vO ^ .f^^. ^.v^. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 11.1 •"Hi 121 IJ& HiSLiik^ < 6" > Fhobgraphic ^Sdaices Corporation 91 WMT MAIM tTRMT WnSTm,N,Y. I4SM 4^ f^.^ ..^ 6\ CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHIVI/ICIVIH Collection de microfiches. Caradton ImtituM for HIMorleal MIoronproductlora / Imtltut ewwdlMi !-s:i'v.;> ■: vr') ,,• 1^-.' ■,.t OPENING THE EYES OF THE BLIND." \ St. Mark, loth Chapter, 46th Verse. !* And they came to Jericho. And as he went out of Jericho withhis disciplesj and a great number of people, blind Bairtemeus, the son of Timeus, sat by the highway side, " " begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Naza- reth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And many charged him that he should hold his peace; but he cried the more a great deal, thou Son of David have mercy on me. And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they called the blind man, saying unto him, be of good com- fort, rise ; He calleth thee. And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. And Jesus answered and said unto him, what wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto Him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he re- ceived his sight, and followed Jesus in the way." JERIGHO was a large town about eight miles west of the Jordan, and about nineteen miies north-east from Jeru- salem. Near to this city the Israelites crossed the Jor- dan, when they entered into the land of Canaan. It was the first city taken by Joshua, who destroyed it to the founda- tion, and pronounced a curse on him who should' rebuild it. This curse was literally fulfilled in the days of Ahab, nearly five hundred years after. It afterwairds became the place of the school of the prophets. In this place Elisha worked a miracle greatly to the advantage of the inhabitants, by render- ing the waters near it, that were before bitter, sweet and whole- some. In p>oint of size it was second only to Jerusalem. It was sometimes called the city of Palm-trees, from the fact that there were many palms in the vicinity. In making a few remarks on this interesting narrative, we would in the fiTst place invite your attention to the fact that this was the first and the last visit of our Lord to Jericho. Fancy then that you see poor Bartemeus sitting by the way-side begging; throughout the wide world there ts but one individual who can restore his sight, and He is fast approaching. Bartemeus had often heard of Jesus of Naza- reth, had heard of His mighty works, and for ought we know he may have often prayed that He might pass by that way, but he had never seen Jesus, how could ii^ ? he was blind. Poor man, Jesus was passing, and he knew it not, yet a little while and He would be far beyond the reach of the blind man's voice; but he hears a noise, the noise of the multitude who accompany Jesus ; he inquires the cause, and! is informed that Jesus is passing. Now, or never, he lifts up his voice determined to be heard; he thought not of the multitude who would be astonished at his cry, and turn an unfeeling gaze upon him; he thought of nothing but his own need, his own misery, and of the opportunity which might never return. But see, he meets with opposifion from the unfeeling multitude, "Many charge him that he should hold his peace ;" why should this great multitude be detained on account of one poor blind man ? Onward they move, onward to the feast, to the holy city, to Jerusalem, but the poor blind man, what of him? will he suffer himself to be baulked thus easily? will he let slip the golden opportunity? will he sit down, contentedly, to grope through coming years of darkness while yet there is a hope, faint though it be, of reaching the ear of Him, who never yet heard mortal cry in agony and heard in vain? Oh, no, Barte- meus in years gone by had learnt the value of his sight, and now he sought it earnestly; he needed not the unfeeling multi- tude, "but cried the more a great deal, thou Son of David have mercy on me." Mark now his reward, "Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called." And the very persons who a few moments ago were endeavouring to keep him from the Saviour are now officious to bring him forward; they command him to be of good comfort; this rejoices the heart of the blind man, and he casts away his outer garment — the one that was thrown loosely over him. He threw it oflf, full of joy at the prospect of being healed, and that he miglit run without impediment to Jesus. This may be used to illus- trate the manner in which a sinner should come to Qirist. He should throw away the garment of his own righteousness; he should rise speedily; should run with joy; should have full faith in the power of Jesus, And cast himself entirely upon Hi& mercy. Our Lord knew well the reason why Bartemeus cried after Him, and yet He would not heal him unasked, there- fore He inquired, "What wilt thou that I should do unto thee?' The blind man said unto Him, "Lord, that I might receive my sight." Learn hence that although God perfectly knows all our wants, yet He takes no notice of them till we make them known to Him by prayer. Bartemeus appears to have had no friend to assist him, and, being blind, he was tmable to seek the Saviour for himself; he was obliged to wait until Jesus passed by that way. But, even in this case, we can see how God in the midst of judg- ment remembered mercy, for although blind he was not dumb, he could still ary to the Saviour: "Jesus, thou Son of David, have Aiercy on me." (Let us learn from this that it is never so ill with us but it might be worse.) Bartemeus, far from being noticed by the Lord, could ob- tain for a while no answer to his earnest entreaties, yet he was not discouraged; shall He not rise up m the judgment, and condemn those persons who leave oflf praying if their cold and careless prayers do not receive an immediate answer; those who persevere in fervent pt newsmongers, wandering about from house to house, to hear or to fr// some new thing; not busy bodies, meddling in •others men's matters, for they that do such things d6 not re- deem the time? But where is the person who, having lived •for any time in the world, cannot remember having done many , things which he ought not to have done; and having left vnr done many things which he ought to have done. Now, though past time be gone, we are not to consider it as irredeemably lost. It may be applied to a very profitable i<:i- • , V let tK bethmk oubelves of *whiat is rtid^t material to be attend- ed to at; preseni, as, fifst 'and chief ,' the^g^Z-^af wOrk of oiii^ salvation; the dischargf^e of th^ religious duties which we Owe to God our Cr^a^or, and to Christ our )?rrf^, ■■ ' ^- ■' ■ Bffi^^^ nie,' i'rW^fi^i,' how^^r diligferitly Vou ttiay improve the'titii^i ndt-^aj/^ayi Mi^hhour, will ^iss, but thfer^'will he 13 something in it to need fogiveness; all, even our best ser- vices, require to be cleansed in the blood of Jesus before they are presented to God. But, not only is the time short, it is also uncertain; the an- gel may lift up his hand this minute gtnd swear that our time shall be no longer. How often have we looked forth on the fields and ?idmired the green and flourishing grass. We knew not that the mower was even then sharpening his scythe to cut it down; our attention was withdrawn for a few hours; iht mozver came; the sun shone forth; the w6rk of destruction was completed; in the striking language of Scrip- ture — "it was cut down, dried up and withered." Such is man and such is his life to-day, glorying in his strength, and re- joicing, as a giant to run his course, to-morrow, pale, cold, lifeless, and ready for the tomb. Death is a mower, and all times are his to mow, in summer or in winter, in heat or in cold, by day or by night; he labours at all times, but his work will not be finished till time shall be no more. I . .'/ WALKING WITH GOD. Hebrews, nth Chapter, $th and 6th Verses. ** By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him; for before his translation' he had this testimony that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please Him; for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him." IT IS evident that Enoch was a man famous in his genera- tion, although little is said concerning him in the Bible. St. Jude calls him the seventh from Adam, and has handed down to us a prophecy of his, conceiming the coming of the Lord to judgment. From the 5th Chapter of Genesis we leaim that he was the son of Jared, and the father of Methuselah. **And that he walked with God. After he begat Methuselah, three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters." In the 24th verse, his whole history is summed up in these few words : "And Enoch walked with God; and he ivas not; for God took him." "Enoch walked! with God;" can two walk together except they be agreed? No; not with any comfort to them- selves. A wicked man would' not like to live in the same house, or sit at the same table, or walk in the fields with a righteous man. And why ? Because they have nothing in common, theic tastes are diflferent. There is an old saying, and I believe it is a true one, "That a man is known by the com- pany he keeps.'' Solomon says something like this: "He that walketh with wise m-en, shall be wise, but a companion of fools, or wicked men, shall be destroyed." Let the worldly man boast, when he is admitted into the company of the rich, the noble, and the learned, but the Christ- ian may like Enoch "walk with God," he may have fellowship with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. " What closeness, what familiarity (if I tmay use the expression) with that great and awful being do these few words imply ! We t^ see here a f rail man, clad in the garments of the flesh, walk- ing in communion with the father of spirits ; we see a man, by nature sinful and polluted as ourselves, walking side by side, as it were, with the pure and holy God. It is a wonderful sight; one worthy to attract the attention of the universe. What amazing condescen-sion on the part of God thus to stoop to low and sinful man ! And what a height of dignity for our poor fallen nature to attain. It is almost incredible; yet it is really true, and in exact accordance with God's own solemn declaration. "Thus saith the high and lofty one, that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is holy: I d'well in the high and holy place, with Him also that is of i :ontrite and humble spirit." Brethren, are you endeavouring to imitate the example of Enoch ? For three hundred years he walked with God ; reli- gion was with him the grand business of life; he walked with God as with a friend; prayer was not with him a strange work, but his delight, more necessary than his daily food. Enoch was a man of like passions with ourselves, he had the same tempta- tions to resist, the same evil passions to overcome; the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eye and the pride of life were as strongly developed in him as in us, and yet he was made more than conqueror through Him that loved him. It is evident, then, that there is nothing to hinder us from walking in the steps of Enoch, from walking with God, but want of will. We have greater privileges, clearer promises, and many helps which this holy man had not: "How then' shall we escape if we ne- glect so great salvation." One thing is certain : if we never walk with God on earth, if we do not learn to delight in His company, to pray unto Him, and praise His name, -while here below, it will never be recorded of us as it was of Enoch : "God took him." In one sense I know it may be said of all who depart this life that "God took them," for it is written: "Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was ; and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it." But, if I mistake not, in the case of Enoch the meaning is that God took him to himself, took him to heaven, took him to happiness. Who does not envy the lot of Enoch. Who is not ready to exclaim: "Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his?'* Mortify fi ! ii i t -theivydur:im0wibers whicU are; up6rt the earthjiwalk. with God now i think of >Him constantly; iotg^ Him not; do all things to His glory, and soon He will take you to Hiniself „a over whom death and the grave had no dominion; happy man, who escaped the fate of Adam's race, "dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return." Let no one conclude that Enoch escaped death because he was free from sin; this would be to contradict many plain passages of Scripture. Why, then, was Enoch caught up unto heaven ? The Sripture does not inform us, but we may be sure that God, who does nothing in vain, had some wise purpose in view. Perhaps the men of that generation, having no Bibles to instruct them, and seeing the wicked and the righteous laid side by side in the grave, had begun to doubt the very existence of heaven. In that case, nothing would so soon con- vince them 6i their er'-qr as seeing one of their number taken up into heaven. Brethren, it may never be said of you: "He walked with God." But soon your surviving friends will say : "He is not, he has departed, he has gone, he has left this world," for the place which knows you tww will soon know you again no more forever. Oh let me entreat you to think of this ere it be too late for your czun sokes — for the sake of those who will stand weeping round your grave. Oh let me intreat you to forsake your sins, to turn to God; then your friends will be able to comfort each other when they meet; to say "God took him," he has gone to heaven; then, though they may still weep, they will not sorrow as those who have no hope. i V Few. subjects are better calculated to impress on us the *7 evil nature of sin than that which we are now considering. Where is the Christian, who, if he were permitted to choose, would not prefer to enter heaven as Enoch did ; and why may we not enter it thus ? Because of sin. Had Adam never sin- ned, I have no doubt he and all his posterity would have enter- ed heaven as Elisha did, in chariots of fire; but he sinned. Wordly men make light of sin. Fools or wicked men mock at sin. But let us mark the consequence. Cast your eyes round the world, and what do you see ? Wars and fightings, dis- ease and death, pain and misery; you see millions stretched on beds of sickness, scarcely a happy man to be found. And did you ever ask yourself why is this ? Is it possible that a good and merciful God created man to be miserable? Was our first father Adam created to trouble, as the sparki>fffy np- wards ? No; he was created in the imag-e of ^'6d, 3w9fi\va* holy and happy till he sinned. Sin, then, was thb't^iiisefof fhi* misery and death; before he sinned he delighted like Efaaiii to walk with God, but he had no sooner sinned thaki hs sought' to hide himself from God among the trees of the^'g^rd^rti' Six thousand years have well nigh passed away sinctl'thafcf^m was committed in the garden of Eden, and yet, my blSetto^en, you and / still suffer from' its effects, and will continue Wkuffer. until laid in the silent grave. Millions of human beings have been born into the world since the time of Adam, and each one of them has had his peculiar trials, sorrows, pains and sicknesses, all of which might be traced back to that first sin; shall we then call it a little sin which brought death into the world, and all our woe? We have seen some of the evils which sin has brought on the world, on man, but have we seen all.? Have we seen the greatest part ? No surely. The word of God assures that the pain, the suffering, which sin has brought on man in this world is as nothing when compared with the pain and agony which it will bring on him in the world to come unless repented of and washed away in the blood of Christ. .1 If any inquire how did Enoch "walk with God," the answer is "hy faith;" mark this, by believing on Him who should come after, that is on Christ Jesus; this is the victory which I( ■ Qvercometh the world* even your faith; Enoch believed in the existence of another and a better world; therefore he did not confine his thoughts to this, and before he departed he had this testimony, that he pleased God. Most men act as if they were their own masters, and had nobody to please but them- selves; few acknowledge their obligation to Christ ; few ask with the apostle Paul, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do ? " All seek their own, and not God's glory. How are we to ac- count for this ? Does it not prove that men want faith ? Most certainly some men do not believe that there is a God. "The fool, that is the wicked man, hath said in his heart there is uo Grod." Others believe there is a God, but that He takes no part in the affairs of the world, that He leaves everything to time and chance; such persons are represented in Scripture as inquiring, "Who is the Almighty that we should serve Him, and what profit shall we have if we pray unto Him?'' They see the wicked prospering in this present world, and, if they believe in the existence of another, they hope to find them- selves as well off there as here; why then should they serve God, seeing that "He causeth His sun to shine on the evil and on the good and sendeth rain on the just and on the tmjust.'*^ They forget that there is a time coming when they shall dis- cern between the righteous and the ivicked, between him that serveth God and him that scrvcth Him not. "He that cometh to God must believe that He is." The first step in religion is belief in the existence of a God ; it were no difficult task to prove the existence of a God, but I hope none of you are disposed to doubt it; who that looks round on the world, so fidl of wonders, with its immense con- tinents, mighty oceans and lofty mountains, hanging as Job says "oni nothing," who that considers its rapid flight through the air, but must admire the wisdom of that law which keeps everything in its proper place, although the world turns over and over; who that considers these things is not forced to ex- claim, "verily there is a God that ruleth the earth." "He that cometh to God must believe that He is; and that He is a rewarder of them who diligently serve Him." No man ever yet set out on a journey to see a person in '9 whose existence he did not firmly believe. If we wish men to come to God, we must not only convince them that there is a God, but that "He is a rewarder of all those who diligently serve Him." To believe with the wicked that ''there is no God"" is a most dangerous error; to believe that there is a God, but that He takes no account of what is done on earth, is no less dangerous; and yet it is to be feared that this is a common error. Men do not believe that the eye of God is continually on them, that He sees their going out and coming in, and is .acquainted with all their ways; they do not believe that every sin, every evil thought, every idle word is noted down in Hi's book against the day of judgment, when it will most certainly condemn them, unless repented of and washed away in the blood of Christ. But the Christian believes all this, yea, more ; he believes that God is a rewarder of those who diligently serve Him. Although in this world he sees the wicked pros- pering, he knows that there is another and a better world in which the wicked will have no part, and it shall be well with the righteous. Fixing his eye steadily on that better country, he moves cheerfully forward, knowing that each day brings him nearer to his journey's end. My brethren, are you seek- ing God ? Are you seeking Him diligently ? Do you seek Him in His Church ? Do you seek Him in His word and sacrament? Do you seek Him in family and private prayer ? Then know this for your comfort, that God is a rewarder of them who diligently seek Him. When you see the prosperity of the ivicked, murmur nof^ for that is the /»nV? of their souls, the mess of pottage, for which they have bartered their heavenly inheritance; be not surprised if you do riOt prosper as they prosper in this world, for, while you are praying for the next world, they are zvorking for this; while you are reading your Bible on the Sabbath, they are forming plars for the coming week; while you are giving a part of your substance to God, and thus laying up treasure in heaven, the}' prefer to lay up treasure on earth. If it were as easy to do right as to do wrong, most men would do right, but Satan persuades them that it is for their interests to break God's commandments ; was not this the very 20 II 3 ''i temptation by means of which he thought to overcome our Lord when he took Him up into a high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, and said, "All these things will I give Thee if Thou wilt fall down and worship me." And is not this the very temptation by means of which many are overcome in our own day ? Does Satan require any man to serve him for naught? No, his lan- guage still is, do this, and I will reward you. Does he want a man to lie, to jwear falsely, to steal, or to kill, he will endeav- our to convince him that there is something to be gained by. it. But, remember, when he tempts you thus, that one sin committed and not repented of involves the loss of the soul, the loss of heaven, the loss of happiness, and "what shall it pro- fit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul; or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul ? " So then, if you could gain the whole world by committing the smallest sin, you would be foolish to commit it, for you would thus forfeit the kingdom of heaven. How then shall we find words to express the folly and madness of those who mock at sin, who lie, who swear, who take God's name in vain, who sacrifice their prospects of glory and felicity in the world to come without money and without price. The man who sells his soul for riches, honour or pleasure, although a fool, is not so great a fool as he who sells his soul for naughi and takes no money for it. Brethren, may you set a proper value on your souls ; may you prize them above geld or silver, above precious stones, above crozvns, above kingdoms, above t^oWrfj, for the heavens and the earth slial! pass azvay, but the soul shall remain forever; it shall tievcr die, but live on in happiness or misery, on, on, on, through- out eternity. I a 1 S ! OBEDIENCE THE BEST EVIDENCE OF LOVE. Si. Johi^s Gospel, i/^th Chapter, i^ih verse, "If ye love Me, keep my commandments." THESE words, on which we intend to oflfer a few re- marks on the present occasion, appear to contain the spirit of the gospel, to point out clearly the principle on which the true Christian acts. All his good works and alms- deeds spring from love to Christ. In the words of the apostle " the love of Christ constraineth us to live no more unto ourselves, but unto Him Who died (or us, and rose again.'