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1 2 3

Clei

»u« Z''

ACTIVE GOODNESS ^^' "'/Ir.'

RECOMMENDED AND ENFORCED." ?

SERMON

DELIVERED AT SAINT JOHN,

ON JANUARY 1st. 1819.

WHEN A COLLECTION WAS MADE FOR THE BENEFIT

-"'-■■■■■,,,. *:.-■":»■■. OF THE POOR. ■" .'.'..-

GEORGE BURNS, D. D.

CLEROrMAN OF THE ESTABLISHED CHURCH OF SCOTLAND, AND MiNtmit

OF THE Prcsbvtbrian Church OF Saint Andrew,

':-^^ • IN THE CiTT OF SaINT JoHN| i

■^^»-

SAINT JOHN:

FRINTED AT THE STAR OFFICE, BT W. REYNOLDS, AND CO.

ICE WILLIil
STREETS.

18 19.

CORNER OF PRINCE WILLIAM AND CBUBCH

' V

fA'

A ■''ti

»\

/Y*^

i-ii

V . *'.,^-tf *

v*.;^ss

tf . S sv'

r * * *

V ^

"*.«, ,!*.r%v:'s**;'"'

/r-'

TO THE

MEMBERS OP SESSION ,

_\,,.: ' AND .'..,..

CONGREGATION in GENERAL,

OP THE

SCOTCH CHURCH, ST. JOHN;

• • /

THIS DISCOURSE
IS RKSPECTPULLY INSCRIBED

THE AUTHOR.

ADVERTISEMENT.

The following discourse was loritten without the
most distant view to publication. It was originally
composed in the ordinary course of weekly prepara-
tion for the pulpit and delivered to a country con-
gregation in the parish Church of Lochwinnoch in
the west of Scotland^ where the author officiated as
Clergyman for nearly twelve months. With some
alterations suited to the particular object for which
it was last delivered, it is now published in conse-
quence of urgent solicitations, and it is somewhat re-
markable that the same Sermon has been thrice
asked for publication in different parts of the world.
In discriminating the different objects of chanty at
the conclusion of the third subdivision, the author has
been indebted to some suggestions on the same sub-
ject by a ClergymMn of his own Church.

iout the
iginallif
)repara-
try con-
tnoch in
iated as
ih some
)r which
n conse-
what re-

THltlCE

\e world,
haiity at
ihor has
%me sub-

SERMON.

CccLEs. Chap. IX. Ver. 10. '' fVIiatsoever thif hand
Jindeth to do, do it with thy might : for there is no
work, nor device^ nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in
the grave, whither thou goest."

WHATEVER relates to the concerns of the
present life, excites general interest. The
means of increasing power, wealth, and consequence,
are closely examined, t jerly embraced, and zea-
lously pursued: and for the attainment of these
objects no sacrifices are accounted too great, no
exertion too severe.

Different, however, are the sentiments and feelings
of men with regard to religion and the concerns of
a future life. Visible things only, impress their
minds ; objects beheld solely by the eye of faith,
fail to produce the influence of realities ; men " look

at the things which are seen and temporal, not at
those which are unseen and eternal." But, js not
indifterence on such matters, unreasonable and dan<
gerous in the highest degree ? are not the concerns
of religion the most important and interesting to im-
mortal beings? Unquestionably they are in them-
selves matters of the deepest interest, and are entitled
on every principle of reason, of conscience, and of
duty, to paramount concern.

Hence, the importance of admonitions to diligence
and activity in the great business of religion. How-
ever liglitly they may be esteemed, however coldly
they may oe received, however contemptuously they
may be disregarded by the vain, thoughtless, and
secure;' to every enlightened and serious mind they
cannot fail to appear in their just and awful im-
portance. The text contains one of these admoni-
tions, enforced by a most interesting and impressive
consideration, " Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do,
" do it with thy might : for there is no work, nor
'' device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave,
" whither thou goest."

Our attention is naturally called,
I. To the admonition, — '' whatsoever thy hand
" findeth to do, do it with thy might" and.

n. To the consideration by which it is enforced, —
" there* is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor
" wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest."

