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ADVICE FOR THE NEW TEAR;
o«,
I \
A PASTOR'S OFFERINQ TO HIS FLOCK :
w^mt
A SERMON,
PREACHED IN ST. THOMAS' CHURCH,
MONTREAL,
ON
SUNDAY, THJC 4Ttt JANUARY, 1846,
■%.
Bt THK
REVERBND CHARLES BANCROFT, A. M.
> >
IMV^M^^X^^^Oi^ ^ * w^.
PUBLISHED BY REQUEST.
MONTREAL;
PRINTED BY LOVELL & GIBSON, STv NICHQL-^S STREET.
:" ■ ^ ■ • ■ • ' ■ ■ ' 1846; ; -,■.':-.
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.' . : TO TUB . ■■ ■' .
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CONGREGATION OF ST. THOMAS' CHURCH,
- ; '■■ ■. ■■ ' : ,■ ■ ■"■v: ■■-■'■•.
. THIS SERMON
- *
18 AFFECtlONATELY INSCRIBED, ^Y THBIB
PASTOR.
Kl<
ThePh>fitA, if anyj'^arising f^m tb« Ml* of this Discourse, to b« appro<
priated to St Thomas' Church.
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'^ Thns saith the Lord, set thine house in order : for thou shftlt
die» and not live." — ^ii. Kingst xx. 1,
• 1
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T^ selection of such a text, my brethren, m
a^iessing you upon this the first Lortfs day
in the New Year, may appear strange. You
tave been accustomed to regard this as the
happiest period of the year. Ngw^ your plans
are forming— -your anticipations of title future
are> bright and cheering — and, in the happy
congratulations incident to the season, you are
apt to lose sight of th% trials and vexations and
disappointments which lie m your w^y. The
gloomy subject of death, with the preparation
necessary for it, is not the one which yclu would
choose for your meditations to-day. But this
is not the case with alL The bereave^ parent,
the widow and the fatherless, whose eyes seek
in vain the beloved presence of thpse who
O t '< "^■«
■ '}..
gladdened the opening of tlie previous year,
whose ears have failed to catch the music of
their voices, can see the appropriateness of such
a choice. Surely your Pastor, who looks around
upon nearly a score of families desolated by
the ravages of death within a period of but a
few montlis, may address those who survive,
nay, every member of his flock, in the spirit
of the text — " Set thine house in order, for
thou shalt die, and not live."
These were the words of God to Hezekiah
by the mouth of the Prophet Isaiah. The
message came at a time when he was lying
afflicted with a grievous sickness — " In those
days was Hezekiah sick unto death."* Highly
favoured as wp the good Monarch of Israel,
like other men, he was subject to disease and
death. And although, in answer to prayer, the
short term of his existence was prolonged, yet
it was but theiiremoving to a little distance the
approach of that solemn event which awaits us
all, and for which he was enjoined to prepare.
In looking forward through the year just
commenced, I see in anticipation many of you,
{
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* ii. KingH, xx. 1.
l,-.:^-'
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perhaps inyselt* among the number, cut down
by tlie ruthlesB hand of the destroying angeL
Y^ my dear brctliren, judging from the past,
some of us will certainly be called hence.
When again we bcgui a New Year, tliere will
be, as now, parents mourning the loss of chil-
dren, torn from their embrace in the tender age
of infancy, tlie bloom of youth, or the ripeness
of manhood. Lonely widows, bereaved hus-
bands, orphan youth will be here, who are,
now, enjoying, in happy union, the comforts of
domestic life.
5^ But it is not upon this sad reality that I
wduld dwell I would turn your thoughts to
the preparation needed for the change, that if
any of you should be called hence, you may
have the satisfaction of fe^ng that you have
done everything that cpuM*^ done fbr the
good of your own souls and the so^ of others.
May you leave this house of God Jo-day,'feel-
ing tliat there is a momentous resppmbflity
devolving upon you. You have perhaps enter-
ed upon the last year in which you will be allow-
ed to make preparation for eternity. To each of
you, in your several relations. of parent, hus-
V
y
I
*'■■«.. .
9
!