* When man is convinced of sin by the Holy Spirit, and when the awful punishment which God has denounced against the sinner is revealed, when he sees and feels that there is a hell, and that he is fast approaching towards it, fear and trembling take hold on him, but, when God is pleased to reveal a way of escape, what language can express his boundless joy, and when that way is considered it is so simple^ so easy, that none need be alarmed. " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved," and the same God Who has commanded us to believe will give us faith if we ask it earnestly in prayer ; believe that Jesus Christ the Eternal Son of God, Who was in the beginning with God, and by Whom the heavens and the earth were made, became a helpless infant, a man oisorrozvs, and acquainted with grief ; believe that the pain and suffering, the grief and anguish which He endured, while journeying here below, were brought upon Him by your sin, and, above all, believe that by His cruel and ignominious death upon the cross, He hath made an atonement for you — hath taken away the curse of a broken law — and reconciled God and man; in the words of the apostle : " God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Vi'xin' self, not imputing their trespasses unto ///^;« / for He hath 23 m IP made Him to be sin for us Who knew no sin ; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." True it is, that Christ died for zll ; but it is not enough to rest here ; your faith must be appropriating^ you must be able to say^ and not only to say but to feel, Christ died for me ; meditate frequently on this momentous truth ; think Who it was that died that you might live. He was not an earthly king, He was ;/^/an angel. He was King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the Prince of Peace, the Everlasting Father. Well may we exclaim : " Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us." Now what does God expect from us in return ? He demands our hearts'; "my son," He says, "give me thine heart." He de- mands our afifections, "thou shalt lovf; the Lord thy God, with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy tnind, and with all thy strength.'' And who will say that in this God demands too much ? Who has loved us as He does .' Who has suffered so much for us } Indeed, it is absolutely necessary that we should love God supremely, that we should love Him better than any ////w^ or creature, for it often happens in passing through life that God commands us to do one thing, a»id the creature entices us to do the contrary. In all cases of this kind whichever party has the lieart is sure to gain the victory, and this perhaps will enable us to understand these words : " He that loveth father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me ; and he that loveth son or daughter more than Me is not zvorthy of Me ; and he that taketh not his cross and followeth after Me is not worthy of Me." Ic is said of Jacob that, when he served a hard master seven years for Rachel, they seemed to him but a few days for the love which he bore her, and many of you find it easy to do much for your p irents, children and friends because you love them. But there is no love like that which a re- deemed sinner bears to Him Who "has loved him and washed him from his sins in His own blood." Love produces the greatest effects when it is mutual. We are willing to do 43 and suffer intidi to gain the ajflfections of a person we reg^tS, though we are hdt sure of success; but, when the affection is reciprocal, it adds strength to every motive. Now the bfc- liever is not left in doubt and uncertainty, he knows that Jesus loved him first, loved him when he was in a state of enmity; and that nothing but the manifestation and power of this love could have taught his hard, unfeeling heart to love Him whom he never saw. Brethren, do you feel the love of Christ, a constraining principle wif/iin j'ou ? Do you /^^/ that you are not your owH, that you have been bought with a price, even the precious blood of the Eternal Son of God ? Have you determined to seek no more your own pleasure or profit, but to go forth and labour for the good of others ? *' If ye love me, keep my commandments." We see here love laid down as the foundation of good works — ** loi'e to Christ." The Bible nowhere offers Heaven as a reward for doing good ; but Heaven is offered as a free gift to every sinner who believes in Christ. True faith, however, never fails to produce love, and love is Xht fulfilling of the law ; and here, perhaps, it would be instructive for us to compare the terms of the law and the gospel. The law, which is some- times called the covenant of ivorks, speaketh in this wise : *' whoso doeth these things shall live by them ", or, in other words, if a man will keep the whole law from the first dawn of reason till the hour of his death, he can claim Heaven as his reward, but if he ottce stumble, if he break one of the least com- mandments, all his hopes are at an end, all his labour is /^j/ / the law can do nothing for him. From this state of bondage we are del vered under the gospel ; we labour no longer as servants for reward, but as sons from a principal of love. With the eye of faith we look down into the dark and dis- mal dungeons of hdl, and we sing: from these thou hast re- deemed us, oh Saviour of men ! Again we turn our eyes and the city of our God rises before us, the heavenly Jerusalem, with its pearly gates and walls of precious stones ; and here we have a place prepared, "a houde not made with m\ l-,M 24 Aands, eternal in the heavens," and for all this we are in- debted to the love of Christ. Oh! brethren, how co/d are our hearts, how insensible to such love; why are they not melted? Why are we not moved? Why are we not pierced with a sense of our ingratitude? Is it because we have no sin to be forgiven ? Is it because we do not believe the Bible ? Brethren, the day is far spent, the night is at hand, and your appointed work is not finished, the commandments of Christ are not kept, the tongue of the slanderer is not at rest, the 5^^- Bath breaker has not forsaken his old sin, the swearer has not ceased to take the Lord's name in vain, and, worse than all, the love of God, which would restrain this wicked- ness, has no place in the hearts of many. " If ye love me, keep my commandments;" ^e service of love is a delightful service ; the loving child stands ready to anticipate the command of his parent ; there is no need of a rod, or a threat, ox a promise of reward ; NO, he delights to do his father's will ; it is his meat and drink. Again, the lover stands ready to obey the wishes of his mistress ; she sends him forth a thousand miles over mountains and deserts, yet hefainteth not, ntxlher is weary ; love carries him through all, but there is a love stronger and deeper than these — the love which exists between the believing soul and its Saviour. Deeper than the love of home, deeper than the love oi kind- red, DEEPER than the love of rest and recreation, deeper than the love of life is the love of Jesus, And where it ex- ists it cannot be hid, for it is a living principle within the soul, compelling it to action ; man may, however, deceive him- self, and think that he has it when he has it not. Let us then apply the Saviour's test ; he says : " If ye love me, keep my commandments ; " by keeping the commandments of God we prove our love, but fain are all our professions of love without this. Morever we are told by an inspired apostle that " His commandments are not grievous," His yoke is easy and His burden is light ; He requires us to do nothing for //is sake but what, if we were wise, we would do for our own ; He requires us to forsake sin, because He knows that sin and / ■ as misery must ever go hand in hand; He requires us to love God because He knows that the creature must love some- thingy and nothing else is worthy of his love. One word more, and I have done. To you, brethren, who are anxious to know whether you love the Lord, I put the question : Do you keep His commandments ? Not one, nor five, but all. Doubtless there is not one person who calls himself a Christian who does not keep some of them ; one is temperate^ and on the strength of that he reckons himself a Christian; he is so taken up with this commandment, so pleased with himself for this victory, that he has no time to think ot the many commandments he has broken. Another is almost a Christian, but the love of money has taken such entire possession of his heart that it is hard to decide whicli» he loves most, his Saviour, or his gold ; certain it is that when you lay before him the claims of the Church or the missionary society, he will either find some excuse for not giving, or he will give so little that you can plainly see that shame and not love constrains him. Like the young man who came to our Saviour with the question, *' What good thing shall I do that I may inherit eternal life ? " they think they can say of the commandments, " all these have I kept from my youth ; " they think they love God with all their heart ; they think they love their neighbours as themselves ; but when the test comes, when the Saviour commands them to sell all that they have and give to the poor, then we see at once on what their heart is fixed ; they go away sorrowful^ confessing- that mammon is their god. Brethren, you may never be called to make such sacrifices for your Saviour; He may not give your love so severe a trial j but, if He should, I pray God that you may be able to imitate the example of Levi, who, when called from a money-making business by one Who had not where on earth to lay His head, and therefore could not recompense him in this world, was enabled to forsake all, rise up, and follow Him. Again, there are others who possess many Christian vir- tues, who like Herod do many things, of whom nevertheless it 16 i l)«4 I 5 can be said, "yet /ackest thoxx one thing." Each of us has hb sin which does most easily beset — one has an ivi! Umper, another is addicted to scandal, a third \sidle, a fourth spends a part of his time in foolish talking, and we flatter ourselves, perhaps, that these are small sins, or we think that God will overlook the breach of these as we are so strict in keeping the other commandments. But has Christ made any agreement of this kind with His people ? On the contrary^ has He not ex- pressly said by the mouth of His Apostle : " Whoso keepeth the whole law, and yet ofifendeth in one point, is guilty of all." There is no. license for sin under the gospel ; though it be dear to you as a right hand, or a right eye, you must pluck it out, and cast it from you, as you hope to enter into life. Finally, brethren, I would say, " be ye perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect," that so, keeping all the com- mandments of God, you may have no reason to doubt your love, but may be able to adopt the words of the Apostle as your own : " I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor /.eight, nor depth, nor any ether creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ yesus Our Lcrd." NOAH'S FAITH AND OBEDIENCE CONDEMNED THE WORLD. Hebrews t i \th CJiap., yth Verse- ** By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with lear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house ; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith." TO the question, what is faith ? it has been well answered faith is taking God at His word. St. Paul in the Creed from which our text is taken, in speaking of faith, and shewing how it wrought in the Patriachs of old, gives us many noble instances of it in Abel, Enoch, Abraham, and Moses, but, after all, I think our text contains about as striking an example of faith as is to be found in the word of God : " By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet." Noah's warning, this we find in the sixth Chapter of fhe book of Genesis : " And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before Me ; for the earth is filled with violence through them ; and, behold, I will destroy them with the eafth. Make now an ark of gopher wood ; room shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven ; and every thing that is in the earth shall die. But with thee will I establish My covenant ; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee." God warned Noah after this manner, and Noah be- lieved God that it should be, even as He had said ; he did not begin to reason on the subject ; he did not question whether it was likely God would destroy so vast a multitude. No ; Noah believed God. But observe, brethren, he was *' warned of ♦.iiings not seen as yet ; " he was warned to pre- 28 >ti \>l- pare for a flood, which did not come till one hundred and twenty years had passed away. How many things might happen before the fatal day arrived ? Noah might be gathered to his fathers and so escape the flood. Men might turn from their wicked ways, and God repent of the evil which He proposed to bring upon them. The time at least was long, and to many it would seem excusable to put off the commenciement of the work to some future season ; but Noah believed God, and the ark was begun. We know but little of the early history of Noah ; this only is recorded of him, that in the midst of a perverse and stiff- necked generation he found grace in the eyes of the Lord. Whatever might have been his plans for the future, they were at once laid aside that he might engage in the work of the Lord. Fifty years have passed away since he was warned of God, and yet the appointed time is far distant ; all things are very much in the same state as when he commenced his work ; the sun shines brightly, and there is no appearance of a flood as yet. Noah looks forth, and sees his wicked neigh- bours building houses, planting vineyards and becoming richer and richer every day, while he is becoming poorer and poorer as the work progresses ; yet his faith remains as firm as ever. Time passes on, and now the appointed day is close at hand, no black and threatening clouds are hovering near, and why? God knew that even the wicked would believe in the coming flood if they saw the heavens black with clouds, but He does not value such faith as this ; we will believe any person if he tell a probable story, part of which we know from other sources to be true; but when God speaks -e must believe, not because what He has foretold is prooable, possible, or likely to happen, but simply because He has said it, though it seem impossible. Let us draw near and view this mighty work, this proof of heaven-born faith ; one hundred and twenty years was this ark in building, and we may well suppose Noah was poor when it was finished. What if it should prove of no service ^ What if, after all, there should be no flood ? So the wicked *5> world around him hinted, so they hoped but such a thought never entered Noah's mind ; he was strong in faith, he stag- gered not through unbelief. " Hath God said, and shall He not do it ; hath He spoken, and shall He not bring it to pass ; " and also, "the strength of Israel will not lie, nor repent; for He is not a man that He should repent." " By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an arlc to the saving of his house." We see here the motive which prompted Noah to build the ark — it was fear ; fear, lest he and his family should all be overwhelmed in the waters of the flood, and this fear kept him to the work till it was accomplished. But how came Noah to build an ark as the means of escape from the dangers of the flood ? Would it not have been a safer and less expensive way to climb up into some high moun- tain ? So worldly men might think. But God had com- manded Noah : " Make thee an ark," and Noah believed that God knew what it was safest and best for him to do. God had promised safely to Noah and to his family if they entered into the ark, but they had no promise from Him if they sought safety in any other way. To carnal men the ark might seem frail, ill-put together, and not at all likely to endure the rough waves which were soon to lift it from the earth. But Noah knew that there was safety in the ark, for the promise of God rested upon it ; therefore he did not hesitate to enter it with his wife and his sons and his sons' wives. Noah by his conduct condemned the world. There was a time perhaps when he like his neighbours was engaged in worldly pursuits, adding house to house and field to field, but when the warning came, Noah did not neglect it; he heard the command, " Make thee an ark," and immediately he commenced the work, and by so doing he condemned the world, for they had seen him like themselves engaged in the things of time, and could not help observing this sudden alteration in his conduct ; they knew him to be a man of 30 p ' LitJ sound sense, and prudent, and we may be sure they inquired from him the reason of his conduct, and he no doubt in- formed them of the warning he had received, and stated to them his belief, that the flood would surely come at the appointed time. No one could doubt Noah's sincerity or his belief in the coming flood who observed him week after week, month after month, and year after year, toiling to build an unwieldy vessel on dry land which could be of no ser- vice to him for any purpose but one. By such conduct he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. Of Abraham it is written, " that he believed God, and it was counted unto Him for righteousness." Abra- ham was not saved, because he was righteous in himself, or on account of his good works, but simply because he be- lieved in a coming Saviour, as we are now saved by believ- ing in a Saviour Who has already come. The Scripture informs us that " the just shall live by faith," that is, by believing in the atonement made for their sins by Jesus Christ, by believing that He fulfilled the law for them ; this faith works by love, purifies the heart, and overcomes the world. Brethren, we have been considering the conduct of Noah in one of the most trying seasons of his life; we have seen how wisely he acted on that occasion, and how rich a reward his faith reaped ; shall we then go away and forget it all .-* Let us rather apply it to our own case, for we also, as Noah was, have been " warned of God of things not seen as yet ; " we have been warned that *' The day c f the Lord will come as a thief in the night ; in the which the heavens shall pass !iway with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat ; the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burnt up." We have been warned " to prepare to meet our God ; " we have been warned of an unseen hell, and of our danger of falling into it. But, my brethren, who amongst us has believed the Vi^arning ? Who has been induced to for- sake his sins } Professing to believe the Bible to be the word of God, we are unmoved at its warnings ; we heed not its m threats ; they pass by us as the idle wind, which we. reheard not ; they are listened to to-day and foigotten to-morrow. Brethren, could we convince you that to morrow you would be seized, dragged from the bosom of your family, shut up in some dark and loathsome prison and tormented in the most cruel manner, would not fear and trembling take hold upon you ? Could you go home from this service as the most of you will laughing and talking as if nothing was the matter. No, my brethren, you could not ; it is not in man to believe pain so near and be unconcerned. Now, when God speaks in a voice of thunder, when He says, "the wicked shall be turned into hell and all the people that forget God," we look to see the countenance of man turn pale ; we expect to hear him immediately inquire^ " what must I do to be saved ? " but when we see him sitting before us unmoved, when we meet him again as worldly as ever, as fond of pleasure, as ambitious, what are we to think .' does he believe the word of God ? No, my brethren, he does not ; he is an unbeliever. Who has not heard of and who has not admired the courage and constancy of those great and good men who in every age of the Church have been ready to lay down their lives rather than deny the faith.? But why do we admire their courage ? They did but brave the puny power of man who can only kill the body ; they did but suffer the excruciating pain of fire for a few hours ; while you, my brethren, are not afraid to brave the anger of the Almighty. The worm that never dies, and the fire that is never quenched, have no power to drive you from your sins. Man speaks, he threatens, and the bravest of his fellow men are awed by the terror of his countenance ; they yield and obey, God speaks, He threatens, but there are none so poor as to do Him reverence, thernost cowardly of the sons of men bear themselves boldly towards the King of Kings ; proudly they enquire, ** who is the Almighty that we should fear Him ? " Brethren, these things ought not so to be ; shall we fear man whose breath is in his nostrils, and shall we not fear Him who 33 I I ( made Heaven and Earth ? Noah did not act thus ; when the warning came, " moved with fear he prepared an ark." Let us fro and do likewise, or rather, let us enter into that ark which God in His mercy has already provided for the safety of His believing people. " Noah prepared an ark to the saving of his house," and» can we, my friends, as Christians, do less? Can we rest content with knowing that we ourselves are safe while many of our friends have not entered into the ark, have not be- lieved on Christ ? Surely not. Let us labour and strive then that all may enter in ; the ark is large, there is room for all, father and mother, brother and sister, parent and child ; I would entreat you all to enter. Noah by building and entering into the ark condemned the world, and the world is still condemned ; all who are not in the ark are condemned, when they see one of their num- ber who once sought pleasure, or wealth, or fame as the chief god turn to God with all his heart, and enter into the ark. Have we not seen the worldly man whose heart was once set on gold become liberal to the poor } have we not seen him building churches and sending forth missionaries to preach the Gospel ? Have we not seen a woman such as the Apostle describes, " she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth," never absent from the theatre, and the ball room, a selfish creature, having no object in life but her own amusement ; have we not seen such an one marvellously changed ? Forsaking her old companions, casting aside her novels, forsaking the theatre to visit the humble dwellings of the poor, deserting the ball-room to sit beside the couch of the dying ; do not such persons by their conduct condemn the selfish world around them ? Do they not proclaim aloud by their actions their belief in a future state ? Before the flood came the ark was open to all, and they were invited to enter; we may suppose that many had resolved to do so. Perhaps they came to the door ; perhaps they even entered in and remained for a day or two, but seeing no rain descending, no appearance of a flood, their 33 faith began to waver at this critical moment ; perhaps some worldly friend passed by and enticed them from the ark ; perhaps they went out for a few hours to bid adieu to their friends, or to secure some money or jewels, which in their hurry they had forgotten ; then it was that the flood came when they least expected it, and all who were not found in the ark perished. Brethren, what a warning to us! Our ark is built, the door is open, and whosoever will may enter in now ; high and low, rich and poor, proud and humble. But all who enter in must be changed. As it was in Noah's ark, so it must be under the Gospel ; the lion must lie down with the kid, the high must be brought low, the rich must become poor in spirit, the sinner a saint, the proud humble. Remember, you can never enter the ark unless you are changed ; you must not be almost but altogether a Christian ; it is not enough to come to the door of the ark ; you must enter in, and abide there. Though worldly friends entreat thee, though mammon entice thee, consent thou not ; no, not for one moment, to quit the ark as you value your immortal souls. But in conclusion, brethren, there is one point which we would earnestly seek to impress upon you — we have already said that the door of the ark is open now, but how long it may remain so is more than we can say ; to one, and to all, it is open now. Behold, now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation. Oh, haste, haste, and enter into the ark ere yet He sware in His wrath that you shall not enter in ; we speak not of weeks, or days, or of hours, but of the present moment. Resolve, now to renounce the devil, the world, and the flesh ; resolve now to give yourself up to God, to be wholly His, in body, soul, and spirit, studying to do His holy will and pleasure all the days of your life. Remember, the flood, that is death, is near. Some of you may never hear another sermon. Oh, let me entreat you to enter into the ark, to believe on Christ ; there all will be well, all will be safe. 3 ?f ' 1* li f ! f OUR LORD'S LAST COMMAND TO HIS CHURCH. St Luke, 22nd Chap., part of i()th Verse. " This do in remembrance of Me." This is the command of our Saviour Christ ; and as you w?ll observe, it ht.s reference to something which has gone before. He had just instituted the Sacra- ment of the Lord's Supper ; in the beginning of the 19th verse we read : " And He took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, this is My body which is given for you ; this do in remembrance of Me. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, this cup is the New Testament in My blood, which is shed for you." The meaning then of the commandment is that we should meet together at certain seasons to par- take of this heavenly feast, to commemorate the exceeding great love of our Masier and only Saviour Jesus Christ thus dying for us, and the innumerable benefits which by His precious blood-shedding He hath obtained to us, and as often as we look on that bread broken it should carry us in thought to Calvary ; we should see with the eye of faith the Saviour's bleeding and mangled body on the Cross, and, reflecting that we were the cause of His death, that it was our sins which crucified Him, we should be humbled in the dust, and whil» bewailing our own sinfulness we should lift up our hearts to God, "Who has so loved us as to give His only begotten Son, that whosoever beiieveth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." And when we see the wine poured forth it should remind us of the Garden of Gethsemane, and of the great drops of blood which issued from the pores of His blessed body ; it should remind us of His hands and feet pierced when He was nailed to the Cross ; of the soldier's spear which pierced 35 His blessed side, and forthwith came there out blcod and water. How JHst, and yet how merciful is God ! He said to Adam, " in the day thou eatest thereof thott shalt surely die," and to each of us he says, " The soul that sinneth, it shall die'' Now when Adam had sinned by eating the forbidden fruit, and when we had all sinned^ and come short of the glory of God, then, to all human appearance, there was no hope for us, nothing remained but a certain fearful looking for a day of judgment, and fiery indignation which would consume us ; then it was that the Son of God came to the rescue. " He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor ; therefore His own arm • brought salvation unto Him, and His. righteousness it sus- tained Him." God gave the sinner no hope of pardon until the Son had agreed to take man's nature ands in upon Him, to suffer for us upon the Cross, to fulfil the laiv which we had broken. « Now, therefore, God can be just and yet the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus. Now the Kingdom of Heaven is open to all believers ; the sins of all that believe are imputed to Christ, and His righteousness is imputed to them ; this is the marriage garment required by God in Holy Scripture. But all who are out of Christ are in a state of condemnation ; he that believeth not shall be condemned. They are under the curse. God has opened a way of escape for them, He com- mands them to believe on Him Who justifieth the ungodly ; if they refuse to do so they must bear the consequences. If God had pardoned the sinner without punishing Christ, we might think that sin was not hateful to Him, but now we see that, though He pardons the believing sinner, it is because Christ has suffered in his stead. See here the wonderful love of God ; He spared not His own Son, but freely gave Him up for us all, and if when meditating on this solemn truth we are duly affected by it, if the wonderful love of God to us produce in us a like love to Him, Christ will not have died in vain, if it has the effect oT slaying tlui enmity which is in our 36 hearts to His commandments, of reconciling us and bringing us near to God. " This do in remembrance of me." Thus the Lord com- mands, and if any enquire why should we remember the Saviour, we might content ourselves with asking what is the meaning of the word Saviour. Does it not signify a deliverer^ one who rescues from danger .'' Is it not natural to love such an one ? Ought not our love to him to increase in proportion to the greatness or the deliverance he has wrought? If he has delivered us from a slight danger, a little love may satisfy him ; if from a great danger he may justly claim a larger amount of love. If the deliverer has exposed his person to great danger and suffering on our lay aside His sceptre and His crozvn, to stoop, to become a man, and wL^n He appeared in this lower world He wore no crown of goid, He abode not in the mansions of the greats an outcast and a wanderer He had not where to lay His head ; He came to Y{\«,own and His own received Him not ; the world was made by Hiqi, yet the world knew Him not ; He was tempted. He was slandered. He was persecuted. He was scourged. He was spit upon. He was mocked. He was crowned with thorns, and last of all He suffered an ignomini- ous death upon the Cross. Jesus knew full well what it would cost Him to