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 16m EqsJ Main street > 
 
 tSfif^"- '**• ^0* U604 USA »• - 
 
 (M6) 482 -0300- Phon. "^ * 
 <7I6) 28«-59*-fox -> 
 
CHRISTIANS ON EARTH AND IN HEAVEN": 
 
 THB 
 
 SUBSTANCE OF A,ljjKCOURSE, 
 
 DELIVKllKD IN THK 
 
 ADELAIDE STREET WESlEYAN-MEpoblST CDURCIT, 
 
 Cotonto, 
 
 ON' SABBATH EVENING, OCTOBER 29tb, 1848, 
 
 ON TRB OCCASION Of THB 
 
 DEATH OF MliS. SANDERSON, 
 
 LATE WIFE OF THE REV. GEO. R. SANDERSON, 
 
 EDITOR OF TBE CHRISTIAN GUARDIAN. 
 
 BY THE REV. E. RYERSON, D.D, 
 
 iT-- 
 
 TORq|ifTO: 
 
 I PUBLISHED AND SOLD AT THE W. M. BOOK ROOM, 
 No. 9, Wellington Buildings. 
 
 1848. 
 
 ■.■■■■■■; •■■..'■ 
 
 
? . 
 
 Mt Dear Fi 
 
 '• «• LAWRENCE, PRINTER. 
 
 I hereby pr 
 on the pccasio 
 not that I Bupj 
 tion/'beyond th 
 with your wisl 
 by all that had 
 
 You will, jn 
 
 within 60 narrc 
 
 and a half in 
 
 preached withoi 
 
 and as I have ni 
 
 possessed, Icai 
 
 b^ar, and least ( 
 
 which I have en 
 
 nothing more th 
 
 temporaneous d 
 
 I hope I have no 
 
INTRODUCTOBY NOTE. 
 
 Mt Dear Friend, 
 
 Toronto, Mixfroier 8, 1848. 
 
 I hereby present you with the substance o{ my discourse 
 on Uje occasion of the decease of your dear dep^:^:^ 
 not^hat I suppose it contains anything worthy of publica 
 U n b^ond the briefpersonal references, but in eo^'plUn^ 
 
 oy ail that had the happiness of knowing her. 
 
 Inf.; ""''"''' ^'^'''^y- ' B"'.thediLurse was 
 Poached wuhout any previous ..r6a7 preparation whatever 
 and as I have nearly Jost what little verbal memory I o^ce 
 possessed I c,n seldom recall the words that /read 
 
 ShTh :r ,^"'/*^^''^^ ^^ '' -y «PP^-' ^^ -"^ 
 m, bin ^7'''y«'^ ™y«eJf- I have therefore attempted 
 
 nothmg more than to transcribe the .«.<me«., of my ex- 
 temporaneous discourse. Though I have abridged m'uch, 
 I hope I have not omnM any thing of importance in a m-a. 
 
 n 
 
■\" 
 
 ten diicouTBe ; and in some ptrts, I think I have nearly 
 caught the language of the original, and on one or two 
 points, have added to the original illustrations. 
 
 If the discourse thus prepared, during mere snatches of 
 time amidst numerous other duties, shall afford any com- 
 fort or satisfaction to a friend for Whom every additional 
 year's acquaintance has increased my love and esteem ; and 
 ^ if the perusal of what I have here written on a subject in- 
 teresting to all Christians, shall be the means of edifylng^ 
 N and encouraging any, I shall be more than compensated 
 for this imperfect performance of the task which friendship 
 has imposed upon me. 
 
 Th^se meditations, and the immediate occasion of them^ 
 have deeply aSected me. While they have led me to travel 
 in thought among the angel morning stars and redeemed 
 inhal}^nts of heaven, they have brought afresh to my 
 mind past experiences and remembrances of the most 
 touching character. The acquaintances of my youth aifr 
 fast disappearing ; and in some places that I visit, I seem 
 already to be a man of another generation than of that 
 which lived when I commenced public life. That life, 
 busy as it has been, seems but a day. Perhaps hot half 
 a day remains to finish my course of labout. Ah ! 'when 
 we wrap ourselves in the shrouds of our departed friends, 
 and, for a while, as it vrire, lay down in their graves, what 
 views do we thence form of the wd^ld, of religion, of the 
 cross, of heaven ! Riches change, honouK change, opin- 
 ions change, passions change, friendships change, customs 
 change, societies change ; but Rbligion changes not— its 
 Might shines mora and more unto the peVect day ;' the 
 
 t— it is still 
 
 virtue of the Cross changes not- 
 
 the * power 
 
 of God and t 
 heaven chanj 
 and its joys 
 our trust, we 
 meot, and su 
 reunion, frien 
 and live, and 
 infinite merit 
 and expect ii 
 companions, 1 
 'he that sowc 
 
 But I muE 
 which I had i 
 DOtej and wl 
 i^retion. 1 
 baps, pardons 
 eternity, and 
 the past, the 
 
 I remain, i 
 respect and U 
 
 ■»,'-"""■ 
 
 The Rev. G. ] 
 
 £dito 
 
 -ii_ 
 
.6 
 
 lave nearly 
 one or two 
 
 anatchea of 
 I any com- 
 f additional 
 (steem ; and 
 I subject in- 
 of edifyinf 
 lonopensated 
 h friendsliip 
 
 on of them, 
 tne to travel 
 d redeemed 
 reeh to my 
 f the most 
 f youth arT 
 isiti I 8eem 
 ban of that 
 That life, 
 ps hot half 
 Ah ! when 
 ted friends, 
 raves/ Avhat 
 :ion, of the 
 ange, opin- 
 l^e, customs 
 fes not— its 
 t day ;' the 
 the * power 
 
 of God and the wisdom of God to every one that believeth ;' 
 heaven changes not — its riches, its honours, its splendours 
 and its joys increase and brighten forever. If faithful to 
 our trust, we shall soon have experienced our last bereave- 
 ment, and suffered our last pain ; and all beyond will be 
 reunion, friendship, happiness. For this may we believe, 
 and live, and preach. And what may we not, through the 
 infinite merits of our gracious Redeemer, humbly hope for 
 and expect in a new and everlasting meeting with our 
 companions, long-tried friends, and fellow-laboureris, where 
 * he that soweth and he that reapeth shall rejoice together.' 
 
 But I must stop this effusion of personal feeling, in 
 which I bad no intention to indulge whenJLconmenced this 
 DOtej and which, with some t^|^||tr6n, I leave to your 
 l^retion. The indulgence of 1«ing and (^morion is, per- 
 haps, pardonable on an occasion which links time with 
 eternity, and agitates the heart with the consciousness of 
 the past, the present, and the future. 
 
 I remain, my dear Friend, with sentiments of sincere 
 respect and fe^-lings of deepest sytnpatby, 
 
 Yours, very affectionately, 
 
 EGERTON RYERSON. 
 
 "■-■"' ■ »" ■ 
 
 The Rev. G. R. SANDEBSorr, 
 
 Editor of the Chriitiam GwaHat. 
 
SI 
 
 "ThB SPIR] 
 
 
 Twothlnj 
 
 thing is t^wf 
 
 It is certain 
 
 is stamped u 
 
 the decrees 
 
 upon every i 
 
 that we shal 
 
 is appointed 
 
 judgment. . 
 
 there is a Si 
 
 has intellecti 
 
 so certain is 
 
 to the deeds i 
 
 written in th 
 
 records thou£ 
 
 tions ; and G 
 
 US' out of tfaoi 
 
 as the light t 
 
 trated in the 
 
 of midnight, 
 
 death and ju 
 
 death and ju( 
 
 or condition i 
 
 any rule or pi 
 
 calculate the 
 
SUBSTANCE OP A DISCOURSE. 
 
 "The spirits or jdst min maoi: PBRrzcT."«.(I«b. ^ 93^ 
 
 ^AM^^M^f^l^S 
 
 *M^>M^^wvvMv^M«Mvv* 
 
 Two thingij, my brethren, are fearfully certain, and one 
 thing is t^wfiilly uncertain, in respect to our future destiny. 
 It is certain that we shall all die. The sentence of death 
 is stamped upon our physical constitution ; it is written in 
 the decrees of Providence ; and it will soon be executed 
 upon every individual in this assembly. It is also certain 
 that we shall all be judged for our conduct in this life. . It 
 is appointed unto men once to die, and after death the 
 judgment. As certain as there is a moral government-^as 
 there is a Supreme Being of moral porfectiona — as man 
 has intellectual and moral faculties and a power of volition ; 
 80 certain is it that he will be hereafter judged according 
 to the deeds done in the body. Our individual history is 
 written in the book of God's remembrance ; that history 
 records thoughts as well as words, motives as well as ac- 
 tions ; and God has appointed a day in which he will judge 
 tos out of those things written in his book. The darkness is 
 as the light to Him ; and every secret thing, however perpe- 
 trated in the loneliness of retiremeot or under the mantle 
 of midnight, will be brought into judgement. But while 
 death and judgment aire certain to us all, the time of our 
 death and judgment is awfully uncertain. No age, rank, . 
 or condition is exempt from the shafts of death ; nor is there 
 any rule or physiological development by which we can 
 calculate the period of our future earthly existence. Five 
 
 
 / 
 
8 
 
 weeks ago on Friday evening last, when the several Wes* 
 leyaff Ministers in this City arid their wived met at my 
 'house, had any person undertaken to conjecture as to the 
 coraparativejenglh of life among the females present, the 
 apparent health arid Constitutional vigour of our departed 
 Bister would have marked her out for the longest earthly 
 career of any female of the company ; but that was the 
 last time she ever left her own dwelling ; and even then a 
 tumour was forming on the heart' which baffled the best 
 medical skill of the city employed in her behalf— which 
 indeed lay beyond the reach of any human skill,r-and which 
 has prematurely terminated her probationary state. It 
 often happens that the most robust and healthy member of ■ 
 a family is cut down, while the life of the comparatively 
 feeble is protracted for many years. And so in this assem- 
 bly, perhaps the very person whose appearance gives the 
 strongest promise of many days and long life on earth, 
 who is forming the largest schemes of future enterprise, 
 and indulging the strongest hopes of future success and 
 enjoyment,, may, at this very riibment, be the unconscious 
 victim of incipient disease, and be destined to be the first 
 follower of our departed friend to the sepulchre of the 
 dead. We know not what a day shall bring forth. In 
 the midst of life we are in death. 
 