I. From the connection in which the text is found,
this admonition may be understood as having a pri-
mary

;.2

not at
\s not
d dan<
iicerns
to iin-
thoin-

intitled
and of

lipfcnce
How-
coldly
ly they
is, and
id they
ful im-
idmoni-
iressive
h to do,
rk, nor
B grave.

iiy hand

►reed, —
Ige, nor

s found.

o ^ P"'

mary

mary reference to the concern* of the presimt life,—
as recommending the mo<lerate uite and rational en-
joyment of temporal blesHlngH. Religion in not
nnmical to a becoming attention to the aHbirii of the
world ; nay, it peremptorily forhidn our being nloth-
ful in buHniesH. Am long att men exiHt in the world
they must take some share in itn careM, purnuitN, and
pleasures, and as long aH their own preMervation and
that of others depends on their ex(;rtionH, they munt
be unremitting in th(Mr activity and diligence. The
text, therefore, forbids dehiys in hucIi niatterM; de-
mands instant attention to those* conceriiM of life
which call for thought; and powerfully imprcHMCs
on the minds of uumi, the importance and neceiwity
of making provision for futurity, whiUt time and
opportunities are afforded. And whilst it urjgCM to
such earnestness in the concerns of time, it ih per-
fectly consistent with those other parts of revelation
which couderrui that excessive anxiety and careful-
ness, which comes into competition with the regular
and faithful discharge of tlu; great duticM of n.^ligion
and morality. It requires tln^ instant performance
of duties formerly neglected ; — it demands univerMal
instead of partial obedience ; — it calls lor a double
measure of force and activity to thiit religion, which
before was sincere ; — it stirs up toi^arneHtnesM instead
oi' coldness and indiflerence,
cerns of a future world.

ni regard to the con-

The meaning and force of the admonition, how-
ever, will be best perceived and felt, by viewing your
situation in this world in ditferent aspects, and the
consequent duties which you arc rcquu'cd to pcrfonn.

1. Coasider

f'h

III

1. Consider yourselves as in a state odh^uhnee.

You come into tlie world in a w<'ttk aiul iMflpIrM
state; you struggle through the iiltuntMtm mui daii'
gers of infancy, supported and cheriMlufil by the
affectionate regards of those who f/^ava you fiirth ;
and in the progress of time you become lUt^ Mttnnfri
of others and ot yourselves. Conteiiiplatitil un pluced
in these dependant circumstances, wtuit iUt *' your
" hands find to do?" Under the ^oveninutnl ofciod^
means are wisely connected with eiuU,— ^rjiu;rtfori
is indispensably requisite for the prestfrvuUoii and
increase of temporal good. Even in th« ftunlmi of
Eden, the labour of man was necessary for IIM coni«
fort and support. To sit down in listltjtM iiMM^iivfty
as if provision would descend from Uonvan lik<; tho
manna of old, is to be chargeable with fi (foitiluci
not less criminal than it is foolish. Wn Mrit (ex-
pressly told, that '' the hand of the diliKi'iii'' only
" maketh rich," — that " in labour only iUttw tn pro-
fit." Hence the necessity of industry and iu^tiviiy in
your temporal concerns. See that your <;tilUn|( be
lawful. Use all honorable means for i\w mUmwA^-
ment of your interests. Sloth is shameful ttiid fam-
ous ; it enfeebles the body and debilitates iiw fnimi ;
it infiillibly leads to poverty, infamy, mtd riiin.
Religion enjoins you to be active, and def*Uiren
indolence and carelessness to be neithi^r UiHucetti
nor safe. View it therefore as a religious duty, io
provide the comforts of life for yourselveM and ihoMs
consigned to your care. — And, " whatsoev4^r your
" hands find to do" in this matter '' do it with your
" might," — with the earnestness of those who i'^i Hn
importance, who are tenderly alive to the wrnktutmen
and wants of those who have been cast u]^m iimr

bounty^

-» ■ \

bounty, who arc powerfully impressed with the awe
which Divine authority tihould command.

But whilst you thus use ail lawful means to pro-
mote your temporal interest, be careful to recollect
your dependance upon God, and to acknowledg;e
nis overruling Providence. Without the smiles of
Heaven, the pleasures of life must be destitute of
their animating principle. Strive then to feel your
dependance upon God for a blessing on your ex-
ertions; commend yourselves and those to whom
you are bound by the ties of nature, of duty, and of
affection, to his compassionate regards ; and esteem
the enjoyments of lite as only valuable when ming-
led with the sweets of his " loving kindness which is
*' better than life."

