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 W/'r/y 
 
A GUIDE 
 
 YOUNG DISCIPLES 
 
 OF THE 
 
 HOLY SAVIOR, 
 
 IN 
 
 THEIR WAY TO IMMORTALITY, 
 
 FORMING A SEQUEL TO 
 PERSUASIVES TO EARLY PIETY. 
 
 — ^' 
 
 BY REV. J. G. PIKE. 
 
 " Christian is the highest style of man." 
 
 PUBLISHED BY THE 
 
 AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, 
 
 150 NASSAU-STREET, NEW-YORK. 
 
 D. Fanshav.', Printer. 
 
Prefatory Address ^^'>^^'^t"^'"^'f'.'' ... 5 
 Chap. 1. A brief scripture delineation of the attri- 
 butes AND PERFECTIONS OP GoD, AND ON DfiVO- 
 
 TEDNES3 TO HIM — his majesty — wisdom — knowledge 
 — goodness— eternity — reverence and devotion due 
 to him 9 
 
 Chap. 2. On the natur^nd love of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, and love to him — he is God — eternal — 
 the creator — his attributes— Christian obligations 
 to him — union with him— danger of deception , 45 
 
 Chap. 3. On the personality, deity, and influences 
 OF the Holy Spirit— his personality — attributes — 
 works— the christian a temple of the Spirit — test of 
 self-examination — directions 88 
 
 Chap. 4. The Christian life a life of faith — its na- 
 ture — effects resembling those of sight — conquests 
 — preciousness 105 
 
 Chap. 5. The Christian life a life op prayer — its 
 solemnity — subjects — requisites — fervency— offered 
 in faith — with forgiveness — constant — language of 
 the heart — offered in Savior's name — praise— pro- 
 mises to it— blessings obtained . . . .121 
 
 Chap. 6. The Christian a pilgrim upon earth, and a 
 MEMBER OF THE FAMILY OF GoD — earth tiansieut — 
 eternity — home in heaven 147 
 
 Chap. 7. On Christian holiness — examples— progres- 
 sive — motives, both cheering and alarming . . 159 
 
 Chap. 8. On the mortification of sin — kill the root — 
 besetting sins — deceitfulness of sin — its malignity 
 —falsehood—scandal — profaneness— covetousness 
 — love of the world — avoid occasions . . . 17G 
 
 Chap. 9. On humility, resignation, patience, and con- 
 tentment— influence of pride how exhibited — ex- 
 ample of Christ 211 
 
 Ciup. 10. Government of the temper — of the 
 
 thoughts — OF THE LIPS — SELF-EXAMINATION — IM- 
 PROVEMENT OF TIME — RECREATIONS , . . . 234 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Chap. 11. On the choice of companions, and on 
 MARRIAGE—" only in the Lord "—evils of a contrarv 
 
 course— objections 249 
 
 Chap. 12 On Family Duties— duties of parents— du- 
 ties of children— of husbands and wives— of >.er- 
 vants and masters— family worship— individual ' 
 responsibility— meeting oi: relatives in eternity . 268 
 CHAP. 13. On the Sabbath, and its improvement— 
 Its institation-change of day-how to be observed 
 
 —value and usefulness 286 
 
 Chap. 14. On prizing and sEARcmNG 'the 'Scriptures 
 
 —necessity of humility— their value . 298 
 
 Chap. 15. On the Lord's SupPER-design-excuses 
 lor neglect answered-neglect accompanied by de- 
 clension-letter to a voung lady . 307 
 Chap. 16. On displaying Christian love, on glori- 
 fying brOD BY DOING GOOD, AND ON LOVE TO ENE- 
 MIES— how holy love is manifested— reproof-love 
 to brethren— to ministers— motives to brotherly 
 loYe—7iielkods of usefulness— infinite obligation— 
 —treatment of enemies . ... 322 
 Chap. 17. On the spiritual conflicts and sorrows 
 OF THE disciples OF Christ— God's mcrciful de- 
 sign—conflicts from within— from the world-frcm 
 featan-sympathy and aid from Christ-christian 
 
 cAo/lllplGS • • , • QK,0 
 
 Chap. 18. On BACKSLiDiNG-causes-secret and open- 
 guilt and mischiefs-letter to a young lady-ihe 
 backslider insensible to warning . . . 395 
 
 Char 19. Consolations and encouragements for the 
 Christian in his spiritual PiLGRiMAGE-what the 
 bavior is-his intercession-a Friend and Brother 
 oi his people-blessings of union with him-minis- 
 tryof angels-God a friend, father and portion- 
 trials sent in mercy-soon to end— happy prospect 
 — present with the Lord "-concluding address 
 
 :s 
 406 
 
PREFATORY ADDRESS. 
 
 While, my young friend, a few fleeting years will fijc 
 you in that awful world where the business of life will no 
 longer engage, and its amusements will have no power to 
 charm; while every moment hurries on your final hour, 
 and every beating pulse beats nearer to the last; while 
 endless ages rise in solemn succession before you, and death, 
 at the door, is ready to introduce you to those unbounded 
 and amazing scenes ;— O what is worth a thought except 
 the favor of God, and glory in the heavens ! O what is 
 worthy of a moment's care, compared with making your 
 calling and election sure ! To this momentous subject I now 
 solicit your attention. The design of another little volume,* 
 which I have addressed to the young, is to urge them to 
 make that religion their choice which renders its possessor 
 rich in poverty, and happy in affliction; secure in danger, 
 and triumphant in death. In this the principal design is 
 the benefit of those who have found the path of peace. May 
 I address you as such a happy person 1 Are you a partaker 
 of that grace which comes from God, and leads the soul to 
 him'? Is he your Father and your Friend 1 Is the blessed 
 Jesus your Savior 1 Can you contemplate heaven as your 
 home, and read your title clear to an everlasting mansion 
 in that happy country which lies beyond the stormy sea of 
 timel If you can, rejoice in ike Lord always. The things 
 anseen will not deceive you. They will not perish, when 
 
 * Persuaiivcs to Early Piety. 
 
6 PREFATORY ./ADDRESS. 
 
 all that is seen shall fade, and dr oop, and die. Let ear^h if 
 It will, be all delusion, for heaven is all reality. Let a'l 
 below be treacherous shadow, for all above is endurin- 
 substance. If, my young friend, through grace, those unt 
 seen realities are your portion, the cross of Christ your 
 glory, and heaven your home, still you have need io grow in 
 grace, and in the knowledge of your Lord and Savior Jesus 
 Christ. 
 
 To be a Christian indeed, is widely different from what' 
 multitudes suppose. The Christian character, as delineated 
 m the Scriptures, is one of a most peculiar and elevated 
 nature. It rises almost as much above the ideas apparently 
 entertained of it by many professors of the Gospel as it 
 does above those of the carele.ss followers of the world In 
 times like these, when no prison opens its doors to receive 
 Christian victims as its prey, when no flames call for mar- 
 tyrs to glut the persecutor's rage, it is an easy thing to pro- 
 fess religion ; and if to add to that profession a character 
 fair m human sight, and an attention to religious privile- 
 ges, were sufficient to constitute a Christian, n^any would 
 deserve that exalted name; but all this, and much more 
 than this, will not constitute a Christian. A Christian in 
 realty , as described by the Sj^irit of God, is one whom grace 
 makes free, and enriches with a thousand blessings : whom 
 grace prepares for glory, and allures to heaven; whose 
 chief busmess is with the things bevond the grave He is a 
 new creature in Christ Jesus ; a child of God ; a member ol 
 Christ; a stranger on earth; a traveler to glory ; a future 
 companion and equal to the angels of light; an heir of 
 heaven ; even here one of that family that Mall all meet at 
 length beforejhe throne of the Most High; and whose love 
 and hatred, hopes and fears, desires and tempers life and 
 conduct, will bear a likeness to the new and happy relation, 
 he sustains Such is a Ch, istian. How different is the re^ 
 hgion which produces this change in an immortal being 
 
PREFATORY ADDRESS. 7 
 
 from that cold, formal, uninteresting thing, which the world 
 esteems religion. Is this, my young friend, the character 
 which you sustain 1 or do you view it as one too highly 
 elevated for your desires and aims'^ If you do, will you in 
 the last hours of life maintain the same opinion'? When 
 this momentary scene of care and vanity is closing upon you 
 for ever 1 when it no longer matters what you sulTered or 
 what you enjoyed; when the overwhelming scenes of the 
 eternal world are ready to burst upon your soul, will you 
 then think that piety could be too elevated, or the Christian 
 upo7i earth too nearly like the Christian in heaven 7 If you do 
 seriously believe that, in your dying moments, you will 
 think it possible to be too pious ; if you do indeed believe 
 that, when going to meet your God, you will think it possi- 
 ble to love, or serve, or honor him too much ; then slight 
 the advice this little book contains. If you can suppose that 
 when you have plunged into the unseen world, and are 
 fixed in happiness or wo for more myriads of millions of 
 years than there are drops in the ocean ; that then you will 
 think you could be too earnest, too prayerful, too diligent, in 
 preparing for an everlasting state ; if you can indeed think 
 so, then read no further. But if instead of this, you feel con- 
 vinced, that when you die, and come to meet your God, you 
 will think all faith weak, all love cold, all diligence care- 
 lessness, all labor idleness, and all piety scarcely worth the 
 name, compared with that faith, and love, and zeal, and 
 piety,' which the eternal God, the eternal Savior, an im- 
 mortal soul, and an endless heaven demand; if you will 
 think so ; and will you not as surely as you are born to diel 
 O then aim at nobler piety than that which satisfies so many ! 
 Stay not in the vale beneath, but as at death you will wish 
 to have done, scar to the heights above. O learn to live as 
 having soon to die, that you may die assured of living with 
 God for ever ! 
 
 The principal object of this little hook, is to assist you in 
 
® PREFATORY ADDRESS. 
 
 your Christian pilgrimage, though at times it may contain 
 a lew lines more suitable to those who are strangers to re- 
 ligion, than to those who have embraced the Gospel- for 
 perhaps some that know not God, may glance over the fol- 
 lowing pages. 
 
 Let the writer be permitted to add, that in drawing up 
 this small volume with the design of assisting youthful 
 piety, he has endeavored to draw instructions from the Sa- 
 cred Volume, that only fountain of real wisdom. 
 
 That holy book declares, that neither is he that planteth 
 any thing, neither he that watereth, but God that giveth 
 the mcrease. To his all-important blessing the writer 
 therefore now commends this little volume. 
 
 Derby, July ICth, 1S23. 
 

 YOUNG DISCIPLES. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 A BRIEF SCRIPTURAL DELINEATION OF THE AT- 
 TRIBUTES AND PERFECTIONS OF GOD, AND ON 
 CHRISTIAN DEVOTEDNESS TO HIM. 
 
 § 1. Were you, my young friend, going to spend 
 one hour in England, and then never to see it more, 
 but afterwards to pass threescore years in India, of 
 which country would you desire the most extensive 
 knowledge? Would you not reason, the knowledge 
 that will benefit me but for one hour in a country 
 which, after that, I shall never visit again, is unworthy 
 of a thought, compared with that knowledge which 
 will be useful to me for sixty years ? Were you to 
 spend that one hour in company with persons whose 
 favor or displeasure would render it either a happy or 
 a wretched hour ; and were you to pass the following 
 sixty years with those whose smile or frown would 
 make them all years of happiness or years of pain, 
 whose favor would you be most anxious to enjoy? 
 Would you not argue, the smiles or the frowns of 
 
10 MAJESTY AND POWER OF GOD. 
 
 those Who shall cheer or embitter but one hour, and 
 whom then I shall leave forever, areoflittle moment: 
 but their friendship, who miist render me happy or 
 wretched for sixty years, is ten thousand times more 
 important? Apply these thoughts to your state in this 
 world, and the next. Here you have a little while to 
 spend; but, compared with the endless life that awaits 
 you there, it is infinitely less than an hour, when com- 
 pared With sixty years. Of which world is the know- 
 ledge most important to you? of that where your life 
 is the twinkling of an eye ? or that where eternal a4k 
 he stretched before the view of the astonished soul? 
 The friendship or displeasure of your fellow-creatures 
 may cheer or embitter life's short hour; the friend- 
 ship of your God will brighten and bless your whole 
 eternity; or his displeasure make eternal years one 
 scene of darkness, bitterness, and wo. How worthless 
 to a creature born for eternity, is all knowledge, com- 
 pared with a holy acquaintance with God ! how des- 
 picable all friendship, compared with his friendshio 
 and love ! ^ 
 
 § 2. The book of nature may teach much respecting 
 God— may at least declare his eternal power and god- 
 head ; but it is the book of grace alone that unfolds 
 the brighter glories of Jehovah. Would you be inti- 
 mate with God, the God of heaven, not with the idol 
 philosophers frame in their imagination? then search 
 the Scriptures. That holy volume represents the ado- 
 rable God as possessed of those excellencies which 
 should excite the deepest reverence and the most fer- 
 vent love in the human heart. 
 
 " God is a Spirit." He " created the heavens and the 
 
MAJESTY AND POWER OF GOD. 
 
 11 
 
 earth." He " said, Let there be light, and there was 
 liaht." The sun obeys his voice, and the stars of hea- 
 ven appear at his command. He is the one Jehovah, 
 "the only true God." Heaven is his throne, and the 
 earth his footstool. He reigneth King for ever. He is 
 clothed with majesty. "Clouds and darkness are 
 round about him ; righteousness and judgment are the 
 habitation of his throne." He is " the King eternal, im- 
 mortal, invisible ; the only wise God." To his enemies 
 he is " a consuming fire." He is " able to destroy both 
 feoul and body in hell." 
 
 In Providence, and in the works of nature, the 
 power and majesty of God are displayed. "He killeth 
 and maketh alive ; he bringeth down to the grave and 
 bringeth up. He maketh poor and maketh rich." He 
 "raiseth the stormy wind," or "maketh the storm a 
 calm." He turneth rivers into a wilderness, or water- 
 springs into dry ground ; a fruitful land into barren- 
 ness ; "or a dry desert to a watered field." " He saith to 
 the snow, be thou on the earth." He "giveth rain, 
 and sendeth waters upon the fields." He feedeth the 
 fowls of the air, and clotheth the lilies of the field 
 with more than kingly glory: and so extensive is his 
 providential care, that without him not a sparrow 
 falleth to the ground. 
 
 The sublime description of the majesty and glory 
 of God, in the fortieth chapter of Isaiah, is as much 
 superior to the loftiest descriptions which unassisted 
 poets or philosophers have given of the Deity, as the 
 God it represents is superior to the idols they extolled. 
 " Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his 
 hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and com- 
 
12 MAJESTY AND POlvER OF GOD. 
 
 prehended the dust of the earth ;„ , 
 
 weighed the mountains in s'a'e, and 7Tu' """^ 
 
 balance? Behold the n,f „ ' ^ ""^ '""^ '" a 
 
 andaree„unte°dt'th7sr7ur:;ttr,'^'"^''^'' 
 hold, he taketh up the isles as a v , "'"'"• •>"- 
 
 nations before him a.-ea nn,?- ^ '""' ">'"«• ^11 
 
 eatohin,,esst;r::tM,:ra;,d%;si.^'^^^---- 
 
 their unfathomable depths The ,'''''^,;''" '"-'"''"red 
 spend months or yea.?-';^e roli .^ r ! ^^'^ 
 those vast and fathomless oceans a esn Jn'^ ^ ^"^ 
 
 fo»(/A« Aa,./. Behold the h aveL '2" "" 'f 
 moon, the stars of li.rht- how hrni ' *""' ">« 
 how immense their" d sta'cs-trGrd ''"^t'-^' 
 
 f-"f" ™"'^ '"''"'■ '"easures\v h ;i:r:f ""' 
 the least of measures fh«f ,.. . 1 , ^^^' almost 
 
 grandeur and o g^'r?'BX:"""""<":- "''' "< 
 islands, its cloud-ca^pt m'ou„ta'°,s i tt , '"■"' "^ '''' 
 sens; the fertile landTol hs ,' ' ""'"-'^^"ed de- 
 where numerous nation fil ami '"''/""''"-"'^. 
 sidence, and which eouire »T '^ , ""'" ^"' "'^'" re- 
 in extent to m as„ e^ i'Lr .h T"'"' "^ ""-» 
 breadth; but whata e the e v , ' '"'«"' " ""^ir 
 earth, b fore Jeho a . ' ff ■„ ' "TT' ""' '"'^ ^«^' 
 
 yet to God, so insi^nlfioa" ha tW " "" ""'"''^'- ' 
 
 « 6<.K .«. «. ..f .^rrAiscuXdXf 
 
 ^nnui^, less than noilimg, and vanity. 
 
WISDOM AND KNOWLEDGE OF GOD, 13 
 
 § 3. Now glance at the unsearchable wisdom and 
 infinite knowledge of God. " He is the Lord of hosts 
 (wonderful in counsel. God the only wise. He seeth 
 m secret. He seeth not as man seelh ; for man looketh 
 on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on 
 the heart. He searcheth all hearts, and understandeth 
 all the imaginations of the thoughts."' He is not an in- 
 attentive spectator of what passes in his wide empire. 
 "By him are actions weighed." "The Lord looketh 
 from heaven ; he beholdeth all the sons of men, he 
 considereth all their works." In this vast survey, he 
 beholds his children with peculiar love. "The eye of 
 the Lord is upon them that fear him, upon them that 
 hope m his mercy, to deliver their soul from death ■" 
 "to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose 
 heart is perfect towards him." 
 
 Would any wish to hide themselves from his all- 
 pi^rcing eye, it is impossible; for "in him we live, and 
 move, and have our being." He smiles in heaven: he 
 frowns in hell. The veil of night, which hides all 
 things from the eyes of man, hides nothing from his 
 eye. No spot in the universe can be found that is be- 
 yond the reach of his arm, or where it should cease 
 to be said, Thou, O God, seest me! "Whither shall I 
 go from thy Spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy 
 presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there; 
 It I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I 
 take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the utter- 
 most parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead 
 me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, surely 
 the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be 
 light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from 
 
.14 HOLINESS AND GOODNESS OF GOD. 
 
 thee ; but the night shineth as the day : the darkness 
 and the light are both alike to thee." 
 
 § 4. This adorable and all-seeing God is holy and 
 amiable in the highest degree. He is " glorious in ho- 
 liness." " There is none holy as the Lord." " He is 
 of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on 
 iniquity." " Just and true are his ways." He is the 
 "faithful God," " who keepeth truth for ever." 
 
 " High o'er the earth his mercy reigns, 
 
 " And reaches to the utmost sky ; 
 *' His truth to endless years remains, 
 
 " When lower worlds dissolve and die." 
 
 Venerable and lovely in his holiness, he is, if pos- 
 sible, still more lovely in his goodness and mercy. 
 He is " the Father of mercies, and the God of all com- 
 fort." " Of great mercy." "A merciful God." "There 
 is none good but God." He proclaimed his nalhe 
 " Jehovah, Jehovah God, merciful and gracious, long- 
 suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping 
 mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity, transgression 
 and sin." The fountain of his goodness pours forth 
 many streams. He is "not willing that any should 
 perish, but that all should come to repentance." He 
 is " kind to the unthankful and the evil." He is " a 
 God ready to pardon" — " is gracious and full of com- 
 passion — is good to all — and his tender mercies are 
 over all his works." " He is plenteous in mercy and 
 truth." The world might drink at the ocean of his 
 love, and the ocean still be full. " He giveth grace 
 and glory, and no good thing will he withhold from 
 them that walk uprightly." 
 
GOODNESS AND MERCY OP GOD. 15 
 
 He is the Father of all the righteous ; " their Father 
 in heaven ;" " and like as a Father pitieth his children, 
 SO the Lord pitieth them that fear him ; for he knoweth 
 our frame, he remembereth that we are dust." A 
 stronger principle of love than natural affection ac- 
 tuates him: "If ye, being evil, know how to give good 
 gifts unto your children, how much more shall your 
 Father, who is in heaven, give good things to them 
 that ask him." Parental love, in its strongest form, can- 
 not rival his. " Can a woman forget her sucking child, 
 that she should not have compassion on the son of 
 her womb ? yea, they may forget, yet will not I forget 
 thee." Love like this cannot be measured. " Thy mer- 
 cy, O Lord, is in the heavens." Who can measure the 
 heights of heaven ? or stretch a line from the east unto 
 the west ? Yet this were an easier task, than to tell the 
 extent of divine love. " As the heaven is high above 
 the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear 
 him ; as far as the east is from the west, so far hath he 
 removed our transgressions from us." This charming 
 excellence is his delight. " He delighteth in mercy;" 
 " and taketh pleasure in those that fear him, and that 
 hope in his mercy." To sum up all in a few words, 
 " GOD IS LOVE." 
 
 His richest love is the love unfolded in the Gospel ; 
 iove, like an ocean, which has neither shore nor bot- 
 tom, measure, beginning, nor end. " For God so loved 
 the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that 
 whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but 
 have everlasting life." " God commendeth his love to- 
 ward us, in that while we were vet sinners, Christ 
 died for us." « Herein is love, not that we loved God, 
 
^^ ETERNITY OF GOD. 
 
 but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the pro- 
 pitiation for our sins." A pious writer observes, 
 
 " When God gave us his Son, he gave us an infinite- 
 ly greater gift than the world : the Creator is infinitely 
 more glorious than the creature, and the Son of God 
 is the Creator of all things. God can make innume- 
 rable worlds by the word of his mouth ; he has but one 
 only Son, and he spared not his only Son, but gave 
 him to the death of the cross for us all. God's love to 
 his people is from everlasting to everlasting : but from 
 everlasting to everlasting there is no manifestation of 
 It known, or conceivable by us, that can be compared 
 to this. The light of the sun is alvvavs the same, but 
 It shines brightest to us at noon: the cross of Christ 
 was the noon-tide of everlasting love, the meridian 
 splendor of eternal mercy. There were many bright 
 manifestations of the same love before, but ihey were 
 hke the light of the morning, that shines more and 
 more unto the perfect day; and that perfect day was 
 when Christ was on the cross, when darkness covered 
 all the land." 
 
 Pursuing his schemes of love and mercy, he ap- 
 pears as « the God of all grace, who hath called us to 
 his eternal glory by Jesus Christ." "He loveth those 
 who love his Son." " It is the Father's good pleasure 
 to give them the kingdom." '' And God is not ashamed 
 to be called their God, for he hath prepared for them 
 a city." 
 
 § 5. All this l-ove is like himself, eternal. " His mer- 
 cy endureth for ever ;" and " is from everlasting to 
 everlasting upon them that fear him." " The heavens 
 shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax 
 
REVERENCE DUE TO GOD. 17 
 
 old like a garment; but his salvation shall be for 
 ever." 
 
 He who manifests this love is " the eternal God." 
 " A thousand years in his sight are as yesterday when 
 it is past, and as a watch in the night." One day is 
 with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand 
 years as one day." " He inhabiteth eternity ;" and 
 such is that eternity, that, compared with it, one day 
 and a thousand years are alike ; they are both so insig- 
 nificant, that one appears as long as the other. 
 
 § 6. What awe, what reverence should these views 
 of God inspire ! His works, how glorious ! but himself, 
 how infinitely majestic ! When compared with him, 
 his vast creation is mean, as a speck of floating dust ; 
 and sun and stars, like momentary sparks of fire, just 
 seen and forgotten. Angels and archangels, cherubim 
 and seraphim, shine with a glory which the loftiest 
 language scarcely describes. Yet thrones and domin- 
 ions, principalities and powers, cherubim and seraphim, 
 in prostrate homage bow before him, and veil their 
 faces, and cast their crowns at his feet, and cry, " Holy, 
 holy, holy. Lord God Almighty, who is, and was, and 
 is to come." While such is their homage, how reve- 
 rent should be yours ! You, a mote, a worm, an insect, 
 compared with them ; yet they, with all their radiant 
 majesty, insects, compared with him. While they in 
 his presence shrink into nothing, and less than nothing, 
 what are you? How great a God is our God ! Cherish 
 the deepest reverence for him. Should such a God be 
 treated with irreverence? Should he be mocked in 
 professed devotion, " with solemn sounds on a thought- 
 less tongue ?" Abhor and watch against this common 
 2* 
 
18 IMPORTANCE OF THE DIVINE FAVOR. 
 
 Sin, and humble yourself in deep abasement before 
 him, for doubtless it has often polluted your soul. 
 
 § 7. What deep concern for a full assurance of his 
 favor should these views of God excite in your heart! 
 O, could we feel but a thousandth part as much where 
 eternity is concerned, as we do when health or com- 
 fort is at stake, how seriously and fervently should we 
 inquire, and is God indeed my God? A single doubt 
 would wring the heart with anguish, and uncertainty 
 almost drive us to distraction. Pursue this blessing. 
 If others are satisfied with a little religion, imitate 
 not such folly ; but seek, in and by Jesus, the full as- 
 surance of faith. The power and justice of God are 
 armed with ten thousand terrors against every one 
 that is not his child ; the love and goodness of God 
 display ten thousand charms to every one that is. O 
 how dreadful must it be to have him for a foe whose 
 thunders,.lightnings, earthquakes, tempests, and pesti- 
 lences can sweep millions to the grave in a moment ! 
 whose command would extinguish the sun, and crush 
 the universe to nothing ! But how inexpressibly desi- 
 rable is such a friend ! a friend, whose knowledge no 
 enemy can elude, whose power none can resist, whose 
 wisdom none can baffle, and whose love none can 
 comprehend. Who bids seed-time and harvest, sum- 
 mer and winter, revolve ; who kindled up sun and 
 stars; who rolls the moon and planets through the 
 expanse of heaven, and pours floods of light and 
 warmth from the sun upon this distant earth ; who 
 saith to the sea, " Peace, be still," and to the seraph in 
 glory, " Go," and he goeth. While all the inanimate 
 creation obey his voice, while angels bask in his smile, 
 
IMPORTANCE OF THE DIVINE FAVOR. 19 
 
 while the treasures of heaven are at his disposal, while 
 nothing exists of which he is not the rightful owner, 
 and while devils are shrinking from his frown, and 
 trembling beneath the chains of his wrath, O what is 
 any thing to thee, compared to God ! 
 
 You have to meet this infinite God. How will you 
 meet him, if you have not become his friend, his child ? 
 How will your soul sustain that awful day ? How bear 
 the appalling survey of his infinite majesty? How will 
 you shudder at the guilty past! How tremble at the 
 amazing future ! Prepare to meet thy God. What- 
 ever engages you, let God engage your most fervent 
 thoughts. Whatever claims your heart, let God have 
 the first place there. 
 
 Much as earthly friendships and earthly cares may 
 now agitate and engage you, remember they are but 
 the things of a moment, compared with what shall be 
 revealed hereafter. The time is coming, when those 
 which appear of most importance to your present 
 comfort, and which may now be contemplated with 
 ardent interest, or inexpressible delight, will seem of 
 no moment, any further than as they advance your 
 preparation for eternal scenes. Keep this in mind, 
 and strive to resign all your dearest interests into the 
 hands of the All-wise ; and seek your lasting good and 
 best treasure in his love. He deserves your best affec- 
 tions, and your highest regard. How much should 
 the earnestness generally felt after happiness in the 
 present state, impress upon you the value of immortal 
 blessedness ! and how much should the anxiety you 
 perhaps feel to secure the affections of kind and amia- 
 ble friends here, urge upon you the necessity and im- 
 
20 ON DEVOTEDNESS TO GOD. 
 
 portance of possessing the love of the ever-gracious 
 God, and adorable Redeemer, both here and hereafter ! 
 Compared with our God and Redeemer, what are our 
 tenderest, best, and dearest friends? What even the 
 kindest and most valued parents to us ? Their warm- 
 est affection is cold as rocks of ice, compared with that 
 which actuated the breast of the Eternal, when he so 
 loved the world as to give Jesus for its ransom, or with 
 that of the divine Immanuel, when he became for us 
 a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. The love 
 of the fondest mortal friends is in a great degree but 
 the return of affection ; and such, too, is the love of man, 
 of saints, of angels, to God. " We love him because 
 he first loved us." The love of God was unsought, un- 
 solicited ; shown not to friends, but enemies ; and shown 
 when in our character there was every thing to pre- 
 vent, and nothing to produce it. On our interest in 
 this, an eternity is concerned ; on our interest in the 
 breasts of those we hold most dear on earth, nothing 
 but an inch of time. 
 
 § 8. Consider that not merely is the favor of God 
 eternally important to you, but that he has an entire 
 and unalienable claim on all you have and all you are. 
 The first and the greatest commandment is. Thou shall 
 love the Lord thy God with aU thy heart, and with all 
 thy mind, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength. 
 This commandment is binding upon all on earth, and 
 all in heaven. The love it enjoins is the golden link 
 that would bind the whole universe together in har- 
 mony and bliss. It would inspire all with one desire, 
 and lead all to pursue one object, calculated supreme- 
 ly to glorify God, and to benefit man. The Gospel of 
 
ON DEVOTEDNESS TO GOD. 21 
 
 Jesus, while it delivers his followers from condemna- 
 tion incurred by transgressing this law, takes not onfi 
 jot or one tittle from our obligation to obey it; but 
 strengthens that obligation by additional motives, and 
 thus in fact establishes the law. 
 
 Such is the extreme deceitfulness of the human heart, 
 that it may be useful more in detail to show what is re- 
 quired from those who are indeed devoted to God. 
 
 There can be no true devotedness to God till the 
 corrupt selfishness of the human heart is subdued. 
 Selfishness is the root of man's depravity. He is his 
 own idol. He would give to himself that place which 
 God alone has a right to possess. Some of our old 
 writers called sin deicide; probably from the idea that 
 man, pursuing his career of sin and self-exaltation, 
 would, if he possessed sufficient power, not slop till he 
 had thrust the Creator from his throne, and by de- 
 stroying him, had assumed that honor to himself. This 
 notion is correct. Were the sinner possessed of suffi- 
 cient might when he had raised himself above all, ex- 
 cept his God, he would esteem his God an enemy, and 
 not be happy till he had advanced one step higher, 
 and placed his throne above the throne of God. This 
 is the tendency of the selfish depravity of the human 
 heart, and were this corruption armed with equal 
 power, this would be its end. When Alexander, hav- 
 ing conquered one world, wept because he had not ano- 
 ther to conquer, if he could have carried his victori- 
 ous arms into the world unseen, and have waged war 
 against his Maker, doubtless no place lower than his 
 Creator's throne would have satisfied the infernal am- 
 bition that governed in his bosom. Every child of man 
 
23 
 
 THE EVIL OF SELFISHNESS. 
 
 is born with this corrupt principle, though in some it: 
 afterwards appears much more prominent than in 
 others. It is the root o( human wickedness. Every: 
 human being, by having indulged it, has become an 
 idolater, for he has preferred self to God ; and given 
 this that place in his afFec^ons which only God de- 
 serves and justly claims. 
 
 Ah ! my friend, if pharisaic motions of the goodness 
 of human nature charm your mind, you will think , 
 the writer a poor enthusiastic creature, almost beside 
 himself, for penning assertions so strange. But if your 
 heart has ever been broken up, if you have ever gained , 
 a glance at the great deep of iniquity within, though 
 your life should have been fair and blameless, yet yoq 
 will be ready to lie down in the dust of self-abasement, 
 and to acknowledge, not as the extravagance of error, 
 but as the correctness of truth, that 
 
 " God only knows the utmost hell 
 " Of the deceitful heart." 
 
 § 9. All by nature are without love to God ; aliena- 
 ted from him, and disposed to give to self the place he 
 ought to have in their esteem. Where grace does not 
 subdue this corrupt principle, and transform the man, 
 this acts and governs in every station. The Indian 
 Brahmin, who courts divine honors; the New Zealand 
 chief, while esteemed a god by his fellow-savages, dis- 
 play its power. The soldier, the sailor, the tradesman, 
 the man of science, the dissolute youth, and the giddy 
 girl, are all under its influence. Ambition, in every 
 form, is a desire of self-exaltation. Selfishness mounts 
 the thronCj when a desire to gratify the thirst of plea- 
 
SELFISHNESS THE ROOT OF SIN. 23 
 
 sure, grandeur, and power, is the governing principle 
 in a monarch's heart. Selfishness guides the general 
 when spreading desolation through peaceful realms, 
 that he may be extolled as a mighty conqueror. Selfish- 
 ness.' rules the philosopher when pursuing his studies 
 or fovming his theories, that his name may be applaud- 
 ed through distant days. Selfishness governs the mer- 
 chant and the tradesman when laboring for riches, that 
 they or their children may be great upon the earth. 
 Selfishness ascends the pulpit, when the preacher la- 
 bors not to exalt the Lord, but to charm his hearers, 
 and to advance his own reputation. Selfishness governs 
 the dissolute youth, whose pursuit is worldly plea- 
 sure; and the giddy girl, whose object is the admira- 
 tion of the vain flatterers around her, or whose ambi- 
 tion it is to be more admired than some rival trifler 
 like herself. Selfishness descends to the lowest sphere, 
 it governs even in a beggar's breast; and tha^lowly 
 peasant, whose ambition rises no higher than to be the 
 first man in his native village, is as much under its 
 corrupt influence as a Napoleon, disturbing the peace 
 and coveting the possession of a world. The principle 
 is the same, the sphere of action makes the diflference. 
 § 10-. When this corruption of human nature is not 
 subdued, it creeps into every action, and pollutes all it 
 touches. Generosity in relieving distress may spring 
 from selfish motives, from a desire to be seen of men ; 
 but then, whatever benefit the relieved sufferer finds, 
 the giver finds none ; his charity is polluted by self- 
 ishness, and changed into sinful ostentation. Activit}' 
 and zeal may spring from this wicked source, and 
 their real motive be the desire of human applause. 
 
24 SELFISH^^ESS THE ROOT OP SIN. 
 
 We even read of prayers offered to be seen of men j 
 prayers that, springing from so polluted a source, must 
 bring curses, not blessings, down on the heads of the 
 pretended but wicked worshippers. 
 
 This is in fact the root of innumerable sins. It pro- 
 duces pride and ambition. Man exalts himself in his 
 own esteem, and would fain be exalted higher. It is 
 the source of avarice and worldly-mindedness. Man 
 covets much for himself. It is the parent of resent- 
 ment and envy. He is resentful, because self has re- 
 ceived a real or fancied hurt; he is envious, because 
 he would not have any rise higher or prosper more 
 than himself. This makes man indifferent to his fel- 
 low-creatures' good. While self does not suffer, it is a 
 trifle to him that others do. This evil root produces 
 slothfulness and inactivity. Even some professors of 
 religion sit down contented with enjoying the bless- 
 ings <^ the Gospel, and careless of a perishing world; 
 for ikey (at least they think so) feel no want. Selfish- 
 ness picJuces deceit, and treachery, and dishonesty. 
 These are pursued to advance its ends. Discontent is 
 its offspring. From thinking highly of what himself 
 is or deserves, man becomes dissatisfied with the con- 
 duct of his God towards him. Nay, murders, the sin- 
 gle murders of villains, the uholesole murders com- 
 mitted by hostile nations, or by heroes, are to be as- 
 cribed to this. Had man been a stranger to this cor- 
 ruption, and loved his God and his fellow-creatures, 
 the earth would never have been dyed with human 
 blood. 
 
 Could this radical corruption ofhuman nature enter 
 heaven, even heaven would become a scene of discord 
 
GOD CLAIMS THE HEART. 25 
 
 and confusion. Its inhabitants would each have an in- 
 terest of his own, distinct from that of all around him, 
 and opposed to the glory of God. God, instead of be- 
 ing universally loved and enthroned in every heart, 
 would be comparatively disregarded ; while each would 
 exalt himself, at least in his own esteem and desires, 
 to his Creator's place. Harmony and holiness would 
 flee away ; and the wicked scenes of earth be acted 
 over again in heaven. Hence it is, that to meeten man 
 for heaven, he must be born again. 
 
 It is an awful and alarming thought, that all short 
 of the vital power of religion may exist where selfish- 
 ness, instead of God, governs in the heart. Consider, 
 therefore, what real religion demands, and inquire 
 whether yours is such as leads you to devote yourself 
 entirely, unreservedly, and eternally to God. "Thou 
 shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and 
 with ALL thy soul, and with all thy mind, <and with 
 ALL thy strength. This is the first and great command- 
 ment." " Whether ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye 
 do, do all to the glory of God." " Ye are not your own, 
 for ye are bought with a price; therefore glorify God 
 in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's," 
 
 Behold what an unreserved surrender of yourself to 
 God is here enjoined. Nothing less than consecrating 
 to him all your powers, and all your faculties, all you 
 have, and all you are. With your whole heart you are 
 bound to love him. Our days are to be spent for him, 
 our property considered as his. You are called upon 
 to offer your body a living sacrifice to the Lord; to 
 esteem yourself no more your own, but his; your feet 
 to move at his bidding, your hands to labor for his 
 3 
 
86 
 
 BELIEVERS CHILDREN OF GOD. 
 
 honor, your tongue to speak to his glory, and your 
 body, with all its powers, to be holy and devoted to the 
 Lerd. So that, even in the common actions of life, 
 God maybe regarded and honored by you. Nor is this 
 a mere matter of choice, which may be chosen as a 
 higher good, but neglected without any considerable 
 harm. It is the very object the Gospel is designed to 
 promote. There is no piety without devotedness to 
 God. All professions of religion, without this, are as 
 sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal— Nay, worse. 
 The unconscious brass, when it emits a sound, is not 
 false and hypocritical ; but professions of religion, 
 without devotedness to God, are glaring hypocrisy. 
 
 O, reader, is such the life you lead? Has God your 
 heart ? Can you, with the Psalmist, exclaim, my heart 
 is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed?— fixed on thee, on 
 Jesus, and on heaveti; fixed on consecrating to thee 
 my faculties and powers ; and though my flesh and 
 heart must fail, yet would I consecrate to thee all the 
 nobler powers of my immortal mind, and in life and 
 in death aspire to thee, my God, and my portion for 
 ever. 
 
 The view thus offered of the nature and necessity ol 
 devotedness to God, is further confirmed and illustrat- 
 ed by those numerous passages which represent the 
 Christian as a child of God. Surely from the children 
 of such a Father, all this consecration of their whole 
 selves to him is demanded. The affection of parents 
 claims much, but the love of God claims more; and 
 shall it be thought wicked ingratitude not to requite 
 theirs with obedience and affection, and does not his 
 demand much more devoted obedience, much more 
 
TRUE DEVOTEDNESS TO GOT 27 
 
 fervent aflfection? How high, how noble a character 
 is that of a child of God 1 Ask an angel what is his 
 highest honor, his noblest joy, and he might reply, it 
 is that I am a child of God. Is this yours also, and 
 should not an angel's dispositions be cherished in your 
 heart? How supreme is their devotedness to God! 
 How fervent their love! How rapturous their delight! 
 They have no will but his, no pleasure but in pleasing 
 him. Why should they be more devoted to God than 
 you! Are not you his ^hild, his son, or daughter? 
 they are no more. Are not you his child, ransomed 
 by the blood of his Son ? they are not so much. In 
 this your nearness and dearness to him excels even 
 theirs; and can you feel this, and not devote' to him 
 your body and your soul ? 
 
 § 11. True devotedness to God is connected with 
 deep self-abasement and child-like affection. It is not 
 the devotedness of a servant, who employs his powers 
 for his master, merely on account of the wages he ex- 
 pects to earn; it is the devotedness of a ransomed 
 criminal, who consecrates, to the friend that redeemed 
 him, the life his kindness has prolonged. It is the de- 
 votedness of a penitent prodigal, when restored by un- 
 deserved compassion to his father's house and bosom. 
 He serves God, not for the benefits he wishes to acquire, 
 but for the mercies he has received. 
 
 Think of the case of a condemned criminal. Having 
 violated his country's laws, he is justly doomed to 
 death. His claim to life is forfeited. His interest in 
 his property ceases. His connection with his friends 
 terminates. His all is lost. Neither on liberty, nor pos- 
 sessions, nor friends, nor life has he a further claim. 
 
28 
 
 TRUE DEVOTEDNESS TO GOD 
 
 He Stands a wretched, insulated being, cut off from his 
 connections with man, severed from all of which he 
 was once a part, and unable to sav of any thina that 
 surrounds him, excepting misery. This is mine. Sup- 
 pose some generous friend to pay a price sufficient for 
 the ransom of this man : the sentence of death is re- 
 versed, he is restored to liberty, to friends, to posses- 
 sions, to life. But if possessed of proper feeling, whose 
 would these be? whose would he be ? Could he say of 
 these things, They are mine^? Must he not say, They 
 are his, and I am his, who ransomed me ? 
 
 An anecdote related in the life of Doddridge, may 
 afford an impressive illustration of this subject. A 
 poor Irishman had been convicted at Northampton of 
 murder, and in consequence was doomed to die Dod- 
 dridge visited him in prison, and becoming convinced 
 of his innocence, exerted himself to procure a reprieve 
 These exertions were vain, the man suffered death • 
 but that benevolent Christian observes, " Among other 
 things, I remember he said, 'Every drop of my blood 
 thanks you, for you have had compassion on every 
 drop of it.' He wished he might, before he died, have 
 leave to kneel at the threshold of my door, to pray for 
 me and mine; which indeed he did on his knees, in 
 the most earnest manner, as he was taken out to be 
 executed. 'You,' said he, ' are my redeemer in one 
 sense, (a poor impotent redeemer !) and you have a 
 right to me If I live, I am your property, and I will 
 be a faithful subject.' 
 
 " May I not learn from it, gratitude to Him who hath 
 redeemed and delivered me ? How eagerly did he re- 
 ceive the news of a reprieve for a few days ' How 
 
PRODUCED BY REDEEMING LOVE. 29 
 
 tenderly did he express his gratitude; that he should 
 be mine; that I might do what I pleased with him; 
 that I had bought him— and the delight with which 
 he should see and serve me ; that he would come once 
 a year from one end of the kingdom to the other, to 
 see and thank me, and should be glad never to go out 
 of my sight ! O, why do not our hearts overflow with 
 such sentiments on an occasion infinitely greater. 
 We are all dead men. Execution would soon have 
 been done upon us: but 'Christ has redeemed us to 
 God by his blood.' We are not merely reprieved, but 
 pardoned ; not merely pardoned, but adopted ; made 
 heirs of eternal glory, and near the borders of 
 it. In consequence of all this, we are not our own, but 
 ' bought with a price. May we glorify God in our bo- 
 dies and spirits, which are his!"' 
 
 Every child of God was once as surely a condemn- 
 ed wretch as was the poor Irish criminal. And con- 
 demned to a more direful death, the death that never 
 dies. What then should be the language of the Chris- 
 tian, who views himself and his condition rightly? 
 " Father, nothing that I have is mine; for I have for- 
 feited all and lost myself. Behind me were years of 
 sin, before me the gloom of eternal night. I lay a help- 
 less, ruined wretch, justly condemned to death and 
 hell ; and as able to pluck the sun from the firmament, 
 as to blot out my crimes, or to set aside the sentence 
 of deserved condemnation. I had lost thy favor. I had 
 no claim upon the smallest blessing ; nothing was mine 
 but guilt ; nothing awaited me but perdition ; without 
 one gleam of hope, I was hastening to eternal night. 
 Then 'didst thou interpose. Then did thy Son bleed 
 3* 
 
30 TRUE DEVOTEDNESS TO GOD. 
 
 and atone for me ; and now I live. Thou hast given 
 me mOre than a reprieve, a gracious pardon. I live, 
 pardoned and saved ; but whose am I ? not my own. 
 The blood which ransomed me when I had lost my 
 all, bought all I now possess and all I am. Thou art 
 my Redeemer, and thou hast a right to me. Thou 
 hast had compassion on my body and my soul. I am 
 thy property, and while I live would live to thee. 
 
 How important is such a life ! how different the 
 views and feeling of a heart actuated by such princi- 
 ples from those they indulge who, having never known 
 themselves utterly condemned, hope to please God by 
 their defective morality ! How different in its designs' 
 as well as in its governing principles! Let the mere 
 moralist, or the fashionable worldly Christian, utter 
 his sentiments, and he might say, "I trust the virtue? 
 of my character, and the goodness of my heart and 
 actions will obtain me the favor of my Maker." Let 
 him, who acts from the principles above displayed, ex- 
 plain the design of his obedience, and he would say, 
 " I have no such expectation as my deluded fellow- 
 sinner describes; I have deserved hell, and having de- 
 served that direful doom, I know I cannot deserve hea- 
 ven. All that I do, and alf I ever can do, for God, (and 
 I would do all I can,) is but a poor imperfect offering 
 of gratitude and love to him for saving me. It is not 
 a service by which I hope to earn his favor, but itis 
 his rightful claim, because he, as it were, bought my 
 body and my soul, wlinn he redeemed me from the pit 
 of destruction, by the blood of his Son. 
 
 A life of devotedness to God is not generally con- 
 nected with retirement and withdrawment from the 
 
LIFE TO BE PASSED AS IN GOD's SIGHT. 31 
 
 duties of the present world. Some avocations, indeed, 
 are of such a nature that religion absolutely forbids 
 them ; but with respect to those that are lawful and 
 needful, the followers of Christ are directed to be " not 
 slothful in business," as well as fervent in spirit, serv- 
 ing the Lord. Religion does not set aside the common 
 avocations of life, but, while it allows or enjoins the 
 employments, it sanctifies the motives that are to go- 
 vern in their performance, and says, Do this, not with 
 the views of the thoughtless worldling, but do all to 
 the glory of God. Let thy industrj'-, let thy diligence, 
 reflect honor on the Gospel, and furnish thee with ad- 
 ditional means for promoting the honor of God. Seek 
 nealth, that God may be glorified by thy improvement 
 of its blessings. Labor for food, that God may be glo- 
 rified in the life that food supports. Let holiness to 
 the Lord be as much inscribed on all the engagements 
 of life, as upon the hours devoted to religious acts. 
 
 § 13. Another feature in a life of devotedness to God 
 will be, a prevailing concern to pass life as in his sight. 
 That we are so, all but atheists acknovdedge, but most 
 forget. That he is so, the Christian desires to remem- 
 ber, and more and more impressively to feel. 
 
 In public or in private, in blazing day, or midnight 
 darkness, still acknowledge, Thou, O God, seest me. 
 In the season of business, and in the hour of prayer, 
 in the house of worship, or by your own fire-side, still 
 God sees you. He hears every word, he observes every 
 action, and watches every thought. Alas ! how much 
 practical atheism have even his children to deplore ! 
 for how much are these truths forgotten ! He sees thee 
 in the day of pain, and knows thy every secret sor~ 
 
32 DEVOTEDNESS TO GOD URGED FROM 
 
 row. He sees thee in thy cheerful hours, and knows 
 how those hours are spent. Were an apostle or an 
 angel always with you, how would you watch your 
 actions and your words! but an infinitely greater is 
 always near you ! Were you to spend a few years im- 
 mediately in the presence of God, how would you live ? 
 God is as intimately acquainted with you, and all you 
 do, say, and think, and are, as he could possibly be then. 
 Act therefore as in his sight. Often think, " Should I 
 live as I do, if I saw my God? Should I do these ac- 
 tions, utter these words, should I indulge these thoughts, 
 if I beheld him who now beholds me? 
 
 Imitate the Lord Jesus Christ. In his holy life, de- 
 votedness to God shone with its brightest lustre. He 
 represented it as his meat, his very support, to do his 
 heavenly Father's will. When, after a fatiguing jour- 
 ney, his disciples entreated him to partake of refresh- 
 ment, he replied, " I have meat to eat that ye know 
 not of. My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, 
 and to finish his work." He labored and suflfered for 
 the honor of God. He ascribed to his heavenly Father 
 his actions, his doctrines, and his success. He Avaited 
 on him in his temple, or sought the solitude of deserts, 
 to spend whole nights in fervent devotion. In life, he 
 was all activity and zeal for his heavenly Father's ho- 
 nor; and in suff'erings and death, all submission and 
 resignation to his heavenly Fathers will: and he left 
 us his example, that we should follow his steps. 
 
