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LIFE AND REMAINS 
 
 OF THE LATE 
 
 REV. WILLIAM HAMILTON, D.D. 
 
 MINISTER OF STRATHBLANE. 
 
 IN TWO VOLUMES. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 GLASGOW: 
 
 MAURICE OGLE & SON, ROYAL EXCHANGE SQUARE. 
 
 WAUGH & INNES, EDINBURGH. 
 
 HAMILTON, ADAMS, AND CO., LONDON. 
 
 MDCCC XXXVI. 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
 in 2012 with funding from 
 
 Princeton Theological Seminary Library 
 
 http://archive.org/details/liferemait02hami 
 
CONTENTS OF THE SECOND VOLUME. 
 
 ESSAY ON A REVIVAL OF RELIGION. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 The Necessity for greater Christian Exertion, . 9 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 The Causes of the present languid and limited state 
 
 of Religion, 25 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 The Means of promoting a Revival of Religion, . 53 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Motives for increased Religious Exertion, . . 82 
 
SERMONS, 
 
 SERMON I. 
 
 The Extent of the Gospel Call, .... 99 
 
 Exodus xx. 3. 
 
 " Thou shalt have no other gods before me." 
 
 SERMON II. 
 The Gospel the Religion of the Poor, . . . 123 
 1 Corinthians i. 26 — 29. 
 " For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise 
 men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. 
 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound 
 the wise ; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to 
 confound the things which are mighty ; and base things of the 
 world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and 
 things which are not, to bring to nought things that are : that no 
 flesh should glory in his presence." 
 
 SERMON III. 
 The object of the Believer in his attendance on Re- 
 ligious Ordinances, . . . . 155 
 
 Exodus xxxiii. 18. 
 " I beseech thee, show me thy glory. " 
 
 SERMON IV. 
 
 The Dignity and Use of the Ministry, . . 175 
 
 1 Corinthians iii. 5. 
 " Who, then, is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by 
 whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?" 
 
SERMON V. 
 
 The Unsearchable Riches of Christ, . . . 193 
 
 Ephesians iii. 8. 
 
 " Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace 
 
 given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable 
 
 riches of Christ." 
 
 SERMON VI. 
 The Forgiveness of Injuries, .... 207 
 
 Matthew v. 44. 
 " Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to 
 them that hate you, and pray for them that despitefully use you, 
 and persecute you." 
 
 SERMONS VII. VIII. 
 The Christian Life, 226, 238 
 
 Galatians ii. 20. 
 " Christ liveth in me." 
 
 SERMON IX. 
 
 The Privileges of the Christian Life, . . . 256 
 
 Ephesians iii. 17. 
 
 " That Christ may dwell in your hearts." 
 
 SERMON X. 
 
 The Different Builders, 270 
 
 l Corinthians iii. 10. 
 " Let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon." 
 
SERMON XI. 
 The Celestial Visitor, 303 
 
 Revelation iii. 20. 
 " Behold I stand at the door, and knock : if any man hear my 
 voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with 
 him, and he with me. " 
 
 ERRATA IN VOL. II. 
 
 Page 42, line 8, for " effected," read " affected." 
 
 Page 69, lines 6, 7, for "him," read "them;" and line 9, for 
 
 " his," read 1 ' their." 
 Page 112, line 13, for "them," read " it." 
 
ESSAY 
 
 REVIVAL OF RELIGION:— 
 
 NECESSITY, AND THE MEANS OF PROMOTING IT. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 i 
 
 THE NECESSITY FOR GREATER CHRISTIAN EXERTION. 
 
 In an interesting account of a Nias Boy, who was 
 drowned at Greenock, March 1830, we find the follow- 
 ing astounding and most humbling fact: — 
 
 " If the whole truth must be told, it is painful to have 
 to admit, that he did not improve much by mixing in 
 the company of other boys here, and that latterly he was 
 perhaps contracting some faults that were evidently 
 copied from them. 
 
 " What was more natural? They called themselves 
 Christian children : he was called a heathen boy. Need 
 we wonder if he thought that he could not be far wrong 
 in imitating their example? It is not difficult to dis- 
 cover, however hard it may be submissively to acknow- 
 ledge, that the early removal of this child was well and 
 wisely ordered, inasmuch as he was doubtless taken 
 away from evil to come. For we had begun to notice, 
 that from his peculiarly social disposition, there was a 
 great risk of his being soon corrupted from the native 
 
 B 
 
10 
 
 ingenuousness of his character, as well as from his sim- 
 plicity and godly sincerity in Christ."* 
 
 The generous efforts of his pious benefactor were 
 counteracted, and in danger of being frustrated, by the 
 wicked example and pernicious influence of the youth 
 by whom he was surrounded; and if such was the 
 melancholy result of an attempt to educate a heathen 
 child in the Christian religion in such a town as Greenock, 
 the residence of so many eminent Christians, and where 
 so much is done is for the spiritual welfare of the 
 people; how much more fruitless must the experiment 
 have proved, if it had been tried in some of the more 
 neglected cities or districts of our country ? 
 
 Britain is called a Christian country, and contains 
 many intelligent, sound-hearted, and devoted disciples of 
 the Redeemer. There are numbers who are living under 
 the power of religion, and who are actively and unweari- 
 edly engaged in works of piety and beneficence. Various 
 and judicious measures are employed for promoting the 
 temporal comfort and ensuring the everlasting welfare of 
 our brethren. By means of schools of every form, and 
 associations of every name; by libraries; mechanics' 
 institutions ; temperance, tract, and Bible societies ; by 
 city and parochial missions, thousands are assiduously 
 and strenuously labouring to season the public at home 
 
 * The Nias Boy: by the Rev. N. Morren, A.M. 2d Edition. 
 Pp. 65, 72. 
 
 i 
 
11 
 
 with the knowledge and love of religion, and to send 
 the glad tidings of redeeming mercy to the utmost ends 
 of the earth. 
 
 But while these institutions are excellent in them- 
 selves, and the generous men who support them are 
 entitled to our high approbation; the question is, Are 
 they sufficient for all the purposes of pious beneficence? 
 Has every method been adopted, and every measure put 
 in requisition, which ingenuity can invent or kindness 
 employ, for the renovation of our country, and the 
 evangelization of the world? Are believers improving 
 their own privileges, and striving to stand complete in 
 all the will of God? Are they enriched with all spiritual 
 blessings in heavenly places, and abounding in all the 
 fruits of righteousness? Has the Church risen to the 
 height of the mighty task before her, and made every 
 sacrifice within her reach for the honour of her Lord and 
 the advancement of his cause? Has she besieged the 
 throne of mercy with an urgency and intensity which can 
 take no denial; and displayed a faith and a fortitude 
 which no difficulties can disconcert, nor any resistance can 
 extinguish or repress? Has she filled the length and 
 breadth of the land with heralds of the Cross, who count 
 every thing but loss for the excellency of the knowledge 
 of Christ; and who cheerfully spend and are spent in 
 proclaiming the unsearchable riches of his grace, and in 
 efforts to gain souls to the enjoyment of his glorious 
 gospel? Has she succeeded in rendering the people all 
 righteous, and in making them the willing and delighted 
 
12 
 
 servants of our Master? Has she fitted out every 
 missionary that she can find, and spent on their support 
 every fraction that she can spare? Has she brought 
 forward all the philanthropy which she encloses, and 
 exhausted all the resources which she possesses, for the 
 conversion of our countrymen and the salvation of our 
 race ? 
 
 Bound by an authority, which we can neither evade 
 nor question, to love our neighbour as ourselves, and to 
 seek the good of all to their edification, as long as a 
 single human creature remains destitute of the life and 
 power of religion, we are deeply guilty till we have used 
 every argument, and employed every mean to bring him 
 to the knowledge and obedience of the truth as it is in 
 Jesus. 
 
 Now, dare we say that religion every where prospers 
 and prevails? That the empire of Satan is overturned, 
 and the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of 
 our God and of his Christ? Dare we affirm that in our 
 own land the dominion of impiety and ignorance, of 
 profligacy and vice, is destroyed ; and that its inhabitants 
 are reclaimed to their duty and allegiance to the Most 
 High? Is his character universally known and admired? 
 Is his name habitually reverenced and adored? Are 
 his Sabbaths every where sanctified, and his ordinances 
 frequented? Are all baptized with the Holy Ghost, 
 crucified with Christ, and living by faith on the Son of 
 God? While relying on his righteousness for their 
 acceptance before God; are they constrained, by his love, 
 
13 
 
 to live not to themselves but to him who died for them 
 and rose again? Are they steadfast and unmoveable, 
 always abounding in his work? Is every thing relin- 
 quished for his sake ; and is each honestly and sincerely 
 endeavouring to do his will in all things, even as it is 
 done in heaven? Is he precious to every heart, and 
 supreme in every man's esteem? Is each glorying in 
 the Cross, and regarding Christ as all his salvation, and 
 all his desire? 
 
 If we knew the whole character of God, and felt our 
 dependance upon him ; if we were sensible of our guilt 
 and wretchedness, and saw the ineffable infinite obliga- 
 tions which we owe the Lord Jesus Christ, we would 
 prefer him to our chief joy: we would know nothing but 
 him; he would command the admiration of our minds 
 and engross the affections of our hearts; we would live 
 to him entirely, and glorify him in our bodies and spirits, 
 which are his. No power could repress the warmth of 
 our gratitude, nor any art seduce us from the cordial 
 attachment and the active services which we owe him. 
 Our country would be a habitation of peace and of 
 piety, and an image of heaven. 
 
 But dare we maintain that this is the case? That the 
 people are all righteous? Or even that they are pressing 
 into the kingdom of heaven, and each giving diligence 
 to make his calling and election sure? Instead of 
 exhorting men to flee from the wrath to come, and 
 betake themselves to the hope set before them; have 
 ministers now nothing to do but to build them up on 
 b2 
 
14 
 
 their holy faith, and keep them in the attitude of con- 
 stant preparation for the coming of the Son of Man? 
 
 If religion consisted in merely receiving the ordinance 
 of baptism, and in assuming the Christian name ; if it 
 allowed us to unite the service of God and of Mammon ; 
 and, while we entertain the highest conceit of our own 
 virtues and worth, it permitted us to neglect the duties 
 of devotion and benevolence, and to walk according to 
 the course of this world: then Britain might be called a 
 land of Christians, and the gospel would have already 
 accomplished all the objects which it was intended to 
 produce. 
 
 But if it be true that the gospel was designed for 
 something nobler and better than merely to varnish the 
 surface of society with a sprinkling of piety, while the 
 great mass is rankling and festering under the viru- 
 lence of depravity and vice; if it be true that every man 
 in Christ is a new creature, and that they who are his 
 have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts; if 
 it be true that strait is the gate and narrow is the way 
 that leadeth unto life, and they must strive who enter 
 thereat; if it be true that the kingdom of heaven suf- 
 fereth violence, and that the violent take it by force ; if 
 it be true that believers are like-minded with their 
 heavenly Master, and that they live in the Spirit and 
 walk in the Spirit ; if it be true that they do good unto 
 all as they have opportunity, and seek not their own, but 
 the things which are Jesus Christ's ; if it be true that 
 they set their affections on things above, have their 
 
15 
 
 conversation in heaven, and are hastening unto the 
 coming of the day of Christ: if all this be true, and 
 who, with the Scriptures in his hand, can doubt its 
 certainty? then, in this favoured nation, and notwith- 
 standing all the privileges which we possess, the number 
 of genuine Christians is small, and we are compelled to 
 tremble at the fewness of those who shall be saved. 
 
 Protestant Britain is still the abode of profligacy and 
 vice, and forms a part of that world which lies in wicked- 
 ness. The greater part of its inhabitants neither know 
 God nor obey the gospel of his Son. They are proud 
 and selfish; arrogant and irritable; covetous and 
 cruel; malicious and revengeful. They are living to 
 themselves, and walking in the sight of their own eyes 
 and in the ways of their own hearts. While keenly 
 solicitous for their temporal gain and worldly enjoy- 
 ments, they are careless of all that is sacred, and 
 blind to the excellence of all that is divine. To 
 accomplish their secular purposes, religious profes- 
 sors court the alliance, and grasp the aid of the 
 open and implacable enemies of the Cross: but if the 
 slightest difference of opinion intervene, or the smallest 
 hazard to their temporal interests is apprehended, they 
 will deliberately renounce intercourse with the humble 
 and faithful servants of the Saviour, and remorselessly 
 break through all the strong and tender ties which for 
 years had endeared them to their souls. Myriads 
 cannot read the Word of God, and multitudes who 
 occasionally peruse it neither understand nor wish to 
 
16 
 
 comprehend what it contains. Large masses of the 
 population are totally ignorant of the one thing needful; 
 and have no more idea than the ground they tread on of 
 the way of a sinner's acceptance with God. While few 
 accessions are made to the congregations of the faithful, 
 the ranks of Popery, infidelity, and delusion, are daily 
 swelling. Thousands never appear within the walls of 
 the sanctuary. The ordinances of religion are con- 
 temned; and the sanctity of the Sabbath incessantly 
 invaded. We can seldom stir from our dwellings without 
 being annoyed with the sounds of blasphemy, or com- 
 pelled to witness the filth of the sot or the fury of the 
 drunkard. Truth, honour, and honesty, are coolly 
 sacrificed for the most paltry and contemptible gratifica- 
 tions. Under many a roof the worship of the Father 
 and the Son, through the Holy Spirit, is utterly un- 
 known; and the little family circle, which ought to be 
 the seat of harmony and peace, and the centre of such a 
 number of strong and tender affections, is kept in 
 agitation and terror, or filled with suffering and sorrow 
 by the ferocity and violence of some barbarous tyrant or 
 brutal oppressor. It is dangerous to place children at 
 public schools, lest they shall be corrupted by the vicious 
 practices to which they are exposed; and a home educa- 
 tion is often counteracted by the arts of some base and 
 unprincipled domestic. Literary, commercial, and me- 
 chanical professions are infested with profligates, and 
 abound with snares. No department in society, nor any 
 branch of business, is safe : and parents, who are solicit- 
 
17 
 
 ous for the everlasting- welfare of their offspring, are 
 perplexed what employment to select for their children; 
 and tremble to send them out into the world, lest from 
 the contaminating example and mischievous influence of 
 the graceless, who are swarming in every direction, they 
 shall be returned to them sunk in vice and covered with 
 infamy, and as hackneyed in evil and hardened in impiety 
 as the fiendish monsters by whom they have been misled 
 and ruined. 
 
 The periodical and daily press unblushingly proclaim 
 their infidelity, and boldly advocate the cause of irreligion 
 and profligacy. The world is perpetually encroaching 
 on the church, and year after year breaking down the 
 barriers raised by our pious forefathers to withstand its 
 attacks. To escape the sneers of the fashionable, family 
 worship is laid aside ; and to avoid the disorders to which 
 it has been subjected, field preaching, which was once 
 such a powerful instrument in advancing the growth of 
 piety, has been abandoned. Gaiety and frivolity have 
 become so general, and the contempt for the institutions 
 and laws of Jehovah, so inveterate and common, that, 
 instead of checking and restraining the impious practices 
 that abound, some of the sacred order are infected with 
 the contagion, oppose every measure of religious reform, 
 plead for the sins that prevail, and lend the weight of 
 their example to extend and aggravate their demoralizing* 
 and destructive influence. They will assert the innocence 
 of what the scriptures condemn, and sanction and confirm 
 the increasing secularity of a graceless and ungodly age, 
 
18 
 
 by frequenting places of public amusement, clamouring 
 for Sunday posts, and reading their political journals, 
 and giving and receiving convivial entertainments on the 
 Lord's day, 
 
 Our foreign missions languish. Though the fields are 
 white unto harvest, the precious season is lost, because 
 the labourers are few. The want of funds has compelled 
 us in some quarters to contract our operations ; and in 
 others, the parsimony of religious professors has obliged 
 U3 to refuse urgent and persevering applications for 
 spiritual aid. And while unable to overtake the openings 
 for enlarged usefulness abroad, religion has so miserably 
 declined at home, that it is now more difficult to educate 
 a Pagan youth in the principles and practices of the 
 gospel in this country, than in a region of total moral 
 darkness. And in their endeavours to plant our holy 
 faith in heathen lands, whence arise the most formidable 
 obstacles with which our missionaries are called to contend? 
 Not from the ignorance and intolerance, the ferocity and 
 brutality of the wild and barbarous inhabitants, but from 
 the immoral lives, and the anti-christian rancour of British 
 seamen, and British settlers ! While the heathen venerate 
 their persons, and respect their property, the baptized 
 crews and colonists from Britain, who, if our country 
 had been thoroughly seasoned with the principles of piety, 
 would have been their warmest friends^ and most active 
 auxiliaries, are their most bitter and mischievous foes. 
 They counteract and frustrate the labours of our benevo- 
 lent agents ; excite against them the jealousy and hostility 
 
19 
 
 of the Pagans ; revile their characters ; endanger their 
 lives; and burn and demolish the buildings which they 
 rear to the worship of the Most High. 
 
 With these humbling and appalling facts before us, 
 dare we say that we have undertaken or accomplished 
 all that is within our power for the honour of our God 
 and the salvation of our fellow-immortals? Dare we 
 affirm that we have vigilantly improved our own privileges, 
 and faithfully and affectionately laboured to bring all 
 around us under the purifying and transforming power 
 of the gospel ? Have we walked the whole circle of 
 Christian beneficence ; and while shining in the beauties 
 of personal holiness, have we employed every method of 
 kindness and of wisdom to gain our brethren to the 
 obedience of the faith ? 
 
 Unless we are chargeable with a criminal apathy, or 
 adopting very inadequate means for the advancement of 
 the cause of Christ, whence the sad contrast betwixt our 
 languid and stationary condition, and the rapid progress 
 and signal success which attended the publication of the 
 gospel ? When Jesus ascended to glory, there were 
 only twelve apostles ; and for many years the number of 
 those who could strictly be called preachers was small. 
 But the ministers and their people were possessed of a 
 generosity which knew no bounds, and of a fortitude 
 which no difficulties nor dangers could subdue nor shake ! 
 They loved their Master supremely, and threw their 
 whole hearts and souls into his service ! An apostle 
 or evangelist seldom visited a city or a town, without 
 
20 
 
 planting a congregation in it ; and on his departure, the 
 faithful were so thoroughly imbued with his spirit, that 
 they carried on his work, and acted as missionaries in the 
 streets and villages where they resided ! Every believer 
 felt himself answerable for the interest and honour of 
 our holy religion ; and, however low his rank, or slender 
 his talents, gratitude to God, and compassion for man, 
 compelled him to exert his best energies to make known 
 the glad tidings of redeeming mercy, and lead his perish- 
 ing neighbours to attend to their everlasting safety ! If 
 the churches were at rest, believers endeavoured to 
 strengthen and establish each other in their attachment 
 to the gospel, and to augment their numbers by accessions 
 from the ranks of idolaters ! If the churches were broken 
 up and scattered by persecution, this extended the 
 knowledge of the truth, and accelerated its triumphs: 
 for the dispersed became heralds of the cross, and " went 
 every where preaching the word !" The prisoners of war 
 transported to the scenes of their degradation and bondage 
 the sublime and sacred principles of Christianity, and 
 reduced their rough and ferocious oppressors to subjection 
 to the Prince of Peace. Slaves introduced into the fami- 
 lies of their masters the liberty wherewith the Son makes 
 his people free ; and whole nations were subdued to the 
 obedience of the faith by the piety and zeal of single 
 captives ! 
 
 By the blessing of God on the lives and labours of 
 these devoted followers of the Cross, so mightily grew the 
 word of the Lord, and prevailed, that in a few years 
 
21 
 
 Christianity filled Jerusalem and Judea. It steadily 
 held on its course, in spite of every effort to repress or 
 crush it! It resolutely braved every difficulty, and nobly 
 surmounted every obstacle ! It gradually pervaded the 
 length and breadth of the dominion of the Caesars ; and, 
 clearing the barriers of the Roman empire, made its 
 blessed and salutary way to the utmost ends of the 
 world ! " A little one became a thousand, and a small 
 one a strong nation !" The handful of corn in the earth, 
 on the top of the mountains, shook like Lebanon ; and 
 they of the city flourished like the grass of the earth ! 
 
 And when, betrayed by the repose, and corrupted by 
 the security which their own unparalleled victories had 
 won, believers had lost their first love, and sunk into 
 darkness and delusion ; when they had exchanged the 
 simplicity and purity of the gospel for a mass of super- 
 stition and absurdity; on the appearance of the Reformers, 
 how speedily was the emancipation of the nations from 
 Popish thraldom obtained ! No sooner had the star of 
 the Reformation risen, than all was light ; and the churches 
 passed from the horrors of midnight darkness, into the 
 splendours of noon-day. Luther, who had lifted up his 
 solitary voice against the usui-pations of Rome, and, single- 
 handed, had defied all the violence of anti-christian 
 despotism, before he entered his eternal rest saw that 
 collossal power torn in pieces, and the banner of the 
 Cross waving gallantly over many a free and independent 
 state. 
 
 And since our Reformers were gathered to their 
 c 
 
fathers, there have been times when the gospel has had 
 similar free course, and been glorified. Speaking of the 
 period that intervened betwixt 1638, and the restoration 
 of Charles II. Kirkton says, — " At the King's return, 
 every parish had a minister, every village had a school, 
 every family almost had a Bible ; yea, in almost all the 
 country every child could read the Scriptures, and were 
 provided of Bibles either by their parents or their minis- 
 ters. Every minister was a very full professor of the 
 Reformed religion, according to the large Confession of 
 Faith, framed at Westminster by the divines of both 
 nations. Every minister was obliged to preach thrice 
 a-week, to lecture and catechise once, besides other 
 private duties, wherein they abounded, according to their 
 proportion of faithfulness and abilities. None of them 
 might be scandalous in their conversation, or negligent 
 in their office, so long as a Presbytery stood ; and among 
 them were many holy in conversation, and eminent in 
 o-ifts ; the dispensation of the ministry being fallen from 
 the noise of waters, and sound of trumpets, to the melody 
 of harpers, which is, alas ! the last mess in the banquet : 
 nor did a minister satisfy himself, except his ministry 
 had the seal of a divine approbation, as might witness 
 him to be really sent from God. Indeed, in many places, 
 the Spirit seemed to be poured out with the word, both 
 bv the multitude of sincere converts, and also by the 
 common work of reformation upon many who never came 
 the length of a communion. I have lived many years in 
 a parish where I never heard an oath, and you might 
 
23 
 
 have ridden many miles before you heard any ; also, you 
 could not, for a great part of the country, have lodged in 
 a family where the Lord was not worshipped by reading, 
 singing, and public prayer."* 
 
 When, therefore, we reflect on the small band, in the 
 primitive ages, to whom was entrusted the task of con- 
 quering the world, and recollect the rapid, and signal 
 success which crowned their labours ; when we look at 
 the straggling and helpless appearance of the first 
 Reformers, and remember the stupendous revolution 
 which they so quickly achieved, why is religion in such 
 a languid and stationary state ? When for years and 
 ages our land has enjoyed such external tranquillity, 
 and possessed such multitudes who make a profession of 
 religion, and so many who have experienced its renovating 
 power, why are so few additions made to the church ? Why 
 are such multitudes destitute of the knowledge, and 
 influence of the truth, and openly and avowedly tramp- 
 ling under foot the authority and grace of the Most 
 High ? Instead of lengthening her cords, strengthening her 
 stakes, and stretching abroad her curtains, why is our 
 Zion cooped up within her ancient dimensions, and 
 obliged to exert her vigilance to prevent a diminution of 
 her extent, and a decrease of her numbers ? Instead of 
 fermenting the whole mass of the people with the leaven 
 of the gospel, and covering the earth with our missions, 
 
 Kirkton's History of the Church of Scotland, p. 64. 
 
24 
 
 why are so many nations allowed to remain without the 
 labours of the ambassadors of peace, and such numbers 
 beside us left to live in vice, and sink into perdition ? 
 
 Would the Reformers, or first Christians, have been 
 guilty of such tameness, and displayed a spirit of such 
 cold and selfish indifference ? Instead of making known 
 the high requisitions of the Almighty, and seriously 
 striving to raise all to the lofty standard of the gospel ; 
 would they have coolly submitted to see the authority of 
 God undermined, his demands despised and evaded, and 
 one religious principle and practice after another sacrificed 
 to the perverse maxims and the graceless customs of 
 an ungodly world ? Would they have folded their arms 
 in indolence, and looked on in listlessness; while piety 
 was declining, and vice and profligacy regaining the 
 ascendancy? They would manfully have encountered 
 every hazard; they would have lifted up their voice like a 
 trumpet; they would have strained every effort, and 
 employed every mean to rouse the most sluggish and 
 reclaim the most abandoned; and they never would have 
 relaxed their generous and godlike exertions, till they 
 had covered our country with the knowledge of the Lord, 
 and sent the gospel of his grace to the utmost ends of 
 the earth. Regarding themselves as the servants of the 
 Most High, and assured of his protection and blessing, 
 they would have boldly and resolutely persevered in 
 their benevolent undertaking, till the people were all 
 righteous, and the whole world filled with his glory. 
 
25 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE CAUSES OF THE PRESENT LANGUID AND LIMITED STATE 
 OF RELIGION. 
 
 Without the assistance of the press, and without the 
 aid of books and schools, by means of a handful of 
 preachers, the gospel, in less than three hundred years, 
 overturned the idolatry of the Roman empire, and carried 
 its benign and salutary influence to many nations lying 
 beyond the reach of the arts and arms of that haughty 
 mistress of the world. And, though labouring under 
 many disadvantages from which we are free, and desti- 
 tute of much of the moral machinery which is placed 
 at our command, the Reformers in a short period eman- 
 cipated our country from Papal ignorance and thraldom, 
 and planted the doctrines and ordinances of our holy 
 religion in many of the kingdoms of Europe. When, 
 therefore, we consider the vast and prodigious advan- 
 tages which we enjoy, what might have been reasonably 
 expected from the hosts of ministers and men of piety in 
 Britain during three centuries of peace and liberty? It 
 might surely have been anticipated, that, over the extent 
 of our islands, the people would have all known the 
 Lord; and, while walking in his fear, and in the comforts 
 c2 
 
26 
 
 of the Holy Ghost, would have exhibited a specimen of 
 the purity, and possessed a foretaste of the bliss of 
 heaven. 
 
 Why, then, instead of advancing, is religion in such a 
 languid and contracted state? Instead of gathering 
 fresh strength and courage for her toils, and vigorously 
 pushing forward her victories ; why does she appear 
 exhausted and overcome, and as if terrified to meet her 
 foes, allow such multitudes at home to remain in car- 
 nality and crime, and abroad leave the prince of darkness 
 in such undisturbed possession of his power? Has the 
 gospel lost its force? Has the arm of Him who wields 
 the sceptre of creation, and has the management and 
 charge of the interests of Zion, been deprived of its 
 energy and might? Xo: Jesus has still all power in 
 heaven and in earth; and is the same to-day that h e 
 was yesterday, and has been for ever. The gospel is 
 still the rod of his strength; and is endowed with a virtue 
 and a vigour sufficient to lay prostrate the strongholds 
 01 Satan, and subdue all nations to the obedience of the 
 faith. 
 
 But, while the kindness and care of Emanuel are still 
 the same, and the gospel is still the wisdom of God and 
 the power of God, we ourselves are to blame for the 
 stationary or retrograde condition of Christianity. We 
 have not been faithful to our trust, nor done justice to 
 the grace and resources of the gospel. We have not 
 vigilantly improved our opportunities, nor made a suit- 
 able use of our privileges. 
 
27 
 
 Among the causes which have contributed to the 
 present deplorable religious languor and lifelessness 
 which we witness, we are obliged to notice the following: 
 
 I. Tiie neglect of the State to make adequate provi- 
 sion for the religious instruction and spiritual welfare of 
 all the inhabitants of the nation. 
 
 The first duty of every man is to become a Christian. 
 The command to repent and believe the gospel, is the 
 law of the world. It is an obligation laid on the con- 
 science of every man by the God that made him. The 
 highest is not above its control, nor the lowest 
 beneath its reach. Till we understand its nature, and 
 submit to its authority, we are rebels against the Divine 
 government, and in the day of decision will be held as 
 usurpers upon the bounties of Providence. Whatever 
 rank we possess, and whatever situation we occupy, we 
 are bound to love God with our whole heart, and serve 
 him with all our strength and mind. And though we 
 should hide ourselves in the grave, and go down to 
 perdition, we never, through eternity, could escape the 
 force of these obligations. 
 
 The first duty of every Christian parent is conscien- 
 tiously to employ the most efficient means to bring all his 
 children under the saving influence of the gospel; and if 
 this primary and indispensable duty is neglected, what- 
 ever measures he may employ for their bodily health, 
 their mental improvement, and temporal prosperity, he 
 is chargeable alike with rebellion against the God of 
 heaven, and cruelty towards his offspring. 
 
28 
 
 And is there one law for the subject and another for 
 the sovereign? Are the people required, by the com- 
 mand of the Most High, to be religious and devout, and 
 each to convert his house into a dwelling of the God of 
 heaven? but are the rulers at liberty to live to them- 
 selves, and serve the world, the flesh, or the devil? Was 
 Abraham enjoined, in his private capacity, to command 
 his children, and his household after him, to keep the 
 way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment? But 
 would he have been released from these obligations, if 
 his pilgrimage had been extended through twenty cen- 
 turies; and if, in the lapse of time, his rank and power 
 had risen to royalty, and he had found himself seated on 
 the throne of Asia, and swaying the sceptre over the 
 numerous nations of his descendants? Provided that 
 they obeyed his civil enactments, and were ready with 
 their services in peace and in war, was he tamely to 
 allow them to modify their religious opinions and 
 practices according to their varying humours, and give 
 himself no concern whether they worshipped God or 
 Baal? And are kings and legislators now wan-anted 
 either to neglect personal religion, or forbear to furnish 
 the whole population with the means of religious instruc- 
 tion and everlasting salvation ? 
 
 The will cannot be forced; nor the understanding 
 carried by storm. Neither sovereign nor subject is 
 authorized to persecute or put heretics to death. After 
 using all humane and rational measures to enlighten and 
 reclaim the erroneous, they must be left to themselves. 
 
Unless their false tenets lead on to criminal practices, 
 and prompt them to disturb the peace and endanger the 
 safety of society, we must let them alone, and allow them 
 to stand or fall to their own master. 
 
 But while we plead for the most free and unlimited 
 toleration: we maintain that it is the duty of the magis- 
 trate to defend and propagate the religion published in 
 the volume of inspiration ; and to employ, to the utmost 
 of his power, every measure of instruction and persuasion 
 to reclaim every heretic, to convert every profligate, and 
 guide all his people into the way of everlasting felicity. 
 The father and the master are answerable for all in their 
 family who are lost through their carelessness and sloth. 
 Abraham would have been accountable for every child 
 and domestic who, through his indolence and inattention, 
 would have been permitted to live and die in a state of 
 ignorance and carnality. Rulers are the common parents 
 of their people. And, let them disguise the matter as 
 they will, if they knowingly and deliberately leave any 
 destitute of the means of religious instruction, and of 
 access to the gospel and its ordinances, they are charge- 
 able before God with all the tremendous consequences 
 that will follow. 
 
 Ignorance of the Christian system they cannot plead, 
 since that is clearly revealed in the Sacred Scriptures. 
 If without any particular interest in the study, and 
 without any other guide than their own writings, we 
 can ascertain from the works of Bacon and Newton the 
 principles of their philosophy; when every man has such 
 
30 
 
 a momentous concern in the subject, and when so many 
 helps are provided for understanding the Word of God ; 
 if any legislator sets himself honestly to the task, where 
 is the difficulty of ascertaining distinctly the doctrines 
 and duties of Divine revelation? 
 
 And if legislators cannot allege ignorance as an 
 apology for neglecting to use their authority for promot- 
 ing genuine religion, still less can they assert that it is 
 below their notice. To be the servant of the King of 
 kings is an honour which elevates the rank of an angel, 
 and confers additional majesty on the dignity of the 
 highest earthly potentate; and it is the most useful and 
 delightful exercise of human benevolence. Whatever 
 reason rulers may have for guarding their subjects from 
 internal turbulence and foreign aggression, they are a 
 thousandfold more bound to preserve them from the 
 tyranny of Satan and the fury of their own lusts and 
 passions: and, whatever solicitude they may feel to 
 diffuse the blessings of civil liberty and temporal pros- 
 perity, they are still more imperatively required to 
 exert themselves for the moral improvement and eternal 
 welfare of the people. The former is the object of 
 human philanthropy: the latter is the end of that which 
 is divine. In the one, patriots and statesmen may toil : 
 but in the other, the Creator and possessor of all spent 
 his labour and poured out his blood. And however 
 important or valuable in their own place, the political, 
 fiscal, or commercial arrangements of a state sink as far 
 
31 
 
 below its religious and moral prosperity, as earth is 
 inferior to heaven, and time less than eternity. 
 
 Plain, however, and obvious as these facts are, they 
 have long been overlooked by the British Legislature. 
 The piety or superstition of our popish ancestors pro- 
 vided the most munificent endowments for the service of 
 religion. But, whatever might be the personal character 
 of the sovereign or his ministers ; with all their zeal for 
 social order or popular rights, our Protestant kings and 
 their Protestant cabinets were for ages the spoilers or 
 plunderers of the church, and at all times the most 
 parsimonious and niggardly friends and benefactors of 
 piety. While they eagerly grasped at the revenues of 
 the Romish priesthood, they have doled out their favours 
 to religion and learning with the most cautious and 
 sparing hand. Over large provinces of the empire no 
 provision is made for the education of the people. Vil- 
 lages have swelled into towns, and thinly peopled 
 districts are now densely crowded ; but still the church 
 accommodation remains in its ancient narrow dimensions. 
 Parishes have been conjoined, and places of worship 
 suppressed to get rid of the expense of maintaining two 
 churches and two clergymen. Obstacles, nearly insur- 
 mountable, have been thrown in the way, to prevent the 
 subdivision of parishes and the multiplication of churches 
 for our perishing countrymen and brethren. And when 
 Parliament has lent its tardy aid to relieve some of our 
 more destitute rural districts, what have been the mighty 
 salaries appropriated for the maintenance of the pastor? 
 
32 
 
 A sum little more than is assigned as a remuneration for 
 the lowest officer of excise. While the religious and 
 educational statistics of Britain remain, posterity will at 
 once admire the munificence of our popish progenitors, 
 and hlush for the parsimony of their Protestant descend- 
 ants. Amidst the most lavish prodigality in our secular 
 concerns, we have displayed the most niggardly and 
 miserable penuriousness in the cause of God. Whilst 
 the navy of Britain could scarcely float the sums which 
 since the Reformation have been squandered on war, a 
 single dray could easily carry all that our Protestant 
 government has judged religion and education entitled to 
 receive from the funds of the nation. 
 
 The consequences of this neglect have been most 
 mischievous. From the want of church accommodation 
 multitudes have been excluded from the means of 
 religious instruction. Where people possessed wealth 
 and piety, they procured, by their own exertions, the 
 administration of the Word and ordinances of God. 
 But how could the large masses of our population, who 
 were alike destitute of seriousness and of worldly sub- 
 stance, supply by their own efforts the deficiencies of the 
 State? Mahometans will as soon solicit missions to 
 convert them to Christianity, or sots combine for the 
 suppression of debauchery, as graceless men will spon- 
 taneously return and seek after God. And however 
 willing, men in indigence are utterly unable to provide 
 for the relief of their spiritual wants. Hence a large 
 proportion of our people, who, under a better treatment, 
 
33 
 
 would have been the bright ornaments of piety, and our 
 aetive auxiliaries in the cause of Christian benevolence, 
 have been suffered to grow up without the knowledge 
 and enjoyment of the gospel, to swell the tide of vice and 
 profligacy, and to strengthen the resistance to the moral 
 renovation of our age, and the diffusion of religion 
 through the world. 
 
 But this is only one part of the evil for which the 
 national Legislature is responsible. While the Govern- 
 ment refused to do her duty, and sternly declined to 
 stir when she was bound to move — she has wrought 
 incalculable and irreparable mischief, by interfering with 
 matters utterly beyond her province, and with which she 
 has nothing to do. This has been most lamentably illus- 
 trated by — 
 
 II. The Establishment of Church Patronage. 
 In all her laws and regulations, the Church of Christ 
 is free and independent. The Lord is her King : the 
 Lord is her lawgiver. He has placed his word in her 
 hands for her guidance, and to him alone she is account- 
 able for the exercise of her rights, and the use which she 
 makes of her privileges. No power on earth is warranted 
 to interpose betwixt her and her glorious Head — nor 
 authorised to dictate to her in what manner the pasto- 
 ral relation shall be formed betwixt the congregation and 
 the minister, any more than to prescribe the portions of 
 Scripture which she shall read, or the language which she 
 shall employ in prayer. The Christian ministry is the 
 purchase of the Lord Jesus Christ, and bequeathed as a 
 
34 
 
 precious legacy to his people. Christians have no more 
 warrant to surrender this privilege, than to renounce 
 their right to the blessings of redeeming mercy ; and no 
 civil power has a title to deprive them of this prerogative, 
 any more than to wrest from them the Scriptures of 
 truth, or debar them access to the throne of grace. 
 
 But has the Government of Britain left the church to 
 the free and unfettered exercise of her inherent preroga- 
 tives and rights ? No : that Government which rigidly 
 withheld additional accommodation, and which, from year 
 to year, sanctioned the annexation of parish to parish — 
 more than a century ago wrenched from the Christian 
 people of Scotland the right of choosing their own pastor. 
 And with whom did they lodge this important and 
 invaluable power ? With a body of men pre-eminent 
 for moral worth, and religious knowledge and zeal ? With 
 a body of men whose excellence had gained the admira- 
 tion of all the faithful in the land, and whose praises were 
 ringing in all the churches of Christ? With a body of 
 men whose pious deeds, and spiritual attainments, were 
 manifestly superior to those of the members of the body 
 of Christ, — who were born from above, and living under 
 the powers of the world to come ? In making appoint- 
 ments in the army or navy, in law or medicine, the 
 selection is generally delegated to men who are capable 
 of judging of the qualifications of the respective candi- 
 dates, and who are amenable to a controlling power for 
 the judicious exercise of their trust. But in seizing on 
 this right so dear to every Christian in North Britain, a 
 
35 
 
 power which apostles would have been afraid to wield, 
 and for which even augels would have found themselves 
 unequal — the British Legislature deemed any pre-requi- 
 site for its exercise, altogether superfluous. Instead of 
 devolving the right on a spiritual body, of acknowledged 
 worth and tried integrity, chosen by the Christian pub- 
 lic, the Government committed the power to patrons — a 
 class of men who are not obliged to possess any religious 
 qualifications at all — who acquire the right by succession 
 or by purchase — who are not bound to be in communion 
 with any church whatever — and who may be openly and 
 avowedly living without God, and without Christ in the 
 world. 
 
 The most implacable enemy to vital godliness, could 
 scarcely have desired any more disastrous and fatal fruits, 
 than those which have been abundantly reaped from this 
 preposterous, and anti-scriptural system. Though we have 
 always had some patrons who knew, and loved the gospel, 
 and have selected the best, and ablest presentees whom 
 they could find, — the great majority of patrons neither 
 understood, nor valued the truths which constitute the 
 essence and glory of the scheme of redemption. Con- 
 founding piety with fanaticism, and mistaking seriousness 
 and zeal for bigotry, superstition, and a love of popular 
 applause — they entertained a deep-rooted antipathy to 
 every thing which possessed the appearance of sincerity 
 and earnestness. They rigidly proscribed all whom they 
 suspected of feeling the power of religion, and whom 
 
36 
 
 they feared as likely to urge upon their hearers the para- 
 mount importance of piety. They strained every nerve 
 to crush the persons, and counteract the labours of the 
 ministers who cared for the souls conmitted to their 
 charge. Their friendship and their favour were reserved 
 for the men who were expected to be the most strenu- 
 ous champions of the claims of patrons, and the most 
 stern and inexorable opponents of popular rights and 
 interests ; and who, while most notorious for their party 
 zeal, and political subserviency, would carry into their 
 sacred function the smallest portion of life and ardour, 
 and prove most conspicuous for doctrinal insipidity, and 
 personal and official laxity. 
 
 The dry and heartless ministrations of these mem 
 starved and disgusted the serious and intelligent portion 
 of the people, who were obliged either to abandon the 
 Established Church, or submit to a tame and frigid 
 exhibition of the all-important truths of religion. For, 
 in order to complete the evils of this invasion on the 
 rights of the Christian people — while the nomination of 
 ministers to vacant congregations, was entrusted to men 
 who were neither able nor willing to make a proper 
 choice ; by the same tenure by which they held the right 
 of presenting to the existing church, they were also con- 
 stituted patrons of all the churches which ever should be 
 built within the parish. The people were thus effectu- 
 ally precluded from redress : for, if to enjoy the gospel 
 and its ordinances in their purity and power, they had 
 
37 
 
 built another church, the patron would have exercised 
 his legal right, and sent them another presentee as like 
 as possible to the former. 
 
 Where the people were possessed of wealth, tL ?y reared 
 a meeting-house, in which they retained their freedom, 
 and could enjoy a more wholesome and animating dis- 
 pensation of the word of life. But if destitute of the 
 means of providing for their edification from their own 
 resources, they were obliged to mourn in secret. The 
 first generation might preserve their piety : but from the 
 unhappy circumstances in which they were placed, few 
 in the second generation ever felt its efficacy. Under 
 the blighting influence of patronage, religion declined and 
 withered ; and it was easy to trace the progress of the 
 system, by the absence of substantial godliness, and the 
 return of worldly principles and practices to the soil 
 which had been hallowed by the prayers and tears, the 
 virtues and the blood of our sainted ancestors. 
 
 By the indiscreet exercise of patronage, many a parish 
 church has been laid desolate ; and by excluding the 
 people from the right of choosing their own ministers, 
 however much the population might increase, a complete 
 stop was put to additional church accommodation. Whether 
 the parish church was overflowing in consequence of the 
 faithful labours of an able pastor, or deserted because of 
 the feeble and inefficient services of some weak, insigni- 
 cant incumbent — the people were equally compelled, 
 either to renounce their attendance on religious ordin- 
 ances, or abandon the establishment. In the latter. 
 d2 
 
38 
 
 case they lost their attachment to the national church. 
 In the former, a great proportion of their descendants 
 lost their attachment to religion itself. 
 
 Those who have advocated the cause of patronage, 
 from the hope that it would gradually undermine the 
 influence of living evangelical holiness, and sink our 
 country in vice and profligacy, may exult in the success 
 of their favourite scheme. By its restless activity, and 
 multiplied ramifications, it has done more than all other 
 causes united to defeat the purposes of the Reformation, 
 to set the consciences of men loose from the restraints of 
 religion, and fill our country with turbulence and discon- 
 tent. 
 
 In some districts it has effectually prevented the en- 
 trance of genuine godliness ; and from other quarters 
 where religion had made a lodgment, it has gone far to 
 expel the knowledge and practice of piety, and has thus 
 perverted the funds destined for the support of our Estab- 
 lishment, into the means of rearing the most implacable 
 enemies to her existence, and the most inveterate foes to 
 the cause of Christ and of God. 
 
 III. The Want of Education. 
 
 Many people, in every rank, now possess more learning 
 and information than was enjoyed by our ancestors. But 
 in consequence of the great demand for juvenile labour, 
 and the dissipated habits of some parents, the education 
 of the young is deplorably neglected, and ignorance of 
 letters is every day becoming less and less shameful. 
 
 While some are never taught at all, the education of 
 
39 
 
 others is so superficial and defective, that it is utterly 
 useless. They cannot make their way through the 
 plainest composition. The parents have never improved 
 their own minds, and are destitute of a taste and a relish 
 for anything that is elevated and intellectual. They 
 cannot comprehend the importance of the mental or 
 moral improvement of their offspring — and imagine that 
 all is well, as long as the gross and grovelling habits of 
 their children are not more revolting and odious than 
 their own. Whatever sums may be lavished on vice or 
 folly, one fraction is never spent on a publication. The 
 library or book shop may be daily within their sight — but 
 they no more than a grave-stone think of visiting them ; 
 and unless a tract or a volume be occasionally bestowed 
 on them by the hand of benevolence, they never become 
 owners of a single article that has passed through the 
 press. 
 
 Ignorance is a sad barrier to the success of religion. 
 For, though knowledge and piety are totally distinct — so 
 that many may possess the greatest amount of learning, 
 while absolutely destitute of vital godliness, — still a cul- 
 tivated understanding, and a portion of general informa- 
 tion, are peculiarly subservient to the reception of the 
 gospel. If the apartment be without an aperture, it must 
 remain dark, even in the blaze of day. And while a man 
 is a stranger to the first principles of the oracles of God, 
 amidst the most plain, forcible, and rousing proclama- 
 tions of the doctrines of the cross, he sits unmoved. The 
 very language which the preacher employs, is unintelli- 
 
40 
 
 gible. He has never tried to affix an idea to the most 
 familiar terms in theology : and amidst the warmth and 
 vehemence of the ambassador of God, he stares, and won- 
 ders, and perishes. The apartment which is furnished 
 with a window, is fitted to receive light on the return of 
 day. And the man who has been trained in the elements 
 of religion, and who is accustomed to the exercise of his 
 mental powers, affords a fine subject for the expostula- 
 tions and appeals of the Christian minister. He under- 
 stands the language, follows the reasoning, and can 
 reflect on the conclusions of the speaker. His affections 
 may be closed, and hardened against the truth. But 
 the truth is at least intelligible : and we are not obliged 
 at once to contend with the refractoriness of a stubborn 
 heart, or the darkness of a blinded mind. 
 
 IV, Intemperance. 
 
 Seldom or never have our countrymen shown a more 
 keen and ravenous appetite for intoxicating liquors, than 
 in the present day. The practice of using them as marks 
 of courtesy, and means of conviviality, has been adopted 
 by men of every rank and class in society : and protected 
 by the example of Christian ministers, and of people who 
 make a profession of religion. Multitudes are encouraged 
 openly and avowedly to employ them for the means of 
 the most degrading and beastly inebriation. 
 
 But though intemperance is sanctioned by the convi- 
 vial customs of the sober, and is rendered fashionable by 
 the habitual practices of tipplers of every station, few 
 vices are more ensnaring, brutalizing, and ruinous. It 
 
41 
 
 darkens the understanding, and hardens the heart. It 
 thickens the coating of ignorance and insensibility that 
 encrusts the carnal mind, and gives tenfold strength and 
 activity to all the malevolent and furious passions that 
 rankle in the soul. To enjoy their cups, the debauched 
 abandon domestic duties and secret devotion. Their 
 property melts away ; their clothes and furniture dis- 
 appear; their children are allowed to grow up in igno- 
 rance, and indulge in habits of profligacy and impiety. 
 From the want of suitable apparel, they are unable to 
 enter the house of God ; or if ever they visit the sanctuary, 
 their sordid habits have rendered its services insipid and 
 irksome. 
 
 From the fascinating attractions which dissipation pos- 
 sesses, and the virulent influence which it exerts, a single 
 tippling-house is generally sufficient to undo the exer- 
 tions of the most laborious clergyman; one gin palace 
 will counteract the efforts of the whole ecclesiastical 
 corps of a cathedral ; and the distillers and retailers of 
 ardent spirits, diffuse twice more mischief through the 
 country, than all the good that is accomplished by the 
 various ministers of the gospel. And when the friends of 
 religion have to contend with such fearful odds, is it won- 
 derful to see the sad and dreary moral spectacle which 
 our native land presents ? 
 
 V. Political Zeal. 
 
 Every man who regards his own safety and comfort, 
 the welfare of his neighbours, and the benefit of his 
 descendants, must feel a lively interest in the civil insti- 
 
42 
 
 tutions and temporal prosperity of his country. Reli- 
 gion and learning, liberty and humanity-, are so closely 
 and inseparably bound up in the laws and government of 
 the land, that every friend to piety and philanthropy 
 must be naturally and necessarily led to lend his earnest 
 attention to every measure by which these great and 
 momentous subjects can be either directly or remotely 
 effected. So far from withdrawing his presence, and his 
 services from the affairs of the state, and leaving the 
 irreligious part of the community to give laws to the 
 nation, it is the duty of every man who fears the Lord, 
 to come openly and boldly forward to lend his aid to 
 spread sound political principles, and raise to the office 
 of legislators, men who at once are the subjects of the 
 King of Heaven, and the firm and enlightened friends of 
 humanity. 
 
 But though politics are an important subject, they are 
 very far from being the first concern of an immortal. A 
 Christian will both injure the cause of his country, and 
 hurt the prosperity of his own soul, if he allow his politi- 
 cal zeal to engross his attention, to withdraw him from 
 his more urgent and appropriate duties, to disturb the 
 serenity of his mind, or betray him into feelings of acri- 
 mony and rancour, or even of distance and dryness 
 towards his opponents. 
 
 Wherever such a spirit prevails, religion declines and 
 languishes ; and a sour, unsocial, worldly, and ungodly 
 temper soon occupies its place. Few results can be 
 more pernicious or shameful. But in various quarters 
 
43 
 
 politics have of late been such an absorbing topic, that 
 they have at the same time destroyed the kindly inter- 
 course of life, and eaten the heart and substance out of the 
 little religion which their partisans possessed. 
 
 VI. Religious Controversy. 
 
 In this imperfect state, where we are sanctified only 
 partially, and know merely in part, it cannot be expected 
 that we shall all see eye to eye, and be in every thing of 
 one mind. No part of revealed truth is insignificant, 
 nor any scriptural practice or precedent unimportant. 
 The very tongs and snuffers of the tabernacle were to be 
 all of pure gold. Every institution, every precept and 
 doctrine possesses the stamp and sanction of the Almighty; 
 and it is at our peril .that we overlook, or undervalue 
 them. We are enjoined to buy the truth, and not to 
 sell it ; to prove all things, and hold fast that which is 
 good ; and to contend earnestly for the faith once de- 
 livered to the saints. The very fact or circumstance which 
 we disregard or despise, may be connected with matters 
 of the mightiest consequence. By relinquishing the 
 smallest portion of the Christian system, we may create 
 an opening for the entrance of the most pernicious delu- 
 sions, and destructive practices. 
 
 But while pleading for the paramount authority of 
 Scripture, and the necessity of giving a cordial submis- 
 sion to its dictates, on every subject, however apparently 
 small and insignificant, we must deplore the endless 
 wrangling and contention of religious controversy. In the 
 gospel, as well as in the law, there are matters of greater 
 
44, 
 
 weight and importance, and matters of less. Now, while 
 the world lies in wickedness, and the graceless are agreed 
 in giving their time and their strength to levity and folly, 
 to vice and impiety — while they are hurrying on to ever- 
 lasting misery, and dragging all over whom they have 
 influence, to perdition ; is it wise or safe for the friends 
 of religion to be incessantly agitating the church, and 
 distracting the minds of their brethren with strifes of 
 words, and contentions about affairs of inferior moment, 
 or of doubtful disputation ? When the walls of our 
 common temple are rising so slowly — when the enemy is at 
 the gate, and perpetually striving to undermine, or throw 
 down the building — is it reasonable or decent to set the 
 workmen a-quarrelling what stone they shall next place, 
 and what beam they shall next fix ? And when the 
 interests of vital godliness are so vigorously assailed from 
 every quarter, is it kind or prudent in the defenders of 
 our mutual faith, to waste their own energies, and fritter 
 away the exertions of their brethren, by needless or un- 
 profitable debates about matters of trifling import, or 
 uncertain meaning ? When the honour of God, and the 
 salvation of souls are at stake, we cannot be too earnest, 
 resolute, and persevering. But why consume our time 
 and strength about rites and ceremonies, feasts, and festi- 
 vals ? Can it affect the success of his ministry, or alter 
 the nature of the truth he utters, whether the preacher 
 addresses his hearers in a coat, a cloak, or gown ? 
 whether his means are drawn from the pockets of his 
 hearers, or an endowment by their ancestors ? Yet, more 
 
45 
 
 time, energy, and zeal have been lavished in discussions 
 about the vestments of the clergy — the funds from which 
 they should be maintained — the day for celebrating 
 Easter, or whether Easter should be celebrated at all, and 
 other trifles equally diminutive and despicable, than in 
 attempting to overturn the kingdom of Satan, and carry 
 the gospel of redeeming mercy round our perishing world. 
 By undervaluing the leading and substantial articles of 
 the Christian system — by exaggerating and magnifying 
 those of minor importance, many waste their own talents 
 in idle or hurtful contention, — and by obliging those 
 whom they disturb and annoy, to defend their own prin- 
 ciples and practices, they withdraw their attention from 
 the common enemy, and render them comparatively 
 unprofitable. They may succeed in demonstrating to 
 their own satisfaction a few of their own crudities : but 
 in the meantime, they have allowed thousands of immor- 
 tal souls to pass into eternity without any kind or 
 persevering efforts to awaken and save them. While 
 wrangling about the dress and ornaments of the army, 
 they allow their country to be overrun and ruined. 
 
 VII. General Preaching. 
 
 Though the great body of ministers may be distin- 
 guished for their piety and talents, some of them mistake 
 the means of rendering their labours most efficient. 
 Instead of seizing on the great and leading features of 
 the gospel, and stating them with the affection and force 
 of men who see their matchless grandeur, and feel their 
 irresistible power, they sometimes give tame, partial, and 
 
46 
 
 defective views of divine truth. Instead of applying the 
 doctrines of the gospel to the hearts and consciences of 
 their audience, they set to work to combat practices, or 
 refute opinions, of which few in their congregation have 
 heard. Where the people are perishing through igno- 
 rance and apathy, they labour to fortify them against the 
 attractions of deistical literature, and the sophistry of 
 philosophical infidelity. Where the great majority are 
 on the side of the world, they are instructed in the dan- 
 gers of religious divisions. Where the people are strangers 
 to the first principles of the oracles of God, they are 
 entertained with disquisitions on morality, history, or 
 prophecy. And in some cases where evangelical truth 
 is preached, the style and cast of the composition are so 
 elaborate and refined, as to render the discourse utterly 
 unintelligible, and absolutely unimpressive to the great 
 body of the hearers. Some preachers are so flippant and 
 finical, that they necessarily inspire a doubt of their 
 sincerity — and are more calculated to drive men into 
 scepticism, than to gain them over to the faith. And 
 others, from a constitutional diffidence, are deterred from 
 launching out into the fulness and freeness of the gospel, 
 and melting the hearts of their hearers with the wonders 
 of this plan of infinite benignity and grace. 
 