2. Consider yourselves as in a state of guilt, and
liable to punishment.

You cannot deliver yourselves from this state;
for how can beings inherently and totally impure,
make atonement to a God ot Holiness for their im-
purity ? Can repentance save from guilt and
misery? The repentance of such beings needs
to be repented of Can purposes of amendment
found a just claim for pardon? Under human go-
vernments, the most solemn vows of a criminal
are disregarded, and to expect a different form of
procedure under the controul of inflexible justice
IS to cherish the most foolish, because the most un-
founded, hopes. Can future obedience prove a solid
ground of hope? The obedience of the oest of crea-
tures must ever be partial and defective, and unfit to
be beheld with complacency by a God of infinite

• perfections.,

perfections. Look to the history of man in every age
and in every country ; see him conflicting for four
thousand Years with all the variety of moral and
physical evils; falling step by step, in the scale of
religious improvement ; losing in one age what was
acquired in a preceding ; devising means for his re-
covery, trying their strength, and lamenting in all
the madness of despair, their inadequacy to attain
the objects in view, and say, are not all the efforts of
human skill and power, lamentably insufficient to
accomplish the deliverance of man from guilt, de-

fradation, and death ? But is he to perish without
ope ? Shall man, the noblest creature of God, and
child of immortality, be doomed forever to darkness
and despair ? No. — A voice from Heaven declares,
''The blood of Jesus Christ his son, cleanseth from
" all sin." The obedience, sufferings, and death of
Christ, are the only appointed means of justification,
and they are effectual for this purpose, because
Christ is the son of God, — a divine person, — an infi-
nite Being. But in order that the atonement of
Christ may avail for our individual acceptance and
salvation, something is required on our part. Christ
must be believed and obeyed : without this, hope is
unwarranted and dangerous. The city of refuge
would have been totally useless had it not been fled
to ; and the brazen serpent could not possibly have
availed the wounded Israelites for a cure, unless they
had looked to it w ith the eye of confidence in its heal-
ing virtues. This then is what we find to do in the
matter of salvation. We must flee to the place ot
refuge provided in the Gospel. We must look with
the eye of faith to the saviour lifted up on the cross,
for the express purpose that '' whosoever believeth

An(

liev

the

are

the

earr

^ery age
for four
)ral and
scale of
hat was
r his re-
n; in all
o attain
ifforts of
cient to
lilt, de-
without
rod, and
larkness
lee la res,
;th from
rleath of
ication,
because
-an infi-
nent of
ice and
Christ
hope is
refuge
en fled
y have
ss they
s heal-
in the
)lace ot
)k with
3 cross,
lieveth

" on him might not perish, but have everlasting life."
And we must do it with our ''might," — we must be-
lieve with the whole heart. We must lay hold of
the offered salvation with the eagerness of those who
are fully conscious that without the help of Christ
they must perish for ever. We must flee for refuge
to '' the hope set before us in the Gospel," with tlie
earnestness of those who are fully convinced, that
by neglecting this great salvation, they reject the
only mercy that can save them. The reality and
excellence of this faith must be testified to ourselves
and to the world around us, by a life of genuine
repentance and godly sorrow for sin ; activity
and } etd in the cause of God and truth ; cheer-
ful, uniform, and universal obedience to the divine
commands.

3. Consider yourselves as members of society,
or citizens of the world.

This view of your situation involves h\ it many im-
portant relations, and correspondent duties, equally
numerous and equally important. It calls into view,
the interesting connection of parents with children,
masters with servants, friend with friend, and man
with man. Contemplate yourselves as parents, and
what do *'your hands find to do? " You have been al-
ready told, that you must be active and diligent in
providing for your children the necessaries and com-
forts of life, but you have something more to do
than merely to provide those things which are
needful for the body. You have to instruct them
in the great principles and duties of religion ; to
direct and animate them in the paths of wisdom,
and of peace; to exhibit before them a pious and

holy

holy example, and to stir them up to a constant
and faithful imitation. Contemplate yourselves a»
children, under the immediate care and direction
of your parents, and what do " your Imnds find to
do.'" You must reverence and love those to whom,
under God, you are indebted for your existence,
your preservation, your every earthly comfort ; you
must cherish in your hearts the instructions of your
parents, as proceeding from the tenderest regard to
your most valued interests ; you must requite their
affectionate solicitude with the grateful returns of
filial love, when old age with its train of evils, casts
them on your care. Contemplate yourselves as
placed in the relation of masters, and what do your
" hands find to do ? " You must beWare of harsh-
ness and severity, and ever cultivate a spirit of ten-
derness towards those who are employed in your
service ; you nmst overlook trivial faults, and reward
in proportion to diligence and well meant exertion ;
you must remind your servants that they serve a
higher master, on whom you are equally dependant
with themselves ; you must instruct them in their
duty to that divine master, and urge them to be faith-
ful in his service. Contemplate your situation as
servants, apd what do your "hands find to do?"
You must cherish feelings of respect to your master ;
you must study obedience to his will, and maintain
mviolable fidelity to his interests ; you must serve
him "not with eye service, as men pleasers, but in
singleness of heart, as servants of God and not of
man." Contemplate yourselves as placed in the en-
deared relation of friends, and what do your " hands
find to do ? " You must be constant and inviolable
in your attachments ; you must extend your regards

iiiil

"'■h

constant
selves as
direction
s find to

whom,
xistenee,
)rt ; yoii

of your
•egard to
lite their
iturns of
ils, casts
elves as
do your
f harsh -
it of ten-

in your
d reward
jxertion ;
' serve a
^pendant

in their
be faith-
lation as
to do?"
r master ;
maintain
ust serve
, but in
id not of