 § 13. Perhaps you think the devotedness to God, 
 thus urged upon you, is far superior to that which 
 numbers who profess religion manifest. Be it so. Num- 
 bers deceive themselves, and have a name to live while 
 
HIS GOODNESS IN PROVIDENCE AND GRACE. 33 
 
 they are dead. Numbers more of whose sincerity some 
 hope may be entertained, yet, alas ! give cause for 
 many a fear that, when weighed in the balance, they 
 will be found wanting. You would not wish at last to 
 belong to either of these classes. You will wish for a 
 religion that, when proved by death and eternity, shall 
 appear of the right kind. Think not then that you are 
 entreated to devote yourself too entirely to God. He 
 claims you for his mercies' sake. " I beseech you, by 
 the mercies of God, that you present your body a liv- 
 ing sacrifice, holy, and acceptable to him, which is 
 your reasonable service." O think of those mercies ! 
 God made you what you are. You might have been a 
 brute,; but he has blessed you with a human form and 
 an immortal soul. You enjoy the use of reason. It is 
 his gift. You might have been an idiot or a maniac. 
 Do you possess hearing, speech, sight? Can you taste, 
 feel, smell? It is he who has blessed you with these 
 powers ; you might have been deaf, dumb, and blind, 
 unable to smell, or feel, or taste. Perhaps you were 
 born to the enjoyment of wealth; consider that, but for 
 his goodness you might have been the child of a beg- 
 gar. If not wealthy, you are probably placed in a situa- 
 tion which affords you many temporal comforts. He 
 placed you there. You might have been an Arab, wan- 
 dering and famishing in burning deserts; a Koon-kee, 
 dwelling with the wild beasts, in dens or trees ; a Bush- 
 man or a Hottentot, sunk almost to a level with the 
 brute creation. You have had parents or friends, whose 
 love cheered and blessed your early years. God gave 
 them. 'You might have been born where heathenism 
 destroys natural affection, and parents offer their chil 
 
34 DEVOTEDNESS TO GOD URGED FROM 
 
 dren to Moloch. God has been kind in fixing your lot ; 
 and has he not been as kind in the dealings of his pro- 
 vidence? Of how many comforts has he been the giver ! 
 Through how many years has he been your preserver ! 
 Your body is formed hkc a delicate yet complicated 
 machine, and one part disordered might have disor- 
 ganized all the rest. Yet he has kept its parts in ac- 
 tion, and preserved and regulated the whole. 
 
 " Your life contains a thousand springs, 
 
 " And dies if one be gone : 
 " Strange, that a harp of thousand strings 
 
 " Should keep in tune so long!" 
 
 Ah ! it would not have kept in tune if he had not 
 preserved the harmony. Survey your past years. 
 They have been )7ears of mercy. He has watched over 
 you by day and by night. How many days of ease 
 have you enjoyed I How many nights of security 
 have you passed, when, sunk in sleep and insensi- 
 bility, you had none to secure you but God ! Have you 
 enjoyed health ? He gave it. Has sickness, if it visited 
 you, yet made but a'transient visit ? He ordered its de- 
 parture, raised you from the bed of pain, and bright- 
 ened your pallid countenance with the returning 
 bloom of health. Have you lived many years, and 
 never, even for a day, been destitute of needful food 
 and decent clothing? God has supplied these wants 
 through all the days of those departed years. Have 
 you, from the moment of your birth to tliis hour, had 
 friends who have been the solace of your life? God 
 gave those friends. Perhaps you have seen twenty, 
 thirty, or more years roll away j can you say of one 
 
HIS GOODNESS IN PROVIDENCE AND GRACE. 35 
 
 day in all those years, That day God forgot me ; that 
 day I had nothing from his bounty? You know you 
 cannot ; though you doubtless can say, I forgot him 
 lor many long rebellious years. Through what chang- 
 ing scenes has he led you, and still been uniformly 
 kind ! and so kind, that neither ingratitude nor rebel- 
 lion has ever checked the torrent of his mercies. He 
 blessed you in childhood ; he watched over you in 
 youth ; and if riper years have rolled over your head, 
 he has crowned those years with all the mercies they 
 have brought you. Through how many dangers has 
 he led you! From how many storms has he shel- 
 tered you ! 
 
 § 14. Kind in providence, has he not been kinder 
 still in grace ? How much has God done to make you 
 happy for ever ! Compare your lot with the lot of mil- 
 lions; your holy light with their degrading darkness; 
 your bright hopes with their mournful despair; the 
 brightness of your day with the gloom of their sad 
 night. If a Christian, "contrast your pure and peace- 
 ful Sabbaths with their unhallowed festivals of cruel- 
 ty and superstition ; your resources in sorrow, with all 
 their unheeded sadness; your consolations in death, 
 with all their dark and cheerless agonies ; your assur- 
 ed prospects into eternity, with their cold and heart- 
 sickening theories; and what a theme have you for 
 gratitude ! what an argument for praise !" Who hath 
 made you to differ? Why were you not born in Da- 
 homy, or Hindostan, or Ceylon, and trained to wor- 
 ship the tiger, or juggernaut, or devils? Some com- 
 pute six hundred millions of pagans to exist on earth. 
 You might have been one ; but God fixed your lot 
 
36 DEVOTEDNESS TO GOD URGED F£OM 
 
 where the Gospel spreads a cheering day. There are 
 perhaps one hundred millions of papists, the greater 
 part of them as ignorant of religion as the heathen 
 themselves. Why are you not one ? Why were you 
 not born where, instead of learning to adore God and 
 the Lamb, you would have been taught to worship 
 " silver saviors and saints of gold !" and, nursed in su- 
 perstition and vice, have lived the slave of sin, believ- 
 ing that you could purchase of antichrist a pardon for 
 your crimes? Have you a Bible ? Millions never saw 
 its holy pages. For perhaps a thousand millions of 
 human beings, but twenty-five millions of Bibles are 
 supposed to have been printed. AVhy have you that 
 precious book ? God bestowed it on you. 
 
 But I address you as a partaker of still greater mer- 
 cies. Turn your eyes from earth to heaven. Think of 
 God commending his love toward us, in that wJiile we 
 were yet sinners Christ died for us. Think that he 
 who kindled up the stars of light assumed your na- 
 ture, and suffered in your stead ! and O, what miracles 
 of love have been manifested to you ! Nor did they 
 stop here. Did not God meet with you when you 
 knew him not? Did he not enlighten your mind, that 
 else had been for ever dark ? did he not kindle in 
 your heart desires that else you VN^ould never have 
 felt ? Did he not lead you to that Savior to whom 
 else you had never gone? and when you feared re- 
 buke, did he not forgive, receive, adopt, and save? 
 What mercies are these ! 
 
 Can you not exclaim, "I was lost, but am found ; I 
 was dead, but now, I hope, alive; I was a prodigal, but 
 here I am in my Father's house !" Who sought, who 
 
HIS GOODNESS IN PROVIDENCE AND GRACE. 37 
 
 quickened, who gave you welcome there? God, who 
 is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved 
 you. And look you not forward to a time, when you 
 hope, in a heavenly home, to join the song of the ran- 
 somed, and to praise redeeming love for ever? And 
 .there will you not have to exclaim. What miracle of 
 mercy brought me here? me, once so vain, so gay, so 
 thoughtless of all real good— me, once so dissipated, 
 ,„so worldly— me, once stained with ten thousand sins— 
 me, for whom the pit of destruction yawned, and 
 whom devils expected as their prey ! God, that awful 
 venerable name ! God brought me here ; and never, 
 never should I have seen this abode of peace, but for 
 his saving love. O, my friend, are these rich mercies 
 in possession, these richer in prospect, all the gift of 
 that much injured, yet still benevolent Being— God ? 
 And can he expect, or can you be willing to offer, less 
 in return than all you have and are ! Is it much to de- 
 vote that little to him who gives so much? Has he 
 given you life and health, a thousand comforts, and 
 more than doubled all in giving Christ, and will you 
 not devote to him yourself and your all ? Will he give 
 you heaven, and is it much to devote to him a span ot 
 time on earth? O rather, pray, Merciful God! little, 
 far too little, is the most I ever can devote to thee ; 
 and let me not make that little less, by offering a 
 heart but half set on thee, and life but half devoted to 
 thee ! O rather, whatever other professors of thy Gos- 
 pel do, enable me to offer to th^e all I have, and all I 
 am, an unworthy and insignificant, yet a living, and, 
 through Jesus Christ, an acceptable sacrifice ! 
 
 § 15. As one motive more for devotedness to God, 
 4 
 
«o SELFISHNESS LEADS TO RUIN. 
 
 remember that they who live most to God, live most 
 to their own true welfare ; and they who live to them- 
 selves, live to ruin. On this subject a pious writer 
 observes : 
 
 " The fact is, no man will have been found too cun- 
 ning for God. Men, all men, will be for ever and ever 
 what they were through life. Not a grain of the seed 
 sown in time, but what will bear in time and through 
 eternity its own fruit. The tree which thou planlest, 
 O immortal, of its fruit shalt thou partake for ever. 
 By the merits of Christ believers will attain to life 
 eternal, but the history of that life eternal will bear 
 the motto, 'Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he 
 also reap.' A life of selfishness invariably ends in dis- 
 appointment in some shape or other. There is an in- 
 separable, an eternal connexion between actions and 
 their fruit, and no wit or cunning of men can dissolve 
 it. ' He that soweth sparingly, shall reap also sparing- 
 ly ; and he that soweth bountifully, shall reap also boun- 
 tifully.' ' He that soweth to the flesh, shall of the flesh 
 reap corruption ; but he that soweth to the Spirit, shall 
 of the Spirit reap life everlasting.' 
 
 "But he who has lived to himself, shall 'arise to 
 shame and everlasting contempt.' I set before thee a 
 heavenly life, a glorious career of Christian benevo- 
 lence ; and my grace should have been perfected in 
 thy weakness. But thou preferredst a partial view of 
 thy own interests, and thou livedst to thyself. Ab- 
 sorbed in secular engagements, thou raisedst a noble 
 mansion j thou elevatedst thy family to the highest 
 dignities, and the name of thy house has survived the 
 ravages of centuries. But see, the world is on fire I 
 
GOD IS LOVE TO TUB BELIEVER. 39 
 
 Behold, a new earth and a new heaven ! What share 
 hast thou in this new creation ? Is there one soul on 
 these thrones which thou hast instrumentally raised 
 thither ? Is there one scene to the beauties of which 
 thou hast contributed ? None. All thy labors, all thy 
 projects, have perished in the great conflagration, and 
 ihou art left alone, since all earthly connexions are 
 dissolved, for ever to reflect on the inexpressible folly 
 and turpitude of a life which has been consumed on a 
 oase and fruitless eff"ort to make self the object of ado- 
 ration and service, while the Deity and all the crea- 
 tures have been made to ' serve with thy sins.' Go, 
 infatuated wretch, eternity is before thee— a god for a 
 moment, a miserable reptile for ever. Hadst thou lived 
 to me, I had made thee a son and an heir of God. 
 Thou hast lived to thyself; thyself in ruins shall be 
 to thee the only object of contemplation amidst the 
 solitudes and unavailing anguish of eternity 1''* 
 
 § 16. While the goodness, and love, and compassion 
 of God thus claim for him your supreme regard, the 
 contemplation of his excellences should fill your soul 
 with pure delight. If you are indeed a follower of the 
 Lamb, then this God is thy God for ever and ever; 
 he will be thy ffuide even unto death. Look at the crea- 
 tion, and you may exclaim, " My Father made it all." 
 Look at the sun ; it is darkness to his glory. Look at 
 the world ; it is the creature of a moment in his sight. 
 He, before whom angels veil their faces ; he, at whose 
 frown the pillarst of heaven tremble— he is thy God. 
 He who inhabiteth eternity is thy God, and is for thee 
 
 Ward 
 
^ GOD 13 LOVE TO THE BELIEVER. 
 
 preparing a mansion in his own abode. think more 
 of God. and less of the world ; more of his favor, and 
 less of earthly cares or troubles. What is the world to 
 one who has to do with God ? What are its pleasures 
 or its pains to one who hopes ere long to be with God ? 
 What all the cares tjiat agitate its followers, to one 
 that knows he has but a moment here and eternity- 
 there? What is the world, what is thy country, what 
 all thy friends to thee, compared with God? This 
 world is not thy world. This country is not thy coun- 
 try. These friends, unless they too are the children 
 of God, are not thy lasting friends ; but heaven is thy 
 country, and God is thy Friend and thy Father for 
 ever. 
 
 And who is he that is thus engaged as thy friend 1 
 The God who is love. Love is his brightest glory. 
 For scores of ages has he been showering down innu- 
 merable blessings on this ungrateful world ; for he is 
 love. The meanest insect is not beneath his care. A 
 sparrow does not die without him, and the fowl of 
 heaven are fed, because GOD IS LOVE. But in eter- 
 nity the sun of his love sheds its brightest beams with- 
 out one darkening cloud. Joy is diffused through all 
 the immense regions of heaven, because GOD IS 
 LOVE., Eternal day smiles on its peaceful mansions, 
 for God is there, and GOD IS LOVE. Myriads of 
 happy spirits; exult therein unsullied holiness, unmin- 
 gled happiness, and never-fading glory, for God is 
 their friend, and GOD IS LOVE. He pours the tide of 
 joy through their abodes, he lights up their eternal 
 day : all they are, and all they have, all that heaven 
 can furnish and eternal life bestow, all is the gift of 
 
GOD IS LOVE TO THE BELIEVER. 41 
 
 God, for GOD IS LOVE- And is this God, thy God ! 
 then rejoice. The Friend of angels is thy Friend and 
 Father ; and GOD IS LOVE TO THEE. What are 
 all thy friends, and all their love, compared wilh his 1 
 His love that reaches through earth and heaven! His 
 love that supplies a sparrow's wants, and crowns wilh 
 glory every angel's head! His love that extends 
 through time, and stretches to eternity ! His love to 
 thee, more boundless than that to the angels that bow 
 at his feet! For, for thee, a rebel and a worm, he gave 
 his Son. wonder and adore ! This God, thy God! 
 O bow at his feet ! Abhor thyself for having ever of- 
 fended him, and triumph in his love. Father of hea- 
 ven, art thou mv Father, and shall I not delight m thee 1 
 Giver of eternal life, art thou my life, and shall I not 
 live to thee ? God of angels, art thou my God, and a 
 kinder God to me than even to them, and shall I not 
 love thee, and yield all my powers to thee, and wish 
 to love thee with an angel's fire? Light of eternity, 
 art thou my light, and shall I not listen to thee, and 
 count all wisdom folly, but the wisdom of thy word? 
 all learning ignorance, except the truth thy blessed 
 book unfolds? Thou art love. O patient love ! I have 
 injured thee, yet thou art kind to me. How are my 
 sins, even of a hellish dye ! How have I acted the 
 devil's part in sinning against infinite goodness ! and 
 orievinc^ infinite love ! Yes, my young friend, these 
 mingled feelings of exulting joy in God, and deep self- 
 detestation, well become us when viewing the love of 
 God Look but at his everlasting love, and there thou 
 wilt find a sufficient portion to gladden all thy soul ; and 
 without a sigh, thou wilt leave riches, and honors, and 
 4* 
 
42 GOD AN EVER PRESENT FRIEND. 
 
 pleasures, and fame to their possessors, whilst thou 
 canst say, GOD IS LOVE, and God is mine. 
 
 § 17. Reflect further : He, thy God, is ever with 
 thee. Friends may be absent, he is always near. He 
 sees thy tears, he hears thy prayers, he beholds the 
 pantings of thy heart and the desires of thy soul af- 
 ter more of his presence, his likeness, and his love. 
 He is by when thou art praying in secret ; and he 
 goes with thee in thy lonely walks. He gives thee 
 strength for the labors of the day ; and watches over 
 thee through the darkness of the night. Perhaps thy 
 house is poor ; the great ones of the earth might scorn 
 to enter thy humble dwelling, or come under thy low- 
 ly roof, but thy God is there. Thy cottage is not too 
 mean for him, whom the heaven of heavens cannot 
 contain, there to dwell with thee. He is by when thou 
 art meditating on his word, to pour the light of in- 
 struction on thy soul ; to wing thy hopes, and fire thy 
 heart, and raise thy desires to the mansions of eternal 
 love. He is by when thou art conversing on his good- 
 ness ; and hearkens and hears, and a book of remem- 
 brance is written for those that fear the Lord and think 
 upon his name. Nor is he absent when thou art wish- 
 ing that thy eyes were fountains of tears, to pour a 
 ceaseless flood because thou lovest and servest him 
 no better. Through all thy days of health, God is 
 with thee ; and when thou layest on thy sick-bed he 
 will be near thee, and near thee in thy dying hour. 
 
 Perhaps thou art unknown and despised on earth, 
 thy wisdom counted folly, thy name cast out with 
 scorn; but while God is thy portion, what tri- 
 fles are poverty, contempt and scorn ! However lowly, 
 
GOD AN EVERLASTING FRIEND. 43 
 
 however despised on earth ; as his child, thy name is 
 written in the book of life, atid stands enrolled in the 
 records of heaven. While God is thine, though thou 
 may est have little here, thou hast much there. On 
 earth but just an humble shelter, in which to lay thy 
 head ; but in heaven a7i inhej-itance, incorruptible and 
 undejiled, and that cannot fade away. No riches here, 
 but endless riches there ; and it matters not if thou 
 art poor on earth, whilst thou art rich in heaven. 
 
 Perhaps thou hast few friends, yet canst thou want 
 a friend, while God is thy friend? He is more to thee 
 than the whole universe ; and his friendship of infi- 
 nitely more value than that of all the inhabitants of 
 earth or heaven besides. Thou art feeble as a moth, 
 but the eternal God is thy refuse, the everlasting arms 
 support thee. Thou art beset by foes and dangers, but 
 the infinite God is thy shield ; thou art a dying crea- 
 ture, but the immortal God is thy life and thy portion. 
 
 Perhaps God has given thee more of the comforts 
 and mercies of this dying world ; yet it is a dying 
 world, and all is dying around thee. Rejoice, then, 
 not in fading transitory things, but in thy God. God 
 is thy God for ever, but nothing here is thine for ever. 
 The tender parents, or beloved and loving friends, 
 whose kindness and affection give life its chief charm, 
 and gladden the very heart, are not m this shadowy 
 world to be thy friends for ever. The bloom of youth, 
 the strength of manhood, the vigor and joy of health, 
 will not be thine for ever. The possessions and com- 
 forts of this life cannot long be thine. This is not 
 the eternal world. All is shadow here, all is change 
 and deception. Thy friends must quickly die, but thy 
 
44 GOD AN EVERLASTING FRIEND. 
 
 God will never die. He inhahiteth eternity. Thy health 
 must be changed to sickness, thy ease to pain, ihy life 
 to death. Thy taper will expire ; thy sun will set ; 
 all thou hast, rapacious death will tear away. Rejoice 
 not then in dying things; but if God is thine, glory in 
 thy God, who dwells above the reach of change ; thy 
 God, the everlasting solace of the immortal soul. And 
 he thy friend, thy portion, through the span of life, 
 will be thine through eternal years. The sun that 
 cheers thee with its light and warmth, must shortly 
 shine upon thy grave ; but God, thy glory, will then 
 shine with all the beams of heavenly love upon thy 
 soul. That sun itself must ere long expire, but God 
 shall be thy everlasting light. The world, on which 
 thou art a pilgrim now, must perish like a bubble, that 
 bursts and is forgotten ; but God, who leads thee here, 
 will be thy God in those brighter regions where dwell 
 the nations of the saved. 
 
 There will he make thee rich, when all except his 
 children are poor; and happy, when all but they are 
 wretched. There will his love diffuse joy unutterable, 
 far more exceeding and eternal, through thy soul! 
 There, "violence shall no more be heard in thy land, 
 wasting nor destruction within thy borders ; but thou 
 Shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise. 
 The sun shall be no more thy light by day ; neither 
 for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee ; but 
 the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and 
 thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down : 
 neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the Lord 
 shall be thy everlasting light, and the days of thy 
 mourning shall be ended." 
 
LOVE OF THE LORD JESUS. 45 
 
 § 18. The views the Scriptures afford you of God, 
 should lead you to bind that volume to your heart. 
 How different is the God of the Bible from that motley 
 train of polluted idols which heathenism has produced ! 
 weak and feeble, vile and sinful gods. How different, 
 too, is Jehovah from the idol which infidels, who ad- 
 mit any God, describe as God ! A God who sees with 
 unconcern the vicious conduct of men ; a God divest- 
 ed of holiness, and justice, and his brightest attributes. 
 Who, except men inspired by God, could represent 
 him as he is described in the Scriptures? Whence, 
 but from heaven, should Moses and the prophets, and 
 the unlettered men of Galilee, obtain these views of 
 divine majesty and glory which we have now contem- 
 plated ? What but inspiration could teach them what 
 the philosophers of all nations, and of all ages, never 
 discovered ? and so teach them, that all the philoso- 
 phers of the world, with all their vaunted wisdom, are 
 mere idiots in divine knowledge, if compared with 
 many a poor child instructed from the sacred writings 
 in a Sabbath school ! 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 ON THE NATURE AND LOVE OF THE LORD JESUS 
 CHRIST; AND ON LOVE TO HIM. 
 
 § 1. There are few more impressive proofs of hu- 
 man depravity, than the general indifference of man- 
 kind to subjects of everlasting moment ; and the 
 
^^ LO^E OP THE LORD JESUS. 
 
 conteii.pt of the world for tlie happy few who are 
 
 warmly devoted to the Savior. Zeal i„^ hlr pursuTs 
 
 sadjj,,ed, zeal for the Gospel is despised. Ye w 
 
 real Christians triumph in their Redeemer's cross 2d 
 
 Gospel, for attachment to which, the world most ridi! 
 c« les and despises them. No name is so dear to them 
 as that name which shall endure for ever ; no part o 
 Christianity so prized as that which is to the Jew a 
 stumblmg^block, and to the wise of this world foolish- 
 ness. The glowing fervors of a poet's language ex 
 press the sober feeling of their hearts. ^ 
 
 " Religion, thou the soul of happiness, 
 ••And groaning Calvary, of thee! there shine 
 
 The noblest truths; there strongest motives sting; 
 
 1 here sacred violence assaults the soul : 
 "There nothing but compulsion is forborne. 
 
 Thou my all ! 
 
 '•My theme! my inspiration! and ray crown! 
 
 " My strength in age ! my rise in low estate ! 
 
 " My soul's ambition, pleasure, wealth ! my world ' 
 
 " My light in darkness ! and my life in death ! 
 
 " My boast through time ! bliss through eternity .' 
 
 " Eternity too short to speak thy praise, 
 
 " Or fathom thy profound of love to man ! 
 
 " To man of men the meanest, ev'n to me ' 
 
 '' My sacrifice ! my God ! What things are these 7 
 
 " Talk they of morals ? O thou bleeding Love ! 
 
 " Thou Maker of new morals to mankind ! 
 
 " The grand moraJity is love to thee !" 
 
 Such regard to the Savior can exist only where ex- 
 aited views are entertained of his person and offices 
 § 2. In taking a view of a few of the leading argu- 
 
THE DIVINITY OF CHRIST. 47 
 
 ments that prove that Jesus Christ is God over ail, 
 blessed for ever, we may observe that the Scriptures 
 repeatedly assert that he is God, and give him the 
 names and titles of God. 
 
 " In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was 
 with God, and the Word was God." John, 1 : 1. That 
 Jesus Christ is here spoken of is clear from a follow- 
 ing verse. " And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt 
 among us." " They shall call his name Immanuel, 
 that is, God with us." Jesus Christ therefore is God 
 with us. " Christ came, who is over all, God blessed 
 for ever." Rom. 9 : 5. 
 
 The Father is represented as addressing Christ as 
 God. " Unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, God, is 
 for ever and ever." Heb. 1 : 8. While the Father pro- 
 nounces him God, God possessed of an everlasting 
 dominion, shall we hesitate to acknowledge him di- 
 vine ? 
 
 Christ is called the inie God. '• We are in him that 
 is true, and in his Son Jesus Christ; this (or he) is the 
 true God and eternal life." 1 John, 5 : 20. That the 
 person here called the true God is Jesus Christ, is evi- 
 dent not merely from the natural import of the pas- 
 sage, but from chap. 1, ver. 2, of this epistle, where 
 Christ is called " that eternal life that was with the 
 Father, and was manifested to us." 
 
 Christ is called the great God, and the miglihj God : 
 " Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious ap- 
 pearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ." 
 Tit. 2 : 13. It is Christ, and not the Father, who will 
 appear as the Judge of the world ; consequently, as the 
 appearing of Christ is that of the great God and our Sa- 
 
48 tME DIVINITY OF CHRIST 
 
 vior, Jesus Christ is here declared to be the great God. 
 
 " Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and 
 his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The 
 mighty God, The everlasting Father, (or, The Father 
 of the everlasting age,) The Prince of Peace." Isa. 
 9 : 6. These are titles which no mere mortal could 
 sustain. Yet if Jesus were merely a man, there is no 
 more reason for applying them to him, than to Moses ^ 
 or Elijah. 
 
 Christ is called the Lord, or Jehovah. This is God's ' 
 incommunicable name. He says, " I am Jehovah ;* that 
 is my name, and my glory will I not give to another." 
 Isa. 42 : 8. This name, the peculiar title of the eternal 
 God, is freely applied to Clirist. " This is his name 
 whereby he shall be called, the Lord (Jehovah) our 
 righteousness." 
 
 " The voice of one crying in the wilderness. Prepare 
 ye the way of the Lord (Jehovah,) make straight in 
 the desert a highway for our God." Isa. 40 : 3. In 
 each of the four Gospels it is asserted that the person 
 here spoken of, as a voice crying in the wilderness, 
 was John the Baptist. Since John came as a messen- 
 ger, to prepare the way for Jesus Christ, he, in this 
 celebrated prophecy, is called Jehovah. This view of 
 the passage is further confirmed by the language of 
 the angel Gabriel -to Zacharias. "Many of the chil- 
 dren of Israel shall, he turn to the Lord their God ; and '. 
 he shall go before him (the Lord their God) in the ' 
 spirit and power of Elias." 
 
 •The English reader of the Scriptures may observe, that 
 when the word Jehovah occurs, and is translated the Lord, it 
 U printed in small capitals. 
 
ARGUED mOM THE NAMES HE BEARS- 49 
 
 That Jesus is called Jehovah is further evident from 
 observing that the glory of the Lord (Jehovah,) which 
 Isaiah saw, was the glory of Christ. " In the year that 
 king Uzziah died, I saw also the Lord (Jehovah) sit- 
 ting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train 
 filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphims; and 
 one cried to another and said. Holy, holy, holy is the 
 Lord (Jehovah) of hosts ! the whole earth is full of his 
 glory." Isa. 6 : 3. St. John refers to the 9th and 10th 
 verses of this chapter, (John, 12 : 40,) and then, speak- 
 ing of Christ, adds, These things said Isaiah, ichen he 
 saw his glory, and spake of him. It was the glory of 
 the Lord of hosts, and of no other person, which the 
 prophet saw; and yet St. John says that he then saw 
 theglory of Christ, and spake of him. Consequently 
 Christ is the Lord (Jehovah) of hosts. 
 
 Thus, in the plain, unperverted language of Scrip- 
 ture, is Jesus Christ represented as God, as the true 
 God, the great God, the mighty God, Jehovah ; as God 
 over all, blessed for ever ; and even as addressed as God 
 by the Father. If, as the Unitarians assert, Christ were 
 no more than man, how dark, confused, and unintel- 
 ligible would that holy volume appear ! Instead of be- 
 ing a sure guide, none would be more uncertain. If 
 Christ were but man, to worship him would be idola- 
 try; yet millions of the best and wisest of mankind 
 have been led to worship him by that very book, 
 which says, "keep yourselves from idols." If Jesus 
 Christ is not God, the sacred writers have deceived 
 millions, who wished to know the divine will ; have 
 led them to pay divine honors to a man, or an angel ; 
 and thus drawn them into the enormous and ruinous 
 5 
 
50 CHRIST SHOWX TO BE GOD BY HIS ATTRIBUTES. 
 
 crime of idolatry. Can you believe a system true which 
 evidently leads to this conclusion ? 
 
 § 3. That Jesus Christ is God, is further proved 
 from his possessing those divine excellencies which 
 dwell in no created nature. He is eternal. Of himself 
 he says, " I am the first and the last :" " These things 
 saith the first and the last, who was dead and is alive." 
 These words contain "the strongest assertion that 
 eternity past and to come belongs to himself. If he is 
 the first, none can have been before him ; if he is the 
 last, none can be after him."* Were he the eldest 
 and the greatest of created beings, he would not be the 
 first, for God would have been before him. 
 
 If it were possible to render these passages more 
 decisive, it might be done by comparing them with 
 some others which speak of Jehovah. " Thus saith Je- 
 hovah, I am the first and I am the last, and besides me 
 there is no God." " I am the first, I also am the last : 
 mine hand also hath laid the foundations of the earth." 
 That existence from eternity to eternity, which Jeho- 
 vah claims to himself in these passages, Jesus claims 
 in the former. 
 
 § 4. Christ is God, for he is the Creator of all things. 
 Let us survey this argument a little more fully. It 
 may be stated thus : 
 
 . The Scriptures represent creation as the work of 
 God. The same holy volume declares that the crea- 
 tion was the work of the Lord Jesus. In effecting this 
 work he did not act as an agent of the Father's 
 Therefore, as the Creator of all things, lie is God over 
 all, blessed for ever. 
 
 * D^right. 
 
CHRIST THE CREATOR OF ALL THINGS. 51 
 
 The Scriptures represent the creation of the uni- 
 verse as the work of God ; this is so generally al- 
 lowed, that it may seem almost needless to refer to 
 that sacred book in proof of the assertion. The Scrip- 
 tures appropriate the work of creation to God, and ex- 
 clude all others from any participation in the glory of 
 having effected that work. " He that built all things is 
 God." " Jehovah, thou hast made heaven and earth." 
 " Where wast thou when / laid the foundations of the 
 earth?" "I am the Lord (Jehovah) that maketh all 
 things ; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone, that 
 spreadeth abroad the earth hy myself.'''' " I have made 
 the earth, and created man upon it; /, even viy hnnds^ 
 have stretched out the heavens, and all their hosts 
 have I commanded." Thus plainly does Jehovah as- 
 sume to himself the glory of creating the universe, 
 and deny the claim of every inferior being, how ex- 
 alted soever, to any participation in the honor of that 
 stupendous work. 
 
 We may next observe, that that holy book which, 
 in terms so express, declares God to be author of 
 the whole universe, in terms as express ascribes that 
 work to Jesus Christ. "In the beginning was the 
 Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word 
 was God ; all things were made by him, and without 
 him was not any thing made that was made." Criti- 
 cism has labored hard to wrest this passage from its 
 obvious meaning, but, after all, it stands a steadfast wit- 
 ness to the fact, that Christ is the Creator of all things; 
 strong as it appears in our translation, but still strong- 
 er in the original, "Without him was not made a sin- 
 gle thing that was made." " By him were all things 
 
52 CHRIST THE CREATOR OF ALL THINGS. 
 
 created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visi- 
 ble and invisible, whether they be thrones or domin- 
 ions, or principalities, or powers ; all things were cre- 
 ated by him, and for him: and he is before all things, 
 and by him all things consist." The language in this 
 passage is peculiarly powerful. The leading idea, that 
 all things owe their existence to Christ, is repeated 
 twice over— by him were all things created— all things 
 were created by him. It is also asserted that he exis^t- 
 ed before them all ; and that his power keeps them 
 all in being— by him all things consist. 
 
 It may properly be observed, that the language used 
 here is altogether opposed to the idea of Jesus Christ's 
 having acted as the Almighty's agent in producing 
 the world ; " He is before all things— Without him 
 was not one single thing made." Can he be a crea- 
 ture who existed before all creatures ? Can he have 
 been made, without whom was not one single thing 
 made 7 
 
 The next testimony that shall be adduced is ren- 
 dered remarkable by the circumstance of the very 
 .same words, which in the Old Testament ascribe crea- 
 tion to God, being used in the New Testament to at- 
 tribute that work to Christ. " Thou, Lord, in the be- 
 ginning hast laid the foundation of the earth ; and the 
 heavens are the work of thy hands. They shall pe- 
 rish, but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old 
 as doth a garment ; and as a vesture shalt thou fold 
 them up, and they shall be changed ; but thou art the 
 same, and thy years shall not fail." 
 
 The unavoidable conclusion is, that Jesus Christ is 
 God over all. These statements respecting creation, if 
 
VARIOUS ATTRIBUTES OF CHRIST. 
 
 53 
 
 Christ were a created being, would be perfectly con- 
 tradictory; but explained by his own words, "I and 
 my Father are one," they are perfectly true and con- 
 sistent. 
 
 § 5. It would occupy too much of this little volume 
 to pursue the s-ubject very diffusely ; however, allow 
 me to present a few more proofs, in a concise form, by 
 placing in one column passages which undoubtedly 
 refer to the infinite God; and in an opposite column, 
 passages which ascribe the same perfections as Jeho- 
 vah possesses to Jesus Christ. 
 
 OMNISCIENCE. 
 
 GOD. 
 
 Thou, thou only knowest the 
 hearts of all the children of men. 
 1 Kings, 8 : 39. The heart, " who 
 can know ii? I the Lord search 
 the heart." Jer. 17:10. 
 
 CHRIST. 
 
 I am He who searcheth the 
 reins and the hearts. Rev. 2:23. 
 
 These passages are peculiar. In one of them it is 
 declared that God only knows the heart. In the other, 
 not merely that Christ searches the heart, but is he 
 (the Divine Being) who searches the heart. 
 
 The Lord is a God of know- 
 ledge; by Iiim are actions weighed. 
 1 Sam. 2: 3. 
 
 The Lord understandeth all the 
 imaffinations of the thoughts. 1 
 Chrbn.28:9. 
 
 I know thy works. Rev. 2 : 2, 
 &c. 
 
 Jesus knew their thonsrhts. — 
 Luke, 6 ; 8. 5 : 22. 9:47. Matt. 9 : 
 4. &c. 
 
 OMNIPRESENCE. 
 
 GOD. 
 
 God is not far from every one 
 of us, for in him we live, and 
 move, and have our being. Acts, 
 17:27. . 
 
 CHRIST. 
 
 Where two or three are gather- 
 ed in my name, there am I in tho 
 midst of them. Matt. 1 8 : 20. 
 
 Lo, 1 am with you always eveu 
 to the eml of lUoworld. Matt. 88; 
 20. 
 
54 
 
 APPEAL TO THE READER. 
 
 I am the Lord 
 Mai. 3 : 6. 
 
 IMMUTABILITY. 
 
 change not. I Jtsus Christ, the same yester- 
 day, to-day, and for ever. Heb 
 I 13 : 8. 
 
 PRESERVATION OF THE UNIVERSE. 
 Thou Preserver of men; Thou I Rv Him (ThpieA ^<, »ii .u- 
 
 THE END FOR WHICH ALL THINGS WERE CREATED. 
 
 The Lord hath made all things 
 for himself. Prov. 16r4. 
 
 All things were created by hiin 
 and for him. Col. 1.17. 
 
 THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNIVERSE. 
 
 God is the King of all the earth. 
 Ps. 47 : 7. 
 
 The Lord is King for ever and 
 ever. Ps. 10 : 16. The blessed and 
 only Potentate, the King of kings, 
 and Lord of lords. 1 Tim. 6 : 15. 
 
 He is Lord of all. Acts, 10 : 3R. 
 
 He hath on his vesture a name 
 written. King of kings, and Lord 
 of lords. Rev. ]9:I3-!6. The 
 Lamb ; He is Lord of lords, and 
 King of kings. Rev. 17:14. 
 
 DIVINE WORSHIP. 
 
 Thou shalt worship the Lord 
 thy God, and him only shalt thou 
 serve. Matt. 4 : 10. 
 
 Thou shalt worship no other 
 God, for Jehovah is a jealous God. 
 Exod. 34: 14. 
 
 Father, into thy hands I com- 
 mend my spirit. Luke, 23 : 46. 
 
 Let all the angels of heaven 
 •worship him. Heb. 1 : 6. 
 
 All men should honor the Son, 
 even as they honor the Father. 
 John, 5 : 23. 
 
 Lord Jesus 
 Acts, 7:59. 
 
 receive my spirit. 
 
 Stephen worshipped the Lord Jesus in his dying 
 moments. Paul worshipped him. Christians are de° 
 scribed as his worshippers. Saints and angels in hea- 
 ven worship him. This worship is similar to that which 
 they pay to God himself. 
 
 § 6. Now, as if placed in the presence of God, let 
 me call upon you to give a faithful verdict on this 
 ^reat question— Is the Lord Jesus Christ God over all • 
 
Christ's humanity. 56 
 
 or is he merely man ? or, at most, an exalted creature ? 
 Can a man or an angel bear the exalted titles of God ; 
 God with us ; God over all ; the true God ; the great 
 God ; the mighty God ; Jehovah ? Can a man or an an- 
 gel be the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last; the 
 Creator of all things visible and invisible? Can such a 
 being be the Searcher of hearts, present in all places 
 at the same moment, wherever two or three are gath- 
 ered ill his name ? and this to the end of the world ? 
 Can a man or an angel be the same yesterday, to-day, 
 and for ever? the Preserver and Sovereign of the uni- 
 verse ? and the end for which all things were created ? 
 Could it be said of a man or an angel, that all should 
 honor him as they honor the infinite God ? that even 
 all the angels of heaven should worship him ? 
 
 In your progress through the world you may pro- 
 bably hear objections started to the all-important truth 
 maintained in these pages. Bear in mind, however, 
 that there is no truth against which cunning men can- 
 not start puzzling objections. One plain assertion of 
 God's, on subjects known to him, should do more to 
 confirm your belief, than a thousand perplexing cavils 
 to shake your confidence. Some bring forward objec- 
 tions against the being of God, others against the ex- 
 istence of matter ; some will argue that you have no 
 soul, others that you have no body. Perhaps the so- 
 phistry of their arguments may perplex you. Will 
 you therefore believe them? Will you not rather 
 scorn their fancied wisdom ? 
 
 $ 7. That holy volume which thus clearly asserts 
 the divinity of Jesus Christ, also declares that he was 
 strictly and properly man. The Holy Spirit, speaking 
 
^ THE OBLIGATIONS OF 
 
 by the apostle Paul, unites in one passage, Phil. 2 : 6, 
 8, the two views, and in others speaks of the latter 
 only. As man, ho was born of a virgin ; was the re- 
 puted son of a carpenter ; was subject to his parents ; 
 increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with 
 God and with man; was himself a carpenter; was 
 wearied; hungered; thirsted; wept; prayed; was 
 poor and destitute ; was rejected of men, and a man of 
 sorrows; was in an agony; was betrayed, judged, 
 condemned ; was crucified ; complained of his Father 
 forsaking him ; died and was buried. 
 
 How wonderful was the union thus subsisting be- 
 tween God and man ! How was human nature exalted, 
 when Christ appeared as God manifest in the flesh! 
 But the subject grows in wonder as we advance. Je- 
 sus, in his exalted state, though God, still is asserted 
 to wear the glorified human nature. This subject is 
 referred to by the apostle, when referring to the Chris- 
 tian's future glory ; '' We look for the Savior, the Lord 
 Jesus Christ ; who shall change our vile body, that it 
 may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according 
 to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all 
 things unto himself." 
 
 The Lord himself also speaks of this subject: "I 
 am the first and the last ; I am he that liveth and was 
 dead, and behold I am alive for evermore." It is only 
 as God that he could assert, " I am the first and the 
 last." And it is only as man that he could declare, " I 
 am he that liveth and was dead:^ The subject is won- 
 derful, above the reach of our powers, but not of our 
 praise. 
 
 $ 8. The Christian is represented asunder the great- 
 
CHRISTIANS TO CHRIST. 57 
 
 est obligations to the adorable Savior, and as sensible 
 of those obligations. 
 
 " While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." 
 " When we were enemies, we were reconciled to God 
 by the death of his Son." " Who gave himself for our 
 sins, to deliver us from the present evil world." Christ 
 liath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being 
 made a curse for us." " Jesus, who delivered us from 
 the wrath to come." " God hath blessed us with all 
 spiritual blessings in heavenly 'places in Christ ; he 
 hath made us accepted in the beloved. We have re- 
 demption through his blood; are made nigh by the 
 blood of Christ ; are no more strangers and foreigners, 
 but fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the house- 
 hold of God." " Being justified by faith, we have peace 
 with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; and rejoice 
 in hope of the glory of God. Being now justified by 
 his blood, we shall be saved from wrath, through him." 
 " Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our 
 sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and 
 priests unto God and his Father ; to him he glory and 
 dominion for ever and ever." "And they sung a new 
 song, saying. Thou art worthy, for thou wast slain, 
 and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood, out of 
 every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation. 
 Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, 
 and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and 
 glory, and blessing." 
 
 With what union of heart and voice do the disci- 
 ples of Jesus thus express their obligations to him ! 
 The grateful acknowledgments of earth become the 
 ixieme of heaven ; the song of praise begun by men 
 
58 
 
 REFLECTIONS ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST. 
 
 below, is carried on by saints and angels in the realms 
 above; and the Lamb that was slain is the boast and 
 theme alike of earth and heaven. Christians are de- 
 scribed not as anticipating, but as actually possessing 
 blessings of inestimable value. And all this multitude 
 of blessing flows from no superiority or virtue of 
 theirs, nor from the mere mercy of their God, but all 
 is enjoyed through the blessed Jesus. Are they recon- 
 ciled to God? It is through his death. Have they 
 peace with God ? He made it through the blood of his 
 cross. Have they redemption ? It is through his blood. 
 Are they delivered from this present evil world ? He 
 gave himself for their deliverance. Have they received 
 the atonement? It is through the Lord Jesus. Are 
 their sins forgiven ? He is their propitiation. Are they 
 delivered from the curse of the law? He was made a 
 curse for them. Are they saved from the wrath to 
 come? He died and delivered them. Are they rich? 
 It is through his poverty. Are they accepted? It is in 
 the Beloved. Are they complete? It is in him. Have 
 they hope? Jesus Christ is their hope. Are they 
 made divinely righteous? He was made a sin-ofFering 
 to render them so. Are they made nigh to God? It is 
 by the blood of Christ. Have they all spiritual bless- 
 ings? They have them in him. His atoning blood has 
 done so much for them as to justify the expression of 
 a pious minister, " We are floating to heaven in the 
 blood of the Deity." 
 
 § 9. The subject of this chapter displays in the most 
 amazing manner the love and condescension of the 
 Lord Jesus Christ. The apostle represents this love as 
 incomprehensible ; " that ye may be able to compre- 
 hend, with all saints, what is the breadth, and length, 
 
REFLECTIONS OX THE LOVE OF CHKIST. 59 
 
 and depth, and height; and to know the love of 
 Christ, which passeth knowledge." We have reason 
 to believe the Savior's incarnation the most amazing 
 event that ever liappened, even in the records of eter- 
 nity ; and. to believe that, through an eternity to come, 
 it will never have an equal. Had Gabriel, from bene- 
 volence to insects, left the presence of God, to assume 
 an insect's form, such condescension and love might 
 have excited astonishment in every angel's breast ; but 
 with what astonishment must they have beheld the 
 incarnation and the sufferings of Jesus! 
 
 They saw him the brightness of his Father's glory, 
 and the express image of his person. They worship- 
 ped him as the King of kings, and the Lord of lords. 
 He had created the heavens and the earth, and upheld 
 them in being for four thousand years. He had peopled 
 earth with myriads of immortal beings, and he had 
 filled heaven with ranks of glorified angels. Seraphim 
 and cherubim, thrones and dominions, principalities 
 and powers, owed to him their being, their dignity, 
 and happiness. He had kindled up the seraph's fire, 
 and arrayed with immortal youth, and beauty, and 
 glory, every angel's form. 
 
 In heaven these immortal multitudes enjoyed hap- 
 piness beneath his smile. Below, all things appeared 
 supported by his hand, and governed by his power. 
 All was harmony above, and all, excepting man, order 
 and subjection below. Thus he reigned, blessing and 
 blest: heaven his throne, the universe his kingdom. 
 At length a time of inexpressible wonder and astonish- 
 ment arrived. From the heights of eternal glory he 
 descends. The infinite enjoyments of heaven he leaves •, 
 forsakes the bosom of the Father ; quits the region of 
 
60 REFLECTIONS ON THE LOVE OF CHRIST. 
 
 eternal day; and, in a way surpassing all thought and 
 investigation, this divine Person unites himself to hu- 
 man nature; so unites himself as to become literally 
 man; and though rich, to become poor. And though 
 he thovght it not robbery to be equal with God, so co°n- 
 nects himself with the nature of man, that he made 
 himself of no reputation^ and took upon him the form, of 
 a servant, and was made in the likeness of men; and 
 beinff found in fashion as a man, proceeding in his ca- 
 reer of humiliation, he humbled himself and became 
 obedient unto death, even the death of the cross Piiil. 2 : 
 6-9. Thus, in one wondrous person God and man are 
 united. When he had thus taken human nature, this 
 divine Person spends more than thirty tedious years 
 below. He is wearied with labor. The sun scorches 
 him by day, and the cold chills him by night. Friends 
 forsake him, and enemies murder him. He stoops to 
 all. What a succession of wonders! What unequalled 
 love! What condescension is here! And this display- 
 ed for creatures, meaner, compared with him, than a 
 moth compared with an archangel! Creatures, whose 
 destruction could not have taken one ray from the 
 sun of his glory, nor one drop from the ocean of his 
 joy. Creatures, whose very world he could have de- 
 stroyed by a word, as easily as a moth is crushed by a 
 human hand: and have banished them, and sin, and 
 misery together, into everlasting nothingness and 
 obhvion. But, with love unparalleled, he descends to 
 this dark, polluted world ; and lives and dies for de- 
 ceived, guilty, and wretched man. O love divine! 
 where are thy limits? Great God! beyond the sight 
 of mortals and of angels! The stupendous sun, the 
 brilliant moon, the amazing stars, the extended firma- 
 
DISPLAYED IN HI3 INCARNATION. 61 
 
 mentj these have their bounds, but that love has 
 none. It extends 
 
 " Beyond the flaming bounds of space and time." 
 
 It reaches from 
 
 " The living throne, the sapphire blaze, 
 " Where angels tremble as they gaze." 
 
 to man's humblest habitation. 
 
 Lift up your eyes and behold this vast world, the 
 product of his power ! See its continents and its oceans 
 extending for thousands of miles ; those continents may 
 be measured, but not his love, who, though God, be- 
 came man, to die for man. Sooner would those unfa- 
 thomable oceans be fathomed than the deptlis of his 
 compassion. Lift up your eyes to the heavens I Sur- 
 vey the countless glories of the starry firmament, all 
 its fixed or " moving worlds of light !" Let your 
 thoughts rove from star to star 1 How great is he who 
 formed them all ! Hovv glorious he who has bid them 
 shine with undiminished splendor through six thou- 
 sand years ! and to whom they are mean as a speck of 
 flying dust ! Yet he who hung out those brilliant fires 
 stooped from his amazing heights of bhss and majesty 
 to assume mortal flesh, and appear a feeble infant, and 
 a suffering man. Far sooner should you measure their 
 measurable distances, and count their countless num- 
 bers, than tell the vaslness of his love, and the bless- 
 ings it bestows. 
 
 The sun is darkness, compared with his superior 
 
 glory who hung it in the heavens, and yet he humbled 
 
 himself to the dark abodes of misery and death for 
 
 guilty man. ! when you gaze upon the blue ex- 
 
 6 
 
63 THE UNION OF CHRIST 
 
 panse, or when the solemn stillness of night banishe? 
 from your mind the thoughts of a vain, departing 
 world; when you behold the midnight sky, and mark 
 the thousands of its glowing fires ; then think, that he 
 who fixed them there once hung on Calvary for you, 
 that you might shine a star, a sun, in heaven, when all 
 those stars shall shine no more. Think that he was 
 once mean and dishonored, stained with blood, and 
 blue with blows, that you might have a treasure greater 
 than a thousand worlds united, and infinitely more 
 lasting than the countless lights which illuminate the 
 firmament. Amazing love ! 
 
 But vain is language, and vain is thought, it cannot 
 grasp this love, nor by all the powers of imagination 
 reach it, much less by words express it ! And vain is 
 ti-me. Its ages, were they as numerous as the drops of 
 winter rain, would not suflice to unfold all the wonders 
 of this mysterious wonder ! nor to declare the heights 
 and depths, and lengths, and breadths of this myste- 
 rious love ! Were " all the love of all the men tiiat 
 ever were, or shall be on the earth, and all the love of 
 all the angels in heaven, united in one heart, it would 
 be a cold heart to that which was pierced with the sol- 
 dier's spear."* Holy Jesus, thy creatures can but dis- 
 honor thy love, when speaking of it. But come, ingulf 
 me in it 1 Come, overwhelm my sinking, rising soul, 
 by the amazing view ; at least so far overwhelm it, that 
 I may speak, and think, and act, and live and love for 
 thee! 
 