 VIII. Low, and inadequate ideas of the nature and 
 importance of genuine religion. 
 
 Subordinate to its spiritual benefits, and eternal advan- 
 tages, the gospel produces many valuable and delightful 
 temporal effects. It diffuses information, refinement, and 
 
47 
 
 virtue among the people. It teaches them industry, 
 sobriety, economy, and foresight. It introduces them to 
 a large share of secular prosperity, and adds prodigiously 
 to their mental dignity and social enjoyments. 
 
 Now, because religion improves the character, and 
 confers many temporal benefits on its possessors, some 
 mistake the accompaniments of piety for its substance and 
 essence, and suppose that the grand, or only object at 
 which we are to aim, is the improvement of the morals 
 and condition of our brethren. They fancy if the carriage 
 is elegant and comfortable, that there is no necessity for 
 attending to the health and safety of the traveller. 
 
 But we must remember that, whatever benefits or 
 blessings religion may throw around the lot of the Chris- 
 tian in bis pilgrimage to Zion, the great and matchless 
 excellence of the gospel is, that it renovates our nature, 
 and gives us a meetness for heaven. Till these effects 
 are accomplished, we may profess and believe what we 
 please, but we have no connection with Christ, and no 
 part in the blessings of his salvation. Our nature is totally 
 vitiated and diseased. The whole head is sick, and the 
 whole heart faint. The spirit that is in us lusteth to 
 envy. We are carnal, and sold under sin. Our heart 
 is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. 
 
 And when such is the natural condition of every 
 human creature, while the soul is left under the degrading 
 and polluting power of sin, what signifies an accession of 
 knowledge to the understanding, or of decency to the 
 
48 
 
 life ? These may have their value in society, and be 
 serviceable to us in the house of our pilgrimage. But 
 before God, and in reference to eternity, they are of the 
 very smallest moment. An outward polish, and super- 
 ficial reformation, cannot meet the exigencies of our 
 case, nor prepare us for a safe and triumphant immor- 
 tality. When the machinery is gone, can a new case or 
 dial restore the clock or watch to its proper functions ? 
 When disease has reached the heart, and mastered the 
 vital organs, can the patient be preserved by a change of 
 dress, or an alteration in his posture? And when our 
 minds are alienated from God, and our hearts and affec- 
 tions are disordered and unclean, can an external refor- 
 mation eradicate our moral maladies, and fit our souls for 
 the delights and services of heaven ? W T e must be born 
 again. However useful and important in their own 
 place, social virtue and outward decorum never can raise 
 us from the ruins of the fall, nor prepare us for the world 
 of bliss : and we are only deceiving ourselves while we 
 are resting on our moral duties, or religious observances, 
 while destitute of an inward, and thorough transforma- 
 tion. A man may have a clear head, with a hard heart ; 
 polished manners, along with an ungodly mind ; and a 
 sober, and respectable deportment, while his inward parts 
 are very wickedness. But though we should possess the 
 science of a Newton, and the mental energies of a Bacon, 
 the philanthropy of a Howard, and the virtue of a Cato; 
 unless we are created anew in Christ Jesus unto good 
 
49 
 
 works, and blessed with a clean heart and a right spirit, 
 we are still in the gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity, 
 without God, and without hope. 
 
 In religion, the Lord Jesus Christ is all and in all. He 
 not only occupies the first and highest place, but is raised 
 infinitely above every rival and competitor, every coad- 
 jutor and ally, and reigns unrivalled and alone. If heaven 
 be loftier than the earth, and the compass of the universe 
 greater than a span, the Creator must be higher than the 
 creature, and more great and glorious than the whole 
 works of his hands. But the Lord Jesus Christ is divine. 
 He is the Creator, and Lord of all : and therefore, the 
 surrender of Hira for our redemption, as far transcends 
 all the other gifts of the generosity and munificence of 
 the Most High, as eternity exceeds time, or immensity 
 surpasses an atom. 
 
 Now, till we are in some measure sensible of the value 
 of this unspeakable gift, and discover its infinite superi- 
 ority to the bounties of Providence, and the riches of 
 grace — and till we do justice to his compassion and kind- 
 ness, and yield him that return of adoring love and gra- 
 titude to which he is entitled, we have no claim whatever 
 to the Christian character. 
 
 But we never can do justice to his generosity and 
 grace, till we understand the design of his mission, and 
 embrace the great object of his undertaking. Now, the 
 design of his mission, and the great object of his under- 
 taking, were to save his people from their sins, and 
 
 redeem us from the curse of the law, by being made ■ 
 e 2 
 
50 
 
 curse for us. We, therefore, never can be Christian;? 
 till we renounce all for his sake ; till we embrace his sal- 
 vation, and rest on his righteousness simply and exclu- 
 sively as the only ground of our acceptance before the 
 Lord. 
 
 And as the gift of the Lord Jesus Christ, so immea- 
 surably excels all the other manifestations of divine 
 liberality and benignity — we never can render a suitable 
 return to his compassion and grace, till we prefer him 
 to our chief joy, and count all but loss for his sake. 
 While resting on his righteousness for pardon, peace, and 
 every blessing in time and in eternity, his love will con- 
 strain us to live, not to ourselves, but unto him who died 
 for us, and rose again. We will cheerfully comply with 
 every intimation of his pleasure, and be constantly occu- 
 pied with his service. Whatever our hand findeth to 
 do, we will do with our might. We will be steadfast, 
 unmoveable, always abounding in his work. And while 
 habitually employed in his cause, we will study to per- 
 form our duties effectually, and to purpose; preserving 
 such a simplicity of aim, such a singleness of heart, such 
 a reliance on his grace, and such a devotedness to his 
 honour, that God in all things may be glorified in us, 
 and by us. 
 
 To all that has been already stated, it must be added 
 that much evil has been occasioned by the neglect of 
 domestic devotion. Our forefathers took care to main- 
 tain the daily worship of God in their families. In the 
 absence of the master, the servant or journeyman offici- 
 
51 
 
 ated in his room ; and the household would have dreaded 
 the judgments of the Most High, if they had dared to 
 retire to rest without placing themselves under his pro- 
 tection, and imploring his blessing and favour. 
 
 There has of late been a lamentable relaxation in 
 parental instruction. In former years parents were never 
 satisfied till their children were thoroughly grounded in 
 the principles of Christianity, so that they could easily 
 distinguish betwixt truth and error. Hence, the readiness 
 with which our ancestors detected any deviation from the 
 doctrines of the gospel in the ministrations on which they 
 attended. But now many cannot discern the difference 
 betwixt legal and evangelical preaching, and lavish their 
 praise indiscriminately on any discourse which displays 
 talent or oratory, whatever may be the creed which it 
 inculcates. 
 
 Religion has suffered much from a decline of personal 
 piety. The present generation of Christians are at less 
 pains than their predecessors to attend to the state of 
 their hearts — to mark their progress or declension in the 
 Christian life — and to set apart times for meditation, 
 fasting, and prayer. In order to meet the circumstances 
 of their congregations, ministers formerly were obliged 
 to apply their discourses to the different cases of their 
 flocks, and to direct and encourage such of their hearers 
 as were harrassed with fears that they were hypocrites, 
 and self-deceivers, or sinking into a state of spiritual 
 languor and deadness. But few hearers in modern times 
 are troubled with such distress. They are almost all in 
 
peace, and full of hope and confidence ; and whether in 
 the pulpit, or at the sick-bed, the minister is seldom 
 required to state or illustrate the characteristic features 
 of sincerity and hypocrisy, of liveliness and spiritual 
 languor. 
 
 The want of united persevering prayer for the pros- 
 perity of Zion, has contributed greatly to the languid 
 state of vital godliness. 
 
 But, however injurious these causes may have been to 
 the interests of religion, this chapter is already too long 
 to allow any enlargement upon their hurtful effects. 
 
53 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE MEANS OF PROMOTING A REVIVAL OF RELIGION. 
 
 The great object at which we are to aim, in our at- 
 tempts to diffuse the influence of religion, indicates the 
 measures by which L the life and power of piety can be 
 most easily and effectually secured. The grand end 
 which we are bound to keep in view, is to bring all men 
 to embrace the provisions of the gospel ; and while they 
 rest on the atonement of Christ for their acceptance 
 before God, to devote themselves cordially and unre- 
 servedly to his interest and honour. And as this is the 
 noble and blessed result, to the attainment of which we 
 must lend our efforts — it is obvious that, whatever has 
 hitherto counteracted or retarded the accomplishment of 
 such a delightful consummation, must be instantly and 
 for ever abandoned — and that our best energies must be 
 directed to encourage and foster whatever is calculated 
 to ensure its success, and accelerate its triumphs. 
 
 I. Prompt and decisive measures must be taken to 
 cover the length and breadth of the land with the means 
 necessary for the religious instruction and spiritual wel- 
 fare of the people. 
 
54 
 
 Every part of the country must be broken down into 
 manageable districts. Each of these must be provided 
 with a church and a pastor ; and the most effectual mea- 
 sures must be employed, to see that this pastor is a man 
 of God, who will spontaneously, and unreservedly devote 
 himself to the duties of his vocation. We need more 
 churches, — hundreds and thousands of additional chur- 
 ches. But we want no dormitories, where drowsy incum- 
 bents may sleep out their monotonous and useless life. 
 We wish for more churches to the flocks gathered round 
 them by the patient, laborious, kind-hearted, and hard- 
 working ministers of Christ. Surgeons are appointed to 
 the army and navy, not to spend their pay, and study 
 their own enjoyment and ease, but to watch over the 
 health, and attend to the safety and comfort of the sol- 
 diers and seamen. And churches are built and endowed, 
 not for the personal benefit of the minister, but for the 
 advantage of the parish. It is his duty to watch for their 
 souls — to live and labour among them as an ambassador 
 of Christ — and never to rest till he has made known to 
 each of them the riches of redeeming mercy, and brought 
 them all to the enjoyment of the great salvation. 
 
 Without a pious and laborious clergy, additional chur- 
 ches would be a mere waste of public money, and a 
 mockery of the moral wants and sufferings of the people. 
 And without a greater number of churches, the exertions 
 of the most devout and indefatigable clergymen, in our 
 densely crowded districts, must be very much in vain. 
 From the chilling and benumbing effects of the want of 
 
55 
 
 Sabbath ministrations, the affectionate and Christian atten- 
 tions of the pastor through the week, must be sadly 
 impaired, or utterly defeated. 
 
 The duty of all who wish well to the prosperity of 
 religion, is to employ the most efficient means, whether 
 by Parliamentary aid, or private contribution, to have a 
 sufficient number of churches planted over the country — 
 to render the gospel accessible to every inhabitant of 
 Britain — and to have every district provided with its 
 appropriate pastor, that every portion of the empire may 
 be thoroughly instructed, and the whole rendered like a 
 well watered garden, and a field which the Lord has 
 blessed. 
 
 II. Lay Patronage must be abolished. 
 
 The State must relinquish her interference in the for- 
 mation of the pastoral relation betwixt the minister and 
 the people — and the church herself must be allowed to 
 regulate that important measure according to her own 
 views of the word of God. There is naturally enough of 
 opposition in the human heart to counteract the labours 
 of a Christian minister, without irritating and exasperat- 
 ing that resistance, by imposing upon a reluctant people 
 a man for whom no person cares, and whom they all 
 regard with aversion. 
 
 III. Education must be vigorously and perse veringly 
 promoted. 
 
 For the soul to be without knowledge, it is not good. 
 The Holy Ghost indeed can sanctify an infant, and plant 
 his saving grace in the heart of the most dull, and stupid 
 
56 
 
 of our race. But the Holy Ghost generally acts by 
 means ; and he has instituted the ordinances and exer- 
 cises of religion as the channels through which he con- 
 veys the blessings of redeeming mercy. The more, 
 therefore, that the mind is enlarged and invigorated by 
 culture, it is more prepared to receive and enjoy the 
 invaluable truths, and salutary impressions which these 
 institutions are fitted to impart. A man of low stature, 
 or stationed in a hollow, may have as good an eye as a 
 giant, or a person that is placed upon an eminence. And 
 though a child, or an illiterate man may be as pious as an 
 apostle, yet, from the dormant state of their faculties, and 
 the narrow range of their information, they can neither 
 discover so fully, nor relish so exquisitely the great things 
 of God, nor labour so effectually in the service of Chris- 
 tianity, as a man of a vigorous, and cultivated under- 
 standing. Without his telescope and microscope, the 
 philosopher can see no better than other men. Put these 
 instruments into the hands of all, and every man who is 
 possessed of eyes, can behold the same worlds of wonder, 
 which he himself contemplates. The telescope and 
 microscope can inspire no love nor admiration for the 
 Creator and Lord of all; but where devout feelings 
 already exist, the discoveries which these instruments 
 produce, will contribute much to expand and deepen the 
 ideas previously entertained of the wisdom, power, and 
 goodness of the Most High. Literature and science 
 cannot, of themselves, create religion ; for many scholars 
 and philosophers have themselves been wicked and 
 
5T 
 
 ungodly, and have died in a state of impenitence and 
 unbelief. But as the glasses of the optician assist the 
 eye, so learning is a mighty auxiliary to religion. It 
 enables its possessor to understand far more clearly, to 
 embrace with far more enraptured delight, and to labour 
 with far greater efficiency in the propagation of the truths 
 of the gospel, than his untutored companion. 
 
 In every class, those who first adopt, and most tena- 
 ciously cling to our holy faith, are the intellectual and 
 intelligent. On the ignorant and illiterate the preaching 
 of the word generally falls as pointless and powerless, as 
 an address in an unknown tongue. Feeling no moral 
 want, they have no wish to understand, and make no 
 attempt to guess at the meaning of the message that is 
 announced. The text and sermon, the arguments and 
 illustrations, are all overlooked and disregarded ; because 
 they are not only considered as useless, but found to be 
 incomprehensible. 
 
 If ever our ministry proves successful, it is generally 
 with the educated and reflecting. They can accompany 
 our arguments, and comprehend our illustrations : and 
 when their heart is gained, they become at once the 
 brightest ornaments of piety, and the most useful mem- 
 bers of the church, and the greatest blessings to society. 
 
 If, therefore, we desire the success of religion, and 
 wish the doctrines of the Bible to be known by all, we 
 must strain every nerve for the universal diffusion of edu- 
 cation. We must never rest till every child is taught to 
 read, and understand the Scriptures, and blessed with 
 
58 
 
 that intellectual training, which at once gives him the 
 command of his own faculties, and prepares him for 
 understanding a process of reasoning, and obtaining an 
 acquaintance with the objects around him. We are not 
 to consider a child as educated, when he is merely taught 
 to read. He may be able to peruse any volume in the 
 language — and after all may be said to be still uneduca- 
 ted, unless he has been instructed to discover the truths 
 which these publications contain, and convert them to his 
 own improvement ; and therefore, we ought never to 
 suspend our exertions, till every individual has been 
 imbued with a love for information, and furnished with a 
 capacity for extracting from the volumes which he reads, 
 the useful principles, and practical lessons which they 
 inculcate. 
 
 IV. Sabbath schools, and classes for religious instruc- 
 tion. 
 
 From these institutions have proceeded many of the 
 most accomplished and valuable members of our churches 
 — some of our ablest ministers, and most useful mission- 
 aries : and it is to be hoped that these sacred nurseries 
 are still rearing thousands and myriads, to be the future 
 ornaments of the Christian name, and the instructors and 
 benefactors of another generation. Under the superin- 
 tendance of intelligent and single-hearted Christians, these 
 institutions are eminently fitted to simplify the doctrines 
 of Christianity, and impress the youthful heart with the 
 importance and grandeur of the gospel. They furnish 
 the mind of the pupil with religious knowledge. They 
 
59 
 
 withdraw his attention from the secularizing tendency, 
 and debasing influence of the cares and frivolities to 
 which he is exposed. They break in upon the unprofi- 
 table current of his thoughts and pursuits — and are calcu- 
 lated to fortify him against the temptations of the world, 
 and preposses him in favour of a life of piety and benefi- 
 cence. 
 
 These institutions, therefore, claim our warmest en- 
 couragement and persevering support ; and any time and 
 labour that we can bestow upon them, will be most amply 
 and delightfully rewarded, if we shall always take care to 
 have our minds deeply affected with the worth of the 
 soul, and study so to communicate our instructions, that 
 every lesson addressed to the understanding shall also 
 contribute to the improvement of the heart, and the pre- 
 paration of the scholar for the blessedness of eternity. 
 V. Village Libraries. 
 
 A telescope is of little use to a man in a dungeon ; and 
 the art of reading is of small value to an individual who 
 wants books. Few can furnish themselves with libraries ; 
 but by combining, even in the poorest districts and most 
 sequestered situations, a number of small sums will soon 
 swell to a considerable amount ; and when they are judi- 
 ciously expended, in a short time they will procure a 
 large collection of works. 
 
 The first object in these libraries should be to provide 
 a supply of the most practical and powerful religious 
 publications. But there is no necessity for restricting 
 the funds to books of that description. If we would wish 
 
60 
 
 to interest and enlighten the people, we must direct 
 them to the standard works in general literature. From 
 the writings on the various branches of natural his- 
 tory and philosophy, from works in civil history and bio- 
 graphy, and from volumes of voyages and travels, great 
 accessions may be made to the stock of their information. 
 And whatever is calculated to refine the taste, and enlarge 
 the range of knowledge, is signally fitted to lead the 
 thoughtless to reflection, and enable the pious to enjoy 
 religion with a more keen and exquisite relish. 
 
 VI. Mechanics' institutions, and literary societies. 
 
 The object of these associations is the mutual improve- 
 ment of the members, by lectures and discourses on 
 literary and scientific subjects. These societies are sub- 
 servient to the most important, and useful purposes. 
 They diffuse much valuable information amongst those 
 who attend them, and contribute to withdraw the mind 
 from what is low and grovelling, and excite a taste for 
 what is rational and sublime. Unsanctified learning, 
 like unsanctified wealth or power, may be converted 
 to mischief, and rendered a plague to its possessor, and 
 a curse to society. But where learning is based upon 
 revelation, it is at once an ornament to its possessor, and 
 a prodigious blessing to the world. While it extends the 
 field of his contemplation, and expands and matures his 
 powers, it elevates his own condition, and qualifies him 
 for the more efficient discharge of the different duties of 
 his station. 
 
 Wherever these associations have been established, the 
 
61 
 
 results have been most animating and beneficial. The 
 members have found their partiality for useful pursuits 
 strengthened and confirmed. Their greater intelligence 
 has raised them above their brethren — furnished them 
 with a source of additional enjoyment — rendered them 
 greater treasures to their families and companions, and 
 predisposed them for receiving the truths, and fitted them 
 for pleading the cause of religion. 
 
 Let all, then, who love the improvement of our coun- 
 try, and long for the progress of religion, lend their aid 
 to patronize these powerful auxiliaries to the great cause 
 to which they are devoted. Every department of creation 
 is teeming: with displays of the infinite perfections of the 
 Creator. But while they are overlooked or unknown, 
 men are deprived of all the devout impressions, and salu- 
 tary lessons which they are calculated to impart. The 
 more widely you spread the knowledge of his works and 
 dispensations, you do the greater justice to the character 
 of the Most High, by enabling a greater number of our 
 race to contemplate his adorable excellencies. Every 
 accession to the knowledge of a man, helps to weaken 
 the force of vicious and degrading habits ; and there- 
 fore, if you wisli to diminish the prevalence of crime and 
 misery, and augment the measure of human virtue and 
 enjoyment, assist in forwarding these plans for the ame- 
 lioration of our brethren. An acquaintance with the 
 works and ways of Providence, has often been found a 
 mean of putting men in possession of the holiness and 
 comforts of the gospel ; and therefore, if you would wish 
 
62 
 
 to bring them under the power of the truth, and bless 
 them with the glorious liberty of the sons of God — labour 
 to advance their knowledge of his character, as that is 
 unfolded in the productions of his hands. 
 
 You need not fear that you shall carry education to 
 excess. As long as religion lies at the foundation of 
 their acquisitions, and is employed to guide their re- 
 searches, and direct the application of their attainments — 
 though every peasant, and every mechanic, were possessed 
 of the erudition of Porson, or the science of Watt, 
 these never could hurt their personal happiness, nor injure 
 the peace and prosperity of the public. The general 
 prevalence of such accomplishments would ennoble the 
 character of the individuals, and prodigiously augment 
 the sum of their felicity. Mind would predominate over 
 matter ; passion would yield to reason ; low and brutal 
 pleasures would be exchanged for those which are lofty 
 and sublime ; and the time and the talents of our brethren 
 would be sedulously and unreservedly consecrated to 
 secure the great ends of rational existence. And is there 
 any thing in such a result to inspire the politician or phi- 
 lanthropist with alarm ? Though we could fill our farm- 
 houses, our work-shops, and factories, with men endowed 
 with the mental grasp and mighty intelligence of angels, 
 what could society apprehend from their presence, as 
 long as their knowledge is seasoned and sancified with 
 the principles of the gospel — and while, day after day, 
 they are exhibiting the generosity and purity, and aspiring 
 at the devotion and benevolence of seraphs ? 
 
63 
 
 VII. The suppression of intemperance. 
 
 Dissipation is a complete extinguisher to all that is 
 religious and rational. It is utterly inconsistent with the 
 existence of piety in the heart — and it very soon proves 
 fatal to the cultivation of every thing that is liberal and 
 intellectual. If it finds its victim in a state of ignorance 
 and poverty, it infallibly keeps him in that low and 
 degrading condition, and defeats all his attempts to rise ; 
 and if it seize him when in more elevated and favourable 
 circumstances, it uniformly strips him of his respectabi- 
 lity and comfort, and reduces him to a state of degrada- 
 tion. It is in vain to cover the country with schools, 
 libraries, and mechanics' institutions, while we allow 
 the demon of intemperance to walk at large. This 
 horrid monster will undo all our humane and benevolent 
 efforts for the improvement of our brethren ; and in 
 spite of every exertion to enlighten and refine them, 
 will retain them in a state of abject and overwhelming 
 wretchedness. 
 
 If, therefore, you would wish to give effect to the 
 other measures employed for the reformation of the age, 
 you must resolutely set your face against every form of 
 intemperance. By your example, your counsel, and by 
 calling in the aid of the legislature, you must labour to 
 emancipate our country from the debasing and ruinous 
 influence of this enormous evil. It is a vice with which 
 we must not trifle. It is too insidious and fascinating to 
 be allowed the smallest indulgence. Nothing can insure 
 our safety, but total extirpation. 
 
64 
 
 VIII. The preaching of the gospel. 
 
 This is the great ordinance whicli God has especially 
 appointed, and most signally blessed for the conversion 
 of sinners, and the edification of saints. " After that, in 
 the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God. 
 it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching, to save 
 them that believe. For the Jews require a sign, and the 
 Greeks seek after wisdom : but we preach Christ cruci- 
 fied ; unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the 
 Greeks foolishness : but unto them who are called, both 
 Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God, and the 
 wisdom of God." 
 
 There is something very much calculated to rouse the 
 attention, and lead to serious reflection, when a minister, 
 deeply impressed with the value of souls, and the impor- 
 tance of his subject, stands up in the midst of an assembly, 
 and, like an ambassador from God, addresses his hearers 
 with affection and earnestness, on the truths of religion, 
 and the overpowering realities of eternity. There is 
 something in his own manifest sincerity, and in the inten- 
 sity of his feelings, fitted to bespeak the favourable regard 
 of the hearer, and command his serious consideration. 
 The reverence and interest likewise of those around him. 
 contribute to solemnize the mind of the auditor, and rivet 
 his thoughts to what creates such general and deep soli- 
 citude. 
 
 But while there is a natural tendency in the serious 
 and powerful preaching of the word to bespeak attention, 
 and make its way to the understanding and the heart — it 
 
65 
 
 is an institution which enjoys the promise of God's special 
 blessing - , and which he has honoured with the most signal 
 success. While ministers are enjoined to preach the 
 word, and to be instant in season and out of season 
 Jesus has engaged to be with them always, even unto the 
 end of the world, and declared that his word shall not 
 return to him empty nor void. And if we inquire what 
 has been the great instrument in past ages in turning men 
 from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto 
 God ? we know that this has been the preaching of the 
 gospel. This has been the principal mean of overturning 
 the delusions and abominations of idolatry and vice, and 
 of subduing nations to the obedience of the faith. 
 
 And if we would wish to see a revival of Christianity 
 in our land, and our country filled with the life and 
 power of piety, we must promote the preachiug of the 
 word. The number and labours of ministers must be 
 multiplied. Provision must be made for all to enjoy 
 access to the house of God, and every method taken to 
 induce the rich and the poor to listen to the joyful sounds 
 of redeeming mercy. Ministers must be diligent in ful- 
 filling this part of their office ; and when they preach, 
 they must be careful to preach Christ, and him crucified. 
 
 It is only the preaching of the gospel, or the great 
 truths connected with our redemption through Christ, 
 that God has promised to bless and prosper. It is often 
 necessary for ministers to address their audience on other 
 topics than our natural depravity, and our recovery by 
 the work of Immanuel, and the agency of the Holy Ghost. 
 
66 
 
 We must enforce their personal and social obligations. 
 We must guard them against popular errors, and predo- 
 minant vices, and direct their attention to the aspect of 
 Providence, and warn them of approaching dangers. In 
 these, and in a thousand similar cases, Christ and his 
 apostles have given us an example of the necessity of 
 watching the signs of the times, and applying the general 
 principles of Christianity to the particular emergencies 
 that occur. But in such situations, Christ and his apos- 
 tles have given us an admirable pattern of affection and 
 simplicity, of zeal for the Divine glory, and compassion 
 for souls. And if we would wish to enjoy the approba- 
 tion of God, and witness the success of our labours, we 
 must imitate their example, and cultivate their spirit. 
 
 But to dwell on Greek or Hebrew criticism, before 
 men who can scarcely read their native language — to 
 expatiate on topics of mental or of natural science, in the 
 presence of men who have never spent a thought upon 
 the figure of the earth, or the nature of their souls, — this 
 is neither to divide the word of truth, nor feed the flocks 
 committed to our charge. To preach the leading and 
 essential truths of the gospel, but to announce them with 
 that degree of hesitation and embarassment, of tameness 
 and frigidity, as would lead strangers to suppose that we 
 considered them either as false or frivolous, or had heard 
 of them for the first time only on our way to the house 
 of God : is this the proper method to commend ourselves 
 to the conscience of every man, and persuade them to 
 renounce all for the sake of Jesus ? When we preach 
 
67 
 
 the gospel, but clothe our discourses in such an elabo- 
 rate and metaphysical garb as to render them unintelli- 
 gible to the one-half of our hearers, and uninteresting to 
 the other, can we be said to have renounced the excel- 
 lency of speech and of wisdom, and to be constrained by 
 the love of Christ to glory in his cross ? Such men may 
 be brimful of logic and learning ; but instead of employ- 
 ing it to illumine and enliven their sermons, they use 
 them merely to darken their address, and defeat the prac- 
 tical effect of their discourse. To improve the colour or 
 flavour of his prescription, the physician may give it a 
 dash of an aromatic, or an acid ; but he relies for its 
 efficacy on the essence, or the salt which it contains. To 
 secure attention, and prepossess their hearers in behaif of 
 the instructions which they deliver, ministers may throw 
 around their statements and appeals the beauties of an 
 easy and an eloquent diction, and adorn them with 
 pointed and forcible illustrations ; but, under God, they 
 must trust for their success to the eloquence of a warm 
 heart, and a holy life, and the copious infusion of gospel 
 truth which they pour into all their exhortations and dis- 
 cussions. They never can acquire too great a command 
 of the treasures of philosophy and literature. They never 
 can bring too mighty and gigantic powers to the service 
 of the gospel. Though they were blessed with all the 
 capacities, and all the knowledge of the inhabitants of 
 heaven, they would find ample occasion for the whole in 
 their momentous work. But if they are men of God, 
 and know what they are doing, they will consecrate all 
 
68 
 
 their talents and attainments to the honour of their 
 adorable Redeemer ; and live, and preach, and pray, like 
 men who feel that their own souls are at stake, and who 
 believe that the highest glory of a mortal is to shrink 
 into insignificance, that Christ may be all in all. 
 
 IX. Parochial missions. 
 
 If churches and ministers were sufficiently multiplied, 
 there would be no occasion for the assistance of parish 
 missionaries. The clergyman would be able, in his own 
 person, to superintend the whole of his locality, and per- 
 form every spiritual function to all its inhabitants. But 
 in the present overgrown state of our parishes, it is phy- 
 sically impossible for the ministers to watch over the 
 whole residents within the limits assigned them, and to 
 bring the message of salvation home to every individual. 
 
 From a variety of causes, many are unable to pay for 
 sittings in the house of God, or to provide the raiment 
 in which they would like to appear in a place of worship. 
 And some who could easily attend, are utterly unwilling. 
 Their innate dislike to religion, has been fastened and 
 confirmed by a neglected or vicious education, by the 
 example and counsels of graceless associates, or by habits 
 of intemperance and profligacy. The longer that they 
 live, their antipathy to all that is sacred and serious 
 becomes the more strong and resolute. Such men will 
 not go abroad in quest of the food necessary for their 
 souls. We must bring it near them — place it before 
 them — and press it on them. They may spurn our best 
 services, and reject our most humane and beneficent 
 
69 
 
 labours. But these private attentions, and unobtrusive 
 acts of kindness, afford almost the only hope of their sal- 
 vation. By watching opportunities when the heart is 
 softened by sickness, or awed into seriousness by some 
 of the numerous troubles and trials of life, we may lead 
 him to serious consideration, and succeed in bringing 
 him to the knowledge of the Saviour. But if these unas- 
 suming efforts fail, there is little ground for hope — 
 and we have too much reason to dread his everlasting 
 perdition. 
 
 In this important work, the labours of parochial mis- 
 sionaries are invaluable. To those who are unable or 
 unwilling to repair to the Fountain of Life, they direct its 
 salutary stream to their habitation. To those who refuse 
 to step out to gather a portion of the spiritual manna, 
 they offer a portion of the heavenly bread, and invite 
 them to eat it in their tents. 
 
 The ministrations of this useful class of men, are not 
 intended to rival or supersede the services of the regular 
 pastor, but only to enlarge and supplement them. The 
 pastor is multiplied in the persons of the missionaries ; 
 and while he is occupied with other parts of his duty, 
 they compensate for his absence, and carry forward the 
 great objects of his office. By bearing the message of 
 reconciliation round the different dwellings in their dis- 
 tricts, and reasoning from day to day with their inmates; 
 they excite inquiry, induce them to reflect, and make 
 ready a people for the more public and solemn ministra- 
 tions of the gospel. 
 
70 
 
 These laudable agents have already contributed much 
 to the cause of Christianity. They have reclaimed many 
 tracts from the wastes of the world. Besides aiding to 
 fill the sanctuaries which previously existed, they have 
 occasioned the erection of several additional edifices to 
 the worship of God : and their usefulness will undoubt- 
 edly extend in proportion as their numbers increase; till 
 the wilderness of our Zion is made like Eden, and her 
 desert like the garden of the Lord. And, therefore, if 
 we would wish to behold such a desirable consummation, 
 let us give them every encouragement and aid. 
 
 X. Eminent individual piety. 
 
 Every human creature is bound to become a Chris- 
 tian ; and we are not at liberty to desist from our bene- 
 volent labours for the welfare of our brethren, till each is 
 subdued to the authority of the Son of God, and made 
 ;i Christian in deed and in truth. 
 
 And what is meant by a Christian ? When may we 
 resrard our generous toils complete ? Is a Christian a 
 man who adopts a few speculative tenets different from 
 those entertained by his brethren, while his spirit and 
 temper are the same ? Is he a man who attends on reli- 
 gious ordinances and exercises, while he walks according 
 to the course of the world, and retains the bad passions, 
 and selfish principles of the men who are openly and 
 avowedly living without God, and without Christ ? 
 
 Many professors have no other idea of religion. They 
 have a name to live, while they are dead. They profess 
 that they know God, but in works they deny him. — being 
 
71 
 
 abominable and disobedient, and unto every good work 
 reprobate. Such men in every age have been the 
 plague of the church, and the disgrace of the Christian 
 name. They have brought a reproach on our holy call- 
 ing, and sadly retarded the progress of the gospel. 
 
 A Christian is a man who complies with the spirit and 
 design of redeeming mercy. He understands the nature, 
 and believes the reality of the gospel. Finding that he 
 has no righteousness of his own, and assured that Christ 
 is the end of the law for righteousness, to every one that 
 believes, he relies on him for righteousness and strength. 
 Whilst he is delighted and transported with the match- 
 less goodness, and the unsearchable grace of God in the 
 gift of his Son ; love and gratitude constrain him to live 
 not to himself, but to him who died for him, and rose 
 again. Regarding himself as not his own, but as bought 
 with a price, he strives to glorify God in his body and 
 spirit, which are his. He is a new creature. His con- 
 versation is in heaven. His heart is set on the things 
 that are above ; and he rejoices to spend and be spent 
 in works of piety and beneficence. 
 
 Such is the life which the Christian maintains. Such 
 is the life which you must cultivate; if you would wish 
 either to prove to your own heart, or demonstrate to the 
 world that you are the disciples of Christ. And such 
 is the life which you must live ; if you would wish to 
 silence the ignorance of foolish men, and raise the gospel 
 in the esteem, and recommend it to the hearts of the 
 
72 
 
 Many of the unregenerate are sober, decent, and 
 respectable. They are just, honest, kind, and beneficent. 
 
 Now, if you allow them to surpass you in any branch 
 of virtue, how can you either persuade yourselves that 
 you are Christians, or gain them over to the faith of the 
 gospel ? If you would wish either to possess good hope 
 through grace, or attract them to the fellowship of Christ, 
 you must give them a bright and consistent example of 
 the purifying and transforming power of the truth. You 
 must not think it enough to be moderately good, or to 
 exhibit an average amount of generosity and kindness. 
 You must be eminently pious, and foremost in every 
 humane and laudable undertaking. In the things in 
 which the worldly excel, you must be immeasurably above 
 them, and furnish them with a specimen of virtues and 
 graces, of which they otherwise could have had no con- 
 ception. In whatever rank of society you are placed, 
 and whatever relations of life you occupy, endeavour to 
 fulfil all their duties with a fidelity and affection becom- 
 ing the disciples of Him who went about doing good. If 
 you are at the head of a family — by the regularity and 
 earnestness with which you conduct domestic devotion — 
 let others see, that whatever they do, you and your 
 houses will serve the Lord. If parents; never desist from 
 your kind and holy exertions, till Christ is formed in 
 your children, the hope of glory. As husbands or wives, 
 masters or servants, magistrates or subjects; let your 
 whole deportment show, that your supreme desire is, that 
 God in all things may be glorified through Christ Jesus, 
 
73 
 
 and the welfare of your brethren promoted in time, and 
 their salvation secured through eternity. 
 
 By thus exhibiting a high elevation above the world, 
 and an untiring diligence and zeal in the discharge of 
 eveiy social duty — by displaying a meekness which no 
 injuries can provoke, and a fortitude which no difficulties 
 nor dangers can subdue nor shake — by manifesting a 
 benevolence which knows no bounds^ and a devotedness 
 to the service of God and of man, which becomes the 
 more fervent and intense, the more winning and grace- 
 ful, in proportion as it is abused and vilified : by such a 
 conduct as this you will sustain the honour of our sacred 
 religion ; and if you cannot gain the hearts of its adver- 
 saries, you will disarm their hostility, or at least frustrate 
 their attempts for its hurt. 
 
 XI. United and persevering private exertion. 
 
 While we are required to love our neighbour as our- 
 selves, we are enjoined to express our kindness by doing 
 good to all, as we have opportunity. 
 
 Are you solitary and alone in a neighbourhood ? Let 
 not that circumstance discourage you. Though in a 
 field of weeds, a rose and a lily not only retain their 
 beauty, but continue to emit their fragrance. And even 
 though single-handed, you are neither to bow to the 
 pressure of prevailing depravity, nor relax your efforts 
 for the conversion of your brethren. While you give to 
 all a shining pattern of piety; explain and recommend 
 religion by your conversation, and seize on every fit occa- 
 G2 
 
74 
 
 sion to make known the riches of redeeming love, and 
 rescue your companions from the snares of Satan. 
 
 You may fear that you are able to accomplish little. 
 But remember that you are not answerable for conse- 
 quences. Our duty is to attend to what God has com- 
 manded. Great effects have been produced by humble, 
 and apparently feeble agents. And whenever they shall 
 be attempted in faith and in earnest, we have reason to 
 expect the most grand and delightful results. Are we 
 not told, that " the remnant of Jacob shall be in the 
 midst of many people, as a dew from the Lord, as the 
 showers upon the grass ? and that a little one shall 
 become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation?" 
 
 But if you can find a companion who already knows 
 and loves the gospel, take him to your heart. Make 
 him your associate in all your pious and humane under- 
 takings. Two are better than one. They afford each 
 other encouragement and support. The one confirms 
 and deepens the impressions which the other produces ; 
 and, when former contrivances have failed, he may dis- 
 cover some new plan of beneficence, which would have 
 escaped his coadjutor. 
 
 Spend weekly a portion of your time in reading the 
 Scriptures together, in prayer, and in consultation about 
 the most efficient means of promoting the growth of 
 grace in your own hearts, and of extending the influence 
 of religion in your vicinity. 
 
 Let every two or more, who are united in the faith 
 
75 
 
 and hope of the gospel, select a small district for the 
 field of your operations, and cultivate it with assiduity 
 and affection, till you see a blessing on your labours. 
 Some defeat their benevolent exertions by undertaking 
 too large a locality. A better crop will be raised from 
 a handful of corn sown on a well cultivated spot, than 
 from a bushel thrown at random on an undressed acre. 
 And in your attempts to evangelize your neighbourhood, 
 you will secure far more grand and cheering results by 
 confining your care to a few individuals and families, 
 than by frittering away your energies on a vast and un- 
 manageable multitude. 
 
 If possible, pay a weekly visit to each of the few 
 families to whom you more especially devote your 
 Christian attentions. In all your intercourse with them, 
 keep the grand and ultimate object of your kindness 
 continually in view ; and never relinquish your beneficent 
 exertions, till you have persuaded them to renounce every 
 thing for the favour of God in Christ. Recommend to 
 them useful publications, and when you are able, lend to 
 them pious and awakening books. Urge them to attend 
 a practical and searching ministry. Press them to estab- 
 lish family worship, and to take care of the religious 
 education of their children. Embrace every opportunity 
 for introducing serious conversation, and talking with 
 them affectionately and pointedly on the state of their 
 souls and their prospects for eternity. 
 
 If by the blessing of God you succeed in bringing 
 any under the power of the truth, let the same process 
 
76 
 
 be repeated. Let the converts subdivide; and fix on 
 small but adjoining localities ; and pursue their benevolent 
 efforts among its occupants, till they gain more and more 
 to the obedience of the faith. By this subdivision of 
 labour, and multiplication of labourers, there is reason 
 to expect, that the sacred cause will advance, till the 
 workmen of one district meet the generous deeds of 
 those of another ; till our country be covered with the 
 blessed fruits of their toil, every family leavened with 
 the principles of piety, and the whole world ultimately 
 converted into the kingdom of Christ. 
 
 You must pass by no family nor individual. It is a 
 gross delusion to imagine that your benevolent task is 
 complete before every family and every individual is 
 thoroughly instructed in the knowledge of the gospel, 
 and blessed with the possession of its saving power. If 
 we are satisfied with a general profession of religion in a 
 district, without taking care that all the inhabitants in 
 detail understand the gospel, and feel the influence of 
 things divine ; we shall involve ourselves in the most 
 awful and deplorable consequences. We are chargeable 
 with gross cruelty towards those whom we overlook, and, 
 for our omission we must answer at the judgment-seat 
 of Christ. Those whom we neglect may acquire strength 
 and numbers ; and, in the course of time, paralyse or 
 overturn all our praiseworthy, but partial undertakings. 
 Our work never can be complete, and we never can be 
 warranted to consider the interests of religion as safe, 
 till piety become universal. Till then, one root of bitter- 
 
77 
 
 ness after another, will be perpetually springing up and 
 troubling us : and therefore we never for a moment must 
 forget the necessity of employing every suitable measure 
 to render Christianity the possession of eveiy individual, 
 and to insure its permanency in our country, and its pre- 
 valence over all the earth. 
 
 XII. Patronise and support undertakings to propagate 
 the gospel among foreign nations. 
 
 All souls are God's, and every soul is precious. The 
 philanthrophy of the apostles was unbounded. What- 
 ever partiality they entertained for their countrymen, 
 they considered themselves as debtors to the Greeks and 
 the Barbarians, to the wise and the unwise, so that they 
 were ready to preach the gospel to men of every nation 
 and complexion. Those ministers and laymen who were 
 most successful in their endeavours to promote the spiri- 
 tual welfare of their brethren at home, have always been 
 the most active and persevering in their endeavours to 
 send the gospel abroad. Their compassion for the 
 heathen gave greater intensity to their solicitude for the 
 conversion of those who were near them, and led them 
 to abound more in prayer and labour for their everlasting 
 welfare, and the Lord sealed his approbation of their 
 generosity, by pouring out his blessing upon their exer- 
 tions. 
 
 Without any sympathy for the heathen, we may be 
 formal, regular, and exemplary in our attentions to the 
 people by whom we are encompassed. But if we shut 
 up our bowels of compassion from any of our perishing 
 
78 
 
 brethren, and withhold our assistance from the attempts 
 to rescue the most remote inhabitants of the earth from 
 the dominion of the prince of darkness : how can we 
 persuade ourselves that we have any genuine concern for 
 souls at all ? What motive can bind us to be active and 
 persevering in our home employments? and on what 
 ground can we expect the benediction of heaven upon 
 our partial and inconsistent efforts ? 
 
 If therefore you would wish to demonstrate your 
 sincerity, to invigorate your zeal and ardour, and to have 
 your work crowned by the approbation of the Lord : let 
 your love be without restraint, and be always ready to 
 co-operate in every religious and beneficent undertaking. 
 I shall merely add — 
 
 XIII. Fervent and persevering prayer. 
 
 It is difficult to reclaim men from habits of impiety 
 and vice, and induce them to adopt a virtuous conduct, 
 and make a profession of religion. But this may be 
 accomplished, without bringing them one inch nearer the 
 kingdom of heaven. The Pharisees and Sadducees, and 
 many Mahometans and heathen, have been decent, sober, 
 and virtuous. But who would say that they were the 
 children of God, and meet for the inheritance of the 
 saints in light ? And at the present day, we find people 
 who frequent church, attend ordinances, and go through 
 the round of outward observances ; who would recoil at 
 the idea of opening their hearts to the gospel, of re- 
 nouncing all for the Lord Jesus Christ, of resting entirely 
 on his righteousness, and living wholly to the praise of 
 
79 
 
 his glory. But, till this is secured, we have gained 
 nothing. The same mountains of separation lie betwixt 
 them and salvation, as when they never had given the 
 subject a moment's consideration. If he never get up, 
 what does it signify how often the sluggard shall turn 
 himself upon his bed ? And what avail all the reforms 
 and changes which a natural man can undergo, if he 
 never relinquish his carnality, nor cordially embrace the 
 provisions of the gospel ? 
 
 To secure this important, indispensable object, is far 
 beyond the reach of human agency. Gehazi could 
 carry the staff, and lay it on the face of the child ; but 
 he could not recall his spirit and his breath. Elijah 
 could prepare the altar and the wood; but he could not 
 create the fire to light the saturated pile, and consume 
 the sacrifice. And after we have exerted every faculty, 
 and laid every measure under requisition, if destitute of 
 supernatural aid, we must return with the complaint — 
 Who hath believed our report ? We have laboured, and 
 been in pain ; but we have not wrought any deliverance 
 in the earth, neither have the inhabitants of the world 
 fallen. Neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he 
 that watereth ; but God that giveth the increase. 
 
 He has all power in heaven and in earth. He can 
 create a people at once, and make a nation be born in 
 a day. If he undertake our cause, and smile on our 
 efforts ; our work is easy, and our success infallible. 
 Remember what he did at Pentecost, and by the agency 
 of Paul. Meditate on the displays of his converting 
 
80 
 
 and saving power, by the ministrations of Luther and 
 Knox, Welsh and Livingstone, Gray and Whitefield. 
 
 And is his hand shortened that it cannot save ? or his 
 ear heavy that it cannot hear ? He is for ever the same : 
 and the past manifestations of his saving might, are mere 
 specimens of the wonder-working energies of his soul- 
 subduing grace. He has promised his Son the heathen 
 for his inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth 
 for his possession. He has declared that the Gentiles 
 shall come to him from the ends of the earth, saying, 
 " Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and 
 things wherein there is no profit." He has assured us 
 that the fulness of the Gentiles shall come in, and all 
 Israel shall be saved. And has he said it, and will he 
 not do it ? Has he spoken it, and will he not bring it to 
 pass ? 
 
 He remembers his word, and is faithful to his engage- 
 ments. But he expects that the interposition of his 
 saving grace shall be implored by fervent, persevering 
 prayer. What he has purposed in mercy, and his Son 
 has purchased by his merits, must be won from him by 
 the supplications, and intercessions of his people. If we 
 will address him in the confidence of faith, and in the 
 urgency of importunity, he will delight and astonish us 
 with the communications of his sanctifying and saving 
 power. He will open the windows of heaven, and pour 
 out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to 
 receive it. So far from husbanding his resources, and 
 imparting them cautiously and sparingly, he rejoices to 
 
81 
 
 bestow them freely and copiously. For unless this is the 
 case, why does he court our supplications, invite our 
 petitions, and seem desirous to be relieved of his invalu- 
 able treasures ? Why does he tell us that we have not 
 because we ask not — and why does he add, Ask me of 
 things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the 
 work of my hands command ye me ? 
 
 He places the key of his stores in our hands, and 
 makes us welcome to the enjoyment of all that we choose 
 to solicit. If, therefore, religion languishes, and the 
 church is limited in her extent, this arises from no defect 
 in his resources, nor from any want of liberality and love, 
 but from the coldness, the rarity, and frigidity of our 
 prayers. Enlarged, fervent, united, persevering prayer 
 is irresistible. It possesses power with God, and insures 
 the presence and blessing of Omnipotence. 
 
82 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 MOTIVES FOR INCREASED Rl-LIGIOUS EXERTION. 
 
 In order to stimulate you who have really embraced 
 the gospel to labour earnestly and perseveringly to 
 extend it, I might appeal to your hopes and fears, to your 
 past condition, and your present state, your privileges 
 and prospects, all that is commanding in the discoveries 
 of revelation, and sublime and transporting in the enjoy- 
 ment of the great salvation. I shall, however, merely 
 entreat you to remember, that to labour for the advance- 
 ment of the cause of Christ, is — 
 
 I. The most exalted and noble work in which you can 
 be employed. 
 
 If no height can be higher than the heavens, nor any 
 expanse longer than immensity; can any being be more 
 exalted than the Most High, or possessed of greater 
 authority and power than the Almighty ? God could 
 easily transport you to another planet, and place provin- 
 ces of space under your control ; but though he should 
 invest you with the wealth of worlds, and give you the 
 command of suns and systems, could he ever raise you to 
 a higher honour than to be his servants, or call you to a 
 
83 
 
 more elevated and glorious task, than to be occupied 
 with his work ? His service constitutes the distinction 
 of angels, and is the most valuable privilege within the 
 reach of the loftiest in creation. 
 
 Now, the propagation of the gospel in the world is 
 pre-eminently the work of God. Christ, and the bless- 
 ings of his salvation, are the gift of God. Redemption, 
 in all its parts, is his own work : and his agency is as 
 necessary and indispensable for the introduction and 
 extension of this dispensation of benignity and love, as in 
 the formation and preservation of the earth and heavens. 
 We had destroyed ourselves ; but in him was our help. 
 We were lost ; and he sent his own Son to seek and save 
 us. We had sold ourselves for nought ; and he redeemed 
 us without money and without price. 
 
 And when redemption is wholly his work: every prayer 
 for the advancement of Christianity, every farthing con- 
 tributed to the funds of pious beneficence, every sentence 
 spoken in love and in earnest for the spiritual benefit of 
 your brethren, and every affectionate exertion and suffer- 
 ing for the defence and enlargement of the Redeemer's 
 kingdom ; is a service rendered to the Lord, and a tribute 
 of your duty and gratitude to the King of Kings. 
 
 And when this is the case ; and when life is so short 
 and uncertain, when eternity is so near, and we shall so 
 soon be present with the Lord: can we have a just respect 
 for his authority, or a suitable regard for what is most 
 lofty and magnificent in moral conduct; and yet refuse or 
 hesitate to embark in his work, and do what we can for 
 
84 
 
 the honour of his blessed and adorable name. This 
 work is — 
 
 II. The most grateful and acceptable to God. 
 
 The production and support of worlds occasioned no 
 expense nor difficulty to Deity. He spoke, and it was 
 done ; he commanded, and they stood fast. To create 
 additional suns and systems, he has merely to issue his 
 mandate, and they would immediately appear. But the 
 redemption of our race was painful and expensive. It 
 was such as Deity never had undertaken, and such as he 
 never will repeat. It required the sufferings and death 
 of the second Person in the adorable Godhead. 
 
 And was this a simple and easy task ? Watch the 
 conduct, and mark the feelings of Immanuel, and say, if 
 the deliverance of our apostate species from wretchedness 
 and ruin was a slight and gentle enterprize ? Was it 
 easy for Him whom all nature reveres, and all the angels 
 adore, to be despised and rejected of men, and stretch 
 out his hands when no man regarded him ? Was it easy 
 for Him, who wields creation at pleasure, and enjoys the 
 unchanging, unbounded delight of the Father ; to endure 
 the contradiction of sinners, and be subjected to their ran- 
 cour and contumely ? Was it easy for Him, in whom 
 dwells all the fulness of the Godhead, and whose soul was 
 yearning for our eternal welfare ; to be grieved for our 
 insensibility and impenitence, and to have his heart melted 
 like wax in the midst of his bowels ? Listen to his strong 
 crying and tears ; look at his bitter agony and bloody 
 sweat ; attend to his inquiry, Is it nothing to you, all ye 
 
85 
 
 that pass by, behold and see, if ever there was sorrow like 
 unto my sorrow ; hear him crying, My God, my God, 
 why hast thou forsaken me ? and say, if he found the 
 redemption of our rebellious world an easy task ? 
 
 Jesus was the sufferer. But were the Father and the 
 Spirit unaffected by his pangs and sorrows ? If, in our 
 distress, we enjoy the divine compassion — if Jesus is 
 touched with the feeling of our infirmities, and in all our 
 affliction is afflicted — how much more must he have pos- 
 sessed the sympathy of the Father, and the Eternal 
 Spirit ? If, when one member of the body suffers, all 
 the members suffer with it ; or, if when one member is 
 honoured, all the members rejoice with it : when all the 
 persons of the Trinity are so inseparably and eternally 
 united, that the Father and the Son dwell in each other, 
 and Jesus could say, He that hath seen me hath seen the 
 Father, how must the Father and the Holy Ghost have 
 shared in the anguish of Christ, and sympathised in his 
 sufferings ? 
 
 Now, has the redemption of the soul been an object of 
 such intense and lasting interest to all the persons of the 
 Godhead ; and is there any measure by which we can 
 more directly and fully comply with the Divine will, 
 than by advancing the kingdom of the Redeemer ? 
 
 In the formation and government of worlds, God acts 
 independently and alone. He has little value for the 
 exercise of physical strength, and has no recourse to cre- 
 ated agency, and makes no application for human aid. 
 
 But redemption is an everlasting monument of his esteem, 
 h 2 
 
86 
 
 of holy benevolence ; and while he is desirous that all 
 should enjoy the riches of his grace, he is solicitous that 
 every believer should resemble him in his kindness, and 
 cultivate a strong and generous compassion for the holi- 
 ness and happiness of the children of men. Hence, his 
 demands on our concurrence and co-operation in the 
 maintenance of religion, and in its diffusion through the 
 world. Hence his urgency and importunity that we 
 should watch for souls, do good, and communicate, 
 and be fellow- workers with himself in carrying forward 
 the purposes of his reconciling love, and in filling the 
 earth with the blessings of salvation. What an honour 
 and privilege is this ! In heaven, through eternity, you 
 shall have constant and delightful employment ; but in all 
 'he realms of bliss no work can be so ennobling and trans- 
 porting as that of reclaiming rebels to the allegiance 
 which they owe the God of love — rescuing sinners from 
 destruction, and guiding their feet into the way of peace 
 and safety. 
 
 The conversion of sinners is a subject of rejoicing to 
 the Father, who spared not his Son that we might have 
 redemption through his blood. The salvation of sinners 
 is the reward and recompense which Immanuel sought 
 when he made his soul an offering for sin; and if sinners 
 flock to him as clouds, and as doves to their windows; he 
 is satisfied for all his unknown and matchless woes. 
 
 And can you prefer Jesus to your chief joy, and count 
 all but loss for his sake; and yet withhold your assistance 
 from a cause in which he is so deeply interested, and for 
 
87 
 
 the attainment of which, he has undergone such unparal- 
 led sufferings ? Think of the encomiums which he has 
 pronounced, and the blessings which he has bestowed on 
 those w T ho were faithful and diligent in his cause ; and 
 the nations and kingdoms which he has utterly wasted, 
 for opposing and persecuting his people ; and the tremen- 
 dous load of indignation and wrath which he has reserved 
 for the indolent and slothful in his service, and those 
 who have opposed or counteracted his work ; and if you 
 either dread his displeasure, or long for his approbation 
 and blessing, devote yourselves sincerely and unreservedly 
 to the promotion of that object which he regards so 
 tenderly, and on the attainment of which he is so strongly 
 and intently set. This work is — 
 
 III. The most agreeable and pleasing to the angels of 
 light. 
 
 There is joy in the presence of the angels of God 
 over one sinner that repenteth. We have some idea of 
 the wretchedness of a lost soul, and of the dignity and 
 felicity of a ransomed sinner ; but we cannot fully under- 
 stand these matters. The angels, perhaps, cannot com- 
 pletely comprehend them. For who knows the power 
 of God's anger? or who can tell the amount of the 
 felicity and glory prepared for them that love him ? But 
 the angels have more enlarged and adequate views than 
 we, of their extent and grandeur. They know better 
 than we the warmth and tenderness of the love of Christ. 
 They see more than we of his infinite majesty and un- 
 searchable excellencies, and, therefore, they feel a more 
 
88 i 
 
 lively interest in the conversion of a sinner that re- 
 pents. 
 
 And when these pure spirits, who belong to a different 
 order of creatures, and have no connection with our 
 species; when they have never suffered by our fall, and 
 can derive no personal benefit from our salvation; are so 
 alive to our welfare, and so delighted at the conversion 
 of sinners ; when the inhabitants of earth are bone of 
 our bone, and flesh of our flesh, and we are linked to 
 them by so many strong and tender ties ; shall we over- 
 look their misery, and disregard their fate ? 
 