1 the en-
" hands

iviolable
: regards

to the spiritual interests of those to whom you are
knit by the bonds of love ; you must prove the fideli-
ty and ardour of your friendship by warning of errors
and of dangers, as well as by animating in the paths
of goodness. Contemplate your situation as men,
surrounded by beings of the same nature with your-
selves, and what do '' your hands find to do?" You
must be awake to the interests of those with whom
you are thus connected ; you must visit the humble
abodes of sickness and oi penury ; you must venture
within the sphere of infection, and not be moved
from your generous purpose, by cold damps, or
loathsome spectiicles ; yours be the blissful task to
wipe off the bursting tear, to moisten the parched
lip, and to sooth the parting spirit in its passage to the
land unknown. — And all these numerous duties
which "your hands find to do," in the various rela-
tions and circumstances in which you are placed on
earth you must do "with your might," — not with
the coldness and unconcern of those who regard
them as composing a task, which must be performed,
or which decency enjorns as expedient, but with the
animation and zeal of those whose hearts go along
with their hands, — whose delight consists in obedi-
ence to the will of Heaven, — whose noblest ambition
is, to "walk worthy of that high vocation, with
" which they are called. "

The best method of bestowing charity on the
healthy and strong, is to give them employment. It
was never intended that any man upon the face of
the earth should be idle. Accordingly, we are plac-
ed in a state which abounds with incentives to in-
dustry, and in which we mugt be active, in order to

live.

live. One half of the vices of men, take their origin
from idleness. Men must have occupation of one
kind or other. If they are idle they fall an easy
prey to the tempter, and if they are not employed in
useful and beneficial labours, they will eimage in
those which are pernicious and criminal. To sup-
port the indolent, therefore, to keep those idle who
are able to work, is acting contrary to the intention
of God; is doing an injury to society, which claims
a right to the services of all its members ; is defraud-
ing real objects of charity of that which is their pro-
per due, and is fostering a race of sluggards to prey
on the vitals of a state : But he is a valuable member
of society and merits well of mankind, who, by de-
vising means of employment for the industrious, de-
livers the public from an useless incumbrance, and
makes those who otherwise would be the pests of
society, useful subjects of the commonwealth. If
it be merit, and no small merit it is, to improve
the face of a country, to turn the desert into a
fruitful field, ,and make the barren wastes break
forth into singing ; it is much more meritorious to
cultivate the deserts in the moral world, to render
those who might be otherwise pernicious members
of society, happy in themselves and beneficial to
the state, and by opening a new source of industry
make life and health to circulate through the whole
political body. Such a person is a true patriot, and
does more good to mankind than all the heroes
whose names are emblazoned in the annals of history.
The fame of the one rests on the numbers he has
slain ; the glory of the other rises on the numbers
he preserves and makes happy.

Another

age.

r ongm

of one
an easy
oyed in
»age in
'o siip-
dle who
itention

claims
lefraud-
3ii' pro-
to prey
Tieinber

by de-
US, de-
ce, and
Dests of
1th. If
niprove

into a

break

ious to

render
embers
icial to
iidustry
3 whole
ot, and

heroes
iiistory,

he has
umbers

Lttoth^r

Anolher act of charity, of equal importance, is to
supply the wants of the really indigent and necessi-
tous. If the industrious, with all their efforts, are
not able to earn a competent livelihood ; if the
produce of their labour be not proportionable to
the demands of a numerous family ; then they are
proper objects of your charity. N or can there be
conceived a more pitiable case, than that of those
whose daily labour, after the utmost they can do,
will not procure daily bread for themselves and their
household. . To consider a parent who has toiled
the live-long day in hardship, who yet at night,
instead of finding rest, shall find, in the cravings of
a numerous and helpless family w hich he cannot
satisfy, a pain more msupportable than all his fa-
tigues abroad : this is suihcient to give the most live-
ly touches of compassion to every heart that is not
steeled against the impressions of benevolence. Nor
can there be an exercise of charity better judged,
than administering to the wants of those who are
at the same time industrious and indigent.