 § 10. While the Scriptures represent the love of 
 Christ and the obligations of the Christian as so great, 
 they furnish an important view of the Christian cha- 
 *Maclautm. 
 
AND HIS DISCIPLES. 63 
 
 racter, by declaring that an intimate connection sub- 
 sists between the eternal Savior and his blood-bought 
 flock. To describe this union, ideas are borrowed from 
 those unions in the present world that are of the most 
 close and binding nature. Is the tie of marriage a 
 strong, indissoluble tie? the believer is described as 
 married to the Lord Jesus. Is the connection between 
 parent and child most affectionate and lasting? the 
 Christian is represented as the child of the Savior. Is 
 the relation between brethren most dear and intimate? 
 Jesus owns his followers as his brethren. Are the vine 
 and its branches, the body and its members, but one ? 
 Jesus is the vine, and his disciples the branches; he is 
 the head of the body, and his disciples the members. 
 How dear, how close, how inestimable is that connec- 
 tion with the adorable Savior, which such language is 
 used to describe ! But on this occasion these passages 
 are adduced chiefly as descriptive of the Christian cha- 
 racter. In that view glance at them again. Does mar- 
 riage express a union of affection and interests? the 
 sincere Christian cherishes such affection, and esteems 
 his Lord's interests as his own. Does a worthy child 
 render filial love and dutiful obedience to a tender pa- 
 rent? they who know the Savior's grace render him 
 such love and such obedience. Do brethren, united in 
 heart, unite in pleasures and pursuits? the Christian, 
 honored with the title of a brother of Christ, pants to 
 resemble his exalted Lord. The branch is like the 
 vine on which it grows. It possesses similar qualities, 
 and, nourished by its connection with the tree, pro- 
 duces similar fruit. No poisonous qualities harbor in 
 the branch, for none harbor in the vine. So, a likeness 
 will and must exist between the Savior and his flock ; 
 
^ FEW CHRISTIANjS IN REALITY. 
 
 a likeness in disposition, in character, in conduct, in 
 interest, and aim. Those deadly fruits of nature's tree 
 hatred and envy, malice and revenge, and furious rage 
 and swelhng pride, are not the fruits that brandies ot 
 the living vine will bear ; but fruits of gentleness and 
 love, of humility and patience, of faith, and hope, and 
 holiness. The same truth is forcibly inculcated in those 
 passages which represent Christians as members of the 
 body of Christ, as his flesh and bones. Does not one spi- 
 rit actuate the body, and direct every member, and move 
 every limb? Does not the same blood flow through 
 Ihe hand that flows through the foot? Does not the 
 same principle that moves the finger, move the arm'? 
 Has not every member a similar feeling? Do not all 
 display a similar nature? and have not all a similar 
 mterest ? Is it thus with the body and the members ? 
 and must it not be thus with that spiritual body of 
 which Jesus is the head ? All that are truly members 
 of Christ feel the same principles within, and are anx- 
 ious to display the same character without. The spirit 
 that moves one, moves all. The life which animates 
 one member, animates all. Jesus is the head of the 
 body, and they are his flesh and his bones. 
 
 Perhaps in the present day there is nothing more 
 common than self-deception, yet nothing more ruin- 
 ous. How few imagine that they are not Christians ' 
 but how few bear the Christian character, as drawn 
 by the hand of God ! Setting aside the profane and 
 the profligate, can we affirm of the generality of those 
 that remam, that they resemble the picture of a Chris- 
 tian which is exhibited in Scripture ? Can it be said 
 of them, that they seek first the kingdom of God and 
 his righteousness ? that they are justified, are reconciled 
 
FEW CHRISTIANS IN REALITY. 63 
 
 to God, and have peace with him through the blood 
 of his Son ? Can it be said of them that their sins are 
 forgiven them, and that they have redemption through 
 the blood of Christ, and belong to the household of 
 God ? Can it be said of them, that as the faithful wife 
 loves her husband, and esteems his interest hers, so they 
 love the Savior, and esteem his interest theirs? Can 
 it be said of them, that liiie affectionate children they 
 obey the Lord, and like admiring brethren they imi- 
 tate their endeared elder brother ? Do they appear like 
 branches of the living vine ? displaying likeness to the 
 holy Jesus, and manifesting those heaven-born graces 
 which his Spirit infuses into every regenerate heart; 
 those lovely fruits that branches of such a tree will 
 bear ? Do they appear members of Christ ? So con 
 nected with him, so like him, that they may be term 
 ed even his flesh and bones ? Are the desires and dis- 
 positions, the love and hatred, the joys and sorrows, 
 the hopes, and fears, and feelings they cherish, so like 
 his, that one spirit may be said to move, one life to an- 
 imate them? This is the scriptural delineation of a 
 Christian; is this theirs? How many of the moral 
 and the amiable have not one feature of this portrait! 
 Are not many, that even make a more decided profes- 
 sion of religion, utterly unlike the picture drawn in 
 Scripture colors ? Their careless lives, their worldly 
 minds, their groveling hearts, their covetous hands, 
 their slandering tongues, their formal prayers, their 
 lialf- wasted Sabbaths, their proud resentful dispositions, 
 their conformity to the vain world, make up a charac- 
 ter as unlike the Scripture character of a Christian, as 
 winter is unlike summer, or midnight darkness to 
 6* 
 
66 ON LOVE TO CHRIST. 
 
 noonday splendor. Can these be disciples of Christ ? 
 As well might you expect the branches of a vine to 
 produce only poisonous berries; as well might you 
 expect to find a human body joined to a tiger's 
 limbs. Do many that are called Christians bear 
 those marks which make their final rejection sure? 
 Then inquire what you are. Can you in solemn self- 
 examination trace in yourself the growing, though 
 too imperfect, features of the Christian's likeness? 
 then do you feed on that immortal food, the bread 
 of life; then do you pant after all the Savior's 
 likeness; and thence go with renewed strength to 
 imitate and serve him, through the rest of life's short 
 and fleeting span. If this is the case, you may rejoice 
 in those promises full of love, and life, and immorta- 
 lity, which glow in the sacred page ; you may, you 
 should believe, that having received Christ, he has re- 
 ceived you. 
 
 § 11. The love of Christ claims the return of fervent 
 love, and a most important trait in the Christian cha- 
 racter is, love to the Lord Jesus. The Lord himself 
 asserts, that his friends possess this love. " The Fa- 
 ther himself loveth you, because ye have loved me." 
 He declares that, without a high degree of this love, 
 they are not wortliy of him. The grand inquiry that 
 he proposed to the apostle Peter after his fall, an in- 
 quiry thrice repeated, was, " Simon, son of Jonas, lo- 
 vest thou me?" The Scriptures pronounce a divine 
 blessing on all who possess this love, and denounce 
 an awful curse on all that want it. 
 
 How vain is every hope, as to eternity, where this 
 love is absent ? If any man love not the Lord Jesva 
 Christ, let him be mafhema v^aran-qthdi m &rcurse4 
 
ON LOVE TO CHRIST. 67 
 
 «reaturej devoted to destruction. Had it been said, if 
 any mun hate the Lord Jesus, let him be anathema, 
 millions that now fall under this awful anathema^ 
 would have pleaded that it did not refer to them. But 
 the words are far more comprehensive. If any man 
 LOVE NOT the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be anathema. 
 Though his character be ever so fair, his moral vir- 
 tues ever so many, his knowledge ever so correct and 
 extensive, his profession ever so shining, yet if he 
 love not the Lord Jesus Christ, he falls^under this 
 anathema. 
 
 That love of the Lord Jesus which is thus required 
 from every heir of heaven, is not love which can sub- 
 sist in the soul, with love to the world and sin. It is 
 love stronger than that which a child cherishes for a 
 parent, or a parent for a child. The Lord Jesus so- 
 lemnly declares, " He that loveth father or mother 
 more than me, is not worthy of me ; and he that lov- 
 eth son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of 
 me." If there be one friend or object on earth as dear 
 to you as the Savior, you have no proper sense of his 
 worth; you have no interest in him. 
 
 The love the real Christian bears to Christ is love 
 stronger than the love of life itself. The Son of God 
 himself declares this, He that laketh not his cross and 
 followeth offer we, is not imrthj of one. To take the 
 cross is not to subject ourselves to a few small incon- 
 veniences or sufferings for the Savior's sake; but it is 
 to tread in the bleedmg way, lo encounter mockery, 
 insult, and cruelty, and at last to close the scene of 
 sorrow by the slow tortures of a death full of sham.e 
 and agony, Tlie Christian may not actually be called 
 to these gufferings, yet he must possess that love for 
 
68 christian's value for christ. 
 
 Christ which would lead him, if he were support- 
 ed by his Lord, to encounter them all, and to love the 
 Savior more than ease and life. Our Lord speaks of 
 this not as the honorable distinction of a few superior 
 characters, but as that without which any one would 
 ^e unworthy of him. He, whosover he be, that 
 ,aketh not his cross and foUoweth after one, is not icor- 
 ■fhyofme. 
 The dying love of the Lord Jesus is esteemed by 
 is disciples, vast as an immeasurable and fathomless 
 cean. He is indeed a friend for whom they will sa- 
 crifice every other. Thus the apostle acted : / count 
 all things loss, that I may win Christ. Learning, 
 friends, prospects for future life, ease, health, liberty, 
 and life, all were sacrificed by him for Jesus' sake ! 
 "Whp.n, expecting that he would make the last sacri- 
 fice, his friends wept around him, he calmly said, 
 "What mean you to weep and break mine heart? for 
 I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at 
 Jerusalem, for the name of the Lord Jesus." Doubt- 
 less, multitudes besides have possessed a similar spirit. 
 Many unknown, except in heaven, and others whose 
 names are in the records of the church below. Luther, 
 invited to Worms, and besought not to venture him- 
 self among the perfidious followers of antichrist, re- 
 plied, '-Since I am sent for, I am certainly determin- 
 ed to enter Worms in the name of our Lord Jesus 
 Christ, though I knew there were so many devils to 
 resist me as there are tiles to cover the houses in 
 Worms." A martyr said, "My wife and my children 
 are so dearly beloved to me, that they cannot be bought 
 from me for all the riches and possessions of the duke 
 of Bavaria ; but for the love of my Lord God, I will 
 
christian's value for christ. 69 
 
 willingly forsaken them. Another sufferer, when asked 
 if he loved not his wife and family, replied, " Yes : if 
 the world were gold, and were mine to dispose of, 1 
 would give it to live with them, though it were but 
 in prison ; yet my soul and Christ are dearer to me 
 than all." 
 
 Did these form too high an estimate of the Savior's 
 worth? Were they willing to lose more than was 
 needful for him ? Ah no, my friend, without as high 
 an estimate you cannot be his disciple. He himsell 
 has taught this important lesson : " Whosoever he be 
 of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot 
 be my disciple." You may not (and under our mild 
 government most probably will not) be required to sa- 
 crifice friends, liberty, and life for adherence to Jesus, 
 but in heart you must make the sacrifice. The Chris- 
 tian's situation is now very different from what it was 
 in the days of a murderous Mary, and a treacherous 
 persecuting Charles; but the Christian's spirit must 
 be the same ; the Christian's value for Christ must be 
 the same. God must see you a martyr in heart, though 
 you are not called to martyrdom. Nothing less than 
 this can be meant by those solemn and decisive words, 
 " Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that 
 he hath, he cannot be my disciple." He may assume 
 the Christian name, he may make the Christian pro- 
 fession, he may join the Christian church, he may in- 
 dulge hopes of inheriting the Christian's happiness, 
 but he is deceived; he cannot, till he sacrifices his all 
 at the foot of the cross, be my disciple. 
 
 Is such your value for the Savior ? Can you for his 
 sake endure the frown of friends, the ridicule of former 
 companions, the contempt of the great mass of man- 
 
70 SELF-EXAJIINATION URGED. 
 
 kind, and perhaps decided opposition or persecution in 
 some of its many forms? Can you endure to become 
 the drunkard's song, to deny yourself your wisdom, 
 your companions, your pleasures, your profits, your 
 ease, your character, your liberty, your life, and to 
 sacrifice all that is dearest to your heart, for Jesus's 
 sake ? If he esteems you wise, care you not who deems 
 you foolish ? if he smiles, care you not who frowns? if 
 he approves, is it to you a little matter who condemns? 
 if he bless, is it to you comparatively a trifle, though all 
 around you curse ? It will be so, if you are counting 
 all things loss for Jesus ; if you are in heart forsaking 
 all for his sake ; if you have indeed that value for the 
 Savior which his love and your wants require. Can 
 you exclaim. Give me but a Savior, great God, I ask 
 no more ? Let me but win Jesus, and all I need is mine. 
 Were the adorable Savior to propose the question 
 to you, that he proposed thrice to Peter, could you 
 give a similar reply ? were he to say, Lovest thou me? 
 lovest thou me more than these? more than all the 
 pursuits of life ? more than parents or than children? 
 more than life itself? Couldst thou reply, " Blessed 
 Lord, thou knowest all things; I cannot deceive thee. 
 I trust, Searcher of hearts ! thou knowest that I love 
 thee. I trust thou knowest, that though in myself the 
 unworthiest of the most unworthy, yet that thy cross 
 is my boast ; thy heaven my hope ; thy approbation 
 my reward ; thy love my ambition ; thy will my rule. 
 I trust thou knowest that I love thee more than these ; 
 if not with more of the fire of my passions, yet with a 
 stronger and more steady attachment, an attachment 
 stronger than my love of life. But, Lord, thou seest 
 I would love thee more ; for cold and weak is mv love 
 
^ FEW HAVE LOVE TO CHRIST. 7X 
 
 to Ihee, compared with the infinite extent of thy dyincr 
 love to me." The Christian may find luispeakable 
 comfort, when conscious of being able to make such 
 an appeal to Him who searcheth the heart, Thou know- 
 est that I love thee. Amidst all my doubts and fears, 
 my discouragements and perplexities, my unworthi- 
 ness and corruption, amidst all I mourn, and all I pray 
 deliverance from, still thou knowest that I love thee. 
 Is your religion a religion of this description? oris 
 It that common delusive thing which makes few or no 
 sacrifices for Christ, which trembles at the frown of a 
 friend or the laugh of a scoffer, which adapts itself to 
 the fashions of the age, which sins against God and 
 duty if an ungodly employer command that sin, which 
 lives in the sunshine, but dies in the storm ? If this be 
 the case, even now your hope and religion are but 
 delusion : but let me jiope better things of you Yet 
 of millions we cannot hope better. Look at thafc aged 
 man ; he reads his Bible, he goes to the house of God 
 no atrocious vices stain his life; but he is vain, impe-' 
 nitent, worldly: he stands on the brink of the grave, 
 and yet, with all the eagerness of youth, is grasping a 
 departed world. He thinks he is a Christian : but does 
 he prefer the Savior to all beside? See that aged wo- 
 man ; the world is her portion ; she grows fonder and 
 fonder of it, more and more careful about it; as vain, 
 as trifling as in her youngest years. Does she count 
 all things lost for Christ? Behold that young man 
 beginning hfe; moral and amiable, but pu'tting^'off the 
 concerns of the soul to future years. He enters the 
 busy scenes of time with eagerness, but is careless of 
 eternal scenes. His time is devoted to the shop, the 
 counting-house, the study, or the farm. His conscience 
 
72 PAULS LOVE TO CHRIST. 
 
 sleeps, because no flagrant guilt alarms it. He assumes 
 the Christian name, and goes on the Sabbath to the 
 house of prayer; but does he count all things loss for 
 Christ? Observe that young woman. Her deluded 
 friends think her innocent and safe. She spends more 
 time at her glass than with her God. She is more 
 careful ot'the fashion of her dress, than of the conver- 
 sion and salvation of her soul. Does she part with all 
 for Christ? Alas! what myriads are there of such 
 perhaps amiable and inoffensive persons, who, after 
 all, are so far from being Christians, that, instead of 
 sacrificing every thing for Christ, they part with no- 
 thing, and never denied themselves one vain delight, 
 or resisted one temptation, from regard to him. 
 
 § 12. Observe how this heavenly grace was exer- 
 cised by that great and blessed man, the apostle Paul. 
 He expressed it as his prayer, that Christ should he 
 magnified in his body, -whether by life or by death, and 
 added, For to mc to live is Christ. Self was sub- 
 dued, and ruled no longer in his heart. While some 
 live to pleasure, some to wealth, some to fame, all for 
 which he lived was to bring honor to his Lord. To do 
 this, whether weaving a t^nt or preaching the Gospel. 
 This was his ruling passion, strong in life, and strong 
 in death. Hence that prayer, that Christ might be 
 magnified in his body, whether by his life or by his 
 death. It was not his desire that Paul might be mag- 
 nified, that his name might be honored far and wide, 
 that ease and comfort, reputation or wealth, might be 
 his portion, but that his Lord might be honored. Nor 
 did he pray that Christ should be honored, merely by 
 the labors and sufferings of a devoted life, but even by 
 his death. Could he by labors and sufferings honor 
 
73 
 
 his Lord, he was willing to live; could he by dying 
 advance his Redeemer's glory, he was willing to die. 
 His sufferings were many, but the love of Christ 
 constrained him to bear them all. He was in labors 
 more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons 
 more frequent, in deaths oft; in journeyings often, in 
 perils of water, in perils of robbers, in perils by his 
 0W71 countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in 
 the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the 
 sea, in perils among false brethren ; in weariness and 
 pamfuhiess, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, 
 HI fastings often, in cold and nakedness. 
 
 A pious writer remarks, "Here is a man impelled 
 by some extraordinary principle, sacrificing the ho- 
 nors which awaited him, his ease, and every eartldy 
 comfort, and voluntarily embracing, and persevering 
 i", a life exposing him to stripes, to imprisonments, to 
 perils by land and'by sea, to incessant deprivations, to 
 want, to persecutions, and to death itself. What can 
 constrain such a man to reject the intercessions of his 
 friends who are entreating him to retire from these 
 conflicts? What is it that impels him to reply, 'What 
 mean you to weep and to break mine heart ? for I am 
 not only willing to be bound, but to die at Jerusalem ' 
 What IS it? 'If we be transported beyond ourselves 
 It is to God.' ' I am willing to die at Jerusalem,' but it 
 IS 'for the name of the Lord Jesus: It is the love of 
 Christ that bears him away, and extinguishes every 
 recollection of himself and of his own sufferinxrs This 
 IS the secret of the life of Paul ; and this is the sprin<r 
 and source of all that is distinguished, all that inte° 
 rests us, in the life of Whitfield, of Brainerd, of Pearce 
 and of Martyn, In short, this is the source of every 
 7 
 
74 CHARACTER AND SPIRIT OF PAUL. 
 
 thing great in Christian exertion ; and where this is 
 wanting, that place remains ' the region and shadow 
 of death.' 
 
 " It is this principle which disarms death, and makes 
 heaven itself desirable. Hence, while one of the mar- 
 tyrs was sealing his testimony with his blood in 
 Smithfield, a voice was heard from amidst the flames, 
 saying, ' None but Christ— none but Christ— none but 
 Christ.' And hence the apostle says ' I desire to depart.' 
 Ah ! Paul, thou mayest well wish for rest : thy pilgrim- 
 age has been filled with thorns ; many a weary step 
 has-t thou trod ; many an hour of excessive labor hast 
 thou endured ; many a time hast thou been in perils, in 
 prisons, in tumults, in hunger, in thirst. No wonder 
 then that such a pilgrim wishes for repose, should de- 
 sire to depart. But no— this is not his meaning, ' I de- 
 sire to depart, that I may be with Christ.' Yes, this is 
 what impels him heavenwards j this, is the torrent that 
 carries him irresistibly along to the bosom of the Sa- 
 vior."* 
 
 Referring to the life of the same apostle, another dis- 
 tinguished writer says, " We see him, in the prosecu- 
 tion of his purpose, traveling from country to coun- 
 try, enduring every species of hardship, encountering 
 every extremity of danger, assaulted by the populace, 
 punished by the magistrates, scourged, beat, sioned, 
 left for dead ; expecting wherever he came a renewal 
 of the same treatment, and the same dangers, yet, 
 when driven from one city, preaching in the next j 
 spending his whole time in the employment, sacrifi- 
 cing to it his pleasures, his ease, his safety; persisting 
 in this course to old age, unaltered by the experience 
 
 * Ward. 
 
ANECDOTE OF A CHRISTIAN NEGRO. 75 
 
 of perverseiiess, ingratitude, prejudice, desertion; un- 
 subdued by anxiety, want, labor, persecutions ;' un- 
 wearied by long confinement, undismayed by the 
 prospect of death. Such was St. Paul."* 
 
 What made him such ? The constraining love of 
 Christ. What is necessary to make you in your station 
 as zealous and pious as he? To know the love of Christ. 
 And why on his part this willingness, this desire, by 
 life or death, to honor his Lord ? Because he felt the 
 Savior's love, and loved this gracious benefactor. Yet, 
 was he more indebted than you or I ? Had Jesus suf- 
 fered more for Paul than for you ? had he sacrificed 
 more, or did he invite him to a happier heaven? Ah 
 no, the blood which ransomed Paul was shed for you, 
 and Jesus invites you to the same eternal realms 
 of peace and life. O then, under equal obligations 
 pray and seek for equal love. ° ' 
 
 A few years ago died an aged Christian negro. She 
 was often visited by some friends of religion. On one 
 occasion she told them if it was the will of " Jesus 
 Massa" to call her to-morrow, she would be satisfied 
 to go ; if it was his will to spare her some time longer, 
 she should be satisfied to stay. She repeated, that she 
 was waiting for her summons from above ; said, God 
 spared her a little, and she thanked him for it. By and 
 by, when he saw his time, he would come, and then 
 she would thank him for that. 
 
 The next evening she appeared faint and low, and 
 said she was in pain from head to foot : " Jesus Mas- 
 sa " had sent the pain, and she thanked him for it. 
 Some day when he saw good, he would come and 
 take it away. 
 
 * Paley. 
 
7G Devotedness to ciirist. 
 
 After lingering thus for some time, still in pain, but 
 prayer and praise ever flowintr from her lips, she drew 
 near her end. When in her greatest extremities, she 
 said her Savior would give her ease wlien he saw 
 fit ; and if he did not give it her now, he would give 
 it her yonder, pointing upwards. 
 
 How similar the spirit of resignation to the Savior, 
 displayed by this poor negro slave, and by the great 
 apostle of tlie Gentiles. 
 
 § 13. The Christian's love to the adorable Jesus is 
 described as accompanied by sincere and unreserved 
 devotedness to him. "None of us liveth to himself, 
 and no man dieth to himself. For whether we hve, 
 we live unto the Lord ; and whether we die, we die 
 unto the Lord ; whether we live therefore, or die, we 
 are the Lord's." " The love of Christ constraineth us ; 
 because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then 
 were all dead : and that he died for all, that they 
 which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, 
 but unto him which died for them, and rose again." 
 "Ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God 
 in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." 
 
 Ransomed with the Savior's blood, the believer, 
 amidst all his defects, lives to Christ; lives not to him- 
 self, but to the Lord, who died for him. The Chris- 
 tian is deUvered from his vain conversation ; becomes 
 one of a peculiar people, who are zealous of good 
 works; is not his own, but the Lord's; and for the 
 sake of Jesus will labor without fainting, and suffer 
 with patience. What has now been laid before you is 
 represented as descriptive of that character in general, 
 not merely in some elevated instances : there is no- 
 thing in this description of Avhich grace will not make 
 
DEVOTEDNESS TO CHRIST. 77 
 
 you a partaker, if in sincerity you go to Christ, and 
 follow him. It is true, this standard for the Christian 
 character is much higher than that with which many 
 professors of religion appear satisfied. But be not 
 deceived. God's word is not changed. God's descrip- 
 tion of a Christian is not altered to adapt itself to 
 their selfish dispositions and worldly minds. We have 
 every reason to fear that Christ at last will say to my- 
 riads, that in this land of peace profess adherence to 
 the Gospel, I never knew you, depart from me. He is 
 no Christian who lives to himself; who does not act 
 upon the principle, that he is the Lord's ; who does 
 not appear a peculiar person, zealous of good works. 
 Let him plume himself on his conversion, or what he 
 please, he is no Christian. 
 
 An expressive description of devotedness to Jesus is 
 that in which the apostle describes his own. " I am 
 crucified with Christ : nevertheless I live ; yet not I, 
 but Christ liveth in me." Impressive statement! happy 
 they who realize it all! I am crucified with Christ; 
 dead, through his cross, to the world, it has no charms 
 for me. Yet I live, freed from condemnation and 
 death. I live the life of grace. Yet not I ; no excel- 
 lency, no natural power of mine produced this life, or 
 gives it vigor. Not I ; Christ liveth in me. He governs 
 in my soul. He guides and reo^ulates my actions. He 
 gave me spiritual life, and his Spirit, dwelling in me, 
 produces all the fruits of the life of grace. How hap- 
 py a life ! how holy must be its practice ! how bene- 
 volent its tendency ! how peaceful its end ! But was it 
 the life of an angel ? No ; of a man, and that man 
 once one of the chief of sinners, but now made a child 
 7* 
 
78- CADTIONS AGAINST SELF-DECEPTION. 
 
 of God by faith. O pant, and pray, and labor after such 
 devotedness to Jesus Christ. You never will repent oi 
 being too much devoted to him, though millions have 
 mourned being too little. 
 
 § 14. After this brief delineation of some important 
 parts of the Christian character, allow me affection- 
 ately to urge on you the grand inquiry, Do these things 
 meet in mine? Am I washed from my sins in the 
 blood of the Lamb, and justified by faith in the Son of 
 God 7 Is my whole dependence on him ? Do I count 
 all things loss for him ? Am I united tohim in a bond 
 as firm as that which binds husband and wife in 
 lasting union? Do I discern a supreme glory in him, 
 and cherish a supreme love for him ? Is there no one 
 thing on earth so prized by me as Christ crucified ? 
 The inquiry is needful, for many deceive themselves. 
 All is not gold that glitters. Not all that appear penitent 
 truly repent. Not all that profess faith truly believe. 
 Not all that seem zealous for the Gospel feel its power. 
 Not all that profess to be disciples of Jesus here, will 
 dwell with Jesus above. 
 
 To avoid self-deception is so unspeakably momen- 
 tous, that it may be useful to observe how far you might 
 go, and yet have no saving faith in the Lord Jesus. 
 
 1. You may be free from gross and open sins, may 
 be adorned with many moral virtues, may be chaste 
 and dutiful, just and liberalj courteous and engaging, 
 and yet be a stranger to saving faith in the Lord Jesus. 
 All this was the young ruler, who^e history is record- 
 ed by the evangelists ; who was so moral and pleasing, 
 that Jesus loved him, and yet so worldly that Jesus 
 spoke of him as a perishing sinner, of whose conver- 
 sion ihere was little hope. 
 
CAUTIONS ACiAINST SELF-DECEPTION. 79 
 
 2. You may, alarmed or instructed by the preaching 
 of the Gospel, have forsaken some iniquities in which 
 you once delighted, and yet be no Christian, So Herod 
 acted. He listened for a while to the instructions of 
 John the Baptist : and when he heard him, he did many 
 things, and heard him gladly. Yet Herod soon mur- 
 dered the man he once respected, when requested by 
 the profligate daughter of a revengeful harlot, 
 
 3. You may be a hearer of the Gospel, and with re- 
 gularity, and yet be a stranger to all its blessings. Such 
 hearers were the Jews at Capernaum ; when the Lord 
 himself preached, they crowded and thronged to ex- 
 cess the place where he uttered his divine lessons, yet 
 were they so far from embracing the Gospel that he 
 said, " Thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto hea- 
 ven, shalt be thrust down to hell." "Many (he de- 
 clares) are called, but few are chosen." Many will be 
 rejected at last that may say to him, "We have eaten 
 and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in 
 our streets." 
 
 4. You may be impressed and affected by the truths 
 of the Gospel, and yet not be a disciple of the Lord 
 Jesus. So Felix was. When Paul " reasoned of righte- 
 ousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix 
 trembled." The Lord describes one class of hearers of 
 the Gospel, who, when they have heard the word, im- 
 mediately receive it with gladness, but yet have no 
 root in themselves, and so endure but for a time. 
 
 5. You may be a professor of the Gospel, and yet 
 be no Christian ; but destitute of every Gospel bless- 
 ing: for you read of those who "profess that they 
 know Goo, but in works deny him ;" " who wax worse 
 and worse, deceiving and being deceived." 
 
80 CAUTIONS AGAINST SELF-DECEPTION. 
 
 6. You may pray formally and frequently, and yet 
 offer no prayers that God will hear. So did the Phari. 
 sees of old; they made long prayers "in the syna- 
 gogues and in the streets ;" but it was that they might 
 be admired by men, and in that admiration they had 
 tneir reward. 
 
 7. You may be esteemed a Christian by others, and 
 yet not be a Christian. Doubtless the apostles looked 
 on Judas as a faithful brother. When told by their 
 Lord, " One of you shall betray me y' each seemed 
 to suspect himself, and said, "Lord, is it I?" but no 
 one seems to have suspected Judas; yet he was the 
 traitor. 
 
 8. You may deem yourself a Christian, and yet not 
 be one ; for some deceive themselves. " But be ye do- 
 ers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your 
 own selves." ° 
 
 9. You may profess to trust in Christ, and call him 
 Lord, you may be even engaged in his service, and yet 
 be no Christian. " Not every one that saith unto me, 
 Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven,' 
 but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in 
 heaven." 
 
 How many never advance as far as this, vet all this 
 only would leave you as far short of heaven as even the 
 careless profligate ! It is needful then to inquire, whe- 
 ther you have gone much further? whether you have 
 received Jesus with all your heart, to cleave to him in 
 pain and in ease, in wealth and in poverty, in honor 
 and in dishonor, in the sunshine and in the storm, in 
 youth and in age, in life and in death, in time and in 
 eternity ? 
 
 § 15. While the adorable Lord Jesus calls for this 
 
CLAIMS OF Christ's love. 81 
 
 consecration of yourself to him, does he demand too 
 much? Can he demand too much? 
 
 Again, contemplate his love, and think how it was 
 enhanced by the utter unworthiness of them for whom 
 he died. For what a world did he suffer ! a miserable 
 world ! yet in love with sin, the source of all its mise- 
 ry ! A world in league with Satan, and in dreadful 
 subjection to him ! millions hardened in their crimes ! 
 millions more heedless in their folly ! every heart by 
 nature set against himself, and of not one of whom it 
 could be said, This is not a child of sin and wrath! 
 The busy wrapt up in care ; the gay pursuing plea- 
 sure ; the young charmed with a fading world ; the 
 aged still occupied in its pursuits ; yet this active, bu- 
 sy, thoughtless world, all dead ! all deserving of eter- 
 nal death ! and all under righteous condemnation to 
 all its horrors! A world whose guilt no powers can 
 measure ; of whose ruin no heart can form a right 
 conception ; and whose wretchedness an inspired pen 
 described in those two emphatic words. All dead ! Such 
 was the world he pitied. How could he pity it ! Such 
 was the world from whose polluted tribes he came to 
 collect a colony for heaven. How could he stoop to 
 accomplish this amazing work of love ! He forsook 
 riches, not like those of earth — vain, empty, transient — 
 but riches of divine glory, divine blessedness, divine 
 majesty. He becomes poor. A babe at Bethlehem, a 
 man of sorrows through successive years, an agonizing 
 sufferer in Gethsemane, a bleeding victim on Calvary. 
 And this poor sufferer is God, made man, for man to 
 die. Oh ! how changed from what he was ! How infi- 
 nite the difference between the torturing cross and his 
 eternal throne! between the thornv crown and the 
 
82 CHRIST'S LOVE INCOMPARABLE. 
 
 many crowns of divine glory that rested on his head? 
 between the murderer's cry, Crucify him, crucify him I 
 and the seraph's worship. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord 
 of hosts, the whole earth is full of his glory ! During 
 his transient abode on earth his love shone like a sun, 
 but without a setting beam. He dispensed blessings 
 with a lavish hand for the body and the soul. He 
 cured the diseased, and raised the dead ; he taught 
 the ignorant ; he forgave the penitent ; and bound up 
 the broken heart. He cheered and comforted his 
 friends, he wept and prayed for his enemies. He 
 snatched from destruction the soul of a criminal dying 
 by his side, and gave that ransomed penitent a place 
 in paradise. And has the sun of his love ceased to 
 shine? has the torrent of his mercies ceased to flow? 
 Ah, no ! the stream still flows with all its abundance. 
 The sun still shines with all its glory. He has not be- 
 come less loving since he returned to his eternal 
 throne, to the bosom of his Father. Do you not say, 
 My own experience proves he has not. How long did 
 he bear with my unfruitfulness and neglect I how 
 many invitations, rich in mercy, have I received from 
 him ! how many blessings has he showered on my 
 unworthy head ! His patient forbearance, his gracious 
 invitations, his oft repeated calls, his unwillingness to 
 be denied my heart and soul ! His pardoning mercy, 
 and the complete eternal salvation he bestows, all this 
 displays his love, and makes it appear as vast and 
 boundless as when he dwelt below. And when will 
 that love cease ? The narrow span of time cannot set 
 limits to its riches ; and the ample ages of eternity 
 wiil never bring its end ; he declares that he will dis- 
 play it there, by having his followers with him, and 
 
CLAIMS OF Christ's love. 83 
 
 by exalting them to honors inconceivable now. There 
 he will give them eternal deliverance from labors, sins 
 and sorrows. There he will own them before his Fa- 
 ther, and before an assembled world. And through 
 eternal ages he will bless them with his presence, and 
 enrich them with his love and care. " For the Lamb 
 which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, 
 and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters ; 
 and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes." 
 O boundless love ! that before time began, pitied those 
 that in time would be ruined and undone ! Love, that 
 reaches from God's high throne of eternal majesty, to 
 earth's abyss of sin and wo ! Love, that from this deep 
 abyss raises countless myriads to glory, honor, and 
 immortality ! that will invest with an angel's eternal 
 youth and splendor, millions, once the heirs of sin, 
 decay, and death ! that will bless with all an angel's 
 happiness these millions, once born to mourn, once 
 children of misery I O boundless love ! that traveling 
 through eternity, in the greatness of its strength, like 
 the sun traveling as a giant through the heavens, shall 
 make eternity itself one unclouded day of h.oliness and 
 joy ! O love of Jesus Christ ! vain were the wish to 
 measure thy heights, and depths, and lengths, and 
 breadths ! What dost thou not demand ? 
 
 This love demands little when it demands your all, 
 and shall it not have that little ? could you wish to be 
 but half devoted to him, whose love to you is bound- 
 less and eternal? Whoever lingers in the Christian 
 race, make it your study and your prayer to run with 
 peed. Whoever is but half a Christian, make it your 
 concern and supplication to yield to Christ your soul, 
 your life, your heart, your all. Do you want more 
 
84 
 
 CLAIMS OF Christ's love. 
 
 motives to this? Contrast your present state, if you 
 are indeed a Christian, with what it was. Once your 
 sins unpardoned, like a mountain, were pressing your 
 soul to perdition ; now that load is all removed, and 
 your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake. Once 
 you had no hope, no true peace, no solid comfort ; now 
 peace in believing, and hope of the glory of God, and 
 peace with God, all are or may be yours. Once you 
 were the enemy, now the child of God. Once 'the 
 slave of Satan, now the friend of Christ. Once the heir 
 of hell, but now of heaven. Once a fit companion for 
 devils and the damned, now you have come to the 
 general assembly and church of the first-born, whose 
 names are written in heaven. Once all was dark and 
 gloomy round you and before you, now all is bright 
 and cheerful. Once this dream of life was your all, 
 and death a curse, a foe, that would end your fleeting 
 comforts, and consign you to eternal night ; now life is 
 a shadow, eternal life your portion, and death itself a 
 friend that will conduct you to eternal day. And all 
 this, and more than this, you enjoy through redeem- 
 ing love. O what heart should not melt before such 
 kindness? who that enjoys it should wish to offer to 
 Jesus any thing less than all his heart, all he has, and 
 all he is ? 
 
 § 16. When we connect with this subject the short- 
 ness of time, and the nearness of eternity, the conside- 
 rations should unite to urge upon us the most heart- 
 felt devotedness to our blessed Lord. It is but a little 
 span of service, at the most, that you can present to 
 that blessed Redeemer who suffered in your stead. 
 Time is short. Much of your life is already gone. How 
 many that read this page will never double the age 
 
QUILT OP REJECTING CHRIST, 85 
 
 they have already reached ! How many never see as 
 many more years as they have already seen ! What a 
 scanty glance surveys our departed years! a still 
 scantier might probably survey our lime to come. One 
 may say, I have seen fifteen years; and another, I 
 have seen twenty; and another, I have seen thirty- 
 and another, I have seen forty, and very, very likely 
 shall never see as many more ; and O, what a narrow 
 span is this, to offer in gratitude to liim who will give 
 me a life so lasting, that ages as numberless as the 
 flakes of winter snow, and the drops of summer rain, 
 were a moment, compared with its immense dura- 
 lion ! A thousand lives spent in his service would be 
 Bhort. How much shorter is the poor remnant of one! 
 Ah ! can you too early devote yourself to this adora- 
 ble Savior ? can you too entirely be his to the last hour 
 of life ? O may it be your holy ambition to join with 
 an apostle in declaring. Whether we live, we live to the 
 Lord, and whether we die, we die to the Lord; whether 
 we live therefore or die, we are the Lord's. 
 
 § 17. Still indulge one reflection more. If Jesus ia 
 your glory and your boast, then indulge it to promote 
 pity for others ; but if you are not his humble disciple, 
 indulge it that you may pity yourself. 
 
 How great is their guilt and folly who make light 
 of such a Savior ! What an assemblage of wonders 
 does his love display ! Yet these are the wonders that 
 almost all the world neglect. ! my Redeemer, few 
 are the followers thy dying love has gained ! Few 
 alas ! regard thy sufferings, and seek the heaven thoj 
 hast so dearly purchased for man. Ah ! deceived, de- 
 ceiving world ! such hopes to renounce, such a Savior 
 
oO GUILT OF REJECTING CHRIST. 
 
 again to crucif)^, for the sake of a few poor, short 
 years of earthly vanity ! Perhaps you, my youthful 
 readers, are not clear from such frightful guilt. Per- 
 haps you neglect that Savior who spread the heavens 
 abroad, and who created the earth beneath you. Per- 
 haps you indulge no thoughts of his love ; or let any 
 trifling folly drive sucli thoughts away. Perhaps you 
 forget the eternal bliss of heaven, and the bitter ago- 
 nies and bloody sufferings of the compassionate Sa- 
 vior ; and forget all these for trifles so mean, that they 
 would not drive from your thoughts one day of pro- 
 mised pleasure, and yet they can induce you to for- 
 get a gracious God, a crucified Savior, and an eternal 
 world. Ah! foolish creature and unwise, thus to re- 
 quite the Lord and giver of salvation I The cruelly to 
 yourself of such neglect is as great as the ingrati- 
 tude towards him. You, though young, and gay, and 
 thoughtless, have a soul whose worth worlds cannot 
 measure, whose price worlds cannot pay. You have 
 been viewing the Redeemer's works, the earth, the 
 sun, the stars of light, but your neglected soul in value 
 outweighs them all. The period is coming, when of 
 the sun, and all those meaner but brilliant fires, not 
 one glittering fragment will remain ; but never will 
 that time arrive when your soul shall cease to live. 
 Were one person to enjoy all the pleasure that has 
 ever been enjoyed by all the millions that have ever 
 lived, all that united would be but a moment of plea- 
 sure, compared with that enduring bliss which ran- 
 somed souls possess in the kingdom of God. And were 
 all the sufferings that through almost six thousand 
 years have imbittered so many lives, and broken so 
 many hearts ; were all the sickness and pains, and all 
 
r 
 
 RUIN INCURRED. gy 
 
 the dying pangs of the countless millions that death 
 hag swept away; were all these united and poured 
 upon one unhappy head, it would be less than a drop, 
 compared with those mountainous billows of misery 
 wh ch, in the world to come, will overwhelm every 
 neglecter of the Son of God. These all would not 
 form eternal sufferings, not amount to everlasting sor- 
 row. These immense sums of happiness or of pain 
 would have an end; but the joy or sorrow to which 
 you are hastening can have none. How highly you 
 valie tliis fleeting life! How precious is even the un- 
 certain prospect of a few years of peace and ease! 
 Hov bitter are sufferings when no end of them can be 
 seen! How bitter is it to the galley slave to think 
 that the chain which binds him, binds him foi 
 life! How severe a sentence of perpetual imprison- 
 ment! Were such your circumstances, how insup- 
 portible would the load of misfortune appear ! These 
 chaiis for life! This imprisonment for life! What 
 tenfold bitterness would the words, " for life," add to 
 the prison and the chain ! How great are sorrows 
 when only death can end them ! O, what will eternal 
 sorr3ws be? sorrows to which no death can ever 
 bnnr relief! O, what will be the wretched creature's 
 lot VTho has through eternity to exclaim, "Mercy once 
 woo3d me, but mercy is gone for ever ! God pitied me, 
 but !ias now left me for ever! The Savior I slighted 
 IS departed for ever ! for ever ! O, that dreadful for 
 ever! Peace, and hope, and comfort, all have left m-e 
 for ever! and now this hellish prison is my abode for 
 ever! This dismal gloom, this eternal heart-ache, this 
 torraenting flame, are my sad portion for ever! O 
 coujd that eternity be shortened! O could one hope 
 
bo OFFICES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, 
 
 gleam across tl>€ eternal gloom ! could death, thoigh 
 at the distance of infinite years, appear to end my sor- 
 rows and my being! But no such comfort can -visit 
 me ! There is no gleam of hope in the distance of eler- 
 nal night. There is no death that can end my being. 
 The death I suffer is the death that never dies. God, 
 and Christ, and hope, and mercy, and peace, and ease 
 are all gone ! wo ! wo is me ! gone for ever and for 
 ever!" 
 
 Shall this be your lot ! It must, it will, if you ne- 
 glect that blessed Friend whose glory and love this 
 chapter has faintly represented to you. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE PERSONALITY, DEITY, AND INFLUENCES OF 
 THE HOLY SPIRIT. 
 
 § 1. "When the disciple of Jesus contemplates his 
 Savior's dying love, the exalted allurements presented 
 in the Gospel to a life of piety, and the eternal ter.'ors 
 denounced against a life of vice, he is ready to wonder 
 that all are not Christians. But when he looks inward, 
 and judging from his own heart, perceives what hu- 
 man nature is, he is perhaps as ready to wonder ;hat 
 Jesus has ani^" followers in so dead a world. Tlese 
 views lead thfc mind to that Spirit of truth, who isthe 
 source of piety. To his agency the Christian acknow- 
 ledges himself indebted for the religion he enjoys ; ind 
 is encouraged and pleased by believing that his dinne 
 
DEITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 89 
 
 Friend will do that for others which he has done for 
 hire. 
 
 Ii is of high importance to have scriptural views re- 
 specting the Holy Spirit; the agency, and the divinity, 
 and even the personality of the Spirit of God, have 
 beeu denied. He has been represented as an angel, 
 but most commonly by those who have denied his di- 
 vinity, as a mere attribute, the power or the Avisdom 
 of God. 
 
 § 2. In briefly surveying the Scripture testimony 
 respecting the Holy Spirit, first observe those passages 
 in which his name stands united with the Father and 
 the Son. "Go and teach all nations, baptizing them in 
 the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the 
 Holy Ghost." "The grace of our Lord Jesus, and the 
 love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, 
 be with you all. 
 
 If the Holy Ghost were a mere divine attribute, and 
 not a divine person, the former of these passages 
 might be read, Baptizing them in the name of the Fa- 
 ther, and of the Son, and of holy power, or holy wis- 
 dom, or divine operation. This, instead of represent- 
 ing the Lord Jesus as having spoken sense and truth, 
 would represent him as uttering language without 
 a meaning. For what meaning could be attached to 
 the expression of baptizing in the name of an attribute. 
 If a person took an oath of allegiance to the king, the 
 peers, and the commons, assembled in parliament, the 
 meaning would be obvious; but if he swore allegiance 
 to the king, the parliament, and the king's power, the 
 Intter part of the oath would convey no idea. 
 When the apostle implored for his Christian friends 
 
90 PERSONALITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 
 
 the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of 
 God, he implored most important blessings ; and if '.he 
 Holy Spirit is a divine person, not a less important 
 one, when he added, the communion of the Hjly 
 Ghost. But if the Holy Ghost were a mere attribute, 
 wisdom, or power, how absurd would appear a devout 
 prayer, that the fellowship of God's power or wisdom 
 might be with tliera! 
 
 § 3. The actions and attributes ascribed to the Holy 
 Spirit furnish further proof of his personality. 
 
 The Spirit is said to approve or be ]AeasecL "It 
 seemed good to the Holy Ghost."— To be displeased 
 or vexed. " They rebelled and vexed his Holy Spirit." 
 " Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God."— To be resisted. 
 " Ye do always resist the Holy Ghost ; as your fathers 
 did, so do ye." — To strive. " My Spirit shall not always 
 strive with men." — To hear and speak. "He shall not 
 speak of himself, but whatsoever he hear, that shall he 
 speak."- 7'o direct. "The Spirit said to Philip, Go 
 near, and join thyself to that chariot." — To forbid. 
 " They were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach 
 the word in Asia." — To guide. "He will guide you 
 into all truth." — To inhabit as a temple. " Ye are the 
 temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwelleth in you." 
 To search and know. " The Spirit searcheth all things, 
 even the deep things of God." — 7'o discover what hethus 
 knows. " He shall glorify me (Christ,) for he shall re 
 ceive of mine, and shall show it unto you. All things 
 that the Father hath are mine, therefore said I that he 
 shall take of mine and show it unto you." " The Com- 
 forter shall teach you all things, and bring all things 
 to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto 
 you." — To be sent for this purpose, and when sent, to 
 
PERSONALITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 91 
 
 testify^ comfort, and convince. " When the Comforter 
 is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, 
 even the Spirit of truth which proceedeth from the 
 Father, he shall testify ot me." " When he is come he 
 will reprove (or convince; the world of sin, of righte- 
 ousness, and of judgment."— 7'o inspire. "Holy men of 
 old spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."— 
 To work and distribute according to his jdeasure. 
 "All these worketh one and the same Spirit, dividing 
 to every man severally as he ioill.''—To give lije. 
 " Quickened by the Spirit.'' To he the object ofatiewpt- 
 ed deception. Peter said, "Ananias, Why hath Satan 
 filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost?" 
 
 Is it possible reasonably to suppose, that in a vo- 
 lume written by inspired men, to instruct the illite- 
 rate, such ]anguag[e sliould be used respecting the wis- 
 dom or the power of God ? Could it, to speak merely 
 common sense, be said of wisdom, or power, or any 
 other attribute, that it is pleased, is displeased, is vex- 
 ed, is grieved, is resisted ; that it strives, hears, speaks, 
 directs, forbids, inhabits, searches, and knows, reveals, 
 teaches, is sent, inspires, works, distributes according 
 to its own will, quickens, and is the object of attempt- 
 ed deception. If sensible men would not use language 
 so absurd, would inspired men use it when penning a 
 book designed to enlighten, and guide, and save the 
 world ? 
 
 Would the pronoun HE be repeatedly applied, even 
 by Christ himself, to the Spirit, if the Spirit w^ere 
 merely one of God's perfections? HE shall testify. 
 I will send HIM. When HE is come, HE will re- 
 prove the world. HE, the Spirit of truth, HE will 
 guide you into all truth. HE shall not speak of 
 
92 DEITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 
 
 HIMSELF, but whatsoever HE shall hear shall HE 
 speak. HE will show you things to come. HE shall 
 glorify me. HE shall receive of mine. Dividing ac- 
 cording as HE will. Would there be any propriety 
 in applying expressions like these to God's power 
 or wisdom ? Would even a child make use of them ? 
 Can we then suppose that he who spake as never 
 man spake, should speak thus unintelligibly? Unita- 
 rians may talk about eastern allegories and personifi- 
 cation, but we may defy them to produce an instance 
 from the grave sedate language of a sensible man, of 
 personification so absurd as the above would be if it 
 were but the language of metaphor. 
 
 § 4. The plain inference from these arguments is, 
 that the Holy Spirit is not a mere attribute, but a per- 
 son.* It remains to show that he is a divine person. 
 
 He is called God hy Peter. " Why hath Satan filled 
 thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost? Thou hast not 
 lied unto men, but unto God." As lying to the Holy 
 Ghost was lying unto God, the natural inference is, 
 that the Holy Ghost is God. 
 
