they fit their children for taking a part in the literary, or professional, or commercial, or political 126 IN WHAT IT CONSISTS. ' i; I 4f ^1 • world ; and fighting their way through the difficulties with which they may meet ; they put them in the ,way of attaining the great ends of their being I But this is to educate only the lower powers of their nature ; and, which is worse, to educate them for the purpose of enabling them to rule the man, and give to his life whatever direction they please. Thus the evil, which we have all along been opposing in the course of this treatise, is perpetuated, and handed down from father to son. Let parents then, be entreated to educate the moral powers of their children's minds. Never forget that their highest honour and happiness consist in knowing God, and being like him ; and let the whole course of training through which you cause them to pass be modelled accordingly. Teach them what God is ; and what it is his will man should be, and should do. And this is to be accomplished only by making them acquainted with every thing whereby God hath made himself known to his creatures. Nature is full of God ; let them therefore be made acquainted with natural science. Providence is also full of God; let them therefore be made acquainted with historical science. But, above all, the Bible is full of God; let them therefore, like Timothy, be made acquainted with the Scriptures " from their youth ; which are able to make them wise unto salvation, through faith that is in Christ." But education ought not merely to fit the active powers for action ; it ought also to point oiit the object which that action is designed to obtain. We have already explained this in the body of this essay, and shall not, therefore, return to it now. But we would remind parents of the immense imf)ortance of impress- ing on the minds of their children right views of the rr 4t. IMPORTANCE OF EDUCATIOK. I'i7 licuUies he .way t this is e; and, pose of his Ufe i, which i of this ather to le moral ret that mowing ourse of pass be is; and >. And ig theni th made of God ; natural it them science. it them vith the ;o make IChrist." active |e object e have y, and would ipress- of the great purpose which human life ought to serve. Teacn them that they have been sent into this world by (iod that he designs to effect something by their existence. which will be worthy of himself, and suitable to them ; and that their happiness, and the happiness of mankind. depend on their complying with his will and co-operat- ing with him. Teach them that they are not to liv< merely for themselves; nor to spend the energies <>i their life in pursuits, which, though successful, would benefit none but themselves — they must live for (rod. and for the world. They must devote themselves to the general good, and labour for its advancement. Th( y must make it their object in life, not to increase the wealth of their own families, but the wealth of tiu fiamily of man, — ^the wealth which consists in knowledge. religion, and happiness. Until this shall be the general rule of human conduct, never shall those bright pros- pects, which inspired prophecy gives us of the future, be realised ; when men shall " know, obey, and submit, to the will of God in all things, as the angels do in heaven." Many reasons might be presented to urge parents to give their children such an education as that, the out- lines of which have just been hastily sketched. For example, it is necessary to secure the happiness of tht^' parent} a neglected child never fails to take heavy vengeance on the parent that has neglected him. The providence of God is retributive : it is so conducted as to make sin the means of its own punishment ; and it hereby furnishes a striking display of divine justice and wisdom. The ruined child is therefore the ordained instrument of punishing the guilty father ; and perhaps no hand in the universe could have been selected capable of inflicting a more cruel or deadly blow. H 1 i! 128 IMPORTANCE OP EDUCATION. Again the happiness of the child requires it. Parents love their children ; nothing lies nearer their heart than the happiness of those who have " come forth of their own bowels." How then are you to secure it? By gratifying them with unlimited indulgence ? Or toiling liard to be able to leave them '' a fortune" at your death? Or by filling their minds with ambition, and teaching them that the chief pleasure of life consists in possessing or enjoying something which others have not? No. " Bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." Teach them to love God " with all their heart and their neighbour as themselves," — to become *' workers together" with him in the blessed enterprise which he has on hand. . '/ut t; In fine, it is necessary to give children such an edu- cation as that which we have sketched, to secure, as we stated at the beginning, the gradttal advancement of the human race in knowledge and virttte» What the world may be thirty years after this, dcp^^^^^s on the rising generation ; and M'hat the rising generation may be, depends upon those who have now the care of their instruction. Is there a parent who can think of this without emotion ? You bewail the evils under which society is now groaning, — the corruptions, and false doctrines, which prevail in the church, — the erroueoua principles that are adopted in legislation, and in phijos* ophy ; and, above all, the false direction which is given to the conduct of life. But it depends upon yod ; that is, it depends upon the parents of the present generation, whether these evils shall be continued through the next. I again ask, is there a parent who can think of this without emotion ? How responsibbe is the situation wliich you now occupy I how pregnant, either with CONCLUSION. 