 It becomes each of us then to live in a state of daily pre- 
 paration either for life or for deatl^. And let it be impres- 
 eed upon our niinds, that the best preparation for death, is 
 the best fitness for life ; that the best meetness for enter- 
 ing into the society of heaven, is the best qualification for 
 performing our duties to the society of earth ; that when 
 we possess the mind which was in Christ, when "our con- 
 versation is in heaven," and "our life hid with Christ in 
 God," then are we beet adapted to perform every part of 
 our appoinUHl work here and do the will of God on earth 
 as angels do it in heaven. 'The spirit of true religion is 
 the spirit of heaven— is the reflection of Its purity and be- 
 nevolence ; and this life is the apprenticeship of heavenly 
 knowledge and employment. * ' 
 
 Such is 1 
 dispensatioi 
 better aid 
 ing our \u 
 ments of tn 
 oO earth an 
 latter for 01 
 tBe spirits c 
 
 The past 
 
 text is a pai 
 
 .this tvhole c 
 
 the gospel 
 
 and majestic 
 
 the overwhe 
 
 which it ui 
 
 I the most pei 
 
 religion. H( 
 
 is presented 
 
 majesty on '. 
 
 Tenant and ti 
 
 Moses and tl 
 
 and the thic 
 
 instead of hi 
 
 death, andti 
 
 believers 'tire 
 
 forming a pai 
 
 and consecrai 
 
 innumerable ' 
 
 by God the J 
 
 associated wit 
 
 those first tro 
 
 in the diadem 
 
 faith subdued 
 
 promises, sto] 
 
 lence of fire, 
 
 ness were ma 
 
 flight the am 
 
 dead raised to 
 
 
 
 4 . 
 
 
 
 ;' • 
 
 
 > 
 
 ■ ■ ■■■, ■' 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 J 
 
 
 "■*.', 
 
 
 
 
 
 :0 
 
 .« 
 
 .-■ 
 
 
 ♦ 
 
 . ■ - 
 
 ■ ■ .■ ■ 
 
 .■■.'■ 1 -• . . V 
 
 .■.■-■=.■■"■ , 
 
 
 
 -. -1 ■ ■ 
 
 ..■■■*•■■ 
 
 
 ■^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 ^^^ 
 
 ^^ 
 
 
 
 
everal Wes- 
 met at my 
 re as to the 
 present, the 
 oiir departed 
 ige^t earthly 
 at was the 
 even then a 
 Bed the best 
 ialf-*-whfch 
 r-and which 
 1 state. It 
 f member of ; 
 imparatively 
 this assem- 
 :e gives the 
 ' on. earth, 
 enterprise, 
 access and 
 unconscious 
 be the first 
 hre of the 
 forth. In 
 
 f daily pre- 
 be impres- 
 or death, is 
 8 for enter- 
 iiication for 
 that when 
 I " our con- 
 1 Christ in 
 ry part of 
 )d on earth 
 religion is 
 ty and be- 
 )f heavenly 
 
 Such is the object of the discourse which this afflictive 
 dispensation has suggested; and I knowr not how I can 
 better aid in fcccomplishing its purpose,^n by direct: 
 ing ^our united^ attention to the chara»stic develop- 
 ments of true rehgion in the persons of its diseiples both 
 oil^^earth and in heaven -the, former for our guidance, the 
 alter for our comfort and encouragement^ J«,< ««,, and 
 tBespiritsof just men made |>er/ec/. 
 JThe passage (see verses 22, 23, H) of which our 
 text 18 a part, contains the summary of the argument of 
 .this (vhole epistle-^the superiority of the dispensation of 
 the gospel over every preceding dispensation ; and the lofty 
 and majestic figures of this passage are only excelled by 
 the overwhelming grandeur and sublimity of the truths 
 which It uirfolds. Here no new religion is taught, but 
 the most perfect dispensation oTtlie first and the only true 
 religion. Here the infinite benignity of God on Mount Zion 
 18 presented in inviting contrast with his uiipropitiated 
 majesty on Mount Sinai. Here Jesus with the new co- 
 venant and blood of sprinkling is exhibited in the place of 
 ^Tl '^15*!^ t''»"«^«'-« «ad the lightnings and the tempest 
 and the thick darkness of the burnirir mountain. Here, 
 instead of being the trembling spectators of terror and of 
 death, and the isolated occupants of a temporary h~abitatlon, 
 Jelieyers^re represented as denizens of a heavenly city-^ 
 fomiing apartof ageneral assembly, privileged, sanctified, 
 and consecrated to God as the first-born-attended by an 
 innumerable company of angels-governed and rewarded 
 by Gpd the Judge of all through Jesus the Mediator— and 
 associated with the 6pirits of the just men made perfect — 
 hose first trophies of Redeeming grace, and brightest gems 
 in the diadem of Meditorial splendour; who had « through 
 faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained 
 promises,^ stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the vio- 
 lence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weak- 
 ness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to 
 flight the ^armies of the aliens. Women received their 
 dead raised to IHe again : and others Wer^^ tortured, nb^ 
 
 ■,■',■ , \-j^ ..; \.f '■■■.■ ' }■ J- 
 
 J 
 
l: 
 
 10 
 
 accepUng deliverance ; that they might obtain a beUer n* 
 8umct.on : and others had tri/l of cruel r^^U^^Z 
 flcourgingB. yqp moreover, of bond, and impriBonment . 
 they were atoned they were sawn asunder, were Zp^! 
 were Blam with the sword : they wandered about in sE 
 ekinsand goat skins ; being destitute, afflicted, tonneS 
 they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and 
 caverof the earth. O/ u*om tte t«,rM tia, n^ Trth^ 
 
 tJM**/'' ■ 'P'"*" f these just men made perfect, that 
 ?,»^'^"v"PP^\" "^'"^^ '° ''^^' >" the text; They „ 
 cjiredj«,/orngAteo«,, expressive of their relation a„d 
 character on earth ; they are represented as ,«arfe ^ 
 nd.cat.ve of their state and character in heaven ; thetwS 
 topics of our present discourse. '«' iwo 
 
 ■ - j>^ 
 
 f hi ??^^ "'^ f "^ •''"" ""' righteou,. This includes 
 tit^t f";f •'■"'^^ justification of their persons-the rec- 
 titude of their nature-the purity of their lives. 
 
 ^.l:- ^^^^,T°''^'"fir just or righteous implies <Ae iwtf- 
 ^^l^^f^l^^r persons. They were once sinners-were 
 ^Jikv of'thJ";'^ T**^ ''T "^ others,-and were also 
 
 ITaI^ W'"^''! "^'"^ """^ '""^J^' '^ '^ condemnation 
 ol death. This is the sentence of our race. « Death has 
 
 passed uponallmen, for all have sinned." These just were 
 
 Uierefore^once^unju^t ; these righteous were once inrighte- 
 
 ous , and in themselves and of themselves, they stood in 
 
 the same relation and were under the same penalty with 
 
 you and with me and all other sinners of ma^ind. H6w 
 
 hen were they made righteous ? How were they made 
 
 Sn VT?f \'V^^ '^'"^' ^'""«" •" '^' law against 
 iZflr A^ '^V^'' ' '■°'" '"^^ «a°n"t, in ite nature, 
 admit of pardon. Not by works of the law; for W the 
 deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified. But they were 
 made righteous through the merits of Him who is the 'end 
 
 Goi fh«.h ^"""'f '•Jf°,T!!« to every one that believeth.' 
 God 'hath sent forth Jiis Son, made under the law, that he 
 might redeem them that were under the law, that we might 
 
 receive the 
 
 knew no si 
 
 Hghteobsne 
 
 the price ol 
 
 coAimensun 
 
 'He is the 
 
 bnt also for 
 
 sheep have j 
 
 the iniquity 
 
 heaven owef 
 
 thepbedienci 
 
 ven is the pi 
 
 the life of th( 
 
 But it doe 
 
 death for ev( 
 
 The Saviour 
 
 dicine must I 
 
 uneaten food 
 
 life only to tl 
 
 Lord Jesus G 
 
 shall be darai 
 
 given among 
 
 of Jesus ; so 
 
 saved by him. 
 
 unto him for 1 
 
 persons in hei 
 
 —the divinelj 
 
 What then 
 we are accout 
 pend upon phi 
 clearly supposi 
 Him for the pi 
 guilt. Hence 
 hence the peni 
 of England, "' 
 us, and the bu 
 pj-essive of the 
 
■ l: 
 
 I a better re, 
 ocking^ and 
 prisonnient : 
 ere tempted, 
 out in sheep 
 » tormented: 
 t in dens and 
 ot Worthy." 
 