J.
band, wife, child, friend, I might aay your days
may bo numbered ; and yoiir present example,
counsel and influence, decide tlie happiness of
those dearest tp you, throughout eternity.
Well, tlierefore, may I come to yoti this
mommg, as the messenger of God, with the
language of the Prophet in my mouth—" Set
. thine house in order J*
And I design applying these words to the
urging upon you : Firsts the importance of im- ^
mediate attention to' the work of religion in ^
the heart * ^ ^
Secondly, such an adjustment of your worldljT
affairs as is th^ duty of every Christian in t^ .
prospect of d^tL . *
And Thirdly, that devotion to the religiW
wants of your families which may render your
death-bed peaceftd.
L First: The importance of immediate atten-
tion to the yfork of personal religion. This
will appear from the consideration of the
worth of the souL Our Saviour has said,
"what shall it profit a man though he gain
the whole world, and lose his own 1 soul?"*
♦Mark, ix. Sg,
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intimating the v^lue of one soul to be greater
than that of the whole world. The world shall .
be.burr^l up and all tliat it contains, however
attractive its objects may now appear. The
corruptible body of man, decked out ^t such
an expense of time and means, shall soon
•become food for the worms, or else turn to th^
dtCBt^ of which it was formed. Not so the
deathless principle within ; the soul sjiall live
bn^^rever. The union, too, of the body and
]tKq spul, has> in the wise Providence of God,
^)^n made the term of probation for man, tod
kfe' Conduct herQ is to decide the destiny of his
immortal part Endow^^d with the capacity of
enjoying exquisite happiness or of enduring
unutterable misery, either the one or the other
will become the lot of the soul after d^th.*
This season of probation is, ^t best, but short ,
How few attain to the age of^nan, in itself ^
nothing when compared with eternity.
^ , ."The year rolls round, and steals away ' ,
The breath that first it gave ; ^
. ■ ^ Whate'er we do, where'er we be,
We're travelling to the grave.
" Dangers stand thick through all the ground,
To push us to the tdmb :
And fierce diseases wait around.
■^.
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To hurry mortals home."
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, Yet, fllM^rt aft is the term of probation, it is
our on/y onei There is no preparatioii beyond
the grave. No efforts can then be made, no
prayers offered, for the relief of the soul. You .
may be permitted to remain a few years longer
upon eardi, or it may be for onl^ a few dajs ^
pr hours,— none but God can tell; yetremember
that though it be but one hmr, it is the only
ieason allotted you in which to make ready for
Eternity. I urge you, therefore, to seek, with-
out delay, this preparation.
1. Strive to realize your lost condition by nature
ijund actual, transgression. Take the holy Scripr
toes for your guide, and you will see that by
the fall of our first parents all were made
dinners, so that you have been "conceived and
born in an."* To this evil nature, thus inhe-
rited, you have added many actual transgres-
sions of the holy Law of ^od. This you
have to-day confessed in appropriate language
appomt^ by the,.Church— " We have erred
and strayed from thy w^ys like lost sheep, and
there is no health in us.'' FoUow the teaching
of il^ saiiie blessed oracles, and you will
1^-^-*-
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■ . ■* *-. ■ \ ■■ ^ ".'-'' ■
acknowledge any one of these sins which you
have committed to be suflScient to banish you
everlastingly from the presence of God, inas-
much as it is written — " Cursid is every one
. thatcontinueth not in all things which are writ-
ten in the book of the law to do them,"* and,
" Whosoever shall keep the whole Law, and yet
offend in one point, he is guilty of all"! How
hopeless, theiefore, without a Savio*-, is your
conditK)^ The broken law is demanding th6
penalty I you have nothing to give. It would
be satisfied with a perfect obedience to all its
reqmrements ; but that you cannot yield. No
faithfulness now can atone for past negleqt
Neitjier can the word of the Almight^r, without
some sufficient atonement, be recalled : "The
soul that sinneth it shall die.**:]: Ponder, my
beloved hearers, upon this sad truth of your
lost state by nature and actual transgression.
Pray that the Holy ©host may be pleased to
show you xnore and more of the deformity of
sin, ite guilt and aggravation m the eyes^H
God 5^ not that you may be thi^m int» 0es-
paijr^ but th at you may realize /more senaMy
♦ G»Uti«ns .HI 10. t J«"nw. H, 10. J Ewjkiel, xriii. 4.