 The Holy Ghost is eternal " Christ, who through 
 the eternal Spirit offered himself." None is eternal 
 but God. 
 
 * On this expression it may be proper to observe, that it is 
 used here on this awfully mysterious subject for want of a 
 more suitable one. We do not mean, by the use of it, to assert 
 such entire distinctness as subsists between two men or two 
 angels, but such a distinction between the Spirit, and the Fa- 
 ther, and the Son, as is sufficient, notwithstanding their union, 
 to sanction assertions respecting one of them which cannot be 
 made of another. Thus, for instance, in the economy of redemp- 
 tion, the Father sent ; the Son came. The Son took human na- 
 ture; the Father and the Spirit did not. 
 
DEITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 93 
 
 The Holy Ghost is omniscient. " The Spirit search 
 eth all things, even the deep things of God. For what 
 man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of a 
 man that is in him ? Even so the things of God know- 
 eth no one but the Spirit of God." Could this asser- 
 tion be made of any created being ? Of what creature 
 could it be affirmed that he surveys the treasures of the 
 infinite Mind, knows the inmost secrets of his Creator's 
 breast, and searcheth even the deep things of God ? 
 Respecting God, it is said, " His thoughts are very 
 deep." " His understanding is infinite." " There is no 
 searching of his understanding." He is " the only wise 
 God." These passages refute such a supposition as 
 that the most exalted creature can search the depths 
 of his Creator's wisdom. Could an archangel explore 
 that wisdom, God would no longer be the only wise. 
 His creature would be as wise as himself. He then 
 who searches the deep things of God, must himself be 
 God ; as the spirit of man is an essential part of man. 
 § 5. The part which the Holy Spirit acts in the eco- 
 nomy of redemption further proves his divinity. If not 
 God, he must be an angel. But what are angels ? are 
 they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister 
 for them who shall be heirs of salvation ? The Holy 
 Spirit's work is represented as of a far higher nature. 
 " Believers are born of the Spirit." Are saved " by the 
 renewing of the Holy Ghost." « Are sanctified by the 
 Spirit of God." " Abound in hope through the power 
 of the Holy Ghost." " Have the love of God shed 
 abroad in their hearts by the Holy Ghost." " Are led 
 hy the Spirit, and shall of the Spirit reap life everlast- 
 ing." These things cannot be the effects of an angel's 
 agency, for elsewhere it is declared that believers are 
 
94 DEITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 
 
 bar?! of God, and that every good gift, and every per- 
 fect gift coineth from the Father of mercies. He there- 
 fore who is the distributer of these best gifts, must 
 himself be God. 
 
 These "blessings are too great to be communicated 
 by any being who is not divine. Could the higiiest 
 archangel be represented as the author of them 7 Could 
 it without the utmost impiety be said that believers 
 are born of Gabriel, are sanctified by Gabriel, abound 
 in hope and love by Gabriel, are led by Gabriel, and 
 shall of Gabriel reap life everlasting? Would not such 
 assertions shock every pious feeling? Would it not be 
 felt that such language exalted the creature to the Crea- 
 tor's place? Yet, unless the Spirit were one with God, 
 it would be as improper to apply such expressions in 
 reference to him as to an archangel. 
 
 § 6. Finally, his divinity is proved from his being 
 united with the Father and the Son in the baptismal 
 form, and in the blessing implored for Christians. To 
 unite a mere attribute with God in those solemn forms 
 would be absurd ; but impious to unite a creature, and 
 pay him the same religious homage as his Creator. 
 
 § 7. Besides the numerous passages that have been 
 brought forward in proof of the deity of the Son and 
 Spirit, the Scriptures abound with others, which admit 
 of no reasonable interpretation if that doctrine be re- 
 jected. Of this description are the following: "And 
 God said. Let US make man in OUR image, after OUR 
 likeness." After the fall of man the LORD GOD said, 
 " Behold, the man is become osone of us, to know good 
 and evil." Similar language is used on other occasions. 
 The Lord said, " Let US go down." In the vision of 
 the divine glory which Isaiah saw, Jehovah is describ- 
 
THE spirit's influence. 95 
 
 ed as saying, " Whom shall I send, and who will go 
 for US ?" The language of the Most High on these oc- 
 casions is correct and just, if the Father, Son and Holy 
 Spirit are one God 3 but if the doctrine of the Unitarians 
 were true, the language would be unreasonable. 
 
 § 8. The Christian is represented as unspeakably in- 
 debtcd to the Holy Spirit, whose benevolent agency is 
 to him the source of unutterable good. When the sub- 
 ject is mentioned in a general way, the Holy Spirit's 
 influence is described as of the utmost importance. 
 When the sacred writers descend to particulars, and 
 enumerate distinctly the various blessings bestowed 
 by the Holy Spirit, they mention numerous most pre- 
 cious mercies. 
 
 The whole renewal of man is ascribed to his injlu- 
 ence. "Except a man be born of water and of the 
 Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 
 That which is born of the flesh is flesh ; and that 
 which is born of the Spirit is spirit." " As many as 
 received him, to them gave he power to become the 
 sons of God, even to them that believe on his name ; 
 which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the 
 flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." 
 
 The different parts of the new creation are traced to 
 his agency. Me enlightens the mind. " Thou gavest 
 thy good Spirit to instruct them." " W^e have receiv- 
 ed the Spirit, which is of God, that we might know 
 the things that are freely given to us of God." Re- 
 pcntance is ascribed to divine iiifuerice. " I will pour 
 upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of 
 Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications : and 
 they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and 
 ihey shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his 
 
96 THE SPIRITS INFLUENCE. 
 
 only so»." To divine injluence is faith also ascribed. 
 " By grace are ye saved, through faith, and that not of 
 yourselves, it is the gift of God." Hope and love are 
 described as the product of the SpiriCs fower. "That 
 ye may abound in hope, through the power of the 
 Holy Ghost." " The love of God is shed abroad in 
 our hearts, by the Holy Ghost given unto us." " God 
 hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son in your hearts, 
 crying, Abba, Father." The Spirit is further repre- 
 sented as the Author of holiness in its most extensive 
 sense, iriduding the mortification of sin, and exercise of 
 Christian graces and duties. "If ye, through the 
 Spirit, do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live." 
 " But ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are 
 justified, in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the 
 Spirit of our God." " The fruit of the Spirit is love, 
 joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 
 meekness, temperance." That blessed Spirit who thus 
 meetens for immortal life all who come to Jesus, is re- 
 presented as assisting them in prayer. " We have ac- 
 cess by one Spirit unto the Father." " The Spirit also 
 helpelh our infirmities." He helps them to persevere. 
 " That good thing which was committed unto thee, 
 keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us." To 
 promote spiritual con fort cdso appears pecidiarly his 
 office. The Lord Jesus said, " I will pray the Father, 
 and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may 
 abide with you for ever." 
 
 Besides other passages in which the work of the 
 Holy Spirit is peculiarly mentioned, the Scriptures 
 contain multitudes in which the necessity of divine 
 influence is declared, or its benefits described in a 
 more general way, as benefits bestowed by God. "We 
 
THE CHRISTIAN THE TEMPLE. 97 
 
 are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto 
 good works," " God worketh in you both to will and 
 to do of his good pleasure." "The very God of peace 
 sanctify you wholly ; the God of all grace make you 
 perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you." "The God 
 of peace make you perfect in every good work to do 
 his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing 
 in his sight.." "Without me ye can do nothing." 
 
 If a partaker of the Savior's love, surely you now 
 acknowledge "by the grace of God I am what I am." 
 § 9. The subject presents an important view of the 
 Christian character. The representation given of the 
 Christian as the temple of God, or of the Holy Spirit, 
 is of a peculiarly pleasing, solemn, and awakening na- 
 ture. The temple was a place solemnly set apart for 
 God. It was devoted to the worship and service of 
 God ; was favored with his special presence ; and, as 
 far as any place on earth could be so, was described 
 as his abode. How important therefore is this repre- 
 sentation of a real Christian ! the temple of God— re- 
 deemed from the world, and solemnly consecrated to 
 the worship and service of the Most High— Holiness 
 to the Lord inscribed upon this temple, and God, by 
 his Spirit, there taking up his abode. 
 
 This is a description of the Christian character 
 which cannot possibly comport with a life of worldli- 
 ness, ambition, sensuality, or pride. 
 
 As reasonably and as truly might a temple of Dagon 
 or of Moloch, or of Juggernaut, be called a temple of 
 Jehovah, as a mere nominal Christian be esteemed the 
 temple of God's Holy Spirit. On the Christian's heart 
 this view should have an impressive and awakening 
 9 
 
93 THE CHRISTIAN THE TEMPLE 
 
 tendency. "Am I the temple of God, and shall I not 
 cherish those dispositions which he approves, and seek 
 those graces that should dwell in his temple? Shall I 
 not apply to him for aid, and strive with all my power 
 to banish from this temple those polluting lusts that 
 would fain intrude, and offend its blessed inhabitants? 
 Should pride, or ambition, or selfishness, or covetous- 
 ness, or malice, or envy, or rancor, or revenge, or 
 love to the world, be cherished in my heart, I should 
 then harbor in this temple the detestable brood of hell. 
 And am I indeed the temple of God ? O what manner 
 of person ought I to be, in all holy conversation and 
 godliness ! 
 
 § 10. Closely connected with this view of the Chris- 
 tian character, is the test of self-examination furnish- 
 ed by this subject. The Spirit of God operating on 
 the heart, must produce a resemblance of the mind 
 which was in Christ. Not indeed at once a perfect re- 
 semblance, but a resemblance progressively advancing 
 nearer to perfection. The Spirit is declared to lead 
 and guide the submissive soul ; will he lead and guide 
 in any path, except the path which Jesus trod ? If the 
 Spirit leads the soul, he will lead it to all the mind 
 which was in Christ ; and in the narrow path of watch- 
 ful, humble holiness. The Spirit is declared to renew 
 the mind. In whose im.age will he renew it, except 
 the image of Christ ? The God of truth declares, '.' If 
 any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of 
 his." Christ himself was a pattern of meekness and 
 humility, of gentleness and love, of deadness to the 
 world, of forgiveness to enemies, benevolence to 
 friends, and devotedness to God. The Spirit of Christ 
 will prompt the soul that feels his influence to follow 
 
OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 99 
 
 Christ ; will renew the soul in the likeness of its Sa- 
 vior. How important a test for judging of our real 
 character is thus set before us! Christ was humble. 
 Do you indulge ruling pride ? If so, you have not his 
 Spirit, you are none of his. Christ was devoted to 
 God. Are you careless of him ? If so, you have not 
 his Spirit, you are none of his. Christ in his temper 
 displayed meekness, gentleness, and forbearance. Do 
 haughtiness, and harshness, and violence reign m 
 yours ? If so, you have not his Spirit, you are none of 
 his. Christ was forgiving to his enemies. Are you im- 
 placaiile and unforgiving to yours? If so, you have 
 not his Spirit, you are none of his. Oirist was dead to 
 this world. Is it the object of your love, and the aim 
 of your life? If so, you have not his Spirit, you are 
 none of his. Christ was holy, harmless, and undefiled. 
 Do you live the willing servant of any lust, the slave 
 of any sin ? If so, you have not his Spirit, you are 
 none of his. But do you feel wrought in your soul a 
 strong desire to grow like him? do you find a relish 
 for spiritual objects, a devotedness to Christ? do you 
 experience a prevalent concern to acquire his image? 
 to be holy, humble, self-denying, meek and genlle, 
 dead to the world and all its charms, alive to God, and 
 bent on heaven ? You may surely take encourage- 
 ment from this, and view it as one of the clearest tes- 
 timonies to your possession of the grace of God ; for 
 doubtless the reverse of the solemn declaration just 
 mentioned is as true as that declaration itself: If any 
 man have the Spirit of Christ, he is one of his. 
 
 $ 11. The promised aid of the Spirit furnishes an 
 encouraging motive for pursuing eminent holiness. 
 " Work out your own salvation with fear and trem- 
 
100 CAUTIONS AGAINST 
 
 bling, for it is God that worketh in you both to will 
 and to do of his good pleasure." Were the Christian 
 left to his own feeble powers, he might be disposed, at 
 times, almost to sink beneath the load of life, and to 
 consider exertion hopeless. But, God worketh in you — 
 what now is wanted to insure the acquisition of every 
 grace? God worketh in you, both to will and to do. 
 He gives the holy desire. He gives ability to execute 
 the desire, to do what the soul longs to perform. Could 
 a promise like this be made in reference to much 
 meaner objects than advancement towards heaven, 
 how powerful would be its effect. Were it said to the 
 pious husbandman, by a voice from heaven, " Till your 
 fields with care, you shall not labor in vain, God works 
 with you ;" how zealous would be his labor ! how 
 rich a harvest would he anticipate ! what an incite- 
 ment would he feel to activity ! 
 
 § 12. The important discoveries which the Holy 
 Scriptures make, respecting the blessed Spirit's agen- 
 cy, are connected with cautions or directions of the ut- 
 most moment to man's eternal welfare. " Walk in the 
 Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh." 
 " Be ye filled with the Spirit." " Grieve not the Holy 
 Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of 
 redemption." As our obligations to the Holy Spirit are 
 so immense; as advancement in the divine life, and 
 growing meetness for heaven, depend upon his bless- 
 ing, to slight or grieve him is unspeakably foolish and 
 wicked. Can the lamp burn without oil to feed its 
 flame ? can the cold earth bloom with vernal beauty, 
 without the sun to warm its frozen surface, and to call 
 that beauty forth 1 can the stream flow whose fountain 
 is dried up ? can the limbs move, when the heart has 
 
GRIEVING THE SPIRIT. 101 
 
 ceased to play? Yet as easily wonld the lamp burn 
 without oil, the earth bloom without the enlivenin<r 
 sun, the stream flow witliout a fountain, and the limbs 
 move when the heart is still in death, as a man sliine 
 in Christian graces wit'nout the sanctifying Spirit. 
 Then prize the Spirit. Quench not the Spirit ; resist 
 not his gentle motions ; stifle not his still small voice. 
 Grieve not the Spirit. This admonition expresses the 
 interest he takes in human welfare. Grieve him not 
 by slighting his blessed influences. Grieve him not by 
 undervahiing his aid. Grieve him not by allowing un- 
 clean imaginations and hateful passions to harbor in 
 his temple. Grieve him not by lagging in the Chris- 
 tian course, when he prompts you to run the race that 
 is set before you. Grieve him not by cher-ishing a sloth- 
 ful lukewarm mind, when he is exciting in your soul 
 desires after fervent piety and distinguished useful- 
 ness. Perhaps the Scriptures contain no admonition 
 more momentous than this, yet how is this forgotten ! 
 Thou shalt not kill. Thou shall not commit adultery, 
 and similar command-ments, are frequently recollected ; 
 but. Grieve not the holy Spirit of God, is, by many 
 that profess religion, an almost unregarded precept. 
 As you wish to be prepared for eternal blessedness, let 
 regard to this important rule govern your lil'e. Often 
 think, " Is there any thing in the dispositions I cherish, 
 or the conduct I pursue, calculated to grieve the Spirit ? 
 or am I anxious to enjoy his blessed aid, and to be 
 guided- and led by the Spirit?" 
 
 To these admonitions the Lord Jesus Christ adds, 
 what is in fact a direction to pray for the Spirit's aid, 
 " I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you ; seek, 
 9* 
 
102 WONDERS IN man's REDEMPTION. 
 
 and ye shall find ; knock, and it shall be opened unto 
 you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that 
 seeketh findeth ; and to him that knockelh it shall be 
 opened. If ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts 
 unto your children, how much more shall your hea- 
 venly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask 
 him? Encouraging consideration ! such a Father will 
 not refuse a blessing so precious ! 
 
 While we are taught that the Spirit's influence is ot 
 so much consequence to our own comfort, holiness, 
 and happiness, we are reminded that it is of equal im- 
 portance in our endeavors to benefit others. " Who 
 then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by 
 whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every 
 man? I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave 
 the increase. So then neither is he that planteth any 
 thing, neither he that watereth ; but God that giveth 
 the increase." 
 
 § 13. An animating motive for gratitude is furnished 
 by the subject of this chapter. Had a kind physician, 
 at an immense expense, ransomed from the gallows a 
 wretch condemned to die, and then cured him of a 
 deadly plague that infused its poison through every 
 vein, and threatened him with a dreadful and inevita- 
 ble death, this man would lie under a vast and two- 
 fold obligation to his kind benefactor. Yet how insig- 
 nificant would be these obligations compared vvith those 
 under which every heir of heaven is brought. He, like 
 this ruined but favored criminal, has enjoyed a double 
 deliverance from death and ruin, from condemnation 
 without and the plague of sin within. How divinely 
 amiable does God appear as exhibited in the Scrip- 
 tures, and how infinitely glorious a scheme is that for 
 
WONDERS IN man's REDEMPTION. 103 
 
 human redemption 1 The Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, 
 conjointly the infinite and everlasting God, are all re- 
 presented as acting their part in the wonderful scheme. 
 The Father pities an undone world, and cherishes love 
 so infinite, that he gives his beloved Son to be the sin- 
 ner's sacrifice. He sends him into this world, by one 
 dreadful offering of himself, to atone for sins unnum- 
 bered, and for guilt that deserved eternal wrath. The 
 Son, acting his part in the wonderful plan of mercy, 
 assumes human nature, and comes to be a willing vic- 
 tim. He dies, and accomplishes his Father's purposes, 
 and his own. The scheme of mercy has proceeded so 
 far, that God can now be just, and criminal man be 
 saved ; sin be punished, and the sinner be forgiven ; for 
 the Son of God has atoned for sin, and brought in an 
 everlasting righteousness. He rises from the dead, and 
 his Father thus declares that justice has no more claim 
 upon him. He rises to heaven, to pursue the work of 
 mercy in which he labored while upon earth. But all 
 the parts of this amazing scheme are not yet developed. 
 The agency of the Spirit is now introduced to com^ 
 plete the wonderfully gracious plan. He enlightens 
 the mind and subdues the soul, disposes it to adore 
 the Father's love, to rest on the Son's sacrifice. He re- 
 news its dispositions, forms it to a meetness for hea- 
 ven, and trains it up for that happy state. Thus God 
 begins the scheme, God carries it forward, and God 
 completes it. From first to last it is divine. It began 
 in divine love, it ends in human happiness, promoting 
 the divine glory. It began in heaven, was pursued on 
 earth, and ends in heaven. It began in eternity, was 
 carried on in time, and when comoleted extends its 
 effects to all eternity. This transitory world is ihe 
 
104 GOODNESS IN MAN'S REDEMPTION. 
 
 theatre on which the most wonderful part of this plan 
 was acted ; but it originated in the eternal world, and 
 is completed there. Man, the object of this scheme of 
 mercy, stands infinitely indebted to the Father, Son, 
 and Holy Ghost. Had the kindness of either been with- 
 held, man would have been for ever undone. The 
 atonement of the Son would not benefit the sinner, 
 were the influence of the Spirit withheld ; nor would 
 the influences of the Spirit prepare him for heaven, 
 were an interest in the atonement denied him; nor 
 would either have been exerted for him, if the Father 
 h;id not so loved the world as to give his only Son for 
 human salvation. O, see God acting all through this 
 scheme of mercy, and filling up the wondrous ^vhole. 
 See man, the object of the eternal Father's pity, of the 
 ^-n's sufferings, and of the Spirit's influence. See every 
 one tliai reaches the abodes of light, indebted, eternal- 
 ly indebted, to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Among 
 the nations of the saved, not one. can or ever will be 
 found not thus indebted. Not one of whom it can be 
 said. He owes his happiness to other friends, or other 
 sources; he owes salvation to the purity of iiis heart, 
 to the vigor of his exertions, to the merit of his labors, 
 or the severity of his sufferings. Among the countless 
 myriads of the great multitude that no man can num- 
 ber, not one such will be found. The agency of God 
 will be seen to have been exerted for them all ; the Fa- 
 ther to have loved them all ; the Son to have atoned 
 for them all ; the Spirit to have renewed them all. The 
 salvation of each, and all, will be seen as of God, from 
 first to last. Thus, while God shines conspicuous 
 through all the scheme of love, while God is seen be- 
 ginning, pursuing, completing the wonderful plan, the 
 
THE NATURE OF FAITH. 105 
 
 praise, the endless praise, will be the Lord's. Adore 
 this mysterious love; admire this amazing plan of 
 mercy ; and pray to be the ineffably happy partaker of 
 this unsearchable grace. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE A LIFE OF FAITH. 
 
 § 1. It is said respecting the author of the Night 
 Thoughts, that in his garden he had the painting of a 
 seat, which, at a distance, appeared really a seat, but 
 when the spectator drew near, he perceived the decep- 
 tion, and read the words, 
 
 Invisibilia non decipiunt. 
 
 The things unseen do not deceive. 
 
 How true I how important ! 
 
 " All, all on earth is shadow, all beyond is substance, 
 " How solid all where change shall be no more !" 
 
 The Christian, while described as devoted to God, 
 is represented as actuated by a principle which makes 
 him familiar with things unseen, more familiar than 
 with the things of time and sense. That principle is 
 Faith. 
 
 Faith, in all cases, means confidence in the truth of 
 certain propositions which are presented to the view 
 of the mind. I am told there is such a country as In- 
 dia. The evidence of this proposition is such, as con- 
 
106 THE NATUKE OK EAirH. 
 
 vinces my mind of its truth. I believe, or I have faith, 
 in the statement. When convinced of this truth, I 
 might be unwilling to take a voyage to India, but if 
 Avilling to undertake it, should have no apprehension 
 of finding that no such country existed. In this case, 
 and many others, what is faith but confidence in the 
 truth of certain propositions? Confidence, resting upon 
 sufficient evidence. Less than this may be thinking a 
 statement probable, but it is not believing. I may think 
 it probable that a certain person will prove a kind 
 friend, and this may influence my conduct, but I do 
 not actually believe this, till the evidence convinces 
 my mind that he is indeed a friend. 
 
 If the truths thus presented to my view are truths 
 which immediately concern myself, belief in them pro- 
 duces correspondent emotions and conduct. I am told 
 of some impending danger that threatens me with 
 ruin. Belief in the statement excites concern, alarm, 
 and endeavors to avoid the threatening evil. I am told 
 of some important advantage offered to me. Belief in 
 the statement leads me to embrace the offer, and seize 
 the proffered good. If I merel}^ think it probable that 
 such danger threatens, or such good is offered, I can- 
 not be said to believe either the one or the other. I 
 think it likely,_that is all ; and the mere likelihood, 
 though it may excite some degree of alarm or desire, 
 will probably do nothing more. 
 
 Saving faith includes a confidence in the truth of 
 those statements which the Gospel makes respecting 
 the Lord Jesus Christ; and in other words, the mind 
 is convinced of the certainty of the discoveries of the 
 Scriptures respecting him and his salvation. That in 
 this case, as well as where the subjects of time are 
 
CHRISTIAN JUSTIFIED BY FAITH. 107 
 
 concerned, this confidence is a principal part of faith, 
 is evident from the divine word. Rom. 4; 20-22, 
 Heb. 11: 1, J3. 
 
 In saving faith, with this conviction of the truth of 
 the great discoveries of the Gospel is united the cor- 
 dial acquiescence »f the heart in this way of salvation. 
 The Scriptyres declare that it is with the heart man 
 believeth unto righteousness. When the believing pa- 
 triarchs are represented as persuaded of the promises, 
 it is added, and embraced them. Jesus Christ appears 
 to represent comhig to him as the "same thing as be- 
 lieving on him, and believers on him are said to re- 
 ceive him. As the heart is represented as the seat of 
 the affections, to believe with the heart, suggests not 
 merely the idea of confidence in a truth proposed, or 
 a friend revealed, but the cordial affectionate reception 
 of that truth. And such is the case with every believer 
 in the Son of God. Am I convinced that sin has un- 
 done me? Am I anxious for that salvation which I 
 feel to be beyond the attainment of human efforts? 
 While in this state of mind, am I convinced tliat it is 
 indeed a faithful saying, that Jesus Christ came into 
 the world to save sinners ? This is a declaration full 
 of comfort. I feel it to be suited to my condition. I 
 perceive the Son of God to be such a Savior as my 
 wants require. My heart welcomes this Savior, and 
 cordially acquiesces in this scheme of mercy ; I rest 
 on his promise, and intrust my all for eternity to his 
 care. Now I can say, "Lord, I believe." 
 
 Let it not be imagined that the view now given of 
 saving faith would insinuate that God is not its giver. 
 He is strictly its author, as he enlightens the mind, 
 and disposes it to form a correct judgment respecting 
 
i08 THE CHRISTIAN LIVES BY FAITH., 
 
 the certainty of Gospel truths, and as he disposea the 
 heart to acquiesce in the Gospel scheme of salvation, 
 and leads the penitent to commit his eternal all to the 
 Lamb that was slain. 
 
 § 2. The Christian lives by failh, as by faith in the 
 Son of God he is delivered from condemnation, and 
 made the heir of eternal life, and as faith directs his 
 conduct and governs his life. * 
 
 While believers are thus represented as forgiven, 
 justified, and accepted with God, through faith, the 
 Scriptures explicitly declare that this is not in conse- 
 quence of some virtue existing in faith itself, but in 
 consequence of what the Son of God has done and 
 suffered, whose people they become by faith. Before 
 they believe they are ungodly, and after they believe 
 are still unworthy ! 
 
 The atonement of the blessed Jesus is that on which 
 justifying faith more especially fixes. Hence it is de- 
 scribed as FAITH IN HIS BLOOD. The expression is re- 
 markable. It is not faith in his divine commission, 
 faith in his rich benevolence, faith in his gracious 
 promises, faith in his lovely character, but faith in 
 HIS BLOOD. And as a propitiation for sin it is, by faith 
 in his blood, that the soul enjoys the benefits he be- 
 stows. The Socinian has faith in his divine commis- 
 sion : what will it avail him ? the Mahomed an has the 
 same. The humble disciple has faith in his blood. 
 The importance of a faith which thus fixes on the 
 atoning death of the Savior, appears inculcated by 
 himself, in the most solemn manner, when he, in a 
 figurative discourse, represented his flesh and blood as 
 the meat and drink of his disciples. 
 
 fi 3. The nature of faith is illustrated in the word of 
 
THE NATURE OF FAITH. 109 
 
 Ood by a reference to its effects. It is represented as 
 a strong confidence in the truth of divine declarations 
 or promises ; a confidence doubtless resting on the di- 
 vuie character, and so strong as to lead its possessors 
 cheerfully to follow wherever God directed them to 
 go, and cheerfully to perform whatever God directed 
 them to do. Faith influenced Noah. Perhaps a cen- 
 tury before the deluge God announced that tremen- 
 dous judgment, and commanded him to build the ark. 
 At that time, and probably for many succeeding years, 
 no indications of the flood were seen. Seed-time and 
 harvest, summer and winter, pursued their usual 
 course. Sun and moon, and all the heavenly bodies 
 moved in their accustomed order. But God had spo- 
 ken, and assured of God's faithfulness and veracity 
 Noah prepared for the dreadful day, which he was 
 sure would come. He built the ark— the day of de- 
 struction arrived— but he was safe. Of Abraham, the 
 father of the faithful, it is added, « By faith Abraham, 
 when he was called to go out into a place which he 
 should after receive for an -inheritance, obeyed ; and 
 he went out, not knowing whither he went." "He 
 knew not whether the people would be friends or ene- 
 mies, kind or cruel." Whether sorrow or comfort 
 awaited him in that strange land. But assured of the 
 wisdom and goodness of God, he confided fully in the 
 promise that God made him. God had commanded 
 him to forsake his country. This was sufficient. 
 Wherever he might roam, God would be his guide. 
 This was enough to render him safe and happy. 
 
 § 4. In the account given by the word of God re- 
 specting faith, it is represented as producing effects 
 10 
 
110 EFFECTS OF FAITH 
 
 similar to those which sight would produce. What sight 
 is with respect to this world, faith is with respect to 
 the next. 
 
 As faith in regard to eternal things, is similar to 
 sight with respect to those of time, so it produces ef- 
 fects exactly similar. Were the Christian to see the 
 Son of God expiring for his sins, what more could 
 sight effect, than to lead him to abhor himself, to hate 
 his sins, and to yield himself a living sacrifice to his 
 crucified Lord ? All this faith effects, wherever it is 
 genuine. Were the glories of eternity unveiled to the 
 believer's eye, and the bliss of heaven presented to his 
 sight, what more could the sight effect, than lead the 
 soul to seek its portion above, to slight the trifles of 
 time, and feel and act as a pilgrim upon earth ? Where 
 faith is possessed, all this will be effected ; not with 
 feelings as lively, or perceptions as vivid, as those pro- 
 duced by sight, but the choice will be as real, and the 
 affections as truly turned to heaven, and fixed and cen- 
 tering there. 
 
 Were the scenes of eternal judgraentj or the dark 
 prison of eternal misery, presented to the Christian's 
 sight, what could it effect more than lead him earnest- 
 ly to flee from the wrath to come, and to prepare to 
 render his last account? And this, too, faith effects on 
 all that feel its saving power. 
 
 Were a dying Savior, a blissful heaven, the awful 
 judgment-throne, and a miserable hell, presented io- 
 gelher to the Christian's view, what more could the 
 sight effect, than lead him so earnestly to flee the 
 dreaded evil, so devoutly to seize the proffered good, 
 that, compared with this, health, and liberty, and 
 friends, and life shfKild seenii things of no account in 
 
LIKE THOSE OF CHRIST. Ill 
 
 his esteem'? Could sight do more than lead him to 
 resign all these, and lo choose pain, and bonds, and 
 death, so that he might but win Christ and heaven? 
 All this faith has done; and done not only in one so- 
 litary instance, but in millions of instances. It has 
 been supposed that since Christianity arose, not less 
 than iiiiy millions of martyrs have laid down their 
 lives for its sake. Thus, even when sufferings or death 
 are in the way, faith still leads the true Christian for- 
 ward. It is an unseen heaven that he seeks, an unseen 
 hell that he dreads, an unseen God tliat he loves, and 
 an unseen Savior to whom he resigns himself. Yet, 
 while all that in his esteem is most dreadful, or most 
 allurinjz-, is unseen, he avoids or pursues these unseen 
 things with a resolution as strong, and a heart as de- 
 cided, as that of the most inveterate worldling, who is 
 pursuing the visible objects of earth and time. It may 
 rather be said, with a stronger resolution and a firmer 
 decision. For let almost certain death stand between 
 the worldling and his object, and he shrinks from the 
 pursuit; but he whose faith is genuine, strengthened 
 from above, will not shrink from the pursuit of Christ 
 and heaven, though painful bonds, or certain death 
 obstruct his way. 
 
 In the illustrations of the effects of.faith, which have 
 already been adduced from the word of God, it is 
 plain that its effects were such as sight would have 
 produced. Had Noah seen the deluge, could he have 
 done more than build the ark? Had Abraham seen the 
 country to which God would lead him, and beheld 
 even a thousand attractions, could he have yielded a 
 more ready obedience to the divine command? 
 
 In the case of Moses, what could sight have done 
 
112 EFFECTS OF FAITH 
 
 which faith did not effect? Could he have suffered 
 with more resolution ? could he have chosen God as 
 his portion with more decision ? could he have sought 
 eternal rest with more patient perseverance ? He suf- 
 fered, he acted, he endured, a« seeing him who is in- 
 visible, and seeing the things that are unseen. 
 
 The same were the effects of faith on the holy host 
 of confessors, who were tortured, were stoned, were 
 sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the 
 sword ; who wandered about in sheep-skins and goat- 
 skins ; being destitute, afflicted, tormented ; of whom 
 the world was not worthy. 
 
 Surely the faith of these sufferers accomplished all 
 that could have been accomplished if they beheld 
 their " God in glory," and their wished-for home. 
 Could they, who died martyrs that they might obtain 
 a better resurrection, have done more than die, if all 
 the solemn and triumphant scenes of that resurrec- 
 tion had been exhibited to their view ? Could they who 
 met death in a hundred horrid forms, or wandered in 
 the dens of wild beasts, more desolate than they— 
 could they have endured more constantly if the world 
 they sought had been continually before their eyes ? 
 Faith was indeed to all these the substance of things 
 hoped for. They all endured as seeing things invisible. 
 
 In accordance with this view of the effects of faith, 
 the Christian is described as walking by faith. "We 
 walk by faith, not by sight." The idea suggested ap- 
 pears to be, that the Christian pilgrim pursues his 
 journey to eternity with his heart, and soul, and affec- 
 tions, and actions, directed by those solemn objects 
 which are as yet unseen. He goes forward step by 
 step, influenced solely in his choice, and heart, and 
 
LIKE THOSE OF CHRIST. 113 
 
 conduct, not by the visible objects which charm the 
 deluded eyes of worldly men, but by the invisible 
 realities of an everlasting slate. 
 
 According to Scripture representations, Faith over- 
 comes the world.— Faith produces love.— Faith insures 
 holy obedience. — Faith prornotes inward purity as well 
 as outward obedience.— Faith is a source of peace and 
 comfort. — Faith gives energy to patience, and promotes 
 perseverance. Faith is a shield. The warrior's shield 
 protected his body, and warded off the thrusts and 
 blows of his enemy; so faith protects the Christian 
 warrior. It is a breast plate. The breast-plate, as the 
 word suggests, was designed to guard the breast, and 
 thus protect the vital parts, and especially the heart. 
 This is the place of faith, and while faith is possessed, 
 the heart will be engaged for God, its affections will 
 still turn to him, and the humble believer, safe in this 
 impenetrable breast-plate, will be kept by the power 
 of God, through faith, to final victory and full sal va~ 
 tion.— Fa/7/i produces spirituality of mind and affec- 
 tion.— Faith can be exhibited only by its fruits. "Show 
 me thy faith without thy works." Do it if thou canst. 
 It is beyond thy power to do so.— Faith cannot live 
 without being productive of the fruits thus described. 
 This is evident from the fact, that in the most solemn 
 manner the Son of God declares that those only shall 
 enter heaven who do his Father's will, and yet that 
 with equal certainty salvation is promised to every 
 believer. The inference is clear; every believer will 
 do the will and hearken to the precepts of God. 
 
 Need we wonder that the faith which produces such 
 effects, and with which the most valuable blessings are 
 10* 
 
il4 FAITH PROVED BY WORKS. 
 
 connected, is described as precious faith ; and have we 
 not reason to unite in the frequent prayer of the apos- 
 tles, "Lord, increase our faith!" 
 
 § 5. Are you a believer? You have borne the name 
 of Christian; but most who bear that sacred and 
 abused name are practical unbelievers. If you have 
 been one of the careless and the formal, permit me to 
 ask, should you fear a threatening dagger ? should you 
 dread to swallow a bowl of poison ? You know you 
 would ; but why ? Have you ever felt the miseries in- 
 flicted by a dagger or by poison ? You have not. Why 
 then would )^ou fear them? Because you believe, on 
 the testimony of others, the dreadful effects of daggers 
 and of poisons. You avoid them, through faith. A 
 greater than mortals, a greater than angels, the Lord 
 Jesus Christ himself, declares that you are a lost crea- 
 ture, and tells you of scenes of misery to which sin 
 leads, more dreadful than the most dreadful here— of 
 a world where eternal horror reigns ; where miseries 
 beyond description dwell ; where, could they inflict a 
 second death, daggers and poisons would be blessings 
 indeed— blessings fought for more earnestly than 
 crowns on earth! He tells you of an eternal hell, 
 which sin has merited, and to which sin is sinking 
 you ; and do you believe ? O ! if you did, you would 
 flee from the wrath to come. 
 
 A friend tells you of some important good that you 
 may obtain ; you follow it. Of some pleasures you 
 may enjoy ; you pursue them. Why ? because you 
 believe his word, and believe they will increase yonr 
 satisfaction. Perhaps you are ill. An acquaintance 
 tells you of a medicine that is an infallible antidote to 
 your disorder: you take it. Why? have you ever 
 
WANT OF FAITH. 115 
 
 tried its virtues? No : but you believe him who has. 
 In all these cases you are a believer, and faith leads 
 you to pursue desired good. 
 
 God tells you in his word, that, pitying your misery 
 and concerned for your happiness, he gave his best 
 Beloved to suffer in your place. This divine friend 
 calls you to follow him, and assures you that eternal 
 life is the heritage of his disciples. The joys oi earth 
 are only like gliding shadows or departing dreams of 
 joy. Heaven alone possesses the fair reality. Every 
 thing fades here ; nothing fades there. Here time is 
 short; but there, eternity how long ! Yet in this moment 
 must that eternity of bliss be gained, or never be ob 
 tained. Now would the Savior make you an heir of 
 heaven ; but beyond the grave he will never extend to 
 you a pitying, helping hand. All this he declares to 
 you in his word. You profess, perhaps, to believe it 
 all, and, O dreadful ! you slight it all. Do you believe 
 him? What infatuation ! what want of common sense 
 to suppose you do ! No ! if you did, you would flee to 
 the shelter of his cross, and find salvation there. No ! 
 if you did believe him, you would not prefer earth to 
 heaven, and a moment to eternity. No ! if you did be- 
 lieve him, you would not continue dying of sin, and 
 careless of the great Physician. And while you ne- 
 glect him, what are you but a practical infidel ? You 
 may talk of eternity and prefer time before it, but not 
 believe in eternal life, as the gift of God through Jesus 
 Christ, and think of eternal life, without feeling that 
 time is a dream, and life a vapor. If this earth couid 
 be hung on one side of a balance, and a speck of dust 
 be laid in the other scale, would the dust weigh down 
 the world ? Sooner would it do so, than time be pre- 
 
116 WANT OF FAITH. 
 
 ferred to eternity by him who cordially believes what 
 the blessed Scriptures say about his wretchedness, and 
 his only remedy ! 
 
 Ah ! what solemn scenes will soon open upon you ; 
 an endless world and all its endless joys or woes; the 
 mighty Redeemer and the eternal God. Were there 
 only a probability of that solemn woild, it might be 
 sufficient to make a reasonable creature indifferent to 
 one so transitory and perishing as this ; but here it is 
 not bare probability, it is certainty ; and yet will you 
 grasp at the passing shadows of this world, and neglect 
 the endless realities of the other! Now you say of a 
 part of life, it is gone; yet you look forward and hope 
 for other years to come ; but what will be your slate 
 when looking backward ? you must say, Time is gone ; 
 and looking forward. Eternity is come. O that awful, 
 that dreadful eternity ! How will it torment the mur- 
 derers of time! how will it teach the tlioughiless sin- 
 ner, and the mere nominal Christian, their folly and 
 their madness. In tliis world, the most wretched may 
 look for ease from earthly misery in the hallowed rest 
 of the grave ; there, they may say, the wicked cease 
 from troubling, and the weary are at rest. But when 
 they enter that neglected eternity, O, what a change 
 will there be in this respect I As there no death alarms 
 the happy, so no death relieves the miserable. On 
 earth, sleep may afford the most miserable intervals 
 of ease ; but there will be no sleeping in hell. The 
 sufferer on the bed of distraction and pain often finds 
 relief in the power of laudanum and opiates. how 
 often, when sitting by such a bed, have I thought, 
 there will be no laudanum in the world of wretched 
 spirits ! no medicines there to assuage the force of 
 
WANT OF FAITH. 117 
 
 pain, or render the sufferer insensible of his state ' All 
 this, too, deserved by sin. And do you profess to be- 
 lieve the book which warns you of such danger, and 
 shows you how to escape ? and yet do you slight that 
 salvation ? O what heads, what hearts have they who, 
 professing to believe these things, can trifle life away ! 
 You would start with horror at a proposition to mur- 
 der yourself; can you, without hesitation, do ten times 
 worse than murder your immortal soul ? by a careless, 
 ungodly life train it for destruction ; fit it for hell ; 
 make it the eternal enemy of God ; prepare it to be a 
 suitable companion for devils ; and eternally subject 
 it to Satan's power ! If you were in a room surrounded 
 with armed enemies, and one were to enter with two 
 lists in his hand, in one or the other of which the name 
 of every person present would be found ; if all in one 
 list were devoted to death, consigned to the bayonets 
 of the surrounding soldiers, and all in the other list 
 sure of life and joy, how anxious would you be to 
 know in which list your name stood ! especially if the 
 dead list were the more numerous of the two ! Yet 
 here all your anxiety would be concerning a life that 
 must soon end by disease, if saved from violence. But 
 eternal life or eternal death is before you ; and do you 
 never think it worth while to inquire. Is my name 
 written in the book of life ? am I a candidate for glory ? 
 have I fled to the Giver of life eternal, and found sal- 
 vation in him ? or does my name still stand in the list 
 of those who are the slaves of sin, the children of wrath, 
 and the heirs of hell ? O my fellow-sinner ! if you have 
 hitherto professed to believe the Bible, and yet with 
 the multitude neglected Jesus and salvation, learn 
 more wisdom now. You cannot neglect this much 
 
118 FAITH TO BE 
 
 longer, without neglecting it for ever. Be then what 
 you profess to be, be not a hypocrite or a practical in- 
 fidel, and you will be a Christian. 
 
 § 6. But, perhaps, the eye that reads this page is an 
 eye that sees no glory like that it sees in Christ ; yet if 
 you have reason to hope it is so, still it is needful often 
 to commune with your own heart, often to examine 
 your own condition. Try yourself, my friend ; the 
 Judge eternal will try us all. Try your every grace; 
 hereafter all must be tried. And is your faith like that 
 described m the precious Scriptures, as genuine and 
 saving? is it ''the substance of things hoped for, the 
 evidence of things not seen?" does it engage your 
 heart powerfully and decidedly for God and Christ ? 
 does it lead you to act as seeing him who is invisible? 
 and though you see not God, to live, and pray, and 
 persevere as if you saw him ? Though the blessed Je- 
 sus is unseen by you, does faith lead you to trust him, 
 and love him, and follow him? so that it may be said, 
 whom having not seen, ^oz^love; in whom, though 
 now you see him not, yet believing, you rejoice ; and 
 whose word you hear with as much deference as if 
 you heard him speaking from "heaven. 
 
 While the things that are seen would engage your 
 heart, does faith lead you to look above them? to 
 choose a world you never saw, before ihat you daily 
 see? to set your affections upon a heaven, of which 
 by sight you never gained the slightest glimpse, in pre- 
 ference to the honors, and profits, and pleasures of 
 earth and lime? and to flee more earnestly from an 
 unseen world of ruin, than you would from 
 
 " Hunger, poverty, and pain, 
 
 " And all the transitory iiis below 1" 
 
CHERISHED AND EXERCISED, 119 
 
 Does faith cause you, with Enoch, to walk with 
 God? with Noah, to dread God's threatened judg- 
 ments? with Abraham, to forsake an earthly, and seek 
 a better country ? with Moses, to esteem the reproach 
 of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt? 
 with Paul, to count all things but loss that you may 
 win Christ, and be found in him ? and with all the 
 holy host of martyrs, whatever you may lose, whate- 
 ver you may suffer here, still to persevere, looking for 
 a better resurrection ? 
 
 In short, does faith thus govern your heart, thus di- 
 rect your choice, thus rule your conduct, thus fire 
 your love, thus wing your desires, thus strengthen 
 your hopes, and thus enable you to live on earth as a 
 stranger traveling to heaven ? If it be genuine, if it be 
 saving, these will be its effects; and if effects of this 
 kind are not produced, you have but the shadow, 
 instead of the substance. 
 
 Make it your study and prayer to bring faith into 
 daily and hourly exercise. You believe in a gracious, 
 an all-seeing and almighty God : act as in his sight. 
 You believe in an atoning Savior: look daily to him 
 as your life, your all. You believe in eternal judg- 
 ment: now live as one whose actions and thoughts 
 must then be scrutinized ; live as you will wish to have 
 done, when standing to receive the sentence of your 
 Judge. You believe that there is a happy heaven : pur- 
 sue it with that earnestness which eternal life demands. 
 You believe that there is a miserable prison of eternal 
 punishment: watch and pray against sin, the- source 
 of misery, the cause of the creation of hell. You be- 
 lieve that your way to eternity is beset with snares : 
 watch and pray lest you enter into temptation. You be- 
 
120 FAITH TO BE EXERCISED. 
 
 iieve that you are dark in your reason, and weak in 
 your powers: listen then with all humility to him 
 whose knowledge is as boundless as yours is confined. 
 Receive implicitly whatever Jesus has revealed ; and 
 let it be enough to engage your beliefj that he has said 
 it. You believe that you are weak : let frequent daily 
 prayer implore the guidance and strength of your God 
 and Savior, to attend you through the world, down to 
 death, and up to glory. Thus live as a believer. And 
 when a few more suns have risen and set ; when a few 
 more days, and weeks, and months have rolled away 
 when you'have suffered a few more of the pains, and 
 enjoyed a few more of the pleasures of life ; your days 
 will be numbered, your time will be no longer, your 
 farewell must be taken of earthly comfort, and your 
 freedom from earthly pain will be complete. Then 
 will you see what you now believe. Death, when it 
 closes your eyes upon this world, will open them on 
 the next ; there to see all that is now unseen, to know 
 what is now unknown ; there to change faith for sight, 
 and fleeting comforts for eternal life. Blessed are those 
 servants that, when the last great change approaches, 
 are found watching ! Be not slothful, but a follower of 
 them, who through faith and patience inherit the pro- 
 mises. Persevere, is the direction of the Savior; and 
 let it animate you to think that perseverance will not 
 long be requisite. Let faith direct your thoughts to fu- 
 ture scenes. Like the watchmen on the mountains of 
 Judea, watching the first glimmerings of the moon, let 
 faith look for its returning Lord. In pleasing medita- 
 tion, let faith descry the events of other years, and tell 
 us the language of his saints in distant days. Ah l let 
 it say to us, He comes— one staf is blazing— the firma- 
 
PRAYER A PRIVILEGE. 121 
 
 ment is catching fire from its flames : He comes — the 
 lightning spreads before him — again it spreads, and 
 turns midnight darkness into awful day : He comes — 
 the last trumpet speaks him near: He comes — let us 
 go hence ! let us leave this ruined world ! this perish-' 
 ing creation ! Ah ! Savior, Shepherd, Guardian, Friend, 
 and God ! thus wilt thou come ! thus wilt thou visit 
 earth a second time ! But we — ah, we — must we wait 
 those distant years ! Ah no ! long ere that time ar- 
 rive, all who love thee here now, shall love and adore 
 thee in the dwellings of unfading life. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN LIFE A LIFE OF PRAYER 
 
 § 1. Prayer is a sacred privilege. By it the Chris- 
 tian maintains intercourse with his God and Savior. 
 Prayer brings down numberless blessings upon man. 
 It is the breath of the soul. It is the life of religion. 
 A Christian cannot live without it. A corpse maintains 
 for a while the form of man, but the spirit is fled, it 
 is destitute of life. The form of religion may be as- 
 sumed where the life is wanting. Without prayer it is 
 dead ; the breath, the vital spirit, are wanting. Religion 
 begun leads to prayer. Of every renewed sinner, it may 
 be said, as it was of Paul, Behold he prayeth. Religion 
 U 
 
-122 NATURE OF PRAYER. 
 
 Strengthens, matures, and lives by prayer; and clos&s 
 its course below with prayer, when the dying believer 
 breathes out his soul and his desires together with 
 Stephen's petition, " Lord Jesus, receive my spirit !" 
 
 §2. Consider the so/ewJuV/y of prayer. The most so- 
 lenni change that will ever take place in our situation, 
 is that made by death, when we at once leave all ihe 
 scenes of mortality for the more important scenes of 
 eternity; quit the society of our nearest relatives and 
 dearest friends to enter on the presence of Jesus and 
 of God ; and from being inhabitants of this changing 
 world, are, in the twiniding of an eye, removed to eter- 
 nal abodes of unchanging misery or bliss. This is a 
 change whose terrors the wicked must dread, and 
 whose solemnity the righteous must feel. But on earth 
 there is a change which we may justly deem next in 
 solemnity to that of death. It is the change made in 
 our circumstances by prayer; often as unthought of 
 as it is solemn. In death, we leave time for eternity; 
 the converse of mortals for the presence of God. In 
 prayer, we leave the business of time for that of eter- 
 nity, and intercourse with man for intercourse with 
 God. One minute our attention is occupied with those 
 dying crealures, who, like ourselves, are hastening to 
 the grave ; the next, our business is with the gre%t God 
 who made heaven and earth. To him, though we be- 
 hold him not, we speak, and are as really in his pre- 
 sence, as if death had dismissed us hence, and our se- 
 parated spirits stood before him. You would not trifle 
 in a dying hour; and if you feel aright the nature and 
 solemnity of prayer, you wUl no more trifle in prayer 
 than trifle in death, 
 
 Pursue this thought a little further. In prayer you 
 
NATURE OF PRAYER. 123 
 
 speak to God — that awful God whom you must sliort- 
 ly meet, with whom you must have a most solemn in- 
 terview when a few years, at most, have rolled away 
 — that God, in whose kingdom you will rejoice ten 
 thousand millions of ages hence, or whose displeasure 
 you will then be lamenting as your bitterest curse. 
 Prayer is not the mere repetition of a few words, ut- 
 tered by us when none can hear. The faintest wiiis- 
 per of real prayer passes beyond the limits of this 
 world, and goes where we cannot at present fly; it 
 enters the skies, and God hears it. 
 