 If these angels were on earth, if they occupied out- 
 places, and possessed as easy access as we to our breth- 
 ren, how would they act? Would they conceal their 
 religion? place a bushel over their light? tell us that 
 they had enough to do with themselves ? that they were 
 not our keepers ? and that since each had a deeper in- 
 terest in the subject, they might either attend to their 
 own salvation, or take the consequences? No. They 
 would be instant in season and out of season to rouse 
 and reclaim the careless and secure. They would be 
 perpetually abounding in acts of beneficence and mercy, 
 and would spend and be spent for their salvation. And 
 when you are bound to society by so numerous and 
 endearing attachments ; when every individual on the 
 surface of the earth is a brother ; when you are living in 
 the midst of your father's family, or see your own family 
 rising around you ; can you know the grace of Christ, or 
 possess any portion of the mind which was in him; and 
 
89 
 
 yet neglect opportunities for advancing his cause, and 
 diffusing- the blessings of his salvation among all the 
 guilty and helpless wanderers of our race. This work is— 
 
 IV. The most important and beneficial to man. 
 
 We regard those men as benefactors to society, who 
 increase the employment, raise the wages, and multiply 
 the comforts of the poor ; who furnish asylums for the 
 blind, the deaf, the maimed, and the sick; who provide for 
 the instruction of the ignorant, the relief of the destitute, 
 and the spread of the mild and animating influence of 
 health and happiness, peace and harmony, through all 
 the families of a land. 
 
 By whatever means these objects could be secured, if 
 they were accomplished, they would possess a great im- 
 portance and value, and every friend to humanity would 
 cheerfully admit all their real and legitimate worth. But 
 such ends never have been, and apparently never can be 
 attained without the gospel. A few irreligious men 
 have proved humane and generous ; and have spent their 
 time, and devoted their fortune to the benefit of society, 
 and the improvement of their brethren. But the great 
 majority of worldly men are avaricious and selfish ; and 
 in order to gratify their passions, and aggrandize their 
 fortunes, are willing to sacrifice the claims of charity and 
 kindness; spread vice and misery through their vicinity, 
 and replenish their country with crime and wretchedness. 
 Their course can generally be easily traced by the moral 
 ravages which they have perpetrated, and the dreary- 
 wastes which they have left behind them. The men of 
 
90 
 
 former generations, who astonish us by the splendid 
 monuments which they have left of their wealth and 
 philanthrophy, in the greater number of cases, were men 
 of piety ; and, in our own day, the men who, like mini- 
 stering angels, are unweariedly labouring to enlighten 
 and bless the indigent and neglected classes of society; 
 belong to the household of faith. Love to God, and 
 gratitude to Jesus, compel them to attempt and endure 
 all things for the sake of their suffering brethren. To 
 the graceless is reserved the task of reviling their per- 
 sons and proceedings, and counteracting and undoing 
 their generous and godlike undertakings. 
 
 And, while we have no reason to hope that any, 
 except men of piety, will seriously attempt the temporal 
 improvement of society; we must remember that, even 
 were the wishes of secular patriots and philanthropists 
 completely gratified, and all our families reduced to 
 sobriety and decorum, and blessed with prosperity and 
 affluence, these advantages dwindle down into insignifi- 
 cance, when compared with the excellence and grandeur 
 of the gospel. Nothing less than the grace of God can 
 change the heart, subdue the wayward and perverse 
 dispositions of our nature, and give salvation, with eter- 
 nal glory, to the soul. Under the blush of health, the 
 seeds of mortality are as really springing up, and acquiring 
 maturity, as when stretched on the bed of languishing, 
 and wasting away with pining illness ; and amidst all the 
 decencies and proprieties of a sober and virtuous de- 
 portment, the heart may be as far from God, and ripening 
 
91 
 
 as fast for destruction, as when the life is marked by- 
 atrocity, and disgraced with all that is abominable and 
 vile. At the very utmost, the ameliorations wrought 
 apart from genuine religion, are limited in their extent, 
 and temporary in their duration. They are confined to 
 the body, and vanish with the breath of life. 
 
 But, give a man the gospel, and what is the conse- 
 quence ? You give him all that he can desire or need 
 for time or for eternity. You introduce light into his 
 understanding, and holiness and happiness into his heart. 
 You remove the crimes and passions that degrade and 
 undo him ; and plant in his soul those graces and virtues 
 which ennoble and bless him. You still the disorders 
 and tumults of a troubled conscience ; and establish 
 serenity and peace within his spirit. You raise him 
 above indigence and want; and enrich him with invaluable 
 and imperishable treasures. You rescue him from con- 
 demnation and wrath ; and make him an object of mercy 
 and Divine protection and kindness. You introduce him 
 into the household of faith, link his weakness to omni- 
 potence, and serve him heir to the felicity of heaven, 
 and all the liberality and goodness of the Most High. 
 On earth, the Divine presence and love surround him. 
 In the midst of weakness, he is strong. Though poor, 
 he possesses all things. Under the pressure of disease 
 and trouble, of persecution and annoyance, he possesses 
 a peace that passes all understanding, and a joy unspeak- 
 able and full of glory. And when life leaves him, he 
 has an abundant entrance administered into the everlasting 
 
92 
 
 kingdom of his Lord. There he rests from his labours. 
 There he is made exceeding glad in the presence of God. 
 The Lord shows him the path of life ; in his presence is 
 fulness of joy ; at his right hand are pleasures evermore. 
 Is this the consequence of converting a sinner from 
 the error of his ways ? Do you preserve his soul from 
 death, and encompass him with all the blessings of re- 
 deeming mercy, in time and through eternity? And 
 will you hesitate to embark in the work? When the 
 Jewish camp was perishing by the stings of the fiery 
 flying serpents ; would you have rejoiced to have been 
 honoured to fashion the serpent of brass, when aware 
 of the miraculous virtue with which God would endow 
 it ? And when the gospel accomplishes infinitely more 
 than this instrument could perform ; will you decline or 
 hesitate to make its invaluable blessings universally known, 
 and every where felt. 
 
 Do you regard the gospel as the best gift of God to 
 man ? as the most peerless display of divine benignity 
 and grace? as eclipsing all the other proofs of the wisdom, 
 compassion, the generosity and benignity of our God ? 
 And will you still act coldly and tamely in its diffusion ? 
 V. This is the most useful work in which you can 
 engage for society. 
 
 We would rejoice if wars were for ever prevented ; 
 animosity and turbulence eradicated'; vice and crime 
 abolished; and all that darkens the prospects, and troubles 
 the state of society, for ever removed. 
 
 But whence come all the wars, the divisions, conten- 
 
93 
 
 tions, vices, and crimes, which embitter the state, and 
 agitate the minds of mortals? From ignorance of the 
 gospel, or enmity to its influence. From the moment 
 that religion takes possession of the heart, the man loves 
 God supremely, and his neighbour as himself. He does 
 good to all as he has opportunity. Accordingly, we are 
 told, that when the gospel shall become universal, the 
 crimes and calamities which have darkened and dis- 
 tressed the nations will disappear. There will be nothing 
 to hurt or destroy, for the earth will be full of the 
 knowledge of the Lord. 
 
 It is the most profitable work for your own soul. 
 
 The annals of religious philanthropy furnish a most 
 beautiful and striking commentary upon the truth of the 
 declaration, " There is that scattereth and yet increaseth ; 
 and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, and it 
 tendeth to poverty: the liberal soul shall be made fat; 
 and he that watereth shall be watered also himself." 
 
 In order to advance the growth of personal piety, do 
 you admit that it is of great importance to be deeply 
 impressed with the worth of the soul, and the value of 
 the great salvation? to have our minds familiarized with 
 revealed truth, and our hearts affected with the magnitude 
 and grandeur of things divine? to be frequent and fervent 
 in prayer, and much occupied and engrossed with those 
 employments and pursuits which bring us near to God, 
 and to which he has promised his special approbation 
 and blessing? If you acknowledge the usefulness of 
 these things in furthering your own spiritual interests — 
 
94 
 
 then devote yourselves unweariedly to insure the salvation 
 of others; for this is a most excellent measure for in- 
 vigorating the life of religion in your own souls. 
 
 I. The effort to convert others, is calculated to impress 
 your own minds with a deeper sense of the worth of the 
 soul, and the value of the great salvation. 
 
 It is principally because the unconverted have no just 
 idea of the value of their souls, that they live in habits of 
 such religious indolence and apathy, and in practices of 
 such open and gross criminality. If they would seriously 
 reflect on the immortality of their souls, and the im- 
 mensity of the happiness and misery of which they are 
 susceptible — it would be scarcely possible for the whole 
 graceless men on earth, and all the devils in hell, to 
 retain them another day in a state of security and car- 
 nality, and urge them on to another deed of darkness 
 and impiety. Rather than again blaspheme the blessed 
 name of God, rather than profane another Sabbath, 
 indulge in another fit of debauchery, and give way to 
 another burst of violence and fury — they would submit 
 to be torn limb from limb, and subjected to the most 
 bloody and appalling death. 
 
 But the more frequently and. profoundly we meditate 
 upon the worth of the soul, we become the more alive to 
 the excellence and grandeur of things spiritual and 
 eternal, and the more solicitous to insure the joys of a 
 happy and triumphant immortality. Every renewed 
 attempt to draw the attention of others to their ever- 
 lasting felicity, is fitted to rivet and deepen the conviction 
 
95 
 
 of the transcendant worth, and ineffable importance of 
 our own salvation. While we are recommending piety to 
 them, we are necessarily reminded of our own interest in 
 the subject, and the necessity of giving diligence to make 
 our own calling and election sure. The salutary inquiry 
 is perpetually recurring, — If others shall perish who 
 neither know God, nor obey the gospel of his Son— how 
 shall we, who are toiling and praying for their conversion, 
 escape, if we neglect so great a salvation? Hirelings, 
 who for a piece of bread intrude into the sacred office, 
 may neither care for their own souls nor the souls of 
 others. But every individual who takes a strong and 
 tender interest in the propagation of the gospel — the 
 more that he strives and pleads and contributes for the 
 extension of the cause of Christ, must acquire a higher 
 elevation of mind, and a greater amount of spiritual 
 prosperity. By such scattering he increases; and while 
 watering others he is unexpectedly watered himself. The 
 sacred fuel which he employs for his neighbour's benefit 
 augments his own warmth ; and the food which he pro- 
 vides for the entertainment of his friends furnishes himself 
 with refreshment and strength. Unless this expansive 
 beneficence possesses a compensating and an accumu- 
 lating power: why are the most successful ministers, and 
 the most generous religious philanthropists, always the 
 most distinguished for their personal piety, and honoured 
 with the greatest share of spiritual prosperity? 
 
 But, if he who thus scatters increases; it is also 
 found that he who withholds more than is meet tends to 
 
96 
 
 poverty. By neglecting the souls of others, he is gradu- 
 ally betrayed into trifling with his own. Reluctant to 
 exert his talents, or employ his substance for the benefit 
 of his brethren at home or abroad — he insensibly begins 
 to idolize his wealth, and omit the improvement of his 
 religious privileges. His religion gradually declines. 
 His zeal and vigilance abate. Indolence and carnality 
 more rapidly or slowly recover their ascendancy, till at 
 last he sinks into complete conformity to the world. 
 Whether clergymen or laymen, those who are most 
 careless about the conversion of others are invariably the 
 greatest strangers to the consolations of the gospel, and 
 most destitute of any form and appearance of vita 1 
 godliness. 
 
SERMONS. 
 
 i2 
 
SERMON I. 
 
 THE EXTENT OF THE GOSPEL CALL. 
 
 Exodus xx. 3. 
 " Thou shalt have no other gods before me." 
 
 The whole of redemption is calculated alike to manifest 
 the riches of divine wisdom and love, and promote the 
 dignity and felicity of man. By nothing is this dispen- 
 sation of mercy more deeply endeared to the heart of the 
 faithful, nor rendered more characteristic of its adorable 
 Author, than by the magnitude and grandeur of the 
 blessings which it confers, and the liberality and freeness 
 with which they are bestowed. In themselves these 
 blessings are the most sublime and precious which God 
 can bestow, or the heart of a creature can receive : and 
 they are given with a kindness and cordiality which 
 bring them down to the level of every human creature, 
 and render them accessible to the most helpless and 
 worthless of our race. The radical and leading blessing 
 in this conveyance of mercy is nothing less than the gift 
 of the infinite and all-sufficient Jehovah to be our God 
 
100 
 
 and portion: and this ineffable, inconceivable blessing, 
 so far from being confined to a few, and placed beyond 
 the reach of the great mass of men, is offered unto all ; 
 and, by the commandment of the everlasting God, every 
 individual in the family of Adam is bound to accept and 
 use it as his own. 
 
 These invaluable facts pervade the Sacred Volume, 
 and are distinctly and forcibly pressed upon our attention 
 in the words of the text. For though this sentence is 
 generally considered as merely the prohibition of idolatry, 
 or the worship of graven images, it in reality comprehends 
 something far more important and interesting. Idolatry is 
 expressly forbidden in the following commandment : and it 
 would be strange to find the same crime interdicted twice 
 within the compass of ten sentences. In summing up 
 the ten commandments, our blessed Lord reduces their 
 substance to two precepts — the love of God, and the love 
 of man. Now, unless the first commandment not only 
 discharges the worship of false gods, but requires us to 
 take the Lord for our God, which necessarily obliges us 
 to love and serve him, where could he have found cause 
 for affirming that the substance of the first table of the 
 law is — to love the Lord our God with all our heart, and 
 soul, and strength, and mind? Such an inference surely 
 could not be so easily drawn from the second command- 
 ment, which forbids idolatry: nor from the third, which 
 prohibits perjury and profane swearing: nor from the 
 fourth, which inculcates the sanctification of the Sabbath. 
 Unless, therefore, something more had been implied in 
 
101 
 
 the first and leading precept of the decalogue than 
 merely the condemnation of idolatry, how could our 
 adorable Redeemer have said, that the sum of the first 
 and great division of the law is the supreme love of 
 God? 
 
 These facts serve to conduct us to the conclusion, 
 that idolatry is not the crime condemned in the text: 
 that the sin which is here prohihited is the sin of taking 
 the creature in any form for our portion or our trust, 
 and of substituting created objects and enjoyments in the 
 room of the true and living God. Now, as every precept 
 enjoins the reverse of what it condemns ; as the prohibi- 
 tion to covet requires the practice of beneficence and the 
 cultivation of integrity and generosity; and the prohibi- 
 tion of murder requires the preservation of life and the 
 exercise of brotherly kindness; the prohibition to have 
 any other god binds us to take the Lord for our God, 
 and to apply him to all the blessed and glorious pur- 
 poses for which a gracious, infinite, and all-sufficient 
 God can be applied and used. If any thing can be 
 awanting to establish this inestimable truth, it is fur- 
 nished by the preceding verse, where the Eternal Je- 
 hovah, addressing the congregation of Israel at large, 
 declares, " I am the Lord thy God, who have brought 
 thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of 
 bondage." These words are the introduction, or preface 
 to the decalogue; and the text is the echo, or response 
 to the gracious language which precedes it. " I, the 
 Infinite and Eternal Jehovah, in the whole immensity of 
 
102 
 
 ray power, and plenitude of ray all-sufficiency, am the 
 Lord thy God; and thou shalt have no other god before 
 me. Thou shalt take me for what I am ; and rely on 
 me, and use me for thy God." 
 
 In farther addressing you on these words, we shall 
 consider — 
 
 I. The excellence and value of the privilege of having 
 the Lord for our God ; and — 
 
 II. The extent and freeness with which this invaluable 
 blessing is bestowed. 
 
 I. The excellence and value of the privilege of having 
 the Lord for our God. 
 
 This is the highest and noblest privilege which Deity 
 can bestow, or which a creature can receive. This 
 carries divine munificence to its height and perfection, 
 and completes and crowns the felicity and dignity of the 
 saints. With the universe at his command, and all the 
 elements of nature at his disposal, it is easy for the 
 infinite and all-sufficient Jehovah to lavish on his crea- 
 tures the bounties of providence and the riches of 
 creation; to place worlds under their controul, and invest 
 them with the possession of their contents. He would 
 only have to speak, and it would be done ; to give the 
 commandment, and it would stand fast. But, amidst 
 his boundless might and infinite beneficence, what more 
 can he confer on the highest and noblest in creation than 
 to give them himself — to be for them and do to them 
 
103 
 
 all that an infinite and all-sufficient God can be or do ? 
 His power is irresistible, his dominion is immense, his 
 resources are inexhaustible. The sun shines merely on 
 a province of his empire. The mighty expanse of the 
 sky can enclose no more than his works. The celestial 
 hosts are his creatures. The bliss of heaven is his pro- 
 duction. Wherever a seraph can wing his flight, he is 
 encompassed with the monuments of the power, and 
 manifestations of the glory of the Most High. 
 
 But, amidst the magnitude of his works, and the 
 exuberance of his munificence, we must remember that 
 all he has already accomplished is only a mere specimen 
 of his power. The resources of his nature infinitely 
 surpass all the productions of his hands. 
 
 And is it possible that a Being of such unbounded 
 power and inexhaustible resources should cast an eye of 
 kindness and of pity upon creatures so insignificant and 
 mean, and enter into any friendly alliance with sinners 
 so vile and loathsome as we? With heaven for his 
 habitation, and eternity for his dwelling, is it credible 
 that he will make his abode with man upon earth, and 
 take us for his people, and be to us a Father and a God? 
 
 It is not only possible, but unquestionable. There is 
 nothing more certain. He has again and again pledged 
 his word for the delightful and astonishing fact, that he 
 will take us for his people, and be our portion and our 
 God. Why was the Eternal Word made flesh? why 
 did he dwell among us? submit to a life of poverty and 
 suffering? ascend the cross, and die in agony and woe? 
 
104 
 
 It was to break down the middle wall of partition that 
 separated betwixt God and our polluted souls, and open 
 a channel for the egress of divine benignity and love, 
 and allow the Creator and Lord of all to become our 
 Father and our God. Why does the Spirit of all grace 
 open the eyes of our understandings, renovate our 
 natures, put his laws into our minds, and write them in 
 our hearts? It is that the Lord may be to us a God, 
 and that we may be his people. Why are the ministers 
 of Christ commanded to preach the gospel among all 
 nations? That they may know that God was in Christ 
 reconciling the world to himself, and by the constraining 
 influence of redeeming love to draw men out of the filth 
 and abominations of an ungodly world, and bring them 
 into the family of God, who will receive them, and be a 
 Father unto them, and take them for his sons and 
 daughters. 
 
 There is nothing to which believers have such an 
 indefeasible right, and such a clear and indisputable title. 
 God has never said that our families and friends, our 
 life and health, our property and substance, are our own; 
 and that he will uphold them under every change, and 
 throughout all generations. But he himself is our own. 
 All that he is, and all that he possesses, are laid open to 
 our enjoyment, and provided for our benefit. The per- 
 fections of his nature, the bounties of his providence, the 
 riches of his grace, the treasures of his glory, are all 
 become our own; and, by his own matchless condescen- 
 cension and liberality, we are authorized to enjoy and 
 
105 
 
 use the whole. For all things are ours. He that spared 
 not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how 
 shall he not with him also freely give us all things? 
 
 This is more than the possession of earth and heaven, 
 of grace and glory; for it gives us an interest and a 
 union with him who is in all, and through all, and who 
 has heaven and earth, the stores of nature, and the riches 
 of creation at his command. Having him for our God, 
 our dignity is exalted, our safety is complete, and our 
 blessedness must be boundless and everlasting. 
 
 Are any of you, enraptured with the excellence of 
 such a blessing, and the dignity of such a glorious rela- 
 tion, solicitously inquiring who have a right to enjoy its 
 ineffable privileges, and for whom have such vast and 
 unutterable treasures been provided? Then you will 
 follow me with pleasure, while I endeavour to unfold — 
 
 II. The extent and freeness with which the immense 
 and inconceivable blessing in the text is bestowed. 
 
 It is offered to every child of Adam, and any human 
 creature, upon his application to the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 may secure all its felicity and glory for himself. 
 
 Many disputes have been agitated respecting the 
 nature and extent of the gospel call, and the right and 
 warrant requisite to embolden sinners to go to the 
 Saviour, and embrace the blessings of his salvation. 
 Many have puzzled and perplexed themselves with 
 fruitless researches into the decrees of God, the hidden 
 counsels of his will, and the fixed and immutable arrange- 
 ments of his electing love. Many, in spite of all the 
 K 
 
106 
 
 clear anil forcible declarations of the gospel, maintain 
 that it is impossible that they can be included in its calls 
 and invitations. They affirm that they are too mean, 
 vile, and unworthy to have any right to go to the Re- 
 deemer, or any warrant to claim blessings so multiplied 
 and inestimable as those which his salvation imparts. 
 
 The language before us is calculated to cut up all 
 these fears and jealousies by the roots, and to lay the 
 controversy at rest for ever respecting the right of sinners 
 to repair to the Saviour and embrace the blessings of his 
 salvation. By the express authority and command of 
 the everlasting God, every child of Adam is here pro- 
 hibited from having any other god; or, in other words, 
 he is enjoined to take the Lord for his God. And what 
 else is this than to possess an interest in the riches of 
 redeeming mercy, and in all the fulness of the gospel? 
 By receiving the Lord Jesus Christ, what more can he 
 give than the honour and privilege of having the Lord 
 for our God? On introducing us into heaven, and 
 placing us amidst its ecstacies and bliss, what more can 
 we enjoy than the presence and love of the great and 
 ever-blessed Jehovah? In having him for our portion 
 and our God, we are complete. Time and eternity, 
 grace and glory, can give us no more. 
 
 Now, so far from being left in a state of uncertainty 
 and suspense about our right to go to the Redeemer, and 
 lay hold on the blessings of his salvation; by the distinct 
 and express authority of the great and the Eternal God, 
 we are here commanded to do what is equivalent to the 
 
107 
 
 receiving the fulness of the gospel salvation. We are 
 commanded to take the Lord for our God. We are 
 prohibited from having any other god before him. And 
 does any man need an express and special warrant to do 
 his duty ? After we are distinctly and forcibly enjoined 
 in the decalogue to reverence the name of God, to 
 sanctify the Sabbath, to pay respect and homage to our 
 parents: is a new and explicit warrant, written, signed, 
 and sealed by the hand of the Most High, requisite to 
 authorize us to sanctify his holy name, to hallow his 
 sacred day, or reverence our parents and superiors? And 
 after we are distinctly and positively enjoined, by the 
 commandment of the everlasting God, to have no other 
 gods before him ; or, in other words, to take him for our 
 God, what additional right or security can any child of 
 Adam ask or desire, to encourage him to embrace all the 
 riches of the gospel, and take the ever-blessed and all- 
 glorious Jehovah for his God and portion? If any 
 dispute about the extent of the gospel call, and question 
 who has a title to go to the Saviour and lay hold on the 
 blessings of his great salvation, I would like to know 
 who has a right to remember the Sabbath-day to keep it 
 holy, and to be just, honest, and humane? If you can 
 tell who are prohibited from the performance of one of 
 these duties, then I also can tell who is debarred from 
 the other. If you can point out a man or a womau who, 
 by express and positive statute, is interdicted from rever- 
 encing the name of God, from keeping holy the Sabbath, 
 from speaking the truth, or preserving the life and pro- 
 
iOS 
 
 perty of his neighbour, then, bat not till then, will I 
 also be able to point ont a single wanderer of onr helpless 
 and mined race, who is discharged from intermeddling 
 with the mercy revealed in the gospel, and excluded 
 from the privilege of coming to the adorable Redeemer, 
 and claiming through him a right to the blessedness and 
 srlory of having the almighty and all-sufficient Jehovah 
 for his God. In the case of the last nine of these com- 
 mandments, nothing more than the simple injunction of 
 onr duty is necessary to enforce it. And shall we main- 
 tain that something more is indispensable to bind u- 
 fulfil the first of the ten ? After he has solemnly said to 
 every individual. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with 
 all thy heart and soul, where, within all the scattered 
 habitations of humanity, is there a man or a woman who 
 is debarred from loving the erer-blessed and all-glorious 
 Jehovah with his whole heart, and soul, and strength, 
 and mind? And after he has in such distinct and im- 
 pressive terms made known his benevolent pleasure, and 
 placed at the head and fore-front of his precepts this 
 delightful injunction, where, where is the individual, 
 however vile and unworthy, who is excluded from the 
 provisions of his love, and prohibited from taking the 
 Lord for his God? By the terms of the text the bless- 
 .:-_- - sxe rendered accessible to the whole 
 
 human race; and the attainment of this high and glorious 
 relation is made as mach the doty as the privilege of 
 every man to whom this authoritative mandate finds its 
 
109 
 
 Nor is the language before us of a singular or solitary 
 description. It is in perfect harmony and most lovely 
 agreement with the whole letter and spirit of the Sacred 
 Record. Into whatever corner of this blessed volume we 
 can look, we find that the gospel of peace is not a well 
 shut up, nor a fountain sealed ; that it does not confine 
 its provisions to a dozen or a score, to a few of a family 
 or the remnant of a tribe, but lays its rich and precious 
 treasures open to the enjoyment and use of all, and 
 spreads the benign and healing influence of its grace 
 over the whole extent of our apostate and ruined world. 
 Its calls and invitations reach all the ends of the earth, 
 and embrace every class and description of human 
 wretchedness. " To you, O men, I call, and my voice is 
 to the sons of men. Look unto me, and be ye saved, all 
 the ends of the earth. The spirit and the bride say, 
 Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And 
 let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let 
 him take the water of life freely." Look at the apostles' 
 commission, and say what terms could be more liberal 
 and comprehensive? " Go ye into all the world, and 
 preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth 
 and is baptized shall be saved." With this commission 
 in my hand, I might travel over the length and breadth 
 of the habitable globe, and address myself to every child 
 of Adam, without the possibility of exceeding my instruc- 
 tions, or gathering sinners too fast, or in numbers too 
 great, even though I should, in every region through 
 which I passed, persuade all to look to him for life, and 
 k2 
 
110 
 
 come to him for salvation. This commission furnishes 
 no authority to traverse other systems and preach the 
 gospel to other orders of fallen creatures; but from the 
 spot where I now stand, all round to the world's end, it 
 is a complete and absolute warrant to preach the gospel 
 to every creature, and fully authorizes us to invite all 
 the children of men to the arms of redeeming mercy. 
 
 And why should any of our race be debarred from the 
 provisions of redeeming love? Are there any by nature 
 more vile and unworthy than others? more unfit to be 
 the objects of divine compassion? or more incapable of 
 partaking the immense and unsearchable riches of his 
 grace ? 
 
 Shall we be told that there is any defect or limit in 
 the atonement of Immanuel? Was he unable to bear 
 the whole burden of human guilt, and expiate all the 
 crimes and transgressions of our rebellious race? Were 
 his shoulders too feeble to sustain the dreadful load? or 
 his person possessed of too little dignity and worth to 
 give efficacy to his sufferings aud death, and render his 
 sacrifice sufficient for the expiation of the sins of the 
 world? In himself he was God as well as man; and, 
 granting that our sins are ever so heinous, and our num- 
 bers ever so great, yet on collecting into one all the sins 
 of all the children of men, to what more could the whole 
 amount than an infinite mass of loathsomeness and filth? 
 And can the sufferings and sacrifice of a person of the 
 divine dignity and matchless excellencies of the Son of 
 God be less than infinite? Let your former character 
 
Ill 
 
 or present state be what it may, you may safely entrust 
 into his hands the whole of your spiritual and eternal 
 interests. You have no reason to fear that you shall be 
 rejected or put to shame. The most virtuous and sober 
 never can have redemption except through his blood ; 
 and the vilest and most worthless need not despair, for it 
 cleanseth from all sin. At the consummation of all 
 things, the bodies of the dead will be in very different 
 stages of decay. Those who have last been deprived of 
 life cannot raise themselves, and must be re-animated by 
 his power; and this power can easily restore those which 
 are in the state of most complete dissolution. The most 
 moral and respectable of our race never can obtain sal- 
 vation except through him, for there is salvation in no 
 other; and the most abandoned and profligate are not 
 beyond the reach of hope. Jesus can save to the utter- 
 most ; and if they apply to him he will justify them 
 freely and sanctify them wholly. " For if the blood of 
 bulls and of goats, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling 
 the unclean, sanctified to the purifying of the flesh, how 
 much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the 
 Eternal Spirit offered himself without spot unto God, 
 purge your conscience from dead works to serve the 
 living God?" 
 
 And while there is an inexhaustible efficacy and worth 
 in the obedience and sacrifice of Emmanuel to expiate all 
 our guilt, and ensure the pardon and acceptance of all 
 our race ; are we for a moment to imagine that there is 
 any backwardness on the part of God to receive those 
 
12 
 
 who return, and bestow upon them the blessing of his 
 salvation ? He is the Father of mercies and the God of 
 love. Within the ineffable and boundless extent of his 
 all-sufficiency and grace, there are ample means to em- 
 brace and welcome all who come. We may measure the 
 height of the stars, and tell their number and their names; 
 but can we describe the power and resources of the 
 Almighty? or ascertain the amount of his generosity and 
 goodness — his liberality and love ? When he lighted up 
 the bright and beauteous sun, within his fair and splendid 
 orb he lodged a plenitude of light and heat to illumine 
 the heavens, and poured around our globe the liquid at- 
 mosphere ; he gave them bounds and expansion to admit 
 the presence of all that move and breathe, and furnish 
 them with an inexhaustible fund of vital air. And when 
 he drew the plan of redeeming mercy, he gave it room 
 and amplitude sufficient to embrace all the posterity of 
 Adam who are willing to accept its provisions and take 
 its blessings for their portion. At the first formation of 
 man, abundant means were provided for the happiness 
 and welfare of the whole human race. And has the 
 Father of peace and the God of love made less provision 
 for the safety and blessedness of all who have recourse to 
 the glorious gospel ? He so loved the world, that he gave 
 his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him 
 should not perish, but have everlasting life. His heaven 
 is large enough to receive the whole. Jesus commands 
 his ministers to carry the glad tidings of reconciliation 
 and peace round the earth. And he himself assures us, 
 
113 
 
 that him that cometh unto him, he will in no wise cast 
 out. The sin of Adam is not more powerful to vitiate 
 and condemn, than the righteousness of Christ to justify 
 and bless. " The judgment was by one to condemna- 
 tion, but the free gift is of many offences unto justifica- 
 tion. For if by one man's offence death reigned by one ; 
 much more they who receive abundance of grace and of 
 the gift of righteousness, shall reign in life by Jesus 
 Christ." 
 
 What more could a God of boundless benignity and 
 unsearchable love have done to dissipate the doubts and 
 fears of the timid and jealous, than what he has already 
 adopted ? Has he any Son more dear and loved than 
 the Lord Jesus Christ, whom he may surrender to death? 
 Can any sufferings be more painful and severe than the 
 agonies and tortures of the cross? And yet has he not 
 spared his own Son, but delivered him up for us all ! 
 How much more, then, will he not, with him, freely give 
 to those who receive him, all things ? 
 
 Do you still doubt his liberality and love, and ques- 
 tion your right to believe on his Son ? Then look at his 
 remonstrances and calls, his expostulations and entreaties 
 with the careless and secure, the impenitent and harden- 
 ed. " Come now, and let us reason together, saith the 
 Lord : though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as 
 white as snow ; though they be red like crimson, they 
 shall be as wool. Behold, I stand at the door and 
 knock : if any man hear my voice and open the door, 
 I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he 
 
114 
 
 with rae. Oh ! that my people had hearkened uuto 
 me, and Israel had walked in my ways. O Jerusalem, 
 Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest 
 them that are sent unto thee, how often would I have 
 gathered thee, as a hen doth her brood, under her wings ! 
 Turn ye, turn ye, for why will ye die ? " 
 
 And what shall I say more? To his general unlimited 
 earnest remonstrances and calls, he has adc'ed his distinct 
 injunction. He does not merely permit or authorize us 
 to take him for our God ; but he lays his command on 
 our] conscience, and makes it a matter of duty and obli- 
 gation to take him for our God, and live upon the riches 
 of his grace, and the fulness of his salvation. 
 
 Instead of debating about the right and warrant of the 
 sinner to come and embrace the provisions of the gospel, 
 the question is, Who is debarred access to the fountain 
 of life, and excluded from the warm and liberal flow of 
 his munificence aud love? The mere communication of 
 what is necessary for the happiness and comfort of the 
 creature, is to him a right and title sufficient to enjoy 
 and use it. After God has given us eyes and ears, in- 
 stead of disputing who has a right to enjoy and use them, 
 I would like to know who is destitute of a claim to their 
 use, and deprived of authority to avail himself of their 
 advantages and comforts? After the arm of Jehovah 
 has hung out the effulgent orb of day to illuminate and 
 to cheer the countless millions of our race, I would like 
 to know who is to be prohibited from basking in his rays, 
 
115 
 
 and enjoying the benefit of his light and heat ? After 
 God has poured around our planet the vital air, who is 
 interdicted from its refreshing and invigorating influence? 
 And when he has sent his mercy after us, and invited all 
 the worthless and helpless wanderers of our race to return 
 to the arms of his compassion, and find their heaven of 
 heavens in the possession of his benignity, I would like 
 to know where is the man or the woman who stands ex- 
 cluded from the exercise of his kindness, and the pro- 
 visions of his generosity and grace ? There is none ex- 
 cluded by the calls and offers of the gospel; for these 
 extend their benignant and joyful proclamations to the 
 utmost ends of the earth, and invite all the children of 
 men to their rich and bliss-inspiring provisions. Ex- 
 cluded they are not by the limited efficacy or scanty 
 nature of the atonement : for it is all-sufficient, and the 
 blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin. 
 
 Thus, then, I trust, from what has been submitted to your 
 consideration, you see the universal extent of the gospel call, 
 and the absolute freeness of its offers ; and that you dis- 
 cover, notwithstanding all your alarm and fears, your en- 
 couragement to press forward to the Saviour's presence, 
 and embrace for yourselves that infinity of blessedness 
 and glory included in having the almighty and ever- 
 blessed Jehovah for your God. After his own distinct and 
 forcible command to have no other gods before him, o r 
 to take him alone for your God, where is there a power 
 in heaven, on earth, or within the mighty confines of 
 creation, that has authority to deprive you of your right, 
 
116 
 
 or debar you from the possession and use of this ines- 
 timable and glorious privilege? Is there a created arm 
 more powerful than the hand of Omnipotence ? Is there 
 any among the reptiles of earth a match for the Al- 
 mighty, and capable of defeating his kind and benevolent 
 designs? Is there a being within the wide range of 
 immensity possessed of a deeper insight than himself 
 into his counsels, who is warranted to contradict his 
 declarations, and affirm, in the face of his universal 
 invitations and free and unfettered offers, that only a 
 few are entitled to venture into his presence, and lay 
 hold on the riches of his grace? After he has said* 
 Whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely ; 
 and assured us that him that cometh he will in no wise cast 
 out ; who can have the presumption and baseness to limit the 
 generous and godlike current of his kindness, and debar 
 a single human being from the immense and unsearchable 
 provisions of his grace? When a king sends to a city 
 languishing under the horrors of famine a supply of pro- 
 visions sufficient to meet all their wants, and appointed 
 expressly for gratuitous distribution amongst the whole, 
 who has a right to intercept the flow of his bounty, and 
 cut off the meanest and most obscure within its walls 
 from the effects of his munificence? When the hands of 
 the Most High have lighted up the brilliant orb of day, 
 and placed him in the open firmament of heaven for the 
 common benefit of all who live, who has a right to arrest 
 his rays, or deprive the most poor and helpless of the 
 privilege of sharing in the exhilarating influences of his 
 
117 
 
 light and heat? And when I hear that God has so 
 loved the world that he has given his only begotten Son, 
 that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but 
 have everlasting life; when I hear him declaring that 
 Christ Jesus came to seek and to save that which was 
 lost; that he is the Lamb of God that taketh away the 
 sin of the world; when I hear him commanding all men 
 every where to repent and believe the gospel, and telling 
 us that this is the work of God, that we believe on him 
 whom he hath sent; I would like to know who has a 
 right to come betwixt the adorable Redeemer and us, 
 and exclude us from the rich and unsearchable provisions 
 of his grace? Has no man a right to debar us from the 
 use of the vital air, or prevent us from enjoying the 
 refreshing comforts of life and heat? And who has a 
 right to shut us out from the tender mercies of our God, 
 or deprive us of the blessings purchased by the blood 
 and sufferings of his Son? 
 
 Whatever, then, may have been your past character 
 or present state, take encouragement and come to the 
 divine and adorable Redeemer. His own generosity 
 gave these free and general invitations, and his faithful- 
 ness is engaged to make them good. And has he said it, 
 and will he not do it? Has he spoken it, and will he 
 not bring it to pass ? 
 
 But remember, amidst all the liberality and generosity 
 of his invitations and offers, the salvation of the gospel 
 must be accepted, this God must be chosen for our God, 
 before these unspeakable boundless blessings can be 
 
118 
 
 enjoyed. Throughout the whole range of his dispensa- 
 tions in nature, providence, and grace, the Lord has 
 connected the means with the end in a strong and indis- 
 soluble bond. We cannot enjoy the munificence of the 
 most liberal benefactor unless we receive it. We cannot 
 profit by the clearest sunshine unless we open our eyes 
 and admit the light. And what benefit can we derive 
 from the Savionr unless we believe on him? from his 
 salvation, unless we embrace it? from the love and all- 
 sufficiency of the Lord, unless we take him for our own 
 God? Religion is a personal thing, and what every 
 individual must acquire for himself before he can obtain 
 the smallest advantage from all the blessings which it 
 unfolds. The most powerful specific neither extirpates 
 the disease nor sustains the body under the malady, but 
 cures in succession the individuals who apply it. The 
 sun neither annihilates darkness, nor gives sight to the 
 blind, but merely enlightens those who behold it. And 
 Jesus has neither extinguished hell, nor provided pardon 
 and felicity for men who are in their sins: he brings 
 salvation only to those who receive him. 
 
 If you refuse to receive him, you must perish. If you 
 neglect the glorious gospel, you must be undone for ever. 
 There is salvation in no other. 
 
 After all that has been stated, will any say, " I am 
 afraid that such a great and glorious privilege never 
 could be intended for a creature so mean and insignificant, 
 so vile and wretched as me? It is the greatest and 
 noblest privilege that God can bestow, or that a creature 
 
119 
 
 can receive. It would add dignity to the rank of a 
 seraph, and increase the bliss of an angel. How then 
 can it be designed for such a guilty and worthless worm 
 as me?" Remember that it is not given for the sake of 
 our worth, but for the manifestation of his own matchless 
 munificence and unsearchable liberality and love. Others 
 have been blessed with its possession. Heaven is filling 
 up with the redeemed from among the sons of men. 
 And were they originally superior in dignity or virtue to 
 you? By nature we are all on a level, and are alike the 
 children of condemnation and wrath. And since others 
 who were no better than you have been put in possession 
 of this ineffable privilege; since with God there is no 
 partiality nor respect of persons; take encouragement 
 and come to the adorable Redeemer, and you also shall 
 partake of all the riches of his grace and all the treasures 
 of his glory. 
 
 " The language of this commandment is general. It 
 is addressed to all. Now, it is well known that it never 
 will be obeyed by all; and therefore it is manifest that 
 God will never be the God of all mankind; aud how, 
 then, can I be satisfied that he will be my God?" The 
 language is universal, for the express purpose of cutting 
 off all those suspicions and jealousies, all those objections 
 and cavils, and assuring us that it is meant for you and 
 every one who will believe and embrace it. None are 
 without God but those who refuse to receive him. How 
 could a stung Israelite know that the brazen serpent was 
 erected for his benefit, and that he had a right to look to 
 
120 
 
 it for the healing of his wound, except from the general 
 assurance that whosoever should look on it should be 
 cured? How do you know that you have a title to the 
 use of the light or the rain, but by finding that they are 
 falling all around you? And how can you be more 
 completely assured that God, in all the plenitude of his 
 power and grace, is ready to become your God, than by 
 hearing that he has so loved the world that he gave his 
 only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him 
 should not perish, and by his commanding you to have 
 no other gods before him? 
 
 " But I am not named in this precept, nor designated 
 in any of the promises of the gospel. " And pray does 
 this exempt you from fulfilling what the commandment 
 enjoins? Because you are not mentioned in the statutes 
 of the realm, are you released from obedience to the 
 laws of Britain? Because you are not named in the 
 following precepts, are you at liberty to steal or murder? 
 
 " But I am not elected ; and till I know my election 
 what advantage can I derive from the most free and graci- 
 ous invitations that language can express?" Hare you 
 any evidence that you are not elected ? Till once you 
 know that you are elected, have you liberty to blaspheme 
 the name of God, and profane bis Sabbaths? And 
 because you apprehend that you are not elected, have 
 you a right to disregard your duty and to have other 
 gods before the Lord? Our business is to do what he 
 has commanded us, and leave secret things to himself. 
 
 " But the work is difficult, and I have no ability to 
 
121 
 
 perform it." The work is important and invaluable, and 
 you may have no inclination to fulfil it. Is it a great 
 and difficult work for a man to see who has eyes, and is 
 surrounded by sunshine? It would be impossible for a 
 man to see who had neither light nor eyes. It would be 
 a difficult thing for a sinner to secure an interest in the 
 all-sufficiency of the ever-blessed God, if he were pre- 
 viously required to make an atonement for his sins and 
 propitiate the divine favour. But what can be more easy 
 than to secure the blessing and friendship of the Most 
 High, after Christ has finished transgression and made 
 an end of sin — after he has made reconciliation for 
 iniquity, and brought in everlasting righteousness? If 
 you will only part with your other gods, Jehovah is your 
 own. If you will not reject him, in all the tenderness of 
 his compassion, and all the plenitude of his all-sufficiency, 
 he is your own. If the worldly will renounce their 
 selfishness, if the careless will give up their security and 
 sloth, if the graceless and ungodly will abandon their 
 rebellion and unbelief, and give up their heart to him 
 who made it, to him who owns it, to him who claims it 
 and longs to enjoy it, the ever-blessed and all-sufficient 
 God is your own. He requires no courting nor solicita- 
 tion. All that he demands is that we shall not put him 
 away, and place an enemy in his room. 
 
 In conclusion, then, let me entreat one and all to lay 
 
 hold on the blessed gospel, and embrace the great and 
 
 glorious salvation. It is not only your honour and 
 
 privilege, but your clear positive indispensable duty to 
 
 l 2 
 
122 
 
 take the Lord for your God. To reject the gospel, to 
 refuse to have the Lord for your God, is at once a sin 
 against him and your own soul. While it involves your 
 soul in ruin, it is an act of daring disobedience to his 
 authority, and an insult to his generosity and goodness. 
 It is a virtual declaration that his favour is not worthy 
 of your acceptance, and that his authority is not entitled 
 to your regard. And can any outrage be more criminal 
 and offensive, more insulting and insufferable? Can any 
 act of rebellion deserve a doom more tremendous and 
 severe ? 
 
SERMON II. 
 
 THE GOSPEL THE RELIGION OF THE POOR. 
 
 1 Corinthians, i. 26 — 29. 
 
 For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men 
 after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: 
 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to con- 
 found the wise ; and God hath chosen the weak things of the 
 world to confound the things which are mighty ; and base 
 things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God 
 chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought 
 things that are : that no flesh should glory in his presence. " 
 
 I cannot tell how the poor and needy feel when such a 
 text is read ; but I think I have some idea how they 
 ought to feel. To be called by the grace of God, throws 
 all created felicity and grandeur into the shade. Peers 
 and princes, kings and emperors, might exult in this as 
 eclipsing all their pomp and splendour, and far surpassing 
 the worth of their rents and revenues — their thrones and 
 sceptres — their estates and kingdoms. To be called by 
 the grace of God would throw grandeur around the 
 state, and consolidate the joy of angels, and might justly 
 call forth the loudest strains from seraphim and cherubim. 
 
124 
 
 What, then, do you who are poor and indigent think? 
 when such a dignity and privilege are not only attainable 
 by you, but are specially heaped on the heads of such as 
 you? What do you think of the astonishing fact? Do 
 you remember what your adorable Master thought of it ? 
 He was a man of sorrow ; reproach broke bis heart ; 
 and he had very few gleams of sunshine in his pilgrimage 
 through this guilty and polluted world. But he had one 
 hour of bliss. And what occasioned his ecstasy ? The 
 conversion of the poor, mean, and ignoble. " In that 
 hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, 
 Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid 
 these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed 
 them unto babes : even so, Father ; for so it seemed good 
 in thy sight." (Luke x. 21.) 
 
 I hope that I shall enjoy your attention and prayers, 
 while I endeavour to show you, 
 
 I. What is implied in effectual calling. 
 
 II. The situation and character of the greater part of 
 those who are effectually called. 
 
 III. The reasons why men of their rank and character 
 are generally called, when the wise, mighty, and noble, 
 are left in their graceless and ruined condition. 
 
 I. Let us consider what is implied in effectual calling. 
 
 " What is effectual calling? It is the work of God's 
 Spirit, whereby convincing us of our sin and misery ; en- 
 lightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ ; and re- 
 
125 
 
 newing our wills ; he doth persuade and enable us to 
 embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the gospel." 
 
 It is the work of God's Spirit. The priests could lift 
 the rams' horns, and sound a blast ; but it was the power 
 of God that shook the walls of Jericho, and laid the forti- 
 fications flat. Gehazi [could carry the staff, and lay it 
 on the face of the child ; but God alone could restore the 
 departed spirit. The prophet could walk round the val- 
 ley, and speak to the scattered dust ; but nothing less 
 than Omnipotence could bring bone to his bone, and 
 make the slain stand upon their feet, an exceeding great 
 army. And ministers may preach the word — our 
 week-day, and Sabbath-school teachers may be instant in 
 season and out of season ; but unless the hand of the 
 Most High be upon us, and infuse his energy into our 
 exertions, we must labour in vain, and spend our strength 
 for nought and in vain. But when the Spirit of God 
 concurs, he produces results the most signal aud glorious. 
 He can open the eyes of the blind, unstop the ears of the 
 deaf: he can make the dead hear his voice, and cause 
 them to come forth from their graves. 
 
 In what state does he find those whom he calls ? Mean 
 and miserable — guilty and polluted— without God and 
 without hope — dead in trespasses and sins. This is the 
 natural condition of every child of Adam. And we are 
 no better than others. By nature we are the children of 
 disobedience and wrath. We do not acquire spiritual 
 life, and leave the Holy Ghost to raise us up, or invig- 
 
126 
 
 orate the life which we have first created. It is he him- 
 self that quickens us. 
 
 To what does he call us ? To holiness and happiness 
 — to God and Christ. We are naturally ignorant, care- 
 less, self-righteous, and self-sufficient. But whenever we 
 are called by grace, we give all up for God. We improve 
 ordinances — we devote ourselves to godliness— we are 
 prepared for every good work. Our language is, Lord, 
 what wouldst thou have us to do ? But the very essence 
 of effectual calling is the receiving the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 Unconverted men hate the Lord Jesus. They may talk 
 about him — attend his house and ordinances : but have 
 they put their hearts into his hands ? or admitted him 
 into their hearts? Their souls would revolt at such a 
 thought. They will talk of him and profess him ; but 
 they will not rest on him, submit to him, nor obey him. 
 But the moment that a man is called by grace, he prefers 
 Jesus to his chief joy, delights in him, cleaves to him, 
 and renounces all for his sake. He dare not live without 
 him. If he would let the Saviour go, he would tremble 
 lest the next moment he should sink into hell. In all 
 heaven there is nothing better than the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 It is his presence that creates heaven, and, to a soul 
 called by grace, renders it the perfection of beauty and of 
 excellence- 
 
 Those who are called are thankful for any mercy ; 
 but their hearts overflow with love and gratitude for this 
 mercy of mercies, the gift of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 They delight to dwell on the grace of God— the riches of 
 
127 
 
 his grace — the unsearchable riches of his grace. Even 
 when their hearts are most warmed and melted with his 
 love, they are astonished and ashamed at their own luke- 
 warmness and coldness. They long for that better and 
 nobler state, when they shall see him as he is, serve him 
 as they ought, and love him with their whole hearts. Till 
 then they will continue to cry, To him that loved us and 
 washed us from our sins in his own blood, to him be 
 glory, and honour, and blessing, and praise. 
 
 And what is the end of their calling ? It is to salva- 
 tion and glory. He calls us from darkness to light, 
 — into the fellowship of Christ, — into his eternal 
 glory. 
 
 II. The situation and character of those who are 
 called by grace. " Not many wise men after the flesh, 
 not many mighty, not many noble are called." 
 
 The greater part of converts are foolish, weak, base, 
 and despised. If you look at their rank, they are mean ; 
 at their talents, they are slender and feeble; at their 
 character, they are guilty and vile. 
 
 It is a wonder how any poor man can keep back his 
 heart from God. In the whole universe the obscure and 
 indigent have no such benefactor and friend as the great 
 and ever-blessed Jehovah. Many of the great and noble 
 are the patrons and protectors of the poor, and spend 
 their time and substance to promote the temporal and 
 eternal welfare of their indigent and helpless brethren 
 But this is far from being the case with all who walk in 
 
128 
 
 the higher circles of society. Many of these trample on 
 the rights and interests of those who are destitute of 
 this world's goods, and unable to vindicate their own 
 liberties and privileges, and subject them to the violence 
 of their cruelty and fury. How often may we still 
 employ the words of James, Do not rich men oppress 
 you, and draw you before the judgment-seats? Do they 
 not blaspheme that worthy name by which ye are 
 called? 
 
 But that God, who is over all, is rich unto all. With 
 him there is no partiality nor respect of persons. The 
 highest is not independent of his aid, and the least is 
 not beneath his notice. The small and great are alike 
 under his eye, and equally encouraged and invited to 
 embrace his love. Our trees are taller than our shrubs, 
 and our mountains are higher than our valleys; but to 
 an eye which views them from the elevation of the stars 
 these differences vanish, and the whole appear on a level. 
 After travelling the mighty distance betwixt the sun and 
 the earth, the light finds no more difficulty to reach our 
 plains than our hills. And whatever gradations may 
 appear to us in the rank, the talents, or character of our 
 brethren, before the great and ever-blessed God all these 
 distinctions shrink into insignificance; and, after having 
 delivered up his almighty and eternal Son for the re- 
 demption of our guilty and ungodly world, the conversion 
 of a king and a beggar, the salvation of the vilest trans- 
 gressor, and of the most decent and sober in the ranks 
 of criminality, is alike easy. 
 
129 
 
 Accordingly, wherever there is a heart purified by- 
 faith, and sanctified by grace, there Jehovah takes up 
 his residence, and imparts the best and most invaluable 
 blessings of his kindness. The poor and indigent, so 
 far from being overlooked and despised, are treated with 
 peculiar tenderness, and honoured with special mar.; 
 his favour. " Thus saith the high and lofty One that 
 inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the 
 high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite 
 and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and 
 to revive the heart of the contrite ones." The gospel 
 with all its ordinances, the Bible with all its pron: 
 Christ with all the treasures of his grace and all the 
 consolations of the Eternal Spirit, heaven with all its 
 glory. God with all his power, liberality, and love, are 
 brought within the reach, and pressed upon the accept- 
 ance, of the least and lowest of our race. 
 
 And is this the manner of men? They lavish their 
 attentions on the great, and heap their favours upon the 
 heads of the noble and illustrious. They are proud of 
 their acquaintance with the wealthy and powerful. They 
 are delighted with their society, and rejoice to enlist 
 them in any humane or beneficent cause in which they 
 are embarked. They boast of the peers and princes who 
 patronize their institution, and have subscribed to its 
 funds. They imagine that it would do great honour to 
 religion to see peers and princes, scholars and philoso- 
 phers, and men of rank and fortune, submitting to the 
 obedience of the faith, and rallying round the standard 
 
130 
 
 of the cross. And since the honourable and wealthy- 
 have been reared with the greatest delicacy, and lived 
 in the enjoyment of temporal comforts, they think that 
 they should have the preference in spiritual blessings, 
 and stand highest in the kingdom of God. 
 
 But if the blessings of salvation had been confined to 
 the learned and illustrious, the great and the noble, 
 what an aggravation would this have been of the burdens 
 and sorrows of the poor? They are liable to all the 
 mental distraction and bodily distress that can assail the 
 rich and wring the hearts of the high and royal. They 
 have to toil for their daily food, and endure the want of 
 many comforts which soothe the lot of the affluent and 
 adorn the palaces of the great. 
 
 And when they are already borne down by the weight 
 of their cares and labours, what an aggravation would it 
 have been of their calamities if the blessings of redeem- 
 ing mercy had been withheld from the poor and indigent, 
 and confined to the wealthy and powerful ? Give a mau 
 access to the gospel, and let him get hold of the blessings 
 of the everlasting covenant, and what need he care about 
 his rank in society or condition in the world? From the 
 day that he is called by grace, all things are his. His 
 body is a temple of the Holy Ghost. Christ dwells in 
 his heart by faith. His soul is a habitation of God 
 through the Spirit. The Eternal God is his refuge, and 
 underneath are the everlasting arms. His bread shall be 
 given, and his water shall be sure. The Lord is his 
 God, and heaven his inheritance and home. You may 
 
131 
 
 count the dust of the earth, and measure the height of 
 the stars, but where is there a language which can 
 describe, or a mind that can conceive, the riches of the 
 glory of the inheritance of the saints? Are there any 
 treasures greater than the unsearchable riches of Christ? 
 Is any felicity more elevating and transporting than that 
 peace which passes all understanding, and that joy which 
 is unspeakable and full of glory? Can any honour be 
 more exalted and glorious, than to be kings and priests 
 unto God and the Lamb, and reign with Christ in 
 righteousness for ever and ever ? Can any portion be 
 more immense and precious, than to be blessed with all 
 spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, and 
 rilled with all the fulness of God? 
 
 Yet all these boundless and ineffable privileges are 
 the inheritance of the least and lowest of the sons of 
 men, who is called by grace, and lays hold on the great 
 salvation. All things are yours. Ye are the children of 
 God; and, if children, then are ye heirs, heirs of God, 
 and joint heirs with Christ. 
 
 Have you taken Jesus for your Saviour, and given up 
 your hearts to God? Then let your souls bless the 
 Lord, and all that is within you be stirred up to bless 
 his holy name. The Lord is the portion of your in- 
 heritance and of your cup. This is enough, and it will 
 last through eternity. 
 
 But, without an interest in the gospel, what is the 
 value of all the wealth, and learning, and honour in the 
 world? What is the use of money to a drowning man? 
 