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tibe impcMwibility of saving yourselves, and
may be driven out of .yourselves to the salva-
tion provided in the Gospel. It is the Holy
Spirit alone who can give such deep convinc-
ing views -of our sinful and lost condition.
May He, in infinite mercy, graut them to us
all, for Christ's sake!
2. But again, J exhort you to lay hold with
the hand ok faith, of the salvation wrought out
far you by Jesus Christ " This is a faithful say-
ing and Vorthy of all acceptation," is the lan-
guage of St Paul, " that Christ Jesus came
into the world to save sinners."* Our.^aviour,
when speaking of his own advent in the flesh,
said : " The Son of Man is come to seek and
to save that which was fo5<."t For the proud
Pharisees, who trusted in their own righteous-
ness for salvation, he could do nothing. "They
that be whi)le," was his reply to them, "need not
aphysician,\buttheythatare5fcA;."tIf,therefore,
you possess \that deep sense of your sinful and
lost condition, of which I have just spoken, if
you dare notlso much las lifl up your eyes to
heaven^ if you are sincerely penitent for your
:*■
♦ 1 Tiin. 1^,16.
fLukejxix. 10.
X Mfttt ix. 13.
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past transgressions, and have, in the strength
of God, renounced all the ways of the devil,
you may confidently look to Jesus Christ as
ypur Saviour fi-om sin and death. You may -
3ee, in " God manifest in the flesh,"* one able
and willing to save you. In His obedience and
sufferings unto death, you can behold an all-
sufficient righteousness and jl complete atone-
ment That work of which you can da||o mrt
is accomplished in the person of Christ. You
- need no other Mediator. It is presumptuous
for you to hope, by any works of your own, to
add to the efficacy of Christ's atonement All, ''
therefore, that you can do is to receive this
salvation thus wrought out Look, then, with
the eye of faith to the Lamb of God that
taketh away the sin of the world. Look to
Jesus! extended upon the Cross on Calvaiy,— *
as the dymg Israelites did to the brazen serpent,
— ^witn the confidence, of Peter when he cried
'out, "LordySave meff or of the belie^dng
parent in the Gospel— -" Lord, I beheve; help
thou mine unbelief" J "
3 Once more^ I bid you search in yalir life
• 1 Tim. iii. 16.
t Mat. xir. 80.
X Mwk, iz. 34.
t<
'%■
• ■ ■ ■ . -- ■ , ■
and conduct for those evidencea of a tamng
change of hearty without which the strongest
profeasims of faith in Christ can avail nothing.
That faidi%hich justifies the sinner is a faith
which worketh by love f whose existence in the
goal is manifested by a life of unreserved obe-
dience to the Divine Will For a man to say
that he |K>S£Sb9ses^nuine faith, and yet at the
miie 4iie to be Hving in the cojnmission of
habilual and wilfiil sin, plainly involves a con-
tramction. How can a man love God and yet
be daily, yea, hourly, heaping contempt upon
Hb holy name ? St John tells us that " Who-
*8^ver is bom of God sinneth rwt^* that is, will
not allow himself in the indulgence of any
known sin. But he has also s^d;* " Whosoever
believeth that Jesus is the Christ is bom of
God." t Therefore, it is dear, that he who posses-
js^ the saving faith of which we have spoken, or
in the language of the Epistle, " believeth that
Jestis is the Christ,** being bom of God, will not
commit sin. i
Again, St John tells us that a distinctive
niark of those who are bom of God is, that
* 1 John V. 18.
f 1 John T. 1.
i\- :
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they have overcome the world* the world,
my brethren, is the enemy of God, so pro-
nomieed to be in the Holy Scriptures ; yet
how many professing Christians cling to it to
the destruction of their souls; How many in
this congregation, who are undedided on the
subject of religion, would,% called to the Bar
of Judgment this night, hlfe to configs, that
the whole cause of their indecision, ffs inln
unwillingness to abandon the sinftd schAies
and pleasures of the world. [I might enumen
rate some of these sinful schemes and pleasures, ^
such as The Theatre, The Race Ground, .The
Gambling Table, The Ball PoVm, The Lottel^, '
were I not fearful of misconstipuction ; lest any
should suppose that true Godhness consisted in
the abandonment of these alone. There are
others equally sinful, some of which might not
with propriety be mentioned in this house of
Crod, and before this assembly. ] f Were we per-
"' ' ' < — » — ■■ — • — . - ■
*1 John, V. 4.