 Suppose you could discern the glory and majesty 
 of him who is invisible, how would you pray then ! 
 While looking up to the throne of his glory, small 
 would seem the value of the universe in comparison 
 of his love ! Then what would earth and time appear ! 
 The sun, the moon, and stars glowing in the sky, would 
 vanish into nothing, compared with him who fixed 
 them there ! With eyes fixed on heaven, and hearts 
 sinking to the earth, overwhelmed with astonishment 
 and rapture, might we view the glory of that God 
 whom we must shortly meet. The splendors of eter- 
 nal day might delight, the rewards of blessed spirits 
 enrapture the astonished soul; but what would be the 
 feelings these excited, compared with those springing 
 from the view of his Majesty, whose presence is the 
 source of that glory and the spring of that happiness ! 
 What would be your thoughts and feelings could you 
 gain a glimpse of his Majesty ! Would you see the 
 sun? ah, no! the sun would shine unseen. Would you 
 look upon the earth? ah, no! its bustles and its tu- 
 mults, its pleasures and its sorrows, would pass unno- 
 ticed by. 
 
124 WATCH UNTO PRAYER. 
 
 Suppose then, whenever you pra)- , you could quit 
 the earth for a short time, and enter the presence of 
 this holy God, and after pouring out your desires 
 and thanksgiving before him; could return to this 
 world — how solemnly would you enter his presence ; 
 how fervently, yet with what awe, call upon his name 
 and bow at his footstool ; and with what a thoughtful 
 serious mind would you return from these interviews 
 to the business of life 1 O consider, you have now as 
 really in prayer to speak to God as you would then— 
 as really to go into his presence, though clouds, and 
 darkness, and the veil of mortality hide him from your 
 view. 
 
 Another consideration that should add solemnity to 
 prayer is, that it cannot be an indifferent thing. You 
 cannot rise up from your knees as you knelt down. 
 You have either gained a blessing or incurred guilt. 
 If offered through Jesus in sincerity, the continuance 
 of former blessings, or the bestowment of new ones, 
 is surely obtained. But if it be a formal lip-service, it 
 is a mockery of the divine Majesty. When you rise 
 from prayer, you must rise possessing the favor, or la- 
 boring under the displeasure of the Almighty. 
 
 § 3. To have such impressions as these on your mind 
 in the hour of prayer, is of no little moment ; fc>r fer- 
 vent prayer, though the most inestimable of privileges, 
 is often a difficult duty. To repeat a few lifeless words 
 is indeed an easy thing, but to pray in sincerity a very 
 different one. To push the world aside ; to place our- 
 selves as in the presence of God ; surrounded by earth- 
 ly things, to forget all that is earthly; and far from 
 heavenly scenes, to have our hearts engaged among 
 them ; to bow down as before the throne of the Most 
 
SUBJECTS OF PRAYER. 125 
 
 High ; to address an invisible God as if he were visible ; 
 to have our thoughts, our hearts, our desires engaged 
 in his service, and thus to hold communion with him ; 
 this is effectual fervent prayer, but this is no easy 
 thing. Address the blessed God as in his immediate 
 presence ; pray to him, praise him, as if he were visible ; 
 and this is communion with him; but words repeated 
 without thought, offend God and bring no blessings 
 down upon the thoughtless creature that utters them. 
 § 4. The subjects of prayer should chiefly be those 
 blessings which respect God's glory and our own eter- 
 nal welfare. The blessed Jesus has taught this in that 
 form which he gave as a pattern for the devotions of 
 his followers. The first three petitions respect the di- 
 vine glory; "Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom 
 come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." 
 Thus he teaches us that this is the subject which 
 should lie nearest to our hearts, and take the lead in 
 our prayers. He introduces only one petition for 
 earthly good, and that the most limited possible— 
 " Give us this day our daily bread." Bread is what he 
 tells us to implore, and that for but one day at a time. 
 Earthly blessings should not be a leading subject in 
 prayer. It is true you may pray for them, and for de- 
 liverance from temporal evils; for the most eminent 
 saints did so. But for every thing of this kind you 
 should pray with resignation and submission, leaving 
 the subject after all to God ; for time is short, and 
 earthly good of little importance to one who has to 
 live for ever. Besides, our own blindness should teach 
 the necessity of praying humbly and conditionally for 
 what we may deem earthly blessings. God sees more 
 11* 
 
126 
 
 SUBJECTS OF PRAYER. 
 
 than we see, and he may see that the very objects we 
 most importunately desire, might be a source of ruin 
 here, or destruction hereafter. Rachel said. Give me 
 children, or I die ! God granted her desires ; she had 
 children given her, and died through the grant. God 
 may see the objects we desire would be a bitter curse j 
 the troubles we deprecate our greatest blessing. Life, 
 that desired object, the sorest of evils ; death, that 
 dreaded foe, the best of friends. We may desire life 
 for ourselves or others, when he may see storms of 
 affliction too heavy to be borne arising, and therefore 
 send death to lay our bodies in the grave, that silent 
 abode, over which the tempests of life may pass, but 
 which they never reach ; and to conduct our spirits to 
 that world, where 
 
 '* Pains, and groans, and griefs, and fears, 
 " And death itself shall die." 
 
 For spiritual blessings you may pray without appre- 
 hension of asking amiss. For them you may go holdly 
 to the throne of grace. These are blessings which it 
 is for the glory of God to bestow, and for the good of 
 man to receive. These are of everlasting importance, 
 and everlasting worth. Whatever trifles others pray 
 for, when your heart rises to heaven in solemn devo- 
 tion, let your petitions chiefly relate to the glory of 
 God and the honor of Christ. Pray that you may un- 
 derstand clearly, and believe firmly, the invaluable 
 Gospel ; that you may discern the infinite evil of sin, 
 and comprehend the love of Christ j that you may be 
 cleansed from all sin in his atoning blood ; that with 
 full confidence you may rest your eternal all on him, 
 as on the Rock of ages; that you may obey his holy 
 
SUBJECTS OF PRAYER. 127 
 
 instructions, copy his spotless example, and trust his 
 sacred promises ; that you may live on earth as one 
 who belongs to heaven ; that swelling multitudes may 
 travel with you to that happy world ; that the divine 
 Spirit may rest on them and you ; and that at length 
 you may enter that world where all error and corrup- 
 tion being left behind, you shall continue to eternity, 
 praising, loving, admiring, and adoring Him that sits 
 upon the throne, and the Lamb that was slain, and re- 
 deemed you to God by his blood. 
 
 To see that such should be the leading subjects of 
 prayer, observe what is expressed in a few scriptural 
 petitions. 
 
 '^Hallowed be thy name." " Thy kingdom come." 
 " Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." Done 
 in usj and done by us, and done with us, and done as 
 perfectly and as cheerfully as it is done in heaven. 
 Pray that "the word of the Lord may have free course 
 and be glorified." "I pray," says the apostle, "that 
 your love may abound yet more and more;" "that 
 Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith : that ye may 
 know the love of Christ, which passes knowledge." 
 "And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; 
 and I pray God your whole spirit, and soul, and body, 
 be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ." " Now the God of peace make you per- 
 fect in every good work, to do his will." " The grace 
 of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the 
 communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all." 
 
 What important prayers are these ! The direction 
 of an ancient poet, to pray . for ???e?2^ sa^ia m cor-pore 
 sam, a sound mind in a healthful body, has been ad- 
 mired and applauded ; but how unspeakably did the 
 
128 PRAYER SINCERE AND FERVENT. 
 
 noblest advice of a heathen philosopher fallTDclow the 
 sublimity and importance of the subjects of Christian 
 prayer ! 
 
 § 5. The word of God also represents what are the 
 7'equisites of acceptable prayer. 
 
 Prayer must be sincere. If it be not the offering ot 
 the heart, ii is worse than nothing. "God is a spirit 
 and they that worship him, must worship liim in spi- 
 rit and in truth. " The bended knee, the suppliant look, 
 the devout expression, cannot please him where the 
 heart presents not the offering. No bodily services, 
 or repetition of devotional but lifeless words, is suffi- 
 cient. If that were prayer, teach a parrot to repeat 
 them, and a parrot could pray. Such were the prayers 
 of Israel of old. '• This people draw nigh unto me with 
 their mouth, and honor me with their lips, but their 
 heart is far from me." Such are the prayers of my- 
 riads now. They ask for what they do not desire ; beg 
 for holiness and follow sin, and mock God with their 
 solemn requests ; because their hearts join not sin- 
 cerely in any petition that their lips utter. 
 
 § 6. Prayer should be solemn and fervent. "The 
 effectual FERVENT prayer of a righteous man arail- 
 eth much." 
 
 In the season of devotion we address that God whom 
 we cannot love enough, and implore blessings of ever- 
 lasting importance. At such a time reverence, hu- 
 mility, unfeigned sorrow for sin, earnest desire for 
 blessings needed, and thankfulness for blessings pos- 
 sessed, cannot sufficiently be called into exercise. 
 Think of God—and what is man ! What a moment 
 his life ! What an insect himself! What an atom the 
 •world on which he dwells! Before that God what hu- 
 
PRAYER IN FAITH. 129 
 
 mility should we feel ! with what reverence adore ! 
 What deep self-abasement should we cherish, and 
 what entire abhorrence of the dreadful ingratitude and 
 hellish evil of sin committed against such a Friend ! 
 Then, too, should the immense and unbounded love 
 of God call forth gratitude the most devout. Who 
 would cross the Atlantic ocean to save a fly perisliing 
 on the other side that ocean ! Such love to a dying in 
 sect warms no human breast. But the Son of God, at 
 his Father's appointment, performed a miracle of 
 mightier love. Man, compared with him, is far more 
 worthless than a fly compared with man. Yet, given 
 by his Father, for us he left his heavenly dwelling, 
 and became obedient unto death, even the death of the 
 cross. This " love of infinite degree," this " immeasura- 
 ble grace," should ever be remembered in the hour of 
 devotion. At such a season, too, there is every thing in 
 our state to excite fervor. We speak to the God whose 
 decision Vv'iil flx our everlasting state ; whose smile 
 is life eternal, and whose frown eternal death. We 
 ask him for blessings of eternal worth. How earn- 
 estly would a wretch, condemned to die, implore the 
 mercy of his judge, if he saw that judge melting 
 with compassion over him. And can we in prayer 
 feel our state, and look forward to the solemn and de- 
 cisive scenes of an endless world, and not be earnest? 
 § 7. Prayer should be off"ered while exercising/ajV/i 
 in your Redeemer's atonement and your heavenly Fa- 
 ther's love. "What things soever ye desire when ye 
 pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have 
 them." " If two of you shall agree on earth as touch- 
 ing any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for 
 them of mv Father which is in heaven. For where 
 
irO FORGIVENESS IN PRAYER. 
 
 two or three are gathered together in my name, there 
 am I in the midst of them." 
 
 It is true, some or all of these passages have a pecu- 
 liar and special reference to faith in God, enabling the 
 apostles to perform miracles for the confirmation of 
 the Gospel ; but while this is allowed, there can be no 
 reasonable doubt of the importance of the exercise ol 
 faith, in imploring the more common blessings of his 
 providence and grace. The exercise of faiili will add 
 fervor, solemnity and reverence to your devotions. 
 You will then pray as seeing him who is invisible, and 
 wiih the confidence of a child addressing a beloved 
 and loving father. And to all Christians it is said, " If 
 any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giv- 
 eth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it 
 shall be given him. But let him ask in faith." 
 
 § 8. With acceptable prayer must be connected the 
 exercise of a benevolent and forgiving disposition. As 
 an important part of prayer is the imploring of for- 
 giveness for sins and defects, so we are solemnly as- 
 sured, that while asking forgiveness of God we must 
 exercise it to man. " When ye stand praying, forgive." 
 " If ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Fa- 
 ther will also forgive you : but if ye forgive not men 
 their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your 
 trespasses." The divine Savior also taught his friends 
 to pray, "Forgive us our debts AS we forgive our debt- 
 ors." "Forgive us our sins; FOR we also forgive 
 every one that is indebted to us." In the latter of these 
 petitions the Christian is taught, while asking forgive- 
 ness, solemnly to declare to God, that he forgives all 
 who have trespassed against him. An assertion which, 
 if uttered by a person of an unforgiving disposition, 
 
PERSEVERING PRAYER, 131 
 
 would be a lie told to God himself. In tne former pe- 
 tition, we are taught to ask for tliat measure of forgive- 
 ness which we exercise. Forgive as we forgive. It is 
 obvious, that a person using this petition who does not 
 forgive others, in fact asks God not to forgive him, 
 and thus implores a curse instead of a blessing. And 
 this the Son of God has solemnly declared the unfor= 
 giving worshipper will bring down on his own soul : 
 as he does not forgive, he siiall not be forgiven. 
 
 §9. Prayer should also be pei'severmff. "Be care- 
 ful (full of carej for nothing; but in every thing, by 
 prayer andsuppHcation, with thanksgiving, let your re- 
 quests be made known unto God." " Continuing in- 
 stant in prayer." The Lord Jesus taught perseverance 
 in prayer by two instructive parables. Luke, 18 : 1-8; 
 11 : 5-8. The blessmgs you solicit may not immediate- 
 ly be granted, yet still pray, and if they are really 
 blessings, depend upon it, God at length will hear. He 
 may see it wise and kind to exercise your faith and 
 patience, by delaying mercies he intends to bestow ; 
 still, therefore, pray. Let not delay or discouragements 
 damp your earnestness. "Wait on the Lord and be of 
 good courage, and he will strengthen thine heart." 
 
 § 10. Prayer should be constant. " Pray without 
 ceasing. In every thing give thanks." " Watch ye, 
 therefore, and pray always." At every suitable oppor- 
 tunity, on every stated season, and at other limes, 
 having the heart kept in a praying frame. This may 
 be called praying always, praying without ceasiug, in 
 the same way as the sacrifice that was regularly offer- 
 ed every morning and evening in the teniplc, was 
 called the perpetual sacrifice. Those prayers which 
 are only offered by fits and starts, proceed not from a 
 
132 PRAYER CONSTANT. 
 
 heart reconciled to God. When any alarming danger 
 threatens to overwhelm them, many, who never other- 
 wise think of prayer, profess to pray. The profligate, 
 or the man of the world, languishing out what he 
 thinks his last hours, begins to pray ; but let health 
 return, and the profligate forgets his promises, his de- 
 votions, and his vows. Can such prayers be heard in 
 heaven? Prayer should be a stated employment of 
 part of every day. How often these seasons should be 
 appointed, must partly depend upon the situation and 
 circumstances in which persons are placed. The 
 Psalmist appears to have had seven such stated sea- 
 sons daily ; Daniel had three of them. Many followers 
 of Jesus Christ should not have less; but none that 
 wish to walk with God should have less than two ; one 
 in the morning, and the other in the evening, of every 
 day. To begin the day with God is unspeakably im- 
 portant. Every night we are preserved by his care ; 
 his eye, which never sleeps, watches over us, while 
 we are insensible to all that may surround us. This 
 goodness calls for every morning's praise. The day, 
 with its snares and avocations, is then before us, and 
 his help is needed to enable us that day to act the 
 Christian's part, and his grace to prepare us for an 
 eternal day above. Prayer should be the first employ- 
 ment ; because, when just risen from repose, the mind 
 is not distracted with perplexities and cares, as it is 
 when it has been occupied for a while with the cares 
 of the day. Let the first half hour, if possible the first 
 hour of the day, be consecrated to reading the Scrip- 
 tures, meditation, and prayer ; and this will prepare 
 you for the following employments of the day ; will 
 help you to walk with God, and strengthen you to 
 
PRAYER CONSTANT. 133 
 
 meet the temptations or troubles that may beset your 
 path. Of the pious Colonel Gardiner, who is stated to 
 have attained such fervehcy in prayer as few have 
 equalled, and whose life was rendered eminently hap- 
 py by religion, it is recorded tliat he devoted two 
 hours to religious exercises every morning. If business 
 called for his attention by four o'clock, he would thus 
 be engaged, at latest, by two. The evening is also an 
 equally suitable time for devotion. We have then for 
 a little while done with the cares of the day ; possibly 
 have done with them for ever. We have enjoyed the 
 mercies of God through another day. The night is at 
 hand ; possibly the night of death. How important at 
 such a season is thanksfjjiving for the mercies which 
 the departed day has brought ! and prayer for pardon 
 of its faults, for protection through the coming night, 
 and for grace to prepare the soul for the evening of 
 life, the night of death, and the bright morning of 
 eternity. Time taken from prayer, is time misspent in- 
 deed. At least fix the morning and evening as stated 
 seasons for devotion, and let nothing tempt you to 
 neglect the solemn exercise. If neglected once, ano- 
 ther and another excuse will arise for neglecting it 
 again and again. A chain with one link broken, no 
 longer binds ; and a habit of duty once broken, may 
 soon cease to be a habit. You cannot reasonably ex- 
 pect any spiritual blessing on a day begun without 
 prayer. It will probably be a day of sin; it must, if 
 you have proper feeling, be a day of uneasiness. Nor 
 would you like to die some night, when you had lain 
 down to sleep without communing with your God. 
 O would you pray successfully, pray statedly. Be- 
 12 
 
131 MEDITATION ASSISTS PRAYER. 
 
 sides, such stated seasons for prayer cherish that frame 
 of mind which is adapted to prayer; and you will find 
 many intervals from bLi?iiieas^ and many circumstances 
 in which you may and will lift up your heart unto God. 
 § 11. It may assist you in offering your private ad- 
 dresses to God, to remember that every thing like a 
 solicitous attention to language, or matter, is then ut- 
 terly needless — God, who sees your heart, knows your 
 meaning, and the broken language of an humble heart 
 is acceptable to him; while studied eloquence in prayer 
 is contemptible indeed. Pray to him as your heavenly 
 Father; speak to him from your heart, and God will 
 hear. If any rnle is necessary to direct you how thus 
 lo pour out your desires before God, it is comprised in 
 one word — meditation. Think of the greatness and ma- 
 jesty of God, and you will learn how to praise him. 
 Think of his goodness, and you will learn to bless him. 
 Meditate on your obligations to him; the numerous 
 mercies you enjoy, the needful gifts of Providence, and 
 the means of grace, the word of life, the great Redeem- 
 er, and the hope of glory ; and you will surely know 
 how to thank him. Review your life, reflect on your 
 sins and ingratitude, and you will leajrn how to colifess 
 your offences to him. Meditate on your wants, your 
 weakness, and imperfections, the love of Christ, the 
 value of your soul and the nearness of eternity, and 
 this will teach you how to pray for everlasting bless- 
 ings. Look by faith into the eternal world, listen to 
 your Redeemer's promises, and think of being forever 
 with him in a better state, and you will not need the 
 language of others to express your earnest desires to 
 be his humble follower here, and his glorified disciple 
 there. A child knows how to ask favors from an affec- 
 
PRAYER IN JESUS'S NAME. 135 
 
 tionate parent, and needs no form composed by others ; 
 and shall not a child of God acquire the same facility 
 in speaking to his heavenly Father? What if, wiien 
 first starting in the Christian course, he found a devout 
 form adapted to cherish the flame of devotion, yet, 
 when accustomed lo the worship of the closet, habi- 
 tuated to communion with God, should lie not indulge 
 the spirit of a child, who knows that even his broken 
 accents are welcome to his Father's ear? 
 
 § 12. There is one requisite more of essential im- 
 portance to successful and acceptable prayer — that it 
 be offered in the Savior's name. " Whatsoever ye shall 
 ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. At 
 that day ye shall ask in my name. Ask, and ye shall 
 receive, that your joy may be full." To ask a favor in 
 another's name, is to present our petition, relying for 
 success upon the influence of the friend whose name 
 we are permitted lo use. 
 
 Jesus Christ is in heaven, ever living to intercede 
 for his friends as their advocate there. And when they 
 pray in his name, they ask as his friends, relying on 
 his intercession, and expecting success on his account. 
 His sufferings, his merits, and his intercession, are the 
 ground of their acceptance. In themselves there is no- 
 thing that can add weight to their prayers; but going 
 in his name, the Father hears and blesses them for 
 Jesus's sake. Ever pray in the name of Jesus. 
 
 § 13. The observations already made, have been de- 
 signed principally in reference to private devotion : 
 but, as the house of God is the beloved spot to which 
 religion often leads its friends, a remark may be intro- 
 duced on public devotion. Be as solicitous to realize 
 the presence of Gcd, when surrounded by a crowd of 
 
136 PUBLIC PRAYER. 
 
 fellow-worsliippers, as when no eye but that of God is 
 fixed upon you. It is to be apprehended that multi- 
 tudes profess to join in prayer who never pray. Their 
 vacant looks, their wandering eyes, staring around to 
 see who is present, or to mark the dress of those they 
 know ; their heads turned at every motion of the door, 
 to observe who is entering, but too plainly show them 
 guilty of a profanation of sacred time, and of a dread- 
 ful mockery of God. It need scarcely be said, that you 
 pray only when you join in the petitions offered, when 
 your heart accompanies them. Alas, with how many 
 is the case widely different from this ! They appear to 
 listen to the prayer as they listen to the sermon, with- 
 out attempting to pray with the speaker ; as if he alone 
 were to pray for them, and they had nothmg to ask 
 for themselves, or as if he were speaking to them in- 
 stead of addressing God. But this is not devotion; 
 though only hearers when the preacher addresses 
 them, if they expect any benefit when he speaks to 
 God, they must be humble worshippers, pouring out 
 the desires and confessions of their hearts before the 
 throne of God. In all devotion, pray as on the borders 
 of eternity. Closing the eyes during the time of public 
 prayer, will frequently assist a worshipper in main- 
 taining that seriousness and abstraction from the world 
 which prayer demands ; and when it is found to do 
 this, it becomes an incumbent duty. 
 
 § 14. Connected with prayer is praise. Many of the 
 observations made already respecting prayer, apply 
 equally to this sacred, and to a grateful heart delight- 
 ful, part of divine worship. The wants of man call for 
 prayer ; the goodness of God demands praise. Many 
 Christians, who pray much, are comparatively forget- 
 
PRAISE AND SINGING. 137 
 
 fill of praise. This springs from looking at Uieir wants 
 more tiian at their mercies, or from a want of grateful 
 feelings for the blessings with which tlieir years are 
 crowned. The sacred Scriptures, which contain so 
 many directions respecting prayer, also abound with 
 admonitions respecting praise. A considerable portion 
 of the book of Psalms is praise ; and exhortations are 
 frequently given, to present this grateful offering to 
 the Most High : " Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of 
 his, and give thanks at tiie remembrance of his holi- 
 ness." "Praise is comely for the upright." "Offer un- 
 to God thanksgiving." "In every thing give iha»»ks : 
 for iliis is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning 
 you." 
 
 § 15. In many congregations, singing constitutes a 
 considerable part of public worship. This sacred ex- 
 ercise should ever be conducted in the spirit of hum- 
 ble devotion. It is frequently an address to God, and 
 always connected with divine subjects. Perhaps, in 
 few ways is God more insulted than by hymns suvg 
 without devotion. Much sin is thus committed. Many 
 sing without considering whom they address, or what 
 they utter. Sometimes the congregation engages their 
 attention, and their eyes are wandering f om place to 
 place. At other times the tune attracts all their no- 
 lice ; and God and Jesus, and life or death eternal, and 
 all the solemn truths the hymn on their lips may con- 
 tain, are forgotten, while the eye is fixed, perhaps, on 
 a stranger entering the door, or the ear is engaged in 
 observins the harmony of a fleeting sound. 0, watch 
 against this common sin, into which thoughtless wor- 
 shippers so often fall ! God of old complained of some 
 12* 
 
138 VALUE OF PRAYER. 
 
 who drew nigh to him with their lips, and honored 
 him with their mouths, but their heart was far from 
 him. In singing hymns descriptive of the feelings of 
 the heart, it is needful to observe how far the feelings 
 of our own hearts accord with the hymn; lest we 
 should be guilty of uttering any thing approaching the 
 nature of a solemn falsehood in the presence of the 
 Most High. Keep in view the apostle's words, " I will 
 sing with the spirit and with the understanding." 
 
 § 16. Your present welfare and eternal happiness 
 greatly depend on a strict attention to prayer. Its va- 
 lue will never be fully known till that day when an 
 end shall be put to every hope that is not eternal. 
 Then, when the sepulchers of brass and marble melt 
 away, the pyramids of brick and stone moulder back 
 to dust ; when humble cottages and gorgeous palaces, 
 little villages and mighty cities, fruitful plains and 
 barren deserts, lowly valleys and lofty mountains, and 
 the world itself shall be weltering in final flames ; then, 
 when the solemnities of eternal judgment commence, 
 proceed, conclude, and all have their unchangeable 
 abodes — then, and not till then, will the value of de- 
 vout intercourse with God be fully known. O keep 
 those scenes in view! and no earthly pleasure, no 
 earthly care, will lead you to neglect communion with 
 your heavenly Father. 
 
 § 17. To increase your sense of its value, observe 
 the importance attached to prayer by the example 
 and in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. His life be- 
 low was a life of devotion ; and events of peculiar im- 
 portance were accompanied with a peculiar attention 
 to prayer. When the Holy Jesus was baptized, he pray- 
 ed. Before he chose his twelve apostles, he went out 
 
VALUE OF PRAYER. 139 
 
 into a mountain to pray. Before his transfiguration, 
 he took James, and John, and Peter apart into a high 
 mountain, for the same sacred exercise. When he 
 stood by the grave of Lazarus, he lifted up his eyes to 
 heaven, and thanked his Father for hearing him. 
 When certain Gentiles desired to see him, after speak- 
 ing of the effect of his sufferings, he prayed, " Father, 
 glorify thy name." After working many miracles, on 
 one occasion he rose in the morning a great while be- 
 fore day, and went into a solitary place and prayed. 
 At- another time, when he had healed great multitudes, 
 he whhdrew into the wilderness and prayed. When 
 he had fed five thousand with five loaves and two 
 fishes, he sent away the multitude, and went up into 
 a mountain apart to pray ; and when the evening was 
 come, he was there alone. When he foresaw Peter's 
 temptation, he prayed for him that his faith should 
 not fail. He closed the solemnities of his last supper 
 with an affecting prayer. For those who crucified him 
 he prayed, " Father, forgive them ; for they know not 
 what they do." And on the cross, before he expired, 
 he addressed God, saying, " Father, into thy hands I 
 €ommend my spirit." As thus, on every solemn occa- 
 sion, prayer expressed the feelings of his heart, so he 
 'persevered in prayer. When he went out into a moun- 
 tain to pray, before he chose the twelve, he continued 
 all night in prayer to God. And after feeding the 
 multitude with a few loaves, and retiring for praye4' to 
 a lonely mountain, he continued there from evening 
 almost till the following morning dawned. Thus did 
 he converse with his heavenly Father. Amidst the 
 stillness of midnight his prayers ascended to heaven. 
 Though he had no inward corruptions to harass hir 
 
140 PRAYER RECOMMENDED BY 
 
 holy soul, his exemplary devotion manifested his love 
 to prayer, and proclaims to his followers, that prayer 
 should be their pleasure and their strength. 
 
 While such was the conduct of the holy Savior, 
 what should be that of the unworthy disciple ? Surely, 
 if you follow Jesus, prayer should be the pleasure of 
 every day ; and when any circumstance occurs of 
 more than usual moment, let it be attended with more 
 than usual prayer. See the Savior on a lonely moun- 
 tain employing the whole night in prayer, or rising 
 for that sacred exercise before the first glimmering of 
 the dawn. See this, and learn of him. Leave the bed 
 of sloth to commune with your God. And when call- 
 ed to engage in duties of peculiar weight, then, like 
 the Lord, watch unto prayer. Amidst the silence of 
 midnight let your prayers and your praises be ascend- 
 ing to God. 
 
 § 18. The value of prayer, and the strongest encou- 
 ragement for it, appears in the numerous promises 
 made to it, with vvliich the Scriptures abound. "They 
 that seek the Lord shall not want any good." " The 
 eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears 
 are open unto their cry." " Call upon me in the day 
 of trouble, and I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glo- 
 rify me." "The Lord is nigh unto all them that call 
 upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.^^He will 
 fulfill the desire of them that fear him ; he also uill 
 hear their cry, and will save them." "Ask, and it shall 
 be given you ; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it 
 shall be opened unto you : for every one that asketh 
 receiveth ; and he that seeketh findeth ; and to him 
 that knocketh, it shall be opened. If ye, being evil, 
 
THE savior's example. 141 
 
 Know how to give good gifts unto your children, how 
 much more shall your Father which is in heaven give 
 good things to them that ask him ?" " If ye shall ask 
 any thing in my name, I will do it." " If ye abide in 
 me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye 
 will, and it shall be done unto you." 
 
 These are a few of the numerous promises made to 
 prayer. How precious are the blessings promised ! If 
 solid holiness and real peace in life, if comfort or tri- 
 umph in death, and the love of God through a whole 
 eternity, are important to you, then is prayer unspeak- 
 ably important ; for all the grace that makes the death- 
 less soul a partaker of these blessings, is promised in 
 answer to sincere, humble, fervent prayer ; and it is 
 given. All who truly pray obtain these blessings, and 
 none possess them who live a prayerless life. 
 
 § 19. The blessings that have been granted to prayer 
 illustrate its importance and its worth. The records 
 of religious history abundantly prove that God is the 
 hearer of prayer ; and this not only on subjects of great 
 magnitude, but on those of real, though of less mo- 
 ment. Abraham prayed for Sodom ; and if ten righte- 
 ous persons could have been found in it, God would 
 have spared that guilty city. Abraham's servant, sent 
 to obtain a suitable wife for Isaac, prayed to God for 
 direction, and was guided to the lovely Rebecca. Ja- 
 cob, alarmed at Esau's approach, in his distress prayed 
 to God, and prevailed, and Esau became his friend. 
 Moses prayed that the plagues might be removed from 
 Egypt, and they were removed ; again and again he 
 implored mercy for stubborn and backsliding Israel, 
 and Israel was spared, even when God had proposed 
 to exterminate the guilty race. Hannah, insulted by a 
 
144 PRAYER IN' ADVERSI'IT. 
 
 great love to you, that he will grant you what you ask 
 in my name. But though this is the case, still the Sa- 
 vior pleads as the advocate of his friends. '• We have 
 an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righte- 
 ous." "Seeing then that we have a great High Priest, 
 that is passed into the heavens. Jesus the Son of God, 
 let us hold fast our profession. Let us come boldly 
 unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, 
 and find grace to help in time of need." " Through 
 him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Fa- 
 ther." 
 
 What strong encouragement for prayer ! The eter- 
 nal Father willing to hear our requests, the Son of 
 God, by his intercession, adding weight to every de- 
 vout petition, and efficacy to every suitable desire ; to 
 all this the aids of the divine Spirit are added. How 
 precious is prayer thus sanctioned ! How wonderful 
 the love of God that gives us such encouragement ! 
 
 § 22. You may discern the worth of devotion by 
 glancing at its happy effects upon the truly devout. 
 True devotion trains the soul for heaven ; it raises the 
 Christian's views and desires above the groveling ob- 
 jects of a dying world, and endows the humble wor- 
 shiper with steady fortitude to press onward to hea- 
 ven, though ten thousand dangers should beset the 
 way. In prayer, 
 
 **His hand the Christian fastens on the skies, 
 "And bids earth roll, nor feels her idle whirl." 
 
 Prayer is also his solace in the day of adversity. It 
 is a relief to the really piou5, to tell their sorrows to 
 their compassionate God, and resign themselves to hia 
 
PRAYER IN PROSPERITY. 145 
 
 disposal, saying, "Tlie Lord gave, and the Lord hath 
 taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord." " The 
 cup whicli my Father hath given me, shall I not drink 
 it ?" They cannot lose their chief support, whose prin- 
 cipal happiness springs from God as their Father, Je- 
 sus as their Savior and Intercessor, and immortality as 
 their future portion. Let the world deprive me, may 
 be the language of the Christian, of all its blessings 
 and satisfactions; let it take from me relatives and 
 friends; let it load me with ignominy and suffering, or 
 deprive me of liberty: these things it may do, but it 
 cannot take from me the comforts of prayer; it cannot 
 take away death, that shall dismiss me ere long to no- 
 bler worship and belter enjoyments above. 
 
 Equally is prayer the Christian's safeguard in 
 prosperity. When earthly comforts and sensible de- 
 lights surround us, we are tempted to forget that the 
 time for these things will soon be no longer. A hedge 
 of roses, or of sweet briers, may hide the loveliest 
 prospects from our view; so do the concerns and de- 
 lights of life hide the sweet regions of immortality. 
 But when we retire from the world, the things un- 
 seen again appear before our souls. Then we see the 
 vanity of all below the sun ; see that prosperity is but 
 a snare that would tempt us to destruction. Then we 
 may learn to pray— save us from the snares we 
 dread ! Save us from a world as deceitful as it is at- 
 tractive ! and let not its momentary shadows of happi- 
 ness deprive us of the everlasting substance ! Blessed 
 Jesus ! however allured, let us not love a world that 
 murdered thee ! nor seek our portion where thou wast 
 but a pilgrim and a stranger ! 
 
 13 
 
146 NEGLECTING PRAYER. 
 
 ^ Thus, Whatever be your lot, devotion will lessen its 
 evils, and add to its comforts. The more spiritual and 
 fervent it is, the more gladness will it diffuse through 
 the heart. " Even the tears of penitential sorrow and 
 contrition, or of sympathy and benevolence, into 
 which a devout person may sometimes be melted, 
 have a sweetness in them not to be expressed, and are 
 more to t^e desired than the greatest joys of the irre- 
 ligious." 
 
 § 23. Such being the value and importance of prayer, 
 it is not strange that the Christian should at times be 
 tempted to neglect this sacred duty ; that Satan should 
 labor hard to disturb the soul in its best moments, and 
 to prevent its obtaining the blessing. Sometimes he 
 suggests : "Such prayers as yours are worse than no- 
 thing : you had better not pray at all, than pray as 
 you do." Ah, look on this temptation as one that pro- 
 ceeds from your great enemy. If you ever yield to it, 
 you will soon perceive it answers his designs; your 
 soul will grow more dead, prayer still more a burden. 
 Instead of your state mending by this neglect, it will 
 grow >yorse ; ypur heart less and less disposed for 
 prayer, and the frame of your mind less and less suit- 
 ed to it. Pray, then, and continue instant in prayer. 
 Pray, though the world with its cares would hinder 
 you. Pray, though the devil with a host of tempta- 
 tions would prevent you. Still pray, and God will 
 hear. And when unable to pray as you would, still 
 pray as you can ; an4 pray for help to pray better. 
 
 Pursue this course,; cleave to the great Intercessor; 
 and then, in a little while, in a brighter world, prayer 
 shall be changed for endless praise ; 
 
THE CHRISTIAN A PILGRIM. 
 
 "While sweet remembrance calls to mind 
 
 " The scenes of mortal care ; 
 *» When God, your God, for ever kind, 
 
 " Was present to your PKAYER." 
 
 147 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 ^HE CHRISTIAN A PILGRIM UPON EARTH, AND 
 A MEMBER OF THE FAMILY OF GOD. 
 
 § 1. An important and pleasing view of the Chris- 
 tian's state and character is that of a traveler to a bet- 
 ter world. 
 
 " Turn, pilgrim, turn, thy cares forego, 
 
 " All earth-born care is wrong; 
 " Man wants but little here below, 
 
 " Nor wants that littje long." 
 
 The Scriptures describe life as a pilgrimage, and the 
 child of God as a traveler to a lasting home. " I am a 
 stranger with thee, and a sojourner, as all my fathers 
 were." "When a few years are come, then I shall go 
 the way whence I shall not return." The aged pa- 
 triarch, Jacob, said, " The days of the years of my pil- 
 grimage are a hundred and thirty years ; few and evil 
 have the days of the years of my life been." Of him, 
 and those who lived much longer than he, it is said, 
 that they " confessed that they were strangers and pil- 
 grims on the earth ;" but they " desired a better country, 
 
148 REFLECTIONS. 
 
 that is, a heavenly : wherefore God is not ashamed to 
 be called their God ; for he hath prepared for them 
 a city." 
 
 Cherish the views these holy men professed. You, 
 if a Christian indeed, are but a traveler here. Infancy, 
 childhood, youth, manhood, and age, succeed each 
 other so rapidly, that many scarcely reflect they are 
 in one, before tliey find tliemselves advanced to ano- 
 ther. A poor man, who had spent more llian seventy 
 years on earth, once observed to me, that his time 
 seemed but like two or three weeks. Yes, life is a pil- 
 grimage, and short is the passage from the cradle to 
 the tomb : some find it a longer, some a shorter, but all 
 a short and hasty journey. It is hasty, though its haste 
 be unperceived. A traveler in a packet, driven by steam 
 and tide down the smooth surface of a river, may in- 
 dulge the illusion that all he sees on shore, the trees, 
 the spires, the villages are in rapid motion, hurrying 
 away ; but it is he who moves, and all on shore is stilF. 
 Thus, even when least sensible of the speed with which 
 you go, are you advancing with sure and rapid haste 
 to the eternal world. Think when you lie down, think 
 when you rise up, think when you walk, and think 
 when you rest, I am but a traveler here. Amid the 
 cares of life, remember these are but the cares of a 
 journey ; amid iis pleasures, these are but the comforts 
 of an inn. This world is not my world ; for I am but a 
 traveler here. 
 
 § 2. Think of those who are jrone. The great and 
 noble, who once turned the world upside down— whnt 
 are they ? where are they now ? Those who abounded 
 in riches, or revelled in pleasures— where are they? 
 and what is theirs? The moment that they breathed 
 
REFLECTIONS. 149 
 
 their last, riches, pleasures, pomps, and honors va- 
 nished all. "Those lying vanities of life, that ever 
 tempting, ever-cheating train"— what are they to those 
 whose journey to eternity is finished? Their life is 
 ended ; that valued life is valued no longer. What one 
 day they would not have resigned for the world, the 
 next is snatched from them, and they are consigned 
 over to the grave. What is then to them the value of 
 all they once most loved and prized? It is but a mo- 
 ment since they were warm with life, gay with hopes 
 and pleasures, or perplexed with plans and cares ; and 
 now all these are finished for ever. 
 
 § 3. Think of the living; look at the multitudes that 
 crowd a populous city, and reflect how soon all will 
 have left this world, and be for ever fixed in another. 
 All their business brought to an eternal close. All 
 their transient griefs and joys eternally ended. No 
 longer traversing the streets, hurried with cares, and 
 distracted with business ; no longer concerned about 
 the varying changes and commotions of the world, 
 about the nations that rise or that fall ; but silent in 
 the dust. Think, that could you revisit those now 
 crowded streets when one hundred years are passed, 
 if no new generation arose, you would find them en- 
 tirely deserted ; not a single passenger in them, nor an 
 inhabitant in the houses; but the streets, where a blade 
 of grass is never seen, then covered with it ; the houses 
 falling into ruin ; many of them already in the dust; 
 thebirdsof the desert building their nests in the de- 
 serted rooms, and foxes, half hid with grass and net- 
 tles, peeping through the shattered windows. The 
 houses of divine worship all forsaken ; every preacher 
 13* 
 
^^ THE WORLD TRANSIENT. 
 
 gone from his pulpit ; every crowded congregation 
 vanished and forgotten in Mie dust; and all as t.ilent as 
 the midst of an Arabian desert, or as tlie chambers of 
 the grave. 0, act as a stranger and pilgrim while in 
 so vain a world ! 
 
 § 4. Or view the subject, by indulging pensive re- 
 flection on the transient nature of all the most endeared 
 earthly lies. Think with yourself, Could I rise from 
 the tomb when the year two thousand comes, and look 
 around on the world I shall then have so long forsaken, 
 what a scene of desolation would it present to me ! 
 Not those only whom I saw go before me, but all I left 
 would have gone to eternity. Could I approach their 
 now cheerful hearths, I should miss them there; walk 
 iheir gardens or their fields, I should not find tbem 
 there ; go to their tombs, and even there would not 
 one v.retched trace be found, nor even a stone remain, 
 to tell that they had ever been. 
 ^ Look forward a little further to the period, when all 
 the noise, and tumult, and business of this world shall 
 have closed for ever. How has it vanished ! How have 
 its short-lived multitudes departed! Their business 
 over, their little pleasures finished, their hasiy sorrows 
 ended ; their doom pronounced, their endless uwelling 
 fixed, and their once gay, distracting, perplexing world 
 lost! vanished! gone for ever! Let its admirers tell 
 us of honors and fame, that \\ ill last as long as the sun 
 sJiall shine or the world endure. Alas, contemptible 
 honors ! that will endure for so brief a span ! The sun 
 is but a lamp that liglits our pathway to an endless 
 world. The earth is but the road, prepared for pil- 
 grims to travel, till, in the eternal abodes of grief or 
 bliss, they reach an endless home. It is but as a mo- 
 
SOLEiMNtTY OF ETERNITY. 151 
 
 ment, as an inch of time, as the darting of an arrow 
 the falling of a star, the twinkling of an eye, or the 
 glancing of a thought, before all which you now be- 
 hold shall pass away from you as a dream when one 
 awaketh, and give place to those eternal scenes. Then 
 farewell earth, farewell sun, moon, and stars; farewell 
 a busy or an idle, a sad or a jdeastirable world ! but, 
 no farewells are known beyond the grave. To the 
 scenes which will then open upon you, you will never 
 bid adieu. Start forward, then, my ftllow-pilgrim, 
 start forward, in your thoughts, to everlasting scenes, 
 and roam among the immeasurable ages tha°t lie be- 
 yond the judgment-day. How the world recedes as 
 you advance. It sinks to a speck— to a mote— to no- 
 thing. How six thousand years, or six thousand ages, 
 dwindle as you sail down the tide of eternity; they 
 sink to an hour— to a moment— to the twinkling of an 
 eye— to nothingness itself! 0, remember that on that 
 awful tide you must shortly sail, when the world is 
 iiotliing lo you. Strive to love it no more than you 
 will do, when, myriads of ages after its destruction, you 
 look back upon it. Value its honors as you will value 
 thpm then, and prize its pleasures as then you will 
 prize them ; and let the prospect of those amazing 
 scenes strike deeper on your heart the salutary thought 
 — I am but a traveler here. 
 
 § 5. Above all, let the full prospect of eternity deepen 
 the impression : let but the solemn idea of eternity 
 dwell in your mind, and life must then appear a jour- 
 ney or a dream. '' Suppose," says a writer of the se- 
 venteenth century,* " that the vast ocean were distilled 
 
 * Bates. 
 
152 SOLEMNITY OF ETERNITY. 
 
 drop by drop, but so slowly, that a thousand years 
 should pass between every drop, how many millions 
 of years would be required to empty it! Suppose that 
 this great world, in its full compass, from one pole to 
 another, and from the top of the firmament to the bot- 
 tom, were to be filled with the smallest sand, but, so 
 slowly, that every thousand years only a single grain 
 should be added, how many millions would pass away 
 before it were filled ! Jf the immense superficies of the 
 heavens, wherein are innumerable stars, were to be 
 filled with figures of numbers, and every figure signi- 
 fied a million, what created mind could tell their num- 
 ber, much less their value ! Having these thoughts, I 
 reply, the sea will be emptied drop by drop, the uni- 
 verse filled grain by grain, the numbers written in the 
 heavens will come to an end; and how much of eter- 
 nity is spent? Nothing; for infinitely more remains." 
 O, keep your eyes fixed on that eternity! look not 
 at the things which are seen, but at things which are 
 not seen ; " for the things which are seen are tempo- 
 ral, but the things which are not seen are eternal." 
 Life is a vapor, a point, a nothing ; eternity is all. Yet 
 a little while, and the golden hours of life will be gone ; 
 the last sands in the glass of time will have run out; 
 the sun will have passed over the dial; the arrow will 
 be flown ; the vapor will be vanished, and time will 
 be no longer: but vast, boundless, joyful or dreadful 
 eternity knows no limits, and fears or hopes no end. 
 How can you much rejoice in pleasures that are dying 
 while you enjoy them! or sorrow much at distresses 
 that are vanishing while you feel them ! Loosen, then, 
 your heart from the earth : it is but a world of dreams 
 and shadows, through which you journey to a vrorld 
 
SOLEMNITY OP ETERNITY. 153 
 
 of solemn and eternal realities. Let the world talk of 
 their pleasures, and be as cheerful as their condition 
 should render them wretched; but, do you think of 
 ending time and unending eternity. ETERNITY! 
 blessed or dreadful word! whose meaning no num- 
 bers can unfold, no ages can declare; into whose 
 depths no eye but that of God has pierced ; a span 
 whose length no heart has ever comprehended. O, 
 look at tliat eternity more ! So near the world where 
 all is solemn, sliould yon trifle? So near the state 
 where all is endless, can you prize what is perishing? 
 At the gate of eternity, on the threshold of an endless 
 world, or, at most, with but a few steps before you 
 must step into it, are the concerns of a fleeting pilgrim- 
 age of much importance? Are you so near doing 
 what you must do for ever; so near rejoicing, where 
 you must rejoice for ever, or mourning, where you 
 must mourn for ever; and should not this make a 
 transitory life and a perishing world little things in- 
 deed? Live then, O live as a traveler to eternity; a 
 pilgrim here, pressing to a happy, endless home ! 
 
 § 6. While this is your condition, if a Christian in- 
 deed, even here you belong to a better vorkl You are 
 a stranger; but, you have a settled dwelling-place. 
 You are a pilgrim; but you have a rest.—There is a 
 family to which you belong; a family in that country 
 ''' where pilgrims roam no more." That family is the 
 family of God, and that home is heaven. "You are no 
 more a stranger and foreigner, but a fellow-citizen 
 with the saints, and of the household of God " You 
 bf long to Christ, " of whom //^e uhole family in heaven 
 awr/er/r/Ais named." 
 It is true, the splendors of eternal day do not yet 
 
152 SOLEMNITY OF ETERNITY. 
 
 drop by drop, but so slowly, that a thousand years 
 should pass between every drop, how many millions 
 of years would be required to empty it ! Suppose that 
 this great world, in its full compass, from one pole to 
 another, and from the top of the firmament to the bot- 
 tom, were to be filled with the smallest sand, but, so 
 slowly, that every thousand years only a single grain 
 should be added, how many millions would pass away 
 before it were filled ! Jf the immense superficies of the 
 heavens, wherein are innumerable stars, were to be 
 filled with figures of numbers, and every figure signi- 
 fied a million, what created mind could tell their num- 
 ber, much less their value ! Having these thoughts, I 
 reply, the sea will be emptied drop by drop, the uni- 
 verse filled grain by grain, the numbers written in the 
 heavens will come to an end; and how much of eter- 
 nity is spent? Nothing; for infinitely more remains." 
 O, keep your eyes fixed on that eternity! look not 
 at the things which are seen, but at things which are 
 not seen; "for the things which are seen are tempo- 
 ral, but the things which are not seen are eternal." 
 Life is a vapor, a point, a nothing ; eternity is all. Yet 
 a little while, and the golden hours of life will be gone ; 
 the last sands in the glass of time will have run out; 
 the sun will have passed over the dial; the arrow will 
 be flown; the vapor will be vanished, and time will 
 be no longer: but vast, boundless, joyful or dreadful 
 eternity knows no limits, and fears or hopes no end. 
 How can you much rejoice in pleasures that are dying 
 while you enjoy them! or sorrow much at distresses 
 that are vanishing while you feel them ! Loosen, then, 
 your heart from the earth : it is but a world of dreams 
 and shadows, through which you journey to a vrorld 
 
SOLEMNITY OF ETERNITY. 153 
 
 of solemn and eternal realities. Let the world talk of 
 their pleasures, and be as cheerful as their condition 
 should render them wretched; but, do you think of 
 ending time and unending eternity. ETERNITY! 
 blessed or dreadful word! whose meaning no num- 
 bers can unfold, no ages can declare; into whose 
 depths no eye but that of God has pierced ; a span 
 whose length no heart has ever comprehended. O 
 look at that eternity more ! So near the world where 
 all is solemn, sliould yon trifle? So near the state 
 where all is endless, can you prize what is perishing -2 
 At the gate of eternity, on the thresliold of an endless 
 world, or, at most, with but a few steps before you 
 must step into it, are the concerns of a fleeting pilgrim- 
 age of much importance? Are you so near doing 
 what you must do for ever; so near rejoicing, where 
 you must rejoice for ever, or mourning, where you 
 must mourn for ever; and should not this make a 
 transitory life and a perishing world little things in* 
 deed? Live then, live as a traveler to eternity a 
 pilgrim here, pressing to a happy, endless home ! 
 