 Jerfect, that 
 They are 
 elation and 
 Mde perfect, 
 sn; the two 
 
 IK includes 
 8^— the rec- 
 
 receive the adoption of sons.*- * He hath «» j- w 
 Itoew no sin, to be sin for us • th«f i? • u^t ^""' ^''^ 
 righteousness of God In h m ' ' ThI !» '"?''* ''f ""'^^ ^''^ 
 .he price of our redemption"* and he v'luf of .b' f^"^' J^ 
 commensurate with the a.,i » «f ♦i ^"/"f °f ^^at price is 
 
 'He is the propitiatio'n'f<Jtrl fr.:;^^^^^ -f- 
 
 imtalsoibr the sina of the «S;;^r ^^^^"^ 
 
 beavendwL hird:Lari i^Srtht"'^^^ Tr^'^ '^ 
 thepbedience of Christ S.prhK "° °^ ^''^ ^'^^ *<> 
 
 ven^s the purcLseTf bis^ood th T"!^ '^"'^ '" »««»- 
 the life of the world. ^''^o^- The death of Christ is 
 
 ^^^Z^:^^ Chri^i .tasted 
 
 The SaviourmL b'l%SrweT,lt':S:r'^^^^^^^^^ 
 dicne must be talcen as well as prenare?^? !. ' *''^ ""^ 
 uneaten food will not nourish theKr Z^'" *° •=""' 
 life only to those that eat t ' 'H« /iff kT ''^*^^" Si^es. 
 Lord Jesus Christ sJaUbesav^" h5>K''7'''* °° '^^ 
 shall be damned'' AsthL- ' u *''''* believeth not 
 given among men wtr^tJ! "° "^J^"^ "'^™^ Mr heaven 
 of Jesus; sfSTfwiL-^"!.^^ 
 
 •avcdbyW'^llr.h'^^^^^^^^ °^ •'-^ 
 
 unto him for riffhteousness •'»!!. ?k'.."'^ '* "^"^ counted 
 
 clearly supposes a consciou^nernfT^^ ''™*'' *° '^^'"e 
 
12 
 
 oppression of spirit ; and hence earnest and importunate 
 seeking of deliverance from anguish so distressing and a 
 burthen so intolerable. The intensity aftd bitterness of pen- 
 itential sorrow, produced by this incipient work of the Holy 
 ^pirit in * cdnvinciiig of sin, of righteousness, and dTf a 
 judgment to come,' differ in degree and mode of expres- 
 sion according to constitutional temperament, diversity of 
 circumstances, and the purposes of sovereign grace. In 
 some.irt8tance& the heart is gently opened like that of Ly- 
 dia ; or gradually prepared like those of Cornelius and the 
 Ethiopian Treasurer; or suddenly pricked under the di- 
 vinely annointed preaching of the word like the three thous- 
 and converts on the day of Pentecost ; or seized with the 
 deepest anguish through the instrumentality of some re- 
 markable Providence, like the persecuting Saul and the 
 Philippian Gaoler. But whatever diversity there may be 
 in the circumstances or instrumentality of this preparatory 
 part of the work of justification by faith, it is the 'mani- 
 JestatioB of the same Spirit given to each to pi-ofit withal;' 
 it is in all the same discovery of danger, the same consci- 
 ousness of guilt, the same contrition of spirit, the same 
 renuncia^on of sin, the same inquiry after the way of sal- 
 va^tion/the same fleeing for refuge to the hope set before 
 thenftrftv^the Gospel— the same exclusive reliance upon the 
 merits 6f Christ as the ground of acceptance with God.— 
 Though all justified persons may not have experienced an 
 equal degree of that godly sorrow which worketh repen- 
 tance unto salvation not to be repented of ; yet all have 
 experienced such a degree of it as to feel sin to be their 
 burden and their ruin— to groan for deliverance from its 
 bondage— to be willing to give up all for the righteousness 
 of Christ ; to be saved in God's own appointed way. And 
 when, they were thus disposed and enabled to renounce all 
 dependence 'upon themselves or their works, to forsake 
 every lying vanity, to rely upon the sacrifice of their great 
 High Priest alone for pardon and acceptance with God, then 
 did they obtain * redemption in his blood even the forgive- 
 ness of sin.' * Being justified by faith, they had peace 
 
 with God til 
 nation wa^ 
 the spirit of 
 and the def 
 exchanged f 
 
 It is thus 
 
 the spirits m 
 
 earth ; and \ 
 
 way, will be 
 
 sister becamt 
 
 by faith ill tl; 
 
 Shewasborri 
 
 respectable fj 
 
 yedrs of ag/ ; 
 
 ted, it wa)^ n 
 
 the Town' of: 
 
 Messrs. Jif, V 
 
 and sati/factoi 
 
 coDVin</ed of s 
 
 ance fjtom its 
 
 most /epugnar 
 
 .and (belings of 
 
 'burden of sin 
 
 to be known oi 
 
 form, if she mi 
 
 laden spirit — ^ 
 
 and penitently 
 
 Saviour for a pi 
 
 sake had forgh 
 
 and an unfalterj 
 
 the prophet— « 
 
 Wast angry wit 
 
 comfortest me." 
 
 Beloved,' she n 
 
 ing that much h 
 
 her love to her J 
 
 for his disciples, 
 
 ihena in Uhurch 
 
 4 
 
 ''*>»: 
 
 :w 
 
and the depressinff fears of .^T^T^P'^^^of adoption} 
 
 ItiathusthatmanbecomeB just with Go,i • J» - ♦u 
 the spirits made perfect in h^nvL u . . ' "' '^ t'*"^ 
 
 earth ; .nd whosS^ver ha, a^^^^^^^^^ '"^"" '^'^ 
 
 way, will be treated as a thief oT a rohiS™^ ;^P *"^ ^^'^^ 
 sister became the happy subif t^f .K '' ^"•" '^^P^'^^d 
 
 by faith in the Lo7Ss Si l^r'°""^ j"^ 
 
 Shewasbori^atDolnatrickin i T' "VS" ^^^^ «'°««- 
 respectable LiSSTn h"**"" ^®^^'°^'^ highly 
 
 ted, it waf notTnil 1839^^ '^^ '""^ <=arefully educa- 
 the Towi^W NiaZrt m,^!r f """^. \''7»^aJ of religion in 
 Messrs. >f, WhiCind / S^^^^ 
 
 andsatl^ctor/rumnceofiS^^^^ ^he obtained a clear 
 coDVin</ed of sin, and™arL^>iv J^^^^^^^ ^'^P^y 
 
 ance f/om its ffuilt 17 i^^'''°"'°^ "''*«'"!«& deliver- 
 
 , -t/epuglfettk^^^^^^^^^^ ^^'^^"t^e "t. 
 
 .and feelings of her s^l as a « 1 t,""^ °"^ *•»« '^^^ 
 
 'burden ofsinbecaroll.X'^^^^^^^^^ 
 I to be known or unknown /« .!! r^ '4 " ^^^ "^^ ^'"'nff 
 
 form, if she mighrbZhtaTn'^^oVerV'"' Z '? *"' 
 laden spirit-flhe souirht rL- ? ^ weary and heavy 
 
 , "Hi penWtrusin/ i 7eZd T'^'V' P^^^^' 
 Saviour for a present salvaf inn ^ f /^'"' ^''"^^ as her 
 
 sake had forgiCa, ^eSr fnS with h' "^.f '" ^""^^'^ 
 and an unfalterinff tongue /hi m . ^"'""^''""fi'^ence 
 
 theprophet-«o\Xwi 1 or2'*,?*'°^n''''^"^"'^^« °^ 
 wast angry with me th1n« «/ • ^^^^ ' ^"^ though thou 
 
 comfortest me ? tL e^^^^^^^^^ «"dtho„ 
 
 Beloved,' she never doubli/r-^ J" 'acceptance in the 
 U, that much ha^Ltt^^^^^^^^ , ''-l- ^ 
 
 herjove to her Saviour Drodn?Ji' ^''^ 'oved muck ; and 
 
 ■,-?t 
 
 r-f: , 
 
.X ■? . 
 
 ii 
 
 spiriU.of the just made perfect in the method of her being 
 accounted just or righteous ; and thus must each of us flee 
 for refuge to the hope set before us in the sacrifice of Him 
 *whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith 
 in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission 
 of sins, — that he might be just, and yet the justifier of him 
 that believeth in Jesus/ But their being just or righteous 
 includes, ' . 
 
 2. The rectitude of their naturea. They were the sub- 
 jects of a re<t{ as well as re/aiive change; for they were 
 sinful by nature, as well as sinners by practice. They 
 Were born in sin— were dead in. trespasses and sins— were 
 without inward holiness as well as outward righteousness. 
 Wc may sometimies be inclined to the impression that the 
 just persons mentioned in the Scriptures— the patriarchs, 
 prophets, and apostles— were of a better moral constitution 
 by nature than ourselves or than the rest of mankind. But 
 they inherited the same corrupt nature — were subjects of 
 the same moral weakness and depravity — men of like pas- 
 sions with ourselves. Sin is the disease of our nature tA 
 well as the crime of our race. Its corruption pervades all 
 the powers of the soul, and taints the very imaginations of 
 the thoughts of the heart. It envelops, pur minds in dark- 
 ness ; it inflames our hearts with enmity ; it pollutes. all. 
 the streams of thought, of feeling, and of action. There 
 is neither strength nor soundness in any part of man's moral 
 cotistitutio^. The whole head is sick and the whole heart 
 faint ; and the wounds and bruises and putrifying eores of 
 sin extend from thecrown of the head to the sole of the 
 foot. In the flesh — -that is the unrenewed nature — of the 
 spirits of the just made perfect, there dwelt no good thinp, 
 any more than in that of other imen ; but as they were par- 
 doned, so were they adopted and made children of God by 
 faith in Jesus Christ ; were made neiv men in order to be- 
 ing made perfect men — created anew after the image of 
 God in righteousness and true lioliness. Their understand- 
 ings were enlightened to see the evil of sin and the neces- 
 sity and excellence of holiness; their consciences were 
 
 quickened 
 tion of th( 
 hostility to 
 their hopee 
 earthly anc 
 
 . .Such a ( 
 
 the results 
 
 training, oi 
 
 3ospel who 
 
 from his yoi 
 
 out his earh 
 
 the law,' lac 
 
 transformati 
 
 power of Sa 
 
 cans and sin 
 
 duction of m 
 
 the soul, an 
 
 another ; it 
 
 none eisisted, 
 
 social culture 
 
 —is siriful, 1 
 
 fined; and *t 
 
 partakes of tl 
 
 liegotten — wl 
 
 I character, f] 
 
 in him, to be 
 
 ject of a new 
 
 he is a new c] 
 
 are passed aw 
 
 In this new 
 —this * renew 
 tion of filial CO 
 tian character 
 <tevotion and a( 
 forth the Spirii 
 Father.' < Th 
 that we are ch 
 
quickened from sliimbeririff insensibJIlfv »« - i- , 
 
 tion of the truth • their wi l« !.?- [ ^ * / '"''^'j' «*««ta. 
 