132 
 
 What signify a sceptre and a throne to a man in the 
 agonies of death? Give a man the riches of provinces, 
 the resources of kingdoms, and the majesty of emperors, 
 and whilst he is destitute of union to the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, what is the use of the whole? What is the worth 
 of creation, and all that it contains, to a man who is 
 living without God in the world; carrying about with 
 him a hard heart and a carnal mind; treasuring up for 
 himself wrath against the day of wrath, and preparing 
 himself for all the horrors of everlasting wretchedness? 
 What now signify the purple and fine linen of the rich 
 man, who is tormented in flames without one drop of 
 water to cool his tongue? and what avail the luxury and 
 splendour of graceless peers and princes, popes and 
 emperors, while suffering the vengeance of eternal fire ? 
 
 But when a man embraces the gospel, there is little 
 more for him that Deity can do. All things are his. 
 He may be destitute of this world's goods, but he is rich in 
 faith, and an heir of the kingdom that cannot be moved. 
 He may be unknown to the world, and unnoticed by 
 the learned and illustrious, but he is well known unto 
 God, and will soon shine as the brightness of the firma- 
 ment. He may have little learning, and few opportunities 
 for improving his powers, but he is wise unto salvation, 
 and has an unction from the Holy One. His body may 
 be sickly, and his raiment mean, but his soul prospers, 
 and he is all glorious within. His companions and asso- 
 ciates may be unable to enrich or elevate him, but he is 
 blessed with exalted and invaluable society. " If a 
 
133 
 
 man love me, he will keep my words; and my Father 
 will love him, and we will come unto him, and make 
 our abode with him." The time is soon coming when 
 he shall leave all his weaknesses and wants behind him 
 in the grave, when he shall rest from his labours, enter 
 into the joy of his Lord, overcome aud inherit all things. 
 
 And with such honours and blessings in possession, 
 and such sublime and noble prospects before us, can we 
 complain of our present poverty or meanness, obscurity 
 and wants ? We have secured the one thing needful ; 
 and the few troubles and trials under which we labour, 
 are all designed for our future and eternal welfare. 
 " Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, work- 
 eth out for us a far more exceeding, even an eternal 
 weight of glory. I reckon that the sufferings of this 
 present time are not worthy to be compared with the 
 glory which shall be revealed in us." 
 
 Now, while such are the vast and unbounded blessings 
 secured by the gospel, it is peculiarly adapted to the poor 
 and needy, and lays open all its immense and invaluable 
 treasures to the meanest and vilest of men. 
 
 When we say that it is peculiarly adapted to the poor 
 and needy, we are far from affirming that they possess a 
 monopoly of the gospel, or that Christianity is inaccess- 
 ible to the higher classes of society, or unattainable by the 
 rich, the learned, the powerful, and noble. 
 
 Lady Glenorchy used to remark, that it would have 
 been a dreadful sentence for the great, if the apostle had 
 said not any, instead of not many. God is no respecter 
 m 2 
 
134 
 
 of persons ; and while he makes his light and rain to visit 
 the mountain-tops, as well as the sheltered valleys, the 
 blessings of the gospel are addressed indiscriminately to 
 all, and every rank and class are made heartily welcome 
 to the blessings of the great salvation. 
 
 Is wealth any barrier to the reception of divine truth ? 
 Abraham, the friend of God and the father of the faith- 
 ful, was rich in flocks and herds. Job, the most patient 
 and pious of men, was the greatest man in the east. 
 Daniel was the prime minister of the Persian empire. 
 Joseph of Arimathea was an honourable counsellor ; 
 Nicodemus a ruler of the Jews ; Jeh*osaphat and Heze- 
 kiah were kings. And to the present day palaces are as 
 open as cottages to the gospel of peace. Peers and 
 princes, as well as peasauts, receive the Word of recon- 
 ciliation : and, amidst all the toils and distractions of 
 their important duties, thirteen of our members of Par- 
 liament are in the practice of meeting weekly for social 
 prayer.* 
 
 Are mental talents and literary attainments any ob- 
 struction to believing the testimony of Jesus ? Men of 
 the most gigantic minds and most prodigious attainments 
 have been the humble disciples of the Saviour. The Re- 
 formers were men of such mighty intellectual power, and 
 matchless erudition, that they looked like the descend- 
 ants of another race. And in our own day, the men of 
 most lofty and commanding genius, are the firm believers, 
 
 * This Sermon was preached June 30, J 833. 
 
135 
 
 and most ardent admirers of the gospel. The brightest 
 names which adorn the annals of fame, have been men of 
 piety and prayer. 
 
 When we say that the gospel is the religion of the 
 poor, we dare not affirm that all the poor are chosen, nor 
 even that any are chosen on account of their poverty. 
 
 We dare not say that all the poor, and mean, and illit- 
 erate are chosen. Many of the lowest of our race are 
 the most vile and abandoned, and sunk into the deepest 
 state of baseness and brutality. They are destitute of 
 religion, and strangers to every thing lovely, generous, 
 and rational. If they have mental talent, it is perverted 
 to purposes of madness and mischief. And if destitute 
 of intellectual power, their conduct is so gross and 
 grovelling, as to be absolutely disgusting and revolting. 
 So far are all the poor and ignorant from being saved, 
 that the Lord declares, This is a people of no under- 
 standing; therefore, he that made them will not have 
 mercy on them, and he that formed them will show 
 them no favour. 
 
 But though no man is saved on account of his 
 ignorance, poverty, or meanness, the greater number of 
 those who are called by grace belong to the middling and 
 lower classes of society, who are despised by the rich and 
 the learned for their meanness and ignorance. 
 
 Ages before his appearance in the world, it was fore- 
 told that Jesus would spare the poor and needy, and save 
 the souls of the poor and needy ; that he would redeem 
 their souls from deceit and violence, and that their blood 
 
136 
 
 would be precious in his sight. He commenced his min- 
 istry by declaring, The spirit of the Lord is upon me, 
 because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the 
 poor. He rejoiced in the reproach cast upon him by the 
 proud and self-righteous Jewish grandees. Have any of 
 the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him ? He 
 stated it as a decisive proof of his Messiahship, that to 
 the poor the gospel was preached. And though no class 
 was overlooked, the early converts to Christianity were 
 generally of the lower orders. The first to embrace the 
 Reformation were the middling and inferior classes of 
 society. When once our nobility and gentry saw that 
 the pillars of Popery were shaking, and that the fabric 
 of superstition would inevitably fall, they willingly 
 lent their aid to overturn it, in order that they might 
 get hold of the tithes and church lands, and deprive 
 the country of the benefit of the spoils : buc so far were 
 their hearts from being imbued with the influence of the 
 gospel, that whenever the court began to turn its energies 
 against the religious rights and liberties of the people, 
 the nobility and gentry were among the foremost to lend 
 their aid to wreath the chains of superstition and slavery 
 round the necks of their brethren. But when the king 
 and his creatures were feeding the flames of persecution, 
 and labouring to extinguish the religion of Jesus through 
 the land, who stood by the cause and crown of Emmanuel, 
 took up the torn and bloody banner of Scotland's cove- 
 nant, and, in our moors and glens, watched over the 
 sacred but outraged rights of Zion's King and Lord ? 
 
137 
 
 Were these our noblemen and gentlemen ? No : these 
 were the first to break down the barriers and bulwarks 
 of religion and liberty, and let in the floods of intolerance 
 and bigotry— of impiety and profligacy — of superstition 
 and despotism. We had a few heroes from the highest 
 circles in society upon our side. Our fathers could point 
 to the Earls of Loudon and Melville, to the Lords 
 Cardross and Polwarth, to the blood of the murdered 
 Warristoun, and the martyred Marquis and Earl of 
 Argyle. But still the brunt of the battle was borne, and 
 the fiercest of twenty-eight years' barbarous persecution, 
 fell upon our ministers and merchants, our farmers and 
 tradesmen, our mechanics and day-labourers. These 
 were the first to lay down their lives for the truth , and 
 the last to surrender a single iota of the faith once de- 
 livered to the saints. 
 
 And to the present day, who are the men who crowd 
 our churches, hallow our Sabbaths, conduct our Sabbath 
 schools, maintain our prayer meetings, pour in the funds 
 for the propagation of the gospel, and are most actively 
 and zealously engaged in the advancement of religion 
 and righteousness? Though we have men of God in 
 every rank, the great mass of the men of piety and 
 prayer belong to the middling and lower classes of so- 
 ciety. The English Methodists, who amount to little 
 more than 120,000, and are composed generally of men 
 from the poorest classes, support more missionaries, and 
 raise as much money for the cause of religion, as the 
 Church Missionary Society, which is open to the highest 
 and wealthiest classes in all England. 
 
138 
 
 III. The reasons why God generally selects the poor, 
 mean, and feeble, to be the subjects of his saving mercy. 
 
 Two reasons are here assigned. One intermediate 
 and subordinate, the other supreme and ultimate. 
 
 1. The intermediate and subordinate is to confound 
 the wisdom, power, and grandeur of this world, and show 
 the utter emptiness and worthlessness of those objects 
 on which unconverted men are accustomed to rely. 
 
 Religion is the one thing needful. If it is secured, all 
 is gained. The Lord becomes our God. Heaven is our 
 inheritance and home. All things are ours. 
 
 If rank or wealth, genius, learning, or science, could 
 recommend us to God and lead us to heaven, if they 
 could give us a monopoly of grace, or even facilitate 
 our conversion or salvation, their worth would be in- 
 estimable, and no man could prize them too highly, 
 pursue them too keenly, nor grasp them with too great 
 eagerness and tenacity. But can we maintain that these 
 things contribute to our return to God, and smoothe the 
 way to eternal life? When sanctified by grace, and 
 consecrated to the service of God and the good of 
 society, these enjoyments are invaluable. The Christian, 
 when possessed of worldly wealth and mental power, is 
 an ornament to religion, and a blessing to his generation. 
 He is eyes to the blind and feet to the lame. He is a 
 teacher of babes and an instructor of the foolish. 
 
 But so far from simplifying conversion and predispos- 
 ing their possessors to seriousness and piety, through the 
 deceitfulness of our hearts and the depravity of our 
 
139 
 
 natures, they are rather an obstacle and barrier to the 
 reception of genuine religion. Until we are converted 
 and become as little children, we cannot enter the king- 
 dom of heaven. The highest and noblest, as well as the 
 lowest and meanest; the most able and accomplished, as 
 well as the most feeble and ill-informed, is by nature a 
 child of disobedience and wrath. His mind is enmity 
 against God. He is altogether as an unclean thing. 
 He is vile and abominable, and never can have re- 
 demption but by the blood of Christ. There is 
 salvation in no other. All must equally be saved by 
 grace through faith, or else perish everlastingly. In 
 salvation Christ is all in all. And until we count all 
 but loss for his sake ; till from the heart we say, in the 
 Lord have we righteousness and strength, we cannot be 
 the disciples of Christ. But we never will count all but 
 loss for his sake, till our loftiness is brought down, and 
 our arrogance laid low, till we repent and abhor ourselves 
 in dust and ashes. 
 
 But, so far are outward advantages and prerogatives 
 from promoting humility of mind and contrition of spirit, 
 that they tend to inspire men with vanity and self- 
 conceit; and instead of drawing us nearer to God, and 
 leading us to submit to the righteousness of Christ, 
 widen the distance betwixt God and our souls, and 
 tempt us to reject salvation by grace. Man is naturally 
 vain and arrogant, and he eagerly seizes on any peculi- 
 arity in his mind or body to feed his haughtiness and 
 self-conceit. Is he possessed of greater talents and 
 
no 
 
 attainments than his neighbour? He is on the watch to 
 show his superiority over his brethren, though at the 
 expense of wounding their feelings and exposing their 
 ignorance and weakness. Is he master of greater wealth 
 and property? He thinks that a sufficient reason for 
 strutting past his poorer neighbours, with all the airs of 
 the most disgusting stateliness and stiffness. Is he 
 endowed with greater bodily strength and vigour than 
 his companions? With all the ferocity of a brute, he 
 employs his strength to harass and annoy those who are 
 unable to match or overpower him. Has he maintained 
 a more sober and respectable conduct than those who 
 are around him? He thanks God that he is not as other 
 men, nor chargeable with the gross crimes that degrade 
 and disgrace the worst of the wicked. So that the 
 bounties of providence, and the mental endowments with 
 which some men are furnished, instead of promoting, 
 rather prevent their conversion; and, however useful in 
 themselves, through the perversity of their owners are 
 turned into a curse instead of a blessing. Are they rich ? 
 They trust in uncertain riches. Are they endowed with 
 genius? Their knowledge puffeth up. Are they pos- 
 sessed of honour and authority? They scorn to descend 
 to the level of the poor and needy, and accept of salva- 
 tion as the gift of grace. 
 
 Now, how completely are all these external distinc- 
 tions cast into the shade; what a stain is put upon the 
 pride of all human glory, and the wise and mighty con- 
 founded, when the saving truths of religion are concealed 
 
141 
 
 from the wise and prudent, and revealed even unto babes ; 
 and the meanest and weakest of men are made masters of 
 all the blessings of the gospel, while the rich and noble 
 are left to live without God, and die without hope? Can 
 we contemplate these things without crying, Where is the 
 wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this 
 world ? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this 
 world? This arrangement teaches all flesh to be silent 
 before the God of glory. It shows them that salvation 
 is not of him that willeth nor of him that runneth, but 
 of God that showeth mercy. And it compels those who 
 are called by grace to say, Not unto us, not unto us, O 
 Lord, but to thy name be the glory. 
 
 2. The apostle mentions a higher and nobler design 
 in God's passing over the rich and the learned, and 
 calling the poor and illiterate to the enjoyment of his 
 salvation. 4 * That no flesh should glory in his presence." 
 
 He is Lord of all. Of him, and through him, and to 
 him are all things. He has a right to do what he will 
 with his own; and both in the gifts which he bestows, 
 and in the manner in which he confers them, he is deter- 
 mined to secure the honour due to his great name, and 
 neither to give his glory to another nor his praise to the 
 empty and self-sufficient creature. 
 
 But while throughout all nature he has a right to do 
 what he will with his owd, much more is this the case in 
 the dispensations of his saving mercy. We have for- 
 feited every blessing, and exposed ourselves to the 
 severest condemnation. The high and the low are alike 
 
 N 
 
142 
 
 dead in trespasses and sins, and never can obtain salva- 
 tion except through free, rich, reigning grace. If any 
 natural talent or any temporal distinction could give one 
 man an advantage above another, and form a passport to 
 the possession of religious blessings, this would have 
 destroyed his absolute dependence on the grace of God, 
 and laid a foundation for boasting. But when no mental 
 endowment, nor outward enjoyment, gives one man a 
 preference to another; when all lie completely at the 
 mercy of the Most High, this levels all distinctions, 
 and forcibly impresses us with the fact that in his pre- 
 sence we are less than nothing, and that in salvation he 
 is all in all. 
 
 But, while this part of the divine conduct excludes 
 boasting, it also illustrates many of the attributes of 
 Deity. 
 
 1. It glorifies the kindness of God. 
 
 His best and noblest gifts are distributed with a liberal 
 hand, and scattered indiscriminately among all. Those 
 donations are of an inferior value which are more rare, 
 and confined to few. Health is far superior to an estate ; 
 a sound eye is of more use than a telescope; and a clear 
 and vigorous understanding is far beyond the worth of 
 the greatest erudition. Now, if few can succeed in 
 acquiring estates and fortunes, what multitudes enjoy 
 health and strength ! If few can furnish themselves with 
 telescopes and microscopes, almost all are blessed with 
 eye-sight. And if only a handful can afford the leisure 
 to improve their powers, and command the acquisitions 
 
us 
 
 of learning, the benefits of reason and understanding are 
 most liberally bestowed. And what are all the advantages 
 of genius, rank, or fortune, compared with the blessings 
 of religion? Religion ennobles the condition of a king, 
 raises a peasant above the highest graceless emperor, and 
 will soon place the meanest believer on a level with the 
 highest angel in heaven. Now these inestimable, ineffable 
 blessings, are brought within the reach of all, and pressed 
 upon the acceptance of the least and lowest of our race. 
 What a display is this of the endearing, unsearchable 
 liberality of God? When the higher ranks of society 
 are thin, and the lower walks of life are crowded, if 
 salvation had been either directly or remotely connected 
 with wealth, genius, or grandeur, to what a dreary and 
 dreadful condition would this have reduced the great mass 
 of men? Few could have been saved. But by rendering 
 the blessings of salvation free and accessible to all, we 
 are compelled to proclaim his benevolence, and maintain 
 that he is no respecter of persons. If he had placed an 
 insuperable barrier betwixt any class of his creatures and 
 his best and most precious gifts; if he had provided a 
 dim and feeble sun for the use of the poor, and a great 
 and splendid luminary for the benefit of the rich and 
 noble; if he had furnished the learned and ingenious 
 with a pure and salutary air, while the laborious and 
 indigent were condemned to inhale a gross and sickly 
 atmosphere, we might have complained of his partiality. 
 But if we must assert his goodness, when he has given 
 every class of the human race equal access to the same 
 
144 
 
 sun and air; if we must assert his goodness, when the 
 eye and ear of the mechanic are as acute as those of a 
 philosopher, and the limbs of the peasant as strong and 
 well formed as those of a prince; if we must assert hie 
 goodness, when we find that the tradesman and labourer 
 are endowed with an understanding as clear and sound, 
 and affections as warm and tender, as the peer and 
 potentate, what are we to say, when the light of revela- 
 tion and the blessings of redeeming mercy infinitely 
 surpass the worth of the sun, and moon, and stars, and 
 all that creation contains? what are we to say when 
 these are rendered accessible to every child of Adam ; 
 when the doors of the church and the gate9 of glory are 
 set wide open to men of every rank and station ; and 
 the blessings of the everlasting gospel are as attainable 
 by the poor as the rich, by men in the lowest circum- 
 stances and of the feeblest capacities as by those in the 
 loftiest situations, and possessed of the most gigantic 
 powers and mighty attainments? This demonstrates 
 that he is good unto all, and that with him there is no 
 respect of persons. 
 
 2. This conduct glorifies the justice of God. 
 
 How does it glorify the justice of God? He has 
 made of one blood all flesh to dwell on the face of the 
 earth. He encompasses all alike with his loving kind- 
 ness, and commands us to bear one another's burdens, 
 and love our neighbour as ourselves. If any are labour- 
 ing under any defect, or exposed to any danger, so far 
 from treating them with peculiar harshness or disdain. 
 
145 
 
 reason and humanity require us to show them un- 
 common tenderness and attention. If the man is blind, 
 we must lead him; if lame, support him; if ignorant, 
 we must instruct him; if indigent, we must supply his 
 wants, and direct him to the means by which he 
 may provide for his own support. A mother never 
 thinks of confining her affections to her healthy 
 and full-grown children, and abandoning the delicate, 
 feeble, sick, or blind infant. The most helpless and 
 sickly is exactly the oue who engrosses most of her 
 attention and care. But how do the supercilious and 
 haughty among the learned and ingenious, the great and 
 the noble, who are destitute of the grace of God, treat 
 the mean and indigent, the ignorant and ignoble? With 
 cold neglect, and sometimes with the greatest harshness 
 and severity. It is to no purpose that we tell these 
 lordly sons of pride that all men are brethren; that the 
 least and the lowest has a soul as well as the greatest and 
 highest; and that, compared with the worth and grandeur 
 of the immortal spirit, worldly honours and temporal 
 distinctions are less than nothing, and vanity. Over- 
 looking the inherent dignity and grandeur of the im- 
 mortal mind, they regard their rank and fortune, their 
 talents and attainments, as all in all. They scorn the 
 lot of the poor, and frown in high disdain on their 
 inferiors in mental talent or worldly wealth. 
 
 Now, when religion so infinitely surpasses all the 
 paltry distinctions among men, can any arrangement be 
 more just and beautiful than to see the haughty and self- 
 n2 
 
146 
 
 sufficient surpassed in all that is great and noble by them 
 whom they despise, and whom they teach their children 
 to abhor? If the Jews must have been mortified to see 
 the Gentiles from all quarters of the globe pressing into 
 the kingdom of heaven, while they themselves were cast 
 out; if the pride of Haman was shocked by being sus- 
 pended from the gallows which he had prepared for 
 Mordecai, with what consternation and confusion must it 
 overwhelm the self-conceited and scornful to see the 
 men whom they had insulted and abused, loaded with 
 the treasures of grace, and welcomed to the world of 
 glory, while they themselves are banished from the 
 divine presence, and subjected to shame and everlasting 
 contempt? 
 
 This proceeding glorifies the justice of God by show- 
 ing the equity of their condemnation. They contemn 
 the poor and illiterate as mean and despicable. They 
 boast of their own talents and attainments as prodigious 
 and wonderful, and wish all men to admire them for the 
 amount of their fortune and the strength of their genius. 
 Now what prevents their salvation? When the same 
 Saviour has been provided for the whole, and the sair.e 
 Sabbath and the same Bible have been sent to all, can it 
 be said that they are destitute of the means of grace? 
 Or can they assert or insinuate that the truths of revela- 
 tion are so mysterious and abstruse as to be incompre- 
 hensible, or that the duties of Christianity are so 
 numerous and heavy r.s to be impracticable? Out of 
 their own mouth they are condemned. The very men 
 
147 
 
 whom they despise as the weakest and meanest of our 
 race hare strength and talent sufficient to understand, 
 believe, embrace, and obey the gospel. They become 
 wise to salvation, and believe unto eternal life. And it 
 the very poorest and feeblest of our race, amidst all their 
 disadvantages and drawbacks, have time and leisure, 
 ability and discernment, to embrace the truth and secure 
 their own salvation, what prevents men of your mighty 
 powers and marvellous attainments from knowing the 
 things that belong to your peace, and becoming wise to 
 salvation? If the child can bear the load, what can 
 hinder the grenadier from carrying the burden? If an 
 arrow or sling stone can lay prostrate the object, what 
 can prevent artillery from overturning it? And when 
 the foolish, weak, and vile things of the world, the 
 youngest, meanest, and most illiterate, are capable of 
 rising to the glorious liberty of the sons of God, and 
 sessing all the vast and unbounded treasures of re- 
 deeming love, what retains you in the darkness ot 
 spiritual iguorance and in the chains of moral bondage? 
 What keeps you the victims of vice and the slaves and 
 drudges of Satan? Your destruction is of yourselves. 
 and you perish in consequence of no secret or arbitrary 
 decree, of no difficulty nor obstacle in the way of salva- 
 tion, but because you hate the humility, the holiness. 
 aud self-denial which the gospel enjoins, and love the 
 
 and gaiety, the pride and levity, the careless 
 and carnality which lead to everlasting death. 
 3. This arrangement displays the power of I 
 
148 
 
 How does it illustrate his power? It is no great 
 difficulty to make a man of learning and genius com- 
 prehend an argument and follow a train of reasoning. 
 But it is no easy matter to reduce these to the level of 
 the young, and subject them to the apprehension of 
 those whose minds have not been improved with culture 
 nor expanded with learning. Now this is what is daily 
 and hourly done by the God of love, who chooses the 
 foolish things of the world to confound the wise; who 
 out of the mouths of babes and sucklings ordains strength 
 and perfects praise. How great is the power which he 
 displays, when he makes those who have little taste or 
 art for logical discussion feel and admire the demonstra- 
 tion of the Spirit? when he renders those who are 
 strangers to philosophy and science masters of the deep 
 things of Deity, and familiar with the whole counsel of 
 God? and enables those who, in worldly matters, are 
 on a level with their neighbours, to speak of God, and 
 Christ, and heaven, and the great things of the gospel, 
 with eloquence and power? 
 
 It shows his power by purifying and spiritualizing the 
 views and feelings of the most coarse and uncultivated 
 classes. To those who are already polished and refined 
 there is no great hardship in giving an additional elegance 
 and charm. But it requires great power to raise the 
 gross and grovelliug from the lowest ranks of life, and 
 the most neglected classes of society, and give them the 
 attitude and air of the citizens of Zion, and the children 
 of the King of kings. This, however, is the case with 
 
149 
 
 all who embrace the gospel of Christ. While the wise 
 and learned, the mighty and noble, are often gross and 
 vulgar in their language and conversation; while they 
 can give utterance to every thing profane and vile ; while 
 they are selfish and niggardly, sordid and grasping in 
 their dispositions, look at the faithful. Whether they 
 are high or low, rich or poor, from the moment that 
 grace takes possession of their hearts, their tempers are 
 sanctified and sweetened; their affections are purified, 
 and their hearts are enlarged. They become a chosen 
 generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar 
 people. They display the meekness and gentleness of 
 Christ. In prosperity, they are humble: in adversity, 
 patient. They rejoice in tribulation, and glory in the 
 cross. They love their enemies, and do good to them 
 that hate them. They are like-minded with Christ; and 
 as they have borne the image of the earthly Adam, they 
 bear the image of the Lord from heaven. 
 
 God shows his power by maintaining the gospel in the 
 world, and carrying forward its triumphs by the agency 
 of the meanest and feeblest men. 
 
 It is easy to reduce a city when the besiegers are fur- 
 nished with a proper supply of artillery, but utterly impos- 
 sible when they are possessed of nothing but rams' horns or 
 instruments of music. There is no difficulty in subduing 
 an army of twenty thousand, when we march against 
 it with twice the number of superior troops; but it 
 would be declared impossible to conquer it with three 
 hundred men armed merely with lamps and pitchers. 
 
150 
 
 If the gospel had been entrusted to the propagation and 
 defence of philosophers and statesmen, kings and legis- 
 lators, many suppose that it might easily have made its 
 way in the world, and maintained its place on earth. 
 But when committed to fishermen, tax-gatherers, and tent- 
 makers, to men of the lowest rank, and most completely 
 destitute of political power and influence, how was it 
 possible to find its way among the nations, and secure 
 its permanency among all succeeding generations? So 
 far from being fostered and patronized by the great and 
 noble of the earth, vindicated by scholars and philoso- 
 phers, and encouraged by kings and queens, from the 
 first moment of its appearance it has been encountered 
 by the derision and scorn of the votaries of science and 
 philosophy, and at every step of its progress has been 
 obliged to contend with the pride and power of kings 
 and their councillors, of states and empires. And who 
 have been the champions and heroes to whom the 
 defence and the propagation of this noble cause have been 
 entrusted? The gospel has been maintained and ad- 
 vanced not by men of equal rank and splendour, aud of 
 similar authority and induence; so that force could be 
 met with force, and the violence and fury of the one 
 party resisted and repelled by the troops and armies of 
 the other. The defence and promotion of the gospel 
 have been left to the poor and ignoble, to the humble 
 and heavenly-minded among the inferior ranks of society, 
 to pious merchants and farmers, to mechanics and 
 day-labourers, to praying servant men and women, 
 
151 
 
 and devout and holy children. And what hare 
 been the weapons of our warfare? The armour of 
 righteousness on the right hand and on the left, the 
 shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit, the helmet of 
 salvation. And what has been the consequence? The 
 word of God has grown and prospered. It has over- 
 Turned idolatry; subdued kingdoms; annihilated many 
 systems of vice and superstition consecrated by years 
 and consolidated by all the strength and energy of 
 despots, with legions at their command. It has enlisted 
 kings and philosophers on its side, and filled many 
 nations with its blessed and invaluable fruits. 
 
 If the bush burning but not consumed, the fall of 
 Jericho by the blast of rams' horns, and the defeat of the 
 huge host of the Amalekites by three hundred men, fur- 
 nished with lamps and pitchers — displayed the great 
 power of God, what are you to say, brethren, when you 
 see your calling, how that not many wise men after the 
 flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called : but 
 God hath chosen the foolish things of the world ? This 
 is the doing of the Lord, and it is marvellous in our 
 eyes. What he has already done is a specimen of what 
 he shall hereafter perform, and a pledge and security for 
 the accomplishment of all the great and glorious things 
 which he has promised : that all the ends of the earth 
 ■-hall fear him, and the whole world be filled with his 
 glory. 
 
 Thus have we seen, that while the provisions of the 
 gospel are suited to men of every class, but generally 
 
152 
 
 embraced by the lower orders of society ; we are com- 
 pelled to admire the kindness and compassion of Im- 
 manuel, that while he invites kings and their grandees, 
 he gains the hearts and affections of the least and the 
 lowest. Let this precious and invaluable fact embolden 
 all to go to the blessed Redeemer, and embrace the un- 
 searchable provisions of his grace. When you can plead 
 neither birth nor blood, wealth nor mental power — when 
 you find that you are not only the vilest of sinners, but 
 the meanest of men. you may fear that you are cut oft 
 for your part, and that your hope is lost. But to meet 
 and remove this apprehension, look at the text. Mean- 
 ness, poverty, and weakness, are no cause of exclusion. 
 Rank, fortune, and genius, are no ground of preference, 
 and constitute no recommendation. Though God be 
 nich, yet hath he respect to the lowly. As his light, 
 and air, and heat find out all alike, his gospel is equally 
 adapted to every creature, and commanded to be preached 
 indiscriminately to the whole human race. The parent 
 has the greatest tenderness for the feeblest and most 
 helpless in the family ; and the Father of Mercies and 
 the God of all consolation has the greatest solicitude for 
 the worth and the welfare of the most abject and destitute 
 of our race. Jesus was anointed to preach good tidings 
 to the meek. He came not to call the righteous, but 
 sinners to repentance. And while he casts down the 
 mighty from their seats, he exalts them of low degree. 
 
 Let the rich, learned, and honourable learn not to be 
 hi^h-minded, but fear. As far as earth and time are 
 
153 
 
 concerned, your advantages are great; and if you would 
 devote them to God, they would be invaluable. But 
 whilst these are withheld from God, and appropriated to 
 your temporal ends and interests, so far from being of 
 the slightest service to your soul, they are an obstruction 
 and hindrance to your conversion and salvation. They 
 tempt you to pride and arrogance, which are dispositions 
 which the Lord abhors. They entice you to lean on 
 your own understanding, and refuse calm and unqualified 
 submission to the word of God. And this is a most 
 dangerous spirit to a man who wishes to be wise unto 
 eternal life; for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace 
 to the humble. They betray you into habits of worldli- 
 ness, and lead you to an inordinate attachment to the 
 things of earth and time ; and this is a state of mind 
 utterly inconsistent with the indispensable Christian duty 
 of laying up treasure in heaven — setting our affections on 
 things above, and living by faith. 
 
 Learn, then, to guard against the dangers by which 
 you are beset. Set not your hearts on your honours, 
 riches, and learning. Do you regard honour as a cause 
 of exultation ? Is a man higher than his neighbour be- 
 cause he is placed on a hill, and the other is left in the 
 plain ? A child on a hill is higher than a giant in a val- 
 ley : and a fool born to fortune and a title, may be 
 higher than a saint who is condemned in the sweat of his 
 face to eat his bread. But is a graceless peer or prince 
 better in the sight of God than a humble and pious 
 peasant ? 
 
 o 
 
154 
 
 Imbecility and folly, disease and death spare no class. 
 Rank and fortune give no monopoly of wisdom, health, 
 and worth. Instead of facilitating religion, they retard 
 conversion and salvation. Rather, therefore, than glory in 
 your distinctions, consecrate the whole to God. If, by 
 courting your outward enjoyments, you lose your souls, 
 you will glorify the justice of God in your condemnation ; 
 for your hands are making the bands by which you shall 
 be bound. 
 
SERMON III. 
 
 THE OBJECT OF THE BELIEVER IN HIS ATTEND- 
 ANCE ON RELIGIOUS ORDINANCES. 
 
 Exodus xxxiii. 18. 
 " I beseech thee, show me thy glory." 
 
 There is nothing by which a real believer is more 
 readily and decisively known, than by a desire of per- 
 petual improvement in religion. Lukewarm and formal 
 professors are very soon and very easily satisfied with 
 the attainments which they make. A slight degree of 
 religious knowledge, the discharge of a few outward and 
 superficial duties, aud the possession of a few transient 
 and unsubstantial joys, are perfectly sufficient to fill and 
 satisfy all their low and ignoble desires. But nothing 
 less than a thorough knowledge of the whole will of 
 God, nothing less than complete deliverance from the 
 remains of corruption and sin, nothing less than entire 
 conformity to the image of the Saviour, nothing less 
 than the perfect and uninterrupted enjoyment of God, 
 can fill and satisfy the exalted and divine ambition of a 
 
156 
 
 holy and heaven-born soul. Every fresh acquisition which 
 he gains creates a longing for something more spiritual 
 and ennobling, and every renewed communication of 
 divine liberality and love is converted into an occasion 
 and ground for soliciting some bliss more pure, and some 
 honour still more elevated. In this manner religion 
 appeared in the case of Paul. After twenty-eight years 
 spent in the service of his Master, and after reaching an 
 elevation in the Christian life which hitherto has been 
 absolutely unrivalled, we find him declaring, " Not as 
 though I had already attained, either were already 
 perfect; but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that 
 for which I also am apprehended of Christ Jesus. 
 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended ; but 
 this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are 
 behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are 
 before, I press toward the mark, for the prize of the high 
 railing of God in Christ Jesus." 
 
 In this manner religion operated on the mind of 
 Moses. When he uttered the petition before us, he had 
 seen the glory of the Lord in the bush that burned and 
 was not consumed. He had been honoured by Jehovah 
 to perform his wonders in the presence of Pharaoh and 
 his servants. At Sinai he had received the law in the 
 midst of lightning, thunder, and tempest; and in the 
 tabernacle of the congregation he had witnessed the 
 milder lustres of the Deity, and been permitted to con- 
 verse with him face to face, as a man speaketh to his 
 friend. But these endearing manifestations of divine 
 
157 
 
 power and love, so far from satisfying his wishes, only 
 gave additional sublimity to his views, and greater 
 strength and fervour to his holy desires. Delighted and 
 transported with what he had already witnessed, we find 
 him longing for closer access to Deity, and for more 
 bright and engaging displays of his perfections. We 
 find him, in the language of the text, saying, " I beseech 
 thee, show me thy glory." 
 
 In illustrating this petition of Moses, we shall con- 
 sider — 
 
 I. The object of his request ; and, 
 
 II. The reasons on account of which he urged it with 
 such importunity and ardour. 
 
 I. The object of his request. " I beseech thee, show 
 me thy glory." 
 
 By the glory of God, mentioned in the text, some 
 have supposed that all that is meant is merely the sensi- 
 ble appearance which, during the travels of the Israelites 
 through the wilderness, accompanied the presence of the 
 angel of the covenant. They have supposed that all 
 that Moses solicited was to be strengthened for steadfastly 
 beholding the Shechinah, or bright luminous cloud which 
 rested on the tabernacle, and by its dazzling lustre 
 tended to affect the mind with a sense of the power and 
 sovereignty of the Lord Jehovah. 
 
 But the Shechinah was what he had already repeatedly 
 seen, and what he had every reason to expect, if his life 
 o2 
 
158 
 
 were lengthened, that he would see again and again. 
 Besides, the mere sight of this splendid cloud, however 
 frequently renewed, was to a believer a matter of very 
 small and inferior moment. The only circumstance 
 which could have given it importance and value, in his 
 esteem, was its fitness to impress him with more just and 
 enlarged ideas of the character and perfections of the 
 Lord. And if Moses did not desire to behold the 
 Shechinah, we cannot for a moment believe that he had 
 such gross and carnal notions of Deity as to imagine that 
 he possessed bodily organs and could become an object 
 of vision. And accordingly, you may observe that he 
 does not say, " I beseech thee show me thy person," but 
 " I beseech thee show me thy glory." The question, 
 therefore, still returns, What are we to understand by 
 this glory? 
 
 In general, glory denotes magnificence and splendour. 
 The glory of a man consists in those qualities in his 
 moral character, in his mental talents, or external cir- 
 cumstances, which raise him above the level of his 
 fellow-creatures, and attract their veneration and esteem. 
 In this sense we read of Solomon in all his glory, that is, 
 in all the pomp and majesty of royalty. The Lord 
 Jehovah has no occasion to borrow greatness from the 
 works of his hands. He infinitely disdains the dumb 
 show and artificial grandeur to which earthly monarchs 
 are obliged to have recourse in order to increase their 
 state and invest themselves with artificial dignity and 
 consequence in the eyes of their subjects. He is essen- 
 
159 
 
 tially, eternally, unchangeably, infinitely great, blessed, 
 glorious, and lovely. His glory consists in his inherent 
 attributes and excellences; those attributes and excel- 
 lences which exalt and adorn his character, and which 
 throw such a matchless infinite lustre round all his works 
 and dispensations. And this glory is revealed, or shown, 
 when his perfections are unfolded in their native extent 
 and overpowering grandeur; and when his intelligent 
 creatures have just and impressive views of the trans- 
 cendent loveliness and absolute perfection of his nature; 
 when in some measure they see what Jehovah is in 
 himself; and are made to feel their own meanness and 
 insignificance before him. 
 
 In the text, Moses seems to have prayed for the 
 privilege of beholding the perfections of God in all 
 the effulgence of their united matchless splendour. He 
 seems to have been solicitous to obtain a distinct and 
 steady view of the inherent eternal attributes and excel- 
 lences of Him who is the source of all that is great or 
 amiable throughout the whole creation. In this request 
 there is perhaps a wish expressed for something more 
 than what was either suitable, or even possible for him 
 to obtain. In the present state no man could endure 
 the sight of unveiled Deity- The most holy man that 
 ever lived would be completely overpowered by an 
 unreserved display of the divine attributes and excel- 
 lences. In pity, therefore, to our weakness, God 
 holdeth back the face of his throne, and spreadeth his 
 cloud upon it. The full manifestation of Deity is 
 
160 
 
 reserved for that better world, where our natures shall 
 be purified, and all our faculties and powers completely 
 expanded, and brought to full maturity and perfection. 
 When the earthly house of this our tabernacle is taken 
 down, when our spirits have joined the general assembly 
 and church of the first-born, then, but not till then, shall 
 we be permitted, for then, but not till then, shall we be 
 able to see him as he is. 
 
 But though the heart of this man of God was set on 
 something more than what was either suitable, or even 
 possible for him to obtain in this life ; to a certain extent 
 Jehovah approved, encouraged, and even granted his re- 
 quest : and by this means he has taught us that the 
 prayer of Moses ought to be the prayer of each of us. 
 and that in every instance in which we attend upon the 
 ordinances of religion, or engage in the exercises of 
 devotion, like him we ought to be anxious to enjoy a 
 view of the divine ulory. 
 
 It is melancholy to observe the low, base, and unworthy 
 motives by which many professors are actuated in the 
 performance of the most sacred services of piety, and in 
 their attendance on the most solemn institutions of re- 
 ligion. Some have no motive at all. They go to the 
 house, and even to the table of the Lord, because their 
 fathers went, their neighbours go, and they are unwilling 
 to be singular. The description of the mob at Ephesu- 
 may, with too much justice, be applied to many a congre- 
 gation : u The multitude was confused, and the greater 
 part knew not wherefore thev were come together." 
 
161 
 
 Some come to see, and others to be seen of men, — some 
 come to silence the remonstrances of conscience for the 
 omission of duty or the indulgence of sin ; and others to 
 pass an idle hour, or get their passions moved, or their 
 affections warmed and softened. To them the preacher 
 is as the lovely song of one who has a very pleasant voice, 
 or can play well on an instrument. 
 
 Such are the grovelling sentiments and the sordid 
 views of many of the professed worshippers of the holy 
 and heart-searching God ; and, by conduct so mean, and 
 practices so irrational and absurd, they are provoking the 
 eyes of his glory, and laying themselves open to the tre- 
 mendous visitations of his wrath, at the very time that 
 they imagine that they are doing him good service, and 
 are entitled alike to his blessing, and the admiration of 
 their brethren. 
 
 Widely different were the views and desires of Moses 
 in his approaches unto God. And if we would wish to 
 render him any acceptable homage, or to derive any ad- 
 vantage to our own souls from our attendance on the 
 ordinances of grace, we must possess principles far more 
 pure and spiritual, and be influenced by motives unspeak- 
 ably more elevated and noble. The increase of his 
 speculative knowledge, the transient agitation of his feel- 
 ings, and the acquisition of a high reputation from man, 
 are objects far too low, and ends utterly too insignificant, 
 to attract the attention of the Christian's aspiring mind, 
 or fix the affections of his elevated and holy soul. He 
 advances beyond the shadow of religion, — he passes 
 
162 
 
 through its form and shadow ; and seeks for its substance 
 and power, real inward sensible communion and fellow- 
 ship with God. He thirsts not for secular wealth or 
 speculative knowledge, but for God, the living God, that 
 with David he may see his power, and that with Moses 
 he may behold his glory. 
 
 This glory appears from all the works and dispensa- 
 tions of the Most High. The universe, throughout all 
 its extent, is replete with the operations of his wisdom 
 and beneficence ; and wherever we can trace his agency, 
 we behold bright aud endearing proofs of his omnipotence 
 and omniscience. The heavens declare his glory, and the 
 firmament showeth his handy-work. The dispensations 
 of his providence demonstrate that he is wise in counsel, 
 wonderful in working, and that his understanding is un- 
 searchable. But it is in the work of redemption where 
 all his attributes are brought into exercise, and allowed 
 to shine with a beauty and a brilliancy which otherwise 
 would have for ever remained concealed. It is this 
 which affords us the most overpowering display of his 
 eternal excellences. It is this which engages and en- 
 grosses the contemplation of the holy portion of the 
 creation ; and which, through eternity, will call forth the 
 loudest and most enraptured strains of joy and praise 
 from a grateful adoring universe. Each of his works 
 enables us to see far into his character ; and the whole, 
 when taken together, form a combination of exalted and 
 engaging excellences, which transcend alike all compre- 
 hension and all praise. 
 
163 
 
 When we are blessed with a view of this glory, it fills 
 and occupies the mind. We have neither leisure nor in- 
 clination to think of aught besides. Subdued and awed 
 by this ineffable sight, every faculty and affection of our 
 souls is rivetted to the stupendous, the transporting 
 subject. We feel ourselves alone with the invisible God. 
 His presence surrounds us, and his majesty inspires the 
 deepest reverence and awe. No posture is then suffi- 
 ciently low, nor any language sufficiently humble, to ex- 
 press our feelings of meanness, insignificance, and vile*- 
 ness. We may be rich, or learned, or noble, when com- 
 pared with some of our obscure, indigent, and illiterate 
 brethren ; but, in the presence of the God of all the 
 earth, these distinctions disappear, and we find that we 
 are lower than the least of the saints, and less than nothing. 
 
 Jehovah is at all times equally glorious. He is eter- 
 nally and unchangeably great, blessed, and glorious. But 
 bis glory does not always appear, nor even when visible 
 uniformly produce the same lively and powerful impres- 
 sions. The sun is always the same, but he does not 
 always shine ; in other words, he is not always visible. 
 Clouds and darkness often intervene, and hide him from 
 our view, while he is rolling on his flood of light, and 
 warming other nations with his rays. And while the 
 Lord Jehovah is diffusing life, and joy, and gladness, and 
 cheering millions of blessed beings in worlds to us un- 
 known ; there are seasons when no beam from his coun- 
 tenance is permitted to reach or irradiate our spirits. 
 Till he himself is pleased to unfold it, we cannot behold 
 
164 
 
 this glory. It is only by the illumination of the Holv 
 Ghost that we can discover it to any saving or beneficial 
 purpose. Though the invisible things of God are clearly 
 seen, being understood by the things that are made, even 
 his eternal power and godhead ; how many neither know 
 God nor love him ! Though the holy Scriptures con- 
 tain a distinct discovery of his nature, and a full revela- 
 tion of his will, to many of the greatest strength of mind, 
 and of the most indefatigable and persevering research, 
 they are no better than a sealed book. " The natural 
 man," however learned and ingenious in the things 
 relating to time and sense, " receiveth not the things of 
 the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him ; 
 neither can he know them, beeause they are spiritually 
 discerned." 
 
 It is to no purpose, therefore, that the glory of the 
 Lord shines around us. Unless his own Spirit open 
 our eyes to behold it, it must shine in vain. Till we are 
 blessed with the power of spiritual vision, we can no 
 more savingly discern this glory than the blind can per- 
 ceive the light of the sun. You know that the Bible is 
 invariably the same. But how often do we read it with 
 very different feelings, and with very different practical 
 effects! At one time it is all light, and life, and sweet- 
 ness; but at another time we read the same passage 
 again and again, and find nothing but darkness, confusion, 
 and perplexity. Under one sermon the word has been 
 accompanied with power. We could rest on its truths 
 and rejoice in its consolations. But at another time, 
 
165 
 
 under the same or a similar discourse, we have remained 
 cold, languid, and unaffected. Its remonstrances could 
 not rouse, its denunciations alarm, nor its encourage- 
 ments animate or cheer us. What different views had 
 Jacob of God's presence at Bethel on the morning when 
 he rose, from what he possessed on the evening when he 
 lay down! God was equally present there at both — at 
 all times. When, however, he stretched his head on his 
 stony pillow, he thought little of the divine presence, and 
 regarded the spot merely as a piece of common ground. 
 But how were his ideas altered when blessed with the 
 visions of God! " Surely the Lord is in this place; and 
 I knew it not; and he was afraid, and said, How dreadful 
 is this place! this is none other but the house of God, 
 and this is the gate of heaven." What different views 
 had Job of the divine character from description, and 
 from actual sight? " I have heard of thee by the hear- 
 ing of the ear; but now mine eye seeth thee; wherefore 
 I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes." 
 
 These facts are sufficient to show the necessity of a 
 divine revelation to enable us to obtain an impressive and 
 profitable view of the glory of God. Moses knew the 
 value of prayer in order to secure the possession of this 
 blessing; and to this exercise accordingly he had recourse, 
 saying, with all the earnestness and ardour indicated 
 by the words of the text, " I beseech thee, show me thy 
 glory." Let us now attend — 
 
 II. To some of the reasons why Moses urged this 
 request with such importunity and ardour, 
 p 
 
166 
 
 He was induced to solicit this display of the divine 
 glory, and every believer is led to entreat its manifesta- 
 tion, 
 
 1. On account of its intrinsic excellence and gran- 
 deur. 
 
 We seem to be formed with the love of what is beau- 
 tiful and great. We rejoice in the opportunity of seeing 
 a man who has ennobled his country by his talents, or 
 improved and blessed it by his virtues. Places renowned 
 for their antiquity, or rendered illustrious by the conflicts 
 of freedom with the hordes of barbarians or the hireling 
 hosts of despots and oppressors, have attracted the steps 
 of pilgrims, and drawn the tear of sympathy from many 
 an eye, and the thrill of admiration from many a heart. 
 We gaze with delight on the magnificence of mountain 
 scenery ; we contemplate with rapture the wide expanse 
 of the ocean ; and dwell with ecstasy on the glories of 
 the setting sun, and the brightness and stillness of the 
 starry sky. 
 
 But if we are charmed with what is sublime or beau- 
 tiful, where can we find an object to command the ad- 
 miration of the mind, and rivet every affection of the 
 heart, equal to the great and ever-blessed God ? He is 
 the perfection of beauty and of excellence ; the source of 
 all that is attractive or interesting in the creature, and 
 of all that is lofty or lovely throughout the whole 
 creation. The heavans are bright with beauty, and the 
 earth through all its extent discloses scenes of stupend- 
 ous grandeur and of the most endearing loveliness. But. 
 
167 
 
 all the grandeur that transports us, and all the beauty 
 which blazes on us from every quarter, are only a faint 
 ray and a feeble emanation from his own inherent, un- 
 created, eternal excellences. 
 
 Worlds on worlds are perpetually revolving in the 
 regions of space, far larger than the globe that we occupy. 
 Immensity is crowded with suns and systems far more 
 extended and brilliant than that of which our planet 
 forms a part. But though the works of creation are 
 vast and stupendous, and far surpass the comprehension 
 of mortal minds, are these the best and fairest specimens 
 of his mighty power and matchless perfections? Is it 
 here where he has spread the most magnificent theatre 
 for the display of his infinite might and unbounded re- 
 sources; and whither the best and highest of his hosts 
 come to study his perfections, and gather the most 
 enlarged and exalted ideas of his lovely and glorious 
 nature? With all its magnitude and grandeur, creation 
 has no glory by reason of a glory that excelleth. It is 
 in the wonders of redeeming mercy where God appears 
 in character, and has given the most ample display of 
 his peerless incomprehensible excellences. It is here 
 where he has laid the foundation for the most elevated 
 admiration, and the deep and ardent attachment of a 
 grateful adoring universe. Here he has abounded to- 
 wards us in all wisdom and prudence. To angels, princi- 
 palities, and powers, he has made known by the church 
 his manifold wisdom. Accordingly, these beings who 
 excel in strength and wisdom, and are the best judges 
 
108 
 
 of what is grand and lovely, when they wish to obtain 
 additional discoveries of his unsearchable perfections, and 
 warm their hearts with increasing affection and gratitude 
 to the God whom they love and adore; do they betake 
 themselves to the study of philosophy and science? Do 
 they investigate the wonders of nature, or explore the ex- 
 tent and grandeur of the creation? Passing by suns and 
 systems, they direct their flight to Calvary, and take their 
 station at the cross. These are the things into which the 
 angels desire to look. Here new wonders perpetually 
 rise to their view; and they behold attributes and ex- 
 cellences exerted and illustrated in a form, which they 
 should have sought in vain on the face of creation and 
 amongst the mightiest and noblest works of his hands. 
 
 But, after all, what is it that we can discover, or that 
 even they can behold? It is only a small portion of his 
 ways. It is only the traces, but not the hiding of his 
 power; a specimen of his perfections, but not the full 
 amount of his resources. Eternity is too short, and the 
 capacities of an angel too limited to find out the Al- 
 mighty to perfection. But though the full extent of 
 his works and perfections is not, and cannot be known; 
 still we see enough to raise devout and adoring wonder; 
 to justify the choice of every believing soul, and lead 
 him to say, with Moses, " I beseech thee, show me thy 
 glory." For if his works and dispensations are stamped 
 with such characters of grandeur, and impart such de- 
 light to the mind, what transport must attend a sight of 
 himself! what ecstasv must arise from the unclouded 
 
169 
 
 display of his eternal excellences ! from seeing him as 
 he is! from beholding him in his beauty! from viewing 
 him in all his glory! 
 
 Moses implored this display of the divine glory, and 
 every Christian adopts his prayer, 
 
 2. On account of the beneficial influence which it pos- 
 sesses upon the ordinances of religion. 
 
 The ordinances are invaluable. To multitudes now 
 in the regions of perfect purity and everlasting felicity, 
 the ordinances of religion were the means, in the house 
 of their pilgrimage, of conveying peace, refreshment, 
 strength, and consolation. But it is from the display of 
 the divine glory that the ordinances derive all their use 
 and value. Ministers may preach to the ear ; it is the 
 prerogative of God to preach to the heart. The sacra- 
 ments may bring the blessings of salvation near, and 
 represent them to our outward senses ; it is the Spirit 
 of God, and his Spirit alone, that can apply them effectu- 
 ally to the soul. A Paul may plant, and an Apollos 
 may water; but even these must plant in vain, and water 
 in vain, unless God himself give the increase. However 
 fair and promising the outward means may appear; if 
 God withdraw his presence or conceal his glory, all their 
 power and efficacy are blasted. The whole of their 
 beauty and majesty, of their light and sweetness, of 
 their life and energy, depends upon his gracious presence 
 and the manifestation of his glory. When these are 
 imparted, the ordinances are clothed with an authority 
 and influence, and enriched with an energy and unction, 
 p2 
 
170 
 
 cfc no worldly-minded man can conceive nor any 
 Christian describe. When Jehovah lifts up the light of 
 his countenance, and sh :>ry: ah! with 
 
 what delight the believer studies the word ! with what 
 ardour his soul ascends in \m songs or praise! and with 
 what liberty and enlargement he pou: - - heait in 
 
 bi ! He pleads with eloquence and power, and fill* 
 his mouth with arguments. The preaching of the gospel 
 drops as the rain and distils as the dew. It desceru - 
 
 « upon him that is thirsty, and as floods upon the 
 dry ground. It comes home to his affections and his 
 heart in demonstration of the Spirit and in power. V. 
 what joy he takes his seat at the holy table ! There 
 God makes all his goou: - before him. There 
 
 jiakes him eat of his pleasant meat, and drink or 
 
 rous and refreshing wine. There his communion is 
 "ith the Father, and the Son. and the Holy Ghost : and 
 be obtains a representation and a of future and 
 
 eternal bliss. As he returns to the world of 2rief and 
 care. g, •• I will remember thee from the land of 
 
 Jordan, and of the HeimoLites. from the hill Mizar. 
 
 ■ne other but the house of God and the ga: 
 heaven." 
 
 Such are some of the pleasing, transporting effects 
 
 rom the presence of God in his ordinance?. 
 
 - withheld or withdrawn, their spirit, life, 
 
 and power are i:one. We may call them Ichabod: for 
 
 . «:iory is departed. However favourable and pre- 
 
 ig ... are utterly insipid 
 
171 
 
 and worthless. They are like clouds without water, or 
 dry bones to a hungry soul. 
 
 Moses urged this petition, and every believer adopts it, 
 
 3. In consequence of the blessed effects which a display 
 of the divine glory produces upon the soul itself. 
 
 It is the source of all that is pure, holy, and elevated 
 in the soul. All the graces of the Christian life, and all 
 the hopes and consolations of religion, depend, for their 
 existence, their exercise, their energy, and growth, upon 
 the presence of God and the manifestation of his glory. 
 What makes the love of the Christian languish and wax 
 cold ? What relaxes his vigilance and abates his zeal ? 
 What damps the ardour of his resolution, and interrupts 
 his holy joy? What renders him worldly in his mind 
 and unstable in his conduct? What brings him down 
 from the high elevation to which the faith of the gospel 
 is fitted to raise him, and gives him such sad conformity 
 to the corrupt people among whom he sojourns? To 
 what are all these melancholy effects owing? To his 
 distance from God, and his faint and indistinct views of 
 the divine glory. It shall be otherwise in the morning 
 of the resurrection. When we are brought rearer to him, 
 we shall become better. W T hen we see him more clearly, 
 we shall resemble him more closely. " When he appears, 
 we shall be like him ; for we shall see him as he is." 
 