be able to save the souls of believers, yet none of these things moved Him, neither counted He His life dear unto Himself when He saw our danger. Oh brethren, let our love to Him be in proportion to what He has suffered for us. " This do in remembrance of Me." Here is a command, but to whom is it addressed ? To you, my friends, and to me, and to all who name the name of Christ. He offered Himself a sacrifice for the sins of the ivhole world. He opened the Kingdom of Heaven to all believers ; all are invited to believe on Him, divxd to enter; to all who have ever heard the Gospel the command is addressed, " This uo in remembrance of Me." Brethren, let us go forth into the world professing Christy we must not be ashamed of Him or His cause; we should speak for His honour and glory in His Cross. Profession now is peculiarly demanded from us as communicants, and whilst in these days real religion is branded with every evil name that an ungodly world who knows not the truth can 38 invent, we must heartily welcome these reproaches^ and walk so as to deserve them, not silent, hiding our heads, sealing up our lips, and leaving the world to their own ways, but by an open declaration at every proper season, bearing testi- mony against them, that their works are evil, boldly rebuk- ing vice by word as well as practice, having ** no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness," but separating our- selves from all intimate society with every brother that walketh disorderly, whose conversation agrees not with the simplicity of the Gospel. This will make us singular, it is true ; we shall be unlike the world and displease the worldj but wherefore do we meet at Christ's table but to make our solemn declaration to Him, that " we are not of the world, even as He is not of the world." And how shall we dare be so unfaithful as to "go forth and mix familiarly and be bosom friends with those who are " enemies of the Cross of Christ* who glory in their shame, and who mind eirthly things." '•Take up thy Cross and follow Christ" is, as you all know, the Christian's sacramental watchword. But how unfaithfully have many of us hitherto performed it. How utterl}' are we strangers this day to any reproach or shame for Christ's sake. Where is our cross that we have borne in the world ? Alas ! we go from the Lord's table, and return again to the world just as before, lost in its cares, lis pleasures and vanities, and how then should the world have any quarrel with us ? " We are of the world, and therefore the world loves its own." We never by oui' professions disturb the slumbers or security of the unawakened souls around us ; the form of a ceremonious duty will reprove nobody. But be iincere, and then you cannot escape. Go into the world, speak as a Christian, /rr/?jj your views, live for Christ, and then the world and you will have no longer fellowship ; for^ if you are then chosen out of the ivorld, the world cannot but Juxte you Let this, brethren, comfort you, who bear forth Christ's name in the ivorld, as well as at His table ; the Cross is an honourable badge ; to be reproached for righteousness* sakr is happiness. The remembrance of our surrender to 39 Christ will make us count all things light and easy, and suffering as Christians we need not be ashamed. "We know in Whom we have believed." We know under Whose banner we have taken the Sacrament to fight, and God forbid we should quit our colours for shame, reproach, evil report, dis- honour or reviling, yea, though we were called for His sake to prison or to death. We must practice as we profess, going forth to give up our bodies, souls and spirits to Christ, and to walk worthy the high vocation wherewith we are called ; we should carry away with us, impressed upon our hearts, the vows we have made, that so, whenever sin would tempt us, we may have this answer to make, " How shall I do this wicked thing and sin against God," seeing I have but lately so solemnly given up myself to Him ? The eyes of the world will be upon us, and they are piercing and quick ; if they see our con- versation to be nothing different from their own, they will say, "What do ye more than others? " and what advantage will this give to the adversaries of the Lord to blaspheme ! *' These, they say, are your communicants ; here they are all devotion, but go home with them from church and you see them SiS passionate and proud, as covetous and worldly, as vain and trifling, zs false and deceitful di^ any of their neighbours." And if this be the case with any of us, brethren, what a curse will it bring upon us ! What a disgrace will it be to our profession ! And how will religion be wounded, even in the house of its friends, by our unbecoming conversation ! May not the adversaries of the Lord then be hardened in their sins, and confirmed in their prejudices, whilst they see under the outward cloak of profession that rank hypocrisy lurks within, and, saving outward appearance, that we are neither more humble, more holy, more mortified, more heavenly^ minded than themselves. But, if we would not have this heavy guilt lying upon our souls, then we must labour to adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things by such unblamable conduct that they who seek occasion against us may be disappointed, and find I isil! 40 noeviL thing justly to say of us ; our lives should be as the light of the morning, which shineth more and man unto the perfect day, and our works such as may glorify our Father in Heaven. iii FROM EGYPT TO CANAAN. Number St loth Chap., 29th Verse. . "And Moses said unto Hobab, the son of Raguel, tlie Midianite, Moses' father-in-law, We are journeying unto the place of which the Lord said, I will give it you: come thou with us, and we will do thee good: for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel. And he said unto Him, I will not go; but I will depart to mine own land, and to my kindred." THE portion of Scripture which we have just read to you forms part of a conversat.iomi which passed between Moses, leader of the Jews, and Hobab, his brother- in-law, the son of Reuel, or Raguel, or Jethro, for he was some- times known by each of these names. Tlie apostle Paul in- forms us that, "Whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning; that we, through patience and comfort of the Scripture, might have hope.'' Now, this which is true of all Scripture is (if I may be allowed the expression) more evidently true of that particular part which is now un- der our consideration. The bondage of the children of Israel in Egypt was typical of that bondage which every believer has at some time or other experienced; and you may have re- marked' that, when God rescued the children of Israel from that bondage, He did not at once lead them by the shortest way to the promised land; no, they were permitted for a time to wander in the wilderness, that God might prove them, and know what was in their heart; but when at length He brought them to the borders of Canaan and commanded them to enter, and they entered not in becai.se of unbelief, " God sware in His wrath that they should not enter into His rest,'* and with two exceptions the carcases of that vast multitude fell in the wilderness. So when the sinner by the mighty power of God is rescued from the bondage of sin and Satan, he is not at once caught up into Paradise, but he is led into the wilderness of the world, there to be tempted of the devil, that his faith may be proved; there, sustained by the grace 42 11 I,: r 'I i 1 ,.'' of God, he must triumph over principalities and powers; he must crucify the flesh with its affections and lusts; he must meet in battle and overcome the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life; but let him be assured of this, that as soon as he can say with the apostle, "I have fought a good fight," his orown of glory shall be ready for him; as soon as he is prepared for heaven he will be taken up thither, he will not be detained in the wilderness of this world one moment longer than is necessary for his good. Most wonder- ful was the way in which God provided for His people in the wilderness forty years: "He gave them bread from heaven ta eat;" day by day He sent to them that they might learn to trust in Him. And from whence does the believer draw the spiritual food which sustains his sinking soul ? does it not, like the manna of the Israelite, descend from heaven daily in answer to prayer? Hear the words of our Lord: "Verily, verily I say unto you, he that believeth on Me hath everlasting life. I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead; this is that bread which cometh down from heaven that a man may eat thereof and not die." In considering the words of our text, we shall! proceed in the first place to speak of Moses' declaration ; secondly, of his invitation ; thirdly, of the manner in which it was received. First, Moses' declaration, which is contained in the^e words : "We are journeying unto the place of which the Lord said, I will give it you." This seems to have reference to a promise made unto Abraham nearly 400 years before, which you will find in the 13th Chapter of Genesis: "And the Lord said unto Abraham : lift up now thine eyes and look from the place where thou art, northward and southward, and eastward and west- ward ; for all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed forever." There was a precious promise, but one which required an uncommon degree of faith to embrace it; for Abraham was now growing old, atid as yet he had no son; and the promised land was in the posessiom of fierce and warlike nations, men of gigantic stature; and when Isaac was born he did not at once inherit the land, neither yet his son Jacob afcer him, but as strangers and pilgrims they were permitted to wander up and down in it, until at last Jacob and 43 his family were compelled by a famine to pass down into Egypt, where he died, and his descendants were reduced to slavery; which state of things we find from the 15th Chapter of Genesis God had revealed to their forefather: "And he said unto Abraham, know of a surety that thy seed shall be .a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years ; and also that nation whom they shall serve will I judge; and afterwards shall they come out with great substance." "We are journeying unLu the place of which the Lord said, I will give it you." Observe, brethren, the holy confidence of Moses; there is no doubt expressed, not a shadow of unbelief; one would think that Moses and the children of Israel were going to take possession of some fruitful land which was not inhabited; but was this the case? No, the land was thickly peopled; the sons of the giants dwelt there; but did Moses know this ? Most certainly he did, and it is this which makes his faith so remarkable; the promise of God standeth sure. He had said I will give it you, and Moses believed God, and marched forward, knowing that God would fight for Israel. We come now in the second place to consider the invita- tion : "Come thou with us, and we will do thee good ; for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel." This inviitation was given by Moses to Hobab, his brother-in-law, and was no doubt extended to all his wife's kindred. Convincing that they would soon be in possession of a land flowing with milk and honey, he was desirous that all whom he loved should share in their good fortune. This little circumstance places the char- acter of Moses in a very pleasing light; it shows a freedom from selfishness which we seldom find; he must have known that the more he invited to come with therr the smaller would be his portion in the promised land, but he was willing not cnlv to divide the countrv with them, but also to allow them a voice in the government A Jsrael, Let us consider the circumstances of these two persons. Hobab we may suppose was rich in flocks and herds, com- fortably settled down on some fertile spot in the wilderness. Moses on the other hand was leading the children of Israel through a barren wilderness with which he was very little 44 I « it |i t"' ' i\ u ! I ' j acquainted, a land in which there was neither meat nor drink to sustain them; he was leading them against a powerful people; to all appearance there was nothing before them but danjjers and hardships. Things being in this state, he invites his friend and relation, Hobab, to forsake his native land and kindred, and to cast in his lot among them: "Come thou with us and we will do thee good ; for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel." But did Hobab stand in nieed of anything ? Not in a worldly point of view ; the chief benefit he would receive would be in spiritual things; by accepting Moses' invitation he would be able to attend the daily service of the tabernacle; he would learn many things of the wor- ship of the true God of which he was at present ignorant. But you will observe that all Moses' promises were conditional ; they depended for their fulfilment on a promise which God had given: "The Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel." Worldly men would say this was to give up a certainty for an uncertainty; Moses, however, did not look upon it in that light; such confidence had he in the Lord's promise that he spoke already as if he was in possession — such is the nature of true faith. We come now to consider the manner in which the invita- tion was received. Hobab's own words are these: "I will not go; but I will depart to my own land and to my kindred." What were his reasons for coming to this determination we shall now attempt to discover. And first there appears a want of faith; when he looked on the trials and dangers through which the people had to pass his heart failed him; bethought they would never reach the promised land, much less enter on possession; again, his affection, his love was engaged for his native land and kindred; he was contented and happy in the wilderness; he had no desire after a better country ; not being able sufficiently to appreciate the spiritual privileges and blessings which were now ouered to him he refused to go ; that he afterwards repented of his decision is certain, for we read of his descendants living in the land of Canaan. Let us now briefly apply what has been said. We find the children of Israel in Egypt in a state of bond- age, groaning under the oppression of their taskmasters, en- 45 slaved both in body and mind, compelled to work day after day in the brick kiln, their only reward a miserable pittance, scarcely sufficient to keep soul and body together. What a striking picture have we here of the sinner, of man by nature; in bondage to Satan, a more cruel master even than Pharaoh, compelled to toil in the most loathsome, the most revolting employments. Like the prodigal — but as the father of the prodigal viewed him afar off, and pitied his miserable condition, so the God of Israel was not unmindful of His people, and spoke to Moses saying : '' I have seen the affliction of my people which is in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and am come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send thee unto Egypt." Ye know, brethren, what mighty signs and wonders God wrought in that land before Pharaoh would let the people go ; and such of you as have come out of the spiritual Egypt, who have been delivered from the bondage of sin, can testify that deliverance was not brought by man, the Arm of the Lord was revealed, was made bare ; ye were led forth by a greater than Moses, even the Lord Jesus Christ. As the child- ren of Israel passed through the Red Sea, so have ye through the waters of baptism; and like as they were not suffered at once to enter into the promised land, but were compelled to wander up and down in the wilderness forty years, that God might prove them and know what was in their heart, so ye in the wilderness of this world are constrained for a time to dwell. See to it, brethren, that your hearts do not turn back again into Egypt. Say not with the Israelites of old: "Who shall give us flesh to eat ?" "We are journeying unto the place of which the Lord said, I will give it you.'' It was this which supported Moses under all his difficulties and trials; he knew that the wilderness was infested with fiery serpents and scorpions, and he knew that it was a barren wilderness through which they had to pass ; but, when the food failed and the water proved bitter, he murmured not ; nay, the very things which afforded arguments to some for their return into Egypt did spur him forward to that good and pleasant land which was filled with all manner of store. w I 8 .'; 'i ii 46 And, my brethren, we would do well to imitate his example; when things do not prosper with us as we could wish, let us turn our thoughts to the golden fruit which is now ripening for us on the trees of Paradise; let us think of that stream which proceedeth out of the throne of God clear as crystal: "Whoso drinketh of this water shall never thirst again." Like Moses we can say: "We are journeying unto the place of which the Lord hath said, I will give it you." Let others who have never heard of, or who have never had a glimpse of this heavenly land, be content still to abide in Egypt. We, in the name of the Lord of hosts, and under the great captain of our salvation, bidding defiance to all opposers, will go forward ; and we would aay, not to our own friends and relations only, but to all: "'Come with us and we will do thee good, for the Lord hath spoken good concern- ing Israel." And, my Christian brethren, are we not too often verily guilty in this matter? Having a good hope that we are walk- ing the straight road that leads to heaven, we can with cold indifference watch our brother as he strays down the broad way that leads to destruction. We do sometimes meet with those who are hurrying back into Egypt, with those who have determined to walk no more with Jesus. How do we treat them ? Do we shun them ? Do we pass them by with cold indiflference ? or do we draw near in a friendly manner and inquire the reason of their conduct ? Do we entreat them to be reconciled to God ? to turn their faces Zionward once more? Do we endeavour as much as m us lies "to lift up the hands that hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees ? " Brethren, if you saw a blind man who had lost his guide straying on the edge of some lofty precipice beneath which the sea foamed and raged, what would you do ? Would you rush forward at once to save? or would you ask with Cain : "Am I my brother's keeper?'' I know that you would hasten to the rescue, prompted by your natural kindness of heart and the miserable state of the blind man. Now, this is but a faimit image of the state of the sinner; he is walking over a lake of fire with nothing between him and the burning fluid but a thin scum or crust which bends and cracks with his 47 weight as he passes on; it is becoming- thinner and thinner every moment; soon, soon, he must sink and be lost forever; yet all unconscious of his danger he moves gaily on. Surely he his blind or mad. Will no one stretch forth a pitying hand to save ? Is there no man to care for his soul ? Alas, brethren, this is the case with too many; the eye of sense will not help us here ; the sinner does not appear to be blind, neither can we see the precipice on which he stands with our bodily eyes; he is often rich and happy in the present world, and it is only with the eye of faith that we can foresee his awful state in the next. We know that he has sinned, "fcra'l have sinned." We know also tliat God hath said: "The soul that sinneth it shall die." True, there is one way of escape, therefore we ask, has he believed on the Lord Jesus Christ ? Has he repented of sin ? If not he is on the brink of the awful precipice, and Hell yawns beneath ready to receive him ; haste, haste, to the rescue all ye who see his danger; cease not day and night to warn and to entreat with tears, "Come thou with us and we will do thee good, for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel.'' And if, like Hobab, he an. we- you and say: "I will not go, but I will depart to mine own land, and to my kind- red;'' oh, leave him not until you have reminded him of these solemn words of our Lord: "He that loveth father or 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 Me is not worthy of Me." The spirit may bless this your last efifort; may wean him from the love of earthly things, and cause him like Hobab to repent of his rash determination; and should he leave this earthly scene before you, when you are called to pass through the swellings of Jordan, and to enter the heavenly Canaan, you may find him on the bank ready to receive you, to wel- come you to those happy abodes, "to rise up and call you blessed." "Was not this a brand plucked from the liurning?" 1 Ifc * « THE HOUSE OF MOURNING VERSUS THE HOUSE OF FEASTING. Ecclesiastcs, Chapter y, Verse 2. '' It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting; for that is the end of all men ; and the living will lay it to his heart." MANY of the maxims contained in the book of Eccle- siastcs will not be approved of by worldly men, but let them be attentively perused, for they are not the doctrines of a retired student, but of one who had enjoyed all the pleasures of life. The sovereign of a powerful people, one of the richest and icisest of kings, Solomon set himself to seek after happiness ; he tried all things, and in conclusion he found that vanity and vexation of spirit was the total amount. Iiv the portion of Scripture which we have chosen for our text, Solomon assures us that it is more profitable for us to visit the house of mourning than the house of feasting; he no doubt had frequently been present, and had well observed the eflfect wTought by each on his own mind, so that, were we to consider these words as nothing more than the experience of a zvise and learned man, they ought to have great weight with us, but when we reflect that Solomon was under the inspira- tion of the Holy Ghost when he wrote, our mouths are stopped, we dare not gainsay or resist them. You will observe that Solomon is iiot now treating of man as a being sent into this world to eat and drink, and then cease to exist, but as an immortal being, placed here for a short time, in a state of trial or probation, and soon to be removed into another world of happiness or misery, according to the part he acts here. Keep this in mind and observe how the expression is made use of by the wise nian; he does not say it is more agree- able to go to the house of mourning than to the house of feasting, but it is better. Viewing man as an immortal creature destined for eternal happiness or misery, and possessing a, vivid remembrance of the impressions made on his own mind by his 49 attendance at these places, he gives the preference to the former; it is as though he had said: "it is better to mortify ycur members which are upon the earth, to take up your cross and follow Christ, to live soberly, righteously and godly in this present world, and in the end obtain everlasting life, than to live wantonly in rioting and drunkenness, in chamb- ering and zvantonness, and after a few short years spent in. such unsatisfying pleasures, be compelled to stand before the awful bar of God, to be judged according to the deeds done in the body, and be cast out into outer darkness where there is weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth." That we may the better understand our text, we shall now endeavour to describe the house of mourning and the house of feasting. Come, then, with me to the house of mourning. Death has entered, and we stand as it were in his presence chamber ; who will not fear and quake before him ? In the pale and stif- fened coqjse we see the end of all flesh. Here we find the in- fant, and the hoary head, the school boy and tiie full grown man, the sober and the drunkard, the high and low, the rich and poor, the ivise and foolish, the beautiful and the deformed; all, all, proclaim the solemn and affecting truth, that " flesh is as grass, and the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field; the grass zvithereth, the flower fadcfh, because the spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it; surely the people is grass." All in their turn come here, for this is the house appointed for oil living; who can enter and not feel the vanity of all earthly pursuits ? Who can enter and not reflect that it is a solemn thing to die? Who can enter and not feel the truth of that saying of the wise man: "By the sadness of the counten- ance the heart is made better." When in the house of mourning you look upon the young cut oflf by death, reflect that you are never too young to die. Have you the care of children, be careful to prepare them for their heavenly inheritance; "in the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand." "When thou walkest by the way, and when thou sittest in the house," let it be your constant study to bring them up in the nature and admonition of the Lord;" then, if God sees good to take them to himself 4 !