t The Above, in brackets, was deKrered extemporaneously. In confirma-
tion of the poBifaon taken, I quote the followuig extracts :
#i.r T^Thbatbb— Plato teUs us, that playJ rouse the passions, preyent "
the use of reason, and are dangerous to moraUty. Aristotle Uys it down
as a rule, that the seeing of nnnuwli«a cmtAi* *n. v^r^jkJtAA^- x. ._•
among tbem. Uvid in his most licentious poems, nieaks _
fiiwurable to dusolutenesA, and advises its suppression, the Whole nriml-
tiv» Caiuroh tertifled^isent thereto. Theophiarf^ntinch , In t^^SJTg!,
m
16
\
initted to say, on the authority of God, that
they might still enjoy these forbidden pleasures,
that they could without injury to their souls
pursue them, how quickly would the Chufch
tnry uyt, " It is not lawful." The Roman Catholic Church repeatedly pro-
hibited it The Protestant Church in Europe and America have itiven similar
testimony. Archbishop TiU(»t8on calls the Theatre, the Devil's Chapel, a
nursery of licentiousnesx and vJM; a recreation that ought not tu be allowed
among a civilized, much less a (^stian community.'*-^ I^r. Beecher's Senium
at theopeniiig of tAeTretn^n^heatre, as a House of Divine Worship.
rticitous for the preservation of the puri ^
its members, are induced to impress upon'the
The
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luroMBbc
thffVportant'duty, with a discreet but earnest zeal, of warning the
Df their respective cures, of the danger of an indulgence in those
pleasures which may tend to withdraw the affections from spiritual
. And especially x)n the subject of gamin";, of amusements hivolving
11^ to the brute creation, and of theatrical representations, to which
|Mme peculiar circumstances have culled their attention,— they do not hesi-
tate to express their unanimous opinion, that these amusements, as well from
jg their lioentipuB tendency, as from^the strong temptations to vice which they
^ fiford, 6ught not to be frequented. And th» bishops cannot refrain from
ttKiMressing their deep regret at the information, that in some of our large
dties, so bttle respect is paid to the feelings of the members of the Churoh,
. ttfJH theatrical representations are fixed for the evenings of her most solemn
/ nmvals."— •JFrom the Journal of the Convention of ^ Protestant EpuKopat
Church in the United States, 1817.
** Both to the clergy and to the laity we desire to say, but most pointedly
to^ the former, that the Christian profession exacts a greater abstraction from
tbe world than that which consists in the abstaining from acknowledged sin.
There are practices so nearly allied to it, and so easily abused, that we con-
oeWe of a professor of religion in dnty bound either not to countenance in
the least degree,; or, as is tdlovrable, in re|;ard to some of thejuttiers con-
tempLited, to avoid the so employing of time, and the so lavisffig of affec-
tion, as puts into a state of sin, although not necessarily belonging to the
inhject We would be far from an endeavour after an abridgment of Chris-
tian liberty, i^ut we cannot foi^t, that in a list of the classes of evil livers,
there is introduped the description of persons who are "lovers of pleasure
more than lovers of God ;" ndr, in respect to the female professors of reli-
l^on in particular, the admonition, that " she who liveth in pleasure is dead ,
while she liveth." We are aware of the difficulty of drawing the line
between the use of the world and the abuse of it ; that being conceived of
by different persons equally pious aud , virtuous, according to the diversity
of natural temperament, and of the states of society in which they have
been placed by education or bv haljit ^, but we know, that where the con-
. teienoe can reconcile itself to the drawing as near to ihe territory of sin, as
it can persuade itself to be consistent with the still sUmding on secura
: iproondti^eadness to spiritual good at the best, but more commonly sntljeo-
tion to its onpoute is the result." «
■^ ** lb speaking of subjects of the above description, we wonld not be nn-
dewtood to cImi among them any lirantine whichT* either immoral in itself,
\ -
T*™ "^Sr ^^^=p
be crowded with applicants for adnuwion into
its privileges. ,g,
I say not this of all who have not yet mad«
a public profession o f religion. I believe that
fcrsocustomarny accompanied by immorality, that the one is neoesaarilv
countenanced with tho otW. Of the forme/ description, i. «ST3
the ^l^-'ety of ,t8 exercise ; and the liite may be «^i5 of whaK iSySy-
cruelty to the lower unimals of. the creation. If the same cannot £ affiZS
cbarMters, for the purpose of instruction or of entertainmentT vet. a?^
Cr.i W^'^-We »o t|ie exhibition, of th« theatre ^hV^ei^L^
fcen neytry a^ and are atjpresent, we do not hesiSe to dediire. iimS
ttouBly, our opinion, that it is a foul source of very extensiwZri.™SS!