 hostility to ready obediwlnrh'^;^^ '■'■°'" '^''«^'"«e 
 their hopes and theiMoT J "'"^^'^ ""'^ ?«"^«tio„8, 
 
 eanhiyL.in.f^;CSr:S^^t^^ 
 
 t-nin,. or is-teSSeSt" S?^' ''"""""' 
 Gospel who had P«twar<Jr«kep 'all th/r^ "■".'" '''" 
 from his youth up,'> and sLni «f t^ ^^e commandments 
 out his early life *blamplpr ^^^^ ""1'^''° ^*« t'''^^^^^ 
 
 f e law, ij^^^^:, r ^;?of u,::f^~ ^ 
 
 Iransformation from 'Jartn... „!. ,' T 8"*" '"*"«' 
 
 l»wer„fS.,.„„„toGH'rL°has'S',' •"'' """ "" ' 
 «« »nd ,i„„er». It !» the "n °r ^r"*" P""-"- 
 
 ^cuo„ of „„.,„, ,' '? tt',rof s stn/G r 
 
 the soul< and not tha ;^a <• "P'rit pf God in 
 
 none existed ami n«f ♦K«» ■"" ^'^ "&nt and love where 
 
 partakes of the holinZo^h/«-!u T"^ " ^P'""*' — 
 begotten-wLem mav hi ^P'"' ^^ ^^'O^e agency it is 
 chfracter. Tot n Chri^^ T, '*« P«^'°"« «t«te and 
 in him, to be a cSr sti^n 7^° ^''°?^ *° '"''"' *** «'«''«ve 
 ject of a new cKn^n 7if' •*'^"*'"',^itf' being the sub- 
 
 he is a new cre7tu,?e or It"^ ""'" ^'- '" ^''"«' J««"». 
 "^passedaw^r^hl'llltS^--^ 
 
 tion of filial confideLe andi?r 'I''",''''^"*''"^"""^*- 
 
 tian character and entwthe^^t^^ 
 
 devotion and activity S * 'P""^' of religious 
 
16 
 
 bar life. 'Ghrist lives within ui ; and the life we live ih 
 the flesh, we live by the faith of the Son of God.' Onr 
 hearts are made the temples of the Holy Ghost. God walks 
 and dwells in us, and manifests himself unto us as he doea 
 not unto the world. Where God dwells by the light and 
 power of his Spirit, there must be peace, joy, and love ; 
 and that love is stronger than any earthly affection. This 
 is the philosophy of inward, experimental, practical Chris- 
 tianity ; this was the power wbieh.enabled those just per- 
 sons "of whom the world was not worthy," to endure pri- 
 vations and suflforings, the very reeitkl of which thrills the 
 mind with horror ; this was the mysterious energy which 
 filled the heart of the Primitive Church, and prompted its 
 members to such works of faith iand labours of love ; this 
 is * the love of God shed abroad in the heart by the Holy 
 Ghost,' which is the characteristic^and privilege of all true 
 Christians, and which develops itself in corresponding 
 affectioB for God's people, in earnest desires and efforts to 
 promote His glory, and in a holy delight in the divine word 
 and ordinances. Thus when our deceased friend wu 
 " born of the Spirit" and was made a child of God 'by faith 
 in Jesus Christ,' she rejoiced in the liberty of the sons of 
 God ; his people beoanie her people ; his word and ordinan- 
 ces her delight. Her naturally vigorous mind, which had 
 been strengthened tind enriched by a general acquaintance 
 with the stahdard writers and poets of our language, now 
 delighted in thit study of the Scriptures and the best prac- 
 tical works on theological subjects— especially the Sermons 
 of John Weslby, PaBsisBnT Davibs and Wiluam Jay. 
 The JIforntng- and Evening Exercises of the latter were her 
 closet companion. She loved her Church as herself, and 
 deeply sympathised in whatever effected its interests. En- 
 tertaining a low opinion of herself, both mentally and spir- j 
 ituallyj her professions were humble and her habits retiring; 
 but Bhe was conscientious in the performance of her private j 
 duties, and sought, at whatever sacrifice to her own conve- 
 nience, the comfort and happiness of her domestic circle, 
 and the relief of the poor anddistressed.-rSuch is the spirit 
 
 of adoptio 
 that rectil 
 nal chara( 
 iog just ii 
 
 ces the frii 
 
 and adopte 
 
 Christ.' ^ 
 
 him. Tht 
 
 obedience t 
 
 Spirit, the; 
 
 righteousnc 
 
 just or righ 
 
 teoua.'* Tl 
 
 acter of the 
 
 fiadness of 
 
 ^ A pure fout 
 
 the heart is 
 
 ., Christ is en 
 
 * God ia ligh 
 
 and he in th 
 
 18 the sprin 
 
 nates in God 
 
 dience to Go 
 
 is love in thi 
 
 ye keep his 
 
 without keei 
 
 keeping of tl 
 
 Morality is tl 
 
 the life of Gc 
 
 abroad in the 
 
 the true mani 
 
 gift and perse 
 
 our sanctificat 
 
 of purity as wi 
 
 from the cond 
 
 itself; and th 
 
'WW^ 
 
 ?^'^;ai':ft* i?„r:E'r°° '■'.'^'^"•'- 
 
 lag just implies - "* ^' '''e*' be- 
 
 ' '■■■■. 
 
 ob««.„ce to th.t l,7t Z^kZ Lt-'^ ^"^ 
 
 ♦God is /i>A/' anH 'Pn^ 7 / 7 . ^'" '^'S" »" t^e life, 
 ye keep hL colaXr. • Thl ° ""° f' *^' ""« 
 
 &nf//=tx~ror."'''?°''^^^^^^^^^ 
 
 thclife'ofGoiT.Il„„uCfL!j,'^'f "««'»-« 
 •Iroad in the hem by the h' rGhi;^' ■ '°" °' ""^ »'■='' 
 the true ".nife.t.t Jif ,h.°Jf!''!?,?'?",""'°.°' J' ""-I 
 gift .nd pe„on .„d Ttk of 1,^/C J '^1°." '" "'» 
 
 of purity as well as of mrH„„ »^ui f *•* " ""osouree 
 froi. the condemnfs ; "^'Sn""' """l'^*"' <■' 
 i..e,f,.„dU,esp,Ht,o?;:?-rS';:.S^Zge'^ 
 
 »« 
 
 /. 
 
\ 
 
 ■ ' IB 
 
 him ftU the glory of their beinjr *wuhed from their >ias in 
 his own blood.' 
 
 We here see the inseparable connexion between the 
 new heart and the new life— between the love of Christ in 
 the heart and the holiness of Christ in the life. Wo also 
 see the difference between the principle and peculiar character 
 of Scriptural holiness or morality and the ethics of heathen- 
 ism or liuman philosophy. The p/Thcipb of the one is 
 love; the principle of the other-^ feiir.\ In the one the 
 love of God is everything ; in the other it i\ nothing. The 
 former extends tothe motives and latent springs of actions- 
 the latter is limited to the actions themselves. The former 
 18 the instinctive working of a renewed nature, the prac- 
 tical expression of the Maw of God written in the heart.' 
 and IS therefore the perfect Maw of liberty ;' the latter is 
 a system of restraints for conventional purposes, without 
 authority or life, and whi(ih leaves bdth its teachers and 
 disciples /servants of corruption while they promise them- 
 selves liberty.' The one is God working in us both to 
 will and to do of hi^ good pleasure ;' the other is the 
 Leopard labouring to changd his spots and the Ethiopian 
 his skin. 
 
 Thus purity of life--embracing the whole circle of 
 Christian virtues — is the emanation. of purity of heart; 
 and jn proportion to our inward rectitude will be our 
 outward obedience. When the heart is perfectly re- 
 newed « in the image ^f God in righteousnese and 
 true holiness,' then will wd esteem *aU his precepts in itU 
 things to be right: When we love God with all our 
 hearts, then will we serve him with all our strength. The 
 *ju8t men' of pur teiiti:were therefore * blameless and 
 hafmless the,m|i8 of God wiAout rebuke'— walking in all 
 the commandients of God and shining as lights in the 
 world; They 'wrought righteousness' in the large^ sense 
 as the business of their lives, as the principles and spirit 
 ^t had been wrought in their hearts. They worshipped 
 God ; they reverenced and honoured bis sanctuary ; they 
 
 loved and ( 
 
 glory; th 
 kindness ai 
 had opportu 
 of Crod and 
 They have 
 works,' and 
 character ol 
 holiness, an 
 
 It is a ca 
 
 sister was i 
 
 spiritual reli 
 
 these practii 
 
 of conformit 
 
 eulogy upon 
 
 object of fu; 
 
 to instruct tli 
 
 oar departed 
 
 God, and to 
 
 lighted in the 
 
 where his h( 
 
 •8 far as her 
 
 votional meai 
 
 is not know 
 
 I cirdjaits and t 
 
 the blind of a 
 
 cheerful than 
 
 of exercising 
 
 ThejMorfoum 
 
 ind the Churc 
 
 industry and 
 
 offering for th( 
 
 when, ere he 
 
 thediiease wh 
 
 Daring her foi 
 
 deprived, by » 
 
 consolation of 
 
 impatience or 
 
 ■s>. 
 