Another class of men that demand our charity,
is the aged and feeble, who, after a life of hard la-
bour, after being w orn out with the cares and busi-
ness of life, are grown unfit for further business,
and who add poverty to the other miseries of old
age. What can be more worthy of us, than thus
to contribute to their happiness, who have been once
useful, and are still willing to be so ; to allow them
not to feel the want of those enjoyments, which
they are not now able to procure ; to be a staff to
their declining days ; to smooth the furrows in the
faded cheek, and to make the winter of old age wear
the aspect of spring?

Child

ren

Children, also, bereft of their parents, orphans
cast upon the care of Providence, are signal objects
of compassion. To act the part of a father to tnose
on whose helpless years no parent of their own ever
smiled; to rear up the plant that was left alone
to perish in the storm ; to fence the tender bloom
against the early blasts of vice ; to watch and su-
perintend its growth, till it flourishes and brings
forth fruit : this is a noble employment, well adapt-
ed to a generous mind. What can be more de-
lightful than thus to train up the young to happiness
and virtue ; to conduct them with a safe but gentle
hand, through the dangerous stages of infancy and
youth; to imbue their minds with religious sen-
timents and feelings at an age when they are most
susceptible of good impressions; and to render those
useful members of society who, if turned adrift,
and left defenceless, would become a burden and
a nuisance to the world.

But there is a class of the unfortunate not yet
mentioned, who are the greatest objects of all ; —
those, who, after having been accustomed to ease
and plenty, are, by some unavoidable reverse of
fortune, by no fault or folly of theirs, condemned
to bear, what they are least able to bear, the galling
load of poverty; who, after having been, perhaps,
fathers to the fatherless, in the day of their pros-
perity, are now become the objects of that charity
which they were wont so liberally to dispense.
These persons plead the more strongly for our
relief, because they are the least able to reveal their
misery and make known their wants. Let these,
therefore, in a peculiar manner, partake the bounty

i}\\

orphans
I objects
to those
iwn ever
ft alone
;r bloom
and su-
i brings
U adapt-
lore de-
Etppiness
it gentle
mcy and
ous sen-
are most
ler those
^ adrift,
den and

not yet
•f all;—
to ease
verse of
idemned
J galling
perhaps,
eir pros-
charity
lispense.
for our
eal their
it these,
5 bounty

the lihcml and opori hand, Lot your goodness des-
cend to Uioui ill Hoci'ct, and, like the Providence of
Heaven, conceal i\w hand A%hich gives them relief,
that their bluHlu^N may be Hpared, while their wants
are supplied.

4. Contcinplttlo yourselves as candidatci for im-
mortality.

That the prcHcnt in not our ultimate condition,
unassisted reaHon diHCovered, and the consent of
nations, barbarous hm W(;11 as civilized, heathen as
well as chriHtiun, Mtrikingly attests. It is mani-
festly um'eaKoual)le to NUppose that an all-wise and
benevolent Being* woiihl have formed man with such
a horror at the (hoiiglit of annihilation and sudi a
longing aft( Immortality, if non-existence v,'c*re ul-
timately to be U'lH jKirtion ; — that a creature pos-
sessed of such noble powers and capacities, should
have been formed merely for the purpose of bustling
amid the trifling and momentary concerns of time,
and then mingling for ever with the clods of the
valley ; — that a bein|»; endowed with faculties of
soul, coiiHtttutly inakmg progress to a state of per-
fection at whieji tlu*y never arrive on earth, should
be violently arreMled in his career of improvement
and doomed to eternal inactivity and gloom. These
are the siiggeHtioim of reason, and they are fully
confirmed l)y tin? great diseoveries of revelation.
Jesus, "the captain of salvation" " hath abolished
death, and brought immortality to light." But the
Gospel tells m much more than the simple truth
that our souls are immortal: it sheds a glorious
liglit on the regions beyond the grave. It tells
us that heaven is the abode of perfect holiness ; that
its society is of the purest kind, " the spirits of just