We lay little stress on the plea, that it is a matter SdSSiTteS&
When this shill have been accomplished, it will be time to takeMritoSi^
SZl Si" *?u*^ T "™ "**' persuaded of the possibility of thetiSf
when we consider that the prominent and moat nu^«roui p«troM S^*
!ft^-l"^*''^*^* •'J'^'^ ***■ ^ ^^^ '«"8t disposed to the wriJS whSh
£SiirWhir«:fr'?''**^T?* »** ^onmrnate bSwZ SiJ2^
•na guilt. While the opinions anO the pnssions of such persons shyllcnn!
tinue to serve the Durpose of a looking-glass, by which Se^wS 21
mters are to L adjusted to the taste of w^at «TrwnSSn^f tK A*
we despair of %e[Z the sta^« rp«.„«i f^^:^^?:?Rr"'°!l °' *'»« P?^^^
IWneness and obscenitv . anJ m.,nh i««o ^* ♦il* ii.ku»»ij^ enusions^ot dt^
fc^r«irr y T^"'s •"" »"»§« re»cuea irom the aisgusting effusions
fcneness and obscenity , anS much less oT that mean <7«orrurSon i^MKi
instnuatm^ than anv other-the exhibiting of what ^ SSv^bJe^
. rilmiwe with proiK,rt1es captivating to tb9 hSagiiiHtion. - ^ ^' "
. While wo address this alike to the clergy and to the Wtv wa mi..!^,'
it as especially hostile to the usefulne«, of Ye former. IS Sen iTwSS
to some matters confessed to be innocent in themselvei the^ inZ^n^v^
deMndmuchonmanyc.rcumstance8,andprofessionalcLS«ten.S^^
Theearof a clergyman should always bS open to a caUto the SwriSS
Jjties of his statrpn. Whatever may render it diflScu to his S^ S to
wcur to those duties with the solemnity which they Sre or J^v^ndoS
an opinion in others, that such a recurrence must li Skome tTCf^
^mTlTlZ'T^r' "'I!^ »'"'r««'^»e,oSgKo'S:tiS^^^
hS^;..iL ^« '^ ?«"^'fi««» the making oF it is exacted by what ought to Z
his ruling wish, the servmg of G.k1, and the being useful to his fXw mttJ
in thedscharge of the duties of the ministry. 'l/^o^/o/S /XX^ifS
2B:^%r ^ ^'''''^' ^i-cWai^ in ^ZJiZ^l
.?i°i f *"j[«»^«' P^.fcy the late Dr. Bedell in the bands of thow who dt.
aired to become u^ Mfith the Chu,5(*.^iB any of its ordlnanSJ.'Ttod
%
•\
Ihare «re some kiept away from other and
h^er motives, such as an humbling sense of
their unworthiness, and a fear lest they should
afterwards be betrayed into inconsistencies
which might bring reproach upon religion.