their Bias in 
 
 •etween the 
 of Christ in 
 ' Wo also 
 !ar character 
 of heathen* 
 ' the one is 
 the one the 
 thing. The 
 of actions; 
 The former 
 e, the prac- 
 I the hearty' 
 he latter is 
 BSt without 
 achers and 
 >mise them- 
 08 both to 
 ther is the 
 3 Ethiopian 
 
 e circle of 
 r of heart; 
 rill be our 
 •fectly re- 
 snesff and 
 :eptain <t^ 
 ritb all our 
 gth. The 
 lelesB and 
 king in all 
 rhtB in the 
 gest sense 
 and Bpirit 
 irorahipped 
 ary; they 
 
 :^:ih:^i::t:j'Si^j;j:^jr7brr 
 
 Jindne.8 and charity, and did goc^l untoa 'me„ ^ th'ev 
 
 holiness, .nd the ereveSr;:gT;ftr "*'''"''"''' ""'° 
 
 It is a cause of thankfulness to know that our deoarted 
 
 sister was ^not wanting in these approved erSentWs ^f 
 
 pimualreationshipwiththe 'just men' of fomer dal'-l 
 !5 on„r-?' «?^«««°°« of fi'ial relaUonshiptocSya^ 
 conformny to his will. I an, not here to pronou^e an 
 eulogy upon the character of the departed Tho « 
 object of funeral sermons is not to eSS the d.aSTf 
 to instruct the living. In this placer So e I rel ."' 
 oar departed friend only so far a's to Cg^^he, I^e of 
 God, and to enable us to 'glorify God in' hor liu a 
 n.hted.n the 'habitation ofWs h^Js" In"* thf it 
 
 .stras^JrT''.'"'!!^^'' «nd conscientiously sou^il 
 J« far as her domestic charge permitted, the soci;! and de- 
 votional means of grace. • Harmless and blamelesl" she 
 L?- ^"T "^"""^ '^' ^'•^^^ 'esidencrrn Tfferen? 
 SS/"? *°T' *° ''"''* «'^^° '^"'^ or caused parto 
 
 Cheerful than when she had the opportunity and privileire 
 Tl^^^^J^T^'"^ *° the servants of the K^ 
 
 ^nd^C^^uri''^"''''^?^^^^^^^^ friend 
 
 tnd the Church an exemplary and devoted member Her 
 
 industry and tastefur skill were employed on a vili 
 wt?^ "■?" Wesleyan Bazaar, latSy held in thrcUy 
 t^^if'" \" I'^'i was completed, she was seized v^fh 
 ^e duease whicji dismissed heri from service to W«3^ 
 f^J'Sj'l^^^''^^^^^' illness, her honoured pa^nlswwe 
 deprived, by severe domestic affliction, of theTelanchoI J 
 l^atjo^ of visiting her I hut ^he g^ve no JnJSS^S 
 impatience or fear; unable to >o more than articulate 
 
 • ■ - ■ -if- " ■^' ■.■■■■" 
 
 n 
 
80 
 
 •Ingle words, the words most freauentiv nn i:^A - 
 were « Jews" and "Christ " I?l r X *' ''^'"'^ "P» 
 ' .pirit was resign^ • and on wll T ^*«'4«'""ff ? her 
 In-Unt, Without 1; ay °u,^tr^^^ 
 «ieep in Christ. She':rsrmt^'"^i;,*^;;/\ '»'*/*",„ 
 earth ; I trust she ranlcs i„ heaverw!! X\ •^'"** •" 
 
 «.«,b, limited by .he co^ta .„^t, LTJrr 
 
 wh.ch ,t 1. .pplied. The work, of n.t'ro .° " t.^ 
 
 but theirs 18 a na/uro/ perfection Tt.^., j *^ ' 
 
 . intellectual or moral I^w^s iLev are thl^° "°' '^"^^^ 
 
 of an intellectual or moral irfeSn N ^u' '"'"'""''^ 
 
 of the spirits of the just IheTnl 2Za^" T'''''^ 
 
 and character, and implies a Se^S iT" ''"'^ 
 
 and of those inlellectudl and moTal jH^^' f '"/"^' 
 
 and pleasures ^ich they POB8esse53Hitin an T 
 
 perfect degree on earth. ffiHP'V^- 
 
 leentai powers. I here speak not merely of happy disem 
 bodiedspints but of saints glorified in both bJ/LdTo" 
 in heaven. Their natural bodies were fcMn a7 ■ 
 
 ^^Ssolutfcn. The mournful occasion of this discour Jl I 
 
 Aft.?l? f *" /'^'''°* P^«« °f this assembly.- 
 S-h>.».r '^°/ ^''^ service in Montreal on i, 
 Sabbath evening, I was informed that a gentleman at Vl. 
 door of the vestry wished tospeak to mc^jSr^etnl 
 old man bowed down with weakness, palsie-d in ev^ry ?^ 
 and eaningupon the arm of anoth^ He reacS i.T 
 irem^ling hand^ and in a feeble tremuIoJ^Z^Sd i^^ 
 I told him I did not recollect him ; he feebly reS 
 
':* 
 
 ... *■ 
 
 her dying Hp, 
 W; strong ; her 
 •rning the 25th 
 'gony, «he fe|| 
 > the 'ju8i*#„ 
 
 •epirltaof the 
 oure« 
 
 ■> to admit of 
 utely perfect. 
 ^y- -No finite 
 ban he can fee 
 mu?t, there- 
 re of tiiat to 
 >are perfect; 
 lo not possess 
 "ore incapable 
 :he perfection 
 to their state 
 that eecurity 
 Rali/icatio 
 ■|>in an ii 
 
 A, . 
 
 *^Li78BB«.- I wan affected to we .Kn 
 and able Preacher of the Gospel ^«v pT*" ■^,«"*»P"''»'cd 
 a .battered wreck of whaU.l i ^ I ^''^^'^ ^' ^"^h",) 
 .^n him in the day ofT., vitur.'Jd ""'" ' """' ''''^^""^f 
 give utterance to the ZlZl ^T' *'"' * *=°"W but 
 your present weakne,. w , 3:1?." °^J>' '»•"''-" Sir, 
 Ves, my brethren, miniTl^n ^u "'^ '"*° -trength.". 
 other., ^ .ubjeitaof^;,!;;, .»'•*•": 'T'''^^ "«> '«- than 
 By what I feel i„ t^y^ifilZ; '-"- " "^ ^*'"''- 
 g^ the way of m/faThl 'ThT "''r* ^'"t' """'t «x,n 
 time to work he« Uut^ror^l •'I'y''* '"'°'*""" °^ »»'« 
 how elevating and JSS,''|'!X h T ^'''^'"''''' »"» 
 body ia aowS In corrupt on Lj "f^** "•" »''°"»'' »*•« 
 of thia service) It shaK rllT- ?"" " »''«^°"ner p«rt 
 themforebe incapaJte of^iS'" '"^""Pt'-n* and .hall 
 wrinkle, or locZZIie^^^Z"' "^ ''« *«^-''"««". the 
 jown in diabonour, thi. .^S. T.uT ' •''" *''""»'' 
 /fMhionedlikeunro hia Zr,\^/ h!!i ^ ""^ '" «'°'3r 
 •working whereby he i. able evl » L "''°"''"«^ *« *»»« 
 . ''i'"?^!;' that ^ougi^wn a l^J"?i««'^' ^^ing. unto 
 j, oni*,4rt«Iity,' and ihe^Tore h?- '"^^' '* "'"" '?«* 
 death Itaelf beiig ' .w JlowL no '"'"'""'"'"^ '^ ^"''^- 
 •sown in weaknL, Hahinl >S L''- '°'^ ' '"^tthough 
 how great we can;M,^„ ttl'^^^'^.^^^ 
 to the varied a«d ceanelesTp "7 *'~' ^"^^^ '"^"P^ 
 power * equal to thrrntl ' PaIT!!'' of immortality-* 
 body of Moaes aplr it; h. ''°'' '''^'«"» ^'^^ »*•« 
 of Mount Sinai, ZZZ^^ rrpl'^f '"i^ « »"« "aae 
 fleeing from the fkce Tf Sb 5 ^^l** ''^'" *•« ^"^ 
 with the transfiguredlavLr m;„ ''''''" '''"^^ *PP«"«d 
 bodie. radiant with cSa, X? T "'^^'''^ards-tbeir 
 Phere^visible .ndtSe^S;:^'"^:?^'^^-^^ 
 from, iind ascending to heaven S^~""^ descending 
 ewiftneaa than the aunbeamr^^i ."conceivably more 
 -wiftness. When we thtk of ^.^ "''""*''' ^•««"«^ 
 our own bodies, or Zi on thli ""tl^""^ »"'' ^«««y of ^ 
 friends, how consolinrarreL?'"'''"^.'^"'*°^*'«P"«^ 
 
 gioriou. ie the revealed trnthl^fi"^'''^^ '">«'° 
 
 veaiea truth, and how unspeakably bleaaed 
 
 ^^" . 
 
 '♦♦• 
 
 .M 
 

 
 
does the work of redemption appear, which transforms the 
 king of terrors into a messenger of love, and converts our 
 bodily infirmities and ^eath into the precursors of immortal 
 youth and unfading b$^auty. 
 