 What constitutes the felicity and purity of heaven, and 
 renders it the happy and blessed place that it is ? This does 
 not arise from its peculiar situation, the sublimity of its 
 scenery, nor the beauty and magnificence of its towers 
 
172 
 
 and palaces ; but from the display of the divine glory in 
 all its peerless attractions and unclouded splendour. " The 
 glory of God doth lighten it, and the Lamb is the light 
 thereof." What is it that gives perfection to the spirits 
 of the just, and completes their dignity and bliss? It is 
 their nearness to the uncreated fountain of beauty and of 
 goodness, and their clear and uninterrupted vision of the 
 glory of God. " As for me, I will behold thy face in 
 righteousness ; I shall be satisfied when I awake with thy 
 likeness." And what in this state of distance and of 
 darkness throws such a lustre round the character of the 
 faithful, and gives them something of the warmth and 
 affection, the purity and zeal of angels? It is the close- 
 ness with which they cultivate communion with God, and 
 the displays which he gives them of his glory. He brings 
 them near unto himself, even to his seat, and makes all 
 his goodness pass before them. He lifts upon them the 
 light of his countenance, and shines into their hearts to 
 give them the knowledge of his glory. They are then 
 raised above what is low and grovelling, what is earthly 
 and base, and made to shine in the beauties of holiness 
 and abound in the fruits of righteousness. As the sun 
 extracts the moisture from the ground, and the fire 
 devours the dry wood and stubble, the presence of God 
 and the manifestation of his glory blast the seeds of cor- 
 ruption, and consume the dross that cleaves to our souls. 
 They calm our passions, sweeten our tempers, purify 
 our principles, elevate our views, refine our desires, ex- 
 pand our affections, lift the mind above all that is mean 
 
173 
 
 and unworthy, fix it on things substantial and permanent; 
 they convey a sight and a hold of heaven, and give us a 
 fellowship with angels and a resemblance to God. 
 
 How grand and interesting is the scene, when privi- 
 leged to see a Christian retiring from his closet, or des- 
 cending from the mount of ordinances, where he has 
 enjoyed real inward sensible communion with God! 
 There is a warmth, a sublimity, and tenderness in the 
 whole of his* language, looks, and deportment, that indi- 
 cate the more than mortal joys to which he has been 
 admitted, and afford some idea of the appearance which 
 he shall possess when this mortal shall have put on 
 immortality, and this corruptible shall be clothed with 
 incorruption. If he is a minister, he feeds with affection 
 and diligence the flock over which the Holy Ghost has 
 made him an overseer. If he is a private Christian, he 
 discharges with activity and cheerfulness every duty 
 attached to his station. Grace sweetens and sanctifies 
 his conversation, and infuses something of the spirituality 
 and benevolence of heaven into the whole of his inter- 
 course with his domestic circle, and the world at large. 
 
 On descending from the mountain where he had been 
 blessed with the vision of God, the face of Moses shone 
 so that the children of Israel could not steadfastly behold 
 him. The intercourse which Stephen enjoyed with his 
 Saviour, not only diffused a heavenly serenity through 
 his soul, but gave a celestial dignity and composure to 
 his appearance. " All that sat in the council, looking 
 steadfastly on him, saw his face as if it had been the face 
 
174 
 
 of an angel." The endeared and ennobling fellowship 
 to which Jesus admitted his disciples, left an impression 
 on their manners which was not effaced till their dying 
 day. It forced itself upon the reluctant attention of the 
 rulers, the elders, and the scribes. ; - When they saw 
 the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they 
 were unlearned aud ignorant men, they marvelled ; and 
 they took knowledge of them that they had been with 
 Jesus." Near and intimate communion witb God. still 
 possesses a transforming efficacy. It makes us drink 
 into the Spirit of Christ, and acquire his temper. •• We 
 all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of 
 the Lord, are changed into the same image, from glory 
 to glory. ' 
 
 If, therefore, you value what is sublime and noble, if 
 you wish to derive any advantage from the ordinances of 
 gmne, or covet what will give dignity to your minds and 
 purity and peace to your hearts, make the prayer of 
 Moses your own; in every religious exercise strive to 
 realize the divine presence, and labour daily, and all day 
 long, to live in the fear and love of God, looking for the 
 blessed hope, and longing for the glorious appearing of 
 the great God your Saviour Jesus Christ. 
 
SERMON IV. 
 
 THE DIGNITY AND USE OF THE MINISTRY. 
 
 1 Cor. iii. 5. 
 
 " Who, then, is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom 
 ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?" 
 
 In religion, the Lord Jesus Christ is all in all ; and the 
 substance and essence of practical Christianity consist in 
 renouncing every thing for his sake, and in making him 
 all our salvation and all our desire. From the moment 
 that the soul receives and rests on him entirely for 
 righteousness and strength, however low the opinion that 
 we entertain of our knowledge, or abilities, or attainments, 
 from that moment we are safe. But if Christ is over- 
 looked or undervalued, though we were possessed of the 
 knowledge of an apostle, the science of a Newton, or the 
 virtue of a heathen sage, we are in a state of condemna- 
 tion and wrath. " There is salvation in no other. He 
 that hath the Son hath life, but lie that hath not the Son 
 hath not life." 
 
 Instead, however, of receiving the Lord Jesus Christ 
 as the only ground of their acceptance before God and 
 
176 
 
 the only source of their happiness and joy. multitudes 
 irive themselves no concern about him or the blessings of 
 his grace. Some will not enter his house, nor approach 
 his presence. And anion? those who occasionally enter 
 his courts, and attend upon the preaching of the word. 
 some pay no regard to the message of reconciliation and 
 mercy, but occupy themselves about the character of the 
 preacher and the manner in which he delivers his tidings. 
 Pestilence is advancing. The sovereign in his great 
 humanity despatches heralds to warn h : s subjects of its 
 approach, and direct them how they may most success- 
 fully escape its attacks. But the people, reckless of hi- 
 counsels, spend their time in criticising the language, 
 appearance, and manners of the royal messengers. An 
 enemy has landed on the coast. Instructions are for- 
 warded to put the people on their defence, and enable 
 them to carry off their families and property to a place 
 of safety. But they nesrlect these admonitions, and 
 display their ingenuity in their remarks upon the style 
 in which the warning was expressed, aud the apparent 
 direction in which the officers were travelling. The 
 deluee was coming. Noah appeared for the last time 
 amongst the antediluvians, to invite those who were 
 willing; to come with him into the refuge which God had 
 provided, and to bid the rest a long farewell. But, 
 instead of accepting his precious invitation, some of 
 them, in the midst of their drinking and dancing, laughed 
 at his agitation and alarm, and others amused themselves 
 at the vehement and impassioned style in which lie spoke. 
 
177 
 
 When Christ ascended on high, he gave some apostles, 
 and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some pas- 
 tors and teachers, for the perfecting of the saints, for the 
 work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of 
 Christ. But instead of improving the ministry for their 
 conversion, edification, and salvation, what is the employ- 
 ment of some of the hearers of the gospel ? They are 
 debating which minister reasons best, which speaks most 
 eloquently, and which shows the greatest learning ; but, 
 in the meantime, they overlook the message, forget the 
 grand design for which preaching was appointed, and by 
 their criminal apathy, allow their souls to remain in a 
 state of moral starvation, and sink into everlasting ruin. 
 
 This was the case with some at Corinth. While the 
 ministers of Christ were labouring to subdue all to the 
 obedience of the faith, that they might be saved in the 
 day of the Lord, some of the empty and idle professors 
 were extolling Paul to the prejudice of Apollos, and 
 others were lauding Apollos to the disadvantage of Paul. 
 
 The text leads us to take notice of the great design of 
 the Christian ministry. This is to lead our hearers to 
 believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 
 Every office has its particular duties. The business 
 of a soldier is to defend his country. The object of a 
 teacher is to instruct his pupils. The function of a king 
 is to secure the safety, and promote the welfare of his 
 subjects. The work of the minister is to lead his people 
 to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
 And can any honour be more exalted, or any office 
 Q 
 
178 
 
 more important and interesting! For who is Christ? on 
 earth he appeared as a mean, helpless, and friendless man. 
 But was this the whole height of his dignity? and did he 
 really possess nothing more august and sacred than what 
 appeared in his outward form? In himself he is higher 
 than the highest. Before him seraphim and cherubim 
 are infinitely lower than the meanest reptile is beneath 
 the most exalted of the celestial hosts. The heavens are 
 high, and creation is wide. But the heavens in their 
 height, and creation in its breadth, can give us no idea of 
 his elevation, nor any representation of his immensity. 
 The universe was formed by his power, and is upheld by 
 his hand. Of him, and through him, and to him are all 
 things. He is in all, and through all, and over all. 
 
 This is the great, the exalted, the glorious Being in 
 whose service we labour, and whose greatness and grace 
 we are commanded to proclaim. There is something 
 sublime and sacred in all the works of God. By rational 
 creatures, the productions of almighty power and infinite 
 wisdom and goodness ought always to be contemplated 
 with feelings bordering upon veneration and devotion. 
 With what profound and adoring reverence, then, should 
 we approach the gospel, and speak of the person and 
 works of Immanuel, who is the brightness of the Father'6 
 glory, and the express image of his person ; who is God 
 over all, and blessed for ever? 
 
 For the honour and privilege of preaching Christ and 
 him crucified, Gabriel might well resign his harp and all 
 the grandeur and bliss of the world of light and love. 
 
179 
 
 For the honour and privilege of preaching the unsearch- 
 able riches of Christ, the angel who shall awake the dead 
 might gladly lay down the trump of God. 
 
 Who, then, among the sons of Adam, is sufficient for 
 these things? Instead of censure, criticism, and harsh- 
 ness, when we appear among you, brethren, we need 
 your sympathy and prayers. We stand up among you 
 to preach Christ, and persuade you to be reconciled to 
 God through him. And if great fear is due unto God 
 in the meeting of his saints ; if solemnity and humility 
 were necessary in approaching the ark of the covenant : 
 if Uzzah was struck dead for his rash and unwarranted 
 touch, with what reverence and awe ought we to proceed 
 when we are dealing with souls, and preaching salvation 
 through the cross of Christ? Will a nurse act with 
 caution when intrusted with the heir of the honours of 
 a long line of royal ancestors, who concentrates the 
 fondest hopes of a mighty nation ? Did Mary respect 
 the sacred flesh of the infant Saviour? did Simeon with 
 rapture throw his aged arms around the blessed bcdy of 
 our Lord? O then, with what profound awe and adoring 
 reverence ought we to preach and hear of Christ and 
 him crucified? 
 
 Every verse of the Bible is sacred, because it testifies 
 of Jesus and leads the soul to a knowledge of him and 
 his undertaking. Every inch of the sanctuary is holy 
 ground, because the Lord is in his temple, and there he 
 displays the riches of his grace and the glories of his 
 person. And every sentence in a gospel sermon is pre- 
 
180 
 
 cious, because it is connected with the person and work 
 of Immanuel, and is fitted or intended to give us more 
 clear and impressive views of his glory and his grace. 
 
 " But when we can neither see Christ's person, nor 
 hear his voice, how is it possible that in listening to the 
 gospel we can be said to hearken to himself? that by 
 receiving his word we can receive him? and that by 
 neglecting the calls and invitations of redeeming love, 
 we reject himself? If the heavens should open, and the 
 Son of Man descend in visible majesty; if at his pre- 
 sence the mountains should smoke, and the strong foun- 
 dations of the earth should tremble; if he should lift up 
 his voice to the skies, and in sounds equal to those which 
 shook the rocks of Sinai,, proclaim his message of recon- 
 ciliation, then we would be awed into obedience and 
 submit with reverence to his authority. If even a 
 messenger were despatched from the regions of bliss, in 
 robes of light and with wings of flame, we would treat him 
 as a representative of Deity, and submissively yield to his 
 mandates. But when we are addressed by men with 
 whose faces we are familiar, and whom we often meet in 
 the ordinary walks of life; by men of like passions, and 
 labouring under similar infirmities as ourselves; how can 
 we regard them as the messengers of Christ and the 
 ambassadors of God ? How can we bow to their words, 
 as to the language of the Lord Jesus Christ? or incur 
 the same responsibility for undervaluing or neglecting 
 their labours, as for undervaluing or neglecting the 
 labours of the Saviour of men?" 
 
181 
 
 Is a proclamation from the sovereign of no authority, 
 unless he announce it in person ? Is an Act of Parlia- 
 ment destitute of force, unless the British senate itinerate 
 the nation to make their statutes known? And unless 
 the Lord Jesus Christ appear in person, has he no means 
 of publishing his pleasure, and binding our consciences 
 to receive and observe his injunctions? 
 
 Did the Hebrews see God, when he said, " They have 
 not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I 
 should not reign over them ?" Did they hear him per- 
 sonally addressing them, when he said, " Oh that my 
 people had hearkened unto me, and Israel had walked in 
 my ways?" Was his arm literally extended, loaded with 
 benefits, when Paul inquired, " Despisest thou the riches 
 of his goodness, and forbearance, and long-suffering ; not 
 knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to 
 repentance?" Was Jehovah speaking to them with his 
 own lips, when he said, " Because I have called, and ye 
 refused ; I have stretched out my hand, and no man 
 regarded: I also will laugh at your calamity; I will 
 mock when your fear cometh?" 
 
 When we stand up among you in the name of the 
 Lord Jesus Christ, and, in obedience to his command 
 direct to you the truths contained in his word, our mes- 
 sage is possessed of the same authority and force as if 
 it were delivered by himself. We may utter it infinitely 
 more feebly and imperfectly; but if it is founded on the 
 pages of inspiration, and coincides with the dictates of 
 the sacred oracles, it is endowed with the same truth 
 «2 
 
182 
 
 and certainty, the same authority and force, as if it 
 were spoken by an apostle, or proclaimed by the Saviour 
 in person. The contents of a letter are not affected by 
 the rank of the bearer. An epistle from an absent friend 
 conveys his mind as completely when put into my hands 
 by a common porter, as if it had been brought by the 
 commander of the British forces. And when a child 
 says, Twice two are four — believe on the Lord Jesus 
 Christ and thou shalt be saved — by the deeds of the law. 
 no flesh shall be justified; these declarations are as true 
 as if they had been pronounced by an archangel. 
 
 And when we address you in obedience to the com- 
 mand of God, and in harmony with his word, our speech 
 and preaching are entitled to the same reverence and 
 regard, the same confidence and trust, as if they were 
 pressed on your attention by God himself. Jesus is gone 
 into heaven. He has sat down on the right hand of 
 the majesty on high, and there he must remain till 
 the restitution of all things. Unless, therefore, faithful 
 ministers, in preaching the everlasting gospel, are holding 
 forth the Lord Jesus Christ in all the glories of his 
 person, and in all the riches of his grace, why does he 
 say to every individual to whom their proclamations are 
 directed, " Look unto me, and be ye saved? Come 
 unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden ? Be- 
 hold/stand at the door and knock; if any man hear 
 my voice, and open the door, 1 will come in to him, and 
 will sup with him, and he with me?" Why are we com- 
 manded to preach the gospel among all nations for the 
 
183 
 
 obedience of faith? For what is the first effect of 
 faith? To receive the Lord Jesus Christ. "He came 
 unto his own, and his own received him not. But as 
 many as received him, to them gave he power to become 
 the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name." 
 
 Unless, in the faithful preaching of the gospel, ministers 
 bring the Lord Jesus near to their people, and hold him 
 up to their faith and affection, how can he be said to be 
 set forth crucified among them ? and how can they who 
 trifle with the gospel, and despise its precious blessings, 
 be said not only to neglect the great salvation, but to 
 crucify him afresh, and tread him under foot? Unless 
 his ministers in the faithful preaching of his word are 
 proclaiming the power, grace, and all-sufficiency of 
 Immanuel, and entitled to the attention and regard of 
 their audieuce, why has he identified our interests with 
 his own, and declared, He that receiveth you receiveth 
 me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent 
 me? Why did he add, Go and teach all nations; and, 
 lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world ? 
 Has the world come to a close? or has Jesus forgotten 
 his word? If the world is still rolling on in its course, 
 and if Jesus is still faithful to his promise, then he is still 
 with his servants; aud it is at the peril of any man either 
 to reject or disregard their testimony. 
 
 How grand and sacred is the office of the holy ministry ! 
 Who is sufficient for these things? Few know the 
 importance or dignity of the gospel ministry. But when 
 once the heart is right, and filled aud warmed with love 
 
184 
 
 to God and compassion for souls, no employment can be 
 considered ae more honourable and useful. Mr. Brown 
 of Haddington had a correct idea of its mighty import- 
 ance, when he declared that he would rather beg his 
 bread through the week to have the privilege of preach- 
 ing Christ on Sabbath, than live in a palace, and be 
 restrained from preaching. Sir Henry Moncreiff's last 
 words to Dr. Thomson were worthy of a veteran in the 
 cause of Christ. " I shall never see my people again. 
 I shall never preach to them more. But if I could, I 
 would gladly creep on my hands and knees round the 
 globe, to preach salvation through the cross." And a 
 greater than either said, " Unto me, who am less than 
 the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should 
 preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of 
 Christ." 
 
 Now, if the preaching of Christ be such an honour, 
 what a privilege is it to hear of him and of his salvation! 
 Did the queen of Sheba travel from the ends of the 
 earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon? With what deep 
 anxiety and exulting joy should we press into the house 
 of God, when a greater than Solomon is there? Rather 
 than be deprived of the privilege of hearing of Christ 
 and the wonders of his love, we should submit to under- 
 take journeys far longer than the weary pilgrimages, and 
 submit to greater expense and toil than the perilous 
 adventures of the Covenanters, to enjoy the vast and 
 invaluable benefit of hearing a single gospel sermon. 
 Were God in his exuberant goodness to restore the 
 
185 
 
 bloom and fertility of Eden, what a rush would there be 
 from all quarters of the earth to taste the sweets an/1 
 inhale the fragrance of that seat of bliss? But what 
 were all the odours and beauty, the riches and luxuri- 
 ance of Eden, compared with the peace and felicity, the 
 dignity and delight of reconciliation to God through the 
 Lord Jesus Christ? What is the world compared with 
 the church? What is paradise when contemplated in 
 connection with heaven? What was Adam, amidst his 
 created majesty and grandeur, when beside the least and 
 lowest in the family of the faithful, amidst the beauties 
 of their renovated nature, and the honours and enjoy- 
 ments of their gracious condition? Adam was of the 
 earth, earthy. Believers are heavenly. Their bodies 
 are temples of the Holy Ghost; and their souls are a 
 habitation of God through the Spirit. 
 
 Now, all the blessedness and glory of redeeming mercy- 
 are brought to us by the gospel. The preacher may be 
 weak and imperfect, but he proclaims glad tidings of 
 unutterable joy. The vessel may be earthen, but the 
 treasure in it is divine. " See that ye refuse not him 
 that speaketh, for if they escaped not who refused him 
 that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if 
 we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven." 
 
 Now, how are Christ and the unsearchable riches of 
 his grace to be attained ? They are to be secured by 
 faith, and by faith only. " He that believetb, and is 
 baptized, shall be saved : but he that believeth not shall 
 be damned." 
 
186 
 
 " But what is faith ? What is meant by believing on 
 the Lord Jesus Christ ? Is this the same thing as to be 
 honest and good, virtuous and sober? with attending 
 ordinances, and doing the best that we can ?" 
 
 To produce faith is the great design of the gospel min- 
 istry. If this has not been accomplished by my labours, 
 your hearing has been in vain, and my preaching has 
 been in vain. Ye are yet in your sins. 
 
 I. In faith there is always a degree of knowledge. 
 
 I do not undertake to fix the quantity of knowledge 
 that must be possessed. But some knowledge is neces- 
 sary : for, though a man may have a fancy about what 
 he does not understand, till once he have some idea »f 
 its nature, believe it he cannot. In religion there are 
 many things far surpassing created comprehension, such 
 as the Trinity and the Divine perfections ; but though we 
 are unable to form a just conception of their essence and 
 manner of subsisting, from the truth and faithfulness of 
 God who has revealed them, we are convinced of their 
 reality. 
 
 Most men take their religion upon trust. They think 
 it enough to believe as their fathers believed, or as their 
 neighbours believe. But though this may be sufficient 
 to form Mahometans and pagans : is this hereditary or 
 national faith enough for a Christian, who must give an 
 account of himself unto God? who is commanded to 
 prove all things, and hold fast that which is good ? and 
 is enjoined to be always ready to give a reason of th« 
 hope that is in him ? 
 
18' 
 
 In religion something more is necessary than mere 
 speculative knowledge. There must be a dedication 
 of the heart to God, and the consecration of all our 
 faculties and powers to his interest and honour. And 
 can any man be willing to make such a costly sacrifice, 
 when he is backward to learn the principles of Christian- 
 ity ? Will a man labour all day in your employment 
 when you cannot prevail on him to open the windows, 
 that he may see ? Will he climb the mountain top, 
 when you cannot persuade him to lift up his eyes towards 
 the palace which blazes on its summit? And will a pro- 
 fessor toil in the painful and fatiguing path which leads 
 to everlasting bliss, when we cannot induce him to study 
 the description of the way, nor the account of the happi- 
 ness and glory which lie beyond it ? And when the means 
 of information are so abundant, when the motives to 
 acquire instruction are so numerous and powerful, the 
 man who remains ignorant of the gospel, and takes his 
 religion on trust, gives sad cause to tremble for his 
 dreadful situation. He shows that he is trifling with his 
 soul, and despising the great salvation. And how can 
 that man be pressing into the kingdom of heaven ? or 
 exerting himself to lay hold on eternal life? 
 
 In a matter of such mighty and matchless importance 
 a real Christian will leave nothing to uncertainty or 
 chance. He must have clear and Scriptural ideas of the 
 way of peace and safety, and he must possess satisfying 
 and conclusive evidence of his own interest in the pro- 
 visions of the gospel. If a man is anxious about the 
 
' 188 
 
 issue of a litigation, or the result of a commercial ad- 
 venture, what deep and intense solicitude must every 
 believer feel for his eternal welfare? It is a wonder 
 that any man can retain his reason, without having as 
 plain and indisputable proof for his everlasting safety as 
 for his existence. 
 
 But whilst the Christian is always a man of knowledge, 
 who takes care to study and understand the truth, we 
 must also observe — 
 
 II. That he believes its reality. 
 
 The fancies of the poet, and the tales and fictions of 
 the novelist, may be all intelligible; and the reader may 
 understand them thoroughly without believing a single 
 sentence of the whole. The doctrines and narratives of 
 Scripture are all true. The Christian not only labours 
 to comprehend them, but he is also persuaded of their 
 absolute certainty and infinite importance. He believes 
 and is sure that the things stated in the Bible are exactly 
 such as they are represented. He was not in paradise. 
 He did not hear the sentence of condemnation. He did 
 not witness the expulsion from Eden, nor see the guard 
 of cherubim and flaming sword planted to keep the way 
 of the tree of life. But he knows that man is a fallen 
 and apostate creature upon the authority of the oracles 
 of God ; and he finds that every sentence of the sacred 
 volume, on our sinfulness and depravity, is corroborated 
 by the testimony of his own reason and conscience. He 
 did not see the Word made flesh. He did not follow 
 the incarnate Redeemer. He did not listen to his public 
 
189 
 
 sermons nor private discourses. He did not accompany 
 him without the gates of Jerusalem, see him affixed to 
 the bloody tree, witness his dying agonies, nor hear the 
 last sentences of compassion and tenderness which he 
 uttered. But on the authority of the God of truth he 
 knows that they are as real as if he had been present and 
 witnessed the whole in person. He knows that he him- 
 self must be born again — that he must believe on Christ 
 — and that on believing, his sins shall be blotted out, and 
 he shall be blessed with the salvation of his soul. The 
 trumpet has not yet sounded. The graves have not yet 
 surrendered their ancient charge. The great white 
 throne has not descended, but he knows, on the word of 
 him that made him, that the dead, small and great, shall 
 stand before God, and every man shall receive according 
 to the deeds done in the body. 
 
 We must add that, along with a belief of the reality of 
 what the Bible contains, the Christian 
 
 3. Receives and rests on Christ alone for the salvation 
 of his soul. 
 
 This is the turning point in religion. Each of us has 
 a soul, and its everlasting condition depends upon the 
 treatment which we give to the adorable Redeemer. If 
 we receive and rest on him for our salvation, we are safe ; 
 but if we reject or neglect him, we are undone for ever. 
 
 Our eternal state will not be decided by our arguing 
 and reasoning about orthodoxy and error; by our de- 
 bates and contentions about doctrines and duties, nor 
 even by our study of the gospel, and our assent to its 
 
 R 
 
190 
 
 reality. If the gospel were merely a system of abstract 
 truths, like the rules in arithmetic, or the propositions in 
 geometry, it would be perfectly sufficient to understand 
 what it contains, and acquiesce in the certainty of what 
 it reveals. If the fall had entailed no other calamity on 
 our race than a little darkness upon our understandings, 
 and error in our opinions, then all that would have been 
 requisite to counteract the evils of our apostaey would 
 have been the removal of our ignorance, and the com- 
 munication of larger and clearer knowledge of things 
 divine. But since the most tremendous calamity which 
 the fall has inflicted is the corruption of our natures, and 
 the depravity of our hearts, since the very strength and 
 essence of our misery consist in the perversity and wick- 
 edness of our affections, what will it avail us to have our 
 judgments corrected, and our understandings enlightened, 
 while the heart remains a mass of corruption and filth, 
 and continues to pour out its pollution and impurity upon 
 the life and conversation ? Can a diseased body be cured 
 by placing it in an apartment possessed of more light ? 
 Can you restore a broken bone to its former strength by 
 the power of music ? And can a sin-sick soul be healed 
 of its spiritual maladies, or a depraved heart delivered 
 from its corruption and hardness, by talking and reason- 
 ing about religion, or assenting to the truths of revela- 
 tion ? 
 
 In order to derive any saving benefit from the gospel, 
 there must be such an assent to the truths which it con- 
 tains as will lead us to prefer Jesus to our chief joy — to 
 
191 
 
 lean on his righteousness — to glory in his atonement — to 
 apply and use, his grace — to delight in him with our 
 whole heart — to court his presence and live to his praise. 
 Unless this is the case, why do the scriptures speak of 
 faith not only as a belief of the truth, but also as a coming 
 to Christ, a fleeing to hiro, a laying hold of him ? These 
 figures imply far more than a mere knowledge of the doc- 
 trines of the gospel, and a conviction of their truth. 
 They intimate that there is something in faith far 
 more deep and penetrating, which goes nearer to the 
 heart, and more deeply and powerfully affects and inter- 
 ests the soul. They necessarily lead us to conclude, 
 that the faith which saves the soul compels us actually to 
 renounce all for the sake of Christ, to rest on him and 
 trust in him for the salvation of our souls. A strong 
 tower cannot shelter any from their foes who merely 
 know its height and strength, but refuse to enter it. The 
 cities of refuge could not protect from the avenger of 
 blood any manslayer, who knew its situation and re- 
 mained without its walls. Unless Noah and his family 
 had gone on board the ark, their knowledge of its capa- 
 city and strength never could have preserved them from 
 the waters of the deluge. And though we should acquire 
 the knowledge of men and of angels, what can this profit 
 us unless we are brought to trust in Christ, to rest on 
 him, and embrace him as our own saviour ? 
 
 The same inference may be drawn from the effects 
 ascribed to faith. It leads to a covenant relation with 
 the Lord. Believers say — Come, and let us join our- 
 
192 
 
 selves unto the Lord in a perpetual covenant. It forms 
 a marriage union betwixt the soul and Clmst. Believers 
 are married to the Lord. The church is his spouse. 
 And to every christian we can say, Thy Maker is thy 
 husband. But can such a relation be formed by the 
 parties merely believing in each other's existence, or pos- 
 sessing an acquaintance with their history and character? 
 Faith changes our nature, takes away the hearts of 
 stone, and makes us to grow up in all things to him who 
 is our head. But can this be accomplished by a bare 
 knowledge of the truth, and a simple assent to the doc- 
 trine of revelation ? To produce these sublime and 
 blessed results, there must not only be a knowledge and 
 belief of the doctrines of Christianity, but also a discovery 
 of their importance and excellence, their grandeur and 
 glory. The soul must embrace the Saviour whom they 
 reveal, rest on him, cleave to him, and make him all its 
 salvation, and all its desire. 
 
SERMON V. 
 
 THE UNSEARCHABLE RICHES OF CHRIST. 
 
 Ephesians iii. 8. 
 
 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace 
 given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearch- 
 able riches of Christ." 
 
 I have been told, that when the father of the late Dr. 
 Erskine remonstrated with him against his devoting 
 himself to the study of divinity, and urged that it would 
 be a disgrace to the family to have the eldest son and 
 heir become a preacher, the youth replied that God had 
 only one Son, and he thought it no disgrace to him to 
 see his Son become a preacher. The Doctor was right 
 in his choice. It is long since he entered the world of 
 glory; and it must be a cause of everlasting rejoicing 
 that he had the honour and privilege of preaching Christ 
 and him crucified. Paul regarded it as his highest 
 distinction to preach among the Gentiles the unsearch- 
 able riches of Christ. To preach the unsearchable 
 riches of Christ is an employment which would confer 
 r2 
 
194 
 
 unbounded honour on the most exalted of the hosts of 
 heaven. How astonishing that on the children of the 
 dost, the c:rrupt descendants of fallen Adam, this grace 
 and dignity should be bestowed to preach the unsearch- 
 able riches of Christ! His riches far surpass all human 
 description and created comprehension. But the little 
 portion of his treasures which our feeble minds can 
 admit, forms a never-failing subject of delightful and 
 elevating contemplation. 
 
 We may consider his riches as either essential or 
 official, as inherent in his own nature, or connected with 
 his mediatorial undertaking. 
 
 Let us consider — 
 
 I. His inherent or essential riches. 
 
 These consist in his divine attributes and excellences. 
 
 Jesus, whom you believers love, and on whom your 
 souls rely for their present peace and everlasting salva- 
 tion, is a wonderful person. He is God as well as man. 
 He was set up from of old, from everlasting. He i> the 
 wonderful counsellor, the micrhty God, the everlasting 
 Father, the prince of peace. He is the brightness of the 
 Father's dory, and the express image of his person. He 
 and bis Father are one. In knowledge, dominiou, power, 
 and blessedness, he possesses an equality with the 
 Father. He is God over all, and blessed for ever. Of 
 him, and through him, and to him are all things. 
 
 It is easy to utter the words, " Jesus is the brightness 
 of the Father's glory and the express image of his 
 
195 
 
 person; he is God over all, and blessed for ever." But 
 is it easy to understand what is included in these mighty 
 and astonishing words? To comprehend the full amount 
 of one attribute in the divine nature will through eternity 
 baffle the most strenuous efforts of the highest angels of 
 heaven. The dust of the earth may be counted, the 
 path of the sun may be measured, and the weight of the 
 world may be told. But canst thou by searching find 
 out God? Canst thou find out the Almighty to per- 
 fection? His wisdom is unerring; his faithfulness un- 
 changing; his goodness unbounded; his power irresisti- 
 ble; his understanding unsearchable; and his treasures 
 immense and inexhaustible. Who laid the foundations 
 of the earth? Who stretched out the heavens as a 
 curtain? W T ho balanced the vast systems dependent on 
 their respective suns? and with such regularity and 
 steadiness conducts their splendid and majestic march 
 along the trackless fields of space? Who has covered 
 them with their mantle of beauty? planted them with 
 the various inhabitants which they contain? and fur- 
 nished all the different creatures with the means of their 
 activity and sources of their delight and enjoyment? 
 
 To these, and to a thousand similar questions, only 
 one answer can be returned. These are the works of the 
 sufferer of Calvary. These are the productions of him 
 who endured the cross. " Of him, and through him, and 
 to him are all things. By him were all things created 
 that are in heaven, and in earth, visible cr invisible, 
 whether they be thrones or dominions, principalities or 
 
196 
 
 powers; all things were created by him and for him; and 
 he is before all things, and by him all things consist." 
 
 It is no easy matter to survey the contents of a single 
 planet. It requires years to sail round the world which 
 we occupy. The life of man is too short to explore the 
 wonders of the hoary deep, and the treasures enclosed 
 within the recesses of the everlasting hills. Science has 
 not yet mastered all the properties of light and air, nor 
 discovered the diversified productions of the vegetable 
 and animal tribes. But what is the earth to the solar 
 system ! and what are the sun and surrounding planets 
 compared with the universe! 
 
 But remember that the capacities of Emmanuel will 
 far surpass the works of his hands. All that the eye sees 
 — all that the sky embraces — heaven with all its glory, 
 and the wide universe with all its load of worlds ; so far 
 from being the measure of his strength, are a mere speci- 
 men of his power, and when compared with the full 
 amount of his might, are no more than a drop in the 
 ocean, or a grain of dust to the globe. I know not what 
 Omnipotence means; but I know that an Almighty Being 
 can as easily form a system, and plant a sun in its centre, 
 as create a blade of grass, or line with down au insect's 
 wing. In a moment and with ease Jesus could enlarge 
 the bounds of the creation, or supersede it by another 
 universe still more stupendous and magnificent. Every 
 movement of his will carries along with it all the ener- 
 gies of Deity, and can plant in the depths of immensity 
 suns and systems more vast and mighty than any with 
 
197 
 
 which he has already encompassed his throne. For he 
 can do all things, neither is there any thing too hard for 
 him. 
 
 So much for the inherent riches of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ. These are essential to his nature, and inseparable 
 from his existence. They are unchangeable and eternal. 
 They are incapable of increase or diminution. Though 
 man had never fallen — though neither sun, moon, nor 
 stars had been brought into being — though the courts of 
 heaven never had been trodden by an angel of light ; 
 Jesus would have possessed all these riches in the whole 
 of their ineffable infinite amplitude. Creation has added 
 nothing to their amount. Sin can neither destroy nor 
 impair their immense and inconceivable plenitude: time 
 cannot augment them : eternity cannot diminish them. 
 While he exists, he is essentially, immutably the same. 
 He fills space ; inhabits eternity ; and is from everlasting 
 to everlasting God. 
 
 These riches are the source of angelic joy, the delight 
 of the holy part of creation, and the inexhaustible foun- 
 tain of his own infiuite and unchanging blessedness and 
 glory. And it is from them, as their origin and spring, 
 that all those blessings flow which fill and feast the hearts 
 of believers on earth, and spread such a fulness of joy 
 and peace around their pure and perfect state in heaven. 
 
 There is another view of the subject equally sublime 
 and interesting, which we are honoured to take. This is 
 
 II. His official or mediatorial riches. 
 
 It is in these that we are most deeply interested. He is 
 
198 
 
 essential riches, though absolutely necessary to his medi- 
 atorial riches, are utterly incommunicable. They are 
 inherent in his own nature, and invariably the same. But 
 his mediatorial riches he possesses for the benefit of his 
 people ; and from them he continues to pour out upon 
 the subjects of saving mercy according to the extent of 
 their necessities, and according to what he knows will be 
 most conducive to their present and eternal welfare. 
 
 Because his office of Mediator is new, some imagine 
 that his personal riches are inherent in him as God, and 
 his mediatorial riches are essential to him as man. They 
 restrict his personal riches to his divine, and his official 
 riches to his human nature. But though there is a wide 
 difference betwixt his essential and mediatorial riches, 
 since the one was possessed from everlasting, and exer- 
 cised towards pure and holy beings; and the other 
 only recently displayed and manifested towards fallen and 
 guilty creatures : the divine and human natures in all their 
 fulness and perfection were equally necessary to fit him 
 for his mediatorial work, and when once united, become 
 alike inseparable from his person. 
 
 The interests which, as Mediator, he was required to 
 manage, are so vast, complicated, and difficult, that noth- 
 ing less than an infinite and almighty being is able to sus- 
 tain their weight, and conduct them with honour and 
 success. 
 
 The objects of his redeeming love form a multitude 
 which no man can number. Each of us is labouring 
 
199 
 
 under multiplied and extensive wants. Considered in it- 
 self the soul possesses large and vigorous powers ; for it 
 was originally formed in the image of its Maker, and de- 
 mands the noblest objects to employ its faculties, and the 
 most large and copious resources to fill and satisfy its 
 capacities and desires. As sinners we are oppressed with 
 more numerous and urgent wants. We are guilty, and 
 need pardon; polluted, and require cleansing; depraved, 
 and in want of the renovation of our natures ; ignorant, 
 and require the illumination of the Holy Ghost to re- 
 move our darkness, and render us light in the Lord: 
 weak, and need Almighty strength to sustain us under 
 our trials, and preserve us safe amidst our foes. We are 
 indigent, and stores of inexhaustible grace are necessary 
 to dignify our characters with heavenly principles and 
 enrich our souls with spiritual blessings. As citizens of 
 Zion, and members of the household of faith, our ele- 
 vated rank and benevolent dispositions multiply and 
 enlarge our wants by leading us to take a more deep and 
 lively interest in the worth and welfare of all who live, 
 and to labour more actively and earnestly for the ad- 
 vancement of the cause of godliness and the establish- 
 ment of the kingdom of righteousness and peace over 
 all the earth. 
 
 Now, who but a divine person is sufficient for these 
 things? When the people for whom he interposed 
 constitute a multitude which no man can number, and 
 each is burdened with an infinite load of guilt and 
 ungodliness, who, without the divinity dwelling within 
 
200 
 
 him, could give to his single sacrifice a boundless value, 
 and by one offering for ever perfect them that are sancti- 
 fied? When all are dead in trespasses aud sins, and the 
 whole soul is rankling and festering under the virulence 
 of depravity and vice, who, without divine strength, is 
 able to renew every believer in the spirit of his mind, to 
 write the law of God upon his heart, and make him meet 
 for the inheritance of the saints in light? When their 
 capacities are so large, their exigencies so numerous, and 
 such multitudes of poor indigent petitioners are perpetu- 
 ally besieging the throne of mercy, without omniscience 
 how could he hear every prayer, and redress every 
 injury; and without the command of creation, and the 
 disposal of the resources of Deity, how could he supply 
 every want, and make the whole ransomed church 
 exceedingly and eternally glad in the riches of his grace 
 and the overflowings of his munificence? When his 
 people are so widely scattered over the world, and placed 
 in such very different circumstances, unless he is omni- 
 present, how could he encamp round every saint, witness 
 all his wrongs, and encompass him with the shield of his 
 protection and the strength of his arm? And unless his 
 hand grasps the elements of nature and wields the 
 energies of omnipotence, how could he make every thing 
 work together for their good, defend them from every 
 foe, render them more than conquerors, convert the 
 Jews, bring in the fulness of the Gentiles, fill the earth 
 with his glory, raise the dead, and introduce the ran- 
 somed into an eternity of bliss and joy in heaven? 
 
201 
 
 Who, I ask, is sufficient for these things? If you 
 overburden the carriage, it breaks down. If you over- 
 load the vessel, it sinks. If you exact from a man more 
 service than he can render, his strength fails and your 
 expectations are frustrated. And if a creature had been 
 employed to perform the work of Deity, perplexed, 
 baffled, embarrassed, and overcome by the mighty and 
 unmanageable task, he would have sunk beneath the vast 
 commission, and wrecked the whole stupendous and 
 marvellous concerns intrusted to his charge. 
 
 But look ac the Lamb in the midst of the throne, and 
 say how richly, how thoroughly he was accomplished for 
 the matchless but perilous undertaking! Dangers the 
 most formidable, and difficulties the most insurmountable, 
 frowned around his path. The claims of a broken law, 
 the terrors of offended justice, and the wrath of an 
 insulted God, in dreadful array gathered about his 
 career. But grasping in his hands the energies of om- 
 nipotence, and furnished with all the resources of Deity, 
 he resolutely encountered and nobly triumphed over the 
 fiercest and most appalling of them all. Whatever may 
 be the want, the weakness, the peril, or trouble by which 
 we are harassed and annoyed, from this he can easily 
 relieve us. And whatever may be the benefit or blessing, 
 the honour or privilege, which we can desire or enjoy, 
 the immense and ineffable extent of his mediatorial riches 
 enables him instantly and fully to impart. 
 
 Are we deeply in debt to the law, and justly exposed 
 
202 
 
 to all the horrors of everlasting condemnation ? Here is 
 an inexhaustible fund of merit to make reconciliation for 
 the transgressors, and justify the ungodly. God hath 
 made him, who knew no sin, to be sin for us, that we 
 might be made the righteousness of God in him. As 
 God, Jesus was above the law, and had no obligations 
 of his own to fulfil. As man, he placed himself under 
 the law, and rendered himself capable of obeying and 
 suffering. As God and man, the indwelling divinity 
 gave to his temporary obedience and sufferings an infinite 
 value, so that he has magnified the law, and made it 
 honourable. He has finished transgression, and made an 
 end of sin, brought in everlasting righteousness, and for 
 ever perfected them that are sanctified. Who shall lay 
 any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that 
 justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? 
 
 Are we criminal and guilty ? He possesses unsearch- 
 able riches of grace, to blot out the hand-writing that is 
 against us, and bestow free forgiveness upon the most 
 vile and unworthy. He is exalted a prince and a Saviour, 
 to give repentance and the remission of sins. He is able 
 to save to the utmost, and his blood cleanseth from all 
 sin. 
 
 Are we dead in trespasses and sins ? He is able to 
 communicate spiritual life and vigour to the most dis- 
 eased and dead in all the ranks of vice and rebellion. As 
 the Father raiseth up the dead aud quickeneth them, 
 even so the Son quickeneth whom he will. He has 
 
203 
 
 power over all flesh, to give eternal life to as many as the 
 Father hath given him. 
 
 Are we filthy and polluted ? Here are unsearchable 
 treasures of grace and virtue to purify the defiled, and 
 sanctify the unholy. He can sanctify us wholly, and 
 preserve our whole soul, body, and spirit faultless to his 
 kingdom and glory. For if the blood of bulls and of 
 goats, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling the unclean, 
 sanctify to the purifying of the flesh ; how much more 
 shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal spirit 
 offered himself without spot to God, purge your con- 
 sciences from dead works to serve the living God ? 
 
 Are we foolish and deceived ? He can dissipate our 
 darkness and remove our ignorance. In him is life, and 
 the life is the light of men. He can change our darkness 
 into day, and make us light in the Lord. In him are 
 hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. His 
 children are all taught of him ; and he gives them an 
 unction from the Holy One, and they know all things. 
 
 Are we feeble and helpless ? — encompassed with many 
 infirmities, and exposed to many resolute and inveterate 
 foes ? Here are unfailing supplies of strength to sup- 
 port us in weakness, and defend us against every ad- 
 versary and enemy. He has all power in heaven and in 
 earth ; and is able to subdue even all things to himself. 
 He can make his grace sufficient for us, and perfect his 
 strength in our weakness. Fear not, thou worm Jacob, 
 and ye men of Israel ; I will help thee, saith the Lord, 
 
204 
 
 and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. Behold, I 
 will make thee a new sharp thrashing instrument having 
 teeth : thou shalt thrash the mountains and beat them 
 small, and shalt make the hills a9 chaff. 
 
 Are we poor and indigent, and labouring under multi- 
 plied and painful wants ? Here are riches sufficient to 
 replenish the universe, and leave an infinite reversion be- 
 hind. The stores of nature, the bounties of providence, 
 the riches of redeeming mercy, and the treasures of eter- 
 nal glory are all in his hand, and freely bestowed on every 
 one that asks them. With the wealth of ten thousand 
 worlds perpetually circulating round his throne, and all 
 the fulness of the godhead at his disposal, what good thing 
 can he withhold from them that love him ? Ask, and ye 
 shall receive; seek, and ye shall find. 
 
 Are you solicitous for the success of religion, and the 
 prevalence of peace and piety over all the earth? Here 
 are unsearchable riches of enlightening, converting, and 
 saving influences. He has already sprinkled many 
 nations, and brought multitudes to the obedience of the 
 faith. Still the residue of the Spirit is with him, and he 
 will never suspend the exercise of his transforming soul- 
 subduing power, till all the ends of the earth see his 
 salvation, and the whole world be filled with his glory. 
 
 Are we agitated and alarmed by the troubles of life, 
 and afraid of death and judgment? Here is an inex- 
 haustible fund of encouragement and consolation. Jesus 
 Christ is Lord of all, and under his almighty and 
 
205 
 
 universal reign every incident shall be made subservient 
 to the benefit of his people; and events the most gloomy 
 and distressing shall work together for your good. He 
 is mighty, and will plead your cause. He will contend 
 with those who contend with you ; and all that are 
 incensed against you shall be destroyed. He is the 
 resurrection and the life. He has the keys of hell and 
 of death. He will ransom you from death, and redeem 
 you from the power of the grave. Where he is, there 
 shall you also be. He will show you the path of life : 
 in his presence is fulness of joy: at his right hand are 
 pleasures for evermore. " He that overcometh shall 
 inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall 
 be my son." 
 
 Happy is the people that is in such a case ; yea, happy 
 is that people whose God is the Lord. 
 
 Since to the vilest and most unworthy of all the 
 childreu of Adam we are commanded to proclaim the 
 gospel, and preach the unsearchable riches of Christ, if 
 any live in indigence, and plunge into the horrors of a 
 wretched and ruined eternity, it is the effect of their 
 own infatuation, madness, and depravity. Their des- 
 truction is of themselves. 
 
 Let as many as know the grace of Christ, learn to 
 live upon his fulness. Improve your invaluable, your 
 unspeakable privileges. You are not straitened in him. 
 He gives you freely, and upbraids not ; convert your 
 matchless advantages into your present benefit ; gather 
 s2 
 
206 
 
 around you more and more of his precious treasures, and 
 live upon these inexhaustible supplies till you see him 
 as he is, and be made exceedingly and eternally glad in 
 the light of his countenance, and in the full possession 
 of his presence and love. 
 
SERMON VI. 
 
 THE FORGIVENESS OF INJURIES. 
 
 Matt. v. 44. 
 
 " Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to 
 them that hate you, and pray for them that despitefully use you, 
 and persecute you." 
 
 Many admire valour and prowess. They would have 
 travelled far to have witnessed the conflict betwixt David 
 and Goliath. They would have rejoiced if they could 
 have met in single combat a murderous Hazael or blas- 
 pheming Rabshakeh, and laid breathless at their feet 
 these haughty ruffians and wholesale oppressors of their 
 race. 
 
 Christianity trains its subjects to harder contests. It 
 summons us to a field where more momentous interests 
 are at stake than the independence of nations, and where 
 more blissful victories are gained, and laurels more un- 
 withering are won than kings and conquerors can gather 
 from martial strife. It calls us to subdue our pride and 
 passions ; to suppress our resentment and wrath ; to 
 
208 
 
 maintain unshaken serenity in our own breasts, and con- 
 vert our foes into friends. It requires us to love our 
 enemies ; to bless them that curse us ; to do good to 
 them that hate us ; to pray for them that despitefully use 
 and persecute us ; not to be overcome of evil, but to 
 overcome evil with good. 
 
 In this wicked world trials of our temper are perpetu- 
 ally occurring. Enemies arise in every quarter, and in- 
 juries are heaped on the heads of the most innocent and 
 worthy. Through the stupidity of the ignorant our best 
 deeds are misunderstood ; and, though undesignedly, 
 are most grossly and vexatiously distorted. Through the 
 bitterness and insolence of rivals and opponents, our 
 generous designs are decried or vilified, and our slight 
 defects or failings deliberately and most unmercifully 
 magnified. And, through the rancour and malignity of 
 the malicious and envious, our purest intentions and 
 most benevolent labours are misrepresented and per- 
 verted ; and clothed in such a dress as must, in circles 
 where our real character is unknown, render us the objects 
 of aversion and horror. It is long since enmity was 
 placed betwixt the seed of the woman and the seed of 
 the serpent; but though ages have elapsed since the war- 
 fare commenced, the fury of hostilities has not declined. 
 A deeper shade of hatred settles on the brow, and a spirit 
 of more stern and stubborn ferocity collects around the 
 heart of the combatants on Satan's side, in proportion as 
 time flows past, and they find that their fortifications are 
 shaking and tumbling beneath them. As it was in the 
 
209 
 
 beginning, so it is now ; he that is born after the flesh 
 persecuteth him that is bom after the spirit. All who 
 will live godly in Christ Jesus must suffer persecution ; 
 and in our day, as well as in the time of the apostles, it 
 is only through much tribulation that we can enter the 
 kingdom. 
 
 When suffering from calumny and slander, from injus- 
 tice and violence, we naturally feel indignant ; and in the 
 first impulse of irritated and wounded feeling, we would 
 gladly retaliate our wrongs upon the head of their author, 
 and subject him to a double measure of the evil which 
 he has inflicted. Accordingly, among irreligious men, 
 one insult or injury is no sooner committed, than it is re- 
 paid by another ; and thus, when once discord and con- 
 tention arise they become interminable, and the longer 
 that they last, they are prosecuted with the greater asperity 
 and virulence. 
 
 It is against this base and odious spirit of resentment 
 and revenge, of malignity and implacability, which has 
 laid many a heart in desolation and wretchedness, and 
 created such awful mischief and misery amongst the in- 
 dividuals and families of our race, that our text and some 
 of the strongest declarations of the sacred volume are 
 directed. Whilst the Scriptures allow and command us 
 by every mild and honourable measure to assert our per- 
 sonal rights and defend our civil and religious privileges, 
 they enjoin us to do all with meekness and gentleness. 
 They require us to preserve the mastery over our own 
 spirits, and to seek the improvement and welfare of our 
 
210 
 
 adversary and enemy. Tbey peremptorily prohibit every 
 degree of resentment and revenge, and enjoin us, under 
 the most annoying and harassing provocation that we 
 can encounter, to possess our souls in patience, and to 
 recompense to no man evil for evil. 
 
 It is against the monstrous and horrid sin of implaca- 
 bility and revenge that I now address you. Against this 
 I must entreat you to carry on the most determined and 
 unyielding hostility. If baffled and overcome, the con- 
 sequences will be most shameful and disastrous. But if 
 successful, the results will be most delightful and 
 honourable. It will diffuse a blessed satisfaction through 
 your rnind, and cover your character with a majesty and 
 lustre which will acquire fresh beauty and grandeur when 
 the fairest on earth shall vanish, and the firmest in 
 creation shall melt away. 
 
 Defeat is most shameful and disastrous. 
 Nothing is more troublesome and pitiable than the 
 babbling and blundering imbecility of ignorance and 
 stupidity, which, incapable of understanding the nature 
 or perceiving the value of our most enlightened senti- 
 ments and noblest performances, pours a mutilated 
 and false report of our conduct into the malignant ear 
 of prejudice and enmity. And nothing is more odious 
 and irksome than the studied perversions and foul in- 
 ventions of jealousy and hatred, and the wanton aggres- 
 sions and endless annoyances of injustice and violence. 
 The men who labour under the power of these base 
 
211 
 
 principles, are among the most infamous and detestable, 
 the most vile and mischievous of our race. 
 
 Now, by retaliating the injuries which you receive, can 
 you secure the benefit of your opponent, add to your in- 
 tellectual dignity, or recommend your principles to the 
 world at large ? By rendering evil for evil, and railing 
 for railing ; by bursting out in a tempest of indignation 
 against the man who has stunned you with a storm of 
 passion : by wreaking on the head of the contentious, and 
 resentful the endless and teasing molestations with which 
 they have been striving to harass and torment you ; by 
 giving place to emotions of dislike or of revenge, you 
 descend from the high and lovely elevation to which 
 the faith and hope of the gospel had raised you, to the 
 low and filthy level which your opponents occupy; you 
 identify yourselves with them in the meanest and basest 
 of their spirit, and in the most revolting and criminal 
 part of their conduct. 
 
 And is this wise or safe ? If another man make him- 
 self ridiculous by floundering in the mire, will you improve 
 your appearance by plunging into the same puddle ? If 
 our adversary or enemy render himself obnoxious to 
 God, and disgusting to man, by violating the laws of 
 justice and kindness, can we act a right and a rational 
 part by breaking through, in our turn, the restraints of 
 reason and religion, and embodying in our own persons 
 the worst passions and the vilest tempers that pollute and 
 degrade his character ? When a man madly lays waste 
 his fields, will it either demonstrate our sanity, or aug- 
 
212 
 
 ment our resources, to desolate the richest and most 
 lovely of our possessions? And when another, by the 
 indulgence of irritable or vindictive feelings, is reducing 
 his soul to a moral waste, will it adorn or elevate our 
 condition to allow the same fatal devastation to pass over 
 the garden of our graces ? Because our enemy has made 
 himself a child of the devil, and an abhorrence to all 
 flesh, are we, by imitating his example, to match him in 
 disgrace and misery, and rank ourselves with the meanest 
 that this earth possesses, and the basest that the creation 
 contains ? 
 
 However troublesome and teazing, irksome and odious 
 injuries may be, the injurious is a thousand times more 
 pitiable and wretched than the injured. 
 
 The injured can derive the most solid and lasting ad- 
 vantages from the injustice and violence of his adversary. 
 When he meekly and patiently sustains his trials — when 
 he permits none of the offensive and galling treatment 
 which he encounters to disturb the serenity of his mind, 
 or interrupt the mild and steady career of his piety and 
 beneficence — when he cordially forgives his enemies, and 
 in the warmth of affectionate compassion, and the impor- 
 tunity of fervent prayer, implores their reconciliation to 
 God, and the descent of the Divine blessing on their 
 head ; and when, rising superior to the provocation and 
 abuse which he experiences, he converts 'all the hatred 
 and outrage of his foes into an occasion for still greater 
 activity and zeal in the cause of religion and humanity? 
 and still more strenuous and persevering efforts for the 
 
213 
 
 present and eternal welfare of those who assault and 
 annoy him, this man is associated with the family of 
 Jesus. He draws around him the esteem and admiration 
 of the wise and the good. He brings down the protec- 
 tion and blessing of Him, who is the shield of the help- 
 less, and the refuge of the oppressed. He shows that he 
 is allied to Him, who, when reviled, reviled not again, 
 and when he suffered, threatened not. He serves him- 
 self heir to all the blessings pronounced on the peace- 
 makers, on them who are persecuted for righteousness, 
 and who have the privilege not only of believing on the 
 name of Christ, but also of suffering for his sake. And 
 when the heavens and the earth have passed away, he 
 shall raise his head high among them who are more than 
 conquerors, and who, instead of being overcome of evil, 
 overcome evil with good. 
 
 But where do the haughty and overbearing, the proud 
 and resentful take their station ? They exclude them- 
 selves from the society and blessedness of the faithful and 
 loyal subjects of the Most High. They display a temper 
 the reverse of his who prayed for his murderers, and died 
 for the redemption of his enemies. They prove that they 
 are of their father the devil, who was a murderer from 
 the beginning, and who still delights in the promotion of 
 rancour and discord, of violence and bloodshed. And by 
 ranging themselves in direct opposition to Him who does 
 good to the evil and unthankful, and who commands us 
 to love our neighbour as ourselves, they place themselves 
 under the ban of heaven, and expose themselves to all 
 
 T 
 
214 
 
 the horrors of him who shall have judgment without 
 mercy, because he showed no mercy. 
 