Sit why should I, as a Minister of God;
d0^i»ye^any of yon into the belief that yon
i|5gy |A the sape time be the servants of
€tb(| iifid the servants of the world? Is it not
vnatt/en in language so plain that the wayfaring
maii^ though a fool, cannot err therein : *^ Ye
cannot serve God and Mammon.*** *' If any
man lore the world, the love of the Father is
ibt in him. For all that is in the world, the
•D ifi|M fa— wwh M tbaj ««• OQOtrarj to tlw eoipnii oommincl, whiA
'»]Pi^*ColM<mtMidb«a«pint«. DtnyTomnelt* And, I think the^ tend
diii^y to Ind the mind from dod." •* Most certainly not** **No/*
JuatmB more atiestloa : ** Should I he led estny in reletiun to thee*
^faigi, wlutt do I think ought to be my own opinion of my s|>irituid state,
•nd what do I think ought to be the conduct of my pantor toward me f*
' **1 on^^t to think my leTf described in that saying of Scriptnre, * 1 hou hast
[left tiiy first love,' and that my spiritual state wonld call for deep repen-
HHbei, and a speedy ntnm to God, and that my pastor ought to warn, re-
; }fv^9, pray tor and with me, and if all this fidl to relieve me, refuse me the
^▼ii««e8 I had heretofore so unworthily eirojed."-^<See Memoir of Dr.
BsdUf 6» S.H. T^tuP. D. p 172. ' ^ ' •
' See ano Milner's (%nrch History, for the opinion of Cyprian ; of the Ro-
auuui and of theearly Christians, concerning the Theatre, toL 1', p. SOS; aiid
Heandei's History of^the first three centnnes, p. 161. On the subject of
OaiBlding, I refer the reader to a Sermon of Dr. Dwight on the 8th Com-
: aaaibneot, toL 4., p^ 257. "If Europe,** said Montesquieu, '* is to bo
; nhMdt it wiU be niinkl by gnadnr.*'
Jb » word I would ask,-H^ all of the above may not be classed under
: thtfMadaf tfioee ** l*omp« and Vanities of the WorU,** which the Chrlstiaa
"Modshimadftorenoonoifr-rwlMKeai^tlM^ <-
t?v;.-
_*^*fB^^^T^*
J "TP^WW^^tF^-y^'i"^"
It
hut of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, sad
the pride of life, is not of the Father, but ii of
the world."* And the still stronger language
of St James: "Know ye not that the fri^nds^p
of the world is enmity with God ? wliosoever
therefore will be a friend of the world is the
enemy of God.'^f No, my brethren, I wiU not
thus trifle with your eternal welfare; I will not
be accessary to the loss of your souls. It may be
the road to popularity, but it is not the way to
obtain peace of mind or a clear conscience in
the sight .of God. I will warn you against a
q>irit of woridly-mindedness, which, if indulged,
must prove ruinous to your eternal prospecti»
From this you have more to fear at the present
day than fix)m the progress of open infidelity or
superstition. These have been so often met and
so triulnphantly refuted, that they may ahnost
be compared to venomous reptiles whose sting
las been extracted. Not so the world! it is so
insidious in its approaches that even the
most wary are made its victims. In op^
position to its advances cultivate a spirit of
holiness. The two cannot live together. The
♦iJohiLiLlS, la.
^J taam, br. 4 .
i
». •
t
one will extinguish the other. Let thai grest
dumge be once thoroughly wrought in your
hearts by t^e Holy Spirit, and your taste for
these pleasures will be destroyed. You will
find, what may^now appear a strange anomaly,
that you can liv^ without them — nor only so,
but that you wiU enjoy a peace of mind to
which you have hitherto been i strang^^ and
irfiicE the world can neither give nor take away.
CI I have dwelt the longer upon the points
contained under this head, because they are
fuch as affect the sali^jbion of every individual
•ouL Without a deep sense of our lost condi-
tion, without a surrender of the soul to Christ
«nd a life of holiness, none can expect to be
flaved. For all are included in the memorable
tr^cdB of our Saviour: " Verily, verily, I say
imto thee, except a^man be bom again, he
<&imot see the kingdom of God."* In what
lemains I may be much more brief
ilL I would then exhort you, in the second
place, to^ek such an adjustment of your busi-
jaess affairs as is the duty of every Christian in
j^e pr6i^>ect of death. Thik was also contem-
♦Johii.iiL8. ^'
•'**» ■
'^'■-■'m-
M
•■ •
•'**• ■
21
plated in the words of the prophet to Hezekiah:
" Set thine hduse in order." Monarch of a King^
dom, it was of the utmost importance that'eveiy
arrangement should be made by which its peace-
ful enjoyment might be secured to his successor.