 § 6. While this is your condition, if a Christian in- 
 deed, even here you belonn^ to a better world. You are 
 a stranger; but, you have a settled dwelling-place 
 \ ou are a pilgrim ; but you have a rest.—There is a 
 family to which you belong; a family in that country 
 • where pilgnms roam no more." That family is the 
 family of God, and that home is heaven. "You are no 
 more a stranger and foreigner, but a fellow-citizen 
 with the saints, and of the household of God » You 
 belong to Christ, "of whom ///. ulwle family in heaven 
 a mf earth is named." 
 It is true, the splendors of eternal day do not yet 
 
154 THE CHRISTIAN A MEMBER 
 
 blaze upon your dazzled eye; nor do the first-born 
 sons of light, arrayed in immortal youth and glory, 
 yet visibly walk or commune with you: it is true, the 
 gladness that is mingled with no alloy does not yet 
 overflow your soul ; nor have your eyes yet seen the 
 King, the Lord of hosts. But soon you shall join the 
 disciples of Jesus, whqhav6 passed the stream of 
 death, and rest from every labor. They shine as the 
 sun in the kingdom of their Father. Jesus, their Shep- 
 herd, who was "their boast through time, is their bliss 
 through eternity." Happy conquerors ! But the disci- 
 ples of Jesus below belong to the same family. One 
 part is not dearer to God than the other. The ^^ whole 
 family in heaven and earth" has the same parent, and 
 is loved with the same love. The whole family has but 
 one Shepherd, and has the same interest in his over- 
 flowing kindness and tender care. The same hand pro- 
 tects them all.' The same blood redeemed them all. 
 The same love has crowned, or is about to crown 
 them all. The whole family has 'but one Father, one 
 Savior, one Sanctifier, and one heaven. The same pri- 
 vileges belong to all ; the same eternal love is fixed on 
 all. The same Spirit inhabits all, and the same heaven 
 is the home of all. Part are landed on 'the heavenly 
 shore ; the gales of death are dfiving others into thb 
 harbor; and to it all the rest. Urged' on by wind and 
 tide, hasten apace. The whole family in heaven and 
 earth will soon be the family in heaven; a fimily for 
 ever unbroken there. 
 
 § 7. Such is the Christian's state. My dear brother 
 or sister, is it yours? It is, if you belong to Jesus 
 Christ, in spirit and in truth. 0, think of it again j 
 how ennobling a connection ! And, 0! remember how 
 
OF THE FAMILY OF HEAVEN. 153 
 
 vou were brought into it, when only death eternal was 
 your desert. Then Jesus pitied you. Then " God, who 
 is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved 
 you, even when you were dead in sijis, quickened you 
 with Christ; (by grace are you saved;) and raised 
 you up, and made you sit jn heavenly places in Christ 
 Jesus; that in the ages to come he might show the 
 exceeding riches of his grace, in his kindness towards 
 you, through Christ Jesus." 
 
 This view of the Christian state should make the 
 heaviest eartnly trials appear to you as they did to St. 
 Paul— light afflictions, which are but for a moment. 
 If this world \yere your all, well indeed might you 
 make much account of its trials and griefs; but, should 
 a citizen of heaven, a member of God's immortal fa- 
 mily, deeply feel the trials of a rough but short voy- 
 age, or of an unpleasant but hasty journey ; could 
 one of the family who has reached his rest return to 
 the world to spend a few more days below, how light 
 would he esteem those trials which are the trials of a 
 moment! how little would he regard those afflictions, 
 that, as in the twinkling of an eye, will vanish for, 
 ever ! In the day of trial think, This is not my coun- 
 try: there is no trouble in that happy land. This is not 
 my home; but I shall re^ch it soon, and then shall 
 bid a last farewell to sorxaiv apd to care. 
 
 § 8. In this view also, how; momentous is the pur- , 
 suit of holiness— how infinitely inconsistent with your 
 character is the indulgenceof sin! /Could an angel of ' 
 light, or one of the spirits of.the just, visit this world, . 
 and spend a few years here, how inexpressibly shock- 
 ing would it be thought for such a being to indulge in 
 iniquity ! Would it not be said to him. How dreadfully 
 
156 WAITING FOR THE LORD. 
 
 inconsistent is this with your character and your con- 
 nections! Do you not belong to heaven? are you not 
 a member of the family of God? and will you plunge 
 from that height of privilege, and disgrace that sacred 
 character? If you are a Christian, you belong to the 
 same family, and should pant after the lovely likeness 
 of Jesus, which glorified spirits bear. Like theirs should 
 be your love and hatred, your aversion and delight. 
 The dispositions that dwell in their breasts, are those 
 you should cherish in yours. The spirit that glows in 
 their souls, is the spirit that shouhi animate yours. If 
 viewed aright, willful sin would appear almost as shock- 
 ing in you as it would in them ; for the whole family 
 in heaven and earth is one in Christ Jesus. One in pri- 
 vileges, one in blessings, one in friends, one in obliga- 
 tions; and, therefore, bound by every holy tie to be 
 one in principle, one in disposition, one in praclice. Re- 
 vere yourself. Respect your high and holy calling, 
 and pray to live and act as a member of Jesus' family, 
 as a traveler to the skies. Love not the world, neither 
 the things of the world ; for you are dead, and your 
 life is hid with Christ in God. 
 
 § 9. Learn from this important view of your condi- 
 tion one lesson more. It should teach you to live wait- 
 ing- for your Lord. " Let your loins be girded about, 
 and your lights burning; and ye yourselves like unto 
 men that wait for their lord. Blessed are those ser- 
 vants whom the lord, when he cometh, shall find watch- 
 ing." " I say unto all. Watch." The followers of Christ 
 are described as those who have turned from idols to 
 serve the living God, and to wait for his Son from hea- 
 ven. Important representation ! may you feel it aright. 
 A. waiting frame of mind is that the Christian should 
 
CONNECTION WITH HEAVEN. 157 
 
 ever cherish. But, what is it to wait ? Let a familiar 
 illustration furnish a reply. 
 
 The father of a numerous family leaves his children 
 intending to go and settle in a foreign land. Before he 
 departs, he says, " My dear children, I am going to 
 leave you for a while, but not for ever. I am going to 
 prepare for you, in a country where we shall be hap- 
 pier than we can be here. As soon as I have made the 
 needful preparations I shall return to fetch you ; there- 
 fore, wait and be ready." The father departs ; his chil- 
 dren continue in their old abode, but with new feel- 
 ings. It is hardly like their abode now; for they are 
 expecting to go. They pursue their needful duties, at- 
 tend as before to necessary concerns, but still their 
 hearts are gone after their father. They are looking 
 for their new abode. They are waiting for their fa- 
 ther's coming. 
 
 Such are the feelings and views which you should 
 cherish. Not feelings that will prevent your discharg- 
 ing the duties of life; that will drive you into a desert, 
 or turn you to a hermit; but, that will lead you to act 
 and live as not at home, but looking for your Lord ; 
 waiting as those children would wait. Not building on 
 long years below; not expecting great things here;\ut 
 with a heart untied from the world, ready to go, be the 
 warning ever so short, and to welcome your Lord, let 
 him come ever so soon. 
 
 Blessed are they who indulge this watching, waiting 
 spirit: the King of heaven and earth has pronounced 
 them blessed. 
 
 § 10. But perhaps I am addressing one of a charac- 
 ter very opposite to that described in these pages. Per- 
 14 
 
158 THE WORLDLY MINDED. 
 
 haps you who read these lines are no member of the 
 family of God ; no fellow-citizen with the saints ; no 
 heir of heaven and immortality. If it be so, O ! let ma 
 for a moment affectionately speak to you. How pitiable 
 is your condition 1 Your transient morning might be 
 the dawn of an immortal day I Your vain, half-painful, 
 half-pleasing life on earth, might be the forerunner of 
 an endless life of unmixed bliss above 1 But, you slight 
 the Savior who would conduct you to that abode. 
 You, who might, through the grace of Jesus, ascend to 
 the kingdom of God, and range that blessed world for 
 <3ver, are satisfied, alas I with the low scenes of earth. 
 You might rival angels, as an inhabitant of heaven; 
 but, by taking up your portion here, become the rival 
 of the brutes that perish. Here you bury all your 
 hopes. Here you renounce that great salvation, which, 
 once finally lost, can never be regained. O, sinful and 
 unhappy choice ! When we see swine wallowing in 
 the mire, we see them gratifying themselves, and los- 
 ing nothing by their pleasure ; but when we see im- 
 mortal beings Avallowing on earth in the mire of sin 
 and sensuality, we see them losing more than tongue 
 can express. To see millions that might be heirs of 
 God, and joint heirs with Christ; that might, in sera- 
 phic blis'5, walk the spacious regions of heaven, and, 
 washed in the blood of the Lamb, be happy and glori- 
 fied for ever : to see these slighting the only Savior's 
 grace and love, rejecting immortal hopes, and damn- 
 ing their own immortal souls: to see the young and 
 the aged, the gay and the grave, the cheerful and the 
 sad, the rich and the poor, aoing this by millions, is a 
 pitiable sight indeed ! What must it appear to the an- 
 gels of heaven ? 
 
THE heathens' virtuous man. 159 
 
 " Could they tremble, 'twere at such a sight." 
 
 Are you one of the number? Unhappy creature I 
 how poor ! liovv wretched ! how undone ! O, *awake, 
 before eternal ruin awakes you ! and while the Savior 
 invites you to his fold, to his family, be not so besotted 
 by sin, so led captive by the devil, as to refuse the 
 offered mercv. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 ON CHRISTIAN HOLINESS. 
 
 § 1. When heathen philosophers described their vir- 
 tuous man, they represented him as filled with self- 
 conceit and pride, in consequence of the virtues he had 
 acquired, and the heights to which he had raised him- 
 self above the common level. One of them represents 
 this man of virtue as superior to the gods ; because they 
 were virtuous by nature, but he by choice. Such was 
 the Satanic pride inculcated by the men that modern 
 infidels admire. Christianity requires holiness of the 
 most elevated kind, but connects this holiness with 
 the deepest humility. " Be ye holy, for I am holy." 
 " Follow holiness, without which no man shall see the 
 Lord." 
 
 The Scriptures recognize not as a thing of any value, 
 that negative kind of virtue, which consists in doing 
 no harm. To leave undone what we ought to do, is as 
 really sin, as to do what we ought not. Accordingly, 
 the Christian's faith is represented, not as faith which 
 merely preserves him from evil but \vhich " works by 
 
^^ HOLINESS INDISPENSABLE. 
 
 love." The Christian's love is described, not as love 
 which evaporates in empty professions, but which con- 
 strains " him to live not to himself, but the Lord Jesus 
 Christ." The servant who had one talent committed 
 to him, which he neglected to improve, is declared to 
 be a slothful and wicked servant; not because he had 
 wasted that talent, but because he had made no im- 
 provement of the trust. The blessed Savior describes 
 myriads as condemned to destruction with the devil 
 and his angels, not for crimes they had perpetrated 
 but for the neglect of duties they had omitted. When 
 the different virtues that should adorn the Chris- 
 tian character are compared to fruit, this fruit is re- 
 presented as indispensably necessary. This lesson is 
 inculcated by the Lord in various expressive ways 
 He taught it by the parable of a fig-tree planted in the 
 vineyard. The owner sought fruit, not leaves; and his 
 forbearance was extended to the tree, under the hope 
 of Its producing fruit. The great Husbandman expects 
 the fruits of piety; and the leaves of a fair profession 
 will not be valued where the fruit is wanting. By an 
 expressive miracle the Lord taught the same important 
 lesson, when he said to the barren fig-tree, Let no fruit 
 grow on thee henceforward for ever. Many professors 
 of religion appear satisfied if they disgrace not their 
 profession by flagrant inconsistency; yet, let such con- 
 sider that the fig-tree in the vineyard was not ordered 
 to be cut down because it bore pernicious fruit, but be- 
 cause it bore no fruit. The tree which withered at 
 Jesus s word, was not blasted because it was covered 
 with poisonous berries, but because it had nothing but 
 leaves. As the adorable Jesus thus declares that his 
 followers will produce the fruits of holiness; he also 
 
PAUL AN EXAMPLE. 161 
 
 declares that this will not be in a small and inconside- 
 rable degree. When he compares himself to a vine, and 
 his disciples to the branches, he says of those disciples 
 " He that abideth in me and I in him, the same bring- 
 eth forth much fruit. Herein is my Father glorified, 
 that ye bear much fruit." In the parable of the sower, 
 he describes his disciples as producing thirty, sixty, 
 and a hundred-fold ; some as rising \p piety much more 
 elevated than that of others; yet, while some yield a 
 hundred-fold, those who produce the least yield thirty- 
 fold. Ask the husbandman, and he will tell you that 
 thirty-fold is no inconsiderable increase. Conformable 
 with these representations are the divine admonitions . 
 "Be ye steadfast, unmoveable, always abounding in 
 the work of the Lord." " Be diligent, that ye may be 
 found of him in peace without spot and blameless." 
 § 2. An instructive example of the spirit with which 
 Christians should pant after holiness was exhibited by 
 the apostle Paul: "Herein do I exercise myself, to 
 have always a conscience void of offence toward God 
 and toward men." A conscience void of offence to- 
 wards God, that should charge him with no neglect of 
 God's precepts, that should witness that he devoted 
 his whole heart, and all he was and had, to God. A 
 conscience void of offence towards men, that should 
 bear testimony to his concern to discharge all the du- 
 ties of life, to do all as he would have them to do to 
 him, to furnish none with any cause of complaint 
 against him, but rather, as far as ability extended, to 
 do good to all around him. This he labored to possess 
 always: yet, after all, acknowledged himself less than 
 the least of all saints ; the chief of sinners, saved by 
 14* 
 
162 
 
 CHRISTIAN HOLINESS. 
 
 grace. The same spirit breallies in his affectionate ad- 
 dress to the Pliiliopians:— "Not as thougli I had al- 
 ready attained, either were ah-eady perfect; but thi. 
 one thing I do, forgetting those things which are be- 
 hind, and reacliing forth unto those things wliich are 
 before, I press toward the mark, for the prize of the 
 higlv calhng of God in Christ Jesus." When Paul 
 made this impressive declaration, he iiad probably 
 been nearly thirty* years a Christian. His splendid 
 course was nearly run; he had labored above mea- 
 sure; he had suffered much; he had been enabled to 
 exemplify, in no common degree, the mild and bril- 
 liant glories of Christianity— the zeal that never tires, 
 the love that never cools, the patience that never wea- 
 ries, the benevolence that never slackens; yet, such 
 were his ideas of the exalted nature of gospel holiness, 
 that after these long years of labor, of suffering, and of 
 ripening piety, he still pressed on, and aimed at some- 
 thing higher than all the heights he yet had reached. 
 Nor do the Scriptures represent this laboring after ho- 
 liness as something peculiar to the great apostle; for 
 tlic Holy Spirit directed him to add, "Brethren, be ye 
 followers together of me, and mark them which walk 
 so, as ye have us for an ensample." 
 
 § 3. But in the pursuit of Christian holiness, the 
 word of God directs us to an infinitely higher pattern 
 for imitation than that now contemplated. "Be ye fol- 
 lowers of God, as dear children." Be ye therefore per- 
 fect, even as your Father which is in heaven is per- 
 fect." As the blessed God is proposed as a pattern for 
 imitation, in the exercise of benevolent affections ; the 
 holy Jesus is set before us as an example we are called 
 to copy in the general conduct of life. " Christ also 
 
HOLINESS PROGRESSIVE. 163 
 
 suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should 
 follow his steps." " He thai saiih he abideth in him, 
 ought himself also so to walk even as he walked." 
 "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they 
 follow me." A nobler example of spotless holiness 
 cannot be proposed than that of the holy Jesus. Even 
 infidels have admired his unblemished life, and on it 
 passed eulouiwms. But his disciples are called upon to 
 imitate, as well as to admire, to follow, as well as to 
 applaud. Cherish the spirit, that, burning with de- 
 sires for a closer resemblance to the blessed Savior, 
 and for the diffusion of his gh)ry, thinks nothing gain- 
 ed while any thing remains ungained, nothing done 
 while any thing remains undone. Except when you 
 acknowledge what God has done for you, to cherish 
 gratitude for grace enjoyed, forget all that you have 
 gamed, and reach at more. It is an apostolic lesson, 
 FORGET the things behind, and reach after tliose before. 
 §4- Christian holiness musi he progressive. What- 
 ever attainments in the divine life' you may have 
 reached, much is yet unattained. In eminent Chris- 
 tians, how low, how weak are Christian graces, com- 
 pared with what they ought to be ! but in many of 
 the followers of the Lamb, how much lower! how 
 much weaker! 
 
 The commands given in the sacred Scriptures ex- 
 pressly require advancement in Christian holiness. 
 "Giving all diligence, add to your faith, virtue ; and 
 to virtue, knowledge ; and to knowledge, temperance; 
 and to temperance, patience ; and to patience, godli-' 
 ness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to 
 brotherly kindness, charity. Give diligence to make 
 your calling and election sure; for if ye do these 
 
jg4 LIFE THE SEASON OF 
 
 things ye shall never fall." Grow in grace, and in the 
 knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." 
 
 The reality and importance of advancement in 
 Christian holiness are also inculcated strongly in the 
 prayers of the inspired writers for their fellow disci- 
 ples What is thus the subject of divine commands, and 
 of inspired prayers, is also represented by the blessed 
 Savior as receiving his peculiar approbation. When he 
 commends the church atThyatira, and says, I know 
 thv works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy 
 patience, and thy works," he adds, "and the last to 
 
 BE MORE THAN THE FIRST." 
 
 The experience of all Christians who have honored 
 their profession by consistent holiness, bears testimo- 
 ny to the correctness of these statements. Their hu- 
 mility has deepened ; their faith has strengthened ; 
 iheir'hopes have become more bright; their love has 
 assumed, not the brightness of a flash or momentary 
 blaze, but of a stead y flame. Their devotedness to God 
 has become more entire ; their reliance on Christ more 
 pure, and unmingled with other dependence. The 
 depravity of their own nature has been more clearly 
 seen, and been viewed with more abhorrence. Its cor- 
 ruptions have been opposed, and in many instances so 
 conquered that their power has hardly been felt. It is 
 said of Isaac Watts, that he was by nature quick of 
 resentment ; but by habitual practice, gentle, modest, 
 and inoffensive. I remember having some knowledge 
 of a person, a number of years ago, whose natural dis- 
 po'^ition seemed covetous ; but who had followed the 
 precepts of the Gospel till liberality was no longer a 
 difficult duty, and it appeared to him almost or quite 
 as easy to give as to receive. In the earlier stage 
 
! CHRISTIAN GRACES. 165 
 
 of his Christian progress, it seemed to him much to 
 give away a religious book that had cost a few pence; 
 when more advanced, he gave scores of much more 
 expensive Iwolis away; and I have understood, even 
 sold part of his own library, to enable iiim to pursue 
 this mode of promoting religion. 
 
 If then you would adorn the holy Gospel, and walk 
 worthy the character of a child of the holy God, let it 
 ever be impressed on your heart, that it is not merely 
 holiness, but ripening^ advancing holiness, which you 
 are to follow. 
 
 § 5. Many are the weighty motives that urge upon 
 the Christian the incessant pursuit of perfect holiness. 
 You should pursue holiness with all the energy oi 
 your soul : because this life is the only season in which 
 some Christian graces can be exercised. It is now that 
 we can serve the Lord, who redeemed us by his blood. 
 Now, in sorrow we may practice resignation to the 
 will of God : the Christian cannot in heaven— there 
 are no sorrows there. Now must we learn lessons of 
 forgiveness : the blessed will find no enemies to for- 
 give beyond the grave. Now must we prove our faith- 
 fulness in the scenes of the Christian warfare ; for only 
 this world is the field of conflict : no spiritual foes dis- 
 turb the peace of heaven. Now should our tempers, 
 amidst rufl^hng, disturbing things, acquire the serenity 
 of Christ's : there is nothing to ruffle in the realms 
 above. Now must we feed the hungry and clothe the 
 naked : 
 
 " In heaven are found no sons of need." 
 
 Now must we visit the sick and afflicted, or never ; lor 
 above, the inhabitant shall never say, I am sick. Now 
 
166 HOLINESS HONORS GOD. 
 
 must we instruct the illiterate, and spread the Gospel, 
 or never: and as we sow, we shall hereafter reap. 
 And would you not wish, in these respects, to copy 
 nim who went about doing good. The time for these 
 will soon be passed ; and once gone, is gone for ever. 
 § 6. Follow holiness ; because thus you may glorify 
 God and recommend religion to man. Doubtless, in 
 many instances, the calm but powerful eloquence of a 
 holy life has awakened the thoughtless to attention to 
 their best interests, and taugh.t even scoffers wisdom. 
 Thus enforced, 
 
 "Truth from the lips has come with double sway 
 
 "And fools, who -else had laugh'd, have learn'd' to pray." 
 
 The meek forbearance that resents no injury ; the calm 
 submission that never utters a murmur ; the expansive 
 love that pities and blesses friends and foes ; and all 
 the unostentatious charms of Christian piety ; these, 
 even when they shine like the stars in solemn silence, 
 yet, like them, utter a voice, 
 
 ;' The hand that form'd us is divine." 
 
 These impress hearts that no arguments would reach, 
 no reasonings convince; and lead even some that 
 know not God to acknowledge that there is a power in 
 religion to which they are strangers, a reality of which 
 they have no conception.* 
 
 * Of the effects of consistent piety, the following pleasing 
 anecdote furnishes one illustration out of many : 
 
 " In a family in the north of Ireland, a pious young woman 
 was engaged as a servant. The poor girl was much ridiculed 
 for her religion by the young ladies, but did not render evil for 
 evil ; on the contrary, she would allow them to laugh at her 
 
HOLINESS HONORS GOD. 167 
 
 The eloquence of a holy life speaks in any land. 
 After Mr. Peter had labored for a length of time at 
 Balasore, a young Brahmin, named Jugunnat'ha, em- 
 braced the Gospel. Soon after, the brother of a native 
 magistrate said to him, "Do you believe this from 
 your heart ?" Jugunnat'ha said, " Yes." " Well," said 
 the other, "we are watching; you are making an ex- 
 periment: if you live a holy life, we shall know that 
 this Gospel is true. Padree-saheb has been preaching 
 for three or four years; but we have our doubts, and 
 cannot believe ; none of the Ooriyas till now have em- 
 braced this religion ; if you bear good fruit many will 
 follow your example." 
 
 Well indeed said the blessed Savior, "Let your light 
 so shine before men, that they may see your good 
 works, and glorify your Father who is heaven." And 
 do you not wish to promote this double object — the 
 glory of God and the eternal welfare of man? This 
 
 and then mildly reason with them. She made it her study to 
 be attentive and useful to them; took opportunities to speak 
 to them about religion; and would offer to read the sacred 
 Scriptures to them when they went to bed. They commonly 
 fell asleep, and that in a little time, under the sound; but she 
 was not discouraged. Having exemplified Christianity in her 
 life, Providence sent a fever to remove her to a belter state. 
 The young ladies were not permitted to see her during her ill- 
 ness ; but they heard of her behavior, which did not lessen the 
 impression which her previous conduct had made upon them. 
 Soon afte**, the two elder made a profession of religion : the 
 little leaven spread; and now all the nine young ladies appear 
 truly pious. Nor is religion, in this highly favored fimily, con- 
 fined to them : other means were employed by God in produc- 
 ing this great change; but one of the two first who became 
 serious, informed me that she chiefly ascribed it to the life 
 and death of the servant-maid." 
 
168 HOLINESS HONORS GOD. 
 
 double object occupied on earth a Savior's hands, and 
 in heaven engages that Savior's attention ; this double 
 object is tlie aim of those ministering spirits which are 
 sent forth to minister to the heirs of salvation, to dif- 
 fuse happiness and holiness among beings destined to 
 immortality, and to advance the honor of that God 
 whom all the hosts of heaven adore. This is indeed a 
 pursuit in which an archangel might delight to con- 
 sume myriads of ages; and this in your sphere you 
 may advance by the silent lessons of a holy example. 
 In the epistle to the PhiHppians this subject is placed 
 in a most important and striking light. " Holding forth 
 the word of life." Preach the Gospel in your lives ; 
 preach it by your conduct, and thus hold forth the 
 word of life to an undone world, as a light-house dis- 
 plays its light at the entrance of a harbor. A building 
 of that description is designed to warn mariners of 
 rocks or quicksands, and to show them a safe passage 
 out of a stormy sea into a peaceful haven. Thus every 
 Christian should stand, like a light-house on the edge 
 of the ocean, to show all around him how they may 
 escape the storm of eternal wrath, and where they 
 may find a haven of repose; in other words, by a 
 blameless life to teach mankind that this is happiness, 
 holiness, and life eternal, to know the only true God, 
 and Jesus Christ whom he has sent. 
 
 Important situation ! Who that feels one spark of 
 love to God, or love to man, but must be anxious to 
 accomplish heaven's benevolent design? and, saved 
 himself, to be the means of saving others? Indeed, so 
 powerful, so effective is Christian example, that it 
 seems reasonable to believe, if individuals and nations 
 that have professed the Gospel had universally adorn- 
 
TRAITORS TO CHRIST. 169 
 
 ed the Gospel, the whole world must long since have 
 been brought to bow to the sceptre of the cross. 
 
 § 7. The motives hitherto adduced for a devout at- 
 tention to holiness have been chiefly of a pleasing de- 
 scription ; but there are others of another kind, which 
 ought not to be entirely unnoticed. If holiness is not 
 your pursuit, you have n.o evidence that you enjoy 
 God's grace: you have evidence, that in your present 
 state you cannot enter his kingdom. "Without holi- 
 ness no man shall see the Lord." However fair your 
 profession, however splendid your gifts, however ex- 
 tensive your knowledge, without holiness you are like 
 a lifeless corpse, that has the human form, but wants 
 the soul; or like a whitened sepulchre, fair without, 
 but within full of dead men's bones and all unclean- 
 ness. To such the Son of God declares, "Not every- 
 one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the 
 kingdom of heaven ; but he that doeth the will of my 
 Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in 
 that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy 
 name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in 
 thy name done many wonderful works ? And then will 
 I profess unto them, I never knew you : depart from 
 me, ye that work iniquity." 
 
 § 8. Without holiness you would act the part of the 
 worst of traitors to the Son of God. When Judas be- 
 trayed him, he professed affection and friendship, and 
 kissed him, and said, " Hail, Master !" while he pointed 
 him out as the prey of cruelty and scorn. The incon- 
 sistent professor of the Gospel really imitates Judas. 
 He hails Christ as his Master and Savior, while he 
 exposes the cause of Christ to contempt and reproach 
 15 
 
170 TRAITORS TO CHRIST 
 
 by his ungodly life. In the world, religion is scorned 
 through him ; in his own family, it is hated through 
 him. The world and his family think. If this is reli- 
 gion, we are as well or better without it. Satan injured 
 Christ, but Judas must help him. So Satan opposes 
 the progress of the Gospel, and injures the religion of 
 Jesus; but other Judases must help him now, or he 
 would labor in vain to throw a shade over the bright 
 glories of Christianity, He leads these insincere or 
 careless professors of the Gospel into dishonesty, or 
 lying, or drunicenness, or some other crime ; and then 
 an outcry is raised against the religion of Jesus, 
 through their wickedness, that are really strangers to 
 religion and traitors to the Lord Jesus Christ. How 
 terrific a description of any that have professed subjec- 
 tion to Jesus ! Enemies to the cross of Christ. The 
 cross — God's grand instrument of saving mercy. The 
 cross of Christ — where shines the brightest display of 
 heavenly love. The cross of Christ — man's only re- 
 fuge ; the sinner's only hope. The cross of Christ — 
 the means by which that blessed sufferer would sub- 
 due the world ; and these, even while they profess sub- 
 jection to his sway, enemies to his cross. Dreadful 
 character ! 
 
 § 9. Without holiness you would rob God of his 
 right, and violate your own most solemn engagements. 
 You are not your own ; but God claims your services, 
 your love, your life ; yet to be inattentive to holiness, 
 is to deny him all he claims. It is a great crime to rob 
 a man of his property, but it is a far more atrocious 
 one to rob God of his glory; and not merely to rob 
 him of his right, but to blacken the villany by giving 
 to the world, and sin, and Satan, the time, talents, and 
 
AND ROBBERS OF GOD. 171 
 
 obedience which God claims. And all this wickedness 
 IS, in a professor of religion, rendered still more wick- 
 ed, because it is connected with the violation of the 
 most solemn engagements. Is not that man thought a 
 poor, perjured wretch, who swears allegiance to his 
 country and king, and then deserts and fights against 
 both ? Is he noi deemed still more vile, if to perjury 
 and desertion he adds treachery; and while he acts as 
 his country's enemy, wears her colors, and professes to 
 be a friend ? Such, or a still more wretched and wick- 
 ed being is he who professes the Gospel, and slights 
 the holiness by which it is adorned. He, who, perjured 
 by the violation of all his solemn engagements to God, 
 has deserted his station, and is treacherously serving 
 the devil while he professes to fight under the banners 
 of Jesus. 
 
 § 10. Without holiness you would contribute to de- 
 feat the benevolent labors of others, and render injury 
 to the church of Christ as real as that offered by the 
 most bitter persecutors. Suppose you knew a profane 
 scoffer that made it his business to counteract the zea- 
 lous labors of some faithful minister, would you not 
 think him a miserable and dreadful instance of human 
 depravity ? would you not tremble at the prospect of his 
 impending destruction? Ah, my friend! ministers of 
 the Gospel have worse enemies than profane scoffers. 
 Unholy professors much more effectually defeat their 
 labors than all the scoffers upon earth. When those 
 who are strangers to the power of the Gospel behold 
 its professors as careless, as slanderous, as fond of 
 worldly vanity, as resentful, or as covetous and world- 
 ly-minded, as themselves ; when they see little or no 
 difference, in conduct, disposition, and temper, be- 
 
172 SUPPORT TO Satan's empire, 
 
 tween a professor of religion and moral persons who 
 profess it not, they infer that religion is an empty 
 name. And when they see conduct openly flagrant in 
 its professed disciples, they infer that all professors 
 are alike, and that all profession of religion is hypo- 
 crisy. It is true this is an unjust inference, but it is a 
 common one ; and they who give occasion for it, more 
 effectually than scoffers or infidels, liinder men from 
 embracing the Gospel of salvation ; and doing so, 
 they act the same part as the most bitter persecutors. 
 At what did they in reality aim, but to support pagan 
 ism or antichrist, and to keep mankind from the true 
 way of life and peace? For what end but this were 
 their dungeons, their racks and flames occasionally 
 employed? And this end the inconsistent professor of 
 religion, by his unholy deportment, daily promotes. 
 Some who have begun to seek the way of peace, dis- 
 gusted by his conduct, give up the pursuit; and he 
 quenches in their hearts the little spark of grace, occa- 
 sions them to resist the Holy Spirit, contributes to 
 their damnation, and becomes a partaker of their sins. 
 Others, always careless from the same cause, are 
 sealed up under carelessness and impenitence of heart. 
 § 1 1. While leading a careless or unholy life, the in- 
 consistent professor of religion really imitates the de- 
 vil, upholds his kingdom, and most effectually does 
 him service. He imitates Satan. That enemy of God 
 and man, it is said, can appear as an angel of light; 
 but he is a devil still. So he who professes religion 
 while he does not practice it, may appear in his 
 conversation a child of God ; but he is still a child of 
 Satan. He upholds the kingdom of the wicked one. 
 Satan endeavors lo uphold that kingdom by prevent- 
 
AND INCALCULABLE MISCHIEF. 173 
 
 ing men from discerning the worth and excellency of 
 the Gospel. The holy Scriptures declare this. Who 
 so successfully hinder mankind from discerning the 
 real nature of religion as its unholy professors? Re- 
 ligion, as exhibited in the lives of some of its faithful 
 followers, is a fair and beautiful form, adorned with 
 graces so divine and heavenly, that it is sufficiently 
 powerful, if not to captivate every heart, yet to extort 
 respect and admiration even from its foes; but the re- 
 ligion of an unholy professor of the Gospel, when 
 seen, like a hideous monster, excites abhorrence and 
 disgust ; and mankind are ready to exclaim, If this is 
 religion, we are better wi-thout it. Thus are they hin- 
 dered from discerning its heavenly excellences; and 
 taking a monster for it, are prevented from seeing its 
 eternal worth. The unholy man or woman that occa- 
 sions this mischief, is indeed one of the most faithful 
 servants of the wicked one. The profligate cannot so 
 effectually serve Satan as the hypocrite. The profli- 
 gate is like an enemy without the walls of a fortress ; 
 he appears in his true colors, and men are aware of 
 him ; but the unholy professor is like a treacherous 
 wretch that has crept into the fortress only to betray 
 it. A drunkard, a dishonest man, a liar, a miser, out of 
 the church of Christ, can never render Satan half the 
 service they can render him when within its walls. 
 
 § 12. If you profess religion and neglect holiness, 
 you may be a source of mischief and misery for ages 
 and ages. It is impossible to tell where the evil of a 
 sinful example, or even of one sinful action, may ter- 
 minate. One open crime, and much more an unholy 
 life, in a professor of religion, may be a means of 
 15* 
 
174 SUPPORT TO Satan's empire, 
 
 propagating vice and misery, and dealing to many 
 deatli and damnation for generations to come. How 
 easily may this be tiie case wlien a young person is 
 influenced by sucli causes to neglect the Savior. The 
 impressions he felt are destroyed, his desires are 
 quenched, and his soul is undone. But he, perhaps, 
 becomes the head of a family. Had he followed Jesus, 
 his children would have been trained up for God; but 
 now their eternal welfare is slighted, and they rise up 
 heathen, like their father. Perhaps the same course of 
 irreligion and vice is acted over again by their de- 
 scendants, and again by theirs, each new generation 
 copying the example of the former. This is not un- 
 common. Thus sin and misery are propagated from 
 age to age. And that professor of the Gospel wh(», by 
 his crimes, prevented the ancestor of such a family 
 from following the Savior, is in an awful degree a 
 cause of all tliis sin and misery ! Ah, how watchful 
 should a Christian be, that no one at the judgment-bar 
 may be able to stand forth and sa}', " My ruin is ow- 
 ing to that sin, by which you wounded your friends 
 and disgraced your profession; but for that I should 
 have sought the Savior; through that I pronounced 
 religion hypocrisy, and neglectful of it, lived and died." 
 § 13. Neglecting holiness, you expose others and 
 yourself to that awful wo which the Lord has de- 
 nounced against those who slight his Gospel on ac- 
 count of the sins of others, and against those who are 
 the cause of this neglect. " Wo unto the world be- 
 cause of offences ! for it must needs be that offences 
 come; but wo to that man by whom the offence Com- 
 eth." Let the unholy professor of religion tremble at 
 this heavy wo, denounced by such gentle lips !— thia 
 
AND INCALCULABLE MISCHIEF. 175 
 
 WO which, heavier than a mill-stone round the neck, 
 will sink him in a direful ocean of eternal wrath. O, 
 let the unholy professor of the Gospel meditate terror, 
 while he meditates on these words, '• Wo unto that 
 man by whom the offence cometh." 
 
 § 14. Such are a few of those awfully momentous 
 motives that urge the Christian to make advancing 
 holiness his fervent desire, his incessant pursuit, his 
 daily prayer. If you would improve life's little span ; 
 if you would glorify God and honor Christ; if you 
 would recommend religion to mankind, and lead them 
 to tlie abodes of bliss, you must follow after consistent 
 holiness. Without it, the more zeal you display for the 
 Gospel, the more mischief will you do. If you v/ould 
 not be shut out of heaven ; if you would not be another 
 Judas, another traitor to the blessed Savior; if you 
 would not defeat the labors of Gospel ministers, more 
 effectually than is done by bitter persecutors; if you 
 would not rob God of his right ; if you would not lie to 
 God. and become a poor perjured wretch ; if you would 
 not uphold the kingdom of tlie devil, carry on his de- 
 signs, and be his most faithful servant; if you would 
 not contribute to spread sin, and misery, and damna- 
 tion for ages to come; if you would not expose others, 
 and yourself, to one of the most tremendous woes ever 
 denounced from heaven against sin and sinners; if you 
 would not commit all these hideous sins ; if you would 
 not do all this complicated mischief; in short, if you 
 would not be a pest to earth, an enemy to the cross of 
 Christ, a friend of the devil, an agent of hell, and a 
 curse to yourself, you must follow after holiness. 
 
176 ' MORTIFICATION OF SIN^ 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 ON THE MORTIFICATION OF SIN. 
 
 § 1. Were man what Adam was, what angels are, or 
 what the spirits of the just will be, holiness would cost 
 no pains, and require no labors. But during the pre- 
 sent state, so much corruption works within, that the 
 daily mortification of sin is essential to growth in grace. 
 
 The Scriptures contain many impressive admoni- 
 tions respecting this duly. " Let us lay aside every 
 weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us." " If 
 ye live after the flesh, ye shall die ; but if ye, through 
 the Spirit, do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall 
 live." " Abhor that which is evil." " As strangers 
 and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war 
 against the soul." 
 
 That inbred corruption, which is the fruitful parent 
 of all man's actual transgressions, is described in the 
 Bible as " the old man." Not as something light and 
 trifling which attaches itself to man, but as that which 
 is so incorporated with his fallen nature that it be- 
 comes as it were " the man." It is represented also as 
 the body of sin, in which all sins are united, as all the 
 members of man are in a human body. 
 
 Freed by divine grace from the " dominion " of sin, 
 the Christian is not freed from its more open assaults 
 or secret guile. It is like an enemy defeated, and trod- 
 den under foot, yet not dead ; still possessed of life, and 
 only wanting an opportunity to rise again, and ready 
 then to act with vigor. Or like an enemy nailed to a 
 
NECESSITY OF MORTIFYING SIN. 177 
 
 cross, that if not kept there till his slrenfflh is exhaust- 
 ed and life expires, may live again, and be a worse en- 
 emy than ever. Hence the important admonitions, to 
 mortify sin, to mortify the deeds of the body. The 
 sense of the original word is, to kill, to destroy. It 
 contains therefore a direction, to aim at the utter de- 
 struction of sin. The Scriptures do not, however, re- 
 present this enemy as soon dead. Our old man is cruci- 
 fied. Crucifixion was a lingering death. So sin does 
 not die at once. Long will it linger; perhaps seem 
 dead, the4i show again that life is not gone; then seem 
 expiring, yet not expire. To the cross must it still be 
 fastened, and wound after wound be inflicted on it, and 
 never should it be presumed to be quite dead till it dies 
 finally, and dies eternally. 
 
 § 2. If you would live to God, you must mortify sin 
 Aim not merely at avoiding sin in your outward con 
 duct, but seek and pray to kill the root of it in your 
 heart. That you may do this, cherish self-acquaintance 
 Watch the motions of your own heart. If a strangei 
 to yourself, sin cannot be mortified ; however it may 
 be checked in your outward conduct, it will reign and 
 triumph in your heart. Pride will be filling you with 
 self-conceit and self-importance. Self-love will pro- 
 mote covetousness, and make you indifferent to the 
 miseries of others. It will pollute your motives; and 
 when God's glory is the ostensible object, your own 
 praise will be the true, though hidden spring of action. 
 When afflicted, you will be disposed to murmur. When 
 others are more prosperous or applauded than you, in- 
 stead of rejoicing in their happiness you will be dis- 
 posed to envy them. All this is the effect of sin that 
 lies unmortified, and perhaps hidden, in the heart. 
 
17S 
 
 SINFUL THOUGHTS. 
 
 Hence, too, you will be studying for this world, when 
 you should be meditating on a better ; and planning for 
 earth, when you should be reaching after heaven. The 
 natural elfect of all this is a cold, heartless, barren form 
 of religion, where the life, and soul, and vital heat are 
 Avanti-ng. This cannot be avoided unless you mortify 
 sin, nor can sin be mortified without self-acquaintance. 
 
 To mortify sin, it is necessary that you have a deep 
 impression of the evil of those innumerable sins, the 
 sins of the heart. These are hidden from the eye of 
 man. Human laws take no cognizance of them; but 
 the great Searcher of hearts looks upon them with the 
 same abhorrence as on finished crimes. Sin in the 
 seed, in the bud, the blade, or the ear, is in his sight 
 equally hateful. For as it is said, " Sin aims always at 
 the utmost ; every time it rises up to tempt or entice, 
 might it have its own course, it would go out to the 
 utmost sin in that kind. Every unclean thought or 
 glance would be adultery, if it could ; every covetous 
 desire would be oppression; every thought of unbelief 
 would be atheism, might it grow to its head."* 
 
 The sacred Scriptures represent those sins which lie 
 hidden in the heart, as incurring guilt and condemna- 
 tion of the same description as the crimes to which 
 they would lead. Thus the Judge of all declares, that 
 a lustful thought cherished in the mind, incurs the 
 guilt of adultery. " I say unto you, That whosoever 
 looketh on a woman to lust after her, hath committed 
 adultery with her already in his heart." The indul- 
 gence of a resentful disposition incurs the guilt of mur- 
 der. " Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer, 
 
 • Oweu. 
 
SIN DIVERTED TO NEW OBJECTS 179 
 
 and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abid- 
 ing in him." 
 
 On the same principle, he who meditates a dishonest 
 action, is, in God's esteem, a thief; he who lets his vain 
 mind dwell with pleasure on scenes of revelry, de- 
 bauchery, and intoxication, stands charc;:eable in his 
 Maker's sight with all those crimes. And they whose 
 thoughts are occupied with vanity, excess, and plea- 
 sure, are, in the sight of God, guilty of the crimes and 
 follies they would commit if their situation placed 
 these things within their power. Would you therefore 
 mortify sin, view it as exceeding sinful ; and remember 
 that a sinful disposition indulged, as to guilt, is equiva- 
 lent to the guilt of committing the sin to which that 
 disposition would lead. O, what myriads of millions 
 of crimes are thus committed in the chambers of the 
 mind and heart, those scenes of iniquity ! crimes, hid- 
 den from every human eye, beneath impenetrable 
 shades, yet all of them glaring with hideous horror 
 before the face of eternal Majesty, as clearly as in the 
 blaze of clay. 
 
 § 3. In mortifying sin, it is of unspeakable impor- 
 tance to observe that sin be really worlijled ; not mere- 
 ly diverted to some other object, or permitted to flow 
 in some new channel. It is to be apprehended that the 
 supposition that sin is mortified, when only diverted to 
 a new object, is a frequent cause of ruinous deception. 
 Thus, perhaps, the reigning sin of a man has been pro- 
 digality; he lays this sin aside, and ceases to be a 
 spendthrift; but he takes up covetousness, and be- 
 comes a miser. Perhaps he has been covetous, he for- 
 sakes his avaricious ways, he is no longer the slave of 
 avaricej he becomes liberal, but he becomes the slave 
 
180 SIN DIRECTED TO NEW OBJECTS. 
 
 of ostentation. Another has been a profligate, proud of 
 his drunken feats; he forsakes profligacy, frequents 
 the house of prayer, and leads a life of regularity ; but 
 he is now as proud of his fancied virtues. Another has 
 been a leader in a tavern club; he forsakes his former 
 haunts and associates, and professes religion; but 
 knows no ease, and allows no quiet, unless he can be 
 a leader in the Christian church. Who does not see 
 that in all these, and ten thousand such cases, sin is 
 not mortified ? Ruling iniquity still rules. The man is 
 still its slave. The stream of iniquity is not lessened, 
 but flows in another channel. 
 
 Another fatal mistake on this subject is, that of 
 supposing sin mortified, when it is merely forsaken, 
 through a change in oui~ circumstances and situations. 
 The flight of time produces many such changes. The 
 faults and mischievous tricks of childhood give place 
 to youthful lusts. These, in more advanced life, are in 
 a degree forsaken for the sins of age. Yet sin is not 
 mortified ; it is merely adapting itself to the situations 
 of its servants. The system of delusion goes on even 
 to the day of death, and many die beneath its dread- 
 ful influence. How often, when visiting persons on the 
 confines of the grave, of whose conversion I had not 
 the slightest hope, have I heard them profess that they 
 gave up the world ; when the fact was, that they felt 
 they could keep it no longer, and the world gave up 
 them. Time changes man ; but unless he be changed 
 by a mightier than time, sin rules from the days of 
 sprightly childhood to the last moments of feeble age. 
 
 As you value your eternal welfare, guard against de- 
 lusions, by which myriads are undone. If there be one 
 bosom lust that you would suflfer to live, that one will 
 
' BESETTING BINS. 181 
 
 kill your soul. If you have a true hatred for any sin, 
 you will indulge hatred against every sin ; and if you 
 would willingly spare one, it shows you not sincere 
 in the destruction of any. Should you aim at the de- 
 struction of every sin but one, in cherishing that one 
 j^ou would as truly trample under foot the authority 
 of God, as if you cherished all ; as truly defeat the 
 end, as to yourself, of the Redeemer's death. "For 
 whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in 
 one point, he is guilty of all." Remember, the blood of 
 Christ was shed as much to atone for the secret sins 
 of your heart, as for the more open transgressions of 
 your life. Only the blood of the Son of God can wash 
 away the slain of your least offence against the Ma- 
 jesty on high; and shall any sin be small in your 
 esteem, when for the least that precious blood was 
 shed ? If you are indeed his follower, you will spare 
 no sin. 
 
 § 4. To mortify sin, watch more especially against 
 those sins to which your circumstances or age may 
 peculiarly expose you. As the constitutions and situ- 
 ations of mankind vary, so do their sinful propensi- 
 ties. Hence the admonition to lay aside the sin which 
 doth so EASILY BESET US. Couslder what, in your un- 
 converted state, were the sins to which your disposi- 
 tion most prompted you ; and watch peculiarly against 
 those sins. Some are peculiarly prone to pride, others 
 to passion ; some to suilenness and obstinacy, others 
 to fiery resentment; some to envy, others to ambition 
 and the love of glory ; in other words, of worldly ap- 
 plause : others to love of worldly pleasure ; some to 
 strife, others to scandal and backbiting; some to here- 
 16 
 
182 
 
 BESETTING SINS. 
 
 files, others to drunkenness and lewdness; some to 
 covetousness, others to prodigality; some to sloth, 
 others, that are free from grosser crimes, to mere levi- 
 ty and folly. A cheerful disposition will be more liable 
 to such sins as excessive levity, love of pleasure, and 
 passion ; a melancholy one to sullenness, to revenge, 
 when brooding over imagined wrongs; to discontent, 
 when destitute of desired advantages. Are you rich ? 
 you will be tempted to exlravat^auce ; and under the 
 delusive idea of living conformably to your rank, will 
 be tempted to squander in self-gratification or idle 
 show, what would feed the hungry, clothe the naked 
 bring the blessing of multitudes ready to perish upon 
 you, and if employed in diifusing divine knowledge, 
 would spread it far and wide. Are you rich 7 you will, 
 if 'professedly liberal^ be tempted to confine your libe- 
 rality within such narrow bounds, that your donations 
 to relieve the miseries of man, or assist the cause of Gody 
 will be really pitiful, paltry things, compared with the 
 widow^s mite, or the poor man's penny. Are you rich 1 
 you will, if you have a family, be tempted to hoard so 
 liberally for them, that you will probably, in the end 
 curse them with love to the world, with alienation 
 from God, with a disposition to be the slaves of fashion, 
 and the associates of the gay, however wicked or 
 worldly ; and thus, in the end, will undo them for eter- 
 nity. Probably not one rich man in ten thousand im- 
 proves that important talent, wealth, as at the judg- 
 ment bar he will wish to have employed it. Few in- 
 deed are our Reynoldses and our Thorntons. Are you 
 poor? your situation will tempt you to discontent, to 
 repine and murmur at your own humble lot, to envy and 
 reproach those in more favored circumstances. Are 
 
8IN DECEITFUL.. 183 
 
 you young? you will be tempted to self-conceit; to 
 slight the counsels of age and experience, of valuable 
 friends or lender relatives, through the pride of your 
 own foolish and wicked heart. You will be tempted to 
 indulge in youthful lusts ; to form friendships, or & 
 more lasting union, with such as charm your ungo- 
 venied fancy, though they may be strangers to the 
 grace of God, and the children of the wicked one. 
 Are you in the last stage of life ? you will be tempted 
 to indulge unreasonable prejudices; to censure, with- 
 out reason, the wisest and most benevolent plans, be- 
 cause they differ from what you saw in youth ; to 
 murmur beneath the infirmities of advancing age, and 
 to grasp, with a tighter embrace, the world that is de- 
 parting from you for ever. As in a journey through a 
 wilderness, if you expected the assaults of tigers, you 
 would particularly observe every bush where they 
 could lie prepared for their fatal spring ; if you feared 
 the bite of serpents, you would observe the herbage 
 in which the enemy might lie across your way ; if you 
 dreaded a fall from some hidden precipice, you would 
 watch every step you made: so in the journey of life, 
 guard peculiarly, in its different stages, against the dan- 
 gers incident to that stage; and mortify the sin which 
 may most easily beset you. 
 