 If, therefore, the feverish patient be a greater object of 
 pity than his wearied and worn-out nurse, and the man in 
 the height of delirium be a greater sufferer than his fatigued 
 and exhausted keeper, how far does the wretchedness of 
 the proud and peevish, the irascible and revengeful, sur- 
 pass that of the victims of his grossest rudeness and most 
 fell and rancorous ferocity ? From him who bears them 
 with meekness and resignation they will soon pass away. 
 They are included in the comprehensive list of the " all 
 things" which work together for good to them that love 
 God. They will speedily yield the peaceable fruits of 
 righteousness, and ere long be succeeded by an eternity 
 of joy. But what are the fruits which pride and insolence, 
 wrath and malevolence yield ? When will these foul and 
 pernicious principles bring to their possessor any advan- 
 tage or honour? They embitter his peace, and destroy 
 his happiness. If he possessed any better or nobler prin- 
 ciples, they are gradually weakened and undermined till 
 they are utterly annihilated. Like the judgment-stricken 
 plains where the devoted cities stood, he is abandoned to 
 utter barrenness. He frustrates the high and beneficent 
 purpose of his creation. He proves a disgrace to hu- 
 manity, and a pest to society. And by disturbing the 
 peace, and trampling on the rights of those whom he was 
 bound to love and cherish, he raises against himself the 
 indignation of the x\lmighty, and accumulates for himself 
 
215 
 
 a more dreadful amount of vengeance in the day of 
 righteous retribution. 
 
 Give his most furious and inexorable foe the power to 
 concentrate into one all that is awful and horrid in the 
 state of a ruined immortal, his adversary and enemy 
 could not heap on his head a more tremendous 
 doom than just to leave him to the unbridled power of 
 those irascible emotions which he spontaneously cherishes, 
 and the natural tendency of those vindictive passions 
 which he so dearly loves. This would be to deliver him 
 over to a reprobate mind. This would be to fix him in 
 the ranks of the outlaws from the protection of the 
 Eternal, and leave him to fill up the cup of his iniquity 
 till wrath come upon him to the utmost. 
 
 Now, have you escaped this most awful and deplorable 
 fate? Have you been reconciled unto God by the 
 death of his Son? Are you joined to the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, baptized with the Holy Ghost, and made heirs 
 of the kingdom of heaven ? And shall you regret that 
 your enemy is screened from the chastisement of your 
 little arm? and that by the laws of our holy religion, 
 you are prohibited from avenging yourselves? When 
 your foe is in the fangs of a gigantic serpent, are you to 
 fret that you cannot reach him to augment his pain by 
 your petty and malicious scratches? When he is en- 
 veloped in the flames of a volcano, are you to repine that 
 you cannot approach him to increase his sufferings by 
 the application of your little torch or taper? And 
 when your adversaries are writhing in the grasp of the 
 
216 
 
 old serpent, and by their lawless tempers and unchristian 
 deeds have kindled around them the flames of divine 
 indignation, are you to grieve that you are interdicted 
 from annoying them with your puny sting? and de- 
 barred from attempting to harass them with the tiny 
 fires of your displeasure or revenge? 
 
 Instead of grieving that you are discharged from 
 treading this destructive ground, and teazing your 
 miserable tormentor in such dangerous circumstances, 
 with your whole heart and soul bless the God of grace, 
 who in rich, in infinite mercy, has delivered you from 
 such an overwhelming doom. Pity, pity your enemy. 
 Labour, strive, and pray for his recovery. Keep not 
 silence, and give the Lord no rest, till he extend that 
 mercy to him which he has so unexpectedly vouchsafed 
 to you. 
 
 Do you delight to impart instruction to the ignorant? 
 Would you rejoice to free the sick from their maladies, 
 and relieve the insane from their sufferings? And when 
 you see a fellow immortal, by the strength and virulence 
 of his bad tempers and furious passions, provoking the 
 judgments of the Almighty, and entailing on himself 
 all the horrors of never-ending wo, will you refuse to 
 employ any measures which the God of love has put 
 in your power to rouse him to a sense of his perilous 
 situation, and rescue him from his awful fate? If there 
 be any consolation in Christ, if any bowels and mercies, 
 hasten to his aid; arrest him in his flight from God and 
 uoodness. and never abandon your benevolent exertions 
 
217 
 
 till you Slave reached his heart, and subdued him to the 
 obedience of the faith. He that winneth souls is wise. 
 No matter whose soul is in jeopardy. Whether it be 
 that of a friend or of a foe, remember that he that 
 converteth a sinner from the error of his ways shall 
 save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of 
 sins. The irritation or antipathy of one Hottentot or 
 Malay against another, does not exempt you from seek- 
 ing the salvation of both. And because you are the 
 object of the spite and enmity of a neighbour, does that 
 cancel the obligation of the universal law of love, or 
 release you from the necessity of exerting every effort to 
 ensure his temporal and eternal welfare? 
 
 But while he is intrenched in pride and arrogance, 
 steeled and hardened against you by prejudice and 
 malice, how are you to reach his heart? to dislodge him 
 from his fastnesses, and gain him over to the love and 
 obedience of the gospel? Can this be accomplished by 
 retorting on him the weapons which he throws? and 
 striving to equal or surpass him in the conflict of passion 
 and in the acrimony of invective and abuse? There are 
 some substances, which instead of giving way to the 
 hammer, become more compact and elastic by every 
 succeeding stroke. But the most hard and refractory 
 will generally yield, if subjected to the fire. And there 
 are some minds which are roused into more stern and 
 sturdy defiance, and lashed into more reckless and un- 
 governable fury by every appearance of resistance. But 
 when other measures have failed, some of the most 
 t2 
 
218 
 
 stubborn and untraceable hearts bave been subdued and 
 softened by the exercise of love, by a meek and patient 
 endurance of evil, by a strength of mind which no 
 violence can shake, a gentleness which no outrage can 
 ruffle, a serenity which no annoyance can disturb, a 
 magnanimity which bears all, forgives all, forgets all, and 
 a generosity which, in proportion as it is repelled and 
 scorned, glows with more melting tenderness, and follows 
 its tormentor with more ardent and expansive kindness. 
 
 By healing the ear of Malchus, Jesus must have pro- 
 duced a far more reverential and kindly impression on 
 his mind than if he had cut off his other ear, or laid his 
 brother officers prostrate in the dust. The multiplied 
 proofs which David had given of his loyalty and courage, 
 were unable to secure him against the jealousy and 
 enmity of Saul. Though he should have doubled his 
 services, and outdone all his former deeds of intrepidity 
 and patriotism, he could not have affected the spirit nor 
 moderated the resentment of his suspicious and vindictive 
 sovereign. But when, notwithstanding his repeated 
 attempts to murder the son of Jesse, and all the perfidy 
 and cruelty which he had shown him, Saul found that 
 when David had him completely in his power, instead of 
 exacting a just retribution for the wrongs which he had 
 sustained, he had allowed him to go away in safety ; the 
 heart of the malignant monarch for once relented, and 
 he addressed his magnanimous victim in the accents of 
 affection and peace. 
 
 It is true that this compunction was only temporary. 
 
219 
 
 But then, nothing else than this unexpected and uncon- 
 querable benignity could have produced even a moment- 
 ary visitation of remorse. And your best and most 
 strenuous exertions may sometimes prove abortive, yet 
 if within the magazine of grace, there is one weapon of 
 more resistless and soul- subduing force than another, it 
 is this sublime and generous spirit of patient, inexhaus- 
 tible, unconquerable forbearance, forgiveness, and be- 
 neficence. It is well worth while to try its energy upon 
 your most fierce and inexorable foe. If you fail, you 
 have the approbation of your conscience and the blessing 
 of your God. But if you succeed, what a delightful and 
 noble victory you achieve! You not only rescue a 
 sinner from destruction, but secure the salvation of one 
 whose case is peculiarly desperate, and whose perdition 
 would have been doubly severe by his being twofold 
 more than others the child of Satan. 
 
 To all that has been stated, will any reply, — ? 
 
 1. " The malice of my enemy is groundless. I have 
 never offended him by word nor deed. I have fore- 
 borne the exercise of my rights. I have studiously 
 shunned every cause of altercation, and carefully laboured 
 to impress him with a favourable opinion of my prin- 
 ciples and conduct. But all in vain. My coolness is 
 ascribed to my consciousness of injustice. My patience 
 and gentleness are repaid with more stern and unmea- 
 sured invective and virulence. Every fresh concession 
 and repeated act of forbearance is followed by some new 
 
220 
 
 encroachment, aud some more violent and intolerable 
 aggression." 
 
 Be thankful that you did not provoke hostilities, nor 
 deserve his hatred. But because his malice is as wanton 
 as it is furious, is that any reason why you should in- 
 dulge in wrath, and by yielding to resentment become a 
 partaker of his crime? Will you say that the magnitude 
 of his guilt is a cause for diminishing your pity? or that 
 the greatness of his danger is a ground for relaxing your 
 endeavours for his deliverance? Must we strive to 
 preserve the man from drowning who has dropped into 
 a pond, but give ourselves no concern about his de- 
 liverance if he has fallen into the ocean? Does a 
 physician prescribe for none but those whom he has pre- 
 viously injured, or who have lost their health in the service 
 of religion and humanity? Even to the profligate, and to 
 those who are under sentence of condemnation for the 
 very crimes which have brought on their sickness, he is 
 hound to impart his counsel and his aid. And because 
 this most formidable moral malady has been viciously 
 contracted, are you to withhold the means necessary for 
 its removal? or because the danger is extreme, are you 
 to refuse the administration of those antidotes which are 
 most likely to counteract its violence? 
 
 2. " My enemy is absolutely unreasonable. His hos- 
 tility is not only unprovoked, but his insolence and ran- 
 cour are unbounded. I have borne with him to the 
 utmost range of human endurance. I have employed 
 
22.1 
 
 ever^ means which Jove and kindness can invent to dis- 
 arm his rage, and conciliate his favour or forbearance. 
 But all in vain. The more I multiply my efforts to 
 mitigate his fury, and procure his good will, his ferocity 
 seems to increase, and his hatred to acquire a deeper and 
 more determined malignity." 
 
 This is exactly such a case as calls for the most extra- 
 ordinary and strenuous exertions. He is placed in a 
 situation pre-eminently perilous, and without uncommon 
 measures must be inevitably undone, and sink under a 
 condemnation signally severe. The more inveterate the 
 disease, the patient has the greater need of the physician, 
 and his cure will redound the more to his benefactor's 
 skill. The more fierce and outrageous the animosity of 
 your enemy, his guilt and danger are the greater, and you 
 are the more bound to ply every method to accomplish 
 his rescue. To cure a slight disorder, or conquer a 
 feeble foe, is no great cause of exultation. But to remove 
 an obstinate and alarming distemper, or, for a youth like 
 David to prevail against the experienced and gigantic 
 champion of Gath ; this displays uncommon sagacity and 
 prowess, and is a just ground of rejoicing. To pass over 
 a trivial offence, and retain good will to a moderate foe. 
 are not any very extraordinary matters. But to overlook 
 gross and wanton injuries, to retain compassion and affec- 
 tion for a haughty and insulting adversary, and requite 
 his virulence and abuse with fervent prayer and substan- 
 tial beneficence : this is the fruit only of the gospel of 
 
222 
 
 peace, and a heroism which nothing but Christian prin- 
 ciple can inspire. 
 
 3. " My adversary is not only an enemy to me, but also 
 a foe to God and goodness. He is perpetually employed 
 in deeds of outrage and darkness. He is almost in all 
 evil. He tramples reason and religion under foot. He 
 is a pest to society, and a disgrace to humanity." 
 
 Such a character is bad indeed ; but if God bears with 
 him, you certainly may endure him. The more criminal 
 and abandoned he is, his situation is the more alarm- 
 ing, and he has the greater need of your pity, your 
 beneficence, and prayers. The person in the deepest 
 indigence has the most urgent need of charity ; and the 
 man who is suffering the severest pain has the most 
 urgent need of relief. And of all in a state of guilt and 
 condemnation, those who are in the most dreadful and 
 desperate situation have the most powerful claims upon 
 your sympathy and care. And as this undoubtedly is 
 the case with a wicked and malicious enemy, he is ex- 
 actly the man for whose conversion and salvation you 
 are required to exert your most strenuous and persever- 
 ing efforts. If you neglect the opportunity of endeavour- 
 ing to conquer his animosity, he may be undone for ever. 
 But if you undertake in earnest to reclaim him from the 
 error of his way, who can tell but you may succeed ? 
 Kindness and love from you — from the quarter whence 
 they are least expected— may have a salutary and blessed 
 effect. They may reach his heart, and convert him from 
 
 
223 
 
 a foe into a friend, render him a blessing to society, and 
 introduce him into the family of God. 
 
 If you succeed, you shall have cause of everlasting re- 
 joicing. In heaven the man whom you have won by your 
 patience and forbearance will hail you as a benefactor and 
 friend ; and by his presence and blessedness contribute to 
 augment the fulness of your joy. But if, notwithstanding 
 all your benevolent exertions, you shall have the mortifi- 
 cation to fail, you shall, at least deliver your own soul, 
 and secure a triumph far above all Greek and Roman 
 fame. David performed many splendid exploits. He 
 again and again risked his life for the honour of his king 
 and the interest of his country. But all his valorous 
 deeds were exceeded by his generosity to Saul. Return- 
 ing to the host with the head of Goliath, and saluted as 
 he passed with the songs and acclamations of his rescued 
 countrywomen, he did not possess a moral majesty half 
 so sublime and imposing as when issuing from the cave 
 with the skirt of his treacherous and deadly persecutor 
 in his hand, whom Providence had delivered into his 
 power, but whom he had sent away uninjured. And 
 could you subdue a nation of ruffians and oppressors, and 
 clear the earth of all the monsters which it contains, you 
 could not obtain a glory half so magnificent and durable 
 as by conquering your own spirit, and suppressing your 
 emotions of anger and revenge. One barbarian or brute 
 may shed the blood of another; and heathens and publi- 
 cans may love those who love them and do them good. 
 
224 
 
 It is only a man who is born from above, and possessed 
 of the spirit of Christ, who can love his enemies, and do 
 good to them that hate him. 
 
 You must forgive the offences that you receive. Your 
 worst enemy has never inflicted upon you the ten thou- 
 sandth part of the evils which you have committed 
 against the ever-blessed God. You did not create your 
 enemy. You have not fed and upheld him. You have 
 not conferred on him all his faculties and powers, and the 
 benefits and comforts that he possesses. But though 
 God has made you, and in him you live, and move, and 
 have your being ; though he has loaded you with benefits 
 and blessings, and given you all things freely and richly 
 to enjoy, yet you have sinned against him, you have 
 abused his mercies, grieved his spirit, and provoked his 
 justice. You deserve the severest marks of his dis- 
 pleasure, and might righteously have been abandoned to 
 utter destruction. And now when God has forgiven you 
 all this sum, is it too mighty an expanse of generosity 
 for you to forgive the faults of an erring and offendini: 
 brother? When the injuries of one creature against 
 another shrink into insignificance when contrasted widi 
 the enormity of our common crimes against the Almighty, 
 can you plead from Jehovah the free remission of your 
 iniquities, while you refuse to forgive the trespasses of 
 a fellow-transgressor? Through the gospel of peace do 
 you claim a title to a crown of life, and an inheritance 
 incorruptible, undefiled, and eternal in the heavens? and 
 
225 
 
 will you dispute and contend with a brother about a 
 paltry and contemptible trifle ? 
 
 The command of our God and Judge to forgive our 
 enemies, is as clear and express as to abstain from theft 
 and murder. If disregard of the latter precepts will 
 exclude from the kingdom of heaven, how can we obtain 
 admission there while we neglect obedience to the 
 former? " If ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither 
 will your Father forgive your trespasses." 
 
SERMON VII. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Galatians ii. 20. 
 " Christ liveth in me." 
 
 To them that believe, Christ is precious. And no 
 wonder that this is the case. For the blessings which 
 they receive from his hands are innumerable, and the 
 obligations which they owe him are immense. Though 
 infinitely great, and eternally blessed and glorious, he 
 has carried his love and liberality towards them far 
 beyond all parallel and all praise. He has delivered them 
 from evils which surpass conception, and conferred on 
 them benefits and blessings far transcending the worth of 
 the world and the value of creation. 
 
 The text leads us to consider one of these important 
 blessings: the life which he communicates to the Chris- 
 tian. For himself the apostle says, " Christ liveth in 
 me," and what was true of Paul may be affirmed of 
 every child of God. In addressing you from the words 
 before us, we are necessarily led to observe — 
 
227 
 
 I. That Christ lives in the believer; and, 
 
 II. That his life in the Christian is the consequence 
 of union with him. 
 
 I. Christ lives in the believer. 
 
 This invaluable fact is repeatedly asserted in Scrip- 
 ture. Are we not told, " Ye are dead, and your life is 
 hid with Christ in God; when he, therefore, who is your 
 life, shall appear, ye also shall appear with him in glory?" 
 Are we not assured that, " If we have been planted together 
 in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the 
 likeness of his resurrection? Knowing this, that our 
 old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might 
 be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin, 
 for he that is dead is free from sin. Now, if we be dead 
 with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.'* 
 " Christ in you the hope of glory." The relation be- 
 twixt him and his people is so close and intimate, that 
 he identifies their existence and their interests with his 
 own, saying, " Because I live, ye shall live also." 
 
 The excellence of this life is undervalued, and its 
 existence is denied by the ignorant and careless, the 
 worldly and the carnal. But there is nothing necessary 
 to prove the existence of life as a separate independent 
 principle, which is awanting to demonstrate the reality 
 of spiritual life. Is life characterized by peculiar organs 
 and senses, tastes, and appetites, pursuits and occupa- 
 tions, joys and sorrows? All these are to be found in 
 the Christian life. 
 
228 
 
 For if there is no reality in the spiritual life — if you 
 who have believed in Jesus are not partakers of a new 
 and a divine nature, and possessed of a life which the 
 unregenerate never felt, and while they continue in their 
 natural condition never can enjoy ; say, whence all your 
 new feelings and perceptions? Whence do you see a 
 hand which they cannot see, and hear a voice which they 
 cannot hear? How come you to hear the voice of God 
 in his word, and to perceive his hand and agency in every 
 occurrence? When elevated to prosperity, or plunged 
 into adversity; when health and comfort crown their lot, 
 or sickness and distress lie heavy on their dwellings; why 
 do the worldly and irreligious imagine that this is only a 
 chance which has befallen them, while in similar cir- 
 cumstances you are made in humble and devout adora- 
 tion to exclaim, This is the Lord, let him do what seem- 
 eth good in his sight? While in baptism they see 
 merely the element of water, and the actions of the 
 administrator, how come you to discover the blood of 
 sprinkling, and the seal of the everlasting covenant? 
 While in the Lord's Supper they can perceive no more 
 than bread and wine, and hear only the words which fall 
 on the outward ear, how is it that in this ordinance you 
 discover the memorials of your dying Redeemer's love, 
 and the pledges of his strong and unchanging regard? 
 While they consider the pages of inspiration as dry and 
 insipid, and less interesting than the trash and scum per- 
 petually issuing from the impure and irreligious pres^ 
 why do you in a single sentence of the sacred volume 
 
229 
 
 find a feast of fat things, and a source of refreshing 
 and joy to your souls? 
 
 In one simple declaration, such as " Christ is the end 
 of the law for righteousness to every one that belie veth," 
 or this, " There is no condemnation to them who are in 
 Christ Jesus," or, " Fear not, for I am with thee; be not 
 dismayed, for I am thy God," you find a treasure far 
 superior to all that the wealth of the world can purchase, 
 or that the mighty universe contains. 
 
 It is the promise of Him, who cannot lie, " In all 
 places where I record my name, I will meet with you 
 and bless you. Where two or three are gathered to- 
 gether in my name, there am I in the midst of them." 
 And he is true to his word. In the exercises of the 
 closet and in the services of the sanctuary, you are 
 sometimes honoured to hold fellowship with the Father 
 and the Son. You see the King in his beauty, and be- 
 hold the land that is very far off. But come up to a 
 man of the world, when leaving any religious ordinance 
 or exercise, and ask him where he has been, and how he 
 has been employed? if he has been carried beyond the 
 outward forms and observances, and enabled to penetrate 
 into the substance and essence of the work in which he 
 was engaged? if he has been honoured to hold communion 
 with the God of love, or kept at a dark and painful dis- 
 tance? The man will stare and wonder what you 
 mean. He will tell you that he has done his duty. He 
 has said his prayers, heard a sermon, taken the sacrament, 
 and what more can you wish ? As for intercourse witk 
 u2 
 
53* i 
 
 God, or seeing the Saviour, he knows nothing of the 
 matter. 
 
 But is Jesus really such an ordinary character, that a 
 man may see him without knowing that he has enjoyed 
 such a privilege? Is there any among the companions 
 so like him that we cannot distinguish the difference 
 betwixt him and his brethren ? A man may see, and yet 
 be at a loss to discover the little star to which you point 
 in a hazy night, But if, in the effulgence of noon, when 
 the sun is shining in his strength, he lift up his face to 
 the sky, and affirm that he cannot tell whether that 
 blazing luminary be there, what other inference can we 
 draw from the fact than that he is blind ? And when Jesus 
 is the joy of the renewed soul, and the sun of the celestial 
 world, the brightness of the Father's glory, and the express 
 image of his person : when, day after day, and week after 
 week, a man attends the ordinances of religion, and per- 
 forms the exercises of devotion, and yet is unable to 
 determine whether the Lord Jesus Christ is there, what 
 other inference can we draw from this dreadful fact than 
 that he is dead in trespasses and sins ? 
 
 If there is no reality in the spiritual life, and if religion 
 consists wholly in the duties of morality and an attend- 
 ance upon the institutions of worship, then, Christians, 
 whence arise all your new tastes and appetites ? Whs- 
 do you delight in the ordinances, and experience such a 
 strong and intense attachment to all that is spiritual and 
 divine? Why do you hunger and thirst after righteous- 
 ness and cleave so tenaciously to the society and service 
 
231 
 
 of God? Why do you hail with ecstasy the return of 
 the Sabbath, flee to the throne of grace with irresistible 
 ardour, and regard the communion solemnity as a jubilee? 
 Why do you thirst for God, the living God, love the 
 place where his honour dwells, and long to come and 
 appear before him ? 
 
 Do such feelings fill and occupy the hearts of those 
 who are strangers to the purifying and transforming power 
 of godliness ? Do you ever hear them exclaiming, " Saw 
 ye him whom our souls love ? Oh, that we knew where 
 we might find him, we wouM come near unto him, even 
 to his seat ; yea, we would order our cause before him. 
 O God, thou art our God : early will we seek thee. 
 Our soul thirsteth for thee : our flesh longeth for thee 
 in a dry and thirsty land where no water is." Do you 
 ever find them impatient to burst away from the things 
 of earth and time, to scale the heaven of heavens, and 
 exchange the exercises of grace for the enjoyments of 
 glory? Did you ever hear them mourning their Lord's 
 delay, and courting his more rapid descent, crying, 
 Why is our Beloved so long in coming ? Why tarry the 
 wheels of his chariot ? Haste, my Beloved, and be thou 
 like a roe or a young hart upon the mountains of Bether. 
 They mind earthly things, and have their portion here. 
 Grant them worldly ease and bodily indulgence, the 
 increase of their flocks and herds, the enlargement of 
 their trade, the augmentation of their gain, or the advance- 
 ment of their fame, their power, or pleasure, and what 
 care they for all the treasures of redeeming mercy, and 
 
232 
 
 all the vast and unsearchable riches of the everlasting 
 gospel ? 
 
 Unless there is something in religion unspeakably 
 superior to all that the most virtuous and amiable of the 
 regenerate ever possessed, why are you affected with new 
 joys and sorrows ? Why are you so sensible of your 
 iniquities, and so grieved and humbled for your imper- 
 fections and defects ? Why are you so sensible of the 
 law in your members, and so solicitous to get rid of the 
 presence and power of indwelling sin ? Why do we 
 hear each of you so painfully inquiring, Oh, wretched 
 man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of 
 this death ? Why does it drown you in distress, and 
 overwhelm you in despondence, when the benefactor who 
 should relieve your souls is far from you? But why are 
 you lost in wonder, or elevated to adoring transport, 
 when you are allowed to come before him, to pour out 
 all your heart in his presence, and enabled on clear 
 scriptural authority to say, This God is my God for ever 
 and ever? Did you bring these desires along with yen 
 into the world? Are they to be found in the souls of 
 the gay and the giddy ? Do you ever hear the indolent 
 and carnal complaining that iniquities prevail against 
 them, and that they cannot do the things that they would ? 
 Do you ever find them ashamed and confounded on 
 account of their coldness and hardness of heart, and be- 
 wailing, in the bitterness of their spirit, their distance 
 from God, and the apparent marks of his displeasure ? 
 Have you ever witnessed them crying, How long wilt 
 
233 
 
 thou forget me, O Lord ? for ever ? How long shall I 
 take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart 
 daily ? If their fortune leave them, their reputation fail, 
 their health decline, or their friends forsake them, or a 
 debtor deceive them, we shall soon hear of their disaster, 
 and the whole neighbourhood shall ring with their com- 
 plaints. But though the God of all grace be far from 
 them, and they have neither part nor lot in the gospel, 
 though they are shutting themselves out of the regions 
 of bliss, and are gathering around them the horrors of 
 everlasting darkness, these matchless unutterable cala- 
 mities never excite one sigh, nor create a moment's 
 uneasiness. 
 
 And what is the cause of all this indifference and 
 apathy? The presence and power of spiritual death. 
 Their tansgressions are multiplied, and their danger is 
 dreadful. But they are dead in trespasses and sins, and 
 can neither feel the real horrors of their situation, nor 
 understand the extent and magnitude of their guilt and 
 misery. For what can more effectually prove a man to be 
 dead than a state of total insensibility ? Speak to him, and 
 he hears not. Hold up to him a chain of the most precious 
 jewels, he sees them not. The doctrines of the gospel may 
 drop as the rain, and distil as the dew, but the unrenewed 
 man feels them not. Sinai may flash, and Divine justice 
 may scatter its terrors, but he perceives them not. The 
 seeing may start at a shadow, but the blind will not 
 shrink from the approach of a cannon ball. Thunder 
 may agitate the waking, and break the slumbers of the 
 
234 
 
 sleeping, but it cannot disturb the repose of the deaf. 
 The living may feel the slightest scratch or blow, but the 
 dead cannot experience the least uneasiness though torn 
 by the rack, or crushed beneath the weight of a mountain. 
 The living in Jerusalem may tremble at the most gentle 
 frown that passes over the face of their heavenly Father, 
 and shudder at the smallest loss of their religious joy, 
 but those who are spiritually dead entertain no fear of 
 the wrath of Omnipotence, and rush boldly and recklessly 
 on to the overwhelming horrors of everlasting misery. 
 
 From these facts we see that the experience of the 
 faithful confirms the truth implied in the text, that Christ 
 lives in believers. 
 
 We observe, 
 
 II. That this life in them is the consequence of union 
 with Christ. 
 
 Since Christ lives in his people, he and they must be 
 spiritually united. For if two cannot walk together ex- 
 cept they be agreed, how can Christ live in us unless we 
 are joined to him, and made one spirit with him ? Before 
 there can be a mutual indwelling betwixt him and bis 
 people, there must first be a complete and cordial union. 
 
 This subject leads us into the very heart of Christianity, 
 and brings before us one of the most sublime and invalu- 
 able privileges of the redeemed, which constitutes the 
 foundation of all the blessings which we possess in time, 
 and the security for all the glory which we shall enjoy 
 through eternity. The man who is possessed of this 
 high dignity is a-kin to the spirits of the just made 
 
235 
 
 perfect, and heir to all the unbounded and inexhaustible 
 sources of never-ending delight. 
 
 But is this representation real ? When the Lord 
 Jesus Christ is possessor of heaven and of earth — when 
 he fills immensity, and inhabits eternity — when he enjoys 
 the command of creation, and in him dwells all the fulness 
 of the Godhead bodily, is it possible that he will stoop so 
 low and condescend so far as to grace our humble habi- 
 tation, and enter our mean and polluted hearts ? 
 
 Yes; this inestimable privilege is not only possible but 
 real. Every thing necessary to prove a fact, concurs to 
 confirm this delightful and transporting declaration, that 
 Christ dwells in the hearts of his saints. 
 
 What is the ultimate design of his ministers in all their 
 humane and persevering exertions ? " That Christ may 
 be formed in their people the hope of glory." What is 
 the grand and leading object of their intercessions and 
 supplications in behalf of their converted hearers? 
 " That Christ may dwell in their hearts by faith." What 
 forms the riches of the glory of the gospel ? " Christ in 
 us the hope of glory." Why does Christ come along in 
 the calls and invitations of the gospel ? To secure our 
 affections, and gain admission to our hearts. " Behold I 
 stand at the door, and knock : if any man hear my voice 
 and open the door, I will come in to him, and sup with 
 him, and he with me."' What is the result of obedience 
 to his own blessed authority ? " He that hath my com- 
 mandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me ; 
 my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and 
 
236 
 
 make our abode with him." What was the petition 
 which he most forcibly urged in his last act of interces- 
 sion ? " That they all may be one, as thou, Father, art 
 in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us.' 
 And where is it that Jehovah has placed his throne and 
 fixed his favourite residence ? In the soul humbled for 
 sin, and sanctified by grace. " Thus saith the high and 
 lofty one that inhabiteth eternity, I dwell in the high and 
 lofty place, with him also that is of a humble and contrite 
 spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and the heart 
 of the contrite ones." 
 
 Our very bodies are consecrated and enshrined by the 
 presence of the Eternal Spirit. " Know ye not that your 
 bodies are the temples of the Holy Ghost, who is in you, 
 whom ye have of God: and ye are not your own ?" By 
 this sacred union our souls are made a habitation of God 
 through the Spirit. 
 
 The presence of Christ in the heart throws an air of 
 sanctity over the. believer's life, and an impenetrable shield 
 over his person, so that it is at the peril of the aggressor 
 to offer any injury either to him or his property. " Touch 
 not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm." He 
 that toucheth us, toucheth the apple of his own eye. 
 The reproaches cast on us light on him, and he regards 
 every outrage and insult which we sustain as inflicted 
 upon himself. " Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me ?" 
 He is touched with the feeling of our infirmity, and in all 
 our afflictions he is afflicted. Our very existence and 
 interests are identified with his own. and hence his own 
 
237 
 
 resurrection and ascension are the pledge and security of 
 ours. " Because I live ye shall live also. If Christ be 
 in you the body is dead because of sin, but the spirit is 
 life because of righteousness. But if the spirit of Him 
 that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that 
 raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your 
 mortal bodies by his spirit that dwelleth in you." 
 
SERMON VIII. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Galatians ii. 20. 
 " Christ liveth in me." 
 
 From the important and invaluable fact that Christ lives 
 in us, it naturally and necessarily follows that his life is 
 the model and pattern of our own. 
 
 The Lord Jesus Christ, who, from everlasting resided 
 in the presence of the Father, and in whom dwelt all the 
 fulness of the Godhead bodily, became man, that we 
 might become the sons of God. This kind and blessed 
 purpose was early formed. It was no sooner determined 
 that we should be the subjects of saving mercy, than it 
 was decreed that we should be possessed of a resemblance 
 to the Lord Jesus Christ. " We were chosen in him 
 before the foundation of the world, that we might be 
 holy and without blame before him in love," and " pre- 
 destinated to be conformed to his image, that he might 
 be the first born among many brethren." 
 
 In the days of our ignorance and security we are very 
 
239 
 
 far from being like the Son of God. We are sensual, 
 not having the spirit. We are of our father the devil. 
 We delight in his work, and comply with his pleasure. 
 But no sooner are we quickened together with Christ, 
 than we are transformed by his spirit into his own lovely 
 and blessed likeness. Without this similarity to his 
 character, the Lord Jesus Christ would be ashamed to be 
 known as our friend, or to acknowledge us as his followers. 
 But ashamed of us he need not, he shall not, he cannot 
 be. For he who sanctifieth, and they who are sanctified, 
 are all of one, for which cause he is not ashamed to call 
 them brethren. The same mind which was in him is in 
 us : and as he was in the world, even so are we in the 
 world. 
 
 That this is the case will appear by attending to 
 
 I. The object of his life. 
 
 II. The attention which he paid to the exercises of 
 piety and devotion. 
 
 III. His kindness and beneficence to men, and 
 
 IV. His unceasing desire to possess the presence and 
 enjoy the love of God. 
 
 I. The object of his life. 
 
 This was to advance the glory of God. What brought 
 him from the regions of light and purity to our world ct 
 darkness and pollution ? What led him to relinquish the 
 songs of angels and seraphim, to endure the contradic- 
 tion of sinners, and the outrages of the ungodly, to en- 
 close the glories of his divinity within the narrow compass 
 of a human form, and die on the accursed tree ? Not to 
 
240 
 
 increase his own felicity or honour; for to that which is 
 infinite no accession can be made. Filling immensity, 
 inhabiting- eternity, and possessed of all the fulness of 
 the Godhead, he could gain no addition to his glory or 
 blessedness. He came, therefore, not to do his own will 
 but the will of him that sent him. So steadily and 
 ardently did he keep this object in view, that from the 
 age of twelve till the day on which he died, he was per- 
 petually employed about his Father's business. He 
 pleased not himself. He sought not his own honour. It 
 was his meat to do the will of Him that sent him, and 
 finish his work. He foresaw the Lord always before 
 him : and whatever he undertook or did was undertaken 
 or done to secure the grand object of his incarnation, the 
 glory of his Father. Accordingly, when leaving the 
 world, he could say, " Father, I have glorified thee on 
 earth : I have finished the work which thou gavest me to 
 do." 
 
 Now if Christ be formed in us; if we are crucified 
 with him, and he live in us, it is evident that our life must 
 be a copy or representation of his own. Some characters 
 are shockingly inconsistent. They are one thing abroad, 
 and another at home — are one thing on Sabbath, and 
 another through the week — one thing at church, and 
 quite another on their farms, in their shops, and in their 
 counting-rooms. But the Lord Jesus Christ is an un- 
 changeable character. No irregularity nor disorder ever 
 disturbs the uniform and unbroken tenor of his conduct, 
 nor tarnishes the lustre of his lovely and glorious self- 
 
241 
 
 consistency. In heaven and on earth, in public and in 
 private, on the throne of light, and on the cross of Cal- 
 vary, the great principles on which he acts are absolutely 
 invariable. He is the same yesterday, and to-day, and 
 for ever. 
 
 Now, if he be for ever the same, and if he live in you ; 
 in other words, if you are Christians at all, is it not clear 
 and unquestionable that, since he lived to the glory of 
 the Father, you also will, in all things, be possessed of 
 the same spirit, and actuated by a strong and intense 
 desire to do the will of God, and spread abroad the 
 honour of his name ? 
 
 You may not all be placed in the same circumstances, 
 nor blessed with the same advantages. There may be a 
 wide difference in your age and abilities, in your rank 
 and fortune, but in your spirit and temper, in your pur- 
 pose and determination, there is none. Whatever may 
 be your place or your employment, your years or your 
 talents, you will show your close and decided resemblance 
 to your divine and adorable Redeemer, by a supreme 
 and unreserved devotedness to the interest and honour 
 of God. Whether you eat or drink, or whatsoever you 
 do, you will do all to his glory. In every action and 
 undertaking your leading and single inquiry will be, Is 
 this for the glory of God? Is this the measure by which 
 1 can at this time most effectually comply with his will, 
 and most extensively promote his praise ? Have you a 
 leisure hour at your command, or a sum of money at 
 your disposal ? Have you the possession of authority or 
 x2 
 
242 
 
 influence in the church or in the world ? You are not 
 to employ these in the way most suitable to your own 
 ease or interest, your own inclination or honour, but in 
 the manner best calculated to advance your spiritual im- 
 provement, and accomplish the great purposes of your 
 creation and redemption. In reading and hearing, in 
 conversation and prayer, in your worldly occupations and 
 religious exercises, neither utter a word, nor move a step 
 without a simple and express desire that God in all things 
 may be glorified through Christ Jesus your Lord. 
 
 II. If Christ live in you, then much of your time will 
 be spent in exercises of piety and devotion. 
 
 You will not only devote all that you have and are to 
 the interest and honour of God, but you will take pleasure 
 in the services of religion, and in spiritual exercises and 
 employments. Jesus was not more distinguished as a man 
 of sorrows thau as a man of prayer. Though in his 
 divine nature he was creator and Lord of all, and pos- 
 sessed of a fellowship with his Father in all the fulness 
 and glory of the Godhead, and therefore had no occasion 
 for the elevating and strengthening refreshments of devo- 
 tion, he cultivated constant and close communion with 
 the throne of grace. Whatever he undertook or did was 
 not only undertaken and done with a distinct and explicit 
 reference to the glory of his Father, but was also enriched 
 and sweetened by prayer. In entering on the different 
 services of his laborious and painful life, his soul naturally 
 rose to the eternal throne, and courted the elevation and 
 vigour to be derived from the uncreated fountain of 
 
243 
 
 light and love. After spending the hours of sunshine in 
 instructing and admonishing the ignorant and careless, in 
 relieving the sorrows of the disconsolate, and the suffer- 
 ings of the distressed, he spent the live-long night in 
 intercession. And on other occasions, when scenes of 
 extraordinary toil or anguish were approaching, he rose a 
 great while before it was day to seek the solitude of the 
 mountains to give himself to prayer. 
 
 And still wherever Jesus takes up his abode in a soul, 
 the man gives himself to prayer. He not only lives in 
 the spirit, and keeps himself all the day long in the fear 
 and love of God, but he is frequently on his knees. He 
 redeems time for prayer. He delights in drawing near 
 to God, and in pouring out his soul before him. If he 
 is not praying always, he is at least always in a praying 
 spirit. No wish rises in his mind but he spreads it before 
 God. He continually says, " All that I desire is before 
 thee." No danger threatens, nor any trouble assails him 
 without sending him anew to the Father of mercies, and 
 the God of love. Amidst the various changes and trials 
 of life he is careful for nothing, but in every thing by 
 prayer and supplication makes all his requests known to 
 God. 
 
 Is the Sabbath too long for the important purposes for 
 which it was set apart, so that, in order to consume what 
 the world regards as its dull and weary hours, he must 
 lie longer in bed and go earlier to rest than usual, speak 
 his own words, and find his own pleasure on that sacred 
 day? To him the Sabbath is a delight, holy of the 
 
2U 
 
 Lord, and honourable. Can you shut him out of the 
 house of God, or persuade him to shun or shorten the 
 services of the sanctuary ? He loves the place where the 
 Divine honour dwells, and prefers a day in the courts of 
 the Lord to a thousand. You may obstruct his approach 
 to the sanctuary, and block up its avenues with the 
 strongest masonry; but he must be in, for Jehovah has 
 bestowed his blessing there, and promised his people his 
 gracious presence. And what is the earth with all that 
 it contains without the presence and favour of the God 
 of love ? " One thing have I desired of the Lord, 
 that will I seek after, that I may dwell in the house of 
 the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of 
 the Lord, and to inquire in his temple. My soul thirst- 
 eth fcr God, the living God: when shall I come and 
 appear before God?" And when he gets near the God 
 of his salvation how does he act? He pours out his 
 complaint before him, and shows him his trouble. He 
 unfolds all that is passing in his spirit, and fills his mouth 
 with arguments. There is no coldness, langour, nor for- 
 mality in his devotion. His salvation is at stake. He 
 is treating with the King of kings upon matters of in- 
 finite importance and endless duration, and therefore his 
 religion is the exercise of the heart, the lifting up of the 
 soul to God. In reading, hearing, meditating, praying, 
 and communicating, he is never satisfied unless his heart 
 ib touched, warmed, and melted, and unless he is blessed 
 with some nearness to God, and honoured with some 
 marks of the Divine approbation and favour. What is 
 
245 
 
 the body when the spirit is fled? And what avail all 
 the ordinances and exercises of piety when we are de- 
 prived of elevating and transforming communion with the 
 God of love? 
 
 If Christ live in us, and if he be the same to-day that 
 lie was yesterday, and has been for ever, then we may 
 rest assured, 
 
 III. That our life must be a life of kindness and 
 beneficence to men. 
 
 In the days of his flesh Christ went about doing good. 
 He was perpetually employed in ministering to the souls 
 or bodies of men. No case of distress was beyond his 
 skill, and no sufferer ever solicited his assistance in vain. 
 Anticipating the benignant results of his mission, the 
 celestial harbingers sung, " Glory to God in the highest, 
 on earth peace, and good will to men." And never were 
 words more signally and beautifully verified than these 
 were in the life and labours of the man Christ Jesus. 
 All the sons and daughters of suffering and sorrow par- 
 took of his sympathy. With a benevolence that knew no 
 bounds, and a well-doing that never was weary, he dis- 
 pensed the blessings of health and salvation wherever he 
 came, and administered freely to the relief of all the 
 wretched. In following his line of march, it was easy to 
 see, from the comfort and bliss which he left behind, that 
 the God of mercy had been there. In travelling through 
 the towns and villages of Judea and Galilee, you would 
 have found some where, amidst all the crowds which they 
 contained, there was not an individual either languishing 
 
246 
 
 under bodily distress, or afflicted with mental trouble. 
 And why ? Because the Lord of life had yesterday pas- 
 sed by, and healed all manner of sickness, and all man- 
 ner of disease among the people. Notwithstanding all 
 the deeds of power and of pity which he wrought, he was 
 despised and rejected of men. He was defamed, traduced, 
 insulted, and mocked. But what then ? Did he indulge 
 in cla nour, or give way to contention ? suspend the com- 
 passionate exercise of his power, or exert it to intimidate 
 or destroy his foes ? No : he meekly endured the con- 
 tradiction of sinners against himself. He did not strive, 
 nor cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in 
 the streets. When he was reviled, he reviled not again : 
 when he suffered he threatened not. His enemies 
 shared in his generosity, and one of the last acts of his 
 life was a prayer for his murderers. 
 
 Now, unless the Lord Jesus Christ has renounced his 
 immutability, and has to-day ceased to be what he was 
 yesterday, it necessarily follows that, if he lives in us, we 
 will do good unto all as we have opportunity, devote 
 ourselves to godliness and goodness, and be steadfast and 
 unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord. 
 
 If there are strife and contention in a family, is the 
 clamour raised and the contest maintained by the disciple 
 of the meek and lowly Jesus ? If there are violence 
 and turbulence, or dissipation and debauchery in a neigh- 
 bourhood, are these quarrels created, and these scenes of 
 vice and profligacy fomented and promoted by the fol- 
 lowers of the Son of God ? If there are deceit, duplicity. 
 
247 
 
 and fraud practised in trade ; or slander, detraction, and 
 malevolence encouraged in social intercourse, are these 
 vile and despicable habits adopted by the votaries of Him 
 who forbade us to render railing for railing? If the 
 principles of the young are perverted — if the ignorant 
 and inexperienced are betrayed into courses of criminality 
 — if the poor are deprived of their rights — if the widow's 
 heart is crushed by the hand of oppression — if the helpless 
 are made the victims of cruelty, and dragged into slavery, 
 or detained in bondage ; are these atrocities planned, or 
 these enormities perpetrated by the servants of Him who 
 taught us to love our neighbours as ourselves, and to do 
 to others as we would that they should do to us ? Does 
 Christianity involve its subjects in sedition and riot ? — 
 initiate them in the arts of seduction and villany ? impel 
 them to deeds of outrage and plunder ? inspire a spirit 
 of rancour and hostility ? render man the foe and scourge 
 of man, and arm him for the slaughter and destruction of 
 his brethren? Is it Christianity that perpetuates the 
 reign of poverty and wretchedness, fills our gaols, crowds 
 our bridewells, and gives such constant employment to 
 the officers of justice? 
 
 These are the works of the graceless and ungodly, the 
 men who neither know God nor obey the gospel of his 
 Son. If, over the whole extent of our globe, there is a 
 single penny unjustly withheld from the indigent — a sin- 
 gle family kept in agitation and discord — a widow's 
 heart broken by oppression — a blow inflicted by violence 
 —or a single child of Adam subjected to the eruptions of 
 
248 
 
 fury and tyranny ; the monster by whom these atrocities 
 are executed, is a creature without God and without 
 Christ in the world. The wisdom that is from above is 
 pure and peacable, gentle and easy to be entreated, full 
 of mercy and good fruits. They that are Christ's have 
 crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. They 
 have their conversation in heaven, and their fruit unto 
 holiness. They are followers of God as dear children ; 
 and do good unto all as they have opportunity. 
 
 They may not have the skill to convert the vicious nor 
 reclaim the abandoned. They have not the power to 
 give sight to the blind, nor to cure the sick by a miracle. 
 They may not be able to build hospitals for the reception of 
 the aged and infirm, nor endow churches for the preach- 
 ing of the gospel, nor fit out missionaries for the propa- 
 gation of Christianity, nor pour in treasures to feed the 
 funds necessary for the circulation of the Scriptures. 
 
 But one thing we know is, that wherever Jesus lives in 
 a soul, he will teach the man to be blameless and harm- 
 less, to do nothing that is unjust or injurious to any. The 
 man will not please himself, but seek the good of many 
 to their edification. He will labour to bring all to the 
 truth, that they may be saved. He cannot do the things 
 that he would ; but what he can, to the utmost of his 
 power, yea, and beyond his power, he will do for the 
 honour of God and the benefit of his brethren. Taught 
 to love God with his whole heart, he learns to love his 
 neighbour as himself, and to do good unto all as he has 
 opportunity. Constrained by the example, and animated 
 
249 
 
 by the spirit of Him who caine from the abodes of purity 
 and peace to be a blessing and a ransom for all, he lifts 
 up his head with benignity, and casts over the wide ex- 
 panse of this apostate world a look of tenderness and love 
 for all its guilty inhabitants, and cultivates a warm and 
 strong solicitude for the worth and the welfare of all who 
 live. Where is the scene of suffering or of sadness for 
 which he feels no sorrow, and to which he does not 
 strive to extend relief? Who is weak, and he is not 
 weak ? Who is offended, and he burns not ? He is 
 eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame. Like his ador- 
 able Master, he makes the force of his prayers, his bene- 
 ficence, and virtues, descend in rich and refreshing abun- 
 dance upon all. 
 
 He may encounter opposition, reproach, and persecu- 
 tion. But what then? Can these cancel his obligations 
 to piety and philanthropy, or relax the energy of his holy 
 benevolence and zeal ? They only give him the privilege 
 of signalizing the elevation of his mind, and the generosity 
 of his principles. They rouse him to increased activity 
 and ardour in the work of humanity and piety, and lead 
 him to exert more decided and strenuous efforts for the 
 present and everlasting welfare of his foes. Instead of 
 being overcome of evil, he overcomes evil with good. 
 For he loves his enemies, does good to them that hate 
 iiira, and prays for them who despitefully use him and 
 persecute him. 
 
 If Christ live in us, and if he be to-day what he was 
 yesterday, and has been for ever, then, 
 
 Y 
 
250 
 
 IV. Our supreme desire will be to possess the presence 
 and enjoy the love of God. 
 
 Our Divine Redeemer foresaw the Lord always before 
 him. In the absence of his disciples, companions, and 
 friends, the presence and love of the Father compensated 
 the want of the whole, and were to him all in all. The 
 cause and interest of his Father absorbed his thoughts 
 and engrossed his time and attention. The zeal of his 
 house consumed him, and his own interest and honour 
 were so identified with those of Him who sent him, that 
 the reproaches cast on his Father fell on him. Amidst 
 the toils and conflicts of his pilgrimage he was sustained 
 and solaced by a sense of his Father's presence and sup- 
 port. " The Lord God will help me, therefore shall I 
 not be confounded : therefore have 1 set my face like a 
 flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed." And 
 when he came to die, the crown and consummation of his 
 desires were to return to the presence of his Father, and 
 enjoy the unbounded overflowings of his love. " I have 
 glorified thee on the earth : I have finished the work 
 which thou gavest me to do, and now, O Father, glorify 
 thou me with thine own self, with the glory which I had 
 with thee before the world was." 
 
 Now, unless the Lord Jesus Christ has sustained an 
 alteration ; and He who, from everlasting, had continued 
 the same, has of late become mutable and changeful; if 
 he live in us, on what will our affections be principally 
 and supremely placed? Will we thirst for earthly fame 
 or created wealth ? for present ease or temporal enjoy- 
 
251 
 
 merits ? Oh ! what are the health and safety of the body 
 compared with the peace and prosperity of the soul? 
 What are the bounties of providence or the delights of 
 life contrasted with the riches of grace and the provisions 
 of the everlasting covenant ? What signify the produc- 
 tions of earth or the treasures of time when weighed 
 against the glories of heaven and the triumphs of eternity? 
 Who would prefer a taper to the sun, or exchange a 
 kingdom and a crown for the toys of an infaut ? And, 
 give us the possession of the earth, and the command of 
 creation, what is the worth of the whole when laid in the 
 balance with the immense and inexhaustible resources of 
 an infinite and all-sufficient God ? The weightiest masses 
 of matter have their dimensions, and the wide creation 
 has its limits, but God has none. The sources of created 
 happiness may soon be exhausted, but the riches of grace 
 are unsearchable, and the stores of Immanuel are un- 
 bounded. In him there is enough to fill and feast the 
 universe, and last for ever and ever. 
 
 From this fountain the angels of light have drawn 
 all their felicity. We know of no higher nor happier 
 creatures than these pure and exalted spirits. But from 
 the first moment of their formation to the present hour, 
 they have neither known nor sought any other enjoyment 
 than what is derived from the presence and friendship of 
 the God whom they love and adore. And this is the 
 unknown and ineffable delight of the infinite and all-suffi- 
 cient God himself. This blessedness is not dependent on 
 the magnitude or beauty of the material creation. Mag- 
 
252 
 
 nificent and splendid as it is, from everlasting Jehovah 
 possessed all the majesty and blessedness which he now 
 enjoys, before either the sun, the moon, the stars, or any 
 part of the vast universe was formed ; and though the 
 whole were this moment swept from the face of being, 
 they could not carry off one particle of his blessedness or 
 glory. 
 
 It is on this sublime and unbounded blessedness that 
 the heart of the believer is supremely and constantly set. 
 In the duties, labours, and enjoyments of life, his great 
 desire and ambition are to be in the fear of the Lord, to 
 walk with God, and abide in the joys and comforts of the 
 Holy Ghost. In the ordinances of religion and exercises 
 of devotion, he goes beyond the mere form and shadow. 
 He thirsts not for knowledge and instruction, but for 
 God, the living God. He is anxious to go, not to the 
 house or table of the Lord, but to God his exceeding 
 joy. Amidst the honours and enjoyments of life, his 
 soul breaks away from all that is seen and temporal, 
 "liters into that which is unseen and eternal, travels up- 
 wards to the throne of light, and stands adoring before 
 the God of love. From the brightest and best that im- 
 mensity contains he turns away his eyes, and, fixing them 
 on the Three-one God, he says, Whom have I in heaven 
 but thee ? and there is none upon earth whom I desire 
 besides thee. Other springs will dry, and other lights 
 expire, but this is a fountain which will never fail, and a 
 sun which will never grow dim. 
 
 The nearer that the Christian approaches God, and 
 
253 
 
 the more that he acquires of the divine presence and love, 
 his desires hecome the more exalted and spiritual, and 
 the more strong and intense for the complete possession 
 of the whole of his sublime and sacred portion. He 
 never can think that any thing has been gained as long 
 as any part of this matchless inheritance is unknown and 
 unenjoyed. For him the Bible is not too large, nor the 
 promises too numerous, uor heaven too splendid, nor 
 Jesus too rich in grace or great in power. He rejoices 
 in their extent and grandeur. He rejoices that they are 
 so vast and unbounded. He takes them as they are, and 
 longs for the complete and perfect possession of the 
 whole. His heart's desire and prayer are to reduce the 
 promises to his possession, to be blessed with all spiritual 
 blessings in heavenly places, and filled with all the fulness 
 of God. Since God spared not his own son, but deliv- 
 ered him up for us all, the believer can never rest till he 
 secure all the vast and ineffable benefits which this im- 
 mense and unspeakable gift includes. Each is invaluable, 
 and the whole are infinitely worthy of his acceptance. 
 Through eternity, when his happiness is complete, the 
 substance, essence, and perfection of his bliss will be the 
 immediate presence and all-sufficient fulness of God, and 
 therefore in the meantime bis most fervent and intense 
 ambition is to possess these now as his inheritance and 
 portion. 
 
 We have thus seen that wherever Christ lives in a 
 believer, the Christian will live to the glory of God ; he 
 will cultivate devout and pious affections, exercise kind- 
 y 2 
 
254 
 
 ness and beneficence to men, and feel a supreme desire 
 to possess the presence, and enjoy the love of God. 
 
 In every thing the Lord Jesus Christ left us an ex- 
 ample that we should follow his steps. And believers 
 take Christ for their model and guide. The same mind 
 is in us which was in him : and as he was in the world, 
 even so are we in the world. 
 
 He was the representative of his Father, the brightness 
 of his glory and the express image of his person. The 
 resemblance was so perfect and entire that he who saw 
 the one saw the other. " Philip saith unto him, Lord, 
 show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto 
 him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast 
 thou not known me, Philip ? He that hath seen me hath 
 seen the Father : and how sayest thou then, Show us the 
 Father?" When we behold Jesus moving about in the 
 walks of beneficence and mercy, instructing the ignorant, 
 relieving the distressed, melted into tears at the hardness 
 of the impenitent, weeping at the grave of Lazarus, and 
 healing the broken-hearted, we see the compassion and 
 kindness of the Eternal Father, and the sorrows which 
 he would have felt, and the tears which he would have 
 shed if he had been placed in the room of his son. 
 
 We are the representatives of Christ. We are required 
 to bear about with us the dying of the Lord Jesus, that 
 the life also of Jesus may be made manifest in our body. 
 Wherever we go, and in whatever we are employed, we 
 must imitate the example, and cultivate the spirit of our 
 adorable Master. We must hold forth the word of life. 
 
255 
 
 shine in the beauties of holiness, and let men see that we 
 have been with Jesus. In every undertaking and action 
 we must display the kindness, the gentleness, and holiness 
 of Christ, and give the world a specimen of the amiable 
 and glorious excellences which dignified and adorned his 
 character. 
 
SERMON IX. 
 
 THE PRIVILEGES OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE. 
 
 Ephesiaxs iii. 17. 
 M That Christ mav dwell in vour hearts.' - 
 
 To illustrate or enumerate all the privileges of the 
 Christian life is no easy matter. We may count the 
 dust of the earth, or measure the height of the pole, 
 sooner than unfold the numher or value of the benefits 
 secured by Christ dwelling in us. Our possessions in 
 time, and our prospects through eternity, are innumerable 
 and immense; but these are all founded in our union to 
 the Lord Jesus Christ, and flow from his dwelling in us. 
 
 In speaking of the blessings derived from his inhabita- 
 tion with his people, we shall consider the safety, the 
 instruction, the holiness, the dignity, and happiness which 
 his presence imparts. 
 
 Let us attend, 
 
 I. To the safety which his presence secures to you 
 who believe. 
 
 Your riches are inestimable. No mind can conceive 
 
257 
 
 the worth of the soul, nor the value of those blessings 
 which flow from the heart of the God of love, and which 
 were purchased by the sufferings and death of his son. 
 