Such reasonable attention to temporal things is,
in an equal degree, the duty of eveiy Christian.
I will venture to say that the majority of those
cases of litigated property which have happened
after the death of the proprietor, and which
have led to much contention and many heart-
burnings, might have been avoided by the
seasonable observance of /this rule. But men,
in general, are too apt to delay to a death-bed
what should be done in the season of health.
With some there appears to be a superstitious
fear lest the making of a will should hasten the
hour of death. AU their businesss affairs per^
haps partaJte of the same neglect, so that if they
should be suddenly caUed into Eternity, much
evil would ensue. I have no desire to enter
largely into tJiis subject, but I liiust remind
those of you who are prof^ipg Christians, in
particular, that it is a solemn %ty incuml^t
upon ybi i , to live in
! ■ ' l iia —
i* ■ 1
"^
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A '
m
f
«i
thflMbi^ diat ft dionld be J^otIKi now to
makt Bach a dispomtion of fiftir aifairs as maj
bear the inspection of Ood, and in case yon
are removed, prove of no injury to your fellow
mflB. ^\ *'
,'^WL I passion to the third and coneludinjtr
|pmt which I would urge upon your consider-
ation, as suggested by the text, yiz : — ^That de-
iodon to the religious wants of your families
which may* render your death-bed peaceful
Many of you have become, in the Providence of
Gk)d, parents— l|g^ of fomilica How solemn
iitthe responi^H||||^us d||i^lvcid^upon yon.
You are the namral guardians of these childreai
and youth. They look to you for support|
&Nr counsel, for S3rmpathy, for that moral and
mtellectual training which is to fit them for
lifa But especially are they to depend upon
yotir dcample and precept in what concerns thei
salvation of their souls. Yon occupy a place
iHiich none besides can fill You may dele«
gate your authority, in certain particulars, to
>ofehers aitrasted with their leducation ; bat after
iB, the iSe^onsibilit^^^ fall bade tqpon your-
sehres; their weal or woe for all eternity ivill
,
.a: ■ "
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depend, in a great m^pmti^ upoo the faithfiiW
neis with which you harve executed your dutjr
U.^ parent and frien4 Thia jb the point
whiet I would seriously i|il%pon f6ta atten^
tioa If you would hav^yoar death-bed Jm.,
disturlxjd you lamt now k faithful to your '
children ^ Oh, teU me not «itf yiotfcould close
your eyes in peace on earthlj things, with the ^
consdoufiness that the childtei you had left
behind, would, in all probabiUfy, through your
neglect, become reprobates, and that, in conae--
quence^ ;^u should never see them more.
Under audi curcumstanoes, how could you di^
in peace? As, theiefoi^, life is so uncertain,
and this year may not have run half ite couw
before you are called to your account, let me
admoniiih you to be wise in time. Gather
these yt)uthful immortals statedly around yonr
family altar— let every day be commenced and
closed with God. Impress up^ tl^m the inht
portance of secret prayer, and the study of thf
sacred Scriptures. Do what you crijti to mak^
wbituaU^
with you to the sanctuary of Go^ M^0
tided of sptritnal nonrisHment as the body doe9
of food Send them to the Sunday School ;
ttit^ray atmosphere it breathes is healthful to
the soul Talk with them often and seriously
abgpt the things which .qoncem their eternal
Interests. Pray with them, and for them. Let
,,1ihem be taught to love the society of godly
people. Let them be trained in enmity to the
world. And, in their education, let them be
lent to. schools, and colleges, and seminaries^
where the care of their souls will receive due
attention, and ^here the truth will be taught
without any admixture of superstition or error.
If^ <my brethren, you will steadily pursue this
course, adding to it the force of a good exam-
l^ty you may safely ledve tJibse entrusted to
your charge in the hands of God. You may
die happy, in the consciousness that you have
done what you could for the benefit of t-heir
souls, and withfaith, that the ^oodseed will even-
ttially spring up and bring forth fruit unto
salvation. It is impossible, however, for me
t^' dwell with too much earnestness upon the
importanee and weight of your good example.