 § 5. If you would mortify sin, consider its deceit- 
 fulness^ and guard against deception. We read of those 
 who are hardened through the deceitfulness of sin ; 
 and God himself represents the sinful heart as not only 
 desperately wicked, but "deceitful above all things." 
 Sin deceives millions of the victims which it ruins. 
 Many are the modes in which this system of decep- 
 tion is conducted. Virtue is stigmatized as vice, and 
 
184 SIN DECEITFUL. 
 
 vice is extolled as virtue. A formal nominal Christian, 
 with a heart as cold as Nova Zembla's eternal ice, is 
 deemed a rational Christian; and a zealous, warm- 
 hearted disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ is pronounced 
 an enthusiast or a fanatic. Soft names are affixed to 
 odious crimes. An abandoned whoremonger, or a pro- 
 fligate seducer, with the falsehood of Satan on his 
 lips, is called a man of pleasure. A man, so full of in- 
 fernal pride that he would risk his own life, or take his 
 fellow-man's, for an offensive word, is deemed a man 
 of honor. Revenge assumes the name of justice. Flat- 
 tery is termed courtesy. Covetousness cloaks itself un- 
 der the name of frugality; and while adopting for its 
 golden maxim the hackneyed remark, that "charity 
 begins at home," takes care that it shall end there too. 
 Atheism and infidelity are free thinking or free in- 
 quiry. Thus the darkest crimes which men commit 
 are softened down, and represented as pleasing or ho- 
 norable, by some specious and delusive name. 
 
 § 6. While thus called to duties so eternally impor- 
 tant, and yet so difficult, lean not upon a human arm. 
 Trust not in your own ability or might. No inherent 
 power of yours will ever accomplish the momentous 
 work of mortifying sin. The Scriptures direct your 
 view to a mightier agent; to the Spirit of God. "If 
 ye, THROUGH THE SpiRiT, do mortlfy the deeds of the 
 body, ye shall live." As the Holy Spirit is the souree 
 of peace, and hope, and joy, and love, so by his in- 
 fluence and aid sin must be subdued and destroyed. 
 
 Look therefore to him who sanctifies, renews, gives 
 the disposition, and carries on, till death, the work of 
 grace. O, look to him for heavenly influence, to strike 
 at the very root of sin ! Let mortification of this evil 
 
MALIGNITY OF SIN. 185 
 
 engage your labor ; yet still depend upon the Holy 
 Spirit's aid, and go forward, trusting in his might. 
 
 § 7. To impress your mind most deeply with a ha- 
 tred of sin, and witli the necessity of mortifying this 
 horrid evil, indulge such views as these of its unspeak- 
 able iiialignily.'^ 
 
 It is infinitely hateful. Sin is " the only object o 
 God's infinite hatred." God is love. He loves-iiis Son, 
 his angels, his children. His love, like the sun shining 
 in its strengtli, diffuses good through his immense do- 
 minions ; but sin is the object of his infinite abhorrence. 
 A sinful word, or a sinful thought, has in it that evil 
 against whicli God's infinite hatred and indignation 
 are directed. 
 
 Sin is more hateiil than the most hateful " fiend in 
 hell — tlian even the devil himself," For sin made Sa- 
 tan what he is. But ''or sin the dark fiends of hell had 
 been angels of light, but for sin Satan himself had 
 been a child of God. Had there been no sin, there 
 would have been no de/il ; had there been no sin, 
 there would have been no hell. Could an infernal 
 spirit appear to you, glaring with hideous wo and 
 hellish dispositions, what alarm would seize you ! if 
 power to flee remained, how would you flee from the 
 horrid being ! Flee then from sin, the parent of devils 
 and the author of hell. 
 
 Sin is most pollntirig. Could Satan be cleansed from 
 tlie pollution of sin, he would no longer be a devil. 
 Could his fallen legions be cleansed from sin, instead 
 of miserable fiends they would become happy angels. 
 Could souls enduring the miseries of damnation be 
 
 * On the maliirnity of sin, several thoughts are borrowed 
 from Kobejt Boltou. 
 
186 
 
 MALIGNITY OF SIN. 
 
 freed from its pollution, they would pass from the 
 blackness of eternal night to scenes of peace, and joy, 
 and love. Sin made them wretched, and its polluting- 
 stains, eternally upon their souls, will make them 
 eternally hateful, eternally wretched. 
 
 Sin is most infectious. Like a contagious pestilence, 
 it pollutes -and destroys all it touches. All within the 
 reach of its infection die. The first sin polluted all the . 
 sons and daughters of Adam, from the hour when he 
 sinned in paradise, to that when time shall be no more. 
 Think of the mighty multitudes that have lived on 
 earth since that time began. Think of the swarming 
 millions that now people the earth — perhaps a thou- 
 sand millions of immortal beings. Think how soon 
 these must be swept into the grave, and give place to 
 other generations, and these again to others. And then, 
 if you can, estimate the malignity of one sin's infec- 
 tion — that infection vvhich has spread a deadly poison 
 through the veins of generation after generation, for 
 ix thousand years ; which has defiled them to such a 
 degree, that man is altogether corrupt and depraved ; 
 which has ruined them so completel}^, that it has 
 made them all the heirs of death, and dug a grave for 
 all mankind. While such is the effect of one sin, who 
 can describe sin's malignity, or estimate its evil ? By 
 one sin was the whole race of man rendered corrupt 
 and wretched. By one sin all this lower creation was 
 made subject to vanity. And now, if but one sin lie 
 lurking in the heart, unpardoned and unrepented of, 
 •♦ --.nP.iites all man's words, affections, thoughts, and 
 acMons ; blasts all his knowledge and privileges, kills 
 all his hopes, and damns his soul. 
 
 Sin is full of effects most fearful, most dreadful. It 
 
MALIGNITY OF SIN. 
 
 187 
 
 deprives the " soul of God's favor, of all part and por- 
 tion in the blood of Christ," a blessing worth more 
 than a thousand worlds ; of the kind protection and 
 paternal care of the Most High ; " of the glorious 
 guard of angels," the comfortable communion of 
 saints, and the sweet delights those blessings yield, 
 "of the quiet joy and tranquillity of a good con- 
 science," a jewel worth far more than a world : of all 
 the heavenly illuminations and comforts by which the 
 Holy Ghost visits and refreshes the hearts of holy men ; 
 of all calm delight and true satisfaction in this life; 
 and stretching forward its malignant influence, it de- 
 prives the deathless soul of the crown of life ; of the 
 unspeakable joys of heaven ; of that immeasurable and 
 endless bliss that patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and 
 martyrs enjoy in the presence of God and the Lamb. 
 While sin indulged thus robs the soul of peace, and 
 happiness, and heaven, it loads it with ills immense and 
 eternal. It subjects it " to blindness of mind, hardness 
 of heart, horror of conscience," estrangement from 
 God, and bondage to Satan ; to fear, uneasiness, and 
 restlessness in life ; to doubt and terror in the day of 
 death; to banishment from God, the source of happi- 
 ness. It loads it with remorse that will last for ever ; 
 with guilt that will occasion eternal torments and eter- 
 nal despair. It kills the soul with the death that never 
 dies; for none can take the life of the soul away, 
 though millions makeit an accursed, wretched thing. O, 
 dreadful cruelly ! for man to murder with such a death 
 his own soul ; and to make it die eternally ! What must 
 it be to die for ever; to suffer the pangs of death to- 
 day, only as a prelude to suffering them to-morrow ? 
 What must it be to die from morning till night, and 
 
188 MALIGNITY OF SIN. 
 
 from night till morning; to die through days, and 
 years, and centuries, and thus to spend eternity in 
 dying?" 
 
 Sin is so vile that it can never he pardoned or washed 
 away but by the blood of the Son of God. " Had all 
 the dust of the earth been turned into silver, and the 
 stones into pearls; should the boundless sea liave 
 streamed with nothing but liquid gold," all would not 
 have been a sufficient ransom for one sinful soul. 
 Should all the creatures of the earth, and all the angels 
 of heaven, have offered themselves as a sacrifice to di- 
 vine justice, all could not have expiated one sin, or 
 atoned for one transgression. Or had the Son of God 
 himself sought man's happiness by supplication only, 
 there is no reason for supposing he could have been 
 heard. He must suffer, or man eternally must die. 
 And shall not the heart's blood of the Son of God, shed 
 for sin, fill you with eternal abhorrence of that which 
 murdered him on Calvary, and which, but for his death, 
 would have murdered your soul with everlasting de- 
 struction? 
 
 Sin is unspeakably hateful and loathsome, because 
 it is committed against God. It offends the blessed ma- 
 jesty of heaven, insults the Father, wounds the Son, 
 and grieves the Spirit. Had it power according to its 
 nature, it would dethrone the Eternal, and strip him of 
 his majesty and blessedness. O, how hellish is that 
 e\il v.'hich thus lifts its hand against the King eternal, 
 immortal, and invisible! What has not God done to 
 bless you ! From' the void of non-existence he called 
 you into being; formed a charming world for your re- 
 ception here, and bade the sun shine and the seasons 
 revolve. How numberless have been his mercies ! mer- 
 
INGRATITUDE OF SIN. 189 
 
 cies of every varied kind. The seeing eye, the hearing 
 ear, the speaking tongue, the active limb; days and 
 years of health, nights of peace and ease; the spright- 
 liness of youth, the vigor of maturer life; the pulse 
 still beating, the heart still playing, the functions of all 
 going forward without any care of yours ; food to sup- 
 port you every day of every year, and friends to cheer 
 life every day. Not one blessing deserved, yet millions 
 given to bless this transient life; and all given by God. 
 Nor has he stopped here : higher mercies, nobler gifts 
 claim attention. He has given you an immortal soul, 
 with all its noble and deathless powers ; the word of 
 life, to show the path to immortality ; hundreds of gra- 
 cious promises and salutary precepts; his Son to die 
 in your place, and by his miseries to secure endless 
 bliss for you ; his Spirit to instruct, to enlighten, to 
 sanctify, and fit the soul for heaven. AH this he has 
 done ; and if more be wanting, all that is wanting he 
 engages to do. Now think of sin, which you have in- 
 dulged in your heart. It insults this blessed God, it 
 offends him ; as far as it can it injures him, it disorders 
 his work, confuses what he made harmonious, darkens 
 what he formed bright, renders hateful what he crea- 
 ted lovely ; it abuses his mercies, it tramples his laws 
 under foot, it does despite to the Spirit of his grace; 
 and had it power, as sure as it is sin, would hurl him 
 from his throne. Such is sin. Will you cherish this 
 monster of wickedness? Can you think without hor- 
 ror of rebelling against so good, so great a Benefactor 7 
 Can yon bear the thought of burdening your soul with 
 such hellish ingratitude ? Can you think of indulging 
 in what God hates and the devil loves? Surely you 
 cannot. Then hate sin : mortify sin, the enemy of God, 
 
wo INGRATITDDE OF SIN. 
 
 Che enemy of Christ, the enemy of angels, the enemy 
 of man, and the worst enemy of your immortal soul. 
 Consider again, that sin, in all so iiateful, is in you 
 more hateful. Is not God your God ? is he not your 
 Father, the God of your choice, the object of your 
 hopes? have not you chosen him as your portion? 
 have not you in private and public avowed this choice? 
 have not you professed to yield him your heart, and 
 to surrender to him all you are ? You were once a pro- 
 digal ; but have not you come back into your Father's 
 family, and found an open door, a gracious welcome, 
 and a Father's love? Is not the Son of God your Sa- 
 vior? Did not he shed his blood to wash your stains 
 away ? and have not you confessed before him, that 
 "love so amazing, so divine,"' not merely demanded, 
 but should have your " life, your soul, your all ?" Are 
 not you indebted to him for all your hopes, for peace 
 and pardon ? Is not the Spirit of God your Sanctifier? 
 Are not you indebted to his gracious illuminations for 
 all your comforts, and for all your knowledge of God 
 and the Lamb? for a disposition to walk in the way of 
 peace? for a heart to flee to the Savior and his cross? 
 By faith in Jesus, have not you acquired a title to a life 
 above; and been introduced into the family of God? 
 Have not you had your hopes strengthened, and sealed 
 your solemn vows in the courts of your God, in the 
 professions of your baptism, and at the table of your 
 atoning Lord ? 0, my friend, who then shall describe 
 the evil of willful sin in you? You would sin against 
 the God of all these mercies, against your forgiving 
 Father. You would sin against the solemn vows by 
 which your soul is bound to him. You would sin 
 against your crucified Savior ; against his dying lovej 
 
MADNESS OP SIN. 19X 
 
 against him to whom your soul is committed ; against 
 him who writes your name in the book of life; against 
 him who lives to promote your happiness in lieaven, 
 as once he died for you on earth ; against Jesus, your 
 only hope, and whom you have engaged to serve and 
 love. You, too, would sin against the blessed Spirit, 
 who has sought your happiness, and been to you the 
 source of numberless blessings. O, then, mortify sin- 
 sin, which inflicts all these evils, and is connected with 
 all this worse than salanic ingratitude. 
 
 When tempted to sin, compare the poor, short, va- 
 nishing delights of sensual pleasure, with the heaven 
 of which sin would deprive, and the hell into which 
 sin would plunge you. If going to plunge into sin, 
 think of the wages it earns; and consider, if you fall 
 into that sin, you fall into hell, unless God's grace 
 should bring you to true repentance, and of this you 
 have no certainty. 
 
 Remember, that to consent to the enticements of 
 sin, is to be guilty of that height of folly which wants 
 a name to express its greatness. It is as if you were to 
 ■put into one scale of a balance the glory and favor of 
 the eternal God, the rich joys of an eternal heaven, the 
 life of your own eternal soul, and the precious blood 
 of the Son of God ; and in the other scale, some sen- 
 sual pleasure, some worldly profit, or some fading va- 
 nity ; and after deliberation and choice, let these sinful 
 trifles outweigh in your esteem those vast and inesti- 
 mable blessings. O, monstrous madness, and dreadful 
 contempt of God, and the Savior, and heaven ! 
 
 § 8. Let your abhorrence and opposition of sin thus 
 proceed from Gospel motives. Be not satisfied with re- 
 sisting it, merely through the fear of shame or hell. 
 
191 EFFECTS OF A SINGLE SIX. 
 
 He who opposes it only from these, has no more grace 
 than the highwayman, who would steal, but that he 
 sees the gallows before him. Take away the sight of 
 the gallows, and he will rob at ease ; take away from 
 many men the fear of hell, and they would sin at ease. 
 But the Christian mortifies sin from nobler principles. 
 With Joseph he can exclaim, "How shall I do this 
 great wickedness, and sin against God?" Above all 
 things, the influence of the cross of Christ is fatal to 
 sin. Look to the Lamb of God suffering there : con- 
 template the severity of those nameless agonies; the 
 depth of that bitter humiliation; the sharpness of 
 those outward and inward torments; and then ex- 
 claim, " Was this for my sin ? For my transgressions 
 did he groan and die? Were my iniquities his intole- 
 rable burden ? Did my sin bring him from his Father's 
 throne to the accursed cross and its ignominious sor- 
 rows ? O ! bitter were the fruits of sin when man lost 
 paradise; dreadful were the effects of sin, when the 
 Avorld perished in a deluge, or when Sodom and Go- 
 morrah were overwhelmed with the fires kindled by 
 an angry God; but not so dreadful did sin appear, 
 when Adam lost Eden, when all nations were drowned, 
 or when Sodom burned, as when the Son of God hung 
 on the cross, and for my transgressions expired. Be- 
 fore his cross let me renounce my dearest lusts, and 
 by the influence of his cross mortify every corruption." 
 § 9. Besides other motives for the mortification of 
 sin, it is by no means an inconsiderable one, that a 
 singls sin may fix upon your character a stain, which 
 on this side the grave will never be worn out. A piaus 
 minister observes, "I have been much affected with 
 the following reflection : Though, if not greatly de- 
 
FAUSEHOOD. 193 
 
 ceived, I have had some degree of experimental ac- 
 quaintance with Jesus Christ for almost forty years ; 
 though I have borne the ministerial character for up- 
 wards of twenty-five years ; though I have been, per- 
 haps, of some little use in the Church of God ; and 
 though I have had a greater share of esteem among 
 religious people than I had any reason to expect ; yet, 
 after all, it is possible for me, in one single hour of 
 temptation, to blast my character — to ruin my public 
 usefulness, and to render my warmest Christian friends 
 ashamed of owning me." An earthen vessel once 
 cracked, though it may afterwards be used, will never 
 again appear what it once was : so the character of a 
 professor of religion, or a minister, once injured by 
 any flagrant crime, into which unmortified sin may 
 lead, has received a wound that will, probably, never 
 be healed. In David's adultery, Hezekiah's ostentation, 
 Peter's cowardice, falsehood, and perjury, it is too vi- 
 sible that even persons of eminent virtue may, if sin be 
 not mortified, soon plunge deep in atrocious vices. 
 And the same truth is taught in the blasted characters 
 of many, once conspicuous for piety and usefulness, 
 but, perhaps, by a single transgression so sunk that, 
 however penitent, they never rose again. Think not, 
 therefore, any Scriptural admonitions needless. 
 
 Permit me aiTectionately to caution you more mi- 
 nutely against some sins. 
 
 § 10. Falsehood, Every thing, whether in ;e.s< or ear- 
 nest, that is not consistent with the strictest truth. 
 Lying is a sin of so shameful a nature, that an inge- 
 nuous mind, even if a stranger to converting grace, 
 holds it in abhorrence; yet too often we see this dis- 
 17 
 
194 FALSEHOOD. 
 
 graceful sin committed, or near approaches made to it, 
 and this in many ways. How many lies are told in 
 trade, and in other pursuits of human life. The buyer 
 lies when he affirms an article is not worth its real 
 value: the seller lies when he declares it worth more, 
 and asserts that to be cheap which he knows to be 
 dear. The seller lies when he declares that such a 
 price is the very lov/est, and almost immediately ac- 
 cepts a lower. The buyer lies when he declares that a 
 certain price is the highest he will give, and presently 
 gives a higher. The physician or the surgeon lies when 
 he declares of his hopeless patient that his danger is 
 small, and recovery almost certain. The servant lies 
 when she declares that a master or mistress is out, 
 whom she knows is at home. That they are not at 
 home to the person who inquires, is a mere quibble, 
 and lessens not the lie. The manufacturer lies when 
 he promises to complete an order by a certain day, but 
 knows that he is too busy to accomplish it, or from 
 carelessness neglects to do so. Flatterers lie when they 
 compliment persons as possessed of excellences, of 
 which they do not really believe them possessors. 
 Tattlers lie when they circulate as truth, tales and ac- 
 counts whose truth or falsehood they have not investi- 
 gated. Numberless lies are uttered by persons profess- 
 ing to relate narratives of facts, but which, through 
 carelessness, inattention, or love of the marvelous, 
 they embellish with additions of circumstances that 
 never took place. Many parents and persons intrusted 
 with children often lie, when endeavoring to persuade 
 childrea to comply Avith what they dislike, or in de- 
 claring they will punish them, though they have not 
 
SCANDAL. 195 
 
 such intention. In these and other ways, almost innu- 
 merable, is this hateful sin committed. 
 
 To impress your mind with the 'deepest abhorrence 
 of this sin, consider that it is hated by God. " Ly- 
 ing lips are abomination to the Lord These six things 
 doth the Lord hate; yea, seven are an abomination unto 
 him; a proud look, a lying tongue." The devil undid- 
 the world by a lie, and is peculiarly the father of lies 
 and liars. "The serpent said unto the woman. Ye 
 shall not surely die." " Ye are of your father the devil ; 
 when he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he 
 is a liar, and the father of it." Lying is numbered with 
 the worst sins; with fornication, adultery, murder, 
 idolatry, and even hatred of God. And while liars are 
 ^us numbered with the most atrocious criminals, it is 
 with dreadftd emphasis declared, that they as it were, 
 above all, shall be shut out of heaven, and endure 
 eternal destruction. "ALL LIARS shall have their 
 part in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone, 
 which is the second death." What a dreadful empha- 
 sis do the words all liars bear! It is as if it were said 
 that the damnation of every impenitent liar is so cer- 
 tain, that if it were possible, which yet it is not, for 
 some of these other classes to be saved in their sins, 
 yet that not one liar should. Let it be added on this 
 subject, that quibbling or equivocation has in number- 
 less instances all the guilt of falsehood. 
 
 § 11. Another sin of awful prevalence is scandal. 
 Perhaps no sin is so common ; perhaps none commit- 
 ted with so little thought, or remembered with less re- 
 morse. It is a sin, not like some others, chiefly com- 
 mitted by the open slaves of the world and the wicked 
 one J but, alas! frequently by those who profess to 
 
196 
 
 SCANDAL. 
 
 follow the benevolent Savior, from whose lips not one 
 word of scandal ever dropped. This sin is perpetrated 
 in various ways. It is committed, not merely by the 
 slanderer who fabricates falsehoods respecting his 
 neighbor, but by them who circulate these falsehoods. 
 A tale-bearer comes, and brings some plausible ac- 
 count to another's disgrace. It may be true, it may 
 not; the slanderer seldom takes much pains to inquire, 
 but spreads the report far and wide ; and in doing so, 
 gives publicity to the willful lie of an abandoned liar, 
 and makes himself a partaker of that liar's crimes. If 
 they to whom he relates this account respect him, 
 this adds new weight to the scandal. They spread it 
 farther still, and confirm the account by relating from 
 whom they heard the odious tale. Thus a hundred or 
 a thousand make themselves partakers in the guilt of 
 the first lie, and of all the scandal that flows from the 
 fabrication. But it is not merely when circulating 
 falsehood, that the guilt of scandal is incurred : it is 
 incurred to a dreadful extent by persons who circu- 
 late what may be substantially correct. The backbiter 
 pleads in excuse for his mischievous conduct, "The 
 account I give is true." It may be so ; but it is not all 
 the truth, or it is truth misrepresented, or it is truth 
 which he has no right to repeat. 
 
 It is not all the truth. Perhaps a brother has fallen 
 into sin. The slanderer hears of it, and away he goes, 
 and, like a trusty messenger, bears the news through 
 the whole circle of his acquaintance. It is true that the 
 sin has been committed ; but there are perhaps circum- 
 stances connected with it, which so far extenuate the 
 guilt as to call for pity to the ofl^ender rather than the 
 severity of censure. All these circumstances, however, 
 
SCANDAL. 197 
 
 the slanderer takes care to omit. Perhaps the offender 
 fell the victim of a temptation so sudden and so strong, 
 that, thus tempted, his slanderer would have fallen into 
 crimes ten times as great ; but of this the slanderer says 
 nothing. Perhaps he has deeply and bitterly repented 
 of his momentary error; bnt of this the backbiter too 
 is silent. He tells not half the truth. 
 
 The backbiter pleads, " The account is true." Yes 
 but it is truth misrepresented. Perhaps a Christian, 
 provoked and irritated, has uttered some harsh and 
 hasty expression respecting another Christian, whom 
 in his cooler moments he esteems and loves. The back- 
 biter hears it, and away he goes to the person against 
 whom these harsh words were directed, and tells him 
 what his friend has said : but he does not tell him that 
 these words were merely uttered in an unguarded mo- 
 ment, and lamented or retracted almost as soon as 
 spoken. All this, and every thing else which would 
 show the harsh words not deserving of a moment's no- 
 tice, he omits. He sows strife and discord, and leaves 
 the persons to whom he bears his tales, to esteem a 
 real friend a cool and deliberate enemy. 
 
 Or if all be true, he is still a backbiter ; for it is truth 
 which he has no business to repeat, and which he 
 would not repeat in the hearing of the person concern- 
 ed. The word of God by no means represents the guilt 
 of scandal as consisting exclusively or principally in 
 lying. Whether the statement be true or false, if it be 
 calculated to injure the reputation or comfort of ano- 
 ther, he who circulates it, except only in cases where 
 duty requires the disclosure, is a backbiter. There are 
 cases indeed, in which a disclosure of what is thus 
 17* 
 
^9® SCANDAL. 
 
 known or heard becomes a duty. Thus, to disclose to 
 a parent the misconduct of a child, may be of high im- 
 portance. Regard to the honor of religion, and con- 
 cern for the welfare of a fallen brother, frequently ren- 
 der it the duty of one member of a Christian church 
 to disclose the criminal conduct of another: but such 
 disclosure should not be made indiscriminately, but to 
 some whose office it is to see that Christian discipline 
 and order are regarded, and disorderly conduct is 
 checked by due reproof. The common practice of 
 spreading a brother's or a sister's shame, by telling his 
 fault to any or every member of a Christian society, is 
 a flagrant sin ; frequently far worse than the crime it 
 discloses. All the guilt of scandal and backbiting at- 
 taches to this shameful practice. 
 
 There is another common kind of scandal, in which 
 less is said, but frequently more mischief done. The 
 persons guilty of it are justly denominated '• whisper- 
 ers." By half sentences, sly insinuations, and affected 
 silence, they disclose the malicious feelings of their 
 hearts; and frequently convey ideas more false and 
 unfavorable respecting the person they dislike, than 
 would be suggested by the open slanderer. 
 
 It should be considered, that they who encourage 
 tale-bearers by listening to them, really become par- 
 takers of their sins. Were slanderers universally spurn- 
 ed as unworthy of notice, who would be a slanderer? 
 but when a tale-bearer's accounts are readily received, 
 though he who hears them may not circulate them,' 
 yet by hearkening to them he inspires the slanderer 
 with fresh confidence, and prepares him more readily 
 to go and repeat them elsewhere. 
 
 One short rule well observed will save vou from an 
 
SCANDAL. 199 
 
 immense mass of sm : it is merely, when you can say 
 no good of any one, unless duty requires you to speak, 
 say nothing. 
 
 Backbiting is the source of innumerable evils. " A 
 whisperer separatetFi chief friends." " The words of a 
 tale-bearer are as wounds." " Where there is no tale- 
 bearer the strife ceaseth." Individuals, families, and 
 churches have been ruined by scandal. Wars have 
 been kindled, nations desolated, and myriads murder- 
 ed, through tale-bearing. 
 
 Backbiting is a sin which is ranked in the Scrip- 
 iures with the most atrocious crimes. In the first chap- 
 ter of the Romans, it is a conspicuous line in the 
 dreadful picture of the wickedness of an apostate 
 world. "Filled with all imrighteousness, fornication, 
 wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness ; full of envy, 
 murder, debate, deceit, malignity; WHISPERERS, 
 BACKBITERS, haters of God." 
 
 ^Backbiting is a sin of a diabolical description. A 
 Christian, when under the influence of religious feel- 
 ing, can take no pleasure in hearing or in circulating 
 evil. Where pleasure is found in hearing of iniquity, 
 or in publishing a brothers shame, the heart must 
 plainly be under the influence of malice, or envy, or 
 resentment, or some disposition akin to that of devils, 
 who take delight in sin. In the Epistle to Titus, aged 
 women are cautioned against being false accusers. 
 The original is more impressive — not devils. The pas- 
 sage may suggest, that none approach nearer the like- 
 ness of devils than backbiters ; and none so like him 
 as professors of religion that are backbiters. This in- 
 fernal disposition of slanderers is frequently seen in 
 the manner in which they attack persons most emi- 
 
200 PROFANENESS. 
 
 nent for piety and usefulness. Baxter was represented 
 as a murderer, Doddridge as unjust and time-serving. 
 Whitfield as all that was vile. Even their Lord was 
 represented by slanderers as a glutton and drunkard. 
 This infernal disposition still exists. There are profes- 
 sors of religion who will represent the principal agents 
 in our Bible and Missionary Societies, who are sacri- 
 ficing time, property, ease, and perhaps health and 
 life, to the diffusion of religion, as designing, self-in- 
 terested men, whose object is to filch some of the mo- 
 ney that passes through their hands. Do not such per- 
 sons show the disposition of him who was the accuser 
 of Job ? Is there not reason to warn them to be not — 
 devils'? 
 
 § 12. Besides those sins of the tongue which have 
 been mentioned, there is another against which the 
 Christian should watch with peculiar care. It is jpro- 
 faneness. By this is not here meant the profaneness 
 of the swearer or of the blasphemer, but the light and 
 irreverent use of the name of God in common conver- 
 sation, and more especially in professed devotion. It 
 is indeed to be hoped, that of those who profess reli- 
 gion, few will profane that venerable name by such 
 irreverent expressions as " Godd God !" " O Lord !" 
 "Lord have mercy on my soul !" and expressions like 
 these, lightly uttered in common discourse. But how 
 often in professed prayer, both public and private, and 
 in singing, is that holy name profaned ; when God is ad- 
 dressed with solemn sounds upon a thoughtless tongue. 
 
 This so common sin is a great sin, as it is a dread- 
 ful violation of the third commandment, "Thou shalt 
 not take the name of the Lord. thy God in vain." 
 
 § 13. The immense multitude of sins which an un- 
 
AN UNGOVERNED TONGUE. 201 
 
 governed tongue commits, is a reason for watchful 
 care. It has been truly observed, that "the tongue is a 
 most convenient instrument of iniquity, always ready 
 for use. The sins of the tongue are perpetrated with 
 ease and delight, every day, and in every place where 
 even a solitary individual can be found to listen. 
 Hence transgressions of this kind are multiplied won- 
 derfully. The thief steals, and the cheat defrauds, oc- 
 casionally only ; but the slanderer will slander every 
 day." The formal worshipper will every day, and per- 
 haps several limes in the day, insult his God by the 
 mockery of prayer. The careless singer frequently 
 every Sabbath, and perhaps often in the week, mocks 
 the Most High. 
 
 Above all is the importance of mortifying the sins 
 of the tongue, inculcated in the awful description 
 given in the word of God, of an ungoverned tongue. It 
 is wilder than the most savage and murderous beasts. 
 " For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of ser- 
 pents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been 
 tamed of mankind ; but the tongue can no man tame." 
 Nothing short of divine power can bring it into due 
 subjection. It is venomous as the most venomous ser- 
 pent. " It is an unruly evil," evil as it were in its essence, 
 " full of deadly poison." " The poison of asps is under 
 their lips." It is like fire, when properly managed, 
 highly beneficial ; but when no longer under restramt, 
 most terrible and destructive. The tongue is a fire, 
 and not merely iniquitous, but a world of iniquity. 
 " It defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the 
 course of nature ; and it is set on fire of hell." How 
 awful a description ! How awful the last idea in it ! 
 set on fire of hell. Hell inflames the reviler ; instigates 
 
202 
 
 CONTRACTING DEBTS, 
 
 the slanderer; prompts the liar. Dreadful thought! 
 Let none imagine the daily and countless sins of the 
 tongue inconsiderable sins ; while poisonous as asps, 
 they diffuse their deadly venom, and defile the whole 
 body ; and destructive as fire, kindled by hell itself, 
 they destroy the immortal soul, and spread desolation, 
 and misery, and wo. 
 
 § 14. There is one sin, which it may be thought al- 
 most ridiculous to name, and which perhaps, for that 
 very reason, has more need of being mentioned. It is 
 the sin of consulting persons that profess to foretell fu- 
 ture events. I have known persons weak enough, or 
 wicked enough to fall into this. That it is weak, rea- 
 sonable persons will allow ; that it is wicked, the word 
 of God declares. 
 
 § 15. Another sin, often witnessed in some persons 
 that profess religion, and by which they dreadfully 
 disgrace their profession, is the sin of contracting 
 debts, which they afterwards neglect to discharge. 
 This is a sin which springs from many sources. Often 
 from idleness, and neglect of the proper duties of a 
 person's calling in life. At other times it springs from 
 pride, and a desire indulged to figure away beyond 
 what a small income will allow. Sometimes it springs 
 from extravagance, and frequently from thoughtless- 
 ness. Persons contract debts without considering how 
 unlikely it is that they shall be prepared for payment 
 when the appointed time arrives. In all these cases, 
 and in many others, it is a sin which not only ruins 
 the credit of the guilty person, but if he profess reli- 
 gion, brings disgrace, in the view of an undiscerning 
 world, on religion itself. This common and dishonor- 
 able practice is a very wicked one. 
 
] COVETOUSNESS. 203 
 
 § J 6. Another sin, which it is to be feared has blasted 
 the eternal hopes of many professed disciples of the 
 Son of God, is covetousness. Covetousness is a sin con- 
 fined to no peculiar age ; for if it be allowed that it is 
 frequently the ruling sin of old age, yet it is also often 
 a sin of youth. It is confined to persons in no station ; 
 the poor and the rich are frequently alike covetous. 
 Nor is it, like drunkenness and lewdness, found almost 
 entirely among those who are destitute of the profes- 
 sion of religion ; but it has been the curse and the ruin 
 of many that have named the name of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ. 
 
 It is an insidious sin. The covetous man scarcely 
 ever has any suspicion of his real character. He that 
 robs knows that he is a robber ; he that plunges into 
 drunkenness, when reason returns, knows that he has 
 been intoxicated ; but he that indulges covetousness 
 generally has no suspicion of his guilt and danger, but 
 lives, and dies, and perishes in his delusion. 
 
 It leads to other most atrocious crimes. Balaam's co- 
 vetousness made him desire to curse Israel, whom God 
 blessed. Ahab's covetousness of Naboth's vineyard 
 caused Naboth's murder and Ahab's destruction. Ju- 
 das's covetousness led him to betray the Lord of Life, 
 and thus to sell his gracious Master and damn his own 
 soul for thirty pieces of silver. The single murders 
 which robbers have committed, the wholesale murders 
 which war has perpetrated, have been frequently the 
 effect of covetousness. Fatal to individuals and na- 
 tions, it is not less deadly to churches and families. A 
 covetous minister of the Gospel is one of the worst of 
 monsters. Good withers before him, as life and ver- 
 dure before a pestilential blast. Demons might walk 
 
204 COVETOUSNESS. 
 
 beside him, and exult in viewing opening schemes of 
 usefulness neglected, and opportunities of doing im- 
 mortal good slighted, through the freezing influence of 
 covetousness. 
 
 The peculiar vileness of covetousness is further seen 
 in it sbeing a sin of the heart, and as such, diametrically 
 opposed to all ffood. It is not a transient crime, into 
 which the person falls through strong temptation, but it 
 is a disposition of his heart, by which, in effect, he pre- 
 fers the creature to the Creator. As such, it is worse than 
 the grossest crimes — worse than profaneness, worse 
 than perjury, worse than even adultery. The Scrip- 
 tures record mournful instances of men of piety that 
 through strong temptation fell into these dreadful sins, 
 but the Scriptures mention no instance of a child of 
 God that was a covetous man. The covetous man be- 
 longs to the family of Balaam and of Judas. "Be not 
 deceived: nor thieves, nor covetous, shall inherit the 
 kingdom of God." Awful and decisive declaration! 
 Let not the covetous indulge so false a hope as the 
 hope of reaching heaven. 
 
 Think not, however, that this sin is merely or chief- 
 ly that excessive avarice which has rendered a few 
 noted misers eminently infamous. If this were the 
 case, there would be less probability of being hardened 
 and ruined by it. But the Lord Jesus represents con- 
 duct much less dark, much less miserly, as ruinous co- 
 vetousness. Luke, 12 : 15-21. He does not describe 
 the covetous man as a thorough miser, hoarding up 
 his useless stores merely to gaze upon them ; nor as 
 a hard oppressor, who gains his riches by grinding 
 the faces and keeping back the wages of the poor. He 
 does not describe him as one who starves himself and 
 
Christ's example. 206 
 
 his family to increase his golden heap. His riches 
 we~e given him by God's bounty; his fields brought 
 forth plentifully. He showed his covetousness, not by 
 the way of acquiring riches, not by gathering in the 
 bounty of heaven, but by the use he made of them. A 
 m:re selfish use. Instead of promoting God's glory and 
 man's happiness by his abundance, he proposed em- 
 ploying his riches in self-gratification, and God pro- 
 nounced him a fool. 
 
 O learn, that not merely the miser, who hoards up 
 his useless gold, not merely the oppressor, or the ex- 
 tortioner, whose gains are the fruits of cruelty and dis- 
 honesty, are in God's sight guilty of covetousness; but 
 the honest tradesman, the moral youth, the amiable 
 girl, who look no further than gratifying themselves 
 with what they possess. According to their Maker's 
 judgment they belong to the same class. Take heed, 
 therefore, and beware of covetousness ; of this more com- 
 mon, but not less ruinous covetousness. 
 
 § 17. Closely connected with covetousness is love of 
 Ihis world. The sacred Scriptures represent the Savior's 
 disciples as persons who have little concern with this 
 world ; whose chief business here should be to glorify 
 God, and press forward to heaven. Jesus said, " They 
 are not of the world, even as I am not of the world." 
 " Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth." 
 " Set your affections on things above, not on things on 
 the earth ; for ye are dead, and your life is hid with 
 Christ in God." 
 
 How full, how impressive, are those words of the 
 blessed Jesus, " They are not of the world, even as I 
 am not of the world." This world was no object of his 
 18 
 
206 «hrist's example. 
 
 affection. He slighted its wealth, scorned its treasures, 
 disregarding all its fading pursuits, and ail its deceit- 
 ful maxims. It had no charms for him ; its terrors 
 could not alarm, nor its allurements entice him. He 
 acted in it as a stranger come to perform an important 
 commission, and then to leave it for ever. Are you 
 one of his disciples? This world is no more to be the 
 object of your affections than it was of his. 
 
 This holy deadness to the present world is described 
 impressively by the Apostle Paul; " God forbid that I 
 should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
 by which the world is crucified to me, and I unto the 
 world." Such was the influence of the cross of Christ 
 upon his heart, that the world was crucified to him. It 
 was as unlovely as a crucified malefactor in his view. 
 All its charms were dead, all its attractions gone; and 
 darkness, deformity and death lov/ered over its face. 
 He was crucified to the world— he looked upon it with 
 feelings similar to those of a person dying on a cross. 
 How little interest would such a one take in the most 
 interesting and affecting scenes of earth I All that is 
 most engaging in nature might be spread around his 
 cross, and busy multitudes be seen eagerly pursuing 
 the concerns of life ; but the crucified man would 
 scarcely cast one glance from his dying eyes, on all 
 the charms of nature or the bustle of life. All that is 
 most charming would not tempt him ; all that is most 
 dreadful would not alarm him. If you are a follower 
 of Jesus, you too must be crucified to the world, and 
 the world to you. If a Christian indeed, your treasure 
 and your home lie beyond the grave ; and your heart 
 and hopes are fixed on unfading blessings there. 
 
 As you would escape eternal death, as you desire 
 
LOVE TO THE WORLD. 207 
 
 eternal life, watch against love to the world. It has 
 been the ruin of millions. Beware of this rock. On it 
 crowds, that once seemed setting out for heaven, have, 
 made shipwreck of faith and eternal hopes. The world 
 is Satan's grand temptation. If that bait fail, he has 
 none more alluring to present. The world was the last 
 temptation by which he tried the Son of God: "All 
 these things," said he, '-will I give thee, if thou wilt 
 fall down and worship me." When that was rejected, 
 he fled ; he had no higher bribe to offer. Love to the 
 world is the most fatal of sins. The Scriptures tell of 
 some eminently pious men that fell deeply, but as bit- 
 terly repented ; but not one child of God is described 
 who was a lover of the world. For this is not merely a 
 single sin, a casual fall, but a state of mind, a disposi- 
 tion of heart, connected with all that is opposed to 
 God and goodness. This sin also is peculiarly dange- 
 •rous, because it is peculiarly insidious. It steals into 
 the heart and governs there, and yet deceives the slave 
 it governs. It kills immortal hopes, it damns the im- 
 mortal soul ; and yet its wretched slave, perhaps, con- 
 nects himself with a Christian church; professes the 
 religion of Jesus ; brings, it may be, no flagrant dis- 
 grace on his profession; but still lives and dies de- 
 ceived. Were he to become a swearer or a drunkard, 
 his friends would disown him, as dead to God. His 
 crimes would stare him in the face, and conscience at 
 last might take the alarm, and bid him flee from the 
 wrath to come. But the lover of the world feels no 
 such alarm. He stands as a member of the church of 
 Christ, or perhaps sustains some office in it; or as- 
 cends the pulpit, and bids others flee from ruin ; yet 
 he is himself a child of hell, for he is a lover of the 
 
208 MARKS OF LOVE TO THE WORLD. 
 
 world. O, my fellow-pilgrim, there is no religion in 
 the heart while the world is loved. If any man, let his 
 knowledge of divine truth be ever so extensive, let his 
 profession be ever so strict, his zeal for orthodox .' 
 ever so flaming, his character ever so amiable, and his 
 standing in the Christian church ever so long, yet, 
 " If any man love the world, the love of the Father is 
 not in him." All the forms of religion may be as- 
 sumed, all open sins be renounced by him who yet re- 
 mains a lover of the world. The drunkard may be- 
 come sober, the lewd grow chaste, the liar true, the 
 pilferer honest, the profane begin to reverence his 
 Maker's name, the Sabbath-breaker frequent God's 
 house, and the prayerless learn to pray, and yet this 
 master sin, this treacherous vice, may lie hidden with 
 in. And the man who has undergone the change now 
 described, may be as far from God, and perhaps even 
 further, than when he drank in iniquity like water. 
 Then he had some fears that his state was bad ; now 
 he thinks that all is right ; and yet, because he loves 
 the world, all is wrong. 
 
 Perhaps you inquire, How shall this secret evil be 
 discerned ? The mention of a few marks of it may as- 
 sist self-examination. 
 
 Love to the world rules within, if, for the sake of 
 profit, ease, or pleasure, you are kept back from ac- 
 cepting Jesus Christ as your Lord, your Savior, and 
 your all. Jesus said, "He that taketh not his cross 
 and followeth after me, is not worthy of me." 
 
 Love to the world governs in your heart, if, through 
 fear of loss, or injury, you persist in what you know 
 to be sinful. If, for instance, there be in your trade or 
 avocation any thing that you know is inconsisteni 
 
SCENES OF TEMPTATION. 209 
 
 with religion, and yet, to avoid loss or secure gain, 
 you persist in following this, by so doing you plainly 
 show that you love the world more than God and 
 your own soul ; that you are no Christian. " Whoso- 
 ever he be of you tliat forsaketh not all that he hath, 
 he cannot be my disciple." 
 
 Common reason may further convince us, that love 
 to the world is to be known by anxiety to acquire 
 worldly good, and unwillingness to part with it. He 
 that saves or toils for wealth, that, with what he ac- 
 quires, he may feed the hungry, clothe the naked, sup- 
 port the cause of religion, and send the Gospel far and 
 wide, shows in his industry no symptoms of love to 
 the world; but he who pursues the same conduct, 
 saves with the same care, and toils with the same as- 
 siduity, not to benefit mankind, but that he may heap 
 up a Hltle more for hiniBelf and his family ; he who, 
 though he may contribute his mite to benevolent ob- 
 jects, yet he gives a contemptible trifle, compared with 
 what he ought to give, and perhaps even that trifle 
 with reluctance; he bears the fatal mark of having 
 this plague upon his soul. His assiduity to get the 
 world, and his care to keep what he acquires, demon- 
 strate him a perishing lover of the world. 
 
 § 18. This little volume would far exceed its design- 
 ed limits, if as much notice were bestowed on every 
 sin as has been on those just mentioned. Permit the 
 writer however to add, 
 
 If you would mortify sin, flee from the occasions of 
 sin. Be not bold in venturing into scenes of tempta- 
 tion. "Depart from evil, and do good." If you love the 
 Lord, " hate evil." •' Enter not into the path of the 
 18* 
 
210 APPEARANCE OF EVIL. 
 
 wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, 
 pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away." Multi- 
 tudes confiding in their own strengtli, have gone into 
 scenes of temptation ; the consequence has been their 
 present, and probably their eternal destruction. You 
 are taught to pray, "Lead us not into temptation;" 
 but he who willfully rushes into it has no reason to 
 expect divine assistance to keep him from its danger; 
 but rather to suppose that God will leave him to him- 
 self, to punish his sin and folly. 
 
 § 19. It is not sufficient for the Christian who would 
 honor his profession, to abstain from sin : he is com- 
 manded to " ABSTAIN FROM ALL APPEARANCE OF EVIL." 
 
 So high does the morality of the Gospel rise, that it 
 thus positively forbids, under the most awful sanc- 
 tions, not only what is actually evil, but ALL that has 
 even the appearance of bdng so. There are many 
 things which are not positively sinful, but which have 
 the appearance of evil. These are to be abstained from 
 as carefully as sin itself. There are others, which the 
 well informed Christian may be convinced are free 
 from actual guilt, yet their appearance may be such 
 that weaker brethren esteem them wicked. These, too, 
 the Scriptures forbid. Think not that this point is of 
 little importance. The appearance of evil may as ef- 
 fectually injure the cause of Christ and dishonor God, 
 as evil itself. The mere appearance of evil^ by throw- 
 ing a stumbling-block in the way of others, may as ef- 
 fectually as evil itself harden men in sin, defeat the 
 end for which Christ died, blast the labors of Gospel 
 ministers, and ruin immortal souls. 
 
NATURE OF HUMILITY'. 211 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 ON HUMILITY, RESIGNATION, PATIENCE, AND 
 CONTENTMENT. 
 
 § 1. Humility is a principal Christian grace. It is 
 so essential to the Christian character, that without it 
 religion cannot possibly exist; and to promote its 
 growth and yield to its influence is a principal part of 
 true wisdom. 
 
 Humility consists in entertaining those lowly views 
 of ourselves which become dependent and mortal, cor- 
 rupt and sinful creatures. It is to be manifested to- 
 wards God in confessions of sin, in self-abasement and 
 contrition, in lowly reverence, resignation, submission, 
 patience, and contentment; and is to be displayed in 
 our intercourse with manliind, not by the constant lan- 
 guage of self-depreciation, but by meel^ness and gen- 
 tleness ; by esteeming others better than ourselves ; by 
 calmness, when slighted or insulted ; by forbearance 
 and forgiveness, wlien provoked or mjured ; by kind- 
 ness, that stoops to the meanest objects of compassion ; 
 and by benevolence, that does good in secret, and blush- 
 es to find its actions applauded. 
 
 Humility is not a disposition naturally existing in 
 the human heart. On the contrary, pride is the radi- 
 cal sin of human nature, and displays itself in a thou- 
 sand forms. Multitudes are proud of their reasoning 
 powers, of their fancied wisdom. Tliough in the world 
 of nature mystery meets them at every step, they cavil 
 at the word of God on account of what they deem 
 mysterious. But humility sits at the feet of Jesus and 
 learns of him. 
 
212 
 
 PF-IDE IN DRESS. 
 
 Pride renders men impatient of reproof. The hum- 
 ble will receive with gratitude the faithful reproofs of 
 Christian friends, but the proud resent the kind dealing 
 of those who tell them their faults; they love their 
 flatterers, and are ingenious in devising excuses for 
 their guilt. 
 
 § 2. Pride in dress is the ruling sin in many hearts, 
 and is not confined to one age or to one sex. When 
 this sin abounded in Israel, the great God threatened 
 it with his judgments. Isa, 3: 16-18, 24. Think not 
 that it is a matter of little importance. The Scripture 
 direction to Christian females is, " That women adorn 
 themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness 
 and sobriety: not with broidered hair, or gold, or 
 pearls, or costly array; but (which becometh women 
 professing godliness) with good works." 
 