 But the intellectual powers of the saints in h6av6n'expe- 
 rience a proportionable change and elevation with the 
 powers of their mortal bodies. Their understandings are 
 enlarged in comprehension like those of the mighty angels 
 who do his pleasure ; their i*j7/» are perfected in submis- 
 sion like those of the cherubim who bow before the throne • 
 their affections a^d passions Vind propensities are transformed 
 and adapted to' the objects of their happiness and to the 
 illimitable range of their pleasures and employments. How 
 ; different was the mental developniiint of Bacon and New- 
 ton when they were on their mothers' knees, and when the 
 one was making the circle of the sciences and the other 
 measuring the distances of the heavenly bodies and explain- 
 ing the laws of their motions ! How different were the 
 intellectual powers of John Wesley when, in infancy, he 
 tvas rescued from the devouring flames which enveloped the 
 parental habitation, and when he had expounded the whole 
 system of doctrinal and experimental theology and preached 
 the gospel for half a century ! So great is the difference 
 between the powers of the mightiest intellects on earth and 
 those of thcf 'spirits of the iu&l made perfect.' And in 
 proportion to the vastness of^their intellectual powers, will 
 be the extfeht and degrtee of their attainments ; which leads 
 me to remark that, 
 
 2. Theirs is a perfection of knowledge— not o( absolute 
 attainment, but of immeasurable increase. Much of the 
 happiness of heaven consists in contemplation, the supreme 
 and infinite object of which is God himself. It is the way, 
 and will be one chief employment of life eternal, ' to know 
 the dnly true God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.' In 
 what a moment of time after their admission into heaven, 
 do they attain more knowledge than they can here acquire 
 during a long" life of laborious applictlon. Their knowledge 
 
 is more trnmed 
 
 not by cautioi 
 
 God; nor by 
 
 knowledge de 
 
 therefore as i 
 
 knowledge of , 
 
 the glimering 
 
 jast made perf( 
 
 dour of his ir 
 
 conjecture, rei 
 
 doubt and erro 
 
 prophets and i 
 
 the visions of 
 
 mighty intelle( 
 
 "now we se 
 
 vision are wea 
 
 discovery of ol 
 
 "then shall 
 
 divine Moses 1 
 
 view which , * 1 
 
 bear — tbe sup 
 
 similitude or r 
 
 taitive view of 
 
 the Apostle) I 
 
 vouchsafed to 
 
 and gospel, 1 1 
 
 lengths and br 
 
 that which is 
 
 shall be done < 
 
 known ;'— sha 
 
 of another, ev 
 
 not by reason ii 
 
 therefore not b 
 
 atifically, and t 
 
 tie describes tl 
 
 and heaven, as 
 
 fined, the impe 
 
 comprehensive 
 
 

 w 
 
 23 
 
 is more mmediatej and intuitive thnfl it was on earth. It \» 
 not by cautiouH and laboured inference from the Works of 
 God; nor by narration from his revealed truth ; but it is a 
 knowledge derived from the sight of God himself, and 
 therefore as superior to the knowledge of nature or the 
 knowledge of grace, as tlie lustre of the meridian sun is to 
 the glimering twilight of the morning. The ' spirits of the 
 jostmade perfect' »ec God as he is, in the unclouded splen- 
 dour of his infinite majesty and glory. Vision absorbs 
 conjecture, reasoning and faith ; and djispels imperfection^ 
 doubt and error. The perceptions and jknowledge of even 
 prophets and apostles on earth bear no comparison with 
 the visions of the he^'enJy world. St. Paul with all his 
 mighty intellectual powers and cel^stilil inspiration,, says^ 
 "now we see through a glass darkly" — our organs of 
 vision arie weak, the medium of observation is obscure, the 
 discovery of objects is at best defective and imperfect ; but 
 "then shall we see face to face" — ^an object which the 
 divine Moses himself could not behold on earth and live— a 
 view which * the spirits of the just made perfect'' alone can 
 bear — tlie stiperseding of every means of representation by 
 similitude or revelation— the direct, steady, unclouded, in-" 
 tuitive view of the presence of God. *«Now (continues 
 the Apostle) I know in part"-^with all the visions and gift? 
 vouchsafed to me concerning the dispensations of the law 
 and gospel, 1 know but in part the heights and deptl^^ and 
 lengths and breadths of their riches and wisdom; but when 
 that which is perfect is come, and that which is in part 
 shall be done away, 'then shall I know even as also I aiji 
 known ;'— shall know for myself, and not by the testimony 
 of another, even of an angel-^shall know by intuition and 
 not by reasoning or inference— shall know perfectly, and 
 therefore not be liable to error ^r mistake— shall know be- 
 atifically, and therefore be as the angels of God. The Apos- 
 tle describes the difference between the knowledge of earth 
 and heaven, as the difference between the narrow, the con- 
 fined, the imperfect notions of childhood and the more clear, 
 comprehensive and rational yiews of full grown men. 
 
 ^*f5«/ 
 
 < 1 
 
 -*-iii. 
 
 >' 
 
 . -A-jc^'- 
 
 «?•■-":.:' 
 
 -V - 
 
"^^TLr^V^^^' I «P«ke as a child, I understood as 
 a child, I thought as a child ; but when I became a man I 
 put away childish things." As men of ripened and matu • 
 . red understandings rise abbve and relinquish the thouffhts" 
 and notions of infancy and childhood ; so when we attain* I 
 to the maturity of the ' spirits of the just made perfect'" J 
 our present views and gifts and knowledge will appear « J"^ 
 the thoughts and lispings of infancy. « For now we b^ 
 throug-h a^iass darkly ; but then, face to face : now we ' 
 know in part ; but then shall we know even as also weare 
 known.'. , ■ 
 
 The spirits of our friends made perfect in jjeavehpos^esg- 
 more extensive knowledge of the glorious perfections of 
 OoDthan they pogeessed or ever could have acquired 
 on earth; his power* his wisdom, his goodness, hig 
 justice, his holiness, his faithfulness, his uncharigeable- 
 ness, his boundless presence. What subjects of contem- 
 plation, adoration, and praise ! « They behold his face in 
 - righteousness ;' they 'see Him as he is.' Proportionably 
 increased, and increasing, is their knowledge of the perJn 
 ami glones of their blessed Saviour, together with the 
 Character and offices pf the Holy Ghost. Being ' absent 
 from the body, they are present with, their Lord,' where 
 they 6eAoW the glory which he had with the Father before 
 the foundation of the world,' and the added glories of his 
 meditorial triumphs— the object of profoundest wonder and 
 admiration to the whole heavenly world, the loftiest theme " 
 of Its universal and ceaseless praises. They also survey 
 and contemplate the works of God, And as they pass 
 from world to world and gaze upon the glories df God's 
 ynbounded empire, what a universe of wonders rises be- 
 fore the view, throughout the universal firmament of plan- 
 ets, suns and systems, throughout the endless varieties and 
 beauties of the mineral and vegetable kingdoms, through- 
 out all orders of animated nature from the microscopic an- 
 imalcule to the mightiest archangel. Those great and 
 laborious astronomers, Sir William and John Herschel, 
 —the father and son— toiled out the nights of many years 
 
to make a^elescopic survey of the starry heavens, from the 
 northewrand southern hemisphere of our own planet, and 
 thefhave excited much admiration and applause for their 
 observationsand discoveries; but how little could they 
 Bee, and how much less could they know, of the works ot 
 God throughout the amplitudes of space. But celestial 
 vision unmeasurably outreaches th^ limits of telescopic ob- 
 Mivation, and celestial wings inconceivably outfly the 
 npidity of the solar light, and celestial minds kpow, m a 
 moment, more of the * heavens which declare ^e^ glory of 
 <3od and the firmament which showeth his handy work, 
 than human philosophy has ever conceived during a period 
 of six thousand years, ' The works of the Lord ar6 great, 
 honourable and glorious, sought of all them that have plea-^ 
 sure therein.' And how clear and comi^rehensive is the 
 knowledge whichthe « spirits of the just made perfect 
 possess of the providential government oi God— h\s^ia- 
 pensations towards the various orders of intelligent beings 
 that people the universe— the rise and fall of empires and 
 kingdoms, of nations and tribes in our own world— the 
 mysteries of sin and redemption— the methods of his reve- 
 lation, the reasons of his dealings with families and indi- 
 viduals— in short, the whole range of his administration 
 from the morning of the creation to^ the morning of the 
 resurrection. All will be open to their view, not as a 
 history, but as one vast field of vision ; they see the end 
 from the beginnihg, and trace every link in the chain of 
 Providence which connects every event of time with the 
 throne of God and the developments of eternity. The 
 clouds and darkness which now envelope the operations of 
 Providence, will not obscure the horizon of the hd&venly 
 inhabitants; they will see with the eye of undeceiving 
 isurvey that ' righteousness and judgment were the habita- 
 tion of his throne' as much when he was visiting his 
 people with povprty and sickness and death, as when he 
 was bestowing upon them riches and health and life. They 
 will see more ; they will see what now confounds reason 
 and almost staggers faith, that the comparatively light and 
 
■ ;: r .'/■.■;■ "26; •■ ,: . ;" :. ^ ■■ ^ 
 
 temporary afflictions of this life are transmuted into an. 
 apeakabje and^ndless blessings to "the spirits of the just 
 made perfect"— even into a 'far more exceeding and eternal 
 weight of glory.' The discloBure of the reasons of the 
 time and place and circumstances of our birth, and of every 
 disappointment and trial of our present state, ^ill furnish 
 new and affecting manifestations of wisdom and goodness 
 in the administration of the divine government, and call 
 forth new songs of gratitude and praise to Him that ' doeth 
 all things well.' The most inexplicable and apparently 
 accidental events of time will then be seen to have been 
 essential and carefully adjusted parts of a great system of 
 Almighty wisdom and goodnpss, and as perfectly adapted 
 to the glorious end designed, as are the organs of sight to 
 the objects of sight, or the law of gravitation to the 
 motions of the heavenly bodies. What wondrous vision! 
 What amazing discoveries ! What * excellency of know- 
 ledge !' And that knowledge ever expanding^ever accu- 
 mulating without labour— ever approximating the infinite 
 God, and yet ever at an infinite distance from the exhaust- 
 less resources of his attributes and perfections. The Lord 
 God is their Sun ; they see light in his light and become 
 luminous themselves in the beams of his glory. 
 