| 1 . K^ 50 in early youth, you will not mourn as those who have no hope, but your eyes and thoughts will be turned heavenward, you will forget those things that are behind and press forward, and, when the hour of your depairture is at hand, the dear ones who have gone before will extend their longing arms, and welcome you to the mansions of bliss. When in the house of mourning you see the full grown man stretched out before you, reflect that sooner or later death must conquer all, that the strength of man is not his safety, that the Lord alone can deliver from this cruel enemy, so that it may be truly said: "Let him that glorieth glory in the Lord." Alas, how many when they see the young cut off by death strive to account for it in some way lest it should be thought a warning to themselves; perchance they will tell you it was an accident. What then ? Are you free from accidents, young man? No, but I hope to escape ; and did not he, the victim that lies prostrate before you, did he not hope also ? Assuredly he did, and could those pale lips speak they would tell you that he also, like you, was putting the evil day afar oflf; he knew that every sin he committed needed repent- ance, and he had determined to repent; but when ? he forgot that the Scripture says : "To-day if ye will hear His voice harden not your hearts." To-morrow was the day he had set apart for repentance, to-morrow he had determined to begin to walk with God. But where is to-morrow? is it not in the womb of the future? And what is to-morrow? is it not a beacon on the furthest battlements of hell, and do not the fiery waves of the burning lake roll between us and it ? Go thy way, young man, but forget not that to-day is the wise man's portion ; "son, go work to-day in My vineyard." When you see the old laid out before you cold in death, endeavour to learn a profitable lesson from their ashes; reflect on his life; if it has been well spent, wh|at a glorious reward he is now enjoying; he sought first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all other things have been added unto him. He preferred eternity to tinie; strong in faith he looked not at the things which are seen, which are temporal, but at the things which aire not seen, which are eternal; re- membering that this was not his rest, he ]onrncycd through life SI as through a pilgrimage, finding it impossible to serve two masters; he was willing to die unto the world that he might live to Christ, and he, being dead, yet speaketh and saith to thee: "Go thou and do likewise." When you look on the ashes ol the old and wicked in the house of mourning, reflect that men for the most part end as they begin; if they indulge in sin when they are young, com- monly they cease not from it when they are old. Let not the young then put ofif their repentance to some future period, which may never arrive; let them not think that their hin- drances will be fczver and their helps greater, but rather let them fear lest their hearts should be hardened through the deccitftdness of sin. When in the house of mourning you stand by the lifeless body of the drunkard, reflect on the deceitfulness of that sin, how many mighty, how many learned, how many kind heart- ed men have been led captive by Satan at his will by means of strong drink ; reflect that they were all at one time moderate drinkers. Art thou stronger than Noah ? Art thou better than he ? Then be wise, and say not I will drink and it shall not hurt me, but flee thou temptation, and that shall be thy wisdom. Are the ashes of the great before you in the house of mourn- ing, read in them the vanity of all earthly things, the impotence of man in the day of the Lord's anger ; how are the mighty fallen ! Can riches deliver ? Can powerftd friends rescue us from death t "What then shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul, or what shall a man give in exchange for his soulF" Man cannot redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him. Lastly, when you stand before the ashes of the lovely, re- flect that beauty too is vain, it cannot profit; death is blind to beauty, deaf to the voice of music; he turns not aside to the right hand or to the left; in vain do weeping children implore for a dying parent; stern and cruel to the last, death mocks at the miseries of man. But turn with me, and let us enter the house of feasting; here we find not only the young and thoughtless, but the old also, having no object in life but pleasure, and striving to spend the time as pleasantly as they can. Afraid to look . ^ i I m II I ,1 52 back on the past with all its crimes, afraid to be alone with conscience, they rush into scenes of pleasure. They take no note of time, to them it seemed to move too slowly. Oh could they but see some stationary object, they could judge better of the rapid flow of the stream on which they are embarkel ; did they but know the perils of the voyage, it would be their wisdom to provide all things fitting for their journey, and above all a pilot 'veil acquainted with the rocks and shoals through which they have to pass. "Oh that they were wise^ that they understood this, that they would consider their lat- ter end,'' but alas they are a foolish people, they love the world and its pleasures, and they cannot bear to think of leaving it; they hope to live 20 or 30 years longer, and they are intoxicated when they think of the amount of pleasure they may enjoy during that time. " But if a man live many years, and rejoice in them all, yet let him remember the days of darkness; for they shall be many." Would that the blessing of a prosperous condition might prove favourable to devotion ; and that, when men were happy in themselves, and saw noth- ing but happiness around them, they might not fail gratefully to acknowledge that God who giveth them all things richly to enjoy. Yet such is their corruption that they are never more ready to forget their benefactor than when loaded with his benefits. The giver is concealed from their careless and inattentive view by the cloud of his ozun gifts. When their life continues to flow in one smooth current unruffled by any griefs; when they neither receive in their own circumstances, nor allow themselves to receive from the circumstances of others, any admonitions of human instability, they not only become regardless of providence, but are in great danger of despising it, glorious in their strength, and lifted up by the pride of life into supposed independence. That impious senti- ment, if not uttered by the month yet too often lurks in the heart of many during their flourishing periods: What is the Almighty that we should serve Him? And what shall we have if we pray unto Him ? If such be the tendency of the house of feasting, how necessary it is that, by some change in their situation, men should be obliged to enter into the house of mourning in order to recover a proper sense of their depend- 53 cut state ! It is there, when forsaken by the gaieties of the world and left alone with God, that we are made to perceive how awful His government is ; how easily human greatness bends before Him ; and how quickly all our designs and measures at His word vanish into nothing. Then, when the countenance is sad and the affections are softened by grief; when we sit alone, engaged in serious thought, looking down as from some eminence on those dark clouds that hang over the life of man, the arrogance of prosperity is humbled and the heart melts under the impressions of ireligion. Formerly we were taught, but now we see, we feel, how much we stand in need of an Almighty protector amirlst the changes of this vain world. In our text the house of mourning and the house of feasting are spoken of as two separate places, and such would seem to have been the case in the days of Solomon, but such is not always the case now, for men are found so devoid of shame, or fear, as to turn the house of mourning itself into a house of feasting; we allude to the barbarous practice so common amongst us of waking the dead. When a man dies his neigh- bours in the evening repair to this house, not to comfort the widow, but to devour her substance by riotous living ; not to learn wisdom from the dead; not to read the Bible in the ears of those assembled, but to talk on worldly subjects. Oh ho\y has Satan blinded your eyes ! the end of all flesh has come before you, yet you lay it not to heart. Oh foolish people, shall the dead speak and warn you of the fatal con- sequences of continuing in sin, and will you not listen to the voice, will you drink until you are drunken in the very pre- sence of death? But, perhaps, you are in bondage through fear ; oh, then, yours is a sad case; you are not prepared to meet the last enemy; yet not so sad as some who have gone unpre- pared to meet their God. Why should the living man com- plain since space is still given him to repent? Let me entreat you then, think of death, and prepare to meet it, for sooner or later it will surely come ; it will not tar'ry. "Repent, so iniquity shall not be your ruin." Come to "the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world ;" He waits to be gracious, He is exalted to have mercy. If man was doomed to eternal death, and there was no arm stretched out to save, we would 5' ) ! I In) 54 not blame him for making the most of the present life. " Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die," would be a maxim which we might approve; but when it is proclaimed from heaven : " Let the wicked forsake his way, and the imright- eous man his thottghts, let him turn to the Lord and He will have mercy upon him, and to our God, and He will abundantly pardon," how shall we escape if we continue in sin. Blessed be God, there is One Who has conquered death, and taken away his sting; and to all who believe on Him. such is the power that He not only takes away the dread of this cruel enemy, but enables us to look upon Him as a friend, sent to deliver us from the burden of the flesh. Is not death the very gate of heaven to the believer ? To him to live is Christ, and to die is gain, eternal gain. ii SEEKING FOR GOLD. Genesis, 2nd Chap., 12th Verse. " The gold of that land is good/' MOSES, the inspired penman of this portion of Holy- Writ, is endeavouring, in the chapter from which our text is taken, to give his countrymen some idea o£ the situation of the garden of Eden, that delightful abode, in which our first parents dwelt before they sinned; he enumer- ates the rivers by which it was watered, and the countries through which they flowed. Speaking of Havilah, he merely remarks in passing that it is a region in which gold abounds, and that the gold of that land is good. I hardly need mention that gold is a metal which in certain countries of the earth is found sometimes under, and sometimes on the surface; that on account of its many valuable properties, it is much sought after; indeed it has been truly said that "gold is power." for they who have it in abundance can at any moment command the services of thousands. But when I begin to speak of gold, and of the countries where it is found in abundance, your thoughts will naturally carry you to Frazer River or to California. The gold mines of this country have been discovered but a few years, and yet, the news has reached the most distant quarters of the earth. It was the interest of those who first made the discovery to keep it secret, but gradually the news leaked out. First, we had uncertain rumours, marvellous stories from that distant land; day by day they gathered strength,'the newspapers were full of them. Some who had friends in that country received letters, stating that the report was true. Last of all came the men themselves, laden with the precious metal. Thus the chain of evidence was completed, and all men were at length convinced that the gold of that land was both plentiful and good. Now, mark the effect it had on many : the servant came to his master and said. "Pay me that thou owest, for I will !.|i 56 seek this country." The farmer stopped his plough, sold his farm, bid adieu to his neighbours and depa'rted. The mer- chant, the lawyer, the doctor, each neglecting the pfospects held out to them in their native land, gathered all together and took their journey into that far country. Young men, forsaking their fathers' houses and the loved companions of their youth, went forth. But I need not enlarge, suffice it to say that the most tender ties were broken, husbands forsook their wives, parents their children, children their parents, brothers their sisters; so that, what a certain poet says concerning death might well be applied here : " Friend after friend departs. Who hath not lost a friend ? " Our Lord said in a certain place : "If a man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and zvifc, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple." Many persons think that this is requiring too much, although they know that Christ has promised an eter- nal inheritance to all on these terms. Now, it would appear that these are the very terms on which gold is to be had in Cali- fornia ; but can any number of men be found so void of reason as to accept it on these terms ? Yes, thousands and tens of thousands have gone forth, braving perils by sea and land; they knew that disease and death were in the way; they knew that hunger and thirst would waste them ; they heard the savage Indians war cry ; they saw his tomahawk bathed in blood ; the bodies of many of their companions lay unburied on the road; yet none of these things moved them, onward they went, determined to reach the golden mines, or perish in the attempt. Many did perish. The remnant, few and feeble, began at once to reap their golden harvest; but disease came, and hovered o'er them like a mist. Robbers prowled nightly round their tents, and as their gold increased, so did their danger. He was counted a happy man among them, who, having made his fortune, reached his home in safety. Many, having i^pent their all, returned to lay their bones beside their fathers' bones. These men fell into a great and fundamental error, they set their affections on earthly things; they forgot that first and great commandment, " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God, 57 with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind." Hadthey set their affect ions on things which are above, had they made all these sacrifices that they might obtain a better resurrection; then, we could not too high- ly commend them, or walk too closely in their footsteps; but as it is, it is my duty to warn you against their choice, for a man may think too much of what he shall cat, and what he shall drink, and wherewithal he shall be clothed; but while I would warn you against their choice, I would entreat you to remember how firmly, how perseveringly, how courageously they walked in that path which they thought the right one, and counseling you to seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, I would say to you, go, and imitate their firm- ness, their persez'crance, their courage. For more than a thousnad years, men of understanding and integrity have traversed the earth, in its length and breadth, preaching the Gospel of the kingdom, and informing high and low, rich and poor, that far away, in the deep bine ^^v, there is a happy land, "where the wicked cease from troubling and. the weary are at rest." Where God shall wipe away all teairs, and there shall be no mare death, neither sorrow' nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away. Brethren, I am convinced that I bring no strange tidings to your ears; you have doubtless heard all this before; as Christians you profess to believe it. Let me ask, has it brought any change in your conduct ? Are you prepared to enter this happy land ? How is it. that while thousamds and tens of thousands are rushing forward to the golden mines, so few are seeking an entrance into the kingdom of God? Let us then for a few moments consider the advantages gained and the sacrifices called for by an entrance into either of these c:>untries. Would you go to the golden mines of California ? you cannot go for nothing, you must pirovide sufficient to pay your expenses; thus the poor are excluded from the land. Would you enter the kingdom of heaven ? there is nothing to hinder you from doing so; the way is open, Christ is that way: "Ccme unto Me." He says, "all ye who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest." " The spirit and the 58 bride say come, and 'et him that heareth say come, and let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.'" Would you go to the golden mines of Califcwnia? you must be prepared to brave danger, disease and death, you cannot escape them; whichever way you turn, they will meet you. Would you seek the kingdom of God ? I know of no danger to which your person will be exposed ; you may live in the most healthy climate; you will not it is true escape death, neither will you desire to do so, for to you "to die will be gain." Death is the swift and gallant ship which the Lord will send to convey the believer to that distant country, of which alone it can be truly said, " The gold of that land is good." Would you go to the golden mines of California ? let me tell you what you are sure of: you will be sure to have expenses, you will be sure to break many tender ties, you will be sure to meet danger, disease and death; you will b ■ sure of these things, but I Ciin insure you nothing else; you may collect a little gold, you may be very suecessful, you may make your fortune, but it is «;.«;rr/flt//, your prospects of gain are wncv/YflUi, your losses, your dangers are certain. Now, would you enter the kingdom of God? there is no uncertainty here; no man ever yet set himself heartily to seek admittance and was refused. Hear the wo^rds of the Saviour : "There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake, who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting." Would you go to California? you may be very fortunate, you may accunutlate much, but how long can you hold it ? Oh, that is the question. How long? It may be a few years, a few months, a few weeks. I cannot tell, it is uncertain: I know you must soon will it to another, you have no more than a life interest in it. But you will say: What is all this to us? we never went to California, we never had any thought oi going. It may be so, and yet all that I have said may comcern you very much; you may be just as fond of gold, just as eager in pursuit of it, although you went not. Oh, if men were onlv half as anxious 59 to enter into the kingdom of Heaven as they are to lay up treasure on earth, I believe that few would miss it. But while they are diligent in business, they are twt fervent in spirit, they do not serve the Lord. Brethren, I would have you constantly remember that there is a crown of gold which fadeth not away; a mansion in bliss prepared for all those who love the Lord Jesus Christ in sin- cerity, who believe on Him, and keep His commandments. This is certain; God has said it; it rests upon the word of Him Who cannot lie. " Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, immoveable; always abounding in the work of the Lord, for as much as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord." Brethren, those among you who are seeking first the king- dom of God and his righteousness, to you I would say re- joice, for '*ye have in heaven a more enduring substance, a house not made with hands." Ye have, indeed, chosen ih^good part which shall never be taken away. Millions and millions of ages shall roll away, yet the golden crown upon your brow shall not wax dim, the many mansions in your Father's house will not decay. Oh, think of this, and press forward in your Christian course; press forward to that happy land where pleasures shall never cease, where gold shall be as dust beneath your feet, and ye shall sit on thrones of glory. It was a good report which the Queen of Sheba heard in her own land of the wisdom and glory of Solomon. It lessen- ed her attachment to home, and prompted her to undertake a long journey to visit this greater king, of whom' she had heard so much. She Tuent, and she was not disappointed. Great as the expectations were which she had formed from the revelationi made her by others, they fell short of what she saw and heard herself when she was admitted into his pre- sence. Good, likewise, is the report of the Gospel. It has a powerful efifect upon those who receive it by faith. It is abundantly sufficient to convince them of the comparative in- significancy of all that they most admire and esteem in this world. From that hour they become strangers and pilgrims upon eairth. They set out in the way which God has pre- scribed, in hopes of seeing Him who is greater than Solomon. 6o I And the report they have heard of Him is their subject, their song, their joy, while they are on their journey, and their great support under the difficulties they meet with on the road. What then will it be to see Him as He is? As yet, the one half is not told them; or at least they are not yet capable of conceiving fhe half of what they read in the Scrip- ture concerning His wisdom. His glory, His grace. "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing." We weaken rather than enlarge the sense of such a passage as this by ouir feeble comments. We must die before we can understand it. To the majority of mankind, "wait the great teacher death," is cold, is dangerous advice. If they are not taught by the gospel while they live, the teaching of death will be too late. Dreadful will be the condition of those who cannot be convinced of their mistakes till repentance and amendment will be impracticable. But death will be a great teacher, indeed, to a believer; he will then know more by a glance, and in a moment, of the happi- ness he is now expecting, than by all he could collect firom the inquiry and experience of a long course of years in this world. Then he will be assured that "the gold of that land is good," since in that heavenly country " neither rust nor moth doth corrupt, nor do thieves break through and steel;" and as he takes possession and enjoys those treasures of the Eternal City he will exclaim : " Though whilst in the fle^ h I heaird much concerning the good things which were in store for thc> faithful, still the half was not told me." Ill |;4i NOTHLNG MORE VALUABLE THAN THE SOUL. St. Matt., i6th Chap., 26th Verse. "What is a man profited, if he shall gfain the whole world, and lose his own soul ? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" IT is related of a celebrated but eccentric preacher that on one occasion, when a great crowd had gathered to hear him, he took for his text these words: "Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." Slowly and solemnly he repeated the text three times; then closed his Bible and sat down; the sermon, if I may so call it, was ended; he offered no word of comment, but dropped the pure word of God into the minds of his hearers, and left it there to work. We are not told how the congregation felt; some, no doubt, were aston- ished, some annoyed, and very many excited to anger. The preacher, however, had accomplished his object, a striking text of Scripture had been imprinted on the mind of every in- dividual present; and believe me, my friends, it is an important point to get a striking text of Scripture firmly fixed oi> the mind of a congregation, causing it to rise up before it from day to day, and from hour to hour, in the place of business, in the haunts of pleasuire, or it may be of vice, breaking iu upon us in the still hour of midnight, as we rest on our bed.« listening to the measured tick of the clock, conscious that each tick brings us one step nearer to the awful future, to that unknown country of which we think so little and know so little, but to which we are all hastening with railway speed. In the still hour of midnight, darkness surrounding us, the world shut out, the presence of God felt, oh, who can estimate the power of such a text as this breaking in upon the mind, com- ing to us as the very voice of God himself, " Except ye re- pent, ye shall all Ukewise perish," amd I can fancy the soul in these solitary miusings communing with itself thus: "To per- ish," what does that mean ? Does it mean to cease to exist ? To die as the beasts around us die? Or does it mean to be I! I' 4 62 shut out from life and light forever? To be separated from the dear ones whom we loved on earth forever. To be con- signed to some dark and solitary prison, where we shall hear no more the sweet tones of the human voice, but every sound that breaks upon the ear is harsh and discordant, as though the very fiends of hell were groaning forth an anthem to the mighty spirit of evil. Oh if this be to perish, save us, save us from that doom. And then the full text of the preacher breaks in upon the mind : "Except ye repent, ye shall all hkewise perish." " Except ye repent," then there is an exception, then there is a way of escape, a door of hope. Repentance is that door, but what is repentance? Oh that the preacher had dwelt on that point. And then to the mind well versed in Scripture memory brings back the story of the Jewish youth who left the shelter of his father's house and wan- dered into a far country to see life. He was rich, and many young men gathered round him to teach him how to spend his money. It is an old story, but we see it re-enacted every day. They had for a season what the world would call a gay time of it, but in the course of a few years his money was dissipated. And in the ordering of Providence, a mighty famine arose upon that land and he began to be in want. He may have thought of his father's house then, but pride would not allow him to return. He sank lower and lower in the social scale till he reached the very bottom. Ee became a swineherd, and his master sent him forth in the fields to feed swine ; and as day by day hunger knawed upon his vitals, he was tempted to eat of the very husks that the swine did eat, and no man gave unto him, not one of the many who had shared his bounty in that far country had the will and the pow- er to help him. His pride was broken, he could smk no lower. And then a sweet vision of his father's house, the home of his youth, broke in upon him; and he saw, or fancied tha: he saw, his aged father stretching forth his arms tc receive him. His resolution was taken: "I will airise and go to my father, and say unto him : father I have sinned against heaven, and before ihee, and I am no more worthy to be called thy son." This is repentance; knowyeaughtof this? Baptised Christians who have wandered far from your Heavenly Father's house, 63 wandered into a world of sin and pleasure, where ye have drunk deeply of its intoxicating cup, know ye aught of this, a growing dissatisfaction with the world and its pleasures, and a longing for the peaceful rest of heaven ? Has your soul be- gun to loathe the best food the world has to offer ? Has it ever come into your minds to say, '1 will arise and go to my best robe and put it on him, the royal robe of the elder bro- heavon, and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called 'thy son." This is repentance. This is the golden key that unlocks the outer gate of heaven. Do ye possess it, advance boldly; draw near in faith to the inner gate, and you shall hear the voice of your Heavenly Father saying, bring forth the best robe and put it on him; the royal robe of the elder bro- ther, the righteousness of Christ, the law fuliillelr, and clothed in that garment of purest white you shall be counted worthy to enter into the New Jerusalem, and to sit down with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven; you shall stand unabashed before the very throne of purity itself, perfect in His sigiit, in whose eyes the very heavens are not clean, and who chargeth His angels with folly. But