 Many enemies envy your enjoyments, and are watching 
 their opportunity to strip you of your possessions, and 
 plunge you in wretchedness and ruin. The world lies in 
 wickedness, and the graceless and ungodly are perpet- 
 ually watching for your halting. And the hosts of dark- 
 ness, still more rancorous and formidable than even the 
 children of disobedience, are combined for your destruc- 
 tion. We wrestle not only with flesh and blood, but with 
 principalities and powers, and the rulers of darkness of 
 this world. 
 
 But amidst the firm and determined combination of 
 earth and hell, and amidst the bitterest of their rancour, 
 and the most violent of their power and malice, you are 
 safe. However exalted your honour, and however in- 
 valuable your privileges, over all your glory there is a 
 defence. In ordinary cases you would think your habi- 
 tation secure if it were honoured to lodge the most gallant 
 commander and successful warrior of his day. But 
 what would be the presence of a Wallace or a Bruce 
 compared with the protection afforded by the residence 
 of the Lord Jesus Christ in your hearts ? Can any plot 
 escape his notice, or any foe assault him by surprise ? 
 No, for though he dwells in your hearts, the heaven aud 
 heaven of heavens cannot contain him. He is in all, and 
 through all, and over all. Hell is naked before him, and 
 destruction has no covering. And is there any among 
 
258 
 
 all the legions of darkness that has au arm like God, or 
 can thunder with a voice like him ? The deeps of the 
 ocean may be more profound than those of a river. The 
 stars are higher than the hills ; and one creature may be 
 possessed of greater power and resources than another; 
 but is the strongest and most formidable in all their hosts 
 a match for Omnipotence, and able to cope with his 
 creator ? The waves may lift up their heads — they may 
 create a tumult on the main, and spread havoc and con- 
 sternation round our planet, but can they embroil the 
 peace of the skies, or extinguish the bright orb of day ? 
 And though the heathen may rage, and the powers of 
 darkness instigate the rulers of this world to deeds of 
 outrage and cruelty, can they scale the heaven of heavens, 
 or wrest the sceptre of empire from the hands of the 
 Eternal ? Seated on the throne of the universe, and 
 wielding at pleasure all the energies of Deity, in a mo- 
 ment he could clear creation of his foes, and lay the 
 universe in ashes. Every movement of his will carries 
 along with it the power of omnipotence, and can dispose 
 as he chooses of all that immensity contains. The angels 
 on their thrones of light are not more safe than the faith- 
 ful who are crucified with Christ, and have him formed 
 in them the hope of glory. They have no greater 
 security than the presence and power of the Almighty, 
 and you have no less ; for, since Christ dwelleth in you, 
 the Eternal God is your refuge, and underneath the ever- 
 lasting arms. 
 
 Are you solicitous for the enlargement of your infor- 
 
259 
 
 mation, and the improvement of your mental powers ? 
 Then attend, 
 
 II. To the instruction which he imparts. 
 
 Every branch of knowledge has its use. Instruction 
 raises the civilized above the savage as far as these rise 
 above the brutes. But real religion as far transcends the 
 worth and value of philosophy and science as these excel 
 the drivelling of an idiot or the stupidity of a beast. A 
 man may be familiar with the mightiest and most stupen- 
 dous of the works of the Most High, and yet be ignorant 
 of God himself. He may be acquainted with all the pro- 
 cesses in trade, and be able to descant on the sources of 
 national wealth and public prosperity, and yet be a stranger 
 to the true riches and the way to everlasting peace and 
 felicity. He may be loaded with the treasures of erudi- 
 tion, and master of all the discoveries of skill and genius, 
 and yet be destitute of the knowledge of the only thing 
 which can bless him with present peace, or land him 
 amidst the delights and transports of a triumphant im- 
 mortality. For though the heavens declare the glory of 
 God, and the firmament showeth his handy works, many 
 who have employed most of their time in exploring the 
 wonders presented to our view on the face of the sky, 
 have lived without God, and neither known him nor 
 Jesus Christ whom he hath sent. 
 
 But when, in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom 
 knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of 
 preaching to save them that believe. The knowledge of 
 Christ, and of him crucified, is the infallible guide to 
 
260 
 
 glory. This is life eternal to know thee, the only true 
 God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. 
 
 There is none that teacheth like Christ. In him are 
 hid all the treasures of wisdom and of knowledge. And 
 whilst he has the command of all the fulness of Deity, 
 he has also free access to the mind, and can open the 
 understanding to receive the instructions which he com- 
 municates. He leads us into all truth, and gives us an 
 unction whereby we know all things. Facts concealed 
 from the men of learning, genius, and research, are placed 
 before our contemplation, and disclosed to our compre- 
 hension. I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and of 
 earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise 
 and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes, even so 
 Father, for so it hath seemed good in thy sight. 
 
 If, therefore, science raise the philosopher as far above 
 the savage as the latter is exalted above the brutes, grace 
 elevates the believer as far above the highest and noblest 
 of our unregenerate race as an angel is exalted above a 
 devil. 
 
 Do you court the moral dignity of your nature, and 
 long in all things for conformity to the will of God ? Then 
 look, 
 
 III. At the holiness which he bestows. 
 
 Is any purity greater than his, who is the perfection 
 of beauty and of excellence? who is light, and in whom 
 there is no darkness at all? who is the brightness of the 
 Father's glory, and the express image of his person? Yet, 
 if you are Christians at all, this pure, perfect, blessed, 
 
261 
 
 and glorious Redeemer, dwells in you by his gracious 
 presence, and is able and willing to impart to you all the 
 purity and spirituality which you can court. He can 
 put his law in your minds, and write it on your hearts. 
 He can bless you with his own image, and work in you, 
 both to will and to do of his good pleasure. He can 
 sanctify you wholly) and perfect what concerns you. 
 
 Can you ever be afraid of becoming too spiritual and 
 holy? of praying with too great fulness and fervour? of 
 conversing with too much intelligence and profit? of 
 loving God with too much warmth and affection ? or of 
 serving him with too great activity and success ? 
 
 Would it grieve you to be as pure and holy as the 
 angels of light? Would it afflict or alarm you to possess 
 all the holiness and spirituality which the law of God 
 inculcates ? 
 
 If you are real Christians, nothing can delight you 
 more, than to obtain entire deliverance from siu, and 
 perfect conformity to the will of God. Your highest 
 ambition is to have the same mind in you which was in 
 Christ, and to be holy even as God is holy. By Christ's 
 dwelling in you, this blessed and invaluable privilege is 
 secured. You become one spirit with him, and have the 
 same mind in you which was in him. 
 
 It is true that you have not yet attained, neither are 
 you already perfect. But your likeness to Christ is 
 begun. Though he is small and feeble, the infant as 
 really belongs to the human race as Goliath. And the 
 resemblance betwixt Christ and the Christian, though 
 z 
 
262 
 
 incomplete, is real, and will ultimately become perfect 
 and entire, lacking nothing. 
 
 Are you desirous of promoting the worth and the 
 welfare of all around you. Then look — 
 
 IV. At the usefulness which the residence of Christ 
 in the soul produces. 
 
 Who rendered such services to our race as the Lord 
 Jesus Christ? If there has been a soul rescued from 
 hell ; if a degree of comfort has been tasted by a human 
 creature on earth ; or one of all our spirits transported 
 to the regions of glory, the whole has been the work of 
 Immanuel. It is he who has turned aside the vials of 
 almighty vengeance, who has preserved our world from 
 becoming the suburbs of hell, who has delivered us from 
 going down to the pit, and opened up to us the path of 
 life. He has redeemed us from the curse of the law, by 
 being made a curse for us. 
 
 In the broad and extensive manifestation of Divine 
 beneficence, we cannot follow the Son of God. We 
 cannot reveal truth. We cannot atone for sin. We 
 cannot work out a justifying righteousness, bring down 
 the fulness of the Godhead to our humble habitation, 
 raise the dead, nor exalt the sons of Adam to sit on the 
 throne of light and of love. These are works peculiar 
 to the adorable Redeemer, and in which we can have no 
 share. 
 
 But we can walk in the light. We can hold forth the 
 word of life, and shine in the beauties of holiness. We 
 can circulate the Scriptures ; unfold their contents ; tell 
 
263 
 
 of the righteousness of Christ, and direct our perishing 
 brethren to the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin 
 of the world. We can be ready for every useful under- 
 taking, and be steadfast and unmoveable, always abound- 
 ing in the work of the Lord. 
 
 Who are such benefactors to the world as the heirs of 
 heaven ? They relieve the poor — they instruct the young 
 and ignorant — they preach the gospel, and carry round 
 the globe the glad tidings of redeeming mercy. They 
 are eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame. They are 
 covering the earth with intelligence, peace, freedom, 
 piety, and comfort, and filling the realms of light with 
 souls converted to the faith and obedience of the gospel. 
 We cannot create a sun. But by opening a passage 
 through the walls, we can admit light into a dungeon. 
 And though we cannot atone for sin, nor work out a 
 justifying righteousness, by making the gospel known, 
 we may bring our brethren to the enjoyment of the 
 righteousness of Christ, and the possession of all the 
 blessings of his salvation. We are not their saviours : 
 but by introducing them to the enjoyment of blessings 
 so numerous and vast, we prove their best benefactors, 
 and will furnish them with a cause of everlasting re^ 
 joicing. 
 
 Do you wish to raise your condition, and acquire a 
 high degree of distinction and honour? Then meditate — 
 
 V. On the dignity which he confers. 
 
 Most people are ambitious of worldly honours. They 
 
264 
 
 are vain of their connection with the great, and eager to 
 enjoy the notice and kindnesses of kings and princes, 
 
 But what are all the potentates of earth, compared 
 with the King of kings, and the Lord of lords ? What 
 is the sceptre which they wield, or the empire which they 
 possess, compared with the power and majesty of Him, 
 whose kingdom ruleth over all, and who doeth what 
 seemeth good in his sight in the armies of heaven, and 
 amongst the inhabitants of the earth ? Can they identify 
 our existence and interests with their own ? support us 
 in trouble? deliver us from death? raise us from the 
 dead? introduce us into heaven? and place us on the 
 throne of light and love ? 
 
 But all this, and infinitely more, is performed by the 
 Lord Jesus Christ. He admits us to the greatest near- 
 ness and intimacy with himself. Addressing the Father 
 in our behalf, he says, — " I in them, and they in me, 
 that they also may be one in us." With his complacent 
 smile of benignity and kindness, he looks on all his 
 followers, and says, — " Because I live, ye shall live also. 
 To my sheep I give eternal life, and they shall never 
 perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand. 
 If any man serve me, let him follow me, and where I 
 am, there also shall my servant be. If any man serve 
 me, him will my Father honour." 
 
 A prince occasionally makes a splendid figure. He 
 has a grand appearance on his coronation day. His 
 troops, his trumpeters, his nobles and officers of state in 
 all their rich and gorgeous attire, create an august and 
 
265 
 
 imposing spectacle. But what is the majesty of the most 
 magnificent and powerful of earthly sovereigns when con- 
 trasted with the retinue of the meanest and lowest in all 
 the household of faith ? The angels of light are their 
 guardians. " Are they not all ministering spirits, sent 
 forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salva- 
 tion?" Their presence is concealed from the world. 
 But would God draw aside the veil thrown around their 
 celestial forms, what a sight should we behold! Think 
 of the case of Elisha at Dothan. To the eye of sense 
 his case was deplorable and desperate. The city was 
 encompassed with a great host of Syrians, and the help- 
 less prophet, it might have been thought, must soon have 
 become their prisoner and victim. But amidst this for- 
 midable array the servant of God was safe. The moun- 
 tain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about 
 Elisha. Now what graceless monarch ever possessed 
 such a glorious train ? Yet such is the dignity of the 
 saints, and such is their constant, though invisible 
 guard. 
 
 But after all, in the present life we are incapable of 
 judging of the real dignity and ultimate grandeur of the 
 redeemed. These earthly tabernacles must give way — 
 we must see him as he is, and sit down with him in his 
 kingdom, and upon his throne, before we can tell the full 
 amount of the elevation and grandeur of those whom the 
 king delighteth to honour. Their splendour will at least 
 equal the brilliancy of the skies — for they that be wise 
 shall shine as the brightness of the firmament. Our 
 z2 
 
266 
 
 dignity will be similar to his own — for beholding openly 
 his glory, we shall be changed into the same image from 
 glory to glory. His elevation and grandeur will be the 
 measure of ours. When he appears we shall appear with 
 him in glory. 
 
 Are you in love with happiness and enjoyment ? Re- 
 flect, then, 
 
 VI. On the happiness which he bestows. 
 
 Jesus is rich in grace. In him all fulness dwells. He 
 has a great and large dominion. The wide universe, 
 with all that it contains is his own. For of him, and 
 through him, and to him are all things. But crea- 
 tion, with all its extent and magnificence, is the least 
 part of his property. He has the possession of all the 
 resources of Deity; for in him dwells all the fulness of the 
 Godhead bodily. While, however, he has the whole 
 universe at command, and all the resources of Deity at 
 his disposal, he is head over all things to the church, and 
 has the entire management and controul of all the bless- 
 ings of grace, and all the riches of redeeming mercy. 
 
 Each of these blessings is invaluable, for it flows from 
 the heart of the God of love, and is planned, prepared, 
 and bestowed for the benefit of his church, his chosen. 
 And what may you expect to come from the heart of the 
 God of love ? It is expected that the donations of men 
 will correspond to their rank and character. From a 
 father we may expect kindness, and from a king liberality 
 and munificence. W T hat, then, may we expect from the 
 Creator and Lord of all, who so loved the world that he 
 
26' 
 
 gave bis onlv begotten son that wbosoever believeth on 
 him should not perish but bave everlasting life? The 
 shifts of his grace must be immense ; for if he laid the 
 foundations of his munificence in such a costly manifes- 
 tation of generosity, every future communication of his 
 benignity must possess some correspondence with his first 
 and unspeakable gift. 
 
 And such accordingly is the case. His gifts are not 
 limited to bodily comforts or temporal enjoyments, to 
 present prosperity or worldly ease and honour. These 
 scarcely deserve the name of blessings ; they are left 
 for the grovelling creatures who mind earthly things, 
 and bave their portion here. For them that love him, 
 Jesus has prepared a better portion, honours more ex- 
 alted, and joys more refined and exquisite. These are 
 fellowship with God, the adoption of children, access 
 into his presence, peace and joy in believing, the first 
 truits of his Spirit, and the earnest and foretaste of bound- 
 less and never-ending glory. 
 
 The gospel with its blessings has been provided by the 
 God of love to manifest the generosity of his nature, and 
 give free exercise to his liberality. The creation is a 
 stupendous specimen of his power. Though he is able 
 to surpass all that he has already wrought, he has done 
 enough to show that his might is irresistible, and that his 
 understanding is unsearchable. The angels are bright 
 monuments of his purity. Their hearts are free from 
 ( < >rruption, and their conduct from inconsistency. They 
 
268 
 
 do his will with constancy and delight, with activity and 
 ardour. 
 
 But though the angels reflected the splendours of his 
 holiness, and the universe was a magnificent proof of his 
 power, an object was still awanting to illustrate his un- 
 bounded liberality and munificence. And this he has 
 found in the subjects of his saving mercy. " That in the 
 ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his 
 grace in his kindness towards us through Christ Jesus." 
 What, then, must be the amount of our felicity, when 
 redemption has been employed on purpose to display to 
 an adoring universe the extent of his liberality, and the 
 greatness of his generosity and grace? 
 
 Nothing less than the illuminating influences of the 
 Holy Ghost can enable us to perceive this love. " That 
 the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, 
 may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in 
 the knowledge of him, the eyes of your understanding 
 being enlightened, that ye may know what is the hope of 
 his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheri- 
 tance in the saints." Nothing less than Divine power 
 can fit us to sustain the vast and infinite amount of bliss 
 which the gospel conveys. " That he would grant you, 
 according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened 
 with might by his spirit in the inner man, that Christ may 
 dwell in your hearts by faith, that ye, being rooted and 
 grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all 
 saints what is the breadth and length, and depth and 
 height, and to know the love of Christ, which passeth 
 
260 
 
 knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness 
 of God." 
 
 And what wonder that it requires the teaching of the 
 eternal spirit to reveal the blessings of redemption, and 
 the power of God to strengthen us for their enjoyment, 
 when we remember that these blessings were purchased 
 by the toil and blood of the Son of God, and that the 
 sufferings and sacrifice of a person of his divine dignity 
 and glorious excellences are incomparably more valuable, 
 and show a love infinitely greater than the surrender of 
 the universe and all that it contains ! Since, therefore, 
 he loved us, and gave himself for us, how unutterable 
 and immense must be the blessings which he has pur- 
 chased for them who love him ! 
 
SERMON X. 
 
 THE DIFFERENT BUILDERS. 
 
 1st Corinthians iii. 10. 
 
 Let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. 
 
 The declaration in the verse immediately following the 
 text, " Other foundation can no man lay than that is 
 laid, which is Jesus Christ," shows that he is the founda- 
 tion of which the Apostle is speaking. Isaiah xxviii. 16, 
 1st Peter ii. 4 — 6, intimate that building on Christ is 
 substantially the same with believing on him. 
 
 The language before us implies that we must build, 
 and that when we build, it must be on the foundation 
 laid in Zion. But though these truths are plain and 
 obvious, they are overlooked or disregarded by multi- 
 tudes. Some, knowingly and deliberately, never put a 
 hand to the work of God, nor employ any means to en- 
 sure the salvation of their souls : and many who are 
 solicitous for their everlasting welfare, and very active 
 and diligent in rearing an edifice which they imagine will 
 
271 
 
 endure through eternity, from their ignorance of the foun- 
 dation, are involving themselves in endless ruin. 
 
 In compassion, therefore, at once to those who are totally 
 neglecting their souls, and those who are proceeding on 
 erroneous principles, or building on a false foundation, 1 
 shall address, 
 
 I. Those who are not building at all, or who are ne- 
 glecting religion altogether; and 
 
 II. Those who are building, or who are attending to 
 their salvation. 
 
 I shall address, 
 
 I. Those who are not building at all, or who are ne- 
 glecting religion altogether. 
 
 These may be divided into two classes, — the idle, and 
 the mischievous. 
 
 1. The idle. 
 
 The text implies that we must build — that we must be 
 religious — that we must embrace the gospel, and believe 
 on the Lord Jesus ; for unless it is the duty of each to 
 build on this foundation, why is every man required to 
 take heed how he buildeth thereupon ? 
 
 But is this the case with all men ? Are all men 
 working the work of God ? Is every individual in this 
 congregation building upon the Lord Jesus Christ ? 
 Some are quite idle. You have never spent one hour in 
 the service of God, nor in serious, active, earnest pre- 
 paration for eternity. You are busy about your farms 
 ami your merchandise, your meat and drink, your dress 
 
272 
 
 and amusements. But no argument nor entreaty, no 
 remonstrance nor call, can rouse you to flee from the 
 wrath to come, and attend to the salvation of your souls. 
 You imagine that religion may be very useful to those 
 who have leisure and inclination to study its doctrines, 
 and practise its duties. You even admit, that it is neces- 
 sary and indispensable for elders and preachers, for mini- 
 sters and those who make a great profession of pietv. 
 But as for you, you neither know nor wish to know any 
 thing about the matter. You have your families and 
 your own affairs to mind. You have more work on your 
 hands than you can well perform, and you have no time 
 to throw away about airy speculations, nor any desire to 
 molest yourselves about things that are invisible, and 
 perfectly beyond your reach. You have the Bible — but 
 you will not study the book of God. You have the 
 Sabbath — but you will not devote it to the service of the 
 Most High. Some of you, perhaps, live in families who 
 worship the Creator and Lord of all ; but what have 
 you to do with God ? and, therefore, when others are 
 reading his word or praying, you are slumbering or 
 sleeping. You sometimes enter the sanctuary — but what 
 have you to do with the gospel ? Therefore, when others 
 are listening to the invitations of mercy, your minds are 
 roving after their own fancies ; you are looking round 
 you, or laying yourselves down to indulge your drowsi- 
 ness till the service ends. You say that you never pre- 
 tended to be better than your neighbours, nor troubled 
 yourselves about religious notions; but vou have faith- 
 
273 
 
 discharged your duty to your families and to society, and 
 you are sure that God will be no worse to you than to 
 others, and will perhaps put you on a level with the best, 
 notwithstanding all their talk about dark and unintelligi- 
 ble mysteries and speculations. 
 
 My dear friends, if you had no soul, or if your soui 
 laboured under no sin ; if you had found out a retreat 
 where the hand of Jehovah could not reach you, or if 
 you possessed greater strength than the Almighty, you 
 might have some reason, or at least some apology for 
 your carelessness and insensibility. But when you know 
 that there is a spirit in man, and that the inspiration of 
 the Almighty has taught him understanding — when you 
 know that all unrighteousness is sin, and that the wages 
 of every sin is death — when you know that you have 
 done much to provoke the displeasure of the Lord of 
 hosts — that he is in all, and through all, and over all, and 
 that none can deliver out of his hands, can any thing be 
 more irrational and absurd, more infatuated and ruinous, 
 than to throw away the day of your visitation, and to 
 trifle with your eternal welfare ? 
 
 Do you say that you have no leisure for religion ? 
 Then tell me if sickness will delay its visits, or death put 
 off his attack, till you have time to receive them ? If 
 you have no leisure for religion, how come you to com- 
 mand so much time for sauntering about in indolence ? 
 for gossipping with your companions? for dosing and 
 sleeping during the public and private worship of God ? 
 and for spending hours, and perhaps days and nights in 
 2b 
 
274 
 
 drunkenness and revelling? Does it require more time 
 to serve the Father of mercies than the devil, the world- 
 and the flesh ? Or is it more exhausting and fatiguing 
 to fulfil the duties of life piously, heartily, and as unto 
 the Lord, than to perform them with a carnal, worldly, 
 and graceless spirit ? If you will only abandon sloth and 
 indolence, vice and frivolity, and redeem time from idle- 
 ness and uselessness, the most toil-worn and laborious of 
 all the children of Adam have ample leisure for all the 
 exercises of piety, and the cultivation of every grace and 
 virtue necessary to bring you to the enjoyment of the 
 gospel, and place you in the world of glory. Heaven 
 already encloses many who found their way to its blissful 
 regions from situations equal in distraction and drudgery 
 to any to which we can be subjected. 
 
 Do you tell me that you have no desire to have any 
 thin? to do with religion ? that you bate it, and are de- 
 termined, whatever be the consequences in the world to 
 come, to live a gay and merry life, and enjoy yourselves 
 while you are able ? 
 
 I have no doubt that you hate religion, for the carnal 
 mind is enmity against God. But the question is net, 
 Do you love, or hate religion? but do you need it? Can 
 you be happy without it ? Can you. by your own 
 strength, scale the heaven of heavens, and secure 
 everlasting blessedness, not only without the consent, 
 but in spite of the authority and power of Omnipo- 
 tence? If you could extinguish your existence — if 
 at death you could annihilate your soul, or prevent it 
 
275 
 
 from entering eternity, then you might let religion alone, 
 and give yourselves no concern about your everlasting 
 welfare. But when you know that you must soon die ; 
 that after death cometh the judgment, and that all who 
 are not meet for the kingdom of God, shall be sent away 
 into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels ; 
 can any infatuation be more gross and ruinous than to 
 neglect the glorious gospel, and disregard the things 
 belonging to your never-ending peace ? 
 
 In many things we are left to our own free and un- 
 fettered inclination. If we dislike the toils of literature, 
 we may betake ourselves to the pursuits of commerce, or 
 the labour of our hands. If we have an aversion to the 
 stillness of the country we may plunge into the noise and 
 bustle of the town. But there are some matters in which 
 we have no choice. In a mortal malady we must either 
 take the specific or die. On the field of battle we must 
 either fight or be slain. In a storm the seaman must 
 either work his vessel or go to the bottom. In the 
 deluge there was no alternative but either to enter the 
 ark or be drowned. And when by nature we are sick or 
 dying, and the gospel is the only antidote to our fatal 
 disorder, if we neglect it we must sink into everlasting 
 death. We are on the field of battle, where ignorance, 
 guilt, and depravity are mowing their millions down. If 
 we refuse to encounter them with the weapons of God, we 
 must soon fall before their artillery, and be hurled into 
 endless destruction. The deluge of wrath is descending; 
 the tempest is begun; and if we delay to take refuge on 
 
276 
 
 board the ark of mercy, we shall be swept away by the 
 tide of vengeance. 
 
 And will you prefer eternal ruin to a shelter near the 
 side of the Son of God? Will you choose a place in 
 the world of wo, rather than a seat on the throne of 
 light, and a share in the bliss and transports of heaven? 
 There is no alternative betwixt the gospel and endless 
 perdition. There are many transactions in which only a 
 few are concerned, and with which others have nothing 
 to do. But there are some events that are general, which 
 include the whole, and leave none neutral. There were 
 none of the inhabitants of Sodom allowed to view the 
 flight of Lot, and the conflagration of the city. There 
 were none out of the ark left to contemplate the ravages 
 of the deluge. None of us are permitted to speak of 
 death as a personage with whom we have no concern. 
 He is an enemy with whom each of us must grapple. 
 And will there be any idle spectators of the proceedings 
 of the day of judgment? When the faithful repair to the 
 house of prayer, swarthy loungers are peeping at them 
 from behind their windows, doors, and hedges, and meet- 
 ing them on their return with their insipid interrogatories 
 about who preached, and whose banns were proclaimed. 
 But in the great day of decision will any lookers-on be 
 left to gaze with indifference on the scene ? Will the 
 swarthy and tawdry parents be able to snatch their chil- 
 dren in their arms, and point out to them the parties 
 that pass in the procession ? Will the boys and girls be 
 able to gratify their curiosity by standing listlessly by 
 
277 
 
 and marking the appearance of the groups advanciug to 
 the tribunal of justice ? Will the turbulent and censori- 
 ous be able to glut their malignity and envy at the mor- 
 tification and confusion of those who are banished from 
 the presence of the Lord and the glory of his power, 
 and go exulting round, and tell how the Judge un- 
 masked the duplicity of the hypocrites, and how severely 
 he repaid the proud and selfish, the cruel and oppressive? 
 The transactions of that dread day are too wide and com- 
 prehensive to leave any idle spectator of the tremendous 
 scene. Amidst the innumerable multitudes who shall 
 surround the throne of judgment, each must bear his own 
 burden. Every transgressor shall mourn apart ; and in- 
 stead of glorying in the disgrace and misery of their 
 brethren, the most careless and hardened now will be 
 distracted and overwhelmed with the weight of his own 
 sorrows. 
 
 But besides you who are idle, I must address a few 
 words to 
 
 2. The mischievous. 
 
 You are busy — you are active and restless ; but are 
 you building up the temple of the Lord? Are you 
 working out your own salvation ? Are you extending 
 the reign of religion and of righteousnes ? adding to the 
 beauty and stability of the church of God? and labour- 
 ing to win souls to the adorable Redeemer ? You are 
 busy ; but it is to throw down the work of God— to 
 counteract the designs of redeeming mercy, and retain 
 the world in delusion and wretchedness. You are busy; 
 2 b 2 
 
278 
 
 but it is to extend and establish the ravages of impiety 
 and vice, to recruit for the prince of darkness, and crowd 
 the regions of horror and despair. No man can be saved 
 without piety — without deep seriousness — without earnest 
 persevering zeal in religion, and entire devotedness of 
 heart and life to God. For the kingdom of heaven suf- 
 fereth violence, and the violent take it by force. But 
 what are your occupations and pursuits ? Are you con- 
 ducting our Sabbath schools, and supporting our religi- 
 ous institutions ? Are you striving to instruct the igno- 
 rant, and convert the graceless ? Are you giving your- 
 selves to prayer, shining in the beauties of holiness, and 
 abounding in the fruits of righteousness? You are 
 living without God, and without Christ in the world. 
 You hate all that is serious, and burlesque all that is 
 sacred. You are drinking and swearing, debauching the 
 young, and confirming the hardened, enticing your com- 
 panions to forsake the sanctuary, to walk about with you, 
 or frequent the tavern on Sabbath ; and some of you 
 making a gain of retailing to others the intoxicating 
 draught by which they are hurried on to violate the laws 
 of God and of man, and rush to everlasting ruin. 
 
 Can you say that you are building on the foundation 
 laid in Zion, and making your calling and election sure ? 
 If throwing down be the same as building up ; if the road 
 to hell be the same as that to heaven ; if the service of 
 Satan be the same as the service of God : then you may 
 l)e building on the faith of the gospel ; you may be on 
 the way to everlasting bliss, and enrolled amongst the 
 
279 
 
 servants of the Most High. But if darkness be different 
 from light — if death be different from life, and the way to 
 destruction different from the path of salvation : you are 
 on the way to endless ruin. You cannot see peace. The 
 face of God is set against you ; and amongst all the ob- 
 jects of his displeasure, there are none who shall encoun- 
 ter a more awful amount of his indignation. " If judg- 
 ment first begin at the house of God, what shall be the 
 end of them that obey not the gospel of God ? and if the 
 righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and 
 the sinner appear ? " You may now laugh at the warn- 
 ing, and boast of your mirth, your gains, and your mis- 
 chief: but the day is at hand when you will most sin- 
 cerely wish that, on the hour when you sold the first 
 glass of strong drink — on the hour when you swore your 
 first oath, and poured out the first language of filth and 
 blasphemy — on the hour when you first sneered at reli- 
 gion, and reviled the characters of the faithful : you shall 
 wish that a mill-stone had been hanged about your neck, 
 and that you had been cast into the deeps of the sea. 
 
 Let me entreat you to lay these facts to heart, and, 
 whilst the God of mercy waits to be gracious, flee for 
 refuge to lay hold on the hope set before you. 
 
 We shall now address — 
 
 II. Those who are building ; who are busy and active 
 about religion, and think that they are sure of eternal 
 life. 
 
 These may be divided into three classes ; 
 
280 
 
 1. Those who are knowingly and deliberately building 
 oh a foundation of their own. 
 
 2. Those who are building on a foundation of their 
 own, while they imagine that they are building on the 
 Rock of Ages. 
 
 3. Those who are building on the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
 1. Those who are knowingly and deliberately building 
 on a foundation of their own. 
 
 You know that something is necessary for the salvation 
 of your soul. You are sensible that this is a matter of 
 too great importance to be left to chance or accident. 
 You are cultivating a life of morality and virtue. You 
 are laboriously and painfully rearing, on the foundations 
 of your own worth and goodness, an edifice which you 
 expect will defend you from all the evils of time, and en- 
 sure to you the dignities and delights of a safe and tri- 
 umphant immortality. But however lofty and magnificent 
 your superstructure, it rests on a rotten and mouldering 
 basis ; and on the first shock of the stormy elements of 
 eternity it will crumble into dust, and bury you in its 
 ruins. 
 
 The first step in the religion of a sinner is faith in the 
 Lord Jesus Christ. From the moment that we embrace 
 the gospel, that we believe on the Son of God, we are 
 safe. Our honour is exalted, and our inheritance is un- 
 bounded. We are the children of God, and all things 
 are ours. 
 
 But while destitute of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 
281 
 
 we are without God and without hope. We are of our 
 father the devil. We are at an infinite distance from 
 God, and all the perfections of his nature are placed be- 
 twixt us and everlasting happiness. Jesus has a name 
 above every name, that to him every knee should bow, 
 and every tongue confess that he is the Lord, to the 
 glory of the Father. The Father has commanded all to 
 hear, to receive, to embrace his Son. They who will 
 not have Christ to reign over them, shall be taken and 
 slain before his face. Before, therefore, you can, in a 
 state of unbelief, or without union to the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, scale the heaven of heavens, or enjoy a single 
 spiritual blessing, what a task have you to perform ? You 
 must dry up the blood of the Son of God. You must 
 deprive the Holy Ghost of his grace and consolations. 
 You must strip Jehovah of his justice, trample his holi- 
 ness under foot, wrest the sceptre of creation from his 
 grasp, and dash in pieces the throne on which he sits. 
 
 Such is the mighty and dreadful task to which you are 
 committed ; while, ignorant of the righteousness of Christ, 
 you go about to establish a title to the divine favour upon 
 the number or the excellence of your own performances. 
 And is this an undertaking which you are able to accom- 
 plish ? 
 
 You admit the obligation aud value of justice and 
 honesty, of sincerity and truth, of temperance and sobriety, 
 of kindness and beneficence. You are alarmed and agi- 
 tated when your virtuous resolutions are broken, and 
 when you are betrayed into any gross and flagrant trans- 
 
282 
 
 gression. But you never sink into sorrow nor shake 
 with fear because you have refused to believe on Him 
 whom God hath sent. If you have a moral and respect- 
 able life, you give yourselves no concern for the want of 
 faith on the Son of God. 
 
 Now, we grant that a virtuous life is excellent and 
 admirable. We never can cultivate morality with too 
 much diligence, nor abound too much in humanity and 
 beneficence. But the question is not, Are good works 
 useful and valuable ? but, Are they the ground of our 
 acceptance with God ? Are they the cause of our sal- 
 vation ? Brass may be serviceable as a medium of cir- 
 culation, or as an ornament to our furniture ; but it can- 
 not be employed as an article of food. And though 
 good works are invaluable as the effects of faith, as evi- 
 dences of grace, and as a qualification for the enjoyment 
 of heaven : after we are told that by the deeds of the 
 law no flesh shall be justified, that as many as are of the 
 works of the law are under a curse ; can our good works 
 save us? After we are assured that Christ has redeemed 
 us from the curse of the law by being made a curse for 
 us ; that he is the end of the law for righteousness to 
 every one that believeth ; neither is there salvation in 
 any other : can our duties and virtues open to us the path 
 of life, or seat us on the throne of heaven ? We can 
 perform no works really good, till the heart is made good. 
 Can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit ? What was 
 the worth of the sacrifices of Saul, the prophecies of 
 Balaam, the prayers of the Pharisees, or the preaching of 
 
283 
 
 Judas, while their hearts were in the gall of bitterness 
 and bond of iniquity? And as long as your mind is 
 alienated from God, and destitute of the renewing of the 
 Holy Ghost; what can all your outward virtues avail? 
 
 If you expect that the justice of God will reward 
 your good works, must not the same justice punish your 
 evil deeds ? And since in every thing we offend, what 
 must be your eternal state if you continue to trust in 
 your own righteousness? 
 
 But while you have no good works on which to rely, 
 I must add that, in the single sin of neglecting the great 
 salvation, there is guilt sufficient to sink you into the 
 deeps of perdition. When we are told that this is the 
 work of God — that we believe on him whom he hath 
 sent; when he says, " This is my beloved Son, in whom 
 I am well pleased, hear ye him," can we describe or con- 
 ceive the guilt and danger of disregarding the authority 
 of the Most High, and despising Him who is the bright- 
 ness of the Father's glory, and the express image of his 
 person ? When Jesus Christ is the unspeakable gift of 
 God, and the sufferings and sacrifice of a person of his 
 divine dignity and eternal glory are infinitely superior to 
 the bounties of providence and the treasures of creation ; 
 can you conceive or utter the criminality and baseness of 
 rejecting or undervaluing the salvation of the gospel ? 
 
 Little, little do you know of your dreadful situation 
 and danger, who are alarmed and agitated about your 
 drunkenness and debauchery, your fraud and falsehood, 
 but feel no remorse, and entertain no fear for neglecting 
 
284 
 
 and despising the great salvation. Since the day that 
 Jesus died, this is the greatest atrocity that a creature 
 can perpetrate. By rejecting the blessings purchased by 
 the death of the Redeemer, you insult the knowledge 
 of God by declaring that this contrivance of infinite wis- 
 dom was absolutely needless, and you offer an indignity 
 to his goodness by proclaiming that his best gift is not 
 worth your acceptance. Through eternity Satan never 
 can show such despite to the wisdom and goodness of 
 the Most High. A divine, infinite, and all-sufficient 
 Saviour will never be in his offer. Tempests of wrath 
 may agitate the fiery deluge on which he floats. The 
 trumpet of judgment may shake the world of wo ; but 
 no messenger of mercy shall ever appear in these lurid 
 abodes, nor any sound of salvation be heard amid its 
 ceaseless shrieks and lamentations. 
 
 Let me conjure you while the calls and invitations of 
 the blessed gospel are still ringing in your ears, instantly 
 to embrace its merciful provisions, and lay hold on its 
 rich and invaluable blessings. When you consider the 
 divine dignity and infinite power and majesty of Im- 
 manuel, and reflect on the depth of his abasement and 
 the intensity of his sufferings, calmly and deliberately 
 say, if hell can punish too severely the sin of neglecting 
 the atonement of the cross ? Can the hand of Omni- 
 potence inflict a doom too tremendous on your careless 
 and unfeeling soul, which disregards all the momentous 
 purposes of his death ? While you are living at your 
 ease without having received the Lord Jesus Christ ; 
 
285 
 
 though you were free from every other offence, the single 
 sin of neglecting the Lord Jesus Christ is sufficient 
 to sink your soul, even though it were beyond the worth 
 of ten thousand worlds, into the deeps of perdition. 
 
 The heart i9 deceitful above all things. Satan is 
 master of every species of subtlety, and he employs all 
 his ingenuity to pervert and mislead unwary souls to their 
 everlasting ruin. The men of whom we have just now 
 been speaking, openly and avowedly disregard the Lord 
 Jesus Christ, and despise his precious gospel. But there 
 is another class as pitiable and wretched. 
 
 2. These are the men who believe that they are trust- 
 ing in the great Redeemer, when, in fact, they are de- 
 pending on their own righteousness for acceptance with 
 God. 
 
 A wise builder will not lay the foundation of a magni- 
 ficent and expensive edifice on snow or sand, on moss or 
 rubbish. He will employ any expense or trouble to 
 reach a rock, or secure a firm and solid basis for his 
 fabric. He will not fix a single stone till he find that he 
 has ground beneath him capable of sustaining the edifice 
 which he wishes to rear. And when the soul is our all, 
 will a Christian who has an endless existence before him, 
 and a holy God above him — who knows the greatness of 
 the Divine power, and the value of his immortal interests, 
 place his hope and confidence on any thing that cannot 
 support and save him ? No; he digs deep, and lays his 
 foundation well. He will never rest till he reach the 
 Rock of Ages, and repose the weight of his dependence 
 2c 
 
286 
 
 and trust on the foundation laid in Zion. He cannot 
 enjoy a moment's peace till he find Christ in the arms of 
 his faith, and occupying and filling all the desires and 
 affections of his heart. In every ordinance and exercise 
 he seeks communion with Jesus : and the best and fairest 
 are utterly unprofitable and vain, unless he is blessed 
 with fellowship with him whom his soul loves. His ser- 
 vices and labours are undertaken in obedience to the will 
 of Christ, aud unreservedly consecrated to his interest and 
 honour. His knowledge, experience, and attainments are 
 all renounced for the sake cf the Redeemer, and he has no 
 peace nor rest till he win Christ, and be found in him. 
 In religion Jesus is the first and the last, the beginning 
 and ending. He is our wisdom, righteousness, sanctifi- 
 cation, and redemption. He is all in all. And we are 
 never safe till we relinquish all for his sake — till we 
 cleave to him simply, trust in him entirely, and from the 
 heart say, In the Lord have we righteousness and 
 strength. 
 
 But instead of adopting this scriptural procedure, 
 what are multitudes doing? They are unconsciously 
 indeed, but most earnestly striving to supersede the 
 righteousness of Christ. They are labouring to shut him 
 out of their system. They are trying to prove that his 
 death was superfluous. And while they have a show of 
 piety, the only use of their religion is to keep their souls 
 at a distance from the Saviour, and make their destruc- 
 tion more certain and severe. 
 
 Some of you may ask, How can a man's religion ruin 
 
28' 
 
 him ? Is not religion the only means by which we can 
 be saved ? How, then, can it ensure our destruction, or 
 contribute to our perdition ? The religion of God, the 
 religion of the Bible will save all who embrace it. But a 
 religion of our own invention, a religion which sets aside 
 and nullifies the religion of God will never save a single 
 soul, but infallibly destroy all who are resting on it. The 
 brazen serpent erected by the appointment of God, 
 healed all the stung Israelites who looked at it. But if 
 every tribe or family had reared a brazen serpent for 
 themselves, would these have produced the same miracu- 
 lous effects ? The ark which God enjoined to be pre- 
 pared saved Noah and his household; but would he have 
 found the same safety in a vessel of his own contrivance ? 
 The gospel ensures eternal happiness to all who embrace 
 it. " He that believeth shall be saved." But if we ne- 
 glect the gospel, and have recourse to fancies and notions 
 of our own, will they save us ? Had the Pharisees no 
 religion ? They had much religion. They made long 
 prayers. They paid tithes of all they possessed. They 
 fasted twice in the week. They compassed sea and land 
 to make one proselyte. But did their religion render 
 them any useful service? It contributed to lull them 
 asleep in fatal security, and to make their perdition more 
 certain and severe. And to the present day the religion 
 of many accomplishes no other object than the religion 
 of the Pharisees. It conceals from them their guilt and 
 danger. It inspires them with false and delusive confi- 
 dence. It keeps them back from the Redeemer. In- 
 
288 
 
 stead of shutting them up unto the faith, it leads them to 
 reject the only source of salvation, and cling to a refuge of 
 lies. Being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and 
 going about to establish a righteousness of their own, 
 they refuse to submit to the righteousness of Christ. 
 
 Do any inquire, Who are in this deplorable and wretched 
 condition ? I reply that this is the case with all 
 
 (1.) Who are trusting to your profession of Chris- 
 tianity. 
 
 You may be aware of the impossibility of obtaining 
 salvation by abandoning your gross immoralities, and 
 becoming decent and respectable in your behaviour. But 
 when you hear of so many promises given to them who 
 pray, search the Scriptures, sanctify the Sabbath, and 
 attend on the ordinances of the gospel, you commence 
 secret prayer — you set up family worship — you keep 
 holy the Sabbath, attend the preaching of the word, and 
 apply for admission to the Lord's table, and then conclude 
 that you must necessarily be in a state of grace. 
 
 But though these things are all excellent in themselves, 
 and of the greatest importance and value when they flow 
 from a new heart and a right spirit, when they are per- 
 formed from faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and from 
 deep adoring gratitude for the wonders of redeeming 
 love, what is their worth as long as your heart is carnal 
 or unclean ? W'hat signified the prophecies of Balaam, 
 or the preaching of Judas, while they themselves were 
 dead in trespasses and sins? And what is the value of 
 all your religious observances while you yourselves are 
 
289 
 
 uusanctified and in the bond of iniquity? Will God 
 admit them as a substitute for the righteousness of 
 Christ, and allow them to set aside the atonement of his 
 Son ? 
 
 (2 ) You who are relying upon your zeal and extra- 
 ordinary acts of devotion. 
 
 You have attended the ablest ministers — you have 
 read the best books — you have made yourselves masters 
 of the Christian system ; and while you have adopted a 
 form of sound words, you contend earnestly for the faith 
 once delivered to the saints — you associate with the most 
 pious professors — you multiply your religious duties — 
 you lengthen your prayers, observe secret fasts, and bind 
 yourselves by solemn vows to be wholly God's. 
 
 These things are all most commendable when they 
 are adopted to make the soul feel its weakness, empti- 
 ness, and pollution, to discover more of our filth and 
 depravity, and compel us to lean more simply and unre- 
 servedly on the righteousness, grace, and all -sufficiency 
 of the Saviour. But what can these services avail when 
 they are undertaken and performed either to set aside 
 the unspeakable gift of God ? or from the hope that they 
 will constitute part of our justifying righteousness ? 
 
 (3.) You who are depending on your future reforma- 
 tion and improvement. 
 
 You are conscious that you are chargeable with many 
 
 past defects and offences. But you are now in more 
 
 favourable circumstances than ever. You have obtained 
 
 more knowledge and experience — you have secured the 
 
 2c2 
 
290 
 
 society of a pious neighbour — you have procured a supply 
 of excellent books, or are favoured with an eloquent and 
 able minister. If God will only have a little patience, 
 you are now sure that you will soon pay him all. You will 
 be far more strict and watchful than formerly — you will 
 pray more frequently and fervently — you will subscribe 
 to every religious society, and assist in every humane 
 and benevolent undertaking. 
 
 But is this the foundation laid in Zion? Will the 
 punctuality of your future payments discharge your past 
 arrears ? or your obedience to the Divine law in time to 
 come atone for your past transgressions ? 
 
 (4.) You who have recourse to Christ, not for salva- 
 tion, but for help. 
 
 You acknowledge that you can do only a little, and 
 that little is very feebly and imperfectly done. Still, 
 however, you imagine that you can do something, and 
 you are resolved to do your best ; and you hope that 
 then Christ will cover your iniquities, and supply all 
 your defects. 
 
 Now is this to be shut up to the faith ? Is this count- 
 ing all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge 
 of Christ? This is to place the principal stress of your 
 confidence upon your own performances, and to have 
 recourse to the righteousness of Christ only when they 
 fail. And is this such conduct as he will approve and 
 bless? Will you lend money to your bankrupt adver- 
 sary to carry on a process to deprive you of your legal 
 rights, and eject you from your possessions ? And when 
 
291 
 
 in religion Jesus Christ is all in all ; when he is the way? 
 the truth, and the life ; when no man can come to the 
 Father but by him, will he allow you to engross or even 
 share the honour of your salvation ? " Their righteous- 
 ness is of me, saith the Lord ;" and he will not give his 
 glory to another. 
 
 (5.) You who are forming treaties and stipulations 
 with Christ. 
 
 You know that you are criminal and guilty; but if he 
 will only forgive your past transgressions, and accept you 
 as you are, you will be his servants for ever, and will 
 amply repay him for all his generosity and kindness. 
 You will do such wonders in his work — you will be such 
 a treasure in your family, and such a blessing to the 
 church and the world, that you will soon and abundantly 
 requite all the favour which he can show you. 
 
 But pray, is a gift the same as a purchase ? Are the 
 blessings of salvation set up to sale ? Has God promised 
 to dispose of the treasures of his grace to the highest 
 bidder? Are the calls and invitations of the gospel 
 addressed to the good, the virtuous, the devout, and those 
 who can give a price for its provisions ? Its language is, 
 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and 
 he that hath no money, let him buy wine and milk with- 
 out money and without price. This is a faithful saying, 
 and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came 
 into the world to save sinners. I am not come to call 
 the righteous, but sinners to repentance. Thy money 
 
292 
 
 perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift 
 of God might be purchased with money. 
 
 (6.) You who are confiding in your sincere though 
 imperfect obedience. 
 
 You find that you cannot keep the commandments of 
 God perfectly. Every man has his weakness, and you 
 cannot pretend that you are better than your neighbours. 
 You have your infirmities and frailties, but you are willing 
 to do what you can. The demands of the law are per- 
 fectly reasonable and just. You admire and love it, and 
 would rejoice if you could keep it perfectly. But this 
 you cannot do. But, like an honest bankrupt, you will 
 do your utmost. And a God of mercy will surely 
 accept the will for the deed, and allow your sincere to 
 stand for perfect obedience. 
 
 But are you sure that your obedience is sincere ? Are 
 you doing your best? and exerting yourselves to the 
 utmost? While the heart is deceitful above all things, 
 and desperately wicked, you will find that sincere is as 
 scarce an article as perfect obedience. 
 
 But supposing that your obedience were sincere, where 
 is your security for its acceptance ? Is this to be found 
 in the declaration, " As many as are of the deeds of the law 
 are under a curse ; for it is written, Cursed is every one 
 that continueth not in all things that are written in the 
 book of the law to do them ?" The Lord Jesus Christ 
 admits no composition betwixt faith and works, grace and 
 law. If you have recourse to him, you must renounce 
 every thing besides; but if you betake yourselves to the 
 
293 
 
 law in any form, you must stand or fall by the law. As 
 many of you as seek to be justified by the law, ye are 
 fallen from grace. Rom. iv. 14, 16; xi. 6; ix. 32. 
 
 (7.) You who are expecting salvation because your 
 own piety and worth have recommended you to the 
 Saviour. 
 
 You dare not trust wholly to your own goodness. 
 You are sensible that in many things you have offended, 
 and in a matter of such ineffable importance as your 
 eternal welfare, you do not like to expose yourselves to 
 any risk. You therefore think it advisable to have re- 
 course to the Redeemer, to prevent any danger of dis- 
 appointment. But why do you trust in the Saviour ? 
 Is this on account of the all-sufficiency of his atonement? 
 the universal calls, and the free invitations of the gospel? 
 No; you are encouraged to trust in Christ because you 
 have not been like other men ; you have been neither 
 profane nor profligate ; you have been sober, honest, and 
 decent ; you have been familiar with the Scriptures ; you 
 have attended ordinances ; you have been the friend and 
 advocate of religion and morality, and therefore you 
 hope that Christ will not place you on a level with 
 abandoned criminals and gross transgressors. 
 
 But, my dear friends, is this to come to him in the 
 character of sinners that possess no good thing ? that 
 are undone and deserving to perish ? Is this to count 
 all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of 
 Christ ? Remember that the Son of Man came to seek 
 and to save that which was lost ; not to call the righteous 
 
294 
 
 but sinners to repentance. " Israel, which followed after 
 the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of 
 righteousness. Wherefore ? Because they sought it not 
 by faith, but as it were by the works of the law." 
 
 Take heed lest ye also fall after the same example of 
 ignorance, legality, and unbelief. 
 
 In these, and in various other forms, the souls of 
 thousands, and tens of thousands have been deluded to 
 their everlasting ruin. They have mistaken the shadow 
 for the substance. They have built on the sand, and not 
 on the foundation laid in Zion. And their end has been 
 according to their work. Their false and spurious reli- 
 gion has led them to reject the gospel- By trusting to a 
 refuge of lies, they have disregarded the Rock of Ages, 
 remained at a distance from the adorable Redeemer, 
 deprived themselves of all the riches of his grace, and 
 the blessings of his salvation, have shut themselves out of 
 the kingdom of heaven, and made their destruction sure. 
 Let us now bespeak the attention, 
 3- Of the wise and cautious builders. 
 A wise builder, when he is going to rear an expensive 
 and magnificent edifice, will not commence operations 
 upon snow, moss, or sand. He will clear away every 
 impediment and obstruction, and never lay a stone till he 
 has reached a rock, or firm and solid ground. 
 
 The soul is our all. If ever a creature required a 
 strong and stable foundation for his edifice, it is a sin- 
 ner. Our building must last for ever and ever. The 
 foundation must support the whole weight of our 
 
295 
 
 spiritual and eternal welfare. And will any ordinary- 
 prop or support suffice for such a matchless and import- 
 ant purpose ? Nothing less can suit our case than the 
 Rock of Ages, the foundation laid in Zion. This pos- 
 sesses every property which we need or can desire- It 
 is hroad and spacious, and capable of containing all our 
 interests. It is firm and solid, and able to resist every 
 shock, to sustain our souls in safety, and give them sal- 
 vation with eternal glory. 
 
 But while in Jesus all fulness dwells, and he can save 
 to the uttermost and save for ever, there is salvation in 
 no other. Other foundation can no man lay than that is 
 laid, which is Jesus Christ. 
 
 Now, how are we to reach this rock and build on this 
 foundation? We never can reach this rock till every 
 obstruction and impediment is removed. We never 
 can build on this foundation till all things are renounced 
 for the sake of Christ, till we embrace him simply, and 
 cleave to him entirely. A graft cannot unite with the 
 stock as long as any substance intervenes. And a soul 
 can never close with the Lord Jesus Christ as long as it 
 relies in the slightest degree on its good works or good 
 intentions. No matter whether we are confiding in our 
 religious profession, our extraordinary exercises of piety, 
 our past performances, our future services, our sincere 
 obedience, or our benevolent designs : in any of these 
 cases we are leaning to our own righteousness. We are 
 seeking salvation, as it were, by the works of the law, 
 
296 
 
 and not by faith. In such a case Christ will profit us 
 nothing 
 
 (1.) In order to build with safety on this foundation, 
 you must trust for your acceptance before God; simply 
 to the righteousness of Christ. 
 
 At creation we were to have been justified solely by 
 our obedience. By doing the things which were con- 
 tained in the law, we were to have enjoyed eternal life. 
 But the law is now broken : all have sinned : the wages 
 of sin are death : and, therefore, as we are sinners and 
 deserving death, salvation by our own obedience is im- 
 possible. By the deeds of the law no flesh shall be jus- 
 tified. No man can be at once a sinner and righteous, any 
 more than a glass can be perfectly whole at the time that 
 it is broken. Since, therefore, all have sinned, by the 
 deeds of the law shall no flesh living be justified. 
 
 But what the law cannot accomplish has been secured 
 in another manner. God has laid our help upon his Son. 
 Christ has magnified the law and made it honourable. 
 He has finished transgression, and made an end of offer- 
 ings for sin ; he has taken away the sin of the world ; he 
 has borne our iniquities, and carried our sorrows ; he is 
 the propitiation for sin ; he is the Lord our righteous- 
 ness ; he is the end of the law for righteousness to every 
 one that believeth. 
 
 Now, when he is called the propitiation for sin — the 
 Saviour of the world — the Lord our righteousness ; how 
 much atonement has he made for sin ? how much salva- 
 tion has he wrought out ? how much righteousness has 
 
29T 
 
 he secured? These questions may be answered by 
 others. When he calls himself the light of the world — 
 the resurrection and the life ; what proportion of light 
 does he impart ? what quantity of life does he bestow ? 
 and how far will he raise the dead ? If natural men 
 have discovered any of the truths revealed in the gospel ; 
 if the creature can concur in its own formation, and the 
 dead raise themselves or co-operate in their own resur- 
 rection, then the sinner may save himself, or contribute 
 to his own justification. But if the gospel is all the 
 revelation of Jesus Christ ; if natural and spiritual life 
 are his gift, and the resurrection of the body is his work ; 
 then when he is declared to be the propitiation for sin, 
 and the Lord our righteousness, this is because he has 
 borne the punishment of our transgressions, and we have 
 righteousness in him alone. We have redemption 
 through his blood. We are justified freely by his grace, 
 and in this act of his holy sovereign power we neither 
 can be his counsellors nor coadjutors. 
 
 Xow, you can never build on the foundation laid in 
 Zion till you understand and believe this precious fact. 
 It is necessary that you should know that the ground of 
 your acceptance before God consists in the person and 
 work of Immanuel, and that this work of his was com- 
 pleted ages before you were born. You have destroyed 
 yourselves. By nature you are the children of disobe- 
 dience and wrath. You naturally are sinners and un- 
 godly. In you there dwelleth no good thing. You 
 2d 
 
298 
 
 never can have redemption except through the blood of 
 Christ. It is only through his righteousness that you 
 can be made righteous. He who had no sin was made a 
 sacrifice for sin, that we who have no righteousness of 
 our own might be made the righteousness of God in him. 
 In the same manner that Christ, without any sin of his 
 own, was subjected to the same sufferings as if in his 
 own person he had committed our sins, we who have no 
 righteousness of our own are accepted as completely 
 righteous before God as if in our own persons we had 
 wrought out the righteousness of the Redeemer. 
 