' i

f»

mea

'' men made perfect, an innumerahle company ol*
" angels, God the judge of all and Jesus the medi-
"atorofthe new covenant;" that its employments
are the most refined and exalted in which it is pos-
sible for immortal and glorified spirits to engage ;
that its pleasures are the purest and most sublime
which it " can enter into tne heart of man to con-
" ceive." And whilst it unveils these bright prospects
to stimulate our energies, to fire ambition and to
enkindle hope, it faithfully declares "that into the
New Jerusalem nothing that defileth can enter,"
that ''the ptu-e in heart" oidy " shall see God."
What, indeed, would an impure and unholy being
do in the regions of perfect purity and holiness t
His breast coidd not beat in unison w ith the kindred
spirits of the redeemed ; the pleasures of " the just
made perfect " would be too refined and too en-
nobled for his meau and grovelling spirit ; 'all the
symphony of celestial music would sound discordant
on his ear. What, then, as candidates for an im-
mortality of perfect holiness, what do " our hands
find to do?" "Follow holiness" says an Apostle,
" without which no man shall see the Lord." For
enjoying the fellowship of the pure spirits above, for
mmgling our notes of praise with the loftier strains of
the heavenly host, and for relishing the exalted enjoy-
ments of angels and of God, we must be prepared
while on earth. Our understandings must be en-
lightened, our hearts nuist be renewed, our wills must
be reclaimed, our affections must be elevated, our
"conversation must be as becometh the Gospel."
Here, then, is business for us to do ; — a work so
great, a task so arduous, that were we required to
perform it in our own strength, we might justly shrink
from its difficulties and sink in despair. But let us

•#■''.

rejoice

Kiijy of
iiicdi-
J[meiits
is pos-

ubiiirie
o con-

3spect»

and to
ito tlio

filter,"
God."
bein^

liiiess ?

indred

lie just

oo en-

all the

crdarit

111 iin-

Iiands

postle.
For

^Gy for

lins of

enjoy-

^pared

e en-

5 must

, our

jpel."

•k so

3d to

brink

et us

joice

■*.!■

r( jt)ire in thv j)roniis(; of divine and heavenly aids,
Ho ])urity our ualnres, to sanctify our souls, and to
hel[) our olredienee. "My grace" saith Jehovah,
"shall be suHicient tor thee, and my strength shall
' be nuule perfect in thy weakness." To this grace
and strength let us resoil in every season of ditticulty
and alarm, ever studying to " be blameless and
harndess the sons of God without rebuke," "adorn-
" ing the doc^trine of our God and Saviour," and ri-
pening for "the inheritance of the saints in light." —
And all this we nuist do with oiu* "might ;" — with the
dignity of sentitnent and ardour of feeling ^vhich
should distinguish those who are alive to their ex-
alted eircuiustances, their high destiny, and their
dazzling pros|>ects. We must enter into the s])irit
and feel the force of the Apostle's language, when
he says "Pight the good tight of faith." "So run
' that ye may ohiuin." " Forgetting the things which
" are behind, reach forth to those vvhicli are before.

" press towards the mark for the prize of
•' calling of God in Christ Jesus."

the high

II. Tlie consideration by which the admonition of
the text is enforced, is of a most interesting and im-
pressive nature; — " there is no work, nor device, nor
" knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou

"' ffoest."

Taking the whole in one view, Solomon may ])e
considered as thus addressing the sons of men ; Be
diligent and active now, in forming schemes for your
future advantage and in executing the plans which
you devise, for " there is no work, nor device in the
grave." Be unremitting now in your exertions to
improve the jiowers of your souls, to store your

minds

f '11 ►

miruls A^ilh useful acquisitions, and to attuia sound
wisdom, for " tlioie is no kn(mlod<»o nor wisdom in
" the grave/' and to that phiceof inactit^i and insen-
sibility, an irrevocable niiuidate ordaiuii you to go.

Viewed in tliis light, tlie language of the wise man
is intelligible to all, and it states a fact which can
never be questioned. But, contemplated more es-
pecially in a religious light, we lind that doubts have
been entertained on the subject, or at least it has
failed to produce its full impression. If the conduct
of men can at all be rescued from the charge of
absolute folly, it seems to be founded on the presump-
tion that, at dtnith, the term of their probation does
not expire, and that some means shall be employed
in an miermediate state for the removal of gudt and
the attainment of purity. The folly of sucli an ex-
pectation it is quite unnecessary to pro v^e in an ad-
dress to tho:e who profess the Protestant i'aith, or
who have studied the sacred volume with minds
unfettered by puitialities and open to conviction. It
is an expectation which the whole spirit and ten-
dency of revelation declares to bt; delusive and
ruinous ; which the text contradicts in the most une-
quivocal, the most solemn, the most decisive lan-
guage, when it asserts — " ihere is no work, nor device
" nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave."