 3. Theirs is, therefore, a perfection of holiness. Their 
 vision of God is transforming. They see God as he is, 
 they are like him. Even on earth their sight of God ijf 
 faith exerted a transforming influence. * Beholding an m 
 a glass the glory of the Lord, they were changed iiito the 
 same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of 
 the Lord.' They thus became the children of light;— 
 partaking of its pure qualities and diffusing Hs yv&rmmg 
 and fertilizing influences— their lives, like the countenaiice 
 of Moses, reflecting the glory of the Lord. But the inr 
 fluencu uf /tght is more powerful than that of faith. ,The 
 spirits of the just made perfect «ec God ; and their perfect 
 vision of him makes their likeness to him complete. " livery 
 Buch spirit (says the great John Howe) is becom e as -^it 
 were an orb of purest, most operative and lively light, an 
 
iptellectual and self-actuating sun, full of fervor and motive 
 power." The Bun,^ indeed, .with all his glory, is not free 
 from spoty but the spirits of the just made perfect are 
 < without ipot, or wrinkle, or any such thing.' Their 
 natures are as pure as their, robes of white, and transparent 
 88 the light itself. Every act, every word, every thought, 
 every emotion is holy ; and therefore the inhabitants are 
 perfectly holy. They love God and each other with an 
 intenseness of affection of which they were incapable on 
 earth. Their thoughts never winder ; their affections 
 never languish ; their love" never declines. Blessed beings! 
 Glorious place ! Pride and envy are not known there; 
 nor selfishness or resentment ; nor malice or slander ; nor 
 divisions or discord. They are holy aa God. is holy ; and , 
 like him they are one. One motive, one affection, one- ^ 
 object actuates them all, as one holiness pervades them all. 
 And this holiness— so entire tmd complete — is absolutely 
 necessary to their happiness. Where there is sin there 
 must be misery. Pride, hatred, envy, revenge, or cov- 
 
 I etousness, cannot exist without producing misery. Holiness 
 *'is the perfection of order— the perfection of "moral health 
 and beauty, and therefore the essential element of happiness. 
 Without holiness— a perfect rectitude and healthfulness irt 
 all the powers and passions of the soul^ — the external splen- 
 dours of heaven ilself could no more impart happiness, 
 than a diadem can satisfy an aching head, or splendid ap- 
 parel can give pleasure to a disordered body. But the in- 
 jected beams of the divine glory transform the spirits of the 
 
 I just inter the perfect beauty of holihess— impressing the 
 perfect^n of order, harmony and purity upon all their in- 
 tellectual iand moral powers ; whilst We- wisdom, benevo- 
 lence and power spread out before them the landscapes of 
 boundless space, and the riches of his own eternity. 
 
 • 4, Finally, the spirits of the just are made perfect in 
 exaUed and complete felicity. There is the absence of all' 
 evil, and the presence of all good— 4he one 'excluding suf- 
 fering and ^sorrow, the other producing perfect pleasure 
 and enjoyment. Tho ti|)dieB of the s aints ar e gpiritualis sc d 
 
 ; .»» 
 
-■■■.■ 28. ■^.;' 
 
 A v«,;fi«..^ in heaven : there are therefore no lusta of the 
 Teehthere Thdr Bouls are perfectly holy ; they there- 
 tefeelno lust, of the mind. Fallen angels and w.cked 
 ^en are excluded from heaven ; and there are therefore .0 
 rpuUorof Satan and the ^orld ^J^^^ 
 source of guilt, danger and misery on farth, has no ex 
 is^nce in heavem Neither are there any funerals m 
 heJJen no bereavements ; no mourners ; no paralyMs; 
 noTk beds ; no sinking age or crying infancy ; not a 
 «r^h has ever been heard there; nor a tear shed ; nor a 
 soirowfeuTthe inhabitants weep no more, thirst no more; 
 the Umb that is in the midst of the throne feeds them, an 
 w pe^'way all tears from their eyes They see God^ an 
 « in his presence there is fuUnesa of joy. Th^ b«how 
 tie exalted Jesus, and sit on the thrpnejnth h.m. Th y 
 minrie vfith the angels, and are equal to them. They s t 
 Twf wUMbe patrUs, prop^^^^^ ^^ i- 
 
 them in their hallelujahs to God and the Lamb. 
 
 As their holy Kfe in Christ Jesus on earth fitted them 
 for the r holier hemth him in heaven ; so the.r divers.fial 
 Sftl^d employments here may prepare them for corres, 
 ' Sn^ empJoyments there The endless variety whih 
 Ses^iTtbL world will donkess have its counterpart m 
 Jeaven We see it in the kingdoms of nature, providence 
 7!^.«^^we observe it coexistent with time ; and we 
 d^S^;iJLSSghout eternity andpe^t^^^^^ 
 
 ■:^hippines. of heaven. ^^T^^J^^^ 
 «« see onthe face of the heavens and the ^rth ! What 
 «!!v^n the vegetable and animal world ;'in plants and 
 ZS and trLSri insect., fishes, birds and fourfooted 
 t«r tn theTtSe, features, Ustes and genius of men; 
 -twiiftl style and offices of the inspired writers, as 
 wJ^^as^n the U^^^M principalities and power, 
 
 ^ranwls "0 Lo^rf, kau, maniTold are thy w^k, ! m 
 tSiLt oLfnade them all: The dlferent stations 
 r&SiSUd, the Ghur,^ and in heavj^i, supp<^ 
 - • — — = — tal e nts and q< i« lification8 to per- 
 
 and require .yarious 
 
 ana require .»aiiv«" — — ;— - • 
 form their duUes and fulfill their^ designs. 
 
 This life is & 
 
 ■-.iSi' 
 
■ \. 29 . 
 
 training school for heayfen. No small part of our pre»enV 
 training consists in ministrtitions to each other. Angels 
 S^emselves are 'ministering spirits ;' and it is the.r hap- 
 piLs as well as duty to be so. The min.stera and Baints 
 God on earth imbibe the same feeling, and del.ght ,n the 
 Bamework. What they feel, they wish others to feel ; 
 what they know, they wish others to know. The love^ of 
 St constrains them, and out of the feelmgs of their 
 'hearts their mouths-speak. It is so in heaven m a^degree 
 as much higher as heaven is higher than the earth. To 
 tell good news is delightful to the heart of friendship and 
 love In heaven friendship is consummated and love is all 
 in all : and the feeling which dictated the exclamation on 
 earth, 'Hear all ye, what the Lbrd hath done for my soul, 
 will, in its vigour of heavenly perfection, prompt the spirits 
 of the just to an intercourse the most instructive and 
 delightful. Their degrees of knawlodge are as various _ as 
 are their powers and the period of their residence m that 
 exalted state. Though they are all stars, yet one star dit- 
 fereth from another star in glory ; and while some shine 
 with the brilliancy of stars, others shine as the brightness 
 of thesun. And as <5od does nothing in vain, their pecu- 
 liargiftsand labours on earth willpreparethemforpecuhar 
 stations and employments in heaven ; "^"d their^diversified 
 knowledge, and powers, and orders qualify and adapt them 
 variously to unfold and illustrate the manifold wisdom of 
 God * in bringing j«any sons to glory.' 
 ^ What wonders may not Noah narrate of the antediluvian 
 world, the deluge judgment, and the ralnW>w promise, m 
 connexion with subsequent dispensations of Providence on 
 earth and their issues in heaven ! llow pre-eminently 
 qualified must Moses be, after thousands of years of heav- 
 enly vision and contemplation, to explain the institutions 
 and lead the worship, the first draft and symbols of wh.c i 
 he received and established at Iloreb ! What conspicuous 
 part may David take in that music of the heavenly w-orld, 
 the cpirit and strains of which he cultivated sp much oif 
 Tarth ! And with what a soul of light and glory may 
 

 30 
 
 Isaikb tben.dijate apon the humiliations and triumphs of 
 the virgin-bornJtamianuel, andthe ApoiUe Paul on ^Ivation 
 by sacrifice, fwSir^hp first offering of Abel to the achieve- 
 ments of CaWi^ f , And may we not suppose correspond- 
 ing and appropriate stations and employments for the edifi- 
 cation and joy of the whole family of heaven, assigned to 
 such just men made perfect aii a Eusebius and Usher, a 
 Burnett and Mosheim, who empWyed themselves in lime 
 and edified believers on earth with» histories of the provi- 
 dence of God in the establishment, preservation, and tri- 
 umphs of his Church; a Boyle and .Ray, who greatly 
 improved the science of natural and experim^tal philoso- 
 phy, and sanctified it to religion ; a Luther and Calvin, 
 a Latimer and Knox, whose souls were instinct with the 
 life and power of the Church of Christ, and whose lives 
 were consecrated to the revival of its purity ; a More and 
 .Howe, whose meditative 'spirits explored the heavenly 
 regions before their entrance there ; a Baxter and Alleine, 
 who sodght the conversion of sinners; a Wesley and 
 Fletcher, who aimed at the perfection of belieters and the 
 holiness of the world. And the same wisdom which assigns 
 appropriate stations and employments to these and thou- 
 aands of other 'burning and shining lights' of the Church, 
 will be at no loss in conferring corresponding and suitable 
 rewards upon all the * spirits of the just, according to the 
 deeds done in the body.' The heavenly vessels may vary 
 in their dimensions ; but they are all ♦ vessels of honour,* 
 and they shall all be filled to their utmost capacity. They 
 can ?ach say, God is mine; for they nre tUl 'heirs of God, 
 and joint heirs with Christ.* The same celestial fire burns 
 in all their bosoms, and melts them into one 'spirit 
 with the Lord.' All is love, and therefore all is delight. 
 They not only behold a transfigured Jesus, but they are 
 >,. transfigured with him— approximating him in perfection 
 abd happiness for ever and ever. New subjects of admi- 
 ration are perpetually engaging their attention : new 
 
 streams of knowledge are perpetually flowing into their 
 minds; new themea of praise are perpetually employing 
 
 their tongues, 
 iog and etbn 
 
 Such, my 
 by the phrasi 
 Bolemn occasi 
 from the forej 
 two ; — -the oi 
 other a lessoi 
 
 1. The tei 
 
 citable oppos 
 
 that which 
 
 the graves o 
 
 the house of 
 
 • weeps, wher 
 
 thecbmpani( 
 
 taken sweet 
 
 find Her pree 
 
 apartment tc 
 
 her voice, b 
 
 steps, ' she 
 
 this furnitui 
 
 her no mor« 
 
 spirit oveyw 
 
 portunateiy 
 
 is not. H 
 
 was a 'ma 
 
 sanctioned i 
 
 But the doc 
 
 sorrow, as i 
 
 sorrow,' — a 
 
 sorrow ; bi 
 
 The fcope ( 
 
 think I am 
 
 is fa sure f 
 
 everlasting 
 
 been her *1 
 faith to si 
 
n 
 
 their tongues. Their weight of glory is far more exceed- 
 ing and etbmal. 
 