 Whenever you understand and believe this, whatever 
 talents or attainments you possess, whatever labours you 
 may have accomplished or services you may have per- 
 formed, you will renouuce the whole for the sake of the 
 Lord Jesus Christ. This was the case with Paul. And 
 in the matter of justification all must be like-minded with 
 him, and say, " What things were gain to me, those I 
 counted loss for Christ. Yea, doubtless, and I count all 
 things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of 
 Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss 
 of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may- 
 win Christ, and be found in him, not having mine own 
 righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is 
 through faith of Christ — the righteousness which is of God 
 by faith." You will remember that you are made right- 
 eous through the righteousness of another, and rendered 
 comely through his comeliness put upon you. Your 
 
299 
 
 own good deeds and good desigus can no more secure 
 your acceptance with God than the weight of a feather 
 can contribute to the stability of the globe. 
 
 (2.) From what motive do you perform good works ? 
 Is this to recommend you to God ? to attract his notice? 
 or repay his generosity and goodness for the blessings of 
 his saving mercy ? You strive to be holy and unblame- 
 able before him in love, from attachment to his person, 
 and gratitude for the immense and unsearchable riches 
 of his grace. Blessings so multiplied and unbounded 
 completely overpower your feelings, and fill your soul 
 with adoring delight and wonder. Language cannot ex- 
 press the admiration you entertain, nor eternity repay 
 the debt of affection and obedience that you owe. The 
 love of Christ constrains you. You are so delighted with 
 his person, and so enraptured with his grace, that you 
 cannot keep back your heart from him. You are stead- 
 fast and unmoveable, always abounding in his work, be- 
 cause your happiness depends upon your diligence in his 
 service, and devotedness to his honour. He engages and 
 engrosses your affections, and you would be miserable if 
 you were interrupted in his service, or compelled to let 
 his work alone. 
 
 (3.) Why do you bear your trials with patience and 
 resignation? and manifest such a degree of calmness 
 and submission under disappointment and trouble ? Is 
 this to atone for your offences ? or render some satisfac- 
 tion to justice for your repeated and heinous violations 
 
300 
 
 of the divine law ? You know that the tears of peni- 
 tence, and the blood of martyrdom cannot expiate one 
 deed of guilt, nor all the rivers on earth, and all the 
 fountains in creation wash out one stain of sin. This is 
 a task which baffles the universe, and for which nothing 
 less than the blood of the Son of God is equal. But you 
 exercise patience and resignation under all your sufferings 
 and sorrows, to mark the reality of your repentance, to 
 prove the sincerity and depth of your contrition, and show 
 your deliberate and cordial approbation of the Divine 
 will. " I was dumb : I opened not my mouth because 
 thou didst it. That thou mayest remember, and be con- 
 founded, and never open thy mouth any more because of 
 thy shame, when I am pacified towards thee for all that 
 thou hast done." 
 
 (4. ) Why do you frequent the ordinances of religion, 
 and employ the means of grace? Is this for any selfish 
 end or legal purpose ? Is this to establish a claim to the 
 Divine regard, and purchase a title to eternal life? You 
 detest such a thought. You attend religious ordinances 
 and exercises to see Jesus, to hold communion with God. 
 to secure nearness to him whom your soul loves, to 
 promote your conformity to the image of Christ, and 
 enjoy a meetness for heaven, and a foretaste of its bliss. 
 However mean the outward institution, or however feeble 
 the instrument, if you are blessed with fellowship with 
 God, you have enough. But take Christ out of the 
 arms of your faith, and withdraw his presence from the- 
 
301 
 
 ordinances of the gospel, though you were honoured with 
 the society of an angel, and the ministry of an apostle, 
 you would be poor and miserable. 
 
 (5.) Why do you observe your frames, and watch your 
 feelings ? Is this to strengthen the foundations of your 
 faith, or mark the rise or fall of the Divine favour? 
 Your faith rests on the Rock of Ages. Creation cannot 
 shake its stability, nor the whole universe increase its 
 strength. And the Divine favour is founded on the 
 person and work of Immanuel, which are infinite and all- 
 sufficient, and incapable of alteration or improvement. 
 But you observe your frames, and watch your feelings, 
 to mark the state of your heart, and discover your reli- 
 gious progress, to see if you entertain suitable views of 
 the glory and grace of the Lord Jesus, and are rendering 
 to him according to the innumerable and immense bless- 
 ings which he has bestowed. The health of a passenger 
 has no influence upon the strength or direction of the 
 ship, but it has a great effect upon his own ease and enjoy- 
 ment. The sickness of Noah would have distressed his 
 family and destroyed his own comfort; but it could not 
 have sunk the ark nor endangered the safety of any whom 
 it contained. The agitation, the alarm, and the fear of 
 the faithful may disturb their peace and mar their com- 
 forts, but they cannot ruin their souls nor prevent their 
 everlasting welfare. When once we are joined to the 
 Lord Jesus we are kept not by our own strength, but by 
 the power of God through faith unto salvation. He 
 2 d 2 
 
302 
 
 rests in his love. He hateth putting away. But our 
 duty is to look well to our ways, that we may grow in 
 grace, and in the knowledge of God our Saviour, and 
 build ourselves up in our most holy faith. 
 
SERMON XI. 
 
 THE CELESTIAL VISITOR. 
 
 Revelation iii. 20. 
 
 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock : if any man hear my 
 voice and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup 
 with him, and he with me." 
 
 Nothing is so perverse and inexplicable, as the treat- 
 ment which the irreligious give to our divine and ador- 
 able Redeemer. Let a man of wealth and of fame, a 
 peer or a prince make a call of kindness at the cottage of 
 a peasant, every foot eagerly runs to open the door — 
 every countenance welcomes his approach — every voice 
 cordially invites his entrance; the best which the habi- 
 tation possesses is produced for his entertainment, and 
 many a regret is felt that they can afford him a reception 
 na more suited to his rank, and expressive of their esteem 
 and gratitude. 
 
 They will talk with ecstasy of the visit : they will 
 carefully treasure up his sayings: they will minutely de- 
 scribe his looks and his actions, and regard the day that 
 
304 
 
 brought him to their dwelling as the highest and happiest 
 of their lives. 
 
 But what is a peer or a prince, a man of science and 
 of fame, compared with the Son of God and the Lord of 
 glory, maker of all yon worlds, and preserver of all that 
 the wide creation contains ? What are the tidings which 
 they can bring, compared with the intelligence which 
 Jesus announces? or the favours which they can bestow, 
 with the vast, the unbounded benefits and blessings he 
 comes to confer? Their gifts are trifling in magnitude 
 and limited in duration. They refer to the body. They 
 cannot strengthen nor elevate the heart, pierce the world 
 of spirits, nor command the honours and joys of immor- 
 tality. But Jesus comes to exalt and ennoble our char- 
 acter; to take away transgression; to set the captive 
 free ; to remove our pain and poverty ; to enrich our 
 souls with treasures invaluable and divine ; and fill and 
 feast our hearts with blessings which raise us to the dig- 
 nity of angels, and last for ever and ever. 
 
 Now, what is the reception which he obtains ? Let 
 him present himself in a congregation, in a family, or 
 knock at the door of a sinner's heart, and what is the 
 treatment which he experiences ? Does every eye 
 sparkle with joy at his approach? Does every voice 
 hail his appearance, and with ecstasy say, Come in, thou 
 blessed of the Lord, wherefore standest thou without? 
 Men are averse to his presence. The heart is closed 
 against his entrance. It is firmly barred against his ad- 
 mission, and he is left without to solicit access. Hear 
 
305 
 
 how lie speaks of his treatment, " Behold, I stand at the 
 door and knock." 
 Take notice 
 
 I. Of the insensibility and obstinacy of the careless 
 and irreligious. 
 
 II. The patience, condescension, and grace of the Lord 
 Jesus Christ. 
 
 III. The blessed consequences of complying with his 
 calls. 
 
 I. The insensibility and obstinacy of the careless and 
 irreligious. 
 
 They resist the offers of mercy ; they reject the coun- 
 sel of God against themselves ; they close their hearts 
 against the entrance of their adorable Redeemer and 
 Lord. For unless this is the case, why is he obliged to 
 take his station without, and stand, and knock, and cry 
 for admission ? 
 
 Now, is there any reason why men should be so shy of 
 his company, and so averse to his presence ? so eager to 
 shun his acquaintance and repel his approach ? Have 
 they any cause of alarm from his presence, or any ground 
 of dread from his entrance ? Does he come as a thief 
 and a robber, to steal, and devour, and destroy ; to strip 
 you of your treasures, and deprive you of your comforts 
 and joys ? Does he come to tease and torment you with 
 his toils and his tasks, to defraud you of your wages, and 
 subject you to vexation, anguish, and broken-heartedness 
 — to exhaust your fortunes by extravagance and folly, to 
 corrupt your families by vice and impiety, to ruin your 
 
306 
 
 health and shorten your lives by dissipation and de- 
 bauchery ? Does he come to strip you of your temporal 
 welfare, and accumulate upon your heads the horrors of 
 eternal misery? 
 
 These dreadful tasks he leaves to your adversaries and 
 enemies — to Satan and his legions. Jesus comes on the 
 wings of love, with a countenance beaming with benig- 
 nity — with a heart overflowing with beneficence — with a 
 voice publishing mercy, and hands scattering the bless- 
 ings of grace. He comes to save and bless you ; to 
 rescue you from hell and ruin, and raise you to heaven 
 and glory ; to deliver you from the horrors of condemna- 
 tion and the distractions of eternal wo, and put you in 
 possession of the honours of celestial bliss, and the trans- 
 ports of boundless and immortal joy. 
 
 And are these objects of alarm and aversion ? Does 
 the debtor tremble at the approach of his generous bene- 
 factor, who comes to discharge his arrears, and send him 
 forth to light and liberty ? Does the poor patient, ex- 
 hausted with pining sickness, or racked with torturing 
 pain, deprecate the presence of his kind and skilful 
 physician, who comes to remove his maladies, brace his 
 limbs with strength and vigour, and send him back to the 
 duties and enjoyments of his station ? 
 
 And when Jesus comes to save and bless us ; comes 
 to enrich us with the treasures of his grace ; and put us 
 in full possession of all the mercies of the everlasting 
 covenant, and all the immense and inexhaustible resources 
 of salvation and glory : why do men turn a deaf ear to 
 
307 
 
 his admonitions, reject the riches of his grace, and spurn 
 the invitations of his generosity and tenderness ? 
 
 Some, perhaps, may tell us that they never saw the 
 face nor heard the voice of Jesus. Were he to appear 
 in person, to present himself in their families or congre- 
 gation, none of all the sons of Adam would be more glad 
 to see him, nor more ready to give him an instant and 
 cordial welcome. But thirty, forty, or threescore sum- 
 mers have passed over their heads ; they have attended 
 scores of sacraments, heard hundreds of sermons, and said 
 some thousands of prayers. But though they have seen 
 many men and listened to many a sermon, one glance of 
 Immauuel they never saw, nor one word of the Son of 
 God did they ever hear. God forbid that they should 
 shut their hearts against the Saviour, and keep the 
 adorable Redeemer standing without ! 
 
 But what, my dear friends, do you suppose the Son of 
 God is like ? How is it that Jesus comes to the chil- 
 dren of men? In what form does he address himself to 
 your hearts ? Do you suppose that when he comes 
 he is to rend the heavens, shake the earth, lift up 
 his voice in thunder, and fill the surrounding creation 
 with the brightness of his glory? 
 
 Multitudes imagine that Je9us can never visit them 
 unless he comes in the splendours of Divinity, and in 
 the majesty and lustre of the Godhead. 
 
 But have you not heard that he is never far from any 
 one of us ? that his ordinances and laws are given as a 
 sign betwixt him and us ? that wherever he records his 
 
308 
 
 name there he meets with his people ? that he is in 
 his temple ? that we are ambassadors for Christ ? that 
 he that receiveth us receiveth him ? but he that 
 despiseth us despiseth him. Every time that you have 
 seen a Bible, every time you have enjoyed the light of a 
 Sabbath's sun, every time that you have bent the knee 
 in family devotion, that you have heard the accents of 
 religious counsel and admonition, that you have heard the 
 sound of the church-going bell, that you have seen a 
 minister in the pulpit, or listened to the words of eternal 
 life; the Son of God and Lord of glory has taken his 
 place at the door of your hearts, lifted up his blessed and 
 lovely voice and said, Behold I stand at the door and knock. 
 And will you maintain that you have never seen his 
 shape nor heard his voice ? In that dread day, when he 
 shall lay judgment to the line, will you be able to lift up 
 a calm and unblushing front in his presence, and tell him 
 in a firm unfaltering tone, that, in walking his ample 
 rounds of beneficence and mercy, you were overlooked 
 and forgotten ? the door of your heart was kept daily 
 and constantly open, but he never approached it ? you 
 prayed for his arrival, but he neglected to come near 
 you ? the message of reconciliation and of peace was sent 
 to them afar off, and to them who were near, but the 
 glad tidings of salvation were never proclaimed in your 
 ears, nor the means of eternal life placed within your 
 reach ? that the invitations of the gospel were never laid 
 in your path, nor a single application made to your un- 
 derstandings or your hearts? From all the bibles with 
 
309 
 
 which our land is stored, and all the ministers of religion 
 regularly and earnestly labouring to bring men to the 
 knowledge and obedience of the truth, have you never 
 once been told of the right and the claim which the Lord 
 Jesus possesses to your heart and soul, to your time and 
 strength ? Have you never once been told that to be 
 carnally-minded is death, and that they who are far from 
 God shall perish ? Have you never once heard that 
 God so loved the world that he has given his only be- 
 gotten son, that whosoever believeth on him should not 
 perish ? Have you never heard that we have redemption 
 through his blood the forgiveness of sins ? Have you 
 never had a free and unqualified offer of this all-sufficient 
 righteousness, nor an affectionate and urgent invitation 
 to accept the blessings bought and sealed on Calvary? 
 Have you never once been warned to flee from the wrath 
 to come, nor exhorted to lay hold on the hope set before 
 you? 
 
 The Lord God of gods he knoweth, and your hearts 
 and souls know, that, so far from being overlooked 
 and forgotten by the God of love, you have been cloyed, 
 sickened, and disgusted with the means of grace. You 
 have been unable to move a step without meeting with 
 some memorial of your Redeemer, and being more for- 
 cibly reminded of the riches of his goodness, and the 
 infinite obligations which you owe to his love. Every 
 counsel of kindness from a friend or relative— every re- 
 monstrance of conscience against your carelessness and 
 security, every Sabbath as it returned — every sermon 
 2 E 
 
310 
 
 you have heard or might have heard — every sentence of 
 the Bible which you read, have all been so many instances 
 in which the Lord of glory has come preaching peace to 
 you who were afar off", and in which he has stood at the 
 door of your hearts and knocked, saying, " If you will 
 hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in." 
 
 But if some groundlessly maintain that the Lord 
 Jesus Christ, in his endless walks of beneficence and 
 mercy, has never given them an invitation or call, others, 
 with equal groundlessness, imagine that they have heard 
 his voice, opened the door, and let him in. " We all 
 have received him. We believe in his name, profess his 
 religion, attend his ordinances, and occasionally do a 
 kind and generous action. We may not be so pious and 
 zealous as we ought. We may at times do some things 
 to offend and grieve him. But God forbid that we 
 should shut him out of our hearts, and keep him stand- 
 ing and knocking in vain at the door. We have no en- 
 mity to his person, nor hatred to his cause. W T e love his 
 friendship, and would like to go to heaven when we die. 
 And can we be charged with excluding him from our 
 hearts?" 
 
 My dear friends, our state in time, and our condition 
 through eternity must be decided, not by our notions, 
 opinions, and expectations, but according to our character 
 and conduct. It is not the man who is loud and clamor- 
 ous in his expressions of loyalty, but the man who loves 
 his king, and obeys the laws, who is entitled to the praise 
 of a good subject. It is not the man who is loud and 
 
311 
 
 boisterous in commendation of literature and science who 
 is intelligent and learned, but the man who loves learn- 
 ing, devotes himself to study, and employs his time in 
 cultivating his powers, and enlarging the amount of his 
 information. And, believe me, it is not the man that 
 lives securely, that hopes confidently, and means well, 
 that is in a state of safety and accepted in the Lord. 
 Not he who esteemeth himself, but whom the Lord 
 commendeth, is approved. Many that are first shall be 
 last. 
 
 By nature Christ is out of the heart. For if he were 
 within, what necessity would there be for standing at the 
 door and knocking ? If he were in us by nature, he 
 might perhaps wish to go out, but he would have no oc- 
 casion to solicit an entrance. 
 
 Since, then, by nature he is out, when did you admit 
 him ? Most people can remember when they received 
 a visitor, when he arrived, and how long he stayed. Is 
 Jesus such an insignificant and contemptible character 
 that you took no notice of his entrance, that you cannot 
 yet tell whether he is without or within? Does his 
 presence create so little difference from his absence 
 that you cannot tell whether you have him or want him ? 
 Is there any amongst the companions so like him that 
 you cannot tell the difference betwixt them ? 
 
 It is no easy thing for him to gain admission to the 
 heart. It is closed against him through carelessness, 
 sloth, indolence, worldliness, and carnality. His pres- 
 ence is shunned and detested. We naturally imagine 
 
312 
 
 that it will disturb our peace and destroy our happiness. 
 When he comes in the preaching of the word, or in the 
 dispensations of Providence, we are terrified and tremble. 
 We cry, Hast thou found us, O thou our enemy? What 
 have we to do with thee, thou Holy One of God? art 
 thou come to torment us before the time ? We will not 
 have him to reign over us. 
 
 Is it then an easy matter to be brought to submit to 
 his authority, and surrender to him the possession and 
 use of our hearts, our time, and strength ? It is the last 
 measure to which the natural mind will have recourse. 
 Nothing less than divine power can accomplish it. When 
 it is produced, forget it we will not, we cannot. It is the 
 subject nearest to our hearts and uppermost in our esteem. 
 We can sooner forget the day when we were delivered 
 from the bands of an assassin — the day when we were 
 rescued from a conflagration — the day when we were 
 visited by our king and his family — the day when we 
 were unexpectedly put in possession of a title and estate: 
 than forget the day when the Son of God and Lord of 
 glory entered our hearts, and established his throne 
 within them. He translated you from the power of dark- 
 ness ; he brought along with him light, and joy, and 
 liberty ; he brought you out of darkness and the shadow 
 of death, introduced you into the glorious liberty of the 
 sons of God, admitted you into fellowship with himself, 
 and gave you good hope through grace. 
 
 Now when did this take place ? In infancy ? in 
 youth? in riper years? this year? last year? when? 
 
313 
 
 How was it accomplished ? By prosperity or adver- 
 sity ? By sickness, affliction, loss of kindred or friends ? 
 Was it by the reading of the Scriptures, the preaching of 
 the Word, or by what ? 
 
 Where was it effected ? In the house or in the fields ? 
 at home or abroad ? in the closet or the sanctuary ? 
 
 What effects has it produced ? Whenever real religion 
 is produced, the man becomes a new creature. His 
 heart is strongly and intensely set on God and things 
 divine. Whom have I in heaven but thee? Angels 
 and seraphim are there. My Christian brethren and 
 kindred are there. My little infants, whose bodies I 
 committed to the dust are there. Prophets, apostles, and 
 martyrs are adoring around the throne. But whom 
 have I in heaven but thee ? and there is none upon 
 earth that I desire besides thee. Jesus is precious to his 
 soul. He cannot live without him ; he devotes himself 
 to godliness and goodness, and after his utmost efforts, 
 he is grieved, humbled, and ashamed that he has done so 
 little, and keeps days of fasting and humiliation on 
 account of his unprofitableness. 
 
 Is this the case with you ? 
 
 Has your religion made you happy ? There are im- 
 mense treasures in the Lord Jesus Christ. These are all 
 laid open to the enjoyment and use of his people. All 
 things are theirs ; they have all, and abound ; they are 
 complete in him ; their felicity is so great that they are 
 often going to him with full and grateful hearts, crying, 
 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
 2e2 
 
314 
 
 who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly- 
 places in Christ. 
 
 If you have not admitted him into your hearts, why 
 have you closed the door against him ? Has he been 
 shut out to make way for some better and nobler guest? 
 Is there any more exalted than the Most High ? more 
 powerful than the Almighty? more great and glorious 
 than the Infinite God ? or able and willing to give you 
 more than the bliss of heaven, the treasures of eternity, 
 and the fulness of tbe All-sufficient ? Yet Jesus is the 
 Most High God — possessor of all things in heaven and 
 in earth. He gives you all things freely to enjoy, and 
 having not spared himself, how shall lie not with himself 
 freely give you all things ? 
 
 And will you find room in your hearts for your farms 
 and merchandise, and yet find none for your divine and 
 adorable Redeemer? Will you throw open your houses 
 and hearts to vanity and folly, to mirth and amusement, 
 but close them against the riches of saving mercy, and 
 all the honours and delights of boundless and never- 
 ending glory? Is this your kindness to your friend ? 
 Do ye thus requite the Lord, ah ! foolish and un- 
 wise? 
 
 How does Jesus treat those who shut the door against 
 him, and turn a deaf ear to all the tender and affecting 
 entreaties of his love ? Does he turn on his heel, leave 
 them to their fate, and swear in his wrath that they shall 
 never taste of his supper, nor enter into his rest ? 
 
315 
 
 All this he might do : but be astonished, O heavens, 
 and wonder, O earth, at 
 
 II. The kind, adorable condescension and grace of our 
 divine Redeemer. 
 
 He does not turn away from us in wrath. He con- 
 tinues his applications, remonstrances, and calls. " Be- 
 hold," says he, " I stand at the door and knock." 
 
 In this language there is much to raise our admiration 
 and administer the most salutary and momentous lessons. 
 
 When he says, " Behold I stand at the door and 
 knock," let me entreat you to observe that this expresses 
 
 1. The most amazing patience and forbearance. 
 
 On finding a cold and repulsive treatment, O my 
 friends, what might we have reasonably apprehended from 
 the injured Saviour, the insulted Son of God ? Did a 
 peer or a prince, any of the great and noble of the land, 
 come to the cottage of a mechanic or labourer, who had 
 offended them, in order to offer forgiveness, and restore 
 him to kindness and favour ; if he were to throw the 
 door in their face, to prosecute his business or amuse- 
 ment, to burlesque their invitations, and turn all their en- 
 treaties into ridicule and scorn : they would soon desist 
 from their importunity, and inflict on the rude and guilty 
 creature the vengeance that is due. 
 
 But what are all the peers and potentates of the earth 
 compared with the Son of God and the Lord of glory ? 
 and what is all the provocation which you can give them, 
 compared with the dishonour which you heap upon his 
 blessed name, and the despite which you do to the spirit 
 
316 
 
 of grace by your sloth and insensibility, your cold- 
 heartedness and carnality, by neglecting the great salva- 
 tion, and despising the mighty and immense benefits 
 secured and sealed by his blood ? It is long since he 
 presented himself at the door of our understanding and 
 of our heart. It is long, long since he first cried, " Open 
 to me, ye slothful drowsy souls. Awake, ye that sleep ; 
 arise from the dead, and I will give you light." It is 
 long since, by acts of kindness, and deeds of compassion 
 and generosity, he has been trying to win our affections, 
 and secure our admiration and our love. 
 
 When, therefore, we treated his admonitions with care- 
 lessness and indifference, how might he have resented the 
 affront, and left us to reap the bitter and dreadful fruits 
 of our infatuation and folly? On meeting with such a 
 shameful repulse, he might have turned away, and taken 
 his departure for ever. He might have said, " The door 
 is shut : and shall I stand here soliciting admission from 
 creatures so mean, and criminals so vile and loathsome ? 
 With heaven for my dwelling, and all creation for mine 
 inheritance, what honour can I gain from their friendship, 
 or what advantage can 1 derive from a place in their 
 hearts ? They are only hovels, prisons, and sinks of 
 pollution; and shall they have the rudeness to slight my 
 invitations, and the baseness to exclude my entrance ? I 
 am no exile driven from my Father's house, and com- 
 pelled to traverse creation for a shelter and home. I 
 will go, and return unto my place : and in the arms of 
 my Father, and amidst the riches of the universe, find my 
 
317 
 
 rest and ray joy. They are joined to their idols ; let 
 them alone." 
 
 In this manner he might have resented the insult, and 
 after the first trifling with his gospel, and the first act of 
 resistance against his Holy Spirit, he might have left us 
 to perish in our sins. And if he had only pronounced 
 these dreadful words, where, where would we this day 
 have been ? Where others who had been left to blind- 
 ness of mind and hardness of heart, are subjected to 
 weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth. 
 
 But he has not left us to perish in our sins. He has 
 borne with our transgressions. He has pitied our weak- 
 ness. He has had long patience with us, and amidst all 
 our provocations and sins he has spared us to the present 
 hour. He has lengthened out the time of your visita- 
 tion. He has renewed the admonitions of his word, and 
 the calls of his grace. He has given you line upon line, 
 and precept upon precept. How long have some of you 
 been made the monuments of his patience, forbearance, 
 and mercy? The owner of the vineyard came three 
 years seeking fruit on the fig tree. But some of you 
 have compelled him to come not only three but thirteen, 
 thirty, or threescore years, seeking fruit, and finding 
 none. Who is it that has fed and clothed you all your 
 lives to the present hour ? Who has provided you with 
 the comforts of life, and furnished you with the powers 
 of your minds? Who has supplied your wants, and 
 given you all things richly to enjoy ? Who has done all 
 these things ? That God against whom you have sinned. 
 
318 
 
 That Saviour whose goodness you have abused, and 
 whose grace you have despised. For in him we all live, 
 and move, and have our being. 
 
 When in infaucy and youth you rebelled and vexed 
 his Holy Spirit ; when in maturer years you went on 
 frowardly in the ways of your heart, and manifested the 
 grossest contempt for the blessings which Jesus purchased 
 with his blood ; when in rage and madness you sinned 
 against the Lord, and set his justice and his judgments at 
 defiance, what withheld the thunderbolts of vengeance, 
 and prevented you from being instantly hurled into 
 the regions of everlasting darkness and despair ? Did 
 he want opportunity or power to avenge the quarrel of 
 his covenant, and render a due recompense to your 
 deeds ? 
 
 What power can he want who wields the energies of 
 Omnipotence — who speaks and it is done — who gives 
 the command and all things stand fast ? 
 
 And could he want provocation when you were despis- 
 ing the riches of his grace, and indulging the very spirit 
 and temper for which millions and millions have already 
 been consigned to everlasting wo ? 
 
 He wanted neither power nor provocation. But he 
 spared you to rouse you to repentance, to bring you to 
 consideration, to constrain you to accept the vast, the 
 unsearchable riches of his grace. 
 
 And will you not at last yield to the entreaties of his 
 mercy? Will you not allow his kindness to melt your 
 hearts, and gain the sovereignty of your affections? 
 
319 
 
 Will you not permit his goodness to lead you to repen- 
 tance? Will you not yet be persuaded to acquaint 
 yourselves with him and be at peace? Will you still 
 resist the Holy Ghost? still provoke the Lord to jealousy? 
 and compel your adorable Redeemer to complain, that 
 all day long he has stretched out his hands to a disobe- 
 dient and a gainsaying people ? Had you been cut off 
 ten, twenty, thirty years ago, where would you this day 
 have been ? And if you persist in your carelessness and 
 indifference, where will you be when death cuts you 
 down ? 
 
 He not only exercises the greatest patience and for- 
 bearance, but I must beseech you to observe, 
 
 *2. That he employs the greatest importunity and 
 earnestness. 
 
 What can be more descriptive of eagerness and solici- 
 tude than the language of the text ? He will not be re- 
 pelled. If an entrance is not instantly afforded, he uses the 
 means to rouse attention and lead to consideration. " Be- 
 hold I stand at the door and knock." He does not take 
 hi- station at a distance, and merely call aloud. But lest 
 we should be asleep, or foolishly occupied amidst the 
 business or pleasures of life, he comes near to us in the 
 dispensations of his providence and the ordinances of his 
 grace. He takes his station at our door and knocks. 
 
 Many imagine that they are willing to be saved, but 
 that he is regardless of their condition — that they would 
 gladly be reconciled to God, but that he is backward to 
 impart the blessings of grace and salvation. They call, 
 
320 
 
 but he will not hear. They stretch out their hands, but 
 he refuses to regard them. They read his Word, fre- 
 quent his courts, and regularly maintain the practice of 
 prayer : but they are nothing benefited by all that they 
 can do. His ear is steeled against their petition and cry ; 
 and enclosing himself within the fastnesses of his 
 supreme and sovereign will, he coolly leaves them to their 
 fate. 
 
 But do these insinuations possess either the substance 
 or shadow of reality? For their falsehood and baseness 
 we may safely appeal to all that we see, and hear, and 
 know of the conduct of the Son of God. 
 
 He has made the most complete and ample provision 
 for your spiritual improvement and everlasting welfare. 
 
 But if he had been careless of your fate ; above all, if 
 he had wished your destruction, and been sternly re- 
 solved to banish you to everlasting horror, after we had 
 risen in daring rebellion against his government, burst 
 through every restraint which authority and kindness 
 could impose, instead of sending his mercy after us, 
 instead of plying and urging us by the calls and invita- 
 tions of the gospel, he would have coolly left us to reap 
 the fruit of our doings, and given himself no concern 
 about the matter. 
 
 But is this what he has done ? No. He has come 
 all the way from the throne of glory to the cross on Cal- 
 vary to seek and save us. He has so loved the world 
 that he has given himself, that whosoever believeth on 
 him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 
 
321 
 
 And after he has not spared himself, but delivered him- 
 self up to the death for us all, can he have any pleasure 
 in our death, or even any indifference to our salvation ? 
 All that a man hath will he give for his life. But Jesus 
 loved us, and gave himself for us. And was there any 
 sacrifice more costly, any gift more precious, any pledge 
 of his affection more strong and astonishing? And yet 
 he so loved the world, he so loved you, that he gave 
 himself for you. 
 
 i; O inhahitants of Jerusalem, judge, I pray you, be- 
 twixt me and my vineyard." From a man to whom you 
 had long been a benefactor and friend, to whom you had 
 rendered many a signal and invaluable service, could you 
 have presumed to ask the surrender of his life in your 
 room ? And after you were enemies to God in your 
 minds and by wicked works ; after you had abused the 
 riches of his goodness, and covered yourselves with the 
 guilt and infamy of ingratitude, hostility, and vice, could 
 you have presumed to have lifted up your heads in his 
 presence, and from the brightness of the Father's glory 
 have dared to ask him to become the propitiation for 
 your sins, and to part with all the blood which flowed in 
 his blessed veins ? Durst you have attempted such a 
 presumptious request ? 
 
 Yet all this, unasked, unexpected, has been spent upon 
 
 your salvation, and employed to secure your peace with 
 
 God, and entail a right to eternal life. Greater love 
 
 hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for 
 
 2 F 
 
322 
 
 his friends. And is the love of Jesus less when he died 
 for his enemies ? 
 
 Had he been careless of your welfare, and determined 
 inflexibly to leave you to your fate, would he have given 
 warning of your danger, and employed so many affecting 
 and powerful measures to compel you to flee from the 
 wrath to come ? 
 
 He would have left you in total ignorance of your 
 guilt and danger. He would not have uttered one word 
 about the sinfulness of sin, and the awful ruinous conse- 
 quences of continuing in a thoughtless, graceless state. 
 He would have employed no means to disturb your false 
 and deceitful peace. He would have allowed you to 
 sleep on and take your rest till the horrors of a lost 
 eternity had closed around you. 
 
 To yourselves I again appeal, if the very reverse of all 
 this is not the case ? What more strong and astonishing 
 measures could he have employed to raise you to consi- 
 deration, and reclaim you from the error and ruin of 
 your ways than what he has actually exerted ? He has 
 given you the Bible, fraught with the plainest warnings, 
 and bright with the most tender promises of love and 
 grace. Regularly as the week comes round he sends 
 you the sacred hours of the Sabbath, to afford you 
 leisure and opportunity to attend to what belongs to your 
 peace, and make your calling and election sure. He 
 meets you in youth with the labours and prayers of re- 
 ligious teachers and instructors. Through the various 
 veais of life, and even to the bed of death, he follows 
 
323 
 
 you with calls and admonitions to repent and believe, to 
 turn and live. He reasons and remonstrates with the 
 ignorant and careless, debates the matter with the profane 
 and hardened. He repeats in the ears of the presump- 
 tuous and heaven-daring the certain and dreadful conse- 
 quences of their crimes, and holds out the assurance of 
 peace, pardon, reconciliation, and eternal life to all who 
 repent and turn. 
 
 If careless of your welfare, and indifferent to your 
 fate, why does he crowd his word with such strong, 
 earnest, universal exhortations to repent and believe? 
 Why does Wisdom cry aloud, and Understanding lift up 
 her voice, How long, ye simple ones, will ye love sim- 
 plicity, and scorners delight in their scorning, and fools 
 hate knowledge ? What mean his injunctions to ministers, 
 to preach the word, to be instant in season and out of 
 season, to do the work of evangelists, to give full proof 
 of their ministry? What mean all the entreaties and 
 calls which, in the course of his own ministry, he gave to 
 the thoughtless and secure, and the tears of bitterness 
 and anguish which he shed over the impenitent and 
 hardened? Why did he complain when his message was 
 rejected, that they would not come to him for life ; and 
 when they closed their hearts against the endearing mes- 
 sages of mercy, and the bliss-inspiring offers of his grace, 
 why did he sit down and weep, crying, " O Jerusalem, 
 Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest 
 them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have 
 gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth 
 
324 
 
 her chickens under her wings, and ye would not?" 
 Were you now to accost the glorious Redeemer and say, 
 Blessed Jesus, why weepest thou ? what answer would 
 he return ? "I weep not for myself. All things are 
 mine, from the centre of the eternal throne to the far- 
 thest verge of immensity, and from the zenith of the 
 Divine glory to the least exercise of Omnipotence. I 
 can neither receive additional bliss nor sustain the small- 
 est loss of felicity. But I weep because sinners will 
 rather throw their souls into hell than admit my love and 
 grace into their hearts : they will rather perish than re- 
 pent, rather forfeit heaven and glory than renounce the 
 world and its follies, rather take up their abode with 
 everlasting burnings, and become the eternal derision of 
 devils, than by sound conversion become the subjects of 
 saving grace, and the heirs of eternal glory. When I 
 knock they will not open — when I call they will not 
 hearken — when I stretch out my hands they will not 
 regard; but in spite of reason, conscience, and all that 
 is sacred and valuable in time and in eternity, go on trea- 
 suring up for themselves wrath against the day of wrath. 
 Oh, that they were wise, that they understood these things, 
 and would lay to heart their latter end !" 
 
 If careless and indifferent about your fate, why does he 
 place himself at the avenues to your heart, and say, " Be- 
 hold I stand at the door and knock ?" If a person has 
 little or no business at the house of another, if he gets no 
 access after knocking twice or thrice, he walks off, and 
 gives himself no more concern about the matter. But if 
 
325 
 
 he have business of great importance — if he have come 
 upon a cause of life and death, he will take no denial, 
 but give such loud and repeated alarms as shall rouse 
 every inmate, and bring all within to his aid. And when 
 Jesus has all power in heaven and in earth ; when in a 
 moment, and with ease, he could make clear riddance of 
 his foes, and dash ten thousand worlds to dust, why does 
 he bear with such long suffering the vessels of wrath 
 which are fitting themselves for destruction? ring such 
 frequent and loud alarms in the guilty conscience ? lay 
 so many obstacles and impediments in the way to hell ? 
 surround your path with the means of grace, and press 
 on your souls the blessings of salvation ? Why, leaving 
 the recesses of his power, and the habitation of his holi- 
 ness and glory, does he come to your mean and polluted 
 abode, and cry, Behold I stand at the door and knock ? 
 Is this the language or conduct of one who is indifferent 
 to your fate — of one who shuts out your petition and 
 cry, and when you call will not hear, and when you seek 
 him is determined that you shall not find him ? 
 
 And what is the cause of all this importunity and ear- 
 siestness ? Does he need your presence and services ? 
 Can he be hurt by your perdition, or profited by your 
 salvation ? If you can add to the splendour of the sun, 
 if you can augment the stability of the earth, or enlarge 
 the bounds or the beauty of the uuiverse, then, but not 
 till then, can you be profitable to your Maker. Then, 
 but not till then, can you plant one additional ray in his 
 crown of glory, or yield one new and unknown accession 
 2f 2 
 
32C 
 
 of joy to his heart. For he is the self-existent, indepen- 
 dent, and all-sufficient God. Of him, and through him. 
 and to him, are all things. To create a system, and 
 light up a sun in its centre, is to him as easy as to open 
 a way into your heart. For he has merely to speak, and 
 it shall be done. 
 
 Why, then, is he so importunate and earnest to gain 
 attention to his voice, and obtain admission into your 
 hearts ? No selfish end of his own, but sublime, exalted, 
 boundless compassion for your souls. He sees your 
 guilt and wretchedness, your infatuation and security. 
 He knows that no man will give you warning, and that 
 you yourselves entertain no apprehension of your danger. 
 He sees what is already in your hearts, and that if by his 
 presence he does not drive it out, you must be eter- 
 nally undone. And how can he bear to see your wretch- 
 edness ? What but love to you and zeal for your salvation 
 brought him from heaven to earth ? made him submit to 
 a life of labour, and a death of pain? Are we loth to 
 lose the object for which we have laboured long and 
 suffered much ? How reluctant then must he be to be 
 deprived of the travail of his soul, and lose the fruit of 
 all his tears, and toil, and blood ? Did he die for our 
 redemption ? then with what a heart-rending pang must 
 he give up to anguish unutterable, and misery never- 
 ending, any of those precious souls whom he died to 
 redeem ? Thoughtless and unconcerned as you may be 
 respecting the horrors of everlasting wo, he sees them 
 well, and kindly urges you to flee from the wrath to 
 
327 
 
 come. You may make a mock at sin, and sport your- 
 selves with your own delusions, but he knows what a 
 fearful thing it is to fall into the hands of the living God. 
 His soul has the wormwood and the gall still in remem- 
 brance. Hence his fervent expostulations and earnest 
 entreaties, Turn ye, turn ye: for why will you die? 
 Hence the tears which he sheds at your approaching fate, 
 and the bleeding and breaking heart with which he seals 
 the sentence which fixes your eternal doom, How shall 
 I give thee up, O Ephraim ! how shall I deliver thee, O 
 Israel? How often, when we little thought of the 
 matter, have our lives been given us for a prey at his 
 kind intercessions? When we had wearied God with 
 our iniquities; when judgment awoke to vengeance, and 
 justice was ready to cut us down, how often has this 
 glorious Mediator interposed, saying, " Lord, for this once 
 let them alone till I call again in their hearing, and knock 
 once more at their hearts. Let me once more set life 
 and death before them, take away the desires of their 
 eyes with a stroke, and lay the rod of correction on then- 
 persons. Let me once more tell them of the riches of 
 my grace, and what a fearful thing it is to fall into the 
 hands of the living God. Who knows but they will hear 
 my voice and open the door ? If they hear all shall be 
 well : their souls shall live. If they hear my voice — well ; 
 the righteous shall hear it and be glad : the angels shall 
 behold and rejoice. If they hear my voice and open the 
 door — well ; I shall see the travail of my soul and be satis- 
 fied. If they hear — well ; they shall preserve their own 
 
328 
 
 souls alive — they shall escape the power of death, and 
 the snares of the devil, and obtain that salvation which is 
 in me with eternal glory. If they hear my voice and 
 open the door, I will come in, and will sup with them, 
 and they with me. All things are ready. This is the 
 only bar that remains to be drawn to allow all the treas- 
 ures of my grace, and all the resources of my glory to 
 flow in. With toil and pain have I accomplished all the 
 other parts of redeeming mercy, and this, this alone is 
 awanting to crown my labours, and place them in the 
 possession of all that is necessary to their boundless, 
 endless joy. Behold I stand at the door and knock." 
 
 But will his patience always last ? Will his goodness 
 always be abused ? Will his gospel be always preached 
 to those whom it does not profit? No. Let me conjure 
 you to observe, 
 
 3. That his stay is limited. 
 
 It is not said that he sits down as if he intended to 
 stay till the sinner has taken out his sleep, finished his 
 worldly affairs, or satiated himself with the pleasures and 
 amusements of life. To intimate that his stay is limited, 
 that he is still on his feet, and that if admittance is refused 
 he is ready and determined to depart, he says, " Behold 
 I stand at the door?" He may have long patience with 
 the careless and the hardened, but his spirit will not 
 always strive. Life is short, and at the best uncertain. 
 Multitudes are now in the place of wo who expected to 
 have been high in salvation and the climes of bliss. 
 They knew that religion was necessary for their eternal 
 
329 
 
 welfare. They knew that ignorance, indolence, sloth, 
 frivolity, never would carry them away from the wrath to 
 come, nor land them in the world of light, and therefore 
 they resolved that some time or other they would become 
 really religious. They would give up their hearts to 
 God, and be in earnest for eternal life. But they resolved 
 to wait till they should reach the age of sixty, or three- 
 score and ten, and then they would be really earnest for 
 eternal life. But before the year arrived to commence 
 their course of piety, what came ? An inflamation, a 
 fever, and they were seized. Before they knew, they 
 were cut down ; and when they were dreaming of many 
 happy cheerful days, their soul was required of them. 
 They were confronted with their Judge, and being unfit 
 for his presence, they were banished from his tribunal 
 into the horrors of everlasting darkness and the sorrows 
 of never-ending despair. 
 
 And have you made any covenant with death, that 
 you stifle your convictions, and go on still in your tres- 
 passes ? Does it require any mighty effort to extinguish 
 your breath, and send your souls into the world of 
 spirits? Are your brows brass, or your strength the 
 strength of stones ? Must the earth cleave asunder and 
 swallow you up alive ? Must stones be hurled at your 
 heads, or some tremendous convulsion shake the solid 
 globe to reach your persons, and bring you down to the 
 grave ? What is your life ? Is it not even a vapour 
 that appeareth for a little time and then vanisheth away ? 
 
330 
 
 III. Why is Jesus so importunate and earnest to get 
 admission into the heart ? 
 
 It is for no selfish purpose of his own. He is not 
 driven out of a dwelling, and compelled to wander 
 through creation to seek a rest and shelter wherever he 
 can find them. In himself he is infinitely great, and 
 eternally blessed and glorious. He is possessor of all 
 things in heaven and in earth. Laying his essence on 
 immensity, he pervades all space, and inhabits eternity. 
 If the creation which he has already framed were too 
 small, too limited, or mean for his residence, he has the 
 command of all the resources of Omnipotence, and in a 
 moment, and with ease, could extend the bounds of the 
 universe, and surround himself with worlds on worlds, 
 more magnificent and stupendous than any that he has 
 yet framed. 
 
 The cause of all his importunity and ardour, is his 
 generous, adorable compassion for our souls. 
 
 While he is shut out do you know what is the conse- 
 quence ? Guilt and misery, condemnation and wrath, 
 present wretchedness, and the cause of everlasting wo 
 are shut in ; Satan is shut in ; and the soul shall be shut 
 out of heaven. 
 
 There is no necessity for a graceless, Christless crea- 
 ture to labour hard to bring down the displeasure of the 
 Most High, and entail on himself everlasting perdition. 
 They are on him already. He that believeth not is 
 condemned already. He cannot see life, but the wrath 
 of God abideth on him. It is Christ alone who redeems 
 
331 
 
 us from the curse of the law, by being made a curse for 
 us. And while he is excluded and rejected, what peace 
 can be possessed in the conscience, or entertained towards 
 God ? While the insulting flag of rebellion and defiance 
 continues to fly, what communication of kindness can be 
 sent in, or what suspension of the resistless and unerring 
 artillery of heaven ? Every graceless creature is loaded 
 with much guilt ; and the least transgression deserves 
 the wrath and curse of God both in this life and that 
 which is to come. And oh, who knows the power of his 
 anger ? Dreadful as it must be to be bruised beneath 
 the weight of a mountain, whenever the conscience is 
 awakened, the sinner will a thousand times rather be 
 crushed beneath the hills, than encounter the wrath of 
 the Lamb. Then will they cry to the rocks and moun- 
 tains, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that 
 sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb : 
 for the great day of his wrath is come ; and who shall be 
 able to stand ? 
 
 Jesus comes into the soul for purposes the most great, 
 blessed, and glorious that the mind can conceive, or that 
 a God of grace can perform. In himself he is the Most 
 High God, possessor of all things in heaven and in earth. 
 In him all fulness dwells. He is the Father of mercies 
 and the God of love, — the Mediator betwixt God and 
 man, — the author and finisher of our faith, — the admin- 
 istrator of all the treasures of the new covenant. Wherever 
 he comes, he comes in the fulness of the blessings of 
 the gospel of peace* He comes in all the strength of 
 
332 
 
 Omnipotence, in all the kindness of redeeming mercy, 
 and in all the compassionate tenderness, and glorious 
 liberality of the God of love. His advent to the soul is 
 the most interesting era in its existence. Its admission 
 into heaven is delightful — wonderful. There it takes its 
 final leave of all the toils and weaknesses of mortality. 
 There it starts forth in all the elasticity of immortal 
 youth ; there it joins the general assembly and church of 
 the first-born ; there it sees God, and expatiates in all 
 the amplitude of celestial bliss, and all the fulness of un- 
 created joy. 
 
 But the admission of the soul into heaven is only the 
 natural and necessary termination of its religious career. 
 It is only the gradual expansion and the full maturing of 
 those principles and enjoyments which begin when grace 
 first takes possession of the heart. 
 
 The momentous era in the history of an immortal is 
 the day when the bolts, bars, and obstacles laid in the 
 way of the Redeemer's admission are removed, and the 
 King of glory comes under our roof, and deigns to take 
 up his abode in our soul. From that day he begins to 
 bless us, the provisions of the everlasting covenant are 
 poured around us, the path to the highest height in glory 
 is laid open, the weakness of man is linked to the strength 
 of Omnipotence, and the fulness of the infinite and all- 
 sufficient Godhead is presented to our enjoyment and 
 use. 
 
 On entering the soul, 
 
 I. Jesus comes to enlighten it. 
 
Whilst Christ is shut out, the heart of man is dark, 
 desolate, and dreary. It is like a dungeon or the shadow 
 of death. We are without God and without hope. We 
 have no clear, just, nor comfortable views of God, of 
 heaven, of eternity. In the business of life, in the trifles 
 of earth and time, irreligious men may display splendid 
 talents and the most unconquerable industry, but in every 
 thing connected with the subject of religion, in all that 
 relates to the most sublime and commanding prospects 
 of man, and the most lofty and endearing displays of the 
 excellences of Deity, the irreligious are fools and babes, 
 and know nothing as they ought to know. 
 
 But in Jesus are hid all the treasures of wisdom and 
 knowledge. The power that clothed creation with the 
 mantle of light, that infused into the pages of inspiration 
 their truth, richness, and splendour, resides in himself. 
 He can not only open the Scriptures, but likewise our 
 understandings to know them ; lead us into all truth, and 
 unfold the mystery of God the Father, and of Christ. 
 Whenever he enters a heart, he gives with authority the 
 command, Arise and shine, for thy light is come, and the 
 glory of God is risen upon thee. He strips off the veil 
 of ignorance and unbelief, and shines into the heart to give 
 us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God. He 
 bestows an unction from the Holy One whereby we un- 
 derstand all things, and makes us light in the Lord. 
 
 Some clouds may occasionally return to darken the 
 horizon, to disturb our peace, and sadden our souls. But 
 sooner or later these shall be all broken and dispersed. 
 2g 
 
334 
 
 The sun of righteousness, when once risen, will never 
 set. He will hold on in his beauteous and brilliant 
 career, shining with new splendour, aud dispensing fresh 
 light and energy to the soul, till the dawn of grace be 
 exchanged for the blaze of glory. The path of the just 
 is as the shining light which shineth more and more unto 
 the perfect day: a day unsullied with a cloud, and which 
 no night shall ever close. 
 
 2. He comes to adorn it. 
 
 Nothing can be more filthy and polluted than the soul 
 of a sinner. It is represented by all that is vile and 
 loathsome in nature. It is compared to the deformity of 
 a leper, the putrid matter of an ulcer, the mire in which 
 the sow wallows, the poison of asps, and the vapour of 
 an open sepulchre. 
 
 But, however forcible, these representations are unable 
 to reach its real enormity, to express all its turpitude, 
 and convey a just idea of the filthiness of that soul which 
 is degraded and polluted by sin. 
 
 But Jesus comes to sanctify and cleanse it. He 
 comes to remove its deformity and filth, to clothe it 
 with the garment of salvation, and cover it with the robe 
 of righteousness. He comes to sanctify and cleanse it, 
 to form it after his own image, to render it all glorious 
 within, and make it a habitation for himself through 
 the Spirit. 
 
 Think of the contrast betwixt such a man as David 
 and a child of Belial ; betwixt Paul, who could declare, 
 For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain, and such a 
 
33 5 
 
 man as Ahaz, who sold himself to do iniquity: a man who 
 shines in the beauties of holiness, who lives in heaven 
 who grows in grace, and is daily acquiring more complete, 
 conformity to the character of the Lord Jesus Christ ; — 
 contrast the character of such a man with that of one who 
 lives in frivolity, fritters away the precious moments 
 God has given him, grovels among the low and ignoble 
 pursuits of earth and time, and is perpetually sinking 
 lower and lower in filth and impurity, and then you will 
 see the mighty obligations which we owe to the purifying 
 presence of the Son of God. 
 
 But great as the purity of believers may at present be, 
 their sanctification is still in its infancy. To form a just 
 idea of its extent and grandeur, we must break away from 
 the things of earth and time, we must penetrate the 
 heaven of heavens, and carry our view forward to eternity. 
 Who are these that are clothed with white robes, and 
 whence came they ? These are they who have washed 
 their robes, and made them white in the blood of the 
 Lamb. These are they in whose hearts Christ dwelt by 
 faith. He has now presented them before his Father 
 without spot or wrinkle. Their prayer is heard and 
 answered, Wash thou me, and I shall be clean. The 
 universe contains no character so lovely and adorable as 
 Jesus. He is the brightness of the Father's glory, and 
 the express image of his person. But to this great and 
 glorious being every believer is conformed. As we have 
 borne the image of the earthly Adam, we bear the image 
 of the Lord from heaven. We are in the world even as 
 
336 
 
 Christ also was in the world. Whom God did foreknow, 
 them also did he predestinate to be conformed unto the 
 image of his Son. 
 
 3. He comes to enrich it. 
 
 He does not come empty handed. The thief cometh 
 not but to steal, and to kill, and destroy. Jesus comes 
 to save, enrich, and bless us. In him all fulness dwells. 
 The stores of nature, the bounties of providence, the 
 treasures of the everlasting gospel, and all the plenitude 
 of the created universe, are absolutely at his command, 
 and completely at his disposal. It hath pleased the 
 Father that in him should all fulness dwell, and that out 
 of his fulness we should all receive even grace for grace. 
 His kindness and generosity never can be gratified till 
 he impart to us all the riches of grace, and put us in 
 possession of the whole covenant fulness of God. 
 
 I say covenant fulness. Though Christianity is in- 
 tended to exalt, ennoble, and dignify us, it is not intended 
 to deify us, or make us divine. The incommunicable, 
 essential attributes of God are infinitely beyond our 
 reach ; but with this limitation and reserve, nothing is 
 kept back. All are ours. Whatever he is, and what- 
 ever he possesses, as far as our limited natures can re- 
 ceive, are employed for our use and advantage. His 
 righteousness is of a perfect nature and infinite value. 
 But we are entitled to all the benefits and blessings 
 which it can impart. He is made to us wisdom, righteous- 
 ness, sanctification, and redemption. Is he a Son? So 
 are we. To as many as received him gave he power to 
 
337 
 
 become the Sons of God. Is he an heir ? So are we. 
 If children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint heirs with 
 Christ Jesus. Is he in the possession of happiness and 
 honour ? He makes us sit with him in heavenly places. 
 And what shall I say more ? His glory is ours. " The 
 glory which thou hast given me, I have given them." 
 
 To yourselves I appeal, if the lines have not fallen to 
 you in pleasant places ? if ye have not a goodly heritage ? 
 Your inheritance extends from the riches of grace in 
 time, to the glories of heaven through eternity ; from the 
 temporal comforts with which you are surrounded, up to 
 the all-sufficiency of the almighty and ever-blessed God. 
 
 4. He comes to prepare it for heaven, and at last in- 
 troduce it into boundless and eternal glory. 
 
 Many things attach the Christian to life. He occu- 
 pies a body of flesh and blood, which is as sensible of 
 pain as the bodies of the worldly and the worthless ; and 
 in common with all the children of Adam, naturally 
 shrinks from death and the grave, from corruption and 
 worms. He loves the society of his family and friends, 
 and rejoices to promote their improvement and pros- 
 perity : and as long as it shall be agreeable to the divine 
 will, and for the divine glory, he is willing to live and 
 labour still longer for their happiness and welfare. He 
 takes a deep interest in the peace and prosperity of the 
 church. The world lies in wickedness, and is groaning 
 under a curse. It is condemned already, and is filling 
 up the cup of wrath to the brim. He would like to 
 break up the security and carnality of the graceless ; to 
 2 h 
 
338 
 
 put an end to their deceitful and ruinous repose, and 
 pluck some of them as brands from the burning. 
 
 But having opened his heart to receive the Saviour, 
 and seen the salvation of God, he is willing and confi- 
 dent rather to be absent from the body and present with 
 the Lord. He has a desire to depart and be with Christ, 
 which is far better. 
 
 Racked and harassed with a fever, is it sweet to lay 
 our head on the pillow, and know that when the gentle 
 sleep is over, we shall wake in health and vigour ? Is it 
 delightful to know that when we have crossed the 
 threshold of the dungeon, our fetters shall be knocked 
 off, and we shall enjoy all the elasticity and buoyancy of 
 independence and freedom ? How transporting and joy- 
 ous is it to the believer, fatigued and exhausted with the 
 trials of time, with the annoyance of sin, and the blas- 
 phemy of the wicked, to rush into the arms of Immanuel, 
 to spring from all the care9 and trials of mortality, and 
 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, bound into the 
 midst of the Paradise of God, see him as he is, and, be- 
 holding openly his glory, be changed into the same 
 image! 
 
 THE END. 
 
 BELL AND BAIN, PRINTERS, GLASGOW. 
 
WORKS BY DR. HAMILTON. 
 
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