it is time we dropped the text of the celebrated preacher and returned to oor own : "What is a man profited, if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul ? " Now we do not I'elieve that we could ever be tempted to imitate the example of the celebrated but eccentric preacher of whom we have spoken; but if we could, this is the text we should choose for the occasion; this is the text we would seek to impress on the mind of every business man in thij congregation: "What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?'' This is the text we would seeVc to write in letters large and plain on every leaf of every ledger of every man of business in this great country, and if we could induce him to promise that he would read it carefully and pirayerfuUy each morning before he commenced his work, we on our part would promise that the world would never get entire possession of his heart. This is the text of Scripture which, slightly modified, we should like to print in letters of gold on the walls of every room where sits the woman of fashion, that whichever way she turned it would meet her view: "What 64 shall a woman be profited though her whole life be one round of pleasure, if she lose her own soul ?" But why should I con- fine the text to any particular class, it is suitable for all; none (not even the most thoughtless) can read it without being seriously impressed, for it reminds us that the things wc de- sire, and pursue, and grasp are perishing, the soul we barter for them is immortal. Now it may strike some of you that the text might have been dififerently worded: "What shall a man be profited if he gain $10,000, $20,000 or $100,000 and lose his own soul ? " But inasmuch as there may be young men just entering on life, who hope by diligence and untiring industry to accumu- late larger sums than these, the Almighty meets them on the very threshold of life with this question, " What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?'' The world is a creature of time, it can only be enjoy- ed while it exists, but this is not the worst view of the case; our life is short, our time in the world is limited, and it is only for that brief space that the world if possessed can be en- joyed. Suppose that you had not to gain the world, but that it came to you as an inher'itance from your fathers. Still your enjoyment of it must be short; three score years and ten is the allotted life of man. You will observe that in the text there is mo promise made of health; the world and the world only is oflfered as the price of the soul. But oh! what is wealth, what is honour, what the possession of the whole world, without health? Do we not each one of us know some rich man so afflicted wntli disease that he would gladly part with all that he possesses if by so doing he could secure health ; gladly exchange conditions with the healthy day labourer. Wc might press this argument, for it is important, but we for- bear; we will go further than the text, we w'ill throw in health, and the text shall iread thus: "What is a man profited if he gain the whole world, possess a healthy body to enjoy it, and lose his own soul?" The possessionof the world given, and a good stock of health added, oh how rapidly would the years lun round; how swiftly would they hurry our mortal life to an end; how speedily should we reach the goal, the 70th year. But stay, who told you you would live seventy years? Wc 65 have given you the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; we have promised you health to enjoy them, but we hav€ said nothing as yet about length of days; your life is uncertain for aught you know, for aught we know this terrible sentence may at any moment ring in your ears: "This night thy soul is required of thee." Oh, who could enjoy wealth, or pleasure, or fame, who felt he was unprepared to die, and knew not at what moment the sword of divine justice would strike. We have been liberal with you in the past, we have thrown in health, because the possession of the world without it was of no use to you. We propose to be more liberal still. We will add length of days, you shall enjoy the world and health 70 years. We will suppose that one- half of that time has passed, and you are looking back upon it. How do you like your bargain now? Have you had as much enjoyment of the world as you anticipated ? Alas ! of what use is it for a man to possess all the luxuries of the world, seeing that his capacities of enjoyment are so limited? He can only eat or dn.nk a certain quantity, if he exceeds that his appetite fails, and Tor a time he loathes the very sight of f'jod. And so it is with the other pleasures oj life, his very ser- vants have in this respect as nmch enjoyment of life as he has for they have as much as Lhey can enjoy, and although he has more, he cannot enjoy it. Again, if we possessed all the kingdoms of the world, we should need extended powers of vision to enable us properly to enjoy them. Placed above the world, with an eye of suf- ficient range I can imagine the happy owner, happy for a time, spending many pleasant hours in the contemplation of its beauties, as it rolled beneath his feet. My friends, if Satan had the power, and would make us an offer thus large: "You shall possess the world and health to enjoy it for seventy years, on the understanding that at the end of that time you will come and dwell with me for- ever in the dreary mansions of the lost;" do you think that there could be found on the face of this fair earth a wretch so ut- terly hopeless and forlorn that he would accept the hard bargain ? But Satan never did make this offer to any but one of the souls of men, and he the representative man of the 5 ii!,^ li i^ if 66 race, the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan could afford to offer him all to bribe him from the path of duty, for his captivity meant the captivity of the whole race. One stain of sin on the Lamb of God, the sacrifice the Almighty had prepared for the re- demption of a lost world, and man's last ray of hope had been quenched in utter darkness. Satan, as I have said, never made the offer but to< one of the souls of men. He could not afford to do it; the world, itr. pleasure, and sins, are the facts by means oi' which he catches and draws souls to perdition. And, oh, it is sad to think how easily men are led astray from the path of duty. A little money, a little sinful pleasure, a little fame, presented at the proper time and place have effected the overthrow of thousands. The business man who in his calmer moments would reject with unutterable scorn Satan's offer of the whole world as the price of his soul, will in an unguarded hour, to se- cure a desired object, do something which will (if not re- pented of) as effectually exclude him from the kingdom of heaven as though he had formed a league with Satan. And thus it comes to pass that men and women, day by day, part with their souls for paltry considerations, for Satan knows, if we do not, that the smallest sin unrepented of secures the soul to him as effectually as though he had given worlds for its purchase. "Let us watch, then, and pray, that we enter not into temptation." 'H THE FINAL JUDGMENT. 2 Corinth., Chap. 5, Verse 10. " We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ.' ST. LUKE informs us that the Athenians and strangers which were at Athens " spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new thing.'' And are there not many professing Christians of whom this could be said with equal truth? They read their Bibles frequently, but, passing over those passages which are plain and easily understood, they dive into the mysterious in search of some- thing new; the consequence is t!»eir understanding is exer- cised, but their heart is none the better. Oh, if men would only give their attention to the plain parts of Scripture, if they would only endeavour to live up to the light which God has given them, what a different world this would be ! But it seems to be an artifice of Satan's to persuade men that all is well so long as they are reading their Bibles; but, know this, that not the hearer, o»' reader or expounder of the law is justi- fied, but the DOER, he alone is justified. Bretlnren, we bring no strange tidings to your ears this day; we preach no new doctrine, for it is as old as Enoch, the seventh from Adam, who prophesied saying: "Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousand of His saints to execute judgment upon all." Now, although there is nothing new, nothing mysterious, yet there is an awful truth contained in these words^ "We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." Happy is that man who, being fully persuaded that what God hath promised, or threatened. He will surely per- form, shall frequently meditate on that day, and prepare to meet his God, when he cometh to judgment. Happy he who is in the daily practice of sitting in judgment on his conduct and condemning himself whenever he perceives he has gone astray from God's commandments. Brethren, "if our hearts condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God." 68 Hi 1 1 III I' 11 Let us now give ourselves to the consideration of the words of the text, and may the Holy Spirit of God be with us, and bless us; may He open our understandings to under- stand this portion of Scripture;may He soften our hearts and prepare them to receive the good seed. Let us consider, first, the time of judgment; second, the Judge; third, the persons who shall be judged; fourth, the judgment seat. First, the time of judgment. That there is a set time for this we learn from St. Paul, who in his discourse before the Athenians tells us that God "hath appointed a day in the wiiich He will judge the world ;" how near or how distant that day may be is hid alike from men and angels. Now, although we know not the time when the Son of man shall come to judgment, which is a secret known only to the Most High, yet from Scripture it would appear that the coming of our Lord to judgment will be the signal for the destruction of the world. St. Paul tells us that "The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, t:ie earth also, and the works that are therein shall be burnt up." Are any surprised that the day of judgment should be so long delayed, let them remember that this will not pre- vent the faithful Christian from entering into rest; the soul of Lazarus was carried at once into Abraham's bosom — a place of happiness. Neither will it delay the punishment of the wicked ; the rich man was no sooner dead than we read " in hell he lifted up his eyes being in torment." But you will say, if this be true, if the soul as §oon as it is separated from the body goes to its appointed place, what ne d is there of a day of judgment ? Is not sentence already passed ? We must not suppose that God will be better able to pro- nounce judgment at the last day than at the present time. It is not that He waits the appearance of certain witnesses ; it is not that His knowledge will be greater then; but it hath pleased Him that those who have sinned before all should be condemned before all. It hath pleased Him that those who 69 have confessed Christ before men should, be acknowledged by Him before men and angels. Another reason why judg- ment is deferred till the end of the world is because no man can know the exact amount of harm or good he has done until that time arrives. TI en, if a man has written or distri- buted an immoral book, it shall be revealed to him how many have read it, and what evil it has done, how it has cor- rupted their morals and lead them far from God. Then, if a man has lived a wicked life, if by his example he has en- couraged others in sin, it shall be revealed to him how much evil he has done, and he shall be punished accordingly. Then the father of a family who lived a wicked life will be surprised when thousands of his posterity blame him as the author of their ruin; he neglected to bring up his children in the fear of God; they grew up to man's estate; they married and had families whom they were unable to instruct in reli- gion, and so on to the end of time, and now all this evil will be charged upon him. Then, if a man has written or distributed a good book, it will be revealed to him how many have been converted, how many refreshed, how many strengthened by it. Then if a man has lived as a Christian; if he has endeavour- ed by his example, by his words, by his actions, to lead men to a knowledge of the truth ; if he has diligently improved the talent which God has given him, it shall be revealed how his labours of love have been blessed. But, brethren, let this suffice; we will not go through all ranks and classes of men, aid sliow Iioa' they shall each be punished or rewarded for the gooJ or evil they have done after death, by their books, by their laws, by iheir paintings, by their songs, by their actions, by their words. We come, now, in the second place to speak of the Judge; the words of our text are plain and decisive on this point: "We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ." Yes, He Who once came among us in the form of a servant, Who had not where to lay his head, He Who was once brought before the judgment seat of Pilate, charged with blasphemy, who was scourged, spit upon, and at last crucified, even Him hath God exalted to be Judge of quick and dead. 7° Are any of you saying in your hearts, we will not have this Man to reign over us? Are any of you crucifying Him afresh by your sins and putting Him to an open shame? Oh, tremble, for the day is rapidly approaching whicn the Son of man shall come in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, and then He will say, where are those mine enemies which would not that I should reign over them, bring them here and slay them under My feet. But, brethren, let me hope that many of you will be re- joiced to hear that Christ will be your Judge; let me hope that many of you know Him already as the sinner's Friend, the Savi- our, the Redeemer; then that day which will be so full of ter- ror to the wicked will be a happy day for you, and while they are endeavouring to hide themselves in the clefts of the rocks, and calling upon the mountains to cover them fmom the face of Him that sitteth upon the throne, you will have nothing to fear, for in the Judge you will recognize a Friend "Whom having not seen you loved;" He shall send His angel to gather you from among the wicked; you shall be caught up into the clouds to be forever with the Lord. We proceed in the third place to speak of the persons who shall be judged; these are of two classes, angels and men. That angels shall appear at the judgment seat of Christ we learn from St. Jude, who tells us that: "The angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, He hath re- served in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judg- ment of the great day." Also from St. Peter who says: "For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to Hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment." But they will not be the only persons judged; in proof of this we need only refer you to our text, where St. Paul tells us, "We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ." None of the family of Adam shall be wanting; those who lived in, the remotest periods of antiquity shall mingle with thos**. who shall then be alive on the earth, and who shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye. Tribes of the earth most remote one from another in situation, and most dissimilar in colour, customs and habits, shall then be gathered into one 71 • vast assembly: "For we must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.'' The king shall meet once more the subjects whom he cruelly oppressed ; the lawyer, the clients whom he fleeced ; the minister, the people whom he neglected ; the rich, the poor who starved at his gate ; the father, the children whom he should have instructed ; the children, the parents whom they disobeyed: all, all, shall meet once more round the seat of judgment, and then, perhaps, part forever ; for He that sitteth upon the throne shall divide that countless multitude into two parts, sheep and goats, saints and sinners; there will then be no neutral ground to stand upon, and each of us will be compelled to join one or other of those com- panies, but which ? Shall we be permitted to join that goodly company arrayed in white robes who shall stand on the right hand of the Judge, and to whom He will say, "Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom;" or shall we be compelled to join that terror-stricken company which shall stand on the left hand, and to whom he shall say, "Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels." "I saw,'' says St. John, "the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened, and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life ; and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works, and the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them; and they were judged every man according to their work." We proceed in the fourth place to consider the judgment seat. There are different courts among men, some possessing more and some less authority ; and we fear to be brought before these, just in proportion as we know their power to be great or small. When a man has committed murder, and is brought before the earthly tribunal appointed to try such criminals, what crowded courts do we usually find! Men sit in awful suspense while witness after witness is examined, and when at last the judge has delivered his charge, and the jury have retired, how anxiously do they wait to see the end. All is silent as the grave while the foreman pronounces guilty or i I J 11 72 not guilty; if the prisoner be found guilty, the judge proceeds at once to pass sentence; he has forfeited his life, and he must die; he must soon close his eyes forever on this world. This is the greatest punishment that man can inflict; he can kill the body, but there his power ceases, he has no power to hurt the soul. Now, brethren, we would have you turn and take a view of the judgment seat of Christ; we would not have you spend all your sympathy on others to the nei^loct of yourselves; remember that you also are criminals, and that the day is rapidly approaching in which you will have to stand before the judgment seat of God; do not attempt to put me off, saying you know this ; I want you to feel it, to realise it. The fear of an earthly tribunal keeps many from crime; how much more would the judgment seat of Christ deter them from sin did they keep it constantly before their eyes. This world, my brethren, can be compared to nothing so fitly as to a prison house; it contains nothing but criminals. The sinner may think it a large prison ; he may flatter himself that no eye sees; he may think that he can escape the hand of the Judge, but He that sitteth in the Heavens laugheth him to scorn, and when his time is come, when he has filled up the measure of his iniquities. Death, the constable of that High Court, will find him out, and drag him to the judgtnenit seat of Christ. But, here, brethren, the tongue of men and angels might well fail; who is sufficient for these things? Who can do justice to the scene ? What language can describe the terrors of the wicked in that day, when they shall see "The Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.'' "I saw," says St. John, "a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heavens fled away; and there was found no place for them." Inanimate nature is described as being terrified at his pre- sence; how then can the "heart of the wicked endure, or their hands be strong in the day the Lord shall deal with them?" "If one man sin against another the judge shall judge him; but if a man sin against the Lord, who shall entreat for him?" Brethren, we come not here this afternoon to convince you that you must shortly stand before an earthly tribunal, having power to imprison, torture and kill the body, to separ- 73 ate you from all who are near and clear to you, but we come to announce to you a truth a thousand times more solemn and more awful, and that is, "We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ;" if found guilty then, pain must be our everlasting portion, for when once the sentence has been pronounced, it cannot be reversed; there is no appeal from this court; age after age shall drag slowly on, millions of years shall pass away, but hope shall never enter those dreary abodes: "hath God said, and shall He not do it ; hath He spo- ken, and shall He not hiring it to pass." And now, brethren, do you ask why I set these things before you ? Is it that I may take away sleep from your eyes and slumber from your eyelids ? Is it that I may render you more miserable than you are at present ? Is it because I love you not ? No, brethren, no, it is for none of these reasons. It is that I may deliver my own soul, and that yours also may be saved; it is that we may meet with joy around the judgment seat, and not with sorrow, for that were unprofitable for yoti and f( r me. It is that when the Judge shall demand, "Where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock?" I may be able to answer: "Here am I and the children whom Thou hast given me." Birethren, did I know your ruin was inevitable, did I see no way of escape, I would lay my hand upon my mouth, I would keep silence before you, I would say ignor- ance is bliss, but now it is not so, for I know there is a way of escape; I know you may be saved if you can but be con- vinced of your danger. For the word of God say3 : "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon;" and again: "There is now therefore no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh but after the^irit." Come, then, let me entreat you to be reconciled to God; then shall that dav which is so full of terror to the ungodly be a joyful day to you ; you shall stand at the right hand of the Judge; He shall smile upon you and say: "Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for yon from the foundation of the world." GOD'S SERVICE THE BEST SERVICE. Joshua, 24th Chap., part of the 15th Verse. "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." SUCH was the determination of Joshua, the son of Nun, whom God had set over the people of Israel, on the death of his servant Moses; he was one of the twelve sent to spy out the promised land, and on his return reported favourably of the country, and encouraged the people to go up and take possession, whilst the remaining eleven (with one ex- ception), although they could say nothing against the fruitful- ness of the land, terrified the children of Israel by the de- scription they gave of the enemies they would have to en- counter. Weak in faith, they thought they would never be able to overcome such fierce and warlike nations, forgetting that the same God who with a strong hand had brought them out of Egypt had also promised to put them in possession of the land of Canaan. It was with a firm trust in his promise? that Joshua and Caleb exhorted the people to go up and possess the land ; they did not expect to overcome the race of the giants with sword and spear, neither was it their own arm that should help them — but the rest of the spies had for- gotten how God overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea; they remembered not how he plagued the Egyptians until they let his people go. In the chapter from which our text is taken we have the final address of Joshua to the children of Israel; he goes back as far as the calling of Abraham, and enumerates some of the great things God had done for them, and concludes thus : "Now, therefore, fear the Lord, and serve Him in sincerity and in truth ; and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the Lord. And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve ; whether the gods which your fathers served, that were on the other side of the flood, or 75 the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell; but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord," This appeal of Joshua's had the desired effect, and the people answered and said: "God forbid that we should for- sake the Lord to serve other gods.'' Joshua wished them to consider well what they were about, so he spoke to them again: "Ye cannot serve the Lord; for He is an Holy God ; He is a jealous God ; He will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins ; if ye forsake the Lord, and serve strange gods, then He will turn and do you hurt, and consume you after that He hath done you good. And the people said unto Joshua, nay, but we will serve the Lord." And they did serve Him for a time, for we read a few verses further on that, "Israel served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that overlived Joshua, and which had known all the works of the Lord that He had done for Israel." As the children of Israel longed to enter into the Land of Ca- naan, I am sure you all wish to enter into the kingdomi of heaven ; but your own good sense must convince you that wishing alone will never bring you there. Have you ever tried any other method ? Your answer to this question will prove whether you are really in earnest. Oh, how differently do men act in temp jral and eternal things. A man tells us he would like to be rich; we observe him closely, and we find his deeds in accordance with his words; he rises early, and late takes rest, and eats the bread of carefulness; he does not sit still and wish after riches, but he sets to work at once, and without delay he shows that he is in earnest; his thoughts are constant- ly employed in devising some new scheme how he may in- crease his gains. Ask the same man if he would not like to enter into the kingdom of heaven, and he will answer yes. Having received thisanswer, and kiiowing him to be a man of energy and perseverance, we expect nothing less than that the kingdom of heaven will suffer violence, that he will be re- gular in his attendance at this house of prayer, that he will devote the Sabbath to spiritual improvement, that evening and morning he will gather around him his children and ser- vants to praise the Lord for His goodness, that he v/ill diligent- ly read the Holy Scriptures, and meditate therein by day and 70 Jk by night. Finally, we expect that, regardless of whait others may do or say, he for his part will come to the same deter- mination as Joshua: "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Yes, if