 Such, my brethren, are some of the thoughts suggested . 
 by the phrase of the text, in connexion with the present 
 solemn occasion. Many practical remarks naturally flow 
 from the foregoing observations. 1 will confine myself to 
 two ;— the one a word of consolation to the bereaved— the 
 other a lesson of instruction, to all. - 
 
 1. The terms consolatiori and bereavement are irrecon- 
 cilable opposites apart from the doctrine of the text. It is 
 that which beams the light of life and immortality into 
 the graves of departed friends, and relieves the gloom of 
 the house of mourning. It is true the heart melts and ejre 
 • weeps, when we go into the domestic parlour and find not 
 the companion with whom we have so often and so long 
 taken sweet counsel ; when we sit down at the table, and 
 find Her presiding place unoccupied ; when we go from 
 apartment to apartment and see not her form and hear not 
 her voice, but are reminded by the echoes of our solitary 
 steps, < she is not here— she has gone hence— these rooms, 
 this furniture, these works of her own hands, will kmvr 
 her no more.' And again is the heart dissolved and the 
 spirit overwhelmed, when the children anxiously and im- 
 portunately ask for her that bore and nursed them, and she 
 is not. Humanity must weep when bereaved. He who 
 was a * man of sorrows and acquainted with grief,' has 
 sanctioned it, by weeping himself at a scene of bereavement. 
 But the doctrine of the text transforms the character of our 
 sorrow, as it changes the nature of our bereavement. * We 
 sorrow,'— and sympathising as well as bereaved friends 
 sorrow: but we sorrow not as those who have no hope.' 
 The lu^e connected with our sorrpw is everything^ I 
 think I «m warranted in the present instanfeo in saying, it 
 is *a sure and certain hope Of» glorious resurrection^ to 
 everlasting life.' The decease of our departed sister has 
 been her « birth day into eternal life ;' her elevation from 
 faith to sight— from absence to presence with the Lord 
 
 I ■• 
 
\ 
 
 ^'J ^!rZ\ ' On her account therefore, we may 
 
 ea vation of her soul, vjn iier « 
 
 rather. ing the doxobgy of pra.«e. tha -^^^^ ^^^ 
 
 Bpint Pl";7/;^";' t,^^ feel persuaded, however mysteri- 
 
 of a mDlllor'. p/")""- „. " LVwccn the pi""! mMetnal 
 
 mother's care and ability, and will yei db a 
 ofrf'ioicing in heaven. 
 
 To . Wlosv ■nim.tor in .ho Churcl, of Chn-t-U, o,« 
 
 who 1... otto,,, by ''■« -''-*'r:, \t, r^ bcZvrf 
 
 ■ the sarao co,,solal,on., uoJ tang ,M.on . „i,';„-„,i.„M 
 
 „ble pr„n,i.os, •r""^^^ J^^ilneB. in the pro- 
 
 mcntofHimw 
 
 Well may my 
 
 PsalmiBt,— am 
 
 ist's spirit — ' 1 
 
 titou didst it.' 
 
 Almighty Dis] 
 
 numbers our \ 
 
 Propitiation ai 
 
 blood, renewe 
 
 counted us fai 
 
 present dispei 
 
 iRml»«^»thl 
 
 it is the grea 
 
 Banctified effe 
 
 ofthe justmi 
 
 cessful preac 
 
 2. Theoc 
 
 suggest a lee 
 
 ^Church are i 
 
 vacant, to v 
 
 ready for the 
 
 soon they n 
 
 charge, and 
 
 legacy of re 
 
 prayers. ^ 
 
 ^ with death 
 
 ' Btrate the i 
 
 . principles o 
 
 ant— belwt 
 
 on earth, a 
 
 than univei 
 
 and glory i 
 
 apostle Pai 
 
 conversion 
 
 God' in he 
 
 him' there 
 
 pose of tb 
 us in the 
 
 -is also peculiarly consoling v^ nnw« r ^ j^gg neglect or 
 
88 
 
 X 
 
 
 It made 
 sven the 
 ve may 
 r of 8or- 
 vtsh her 
 i .vale of 
 mysteri- 
 ver im- 
 1 of com- 
 lave, and 
 revalence 
 , there is 
 m&lernttl 
 i not take 
 hind, but 
 >re than a 
 t'b crown 
 
 ;. — to one 
 
 rations »f 
 bereavecl 
 4he utter- 
 ;8 already 
 Jut I know 
 idaffliclitm 
 lain immu- 
 jumstantial 
 in the pre- 
 one alt that 
 human skill 
 ng life, and 
 lends. Such 
 ur holy reli- 
 8 even as an 
 :iallife. It 
 occa s ion of 
 ss neglect or 
 ifesfappoint- 
 
 mcnt of Him who h infinite wisdom and goodnens and power 
 Well may my bereaved brother say in the v^orda of the 
 ^a mr«t -and may he-be enabled to do ao ,n the P««lm- 
 KZ U-'I waa dumb, Lopcned not my mouth ; because _ 
 
 Tr^nt diapensation we are brought into more immediate 
 SS^ th that death and judgement and heaven for which 
 Sl^lendof our vocation to |^j»^en,ma^^^ 
 .^ntsfi^iTpffect be. a greater assimilation to tne spinw 
 TthlT-tm-^^^^^^^^^^ a more fervent and sue 
 
 ceasful preaching of ' all the words of that hfe. 
 
 2. The occasion, and subject "^ «"' P'*^^"' vll'L"^.'!' 
 sugiest a lesson of instruction to aU. The men^sorthe 
 /Sch are reminded how soon their present seAs jUl be 
 vaciuat, to work 'while they have time to ^o'l^' r/j°J^ 
 ^adT or their summons hence. ?»;«">«"« "T^^tmS 
 aoon they may be removed from their present domestic 
 SJe anThow important to leave to their offspring the . 
 Sy of religious instruction. ^ holy example, and fervent 
 Ss We are all reminded of our inevitable connexion 
 S death and eternity ; and the topics of ^scoursede^^^^^^ 
 atratfi the inseparable connexion between the elements and 
 nSles Tthe Church militant and the Church trmmph- 
 rn^betVeei pardon and regeneration '"d sanct.ficaUon 
 onearth. and glory in heav(^n. It is a maxim no less true 
 Aarun^^ifiaHnChristendotn, that 'grac6 i« glorj^begun, 
 andXyia grace perfectel' The glory in which the 
 
 t^trKSnes^ith «^^ r-r^^-l;!' '^T^, 
 cLersioh-in repentanceJfaith and a^pUofl. Jo^^^l 
 God' in heaven, we must ^now him on earth;, |o be Uke 
 him* there, we mligt resenible him here. This « the pur^ 
 
 ^:;;;:'Im;g?:^G;i;^K the purpose of Satan to 
 
 ■ \:5, 1 ■ 
 
/•■ 
 
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 feat this obiect— to make us his prty, ^vhere the^ worm 
 S ^ot^id the fire is not que.u=h^. Which of Ujese 
 • purposes have you been pursuing ? Into which of them do 
 you now,'enterr' Choose ye, «to ye vv.ll serve. The 
 Lful option is in your own hands. The way, he truth, 
 thl life are before you-made accessible to you by ' precious 
 . Id/' Wi 1^^^^^^ Will you receive 
 
 ^Slfiuthl Will you inherit that li^l 'What w.U jt 
 "^pt^fit you to gain the whole world,' and lose your own.oun 
 - Or what will you give in exchange -^ y^ ;?'^J^ 
 coffin, the shroud, the grave of our departed f'.»««d p'^^f "^ 
 ^ you the end of all worldly honour and gam ; ^«t be 
 . e^rits of the ju^t meB made perfecfcai. done «chibU the 
 . end of a Christian's * work of faith and^ labour of love.— 
 Which of these ends do you preferl Defer not ypur <=h;'^« 
 tUlto-morrow. 'Decide m,w. Incur ^ot the gmlt <rf re- 
 iecting the Son of God ; but secure the blessedness of re- 
 S him. Be not deceived. The character oT your 
 life wni determine your state in eternity. - For _ he tha 
 soweth to the flesh, shall of the flesh reap corruption ; bUt 
 rS^^o^th ti the SpiriVshall of the Spirit reap 
 ' ' ^>^nasting.' Then sow tothe Spirit, and^ur harvest 
 ^l b^S, glorious, and eternal. Be Christian, on 
 larth, and you wiH be ' spirits of the just jd«j;^^^ ;- 
 heaven. May this be the portion of us all, for Chnsts 
 
 sake! Amen. 
 
 
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