129 Parents urtthan of their t? By r toiling r death? caching ssessing .? No. n of the 3ir heart become iterprise an edu- re, as we mtofthe le world le rising nay be^ of their of this which d false ■oueous philos- 13 given that is, ration, e next, of this Ituation r with good or with evil, to the human race ! If parents would discharge their duty to their otf^pring in a proper manner; that is, if they would give them such an education, as would prepare them for making a proper employment of human life, the miseries of man may be considered at an end. If there are any parents on whom this obligation lies in a more special manner than on others, I am persuaded it is on the parents who profess the religion of the British Reformed churches. They have much to do, in the ** regeneration" of the world. God demands it of them ; and the world has a right to expect it. Gud is now asking them to furnish him with men that will be willing to labour with him, and for him ; and spend their lives in endeavouring to promote his cause. How are parents prepared to respond to it ? Surely no mind is able to compute the guilt of that parent, who, instead of educating his child for that work, educates him /or the world; and is at pains to prepare him for taking a part in the struggle for worldly honours and distinctions. Some are perhaps ready to object, that it is impossible for them to fulfil the expectations which we seem to entertain, — they can only use the means, and have uo power to lay their hand upon the heart, and mould it according to their will. We admit at once, that you can only use the means ; this is your province ; it would be worse than folly to ask you to do more. But we maintain that it is impossible to use the means without securing the effect. The former belongs to man ; the latter to God ; and it is not to be supposed that there will be a failure on his part. Why does that which you perform receive the appellation of means, but because it stands connected with a certain efi'ect? Does the h2 130 CONCLUSION. scripture say in vain, ** Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it" If it were impossible for parents to " bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord," is it to be believed that they would be required to do so ? No. If, therefore, your children are not so brought up, the blame must be yours. Such a melancholy result does not come of God, but of you ; and on your heads, therefore, the guilt of it must lie. And surely, the guilt which arises from cruelty towards children must be of more than ordinary turpitude; for it is committ^i not only in opposition to the Bible, to conscience, and to the example and influence of all around you, but in opposition to the strong pleadings of parental affection within. I beseech you, therefore, by your love to your children, and your regard to their happiness, and your own, — by your profestion as members of the church, and the solemn obligations which, as such, you have voluntarily undertaken, — by your love to the Saviour, and your regard to all those interests for which he died, to bring up your children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Into their hands will soon be committed all the best interests of the church and of the world ; fit them for receiving them ; and for handing them down, enlarged and enriched, to generation after generation, till at last the victory shall be won, — " the gospel shall be preached in all nations for the obedience of faith ;" and its be- nignant and blessed fruits shall beautify and adorn every portion of this sin-stricken world. I fear that the present generation of Christians is unable to accomplish these things. I fear that as the generation of Israelites, which left Egypt, carried so " i way h« rt from ing up of the squired ! not so Such a of you ; lust lie. towards de; for Uble, to of all eadings erefore, to their lion as igations n,— by 1 those hildren to their rests of iceiving d and ast the cached its be- adorn tians is las the pied so CONCLUSION, 131 much of what was Egyptian along with them, as to incapacitate them for the enn(]uost of Canaan ; and it was thei jfore necessary that they should die in the wilderness, and that a new race should rise up there, untainted by the superstitions of Egypt, or any other country; so the present race of Christians arc so much under the influence of worldly prejudices and feelings, as to render them unable to achieve tiic spiritual victories that are destined to the church. If it is, therefore, ne- cessary that we should be swept away, to make room for another race of men ; of purer and simpler faith, and more consistent and devoted zeal ; let us, at least, do something to prepare and educate them. The praise of equipping the army, and sending it forth, is inferior only to that of driving the enemy from the field. 6'-'V'>-»^«-i';' ■■ F I N I S itl I H ■i .r-J iv. M ' ERRATA. Page 31, line 7 from bottom — "improvement of which, "d«le "of." 35, 15 do —for " opinon," read opinion* 44, 3 do — ^or ** terminate," read terminatet. 50, 5 top — for " whatsoyer," read whationer, 51, 7 bottom-— for " open," read upon. e"of." tttet. ■p I