men were consistent, this would not be expecting too much, we have seen how wisely he acted when he had a worldly object in view; he has told us that he has heaven also in view, but how diflferently he acts; how are we to ac- count for such inconsistent conduct? It is easily accounted for, my brethren; in one case the heart and hand go together, the world is near, and he can see the prize for which he is contend- ing, and he is willing to forget that the enjoyment may 'v short. Heaven is afar o/9^, and only visible to the eye of faith ; its pleasures and enjoyments aire not such as the carnal man delights in; to be contiinually praising God, what could be more distasteful to him ? To be free from sin — would this be es- teemed happiness by those who now find their sole pleasure in it ? This at once convinces us of the necessity of wlva,t the Scripture requires: "Ye must be born again;" your whole nature must be changed; you who now delight in sin must learn to hate it; you who are fond of pleasure must live no more unto yourselves, but to Him who died for you, and rose again ; you who now blaspheme the Holy name of God must learn to reverence it ; but we fancy we hear you exclaim, who is sufificient for these things? If you feel your own weakness, we would direct you to One who is strong, who will cast out none that come to Him, and who has promised that those who come to Him "shall find rest unto their souls;" to Him we would entreat you to go, praying that He would "oreate in you a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within you;" but remember you must wrestle with God in prayer; you must say with Jacob: "I will not let thee go, except thou bless me." This is acceptable prayer. But how often are our devotions a mere form to satisfy our conscience; we know it is our duty to pray; we know that none go to heaven but men of prayer; we have been taught to pray in our youth, and, therefore, we go through the outward form; but is it not too often without the inward motion and desire of the heart toward God ? Let us remember that the mere form is not only unprofitable to 77 the soul, but brings guilt upon it; and, when trusted in, is a dangerous delusion. It may gain us a religious name in the world; it may pacify an alarmed conscience for the moment; but it gains nothing from God. Our Lord says : "This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honour- eth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me." And wiiat follows ? "In vain do they worship me." Religion is in a low state in the heart of that man on whom prayer must be urged as a duty. It ought ever to be considered as the greatest of all mercies that we are permitted to pray to God, and assured that "Every one that asketh receiveth," The Christian will adopt as his own the sentiment of Joshua, "As for me and my house we will serve the Lord.'' He will not think it sufficient that he himself serves the Lord while his servants and his children go after other gods; no, they must all serve Him, from the least unto the greatest; his dwelling will be a place where p^rayer is wont to be made; no duty however pressing will be allowed to interfere with his morning or evening devotions; and, my brethren, are not some of you verily guilty in this matter, for you neither pray yourselves, nor teach your children to pray, while others think the slightest excuse a sufficient reason for neglecting the duty for the present. Some pray because they think it right; the words are pronounced with the lips, but the heart does not join in the prayer. It is an easy thing to say, "Create in me a clean heart, oh God, and renew a right spirit within me;" but here lies the difficulty: if the heart itself does not feel unclean, it is not likely to join earnestly in the request. "They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick." In most cases when sickness comes we are aware of it by the pain which accompanies it, but it is not so with the soul. If we neglect to provide food for our bodies before death en- sues, hunger comes to warn us of our danger, but we may day aft .r clay neglect to nourish the soul with the food which God has provided for it (namely, the Holy Communion pray- er, reading and meditating on the Word of God) ; and the same consequences will not ensue at once ; you will tot feel the same pain as when you starve the body. Nevertheless, you Jl ' 78 are starving the soul, and it is gradually dying to all that is good, and in a short time it will be alive only to what is evil. We know that many persons find prayer and the reading of the Scriptures an irksomt task who notwithstanding consider themselves g'^od Christians. We "'ill not at present speak of those who neither pray nor read the Scriptures, who nevertheless would be greatly offend- ed and deem us uncharitable if we refused to number them among the followers of that Jesus whose delight it was to read and meditate on what Moses and the prophets have written, who spent whole nights in prayer to God. But would you think it irksome or unpleasant for a child to come into the presence of an affectionate father to unburden his heart, to ask his advice, to thank him for favours past, to entreat him to continue still his loving kindness? The Chris- tian is the child, and God is his Father. While a man continues in sin he cannot call God his father, but when by the grace of God he has been brought to a knowledge of his lost and perishing condition by nature, when he has fied for refuge to lay hold on the hope set before him in the gospel, he begins in some degree to understand how Ck)d was reconciled to the world by the death of his Son. Before this he had been told that he ought not to commit sin, but sin was natural and pleasant to him; he never thought of aiiothor world, and he knew no reason why he should deny hi^nself any pleasure, but now he feels that sin is exceeding sinful; ne believes that if man had never sinned the Son of God had never suffered ; when Satan tempts him to sin he pictures to himself the Son of God stretched on the cross, and he determines with God's help to forsake all sin. He feels also that, though he has been a rebel against God all his life, he is now reconciled to Him through the blood of his Son ; he who was once a rebel is now a son ; he has received the spirit of adoption whereby he cries Abba, Father; he can now boldly enter into the presence of God, and make known his wants, for (although he feels himself a vile sinner) he knows tliat Christ has suffered for sin, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us near unto God. "Happy are they which are in such a case; yea happy are the people which have 79 m the Lord for their God." Brethren, the time is short: "Choose yt whom ye will serve;" but remember, once for all, that God and the world cannot at the same time hold possession of your heart. Search and try that you may know on what your affections are placed, rememberintg always that where your treasure is there will your heart be also. If you have set your heart on God, whatever troubles and trials you may be called to endure while a pilgrim here below, all will be well at the last ; you shall be happy in eternity, for you can say with the apostle : "I know in whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have com- mitted unto Him against that day." But if on the other hand you place your hearts, your aff>_tions, on the perishable things oi earth, you will never be happy," either in this world or in that which is to come, for the things of the world cannot satis- fy the cravings of the immortal spirit that dwells in the mean- est of the jjons of earth; you will know God as your enemy. He has it in His power to render you miserable, and sometime or other He v^'lll certainly do so; how then can you hope to be happy with the wrath of God abiding on you. Brethren, are you still in doubt as to whom you ought to serve ? Have you not yet decided whether the world or God chall posses your hearts? to you the words of Joshua, the son of Nun, come with alarming force: "Choose you this day ^vllom you will serve.'' Halt no longer between two opinions ; if the Lord be God serve Him; but think not to put Him off with formal prayers and the strict observance of the outward ceremonies of religion, for He claims the heart; He claims the love of those who serve Him; He seeks not the service of slaves, but of children. Do you then really love God ? Can you with truth say that you love Him? Not more than this or that pleasure; not more than father or mother; not more than husband or wife; not more than brother or sister; not more than glory or honour, or riches, or anything else the world has to offer, but more than all these things put together. This it is, and nothing short of this to be a Christian. T J ! "GOD WILL SURELY PUNISH THOSE WHO FOR- GET HIM." Psalms, pth Chap., Verse i/th. "The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God." I AM charged with a message for you to-day, a message from the great God of heaven and earth. Oh what an aw- ful and solemn word is this which He has sent you: "The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that for- get God." Remember, it is not the minister who says this, but He against whom all your sins have been committed. But, perhaps, you will say: this message concerns not us; we are not wicked ; we never worshipped idols ; we never took God's name in vain; we never desecrated the Sabbath; we honoured our parents; we never committedmurder or adultery or theft; we never bore false witness against our neighbour; we never coveted our neighbour's goods. Now I do not believe that there is one person present who can with truth afifirm all this. I know that many will boldly de- clare, "We never injured anyone;" and yet they scarce pass a day without cheating or in some way imposing on their more ignorant neighbours; besides, though you have not by fraud or violence taken away any part of his property, though you have not in any way injured his health or endangered his life, perhaps you hc:ve slandered his good name ; you may not have made up mischievous stories to hurt his char- acter, but zealously circulated them when made up, and when charged with it you have thought it sufficient excuse to be able to say: we did not make them up, we heard them; will you still plead we never injured anyone? We are not wicked ? Brethren, we are all too much in the habit of comparing ourselves with the world around us. We look round on our neighbours, we observe their faults, and they appear like beams in our eyes; then we are exalted above measure; we are placed upon an eminence; we can see the follies, the ex- 8i travagancies and the sins of others, but we see nothing in ourselves but what is good. Are we then such as we take ourselves to be ? Are we all good without any mixture of evil? "Let God be true and every man a liar." If. He be true, then mark well His words : "The heart of man is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked." God made the heart ; He is acquainted with all its ways, and this is what He s^ys concerning it ; and all good men in every age who have watched the workings of their hearts have set to their seal, that in this, as in everything else, God is true. Consider, brethren, how just, how holy, how strict God is. When Eliphaz thought on this he exclaimed: "What is man that he should be clean? And he which is born of a woman that he should be righteous ? Behold, he putteth no trust in lijis saints; yea, the heavens are not clean in his sight; how much more abominable and filthy is man, which drinketh iniquity like water ? " What is man that he should be clean ? Clean in the sight of a Holy God. Compare him with his fellow men, compare him with those who are forever wallowing in the miire of sin, and to mortal eyes he may appear clean; "but all things are naked and open unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do ; he is a diiscerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart ; neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight." Did God know only our wicked actions; were we to stand or fall by these, who might abide the day of judgment? But when we read in Scripture that "the thought of foolishness is 3in;" "that for every idle word which men shall speak they shall give an account thereof in the day of judgment;" then our mouths are stopped, and we are found guilty before God. Would that we were all duly impressed with the holy purtty of God's law. The sixth commandment is: "Thou shalt do no muirder;" which of you, when it is read every Sabbath, does not comfort himself with tihe thought that there is at least one of the commandments which he has never broken ; you almost think it unnecessary to say: "Lord have mercy upon us, and incline our hearts to keep this law." If any person should hint that there was a possibility of your breaking this com- mandment, you would no doubt answer him in the words of 6 ^i 1"' ; 1^ i i U r i 83 Haziel : "Is thy servant a dog that he should do this thing?'' Hear now our Lord's explanation and enforce it: "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time: thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judg- ment. But I say unto you, tjhat whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whosoever shall say to his brother raca shall be in danger of th6 council ; but whosoever shall say, thou fool d\a\\ be in danger of hell fire." Hear also what St. John saith : "Whosoever hateth his bro- ther is a murderer; and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him." Oh, how many who call them- selvey Christians are condemned by these words of the apostle. How many come to the Lord's table with hearts full of bitterness. Brethren, when you find hatred stealing into your hearts, pray that God may give you a portion of that meek and gentle spirit which our blessed Lord possess- ed in such an eminent degree; "who, when he was reviled, reviled not again ; when he suffered, he threatened not ; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously;" who prayed for his murderers: "Father forgave them, for they know not what they do." See here the meek and gentle spirit of Jesuis, and remember that it is written: "If any man have not the spirit of Christ he is none of his." Brethren, you see that the commandments of God are ex- ceeding broad; they reach to the thoughts and intents of the heart. Do you think that, if the ten commandmants were explained and enforced as the sixth has been, you could say of them as the young ruler said : "All these have I kept from my youth;" whatever you might say or whatever you might think matters little in comparison of what God says. Hear then what the spirit of God inspired St. John to write: " If we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." Observe the expression "if we say," the Apostle evidently includes himself, and with this agrees the 15th article of our Church, which proclaims " Christ alone without sin." Hear what David says: "Enter not into judg- ment with thy servant, oh Lord; for in thy sight shall no tnan living be justified." And aga'ni: "The Lord looked down 83 ex- the rere say Irom light iear "H the the the done idg- \inan (own from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand and seek after God; they are all gone aside, they aire altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one?" In Genesis we read: "God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." Job asks the question : "Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean?" and the answer is: "Not one." David con- fesses "Behold I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin. did my mother conceive me." In proverbs the question is asked: "Who can say I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?'' In Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the temple we find this remarkable assertion : "There is no man that sinneth not." In the book of Ecclesiastes, we read : "There is not a just man upon eairth that doeth good and sinneth not." My brethren, what have you to say why judgment should not be passed against you ? The word of God condemns you, for it plainly declares that "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God ;" you must be wicked, for the Scripture de- clares: "There is none righteous; no, not one." We have a message for you then, an awful message from the Holy God; hear it, mark it well, and let it sink deep into your hearts: "The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God." Even so, "the nations," or as it is translated in the prayer-book, "the people that forget God;" it is a sin to forget God; we should do all things to His glory; when we forget Him we fall into sin; we could not sin if He was al- ways present to our minds ; but we do not like to retain God in our knowledge, He is so holy, so just, so strict, that He will not let the smallest sin pass unpunished; therefore, we strive to forget Him that we may go on in sin. But what is the punishment of sin ? We answer in the words of our text: "The wicked shall be turned into hell." We have proved from Scripture that all are by nature wicked, and now we must speak of their portion, except they repent and believe "They shall be turned into hell." My brethren, is there then a hell deep and fathomless? Where the worm 84 lij dyeth not, and the fire is not quenched? A lake of fire and brimstone which they who enter once can never leave? Where the parched tongue will pray in vain for a drop of water ? Again we ask is there such a place as this ? And the answer is, if the Bible be true, if God be true, there is. Oh then, brethren, what manner of persons ought we to be ? How holy, how blameless, with what deep anxiety ought we to ask this momentous question: Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire ? Who among us shall dwell with everlast- ing burnings ? Notice, the wicked will not go there for a season to be purged ; they will not fly through as some affirin; no, they will dwell there, make it their abode, therir home; they will go no more out forever. Oh, what a /ear- ful home. Devils and lost souls will welcome them to it, that they may bear rule over them, and trample them down deeper and deeper into the burning lake. But, terrible as are the sufferings of that place, they must be borne to all eter- nity; this thought alone must increase their pangs a thousand fold. Could they hope that, when thousands of ages had passed away, God would forgive them, or even blot them out of His book of .remiembrance by destroying them altogether, or if He would appoint a day however distant, and say when that arrives, I will pardon; but no, the decree has gone forth and cannot he revoked: "There is no peace to the wicked saith my God." Men and brethren, what shall we do ? Shall we sit down calmly and reason on the subject ? Shall we comfort ourselves with the thought that God is merciful ? Remember that He is also just, and justice cries against you ; remember that He is true, and that He lias sworn by Himself "that the wicked shall not go unpunished." Oh, I beseech you do not deceive yourselves by crying: "Peace, peace, when there is no peace.'' "Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain. Escape to the moun- tain lest thou be consumed." "Remember Lot's wife," and when God commands you to seek first His kingdom aiiH righteousness, let not your minds be so taken up with worldly business as to forget the one thing needful. Remember it is the work of the spiirit to convince sinners 8s of their sins. Let us pray, then, that he would graciously vouchsafe to be present with us to-day, and work these works in us. Perhaps there is not one person present who would not acknowledge after what has been said that he is a sinner, but we want you to feel it; to live under an abiding sense cf it, for, until you feel it, you will not fly to the city of irefug'i, you will not go to Siloann and wash, you will not come to the fountain open for sin and for uncleanness. Rememter, Christ came "to seek and to save that which was lost." If then you feel your lost condition!, come to Christ. " He came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance." If you feel yourself a sinner come to Jesus, He is yonr Saviour. He says : "Come unto me all ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Are you weary and heavy laden ? Do you feel your sins a burden? Would you gladly be rid of them ? Are you tearful lest they should sink you down to hell ? Oh, come to Jesus and He will take all your sins away, and cast them into the depths of the sea, and they shall no more be remembered against you; but you must come at once. Behold, now is the accepted time; now is the day of salva- tion; you must not say to Him as Felix did to Paul: "Go thy way for this time, and when I have a more convenient season I will call for thee ; " you must beware how you grieve the Holy ISpirit, for, if He departs. He may never return. Remem- ber also that the times and the seasons are in God's power. We know not the day of our death. Let us begin at once, this very day, to seek the salvation of our souls, and, if Satan comes and seeks to draw off our attention by pleasure or business or some other device, let us answer him in the words of Ne- hemiah: "I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down; why should the work cease whilst I leave it and come down to vou ? i III I ; HOW LOT'S DESIRE TO GET WEALTH LED HIM INTO TEMPTATION AND LOSS. Genesis, 19th Chap., i6th Verse. *■' And while he Hngered, the men laid hold upon his hand; and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters, the Lord being merciful to him; and they brought him forth and set him without the city." Ay^HE history of Lot was written as all other Scripture for \_ our learning; let us then attentively consider it, and may the Holy Spirit open ouir hearts to receive the truth, and strengthen our memories to retain it. When the Lord commanded Abraham: "Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee," we find that Lot went with him, and when soon after a famiine compelled Abraham to pass down into Egypt, Lot accompanied him thither also. But why did Lot keep so close to Abraham ? Why did he forsake his country, kindred, and father's house ? Perhaps, it was the love of Abraham, perhaps it was the love of Abraham's God which first induced him to say with Ruth : "Whither thou goest, I will go ; and where thou lodgest I will lodge; thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God." The time came, however, when they must part. It was prosperity which compelled these two good men to separate ; their flocks and herds increased at such a rate, that the land was not able to bear them. The consequence was, a strife airosc betwixt their herdsmen, and Abraham fearing that he and Lot might in time be involved in the quarrel, proposed that they should at once separate. And Abraham said unto Lot: "Separate thyself, I pray thee, from me. If thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou de- part to the right hand, then I will go to the left." "And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere." 87 Let us attentively consider this portion of Lot's history, convinced that it was the false step he made at this time which lead to all the sin and misery of his after life. That Lot was a righteous man no one can for a moment doubt who beHeves in the inspiration of the Bible, and has read the second Epistle of St. Peter. That as a righteous man, he ought above all things to seek the welfare of his immortal soul, every person, I presume, will allow. What then are we to think, when we find him walking by sight, and not by faith ; looking on the things which are temporal, not on the things which are eternal; choosing by the sight of his eyes, and ask- ing no cotmsel of God. What did Lot do ? We are told he saw that the plains of Jordan near Sodom were rich, fertile and well watered. It was a good land for cattle and full of pastures; he had flocks and herds, and it just suited his re- quirements. And this was the land he chose for a residence, simply because it was a rich, well-watered land. "It was near the town of Sodom, he cared not for that. The men of Sodom who would be his neighbours were wicked, it mat- tered not. They were sinners before God exceedingly; it made no difference to him. The pasture was rich. The land was good. He wanted such a country for his flocks and herds. And before that argument all scruples and doubts, (if indeed he had any), at once went dt)wn." We are told that Lot pitched his tent toward Sodom; this was a great mistake. But the next time he is mentioned, we find him ac- tually living in Sodotii itself. His tents were left. The coun- try was forsaken. He occupied a house in the very streets of that wicked town. We are not told the reason of this change. Perhaps Lot expected to find in Sodom a good market for his flocks and herds. Men never want reasons to confirm their wills. One thing is very clear. Lot dwelt in the midst of Sodom with- out good cause. As long as Lot remained with Abraham he was safe, but he had no sooner taken up his abode in Sodom than evil be- fell him; the king of Sodom was defeated in battle, the city was taken and plundered, and the inhabitants carried away captive, and they took Lot and his goods and departed. This IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 4^ 1 1.0 1 1.1 11.25 u lit ^™ £ 1& 12.0 U 11.6 W^l — 6" y Photographic ^Sdaices Corporalion <^ as WHT MAIN STMIT WniTW.N.Y. l4SiO (7U)l7a-4S09 v\ '^ f o^ PI [ 88 was the first rebuke which Lot received for dwelling in So- dom. To increase his goods, he turned his steps towards that wicked city, and now he was in a fair way of losing all that he had. Now he was a prisoner in the hand of his ene- mies; slavery, or death, would soon have been his portion had not God sent Abraham to the rescue. Was Lot thankful for this mercy ? Did he profit by this warning ? Did he flee from the wicked city which had been the cause of all his misfortunes ? Alas, no ! he returned again to Sodom, and there he abode until the slumbering vengeance of God awoke, and fell upon that devoted city. True he es- caped, but how ? Was it not so as by fire ? was he not like a brand plucked out of the burning ? Where aire now those flocks so white, those herds so fat and well liking, for whose increase he had consented to take up his abode in that wicked country ? Where is now his goodly house and all the pleasant things he called his own ? Where are now his sons-in-law, those handsome, gay, light-hearted, but ungodly young men, whom his daughters met and loved in that guilty city? and where are now his married daughters ? Buried beneath yon black and smoldering heap. But where is she whose name was written on the fibres of his heart, the partner of all his toils, who left her native land, her father's house for him ? Oh where is she ? Lonely and cold she stands upon the plain of Sodom, a solemn warning to all who being bid to flee from coming wirath look back. Oh wretched Lot, in an evil hour you made an evil choice, and now reap as you have sown. But to proceed. One evening as Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom, seeing two travellers approach, he invited them to spend the night in his house, and they consented to do so. They proved to be angels, and they plainly declared to Lot their object in visiting the city. "We will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxem great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it." Lot believed the warning, and was in great distress, for all that he held most dear was in that city, and now he heard for the first time that it was to be destroyed. He rose in haste to warn those who were dear unto him, "and Lot went out, and 89 so, Lot ace, of Lot that the to and spoke umito his sons-in-law, which married his daughters, and said: up, get you out of this place, for the Lord will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons- in-law." Lot believed; the word of the angel was enough for him, but he did not wish to escape alone, he would fain have led forth his wife, his daughters, and his sons-in-law from the coming destruction; but alas, here was a sore evil, when he came to his scwis-in-law to warn them of their danger, they believed him not. "He seemed unto them as one that mock- ed." But what ? Can we believe that righteous Lot was in the habit of sporting with the truth? Can we believe that he liad ever deceived his sons-in law ? No. How then are we to account for their unbelief ? Our Lord, when speaking to the wicked of his own time, said: "Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe." We may suppose the sons-in- law of Lot demanded a sign, but no sign was given to them; no black and threatening cloud hung cm the devoted city ; no distant thunder rolled, no lightning flashed, but the moon was out, decked in her winter beauty, and all the stars shone brightly ; how then could they believe that evil was in store ? But righteous Lot had said: "Up, get you out of this place, for the Lord will destroy this city." And he had heard it from the Holy Angels, and they had heard it from the God of truth. Was not this enough ? Will you not believe, till with your eyes you see the fire and brimstone falling? 