In vain will you press upon your children or
■M
, t
»^'"{?,
)
25
dependents, the importance ofj a strict atten-
tion to religious duties, so loM as you are
negligent yourselves. You mky, for a time,
compel them to come up habitually to the
courts of the Lord, whilst you are careless in
your own attendance. But unless the grace
of God touch their hearts, it will only Ije for a
time. When removed from the parental au^
thority you will find them preferring your
example to your precept ^Tou may teach
them that the " fiiendship of the world is en-
mity with Godj" but if they see you plunging
with Avidity into its dissipations, |hey will quick-
ly fbiget your instructions. An* so in every^
other particular; children are keen observers of
men and mann^irs, and he who acts on tihe con-
trary supposition will quickly find his mistake.
Beware of thus trifling with the eternal inter-
ests of those committed by God to ypur charge.
I have appHed these remarks to parents;
they will reaoh the case of persons in ^very
relation x)f Ufa Every Christian is, strictly
speaking, the keeper of his brother's souL Let
them in a more extended sense be receiyed
by^ydu all, as pointing out the necessity
n
h:
46
% -of watchfliliiess and diligence, that neither
bjr your precept nor example you may
' injure "any immortal soul ; but that, when
called hence, you may be regdered happy by
th^onviction that you i^^dmie your duty
in Wery station in life in which you hiave been
»laoed, and in every connexion which you
iliye formed. v
To eonclude, I can truly say of you aD, in
the spirit of the' Apostle, that my heart's
desire and prayer to God for you is, that you
inay be saved.* "For what is our hope, or
joy, or crown of rejoicing ? Are not even ye
in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at
his coming? For ye are^our glory and joy."f
And in the jaelection of the subject which I
have made to-day, I would not inar the joy
with which many of you may have entered
upon this New Year. Nay, I would sympa-
thize in your j^ys, as well as in your sorrows.
But I would also remember, that we are now.
nearer by a year to the period of our death;
aud would call upon you and myself ta re-
newed efforts in making our eternal calling and
■L-
K. ■
A
*Rom. z. 1.
1 1 Thess. u. 19» 20.
'•' •' fe^^' ••*-• • ' '<"•<' "X
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ii
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;^ ^ ^?i^^^,.^ '•■ A. 4?|»^'?"»*^'!! ' ™^^ -rf j;
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election sttre. I would seize, too, the opportuity
of urging my impenitent hearers to an imme*
diate decision on the all-important snbj^ of
religion. Can it be that another year has
rolled by, and yet so many of you ai^fitill
procrastinating ? Are you on the brink ot the
grave, and yet without a guide to conduot
you through the dark valley? Are |rd(r
still treating with neglect the offers 6f that
Merciful Saviour, by the might of who«^ pro^
tecting arm yoM are still preserved in exis^noe^
while thousands of your fellow creatures have
been summoned away beyond the possib^ity
of riepentance and faith? '
** Great God 1 is thw our certain doom ?
And are wd i^ill secure ?
Still walking downward to the tombi
And yet prepare no more ?"
Dear hearers I would you hd^ve flns be the'
happiest year of all your lives, let its com-
mencement witness the full and entire surren-
der of yourselves,— your hearts and lives to the
service of Jesus Christ \Do not let this occa-
sion pa^,lest the awfid sel^tence go forth, " Cut
it down; why cumbereth it the ground ?***-
* Luke xiii. 7.
■ \
\ .
T
m
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\ . ^'^ «r|p»<«'t^^
IS
28
And you, my brethren, who are akeady on
the Lord's side, persevere in the course which
you have begun, seek after greater attainments
in holiness. Let this year be happier than any
tha^Jias preceded, by making you more like
' thaWSaviour whom to know is life everlasting^
and at whose right hand are pleasures for ever-
Vi^. But a few more years of sin and sorrow
upon earth and the conflict will be over. Then
you will be called to lay aside the sword and to
receive the crown.
" O, long expected year I begin :
Dawn on this world of wo and sin ;
Fain would we leate this weary road,
.To sleep in death, and rest with God."
^ -.
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