The force of this consideration viewed as a motive
to activity and diligence in the momentous concerns
of religion, demands the greatest share of our atten-
tion. Yoiu' situation in this w orid has been exhibited
in different aspects, and the various duties thence
arisiiig have been set before you and urged on your
attention. These duties, then, I now press home
upon you with renewed earnestness as demanding

instant

<%^

iustant ixnloniumcc, for tlioM? iniinn^Kt oflior rrn-
Hods, — lluit lli(^ |)r('H(!iit in your iiiont liivoiiruljln op-
jKMlMiiily, — that the pcricxl when it iriay cUipMr it*
al)s(»hit(>ly uiK'iMlaiii, — and lliat, " in the ^ruve whi-
" ilu'Y yon ^o tlicrc; is no work, nor chfvicc, nor
" knovvlctl;^c, nor wisdom. "

Aro yon phurd in a slate? of dcprndaticcr nrid rn-
fpiirod to proviih' Cor yonrsclvrs and thoHc conHi^fitul
toyonrcarr, by yonr own t.'vrrl ions f " WhutKorvrr
'• your hand tnuh'tli to(h)" in thin niutt(!r, "do it
'' with your nui>ht ; tor in tlic <;'ravc whither yon ^o"
activity is unknown; {\w urni of exertion in luid
nerveless by the sichj; th(; hurry of buMinesH, th«
struftftles ot conij)elition, and the buHthMiC lite, arc
succeeded by a sidhiess which th(? thunch-r of heaven
cannot sl)ake. Placed in a state of <;'uilt and expoMCfd
punishment, arc you called to " beli(!V(; in the Lord
" Jesus Christ that you may Uc saved " and to evinct^
the sinc( lity of your faith by a lite of holy ol)fjdi-
euce ? " NVhatsoever yoiu" hand lindt'lh to do," in
llic way of tkith and o!>edience, "do it with your
'"mii^'ht; for iri the f»rave whither yon go" even
''the willKrod arm" of faith eaimot int e\t(Mid(fd to
the Saviour, pardoning;' mercy Ih unknown, "the
" accepted time and the day of salvation " are pro-
claimed no more. Arc; yon Miu'rounded by bem<;;H
like yourselves to whom you arc? bound by close and
endearin:; ties, and who demand of you olliees of
tenderness and love? *' Whatsociver your hand
" tindetl) to do/' in the various relations (if lif(*, "do
"it witii your mi^ht; for in tins ^'rav(! whith(»r you
' ^o"' tJie most sacred connections of time art; bur«t
asunder, "love is perislu.'d," atid dijeds ofkindnesM
can no lono( r b,* pci-fonned. Parents! inslruct your

hihh

•en

jii,

rhildren and aiiiinatt; tluMii in tin; pufh* tti hI«
duiii and of pracc ; lot* yotinniMt mmhi \t'it\$' iUt'Ht
to u iTiei'cilcHM and (Misnarin*'' world, and wIii'M yoti
aro consi«i^nrd to tlio i;ni\<», tli<'y sliail rJM* ii|», (tot to
call you bh'ssrd, hnt to n'[)rou(ii your ini^niory ; tfii'y
shall visit yonr |L»rav(', not to droji tlio t<*iir of rt'p^rt^i
or to vow over yonr hallowed dnsl, ctcrnul oImmIi
encc to your connnands, but to cnrs^* you for Vour
neglect of their d(»arest inten'sts. (.'Iiddreu! mint
to the admonitions of your parents and imitutit f^t^ji'
virtues; for soon you must Ini deprivetl of th v; f>^<
of counsellors, and when you consign tlwirh ' f** i'^lhr
j^rave, yonr breasts will be wru«i^' with Ih" I tif-^t
ana^nish of remorse at the thou«'iil of o'»r uttdiifihd
conduct, your ingratitude and n<;;,i^«;i. Mni^iv.fHt
reo'ard yoiu* servants as bein»s kA' {ha adm** imiUfP.
with yourselves, aud treat the u with ciiriHtiMiU fjfitti-
tieness and tender forbearance; tor in iUt* ^fMV/?
whither you and they equally t(Mid dititiucftoitM of
rank are unkuowu, " the rich and t)i<» poor tm*H
" too-etherj the small and the <;reat are then*, und Ihw
" servtiut is free from his master." Herv«nt«»! i'tm-
tinuc faJtiiful to the interests of your \ui\HWfH, Ut* naif
discoura^v^'d in your coiu'se of duty townrd*» tlM'ui
thon«;h they may tail in their duty to you, b<*«r ivith
their iiduunanity and unjust reproiu'hex ; for the
ji^rave is the land of peace whither the tVi<Mtdlfr«*i(
exile retires beyond the reach of opprehsjou mtd iUa
cruellest arrows of fortune ; " there the prt>>>oM<'r«t r^^^t
*' together, they hear not the voice of the i>\)\m**mit/'
Ye who are bound together by the tien oj idood or
of affection! cherish ti*;. /i» m innentH of fr^'wdi^hip,
take delight in an inte i < mm*:*, A kinu aitiMitiotN mul
soothing endearments; lor the touch of dejuth (flttlh
the warmest current of affection, and in ** iSw, |^rttt«