7 hen you will be convinced. Then all will be convinced; but then it v.Ill be too late to flee. It may have appeared strange to the sons-in-law of Loll, that the angel should warn Lot and his family alone, and leave the rest of the inhabitants of Sodom to perish. Per- haps they thought it unlikely that God would destroy the city, when he found the wicked so numerous; whatever were their reasons, they would not believe Lot's warning: " He seemed unto them as one that mocked." Brethren, we are told that Lot believed the testimony of the angel, he believed that the city would soon be destroyed, and yet "he lingered." When Lot entered Sodom, he had many flocks and herdSl, many servants, many children, can p I I i 1 I 1 HP I !ii i I I ' 90 we wonder that when the warning came he was unwilling to go foirth alone ? Can we wonder that he lingered till the last moment, waiming and entreating his children and household to flee from the wrath to come ? But the morning arose, the time for 'mercy was ended, the day of vengeance drew near, still Lot lingered; then the an- gels laid hold upon his hand, they used holy violence, they brought him forth, and set him without the city. Here, then, we have at last Lot and his wife and his two daughters outside the wall of Sodom; now they are safe, if t'ney only take heed to the command of the angel: "Escape, for thy life look not behind thee." But oh! who is sufficient for these things? Who can tuim his back on houses and lands, or friends and children, and not take one last fond look ? The trial was too great for Lot's wife. "She looked back, and she became a pillar of salt." Perhaps she did not al- together believe the report of the angels. The sun was al- ready gilding the horizon, promising a glorious dawn, could it be that Sodom was in flames behind her ? She doubted^ she halted, she looked back, and her fate was sealed; she be- came a pillar of salt. Brethren, consider that monument of vengeance on the plain of Sodom; speak to her, she does not hear; cry, she does not regard you; urge her to flee again from coming wrath, she does not move ; she is dead. So will it be with you. If you really twrn back now, turn back to sin, we may speak, but you will not hear; we may cry, but you will not regard; we may urge you again to flee, but you will not move. '* If any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him? " "No man having put his hand to the plough and looking back is fit for the kingdom of God." , Satan does not expect men to sin for nothing. As once he offered the Saviouir all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them, if he would fall down and worship him, so now he says to each of us, commit this sin and I will re- ward you. Who would sin if there was no pleasure or profit? Who would brave the anger of God? Who would break His holy commandments, unless some advantage appeared to flow from it ? 9» Now, brethren, if you would reach heaven you must make many sacrifices, you must deny yourseV> es many things ; you must crucify the flesh, with its affections and lusts; you must be contented to see others outstrip you in the race after worldly honour; you must be content to see others become richer than yourself, and enjoying more of the pleasures of this life. Let it content you that you have in heaven a more enduring substance, a house not made with hands. Yet a little while, and titles of honour shall cease, the world and its pleas- ure shall pass away, the fine gold shall wax dim; then happy they, and happy they alone, who have laid up treasure for themselves in heaven where neither moth devoureth nor rust corrupteth. We would in conclusion speak a few words to those among you who have made an evil choice, we would bid you remember Lot. Remember his first choice, it was a good one, when he determined to walk with faithful Abraham. Perhaps like Lot your first choice was good, you determined to keep close to some godly man, and to follow his counsel. But circum- stance compelled you to separate. Was your second choice a good one? How is it with you now ? I do not ask are your flocks and your herds increasing? I do not ask are you adding house to house and field to field? But I do ask, how is it with your soul ? Is there peace between you and God ? Or do you find yourself engaged in some soul-absorbing business, and are you endeavouring to quiet your conscience, by telling it that your fortune will soon be made, and then you will devote more time to the concerns of the soul. But while you wait, while you linger, death will not wait, death wil not linger, lo he comes with rapid strides ; and if he finds you unprepared, you are lost ; lost eternally. Oh haste. "Escape, for thy life look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain lest thou be con- sumed." h i il m I'lij !i SEEKING THE KINGDOM OF GOD. St. Matthew, 6th Chap., s^rd Verse. "Seek ye first the kingdom of God." THE word "seek" is frequently met with in Holy Scrip- ture. We find it used by our Lord in the parable of the woman with ten pieces of silver: "If she lose one piece, doth she not light a candle, and sweep the house and seek diligently till she find it ? " Again read : " The son ol man is come, to seek and to save that which was lost." Fancy then you see a poor woman who has lost a tenth part of her treasure; she does not begin to seek it in the dark, that would be to waste time, and lay herself open to grievous dis- appointment if she happened to grasp something resembling the lost treasure. No, her first care is to light a candle, she makes use of all the helps she can procure, she does not leave a corner of the house unswept, she seeks diligently, spares neither back nor eyes, until she lias found it. Again, fancy you see a shepherd gathering his flock around him, and numbering it. He has finished and one is missiiig. See him drive the ninety and nine into the fold, and having se- cured them set off for the wilderness. Now he descends into the dark valley ; now he climbs the rugged mountain side ; now he beats among the underwood ; now he peers into the gloomy cave ; the shades of evening descend upon him, he is hungry and faint, but he will not desist from the search, until he has found the lost one. This is to seek; to seek dili- gently, my brethlren. Oh that you would so seek the king- dom of Gocf. Observe now the degree in which you are to seek 'iK The words of our text are plain and decisive on this point. The command is seek first. Perhaps, there is not one person pre- sent here to-day who does not wish to enter into the king- dom of God; but, my brethren, do you regard it as the one thing needful ? the goodly point which you are determined to possess cost what it may ? Is it the grand object of your 93 king- The The pre- king- le one led to your lives, to prepare far heaven; or do you content youirself with wishing ? I am confident you would despise the man who, having set his heart on some worldly good, could quietly sit down and wish for it, you would esteem him nothing bet- ter than a fool, and yet this is the way many of you act with regard to your eternal concerns. While your time, talents, and energies are devoted to the attainment of riches, or hon- our, or pleasure, you seem to take it for granted that that which is ten thousand times more precious will come to you of its own accord. While you know and confess that no earthly good can be obtained without some struggle, some sacrifice,' you seem to take it for granted that you have only to express a wish to enter the kingdom of God, and the gates will imme- diately fly open. But the word of God speaks of a seeking to enter in — a seeking it first to the neglect of things of less importance. From the words of our text we naturally infer that there are other things which we may seek. Yes, we may seek riches, we may seek honour, we may seek pleasure, but it must be in moderation, having continually an eye to God's glory. We commit sin when, forgetful of the kingdom of God, we make any one of them the object of our lives. When therefore the love of riches has increased to such a degree, that we are tempted to covetousness or fraud, we may be sure it has obtained an undue ascendency over us. If our hearts are so set upon honour that we are determined to pursue it at anx cost, we have reason to fear that we are not of those who seek first the kingdom of God. If a fondness for pleas- ure induces us to sacrifice any known duty, we have need to be on our guard lest it should be said of us that while we have a name to live, we are spiritually dead. If you determine to "seek first the kingdom of God,'' as you are commanded in the text, then riches, pleasure, fame, the opinion of the world, must all give way when they would hinder you in running the heavenly race. But some of you may think that heaven will not repay you for such sacrifices. To you heaven appears far distant, you look forward to many happy years on earth. Perhaps it will be easier for you to decide which of the many objects we have set before you is. sMi! Mi 94 most worthy of your attention when we have spoken a few words on each. First, then, to begin with riches; to those among you who consider them the one thing needful, we would now address ourselves. We might begin by reminding you how many competitors you will have to contend with; we might begin by pointing out to you the number of blanks in this lottery and the fewness of the prizes; but we forbear, fearing our labour would be in vain, for we know that hope in man is strong, and that if there was but one prize, each would deem himself the happy man who was sure to draw it. Such being the case, we will not stop to reason with you upon the un- certainty of the pursuits you are engaged in ; we will suppose that you have obtained all that your soul coveted after, and could say in the words of Solomon: "I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards; I made me gardens and orchards, and planted trees in them of all kind of fruits; I made me pools of water ; I got me servants and maidens also ; I had great pos- session of great and small cattle; I gathered me silver and gold." Here we might remind you that riches, even after they are gathered, often take to themselves wings and fly away, but we will suppose that yours is the fortunate exception. We will suppose that your wealth remaineth with you unto the end. And must there then be an end? Is there a time ap- pointed when even those who have made gold their confi-: dence must lie down in the dust of the earth ; when they must bid farewell, a long farewell to all their greatness, and claim kindred with the dust, saying to corruption : "Thou art my father; and to the worm thou art my mother and my sister." Ah, this is indeed a drop of bitterness which, did they allow themselves time to reflect upon, would turn their cup of happi- ness into gall; for how could they be happy, however situated in this world, who knew God was their enemy, and eternal tor- ment their portion: "Oh that they were wise, that they un- derstood these things, that they would consider their latter end." Yes, brethren, it is here, when we contemplate the end of the wealthy sinner, that we are forced to exclaimi: " Died he not as a fool dieth." Here we learn to set a proper value 95 upon riches, when we see the possessor of them tossing to and fro, his body racked with pain, his soul stung with re- morse; here we are forced to exclaim, surely wealth is a vain thing, it cannot profit, it cannot prolong the life of man, it cannot calm the guilty conscience, it cannot wash away sin. Brethren, should Satan take any of you (as once he did the Saviour) up into a high mountain, and show you all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, and say, all these things will I give you, if you will fall down and warship me, do you think you would have strength to refuse the tempting offer? Tempting as the off er may appear, believe me, it would be madness for you to accept it, for allowing that he had the power, and was as good as his word, the question might still be asked: "What shall a man be profited, if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul, or what shall a man g^ve in exchange for his soul?" By entering into league with Satan you at once make God your enemy, and all that you most highly prize he can in a moment take from you, and leave you poor and miserable, £;nd blind, and naked. You may be saying in the words of a cenain rich man : "Soul, thou hast much good laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, dlrink, and be merry." But God may say: "Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee." Some persons are very anxious to be rich, but they are de- termined to use no dishonest means ; and they think that this is allowable. Now we would ask such persons which occu- pies their mind most; how to get rich, or how to enter the kingdom of God? We wbuld like them to compare the time they spend in seeking the former with the time they spend in seeking the latter, and having done this, we would entreat them not to deceive themselves. Oh that we could induce them to enter into their closet, and examine their hearts, and that not lightly, and after the manner of dissemblers with God, but so that they might discover what they really were seeking. Brethren, always look to the end of life, and think what will give you comfort then. Can riches comfort you? Can you carry them away with you ? "We brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out." If we were to continue here forever, there would be some sense in II n !!l 1 I' I !■]■■ ii' 1 I I ! 96 seeking riches first ; but seeing that man being in honour abideth not; seeing that our days are few and short; seeing that when we die our pomp cannot follow us, but will most certainly rise up in judgment against us, and condemn us,^ it is fit, it is proper, it is wise, to seek something more en- during, something which will not leave us in the hour of our greatest need. The second class of seekers are those who look upon pleas- ure as the chief good. Of these the apostle makes mention, '•Lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God." This is their business, this is the sole object of their lives, to pass the time pleasantly; their cry is, "who will show us any good." We meet with them chiefly among the young; to them the world appears in its brightest colours ; they hope to live many years^ and to have joy in them all. In vain the preacher standing by the lifeless body of one as young and as fair as they lifts up a warning voice, and says : "In the midst of life, we are in death." In vain he entreats them to "seek first the king- dom of God;" they will acknowlege that it is wise to do so, and tell him that they have determined at some future time to make their peace with God; but not yet, they are young, strong and healthy, there is no fear of them. When they can no longer taste what they eat or what they drink ; when they can no longer hear the voice of singing men or singing women; then, when they can no longer find pleasure in the world, they will begin to prepare themselves for heaven; they will not seek it first, as commanded in the text, but last of all. Can we be surprised then if they do not find it? Can we be surprised if many such should " seek to enter in and should not be able." Can we be surprised if God address then in such language as this : "Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out My hands, and no man re- garded ; but ye have set at naught all My counsel, and would none of My reproof; I also will laugh at your calamity ; I will mock when your fear cometh ; when your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirl-wind ; when distress and anguish cometh upon you, then shall they call upon Me, but I will not answer; they shall seek Me early,, but they shall not find Me." 97 ; I as irly, The third class of seekers are those who are in pursuit of fame; by which we understand a desire that our deeds may be known among men, our names handed down to the latest posterity. Fame has many seekers, but she is found by few.. How many who have spent a life in her service, striving to do some deed which would be worthy of her acceptance, have been compelled at last to lie down in an obscure g^ave. How vain, how unsatisfying, are the pursuits of men. What can fame do for those who possess it ? Can it smooth their dying pillow? Can it free them from disease? Can it enable them to endure the frown of an angry God? Oh what will it avail us "in the hour of death and in the day of judgment," that our names are had in honouir among men. The world and the things of the world will "soon pass away, and then the wicked will be forgotten; "but the righteous shall be had in everlasting re- membrance." Oh ye lovers of fame, let it content you to have your names written in the Lamb's book of life; let it content you that your repentance will cause joy in the presence of God and His angels; that the spirits of just men made perfect are ready to welcome you as a brother. What has the world to offer com- pared with this? If you will now seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, your name shall resound through the spacious domes of heaven ten thousand years after this world and all that it contains shall have ceased to exist. "Look not then on the things that are seen, which are tem- poral, but on the things which are not seen and are eternal." Why will you spend your strength for naught? and your labour for that which cannot satisfy? Harken unto God your maker, and He will teach you the more excellent way. This is His counsel: "Seek ye first the kingdom of God," and before you set your heart on anything, seriously ponder these words, words which the mouth of wisdom hath uttered. Consider the condition of man placed on this eairth for a short time, as it were in a school that his character might be developed, and soon to be removed into a state of happiness or misery, and you see at once the wisdom of the command contained in our text. This was the end for which man was created ; if he ne- glects this, it were better for him he had never been born. ! ) I m Observe, brethren, what a prize is here set before you. Here is something which will repay all your efforts. It is no riches, which you must soon leave; but a crown of glory which fadeth not away; it is not the pleasures of a day, a month, or a year, but the pleasures, the enjoyments of the saints in heaven, which are thus described in the word of God: "They shall hunger no more; neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them or any heat. For the lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters; and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes." Brethren, you are now about to depart to your several homes, but be ye well assured that this sermon shall one day rise up in judgment against you and condemn you, if you do not begin to seek the kingdom of God, to seek it first, to seek it diligently, to seek it as hid treasure, to seek it with your whole heart; for unless you so seek it, you will never find it. m li I il sip ST. PAUL'S PERPLEXITY. Philippians, ist Chap., s^rd Verse. " For I am in a straight betwixt two, having a f life and death, which was most desirable in his own case; and here he was in a stiaight or difficulty, for if he thought only of himself, he de- cided at once in favour of death. "I have a desire to depart and to be with .Christ, which is far better." But when, on the other hand, he thot^ht of the many Churches he had planted, which were not yet settled and grounded in the truth; when he considered that after his departure grievous wolves would enter in among them not sparing the flock; then, for their sakes he desired to live, he was content to abide in the flesh, seeing it was more needful for his brethren. Observe the manner in which the Apostle speaks of death, he calls it a departure. Just as a traveller would describe his passing from one country to another, so he speaks of quitting this world and entering into heaven. While we listen, we are almost tempted to forget that he is speaking of the king of terrors, by whom the children of this world are all their lives kept in bondage. Strong in faith he looked on heaven as a great reality; not a distant country which it would take him years to reach, but near, very near. He never thought, as some have lately done, that his soul would sleep until the resurrec- tion mom. He saw nothing between him and Christ, between this world and the next, but the dark river of death, and yir ii I II lOO to him it did not appear dark, for the rays of the sun of right- eousness were shining full upon it. He knew that the same God who had opened a pathway for the children of Israel through the waters of the Red Sea had given this promise to every true believer: "When thou passest through the wa- ters, I will be with thee ; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee;" therefore, lie could say: "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me ; the rod aaid thy staff they comfort me." Few Christians of the present day have attained to this blessed state; few can say with the Apostle: "I have a de- sire to depart." Now, if we inquire into the cause of this, we shall find that it arises from want of faith. We do not lay hold of the promises of God, as we do the promises of men: we do not realize the glorious things which are spokem of the city of God; we do not meditate sufficiently on the many mansions in heaven which Christ has gone to prepare for those who love Him. We are still of the eairth, earthy ; in us the love of Christ has not yet absorbed the love of minor objects, this is the reason we are so unwilling to depart. Our treasure is here, therefore ouir hearts are here also; but were it otherwise, did the love of Christ so reign in our hearts as to put all other loves under his feet; were the world crucified unto us, and we unto the world; then it were an ea;;y thing to take up the language of the Apostle: "I have a desire to depart and to be with Christ, which is far better." But let us turn to Ihe Apostle and endeavour to discover how he arrived at this blessed state. He appears to have been a man of strong faith ; early instructed in religion, he saw its immense importance. Convinced that there was another world in which men would be happy or miserable forever, and that it was man's best wisdom to secu'*e heaven at what- ever cost, he set himself to the work ; and although for a time he wrought in the dark, yet God, who knows the heart, saw that he desired to serve Him, and graciously opened his eyes. He led \vm, He instructed him, He sent him forth to preach the Gofpel; and Paul went cheerfully to endure hunger and thirst, weariness and pain fci the crosb of Christ. He was JOI scourged, he was imprisoned, his feet were made fast in the stocks, he was stoned, he suffered shipwreck, and last of all he was beheaded. He might have escaped all these sufferings and been held in great esteem by his countrymen had he re- mained a Pharisee; but like Moses "he chose rather to suf- fer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleas- ures of sin for a season." This was the victory which overcame the world, even his faith ; "he looked not on the things which are seen, which are temporal, but on the things which are not seen and are eternal." His was no dim and shadowy hope; he never lost sight of heaven for a moment, and this enabled him to bear up under all his troubles, for he was persuaded that "these light afflictions which are but for a moment would work out for him a far more exceeding, even an eternal weight of glory." But why did the Apostle desire to depart ? " In the world ye shall have tribulation," says our Lord, and these words had been abundantly fulfilled in the Apostle's case, yet this was not the reason why he desired to depart. Again, many of the friends of his youth, many whom he fondly loved had left this world and entered the eternal state, had fled to th-j bosom of their Saviour and their God, but St. Paul does not tell us that he desired to depart and to be with them. Again, he had been caught up to the third heaven, his eyes had rested on the glories of Paradise, but he did not desire to depart that he might enjoy these things. No, it was that love of Christ which had carried him over sea and land, to preach the Gospel to a world lying in wickedness, although he knew that bonds and afflictions awaited him: it was that love, I say, which compelled him to exclaim in the words of our text: "I have a desire to depart, and to be with Christ, which is far better." Let us now inquire why so fe v Christians can adopt the language of St. Paul. We have already attributed this lo want of faith, we will now endeavour to prove our assertion. Siippose we could prove to anyone of you that a beautiful house and large landed property in some distant but well- known land had been left you by will, what eflfect would such news have on you ? Would you not hasten at once to 103 tell it? Would you not go from friend to friend, and from neighbour to neighbour, and inform them all of your good fortune that they might rejoice with you ? And if you could procure a book that contained a complete account of the estate that had been left you, how diligently would you read it; how carefully would you note each particular; you would scarce take time to eat or sleep. Should you happen to meet others who had had the same good fortune, would you not delight to converse with them of that happy land where you expected soon to go? Would you not consult with each other on the best and safest way of trav- elling to that country? Oh how anxiously would you wait the arrival of the ship which was to convey you to your new home. Would the waves of the broad Atlantic terrify you ? Would you allow them to hinder you from taking possession of your inheritance ? Now, let us see how this will apply to our own case. We profess to believe that the Bible is the word of God, and the Bible assures us that if we are Christians, if we truly believe on the only begotten Son of God, we shall straight way on our departure from this world enter the New Jerusalem, the heavenly city, which is surrounded by a wall of precious stones, and the twelve gates are twelve pearls. Every several gate made of one pearl; and the street of the city is of pure gold, as it were transparent glass. In this city there is a pure river of water clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb ; there also is the tree of life which beareth twelve maiineir of fruits, and yieldeth her fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. It is, indeed, a good and pleasant land, where God shall wipe away all +ears from the eyes of His believing people, and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away. But it is not necessary that I should re- peat to you all the glorious things which are spoken of the city of God; you know them, you have read them, you pro- fess to believe them; how is it then thac when you meet to- gether you so seldom speak of them ? How is it that you do not think of them by day, and dream of them by night ? 