HhitJK^r

Mf ilU'Ut

Wit yoii
', tuti i(f
y '. i\wy

\ ofwdi
if ymw
\ \\%iv\i
it*, iUl^^\'

miUiYti

" wliiili'i" yon ^o" \]\v aslu's of fr'uMHls unci lors are
miii^l(H. i()'«;('tlH'r in oiu' iiii(iistiii«;uislitHl mass. But
tlioic is 11 IhmhI vvhiclniuilrsiiuiii with man and there-
tore 1 a 'jl'-ess all <»t' yon as related to each oilier by
the ijrs of one ronimon nature, and <all npou you to
'' be k'ldly iilK( tioned one toward another, ' to
"visit the lathcu-iess and the widows in their aiHie-
" tion, " to ^ive of yonr abundanee for the sn|3port
of the indii;'ent, to alleviate the piins of the disea *\
and the sorrows of the woniuU^d m spirit ; for " in thr
" p-ave whither yon <;•()." the pi'n;rirns staff is use-
h'ss; the eharitieN of life have eeased for ever ; elo!««Hl
is the eye whieli now sheds the sympatlietic tear
silent is the ton^^ne whieii now utters the words < ,
soothinii' tenderness, cold to its linest sensibil ties i
the heart which now feels for distrc ss, Stan(hn«;- in
the iuterestiui^ attitude of candidates for immor-
tality, arc you called to jirepar* for " the inheritance
union;;' tluMu whoaresanctilied i ' " Whatsoever your
'' hand iindeth to do" in reii'iu ' to those " tluMifS

which belou"' to vo«u' everlasti ir neaee

do it

" with your might;" for " in the i;rave whither you
fto " the state of all is fixed be) md th%' ]K)ssibility
of change, "he that is mdioly mu-t be unholy still,
and he tliat is (ilthy nuist be fdthy still," no prepa-
ration can be made for that laud ol purity and bliss.

to which it

opeui!

the

ly.

How interesting:^ aud impressive, then, the consi-
deration by which the iujuuction of our text is en-
forced, — ' there is no work, nor de^ ice, nor know-
'■ Icd^e nor wisdom, in the grave whither thou
'• goist!" It sliould come home t > our breasts
with peculiar force on this oeeasiou. One year has
just closed and another has just comnienced. How

solemn

■#';•

Hi: r!

solemn the truth which the laj3se of tune prcff?se3
on our recollection, — " thou j»ocst to fhe «»Tiive!"
and how awful the thought that talents, opportu-
nities, and means of iniprovemeut shall be buried
\vith us ! The period of our departure is wrapt in
dread uncertainty, but one thing* we have too much
reason to apprehend, that before this year comes to
its close, some of us sliall have gone to the grave.
Is not each of us reatly to utter the language of
fearful anxiety and to say with the disciples of old,
" Lord, is it I?" At all events, our duty and our
interest is to be active in business, '' fervent in spi-
" rit, serving the Lord," — prizing every opportu-
nity as if it were our last, and improving every mo-
ment as if the next were to terminate our earthly
career. This is sound wisdom, and the most care-
less and vmconcerned of mortals shall certainly find
it so, though, alas ! it may be too late to repent of
their folly. The time of sober consideration must
arrive, but it comes too late when it cim no longer
reform but merely reproacli, a conduct guided by
folly and tending to misery. Brethren ! You see
your perilous situation if you contirme indifferent to
the concerns of eternity. Whilst you are thoughtless
and gay, every thing around you wears a serious as-
pect. You may loiter, but time will speed its flight.
Satan will not be inactive in carrying on his work and
God will not be mocked. For once, then, be thought-
ful and serious. Reflecting on the past, may you tes-
tify repentance! anticipating the future, .may you
awake to newness of life ! — But if this like other
warnings fails to produce its designed effect, you musl

Eerish, — not because you were so unfortunate as to
e ignorant of your danger, but because you were
mad enough to disregard it.

FINIS

presses
^rave!"
Dpportii-
e buried
wrapt in
oo much
joines to
B grave.
;iiage of
i of old,
ind our
t in spi-
)pportu-
ery mo-
earthly
st care-
nly find
3pent of
»n must
> longer
ded by
^ou see
Rrent to
ightless
ious as-
s tliglit.
ork and
lought-
ou tes-
lay you
! other
>u must
e as to
.1 were