103 How is it that the Bible, which contains so full an account of these things, is so sparingly read, so little valued ? How is it that so few can say: "I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly moun- tain and Lebanon." We hesitate not to affirm that unbelief is the cause of all this inconsistency. We do not mean to say that you will in words deny that there is such a place as heaven; oh no! we have no fear of that, but this we do say, that to all prac- ticable purposes, as far as deeds are concerned, the majority of you are unbelievers. But you will say, did I know I should surely enter heaven when I die. I could then say with the Apostle: "I have a desire to depart." Why then do you not strive after that assurance? It may be attained if you will but set yourself to the work heartily and honestly. You must for- sake every known sin ; you must daily withdraw yourself from the world, and meditate on that rest which remaineth for the people of God ; you must walk by faith and not by sight, keep heaven with all its unfading, unchangeable glories in view, and your affections will soon be weaned from this vain and transitory world. "The children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light." Now learn a lesson from the misev ; he has set his heart on gold, and night after night he will heap his table with shining pieces ; he will count them o'er and o'er, and not grow weary ; he will feast his eyes on them and never say it is enough. The worldly man, also, see what delight he takes in his estate ; he walks through the length and breadth of it; the sound of his own waterfall is as music to his ears , the trees are pleasant to his sight. The woman of pleasure also, Gee how she irejoices at the prospect of the coming ball. But the Christian, what shall I say of him? He appears to be the only inconsistent man in the world, the only person who is not in earnest, the only one whom you cannot understand ; professing to believe that "there remaineth a rest for the people of God,'' he seldom speaks of it, and when he does it is with cold indifference; he has no desire to enter it, no love to Him Who has opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers. Ah, brethren, let us beware, let us examine ourselves; can we indeed be heirs of the kingdom cii heaven who have no desire to enter ; who when we meet 104 together spencj pur tirne in light and foolish talk; who would rather listen to a vain and silly song, than discou'rs,i on hea- venly subjects. We would in conclusion address a few words to those among you who think they can say with the Apostle : "I have a de- sire to depart." Why do you desire to depart? Is it be- cause things do not prosper with you in the world as you could wish? Because God is laying a heavy hand upon you ? Because pain and sickness are your portion ? Is it because your children, your brothers and sisters, your friend who is as your own soul have been taken away from you, and vou long to see their faces once more ? Is it because you wish to drink of that pure stream which proceedeth out of the throne of God? It was, as we said before, for none of those leasons that the Apostle desired to depart life: he longed to gaze on the countenance of his Saviour and his God ; to bask in His smile, to view His perfection, to sing the song of Moses and the Lamb, and to cast his crown at his Redeemer's feet. We do not mean to say that the pains and suflferings which the Apostle endured, the prospect of meeting his friends again, and enjoying with them the glories of heaven, had no effect, but this we do say, that they were not the only or the principal things which induced him to exclaim : " I have a desire to depart and to be with Christ, which is far better." Let no man, therefore, think because he is weary of life, that he has a good title to heaven; let not such an one pre- sume to take up the words of the Apostle. Let no man think when God has snatched away some lovely creature, the idol of his soul, that he can appropriately use the words of our text. Let no man think, because he delights to hear the preacher speak of the glories of heaven that he has a good title to them. But if theire are any here "who love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity," whom having not seen they love, in whom, though now they see Him not, yet believing thfcy rejoice with joy unspeakable, and full of glory; to them we would say, brethren, be of good cheer, your title is good, it is the same as the Apostle's. "Yet z little while, and he thslt Cometh shall come, and will not tarry." Then you shall be- hold Him whom your soul loveth, you shall enter into His presence, and go no mor6 out forever. ^ ' OUR LORD'S TEMPTATION IN THE WILDERNESS. St. Matthew, 4th Chap., beginning at ist Verse. " Then was Jesus led up of the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterwards an hungred; and when the tempter came to him he said, if thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. But he answered and said, it is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that pro- ceedeth out of the mouth of God." THEN was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness. Then, that is immediately after what took place in the preceding chapter. Immediately after the spirit had descended upon Him, and the Father had proclaimed from heaven, "this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased," He was led up of the spirit into the wilderness, the spirit of God which was in Him moved Him .to retire into the wilder- ness. We learn from this that it was the will of God' that His Son should meet in battle and overcome the great enemy of our race. He had p'omised that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head, and He was about to make good His promise. When Satan came to tempt our first father Adam, he found him in a well-tilled and fruitful garden, possessed of everything that could make life pass pleasantly and agreeably. Whateveir was pleasant to the sight or agreeable to the taste was there. Did he feel the knawings of hunger, he might pluck the fruit of every tree of the garden save one, and that one was withheld not because it was better than the rest, but simply to try his obedience. Adam until he sinned possessed everything that heart could wish, he lived in the light of God's counten- ance, he held daily intercourse with his Master. But turn with me and let us contemplate the second Adam, the Lord from heaven. Beloved indeed, was he of the Father for His own sake, yet now standing in the room of sinners, Mrith our sins, like a cloud, shutting Sim out for a time f«x>m the light of God's countenance. The garden in which the io6 first Adam dwelt is changed by the mighty power of sin in- to a waste, a howling wilderness. Behold, then, the second Adam in the wilderness, without a house to shelter Him from the rays of the burning sun, without a bed on which to stretch His weary limbs, left forty diays and forty nights without one pairticle of food; had the first Adam been thus tempted we could not wonder at his fall. My brethren, there are many good men, many good Chris- tians into whose mind the devil is continually casting evil thoughts, continually tempting them to commit some wicked- ness or other. These men are not of a sorrowful spirit, for they often doubt if they can be Christians in very deed. Let such persons remember for their comfort that the great Cap- tain of their salvation was in ali points tempted as they are. yet without sin. Let such persons remember for their com- fort, that the evil thoughts which spring up in the mind, if resisted and cast out at once, will not be imputed to them as sin. Satan may entice us to evil, but he cannot compell us. God is stronger than he is ; and God has said to him as well us to the mighty deep, "thus far shalt thou go and no farther." And when the tempter caine to Him, he said : If Thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread." We must not suppose that Satan was ignorant of the true na- ture of our Lord. Doubtless he or sohie of his company were present on the banks of Jordan when Jesus was baptized, and. heard the voice of the Father saying: "This is my beloved Son in wliom I am well pleased." Bear in mind that Jesus had been forty days without food, and that He was now an hunger- ed, for it was on the knowledge of this fact that Satan ground- ed his temptation, "If thou be the Son of God." We can fjincy the devil addressing the Saviour thus: I am aware that you have been proclaimed to be the Son of God, but you will pardon me if I express my doubts on the subject, for I cannot believe that God would thus cast off and forsake His well-beloved Son. Surely that voice from heaven was not the Father's Voice, there must be some mistake. I cannot be- lieve that God would leave His Son to wander in the wilder- ness forty days and forty nights without food. But if you are indeed the Son of God, and thus deserted, what does it IP' 107 prove? It proves one of two things, either God does not regard your sufferings, or He has no power to help you. Now let me give you my advice, trust no longer in God ; but if you have any power of your own put it forth: "Command that these stones be made bread." And here the question may be ask- ed, would our Saviour have sinned had He barkened to Satan and wrought a miracle. The devil evidently thought so, or he would not have tempted Him. The Almighty had acknowledged Jesus as his Son, and it followed as a matter of course, that He would provide for all His wants. Had the Son then put forth his miraculous power, it would clearly have implied a distrust of the Father's good- ness. Brethren, we have been considering the first temptaliou to which our Lord was exposed. This is one of those fiery darts of the wicked one, by means of which he has slain his thousand, and tens of thousands, by means of which he has sorely wounded many true Christians. How often has he drawn near to the Christian, poor in this world's goods, and whis- pered in his eair, " If thou be the Son of God." " If you are indeed a Christian, how is it you are so poor? how is it that your children have scare food to eat? Surely, he will insinu- ate there must be some mistake, either you are not a Christian, or God is not faithful to His promise." Thus Satan is con- tinually taking advantage of the afiflictions which God permits to come om His people. In such seasons as these it is well for us to remember that the only begotten and well-beloved of the Father was left in the wilderness forty davs and forty nights without food, yet he doubted not his Father's love. Let us then pray for a portion of His spirit that we also may learn to trust our Heavenly Father, to trust Him though we cannot trace Him, and to say with Holy Job: "Though He slay me, jet will I trust in Him." "Although the fig tree shall not blos- som; neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat ; the flock shall be cut of? from the fold, and there shall be mo herd in the stalls ; yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation." My brethren, ye who are endeavouring to walk with God IL io8 tell me what did He promise you when He called you out of the world, and said "follow me;" did He promise you riches, or honor, or pleasure, in this life ? You know that He did not; on the contrary, He said to all: "Whosoever will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me." And again : "We must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God." If trials and afflictions come then you must not be surprised, you must not think it strange, as though some strange thing had happened unto you, but re- joice, remembering that it is written: "Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he re- ceiveth." And, my brethren, is there not a cause ? can we not (short- sighted beings as we confessedly are) discover the reason why God sends trials and afflictions upon His people? He knows how prone we are, if riches increase, to set our hearts upon them, and this is the reason that we so often find the heirs tf the kingdom of heaven clothed in rags. He knows how p/one we are, when everything is prospering with us in this world, to forget that better country, "where there iremainetli r* rest for the people of God ;" therefore. He sends disappoint- ments, trials, aflfections, sickness, death, to loosen the ties, to cut asunder the chain, which binds us to this earth, that we may at length grow weary of the world, and long to depart and be with Christ, which is far better, Happy is the man who bears the rod, and him who hath appointed it, Happy is the man who takes his affliction patiently, believing that it comes from the hand of one who does not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men. We come now to consider our Lord's answer; He said: "It is written, man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.'' It is writ- ten where ? in the word of God, Here I would have vou note the weapon by means of which Satan was vanquished. There were many ways open to the Saviour of stopping the mouth of the adversary, but on this occasion He used the sword of the Spirit, "which is the word of God," Doubtless He did so for our encouragement, that we might know wherie to go for a weapon when assaulted by the devil. The Bible, 10$ even in the hands of the weakest behever is quick and power- full, sharper than any two-edged sword ; one passage rightly applied will at any time put the devil to flight. How neces- sary then that we should mark, learn, and inwardly digest it. We must not allow the sword to rust, we must keep it bright, and clean, and sharp, for we know not at what moment the adversary will attack us. "Man shall not live by bread alone ;" these words are found in the 8th Chap, of Deut., at the 3rd verse. They were first spoken by Moses in reference to the manna which the child- ren of Israel did eat in the wilderness forty vears. Our Lord's argument seems to run thus: you seem to think it necessary that I should turn these stones into bread, now I believe that God is able to create a new kind of food, nay, more. He is able to sustain my body without food should He see fit. "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word or thing that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.'' Man is a compound being; he has a body which we see, and a soul which we cannot see, which nevertheless we believe exists, and is the thinking, reasoning, principle in man. The body is nourished by food and grows up from infancy to youth, from youth to manhood. Withdraw food at any of the different stages of life, and the body pines away. On the other hand, the soul after it has been born again of the spirit is nourished by the word of God and prayer. The moment the Christian lays aside his Bible and ceases to attend the house of God, where it is read in public, his soul begiris to pine away, to grow cold, and unless his eyes are speedily opened to his danger, angels shall weep for him in secret places, for he is dead, dead in the sight of God, dead in trespasses and sin. A body without a soul, a painted se- pulchre, beautiful indeed K'ithout, but within full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. A prayer is the golden key that openeth the morning and shutteth in the night. Prayer moves the arm that moves the world. All things are possible unto the faithful praying man. Jacob prayed, he wrestled with God, saying: "I will not let thee go, except thou bless me." And Esau, who was com- ing against him with 400 armed men to destroy him, met him no as a brother, his anger was turned away by prayer. Elijah prayed and no rain fell for three years and six months. He prayed agrain and the heaven jjave rain. Daniel prayed when cast into the den of lions, and the mouths of those savage beasts were closed and he comes forth unhurt. Shedrach, Meshach, Abednego prayed when cast into the burning fiery furnace and the fire had no power to hurt them, not an hair of their heads was singed. The time would fail me to tell of the victories gained by prayer in the past; and believe nie it has not lost its power. Try it, wrestle with God in prayer for some worthy object, and you will find the truth of that say- ing: "What things soever ye desire when ye pray, believe that ye receive them and ye shall have them.'' In conclusion, let me remind you that we have just entered on the season of Lent; a season set apairt by the (Church in memory of the Saviour's great fast of forty days in the wilderness just before he entered on His public ministrations, and as all that He suflfered on that occasion He suffered for our sakes, so gratitude would seem to dictate that we should ever have it in grateful remembrance. In regard to fasting, which some consider one of the great duties of this sea- son, theire seems to be a great diversity of opinion in the religious world, some highly extolling it, and others regarding it as little better than will worship. "Let every- one be fully i>ersuaded in his own mind;" for my part, I re- gard it as a means to an end. The great object of all ireli- gion, all true religion, is to make men holy; to revive in them the divine image which sin has effaced; to make them more Godlike, and whatever tends to this end must be good. The best fast, that which is most acceptable in the sight of God, is a fast from evil thoughts, from idle words, from slanderous stories, from envy, hatred, malice, and all imcleanness, and if you feel yourself strong, strong in the Lord of Hosts to battle with these enemies of your soul, God forbid that we should lay on you any unnecessary burden. But if you are a man given to appetite, if you find it hard to keep the body under, if the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eye and the pride of life are strong within you, then it may be good, it may be necessary to fast. The great Apostle of the Gen- TXI tiles found it so in his own case ; he says : "I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection, lest that by any means, after I have preached to others, I myself should be a cast away.'' We live in an age when the great body of Christian people deny themselves nothing. Self-sacrifice is dead. The great first lesson which the Saviour taught when He descended from the throne of light to the manger in Bethlehem was self-sacrifice, and every step of His painful life was marked with blood. "He came not to do His own will, but the will of Him that sent Him." And we must imitate His ex- ample. We must follow in His steps. This is the narrow way that leads up to the gate of heaven. "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and fol- low me." The cross here referred to is not made of gold or precious stones. It is the reproach of Christ; do you know anything of it ? Have you ever borne it in the midst of an evil world ? The Church and the world have got sadly mixed up of late. The stout wall that once existed between the broad and narrow way is now broken down, and men pass freely from this world to the Church, and from the Church to the world. The Saviour told His disciples: "Ye cannot serve God and mammon," and they believed Him not, so now thousands of His professed followers try it every day and as they believe with good success. Satan has become very liberal of late, he allows his followers to attend the service of the Chuu . He cares not for your baptisms your confirmation, your recep tion of the Lord^s Supper, for he knows that, notwithstanding all these, you may be his true and loving disciple. If your hearts are not given to Christ ; if your names are not written in the Lamb's book of life, in the last great day, the day of judgment, you shall stand on the left hand of the Judge, among the goats, and then Satan will claim you for his own. I 1 I 1 MISSIONARY ADDRESS. Mr. Chairman: — I am well aware that of the majority of men in this country it may be said with truth that when they are young they are poor; their fortunes have to be made; they cannot sit dov/n at once to enjoy life ; toil is before them : "A rising" early, and a late taking 3* Wend; to-day tttou shalt behold all thy kindred and friends who have departed hence in the Lord^— father and mother, sisters and brothers. Oh, happy land, where we meet to part no more ! And w? en shaH this be^— to-day ? so soon? What' then shall make the Christian sorrowful ? Shall sickness, pain, poverty, imprisonment, death ? These light afflictions, which are but for a moment, shall work oitt for him a far more exceeding, even an eteimal weight of glory. Observe, brethren, there is no mention made here of the soul sleeping until the day of judgment. The soul of the penitent thief is described as passing at once into a place of happiness, and this agrees with what is said by St. Paul, "To be absent from the body is to be present with the soul." In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, the same truth is inculcated. No sooner is Lazarus dead than his soul is guided by angels into Abraham's bosom, a place of happiness ; while the death of the rich man is no sooner recorded, than it h added, "in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments." As the tree falls, so it lies; as death finds us, so shall we ap- pear at the bar of judgment. Beloved brethren, it is a pleasing thought if we have truly repented of our sins past; if we have a lively and steadfast faith in Christ our Saviour, months, weeks, days, and houirs are bearing us rapidly on to that time when the Lord shall say to each one of us, "To-day shalt thou be with me in para- dise." But let us not forget that this will not be the happy lot of all. To the believer io Christ the voyage to heaven is short, but is it shorter than the descent of the wicked to hell ? Lazarus was carried by angels into Abraham's bosom, but fiends of hell conveyed the soul' of the rich man as speedily to his last resting-place. Oh, that the adulterer, the swearer, the thief, the liar, the Sabbath-breaker would consider these things ! Brethren, are any of you committing these sins ? When do you intend to forsake them ? What assur- ance have you that you will live to see another day ? This night thy soul may be required of thee, and the whole of your after-history may be summed up in these touching, these heartrending words, "In hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments." Oh, brethren, it is near, even at the door. "Ex- ■ l,V««l|I^Vf« niPPiPipnff" '( 1-24, cept ye repent ye shall all likewise peirish." In a momentr in the twinkling of an eye, you will pass from this scene of com- parative ease to the blackness of darkness forever. Behold I. set before you life and death this day. Oh, choose life that ye may live ! Behold, 1 set before you heaven and hell. Oh, choose heaven that ye may be happy forever I Time moves on, and as it moves brings you nearer to pne or the other. Can you be indifferent as to which ? Arouse you ; the day is far spent, the night is at hand— the night of death, in which no man can work. "The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved," I i »2^ r fl^v« '*■ ■ ■!!