 Pride is indulged in apparel, when our dress is too 
 costly for our circumstances. It governs in the heart 
 when, instead of being content with Christian neat- 
 ness and simplicity, persons are fond of displaying 
 themselves in gay and gaudy attire ; or when they 
 suffer that to occupy their hearts, and for hours and 
 hours engage their thoughts; when, like an infant, 
 they are delighted at appearing in a new garment, or 
 filling their minds with anticipations of the appear- 
 ance they shall make. 
 
 One most injurious way in which pride in dress ope- 
 rates among the poor is, by inducing them to abstain 
 from the house of God because they have not such 
 clothes as they desire. If you who read this book are 
 poor, and have, acted this part, be assured it is pride, 
 and only pride, that has occasioned this sinful neglect. 
 Your prayers would not be less acceptable to God, nor 
 
PRIDE HATEFUL. 213 
 
 5'Our soul less benefited in his house, because your 
 garments were mean and decayed. There is nothing 
 shameful in poverty that sin does not occasion ; but 
 there is much sin in slighting the interests of your im- 
 mortal soul and neglecting the house of your God for 
 want of better clothing. This wicked pride, that dwells 
 in the hearts of so many of the poor, deprives them of 
 the means of grace, keeps them from hearing the Gos- 
 pel of salvation ; if they once knew religion, renders 
 them dead and indifferent to it; if they have not known 
 it, prevents their obtaining the only true wisdom, and 
 at last sinks them down to hell. O, what folly and sin, 
 to neglect the salvation of an immortal soul because 
 the clothes that cover the dying body are mean and 
 poor ! I have seen with pleasure a poor disciple of Je- 
 sus attend the house of God in tattered and worn-out 
 garments when he possessed no better, and known 
 such a one soon furnished, through Christian liberahty, 
 with more corritortable clothing; who, if he had in- 
 dulged the pride that many cherish, might have con- 
 tinued at home, his body covered with rags, and his 
 soul languishing, and religion dying, through neglect 
 of the ordinances of God. 
 
 § 3. Pride is hateful to God, and the proud are the 
 objects of his wrath. " Every one that is proud in 
 heart, is an abomination to the Lord." "The Lord 
 hateth a proud look." " God resisteth the proud." It 
 is the parent of strife ; the fruitful source of quarrels, 
 discords, dissensions, revenge, of the private murders 
 of villains, and the wholesale murders of war. '*Only 
 by pride cometh contention." It is an uneasy passion, 
 and the source of that devilish passion, envT/, which 
 looks with dissatisfaction on others' good; which 
 
^14 PRIDK, PARENT OF ENVY. 
 
 mourns their prosperity, if superior to its own ; and 
 would feel more satisfied to see them wretched when 
 itself is afflicted, than to see them happy. Yet, infer- 
 nal as is this passion, it is the sure attendant of pride; 
 and if not visible in its greatest excesses, still will ex- 
 ist where pride rules. 
 
 Pride is hateful, as it is the parent of discontent 
 with the dealings of God, and ingratitude for his mer- 
 cies. On this subject one says, " I have trials by per- 
 plexities respecting the things of time ; yet they seem 
 needful; for they have shown me more of myself 
 than I knew before. This day or two these discove- 
 ries have led me to enter into Wesley's words: 
 
 ' God only knows the utmost hell 
 ' Of the deceitful heart.' 
 
 I did not know mine. Instead of a submissive spirit, I 
 feel that there is within me a disposition to murmur. 
 Instead of humility and thankfulness for what 1 have, 
 I can at times perceive a feeling rising, as if others, 
 who deserved less, were favored more— a hellish feel- 
 ing, springing from that pride and self which I abhor, 
 but feel clinging closely to my nature." 
 
 The dispositions which this writer lamented the 
 proud man cherishes. When God chastises him, he is 
 discontented, and perhaps murmurs, because he thinks 
 he has not deserved the affliction. When the good he 
 desires is withheld, he repines, because he thinks he 
 deserves more, and receives less, than some others that 
 he esteems more highly favored. I once knew a man 
 who in affliction declared that the Lord was not mer- 
 ciful to him. He would say, "Can this be of love?" 
 and assert that he could not love God, who so afflict 
 
PRIOE CRUEL AND FALSE. 
 
 215 
 
 *d him. He would declare that he had not deserved 
 what he suffered ; that there must be some mistake, 
 and that he must be suffering for the sins of another. 
 The discontent which pride breeds may not often be 
 so openly expressed ; but as seen by Him who searches 
 the heart, and knows sin in the blade as well as in the 
 ear. it is doubtless seen as a disposition of this infernal 
 nature. 
 
 § 4. Pride is cruel as death. Prompted by pride, 
 ambition wades through seas of blood, and sees with 
 unconcern myriads of victims slain, that it may obtain 
 fame or power. Pride is not less cruel in private life. 
 What sums of money are uselessly expended for the 
 sake of glitter and show, that might feed the hungry, 
 clothe the naked, and cheer many a broken heart! 
 How many professors of religion are there that have 
 nothing to impart to the afflicted, and contribute no- 
 thing, or next to nothing, to support and diffuse reli- 
 gion, because their pride leads them to spend every 
 spare shilling upon themselves in dress ! Their pride 
 is cruel. How many wealthy professors of the Gospel 
 spend scores or hundreds of pounds on vanities in 
 their dress, their furniture, or their style of living, to 
 make their fellow-worms esteem them respectable, 
 while they give a paltry annual guinea to institutions 
 that are laboring to diffuse the Gospel among Six hun- 
 dred millions of perishing and benighted m6n? Their 
 pride is cruel. Were it not for this cruel pride among 
 professors of the Gospel, how rich Would be the funds 
 of every benevolent institution ! The silver and the 
 gold would pour like copious streams mto their trea- 
 suries ; but pride and selfishness render them poor ; 
 pride, that gives a shilling where a guinea ought to be 
 
216 HUMILITY PRIZED BY GOD.' 
 
 given, and gives a guinea where a hundred or a thou- 
 sand ought to be imparted. 
 
 Pride is false. How many lies are told through 
 pride, by persons who have sinned, to shield them- 
 selves from shame and disgrace ! They are not asham- 
 ed to sin, but they are ashamed to appear what they 
 really are — the lovers of sin. How many lies are told 
 by persons whose circumstances are depressed, that 
 they may appear more wealthy than^they really are ! 
 Pride is dishonest. How often do persons, for the 
 sake of finer furniture and apparel than they an af- 
 ford, contract debts which they cannot discharge ! 
 They are ashamed to appear in poor clothing, but 
 they are not ashamed to obtain their neighbor's ^jods, 
 and really to rob them of their property. 
 
 § 5. The importance and value of humility is strong- 
 ly enforced in the word of God. "Though the Lord 
 be high, yet hath he respect unto the lowly," "He 
 giveth grace unto the lowly." "Thus saith the high 
 and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name 
 is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy plac-, with liim 
 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." " Blessed are the poor in spirit : for 
 theirs is the kingdom of heaven." "When ye shall 
 have done all those things which are 'Commanded 
 you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done 
 that which was our duty to do." "Be oiolhed with 
 humility." 
 
 § 6. The Lord Jesus was humble. He left a spotless 
 pattern, that we should follow his steps; and of the 
 glories that unite in that example, none shines brighter 
 than humility. Before he appeared on earth he was in 
 
THE LORD JESUS HUMBLE. 217 
 
 the form of God, and thought it not robbery to be equal 
 with God ; but with condescension that has no parallel, 
 he became a man, a man of poverty and wo. When 
 he appeared on earth, he appeared not as the son of a 
 monarch, but of a carpenter ; and chose for a birth ■ 
 place not a palace, but the stable of an inn. Unlike the 
 proud, who think the employments of the lower ranks 
 of mankind disgraceful, he most probably labored as a 
 carpenter. When he commenced his public ministry, 
 he invited not princes or philosophers to convey a mes- 
 sage, which angels would be honored by conveying, 
 but he chose for his apostles a few poor fishermen. 
 With these he associated on terms so condescending, 
 that he said, " I am among you as he that serveth." 
 Unlike those who esteem poverty disgraceful, he was 
 so poor, that when a trifle was demanded from him 
 for tribute, he had lo work a miracle to raise even to 
 the value of half a crown for himself and a beloved 
 disciple. Instead of sumptuous fare, he was contented 
 with the plainest food, with small fishes and barley 
 bread. No abode was too mean for him to enter ; no 
 office of kindness too humble for him to perform; no 
 child of wretchedness too degraded for him to benefit. 
 Though infinitely superior to the angels of heaven, 
 no consequential behavior ever appeared in him ; but 
 the meanest of the mean was not below his kind atten- 
 tion. When the Samaritan woman, poor in circum- 
 stances and debased in character, found him sitting by 
 Jacob's well, he freely conversed with the poor wan- 
 derer, unveiled the guilty secrets of her heart, and di- 
 rected her into the way of life. When the centurion 
 sent, beseeching him to heal his servant, with the hu- 
 19 
 
218 THE LORD JESUS HUMBLE. 
 
 mility which listens to every call of distress, he imme- 
 diately replied, " I will come and heal him." When 
 parents, anxious for their children's welfare, sought his 
 blessing, unlike the self-important philosopher, who 
 esteems such little ones beneath his notice, Jesus look 
 them in his arms and blessed them. Despised as were 
 the publicans, he readily allowed them to sit down 
 with him and his disciples; and careless of the mur- 
 murs of the proud, said on one occasion to their chief, 
 "Zaccheus, to-day I must abide at thy house." He 
 preached the Gospel to the poor, and the common 
 people heard him gladly; and unlike those who think 
 the poor and illiterate of little importance, who value 
 churches or congregations according to what they call 
 respectability, he rejoiced that such were his disciples ; 
 and said, " I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and 
 earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise 
 and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes." 
 Though he might have assumed the loftiest title, he 
 often chose the humblest; and spoke of himself under 
 the lowly appellation of the Son of man. The love of 
 fame has been pronounced the universal passion; but 
 he whom angels praise, sought no praise. Instead of 
 magnifying those works of mercy which deserved the 
 admiration of the world, he spoke of them i-n the hum- 
 blest terms. When about to raise the daughter of Jairus, 
 he said, " Why make ye this ado, and weep ? the dam- 
 sel is not dead, but sleepeth." When going to raise 
 Lazarus from the grave, he said, " Our friend Lazarus 
 sleepeth ; but I go that I may awake him out of sleep." 
 And when he healed the Gadarene demoniac, from 
 whom he expelled a legion of devils, he would not per- 
 mit such a monument to his praise to attend him from 
 
Christ's humiuty. 219 
 
 city to city, but said, " Return to thine own house, and 
 show how great things God hath done unto thee.'* So 
 far was he from seeking applause, that instead of court- 
 ing the fame his miracles would attract, he often charged 
 those for whom these miracles were wrought, to tell 
 no man of the benefit they had experienced. At other 
 times he immediately left the place, as when he healed 
 the lame man at the pool of Bethesda. On one occa- 
 sion he took aside the sufferer whom he cured ; and on 
 another, when his help was solicited, immediately 
 granted it when he saw a crowd assembling. How dif- 
 ferent from their conduct whose pride renders them 
 uneasy when benevolent actions or labors are not no- 
 ticed and applauded. Influenced by the same spirit, he 
 sought not his own glory, but his that sent him; and 
 said, "As my Father hath taught me, I speak these 
 things." No slights, no insults, disturbed the calmness 
 of his soul. When not treated with common civility 
 at the house of a Pharisee, who invited him to dine, 
 he manifested no displeasure. When the Samaritans 
 would not receive him, and his two disciples provoked 
 at the insult, said, " Lord, wilt thou that we command 
 fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, 
 even as Elias did? he turned, and rebuked them, and 
 said. Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. 
 For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, 
 but to save them." Though the Author of Christianity, 
 and the Lord of heaven and earth, he willingly per- 
 mitted his unworthy disciples to excel himself in the 
 splendor of their miracles and the fullness of their in- 
 structions. He said, " Verily, verily, I say unto you, 
 He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he 
 do also ; and greater works than these shall he do ; be- 
 
220 Christ's humility. 
 
 cause I go unto my Father." " I have yet many things 
 to say unto you^ but ye cannot bear them nov/.-' 
 
 O, think whose character you thus contemplate — 
 whose humility you thus behold— his in whom every 
 excellency met— spotless innocence and perfect holi- 
 ness—yet he was humble. His possessions were hea- 
 ven and earth— his dwelling-place eternity— his ser- 
 vants cherubim and seraphim — his Father, the King 
 eternal, immortal, invisible, whom no man hath seen 
 nor can see— his happiness the delights enjoyed in the 
 bosom of the Father; yet he was humble; and when 
 he came to earth, led a life of humility as consummate 
 as his benevolence Vv^as boundless. And can you be his 
 follower, and cherish pride? pride, which sprang up 
 first in Satan's breast. Was he poor; and will you 
 scorn the poor, or think it beneath you to enter the 
 lowliest dwelling? Did he, when a man of poverty, 
 labor for his daily support; and will you, a worm ol 
 the dust, look down with contempt upon a fellow- 
 worm, because he does what Jesus, when incarnate 
 did, earns his support by the labor of his hands ? Did 
 he make the pious poor his followers, and rejoice that 
 such were his disciples; and will you look on piety 
 itself as scarcely deserving notice if it be united with 
 poverty? or think that piety in a fine house and cost- 
 ly apparel deserves a hundred times more attention 
 than perhaps much superior piety in coarse clothes 
 and a cottage? If these are your feelings, how differ- 
 ent from those of him you perhaps call your Master. 
 Were he on earth as poor as formerly, you would 
 doubtless be ashamed of him. 
 
 It would shock your genteel feelings, to be the 
 friend or associate of a journeyman carpenter, though 
 
REASONS FOR HUMILITY. 
 
 221 
 
 under that guise the Son of God were concealed. Yet, 
 poor worm ! of what have you to be proud? You, by- 
 nature a child of wrath, and by sin's desert an heir of 
 hell ! You, who must soon leave all your gay apparel, 
 to assume the dress of the grave. You, who must soon 
 say to corruption, "Thou art my father, and to the 
 worm, thou art my mother and sister." Of what have 
 you to be proud ? Is it your property ? God values 
 it so little, that he gives it to millions of his enemies, 
 but to few of his children. Is it your rich attire? does 
 that add one grain to your real worth ? Is it your 
 beauty ? it must soon be exchanged for deformity and 
 rottenness: all of you that is mortal must soon be 
 moldering dust or a ghastly skeleton. ! think : Je- 
 sus was humble, and angels are humble ; only devils 
 and fallen men are proud. 
 
 § 7. If more than the example of that divine Friend 
 is requisite to make you humble, think what you 
 were; and this one thought, properly indulged, will 
 be sufficient to destroy pride. You were a child of 
 wrath, a slave of Satan, an enemy to God ; in the view 
 of God, a wretched creature, a malefactor, doomed to 
 an eternal hell ; and deservedly condemned to suffer 
 there the death that never dies. You must acknow- 
 ledge this, or overturn the whole Gospel, and set the 
 grace of God altogether aside. Do you, with me, ac- 
 knowledge this? then of what have we to be proud ? 
 Behold a poor wretch, whose crimes are bringing him 
 to the gallows. He has deserved to die. The utmost 
 that human justice can inflict upon him, is no more 
 than he has merited. He has lost his friends, his cha- 
 racter, his liberty, and deserved to lose them all ; he is 
 19* 
 
222 REASONS FOR HUMILITY. 
 
 about to lose his life, and if it be taken from him, all 
 must acknowledge it is justly taken. Of what has that 
 man to be proud ? Let that man by an act of free mer- 
 cy be pardoned, yet of what has he to be proud '? If 
 you are a Christian, you know that you were a lost 
 sinner ; that whatever your character may have been 
 in the view of man, in the sight of God it was blasted 
 by the atrocious wickedness of rebellion against him. 
 Of what have you to be proud ? You were a slave of the 
 devil, and perhaps passed many years as his slave ; can 
 you think of this and be proud ? Had God left you to 
 yourself, you would have been a slave of the devil to 
 this very hour ; can you think of this and be proud? 
 You delivered not yourself, it was God who translated 
 you out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom 
 of his dear Son. You did deserve hell, you were con- 
 demned to it ; can you think of this and be proud ? 
 The most miserable wretch that was ever led to execu- 
 tion w-as never a hundredth part so guilty with respect 
 to his fellow-creatures as we have been with respect 
 to God ; and the most miserable death which the most 
 wicked criminal ever suffered, was not a thousandth 
 part so dreadful as that eternal punishment which eve- 
 ry sinner has deserved. Of what then have we to be 
 proud ? 
 
 § 8. When you view yourself as a Christian, you 
 may doubtless find much to deepen humility. Com- 
 pare yourself with some other disciples of the Savior. 
 IJow much stronger has been their faith ! What far 
 brighter hopes have animated their souls 1 How much 
 stronger has the flame of holy love burned in their 
 breast ! With how much closer imitation have they co- 
 pied the holy Jesus? How much more have they honor- 
 
REASONS FOR HUMILITY. 223 
 
 ed God, glorified their Redeemer, and benefited their fel- 
 low-pilgrims ! In short, how heavenly have been their 
 aflTeclions, how holy their lives, and with how quick a 
 progress have they been pressing on to heaven ! View 
 this, and sink low in humility. Perhaps, too, this has 
 been the case of many who had few privileges and ad- 
 vantages like yours ; who had less knowledge and 
 fewer gifts, and whose natural talents were far below 
 yours. See this, and sink still deeper in humility. 
 
 § 9. Think what, as a Christian, you should he. How 
 elevated is the Christian character, as described in the 
 word of God ! What holiness, meekness, gentleness, 
 devotion, faith, love, peace, and joy should adorn the 
 Christian ! How much should the follower of Jesus 
 on earth resemble the disciple of Jesus in heaven! 
 But is not the likeness in yourself extremely imper- 
 fect? Have not you reason to lament numerous de- 
 fects ; to deplore the weakness of almost every grace, 
 and to confess yourself still but a mere infant in reli- 
 gion? Is this the case, and should you not be clothed 
 with humility, and appear robed in it in all your deal- 
 ings with man, and all your intercourse with God ? 
 
 Consider not what you are in the judgment of your 
 fellow-creatures, but what you are in the judgment of 
 the infinitely pure and holy God. What they call frail- 
 ties, are in his sight great crimes. Place yourself as in 
 his presence. Contrast the pollution of your nature 
 with the infinite purity of his; your sinful heart with 
 his unspotted holiness; your defective virtues with his 
 unblemished excellences; your weak graces and im- 
 perfect services with those perfect glories that adorn 
 his character, and with that perfection of purity and 
 obedience which his law requires. As in the bright 
 
224 REASONS FOR HUMILITY. 
 
 beams of the noon-day sun, innumerable atoms, before 
 unseen, become clearly visible, and are seen floating in 
 the air; so, in the presence of Jehovah, innumerable 
 defects, and faults, and sins, perhaps before unseen, 
 become conspicuous in the view of the soul. Angels 
 veil their faces in his presence, and saints the most ex- 
 alted sink before him into the lowest depths of self 
 abasement. The eminently pious Doddridge, express- 
 ing his feelings not long before the close of a life of 
 distinguished usefulness and activity, said, "My confi- 
 dence is not that I have lived such or such a life, or 
 served God in this or the other manner: I know of no 
 prayer I ever offered, no service I ever performed, but 
 there has been such a mixture of what was wrong in 
 it, that instead of recommending me to the favor of 
 God, I needed his pardon, through Christ, for the same. 
 Yet I am full of confidence: and this is my confidence; 
 there is a hope set before me : I have fled, I still fly 
 for refuge to that hope." 
 
 Of Archbishop Usher it is related, that a friend 
 urged him to write his thoughts on sanctification, 
 which he engaged to do; but when the performance 
 of his engagement was claimed, he replied to this ef- 
 fect: "I have not written, and yet I cannot charge my- 
 self with a breach of promise, for I began to write; 
 but when I came to treat of the new creature which 
 God formeth by his Spirit in every regenerate soul, I 
 found so little of it wrought in myself, that I could 
 speak of it only as parrots, or by rote, without the 
 knowledge of what I might have expressed ; and there- 
 fore I durst not presume to proceed any further upon 
 it." His friend being amazed at such a confession from 
 so eminently holy a person, he added, " I must tell you, 
 
REASONS FOR HUMILITY. 225 
 
 we do not well understand what sanctification and the 
 new creature are. It is no less than for a man to be 
 brought to an entire resignation of his own will to the 
 will of God, and to live in the offering up of his soul 
 continually in the flames of love, and as a whole burnt- 
 offering to Christ : and O how many who profess 
 Christianity are unacquainted experimentally with this 
 great work upon their souls !" 
 
 Consider further, whence all that is holy in your 
 dispositions, all that is virtuous in your character has 
 sprung : not from yourself — you have not made your- 
 self to differ ; but may say, " By the grace of God I 
 am what I am." Your defects are your own ; but every 
 virtue and every excellence comes from God. To 
 know that you are made a partaker of Christian gra- 
 ces, should call forth your gratitude to him whose 
 grace has made you what you are ; but to know that 
 all these graces come from God should still keep you 
 humble. When a Christian,* eminent for charity, had 
 conferred some help upon an orphan, a lady who receiv- 
 ed it, said, "When he is old enough I will teach him to 
 name and thank his benefactor." "Stop," said he, "thou 
 art mistaken : we do not thank the clouds for the rain. 
 Teach him to look higher, and thank him who giveth 
 both the clouds and the rain." When a friend was at- 
 tempting to comfort the eminently useful Richard Bax- 
 ter, on his death-bed, by reminding him of the good 
 done by his preaching and writings, he replied, "I was 
 but a pen in God's hand ; and what praise is due to a 
 pen ?" So, whatever you are, or ever may be, God is 
 the source of your graces. Praise should be his, hu- 
 
 militv yours. 
 
 * Richard Reyuoldt. 
 
226 RESIGNATION. 
 
 § 10. Resignation .—To yield all we have and are 
 to the disposal of God ; to lie passive in his hand ; and 
 to have no will of our own, no will but his, is a stale 
 infinitely desirable. 
 
 Entire resignation to the will of God is impressive- 
 ly inculcated in the Scriptures, by the example of va- 
 rious distinguished characters, and above all others, 
 by that of the Lord of Life. Eli, who appears to have 
 been a man of piety, but in the management of his 
 family guilty of great faults, when warned of the des- 
 truction that awaited his house, acquiesced in the dread- 
 ful decision of God : " It is the Lord, let him do what 
 seemeth him good." Job, bowed down with almost 
 insupportable woes, calmly said, " The Lord gave, and 
 the Lord hath taken away ; blessed be the name of the 
 Lord." Hezekiah having offended God, and being 
 warned of the evils that would overwhelm his family, 
 replied, " Good is the word of the Lord which thou 
 hast spoken." An infinitely greater than these, Jesus, 
 displayed resignation still more perfect. When con- 
 templating his sufferings, he said, "Now is my soul 
 troubled ; and what shall I say ? (shall I say) Father, 
 save me from this hour? But for this cause came I 
 unto this hour. Father, glorify thy name." When 
 agonizing in Gethsemane, he prayed, " Abba, Father, 
 all things are possible unto thee ; take away this cup 
 from me : nevertheless, not what I will, but what thou 
 wilt." " O, my Father, if this cup may not pass away 
 from me, except I drink it, thy will be done." 
 
 That it is not improper to desire the removal of 
 sufferings and the alleviation of pain, is evident from 
 the Redeemer's conduct; and it is equally evident 
 that the Christian in aflBiction may pray repeatedly 
 
^ RESIGNATION. 227 
 
 and earnestly for deliverance from the sorrows he en- 
 dures. But then he still should strive to add, as the 
 language of his very heart, Not my will, but thiue be 
 done. These examples of resignation are recorded for 
 our imitation. Think not that this sweet passive grace 
 is only needed to adorn the brightest piety, to shine 
 around a martyr's head. It is essential to the Chris- 
 tian character in every clime, in every form, and un- 
 der every circumstance. 
 
 While you are a pilgrim upon earth, love and che- 
 rish this heavenly grace; especially, in the dark and 
 cloudy day of adversity and pain, strive to exercise 
 unfeigned submission to your heavenly Father's will. 
 Perhaps he may bid you leave the scenes of comfort 
 for the chamber of affliction ; perhaps he may bid you 
 retire from the scenes of useful, active life, to weak- 
 ness, languishing, and inactivity ; perhaps he may 
 snatch from your embrace friends dearer than life, or 
 warn you, by incurable disease, that your sun is about 
 to go down, even at noon ; yet still labor and pray for 
 resignation— that resignation, the most unfeigned, the 
 most entire, whose inmost feeling is, It is the Lord, let 
 him do what seemeth him good. Possessed of this, 
 your soul will enjoy a sweet tranquillity. The tempest 
 of unruly passions will be hushed into a calm. The 
 rebellion of your will to God being subdued, you will 
 be freed from a thousand secret sorrows that torment 
 the unyielding heart. Peace will take up an abode in 
 your breast, and you will find that it is indeed 
 
 " Sweet to lie passive in his hand, 
 " And know no will but his." 
 
 A season of suffering is not the only season in which 
 resignation to the divine will is to be exercised. Daily 
 
228 PATIENCB 
 
 to yield yourself to the.disposal of God, is resignation ; 
 and daily to do this is a privilege and duty. 
 
 § 11. Patience is another Christian grace, which 
 the sacred Scriptures inculcate upon all the follow- 
 ers of the Lamb. The occasions for the exercise of 
 patience may perhaps all be included under three 
 classes. One consists of the painful and mysterious 
 dispensations of the Most High. Patience in enduring 
 these aright, is nearly allied to resignation. The deal- 
 ings of the Most High are often mysterious. " Clouds 
 and darkness are around about him." Afflictions are 
 perhaps protracted, or one trial scarcely ends before 
 another begins. Calamity treads on the heels of ca- 
 lamity, cloud rolls on after cloud, and tempest follows 
 tempest. Then to trust in God needs patience. This 
 patience he requires. "Despise not thou the chasten- 
 ing of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked ot 
 him." " Let patience have her perfect work." My 
 brother, or sister, follow after patience. Calmly to bear 
 a momentary trial, needs little of this important crrace; 
 but to bear trial after trial ; to pass with calm submis- 
 sion, and not a murmuring wish, through weeks, or 
 months, or years of affliction ; and when the scene is 
 darkest, still to exclaim, " Though he slay me, yet will 
 I trust in him :" this is the spirit to which a Christian 
 should aspire. 
 
 Patience is equally necessary to enable the Christian 
 to persevere. It is not enough in the Christian pil- 
 grimage, to commence the journey with alacrity, and 
 to pass through its first stages with pleasure. He who 
 wishes for the Christian crown, must till death pursue 
 the Christian course. Whether the way be rough or 
 
PATIENCE. 229 
 
 smooth, flowery or thorny, he must tread it to the end. 
 Whether the heavens smile or frown, shed beams of 
 exhilarating light, or are clothed in darkness and 
 storms, he must pursue his course. Whether he have 
 many friends to help him on to heaven, or none to as- 
 sist him in his way, but many foes to oppose his pro- 
 gress, he must still go on. Whether he go cheered by 
 the company of fellow-pilgrims, or have to press 
 through hosts of enemies, and meet the scorn, the 
 hatred, the persecution of friends and of mankind, he 
 must still press forward. And whether he advance 
 cheered by his heavenly Father's smiles and abound- 
 ing in spiritual joys, or has to walk in darkness and 
 have no light, without one spiritual comfort, but wrest- 
 ling with the rulers of the darkness of this world, and 
 encountering the fiery darts of the wicked one, the 
 Christian must still go onward. To advance when all 
 smiles around you, is no difficulty; but you are called 
 to follow those who through faith and patience in- 
 herit the promises, and who went out of great tribula- 
 tion. "Add," therefore, " to your faith patience." 
 
 Patience is also indispensable, to enable the Chris- 
 tian to exercise that meekness, gentleness, forbear- 
 ance, and forgiveness, which are essential parts of the 
 religion of the Savior. The character, says Paley, 
 which is the subject of the commendation, precepts, 
 and example of the Lord Jesus, is " meek, yielding, 
 complymg, forgiving; willing to suffer; silent and 
 gentle under rudeness and insult, suing for recon- 
 ciliation where others would demand satisfaction 
 giving way to the pushes of impudence ; conceding 
 and indulgent to the prejudices, the wrong-headed- 
 20 
 
230 PATIENCE OP CHRIST. 
 
 ness, the intractability of those with whom it has to 
 deal. 
 
 § 12. The .Savior does not merely represent such a 
 character as amiable in his sight, but he inculcates the 
 attainment of it upon his disciples. His word says, 
 " Be patient towards all men." " Follow after pa- 
 tience." " If, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye 
 take it patiently, tliis is acceptable with God. Christ 
 also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye 
 should follow his steps: who, when lie was reviled, 
 reviled not again ; when he suffered, he threatened 
 not." "Resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite 
 thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also." 
 
 The patience thus inculcated, the divine Savior ex- 
 emplified. He bore with mildness the dullness and un- 
 belief of his friends, and the taunts and malice of his 
 enemies. When his disciples contended who should 
 be the greatest, he mildly reproved them, by setting a 
 little child in the midst, and leaching them, that those 
 who would inherit his kingdom must become lowly as 
 that child. When Peter, James, and John slept, in- 
 stead of watching with him, in the season of his great- 
 est sorrow, he calmly said, "Could ye not watch with 
 me one hour? Watch and pray, that ye enter not into 
 temptation." When Peter wickedly denied him, he 
 only turned and looked on Peter, and by that piercing 
 look reproved him; and though all his disciples for- 
 sook him and fled when his death approached, yet 
 when he rose again he said, " Go tell my brethren 
 that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see me." 
 When Judas came to execute his treason, he meekly 
 said, "Friend, wherefore art thou come?" and when 
 the traitor drew near and kissed him, instead of an up- 
 
PATIENCE OF CHRIST. 231 
 
 braiding word, liis gentle language was, "Judas, be- 
 trayest ihou the Son of man with a kiss?" Witii equal 
 patience did he expostulate with other more open ene- 
 lilies, when he said, "Many good works have I showed 
 you from my Father, for which of those works do ye 
 stone me ?" 
 
 Perhaps for conscience' sake you may have to en- 
 counter tliat kind of persecution which still exists. 
 You may have to bear the frown of friends, the ridi- 
 cule of former gay companions, or possibly even the 
 loss of home. Perhaps you may be threatened with 
 the displeasure of parents and relatives, or of employ- 
 ers on whom your support has depended. If this should 
 be the case, let patience have its perfect work. With 
 patience take up your cross and follow Christ. He 
 says, "I say unto you, my friends, be not afraid of 
 them that kill the body, and after that have no more 
 that they can do: but I will forewarn you whom ye 
 shall fear : fear him, which, after he hath killed, hath 
 power to cast into hell: yea, I say unto you, fear 
 him." " Blessed are they which are persecuted for 
 righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of hea- 
 ven. Blessed are ye when men shall revile you, and 
 persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against 
 you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding 
 glad ; for great is your reward in heaven : for so per- 
 secuted they the prophets which were before you." 
 " If we be dead with him, we shall also live with him : 
 if we suffer, we shall also reign with him." 
 
 If you are called to trials of these descriptions, the 
 great God encourages you to trust in him, and fear 
 not what man can do. But if you shrink from them, 
 in doing so you will turn away from heaven. The 
 
232 CONTENTMENT. 
 
 fearful, as well as the unbelieving and profligate, must 
 have their portion in the lake of fire. But if you are 
 called 10 such trials, and persevere, the prize is great, 
 the crown is glorious. 
 
 § 13. Connected with resignation and patience is 
 CONTENTMENT. The posscssiou of this will save you 
 from a thousand snares, and from a thousand sorrows. 
 The holy Savior displayed it in his life, and taught it 
 by his precepts. How little did he possess ! How 
 humble was his fare! No sumptuous entertainments 
 were made in his lowly abode ! No glitter of finery 
 adorned his dwelling ! He was content with the situa- 
 tion of a carpenter. He was partly supported by the 
 kindness of a few pious followers, " who ministered 
 unto him of their substance ;" and paid a trifle of tri- 
 bute by a miracle. His most eminent disciple mani- 
 fested a similar spirit : "I have learned in whatsoever 
 state I am, therewith to be content." 
 
 Similar to these examples are the. instructions ad- 
 dressed, in the sacred Scriptures, to the disciples of the 
 Savior. " Be content with such things as you have . 
 for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake 
 thee." " Having food and raiment, let us be therewith 
 content." " Be careful for nothing : but in every thing 
 by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let 
 your requests be made known unto God." "Art thou 
 called, being a slave ? care not for it." 
 
 The admonition given to Baruch is most important: 
 " Seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them 
 not." By discontent multitudes have destroyed their 
 peace, and, it is to be feared, undone their souls. Dis- 
 satisfied with the allotments of the Most High, they 
 
CONTENTMENT. 2^ 
 
 have aimed at greater things, and in pursuit of these 
 have neglected the admonitions of conscience, have 
 violated the precepts of Heaven ; and following the 
 shadows of time, have slighted and lost the treasures 
 of eternity. The course of some has ended in disap- 
 pointment ; others have succeeded in obtaining the 
 wealth or honor they pursued, but have lost religion 
 and heaven in the pursuit. Many young persons, em- 
 ployed in the service of pious families, or in situations 
 "where their religious privileges were fully enjoyed, 
 have left such situations for others, where they had no 
 such advantages, but where a few more pounds a year 
 might be obtained. In such cases religion has often 
 died. They have gained a little worldly profit ; but it 
 has been gained by the loss of everlasting life, and the 
 ruin of an immortal soul. Ah, dreadful profit! wretch- 
 ed bargain! deceived and foolish purchasers! How 
 much happier are they, whose worldly profits and pos- 
 sessions may be much smaller, but who, taught by Je- 
 sus, are content with such things as they have ; whose 
 home is in the skies, whose heart is there; who pass 
 through life as travelers to heaven, and who, having 
 sought first the kingdom of God and its righteousness, 
 rea-d their title clear to the inheritance of the saints in 
 light. 
 
 20« 
 
234 GOVERNMENT OF THE TEMPER, 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 GOVERNMENT OF THE TEMPER. GOVERNMENT OF 
 
 THE THOUGHTS. GOVERNMENT OF THE LIPS. 
 
 SELF-EXAMINATION. IMPROVEMENT OF TIME. 
 
 RECREATIONS. 
 
 § 1. Whether we regard the lionor of religion or 
 the comfort of domestic life, much depends upon gov- 
 erning the temper. Some persons are naturally pos- 
 sessed of a temper kind and sweet; and are thus pre- 
 pared, when they become partakers of religion, to 
 display its most attractive charms. Others are natu- 
 rally violent and passionate, or sullen and morose. 
 
 It is as much the office or religion to soften and 
 
 SUBDUE HARSH AND UNRULY TEMPERS, AS IT IS TO MORTIFY 
 
 THE MOST FLAGRANT VICES. Little do they know of the 
 design of religion, and little do they feel of its power, 
 who are insensible to this. 
 
 The word of God inculcates meekness and gentle- 
 ness, and the mild and lovely tempers of the Savior. 
 " Cease from anger, and forsake wrath." " Be ye an- 
 gry, and sin not. Let not the sun go down upon your 
 wrath ; neither give place to the devil." " Let all bit- 
 terness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, be put away 
 from you, with all malice." "Put on, as the elect of 
 God, holy and beloved, humbleness of mind, meekness, 
 long-suffering." " Be yc kind one to another, tender- 
 hearted." " The fruit of the Spirit is peace, gentle- 
 ness, meekness." " Follow after meekness." 
 
 In these important passages how many weighty- 
 reasons are included for cherishing a meek and gentle 
 
GOVERNMENT OF THE TEMPER. 235 
 
 temper, and for repressing harshness, suUenness, and 
 passion. If the authority of the infinite God avails, 
 you here have his commands. If a dread of yielding 
 to the wicked one can prevail, he cautions us not to 
 give place to the devil by indulging wrath. 
 
 The Most High enforces the necessity of gentleness 
 and meekness, by pronouncing the meek blessed ; by 
 declaring gentleness a fruit of the Spirit ; and by 
 teaching us, that if we would walk worthy of our ho- 
 ly calling, it must be with lowliness and meekness. 
 Important promises are made to the meek. " The meek 
 will he guide in judgment, the meek will he teach his 
 way." "The meek shall increase their joy in the 
 Lord." If any thing more were wanting to stamp a 
 value on mild and gentle tempers, it may be found in 
 the declaration, that they form an ornament to the 
 human character, highly valued by God himself. 
 " Whose adorning let it be the ornament of a meek 
 
 AND QUIET SPIRIT, which iS In THE SIGHT OF GOD OF 
 GREAT PRICE." 
 
 After these testimonies to the importance of mild- 
 ness and gentleness, think not that the government ol 
 your temper is of little importance. A furious, or sul- 
 len and sour professor of the Gospel, instead of re- 
 commending religion, more effectually teaches men 
 to hate it than does a drunkard or a blasphemer. And 
 the same authority that condemns drunkenness and 
 the drunkard, declares harsh tempers the fruits of the 
 flesh, and forbids them to the followers of the Lamb. 
 
 § 2. The honor of religion, your own happiness, and 
 that of those around you, depend so much on the daily 
 exercise of mild and gentle tempers, that it may be 
 important to pursue the subject by viewing the exam 
 
236 
 
 GOVERNMENT OF THE TEMPER. 
 
 pie of the holy Jesus. During his life of trials, he 
 manifested unruffled gentleness and meekness. No 
 passion, no resentment, no sullen anger ever appeared 
 m him. His life was a life of meekness ; and when 
 injuriously led to death, he was led as a lamb to the 
 slaughter, and not on^ angry word escaped his lips. 
 Wrath and passion are most apt to be displayed to 
 enemies. His enemies were many ; but he displayed 
 no resentment. When the Jews were about to stone 
 him, he mildly said, " Many good works have I shown 
 you from my Father, for which of those works do ye 
 stone me ?" When cruelly insulted before the tribu- 
 nal of Caiaphas, he said, " If I have spoken evil, bear 
 witness of the evil ; but if well, why smilest thou me." 
 His friends often displayed much dullness and unbe- 
 lief; yet he manifested no resentful emotions; but 
 kindly instructed them, or mildly expostulated with 
 them. And for them, when sleeping even during his 
 agony, he pleaded in excuse, " The spirit inde°ed is 
 willing, but the flesh is weak." 
 
 Would you honor religion, and have your dwelling 
 the abode of peace, copy the gentieness'of Jesus, and 
 watch and pray for meekness like your Lord's. By 
 soft words turn away anger : and never, never relax in 
 your prayers and exertions, till your temper is brought 
 mto obedience to Christ. Great occasions for display- 
 nig some of the splendid virtues of Christianity seldom 
 occur; it is by a doili/ attention to its more retired 
 graces that you must manifest its power. A martyr's 
 firmness you will probably never be called to display; 
 but the Savior's gentleness and mildness you are called 
 upon to manifest every day. Not once in your life you 
 may be summoned to prove, by renouncing liberty, 
 
GOVERNMENT OF THE THOUGHTS. 237 
 
 friends, and property, that you prefer your Lord to all 
 earthly good; but a hundred petty, yet vexhig occur- 
 rences may arise even in a day, to give you an oppor- 
 tunity of proving that you imitate Jesus's example, 
 and show that you treasure in your heart, and display 
 in your life, his admonitions respecting the loveliness 
 and worth of a meek and quiet spirit. 
 
 § 3. Another often much neglected duty is the go- 
 vernment OF THE THOUGHTS. Thought is the spring of 
 action. Holy affections are strengthened by virtuous 
 thoughts and meditations; and countless sins are com- 
 iiiitte°d by the indulgence of impure, or sensual, or re- 
 sentful thoughts. Think it not therefore a matter of 
 small importance, what are the thoughts which fill your 
 mind during your busy or your lonely hours. Consi- 
 der that God^ observes your every thought. " The 
 Lord looketh at the heart," " and understandeth your 
 thoughts afar off." The blessed Savior also asserts, that 
 the greatest crimes may be perpetrated in the secret 
 chambers of the imagination ; for " whosoever looketh 
 on a woman to lust after her, hath already committed 
 adultery with her in his heart." The indulgence of 
 evil thoughts is represented as descriptive of those 
 who are fastening to perdition. " The wicked will 
 not seek after God : God is not in all his thoughts." 
 Hence their thoughts are declared to be hateful to the 
 heart-searching God. " The thoughts of the wicked 
 are an abomination to the Lord." " A heart that 
 deviseth wicked imaginations, God hateth." Such 
 thoughts need repentance and forgiveness. " Repent 
 therefore of this thy wickedness," said the Apostle Pe- 
 ter, "and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine 
 heart may be forgiven thee." Those who wish for ho- 
 
238 GOVERNMENT OF THE THOUGHTS. 
 
 liness and happiness, are exhorted to forsake evil 
 thoughts. " Let the wicked forsake his way, and the 
 unrighteous man his thoughts." 
 
 On the other hand, to indulge pious thoughts is re- 
 presented as descriptive of piety. " I will sing praise 
 unto my God, my meditation of him shall be sweet." 
 " Blessed is the man whose delight is in the law of the 
 Lord, and in his law doth he meditate day and night." 
 To have the thoughts frequently occupied with divine 
 subjects, was required from the people of God under 
 the old dispensation ; and reason and Scripture may 
 convince us that it is not less important under the 
 new. The Apostle Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, 
 directed Timothy to meditate on these things, and to 
 give himself to meditation and prayer. Peter, the fa- 
 vored disciple of the Lord of glory, not long before he 
 quitted this world, wrote his second epistle, that his 
 beloved friends might be stirred up to have those things 
 which belonged to their eternal peace " always in re- 
 MEMBRANCE." If, after all these testimonies to the im- 
 portance of repressing evil thoughts, and of cherish- 
 ing those of a holy and pious nature, more were neces- 
 sary, you have it in the declaration of the blessed God, 
 that " a book of remembrance was written before him 
 for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon 
 HIS NAME. They sliall be mine, saith the Lord of Hosts, 
 in the day when I make up my jewels." 
 
 To assist in governing the thoughts, it is a highly 
 useful practice in the morning to fix upon some part 
 of the divine word, though it should be but a single 
 verse, which may furnish matter for meditation at lei- 
 sure intervals during the day. Such a practice will 
 store the mind with Scripture knowledge, will greatly 
 
GOVERNMENT OF THE LIPS. 239 
 
 promote pious feeling, and will lead to enlarged views 
 of the wisdom and loving-kindness of the Lord ; if one 
 day in a believer's life can be spent with God, every- 
 day may; and who at the close of life will regret such 
 exertions to promote in his own soul a spirit of piety 
 and of meetness for eternal glory ? 
 
 § 4, If yon are a Christian, the government of your 
 WORDS will be an object of your earnest care. You 
 wmII not think it sufRcient to avoid falsehood, profane- 
 ness, and slander; but all conversation that can pollute 
 the mind, or that tends to excite improper passions or 
 unchristian feelings in others or yourself. " Let no 
 corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, 
 neither foolish talking nor jesting, which are not con- 
 venient; but that which is good, to the use of edifying." 
 Plainly sinful is language calculated to irritate those 
 whose natural disposition may be less calm than your 
 own. In such cases, they who provoke, however tran- 
 quil themselves, are guilty of more sin than they who 
 are provoked into rage. As he who coolhj tempts ano- 
 ther to sin, is evidently much more wicked than he 
 who falls by that temptation. Religion also enjoins its 
 professors to guard against unprofitable as well as mis- 
 chievous conversation ; and to endeavor to render their 
 discourse beneficial and improving. Jesus said, "I say 
 unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, 
 they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment." 
 '• Let your speecli be always with grace, seasoned with 
 salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every 
 man." And let it not be forgotten, that the Christian 
 should cherish a habit of frequently discoursing on 
 subjects not only harmless and useful, but decidedly 
 religious. " They that feared the Lord snake often to 
 
240 8ELr-EXAMINATI0N. 
 
 one another, and the Lord hearkened and heard." " Let 
 the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom ; 
 teaehingf and admonishing one another in psalms, and 
 hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your 
 hearts to the Lord." 
 
 The government of our discourse is not easy ; but is 
 one of the highest Christian attainments ; so high, that 
 the Scriptures declare that " If any man offend not in 
 word, the same is a perfect man." Nor is it unimpor- 
 tant; for in that solemn survey of our conduct and cha- 
 racter which must fix our eternal state, words, as well 
 as actions and dispositions, will be brought into ac- 
 count, and " by thy words thou shalt be justified, or by 
 thy words thou shalt be condemned." 
 
 The power of speech is an important talent; by it 
 you may reclaim the vicious, cheer the sad, guide the 
 bewildered, instruct the ignorant, and comfort those 
 who mourn. Improved aright, it will be the source of 
 innumerable benefits to yourself and those with whom 
 you are connected ; but if misimproved, it will heap 
 upon your soul numberless sins, and prepare it for final 
 condemnation. 
 
 § 5. When interests of great magnitude are at stake, 
 how solicitous are men to guard against deception ! 
 What care the purchaser of an estate employs to pre- 
 vent being deluded by an insufficient title ! How watch- 
 fully the general of an army scrutinizes every move- 
 ment of the enemy, lest by artifice and delusion he 
 should be robbed of victory ! But you are engaged in 
 a more important warfare than any on which crowns 
 and kingdoms, life and liberty depend. You seek a 
 title to richer possessions than misers ever coveted, or 
 kings possessed; a far more exceeding and eternal 
 
SELF-EXAMINATION. ^ 241 
 
 weight of glory. Delusion however may rob you of 
 the splendid prize. Self-deception, that common foe, 
 would shut you out of heaven, and sink you to per- 
 dition. 
 
 There is not so much self-deception on any subject 
 as on those connected with the interests of eternity. 
 The poor are sensible of their poverty, the sick feel 
 their want of health, the captive his imprisonment; 
 but myriads, who are poor for eternity, suppose them- 
 selves rich in heavenly treasures; and while sinking 
 into the arms of eternal death, imagine themselves the 
 heirs of immortal life. The Searcher of hearts assigns 
 the cause of such horrible delusion : " The heart is de- 
 ceitful above all things. Who can know it?" Hence 
 arises the importance of frequent and rigid self-exami- 
 nation. The sacred Scriptures inculcate this impor- 
 tant duty. " Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the 
 faith ; prove your own selves : know ye not your own 
 selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be 
 reprobates?" In that holy book we are also taught to 
 look up to the Seacher of hearts for grace to purify 
 the soul from those corruptions which, after the most 
 rigid self-examination, may still remain hidden from 
 our observation. " Search me, O God, and know my 
 heart ; try me, and know my thoughts ; and see if there 
 be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way 
 everlasting." The importance of self-acquaintance is 
 strongly enforced by the Lord Jesus Christ, in the pa- 
 rable of the ten virgins. Of ten that set out for heaven, 
 he represents half as self-deceived. Five were wise 
 and fiv^e were foolish. And the foolish were always 
 foolish. At the commencement of their course they 
 21 
 
242 
 
 SUBJECTS FOR SELF-EXAMINATION. 
 
 were so; yet such was their delusion, that they never 
 discovered their error till the day of grace was past. 
 Only when called to meet the bridegroom, did they 
 perceive that they had no oil in their lamps. 
 
 That you may not be deceived where eternity is at 
 stake, try yourself as in his sight who will hereafter 
 try yon. Frequently examine your own spiritual es- 
 tate. Mark every symptom which may assist you in 
 forming a faithful judgment of your own condition, 
 and endeavor to form no opinion of yourself but that 
 which you have reason to believe God forms of you. 
 
 § 6. Examine the reality of your conversion, and the 
 sincerity ofyour repentance. Is your repentance heart- 
 felt ? is it universal ? do you abhor yourself? do you 
 hate all sin ? 
 
 Examine your faith. Is the blessed Jesus the grand 
 object on which it fixes? Have you been drawn to him 
 for pardon and peace? Is your faith active? does it 
 work by love? is it powerful? does it overcome the 
 world ? is it sanctifying? does it purify your heart ? is 
 it covforiing? through it have you obtained from the 
 Lord Jesus all the true peace you ever knew, and are 
 you seeking more ? is it indeed living? does it operate 
 in your heart as a mighty principle, urging you to 
 mortify all sin, to pursue all holiness, and set your af- 
 fections on heaven, and to scorn all that earth can give 
 or threaten, for the sake of Jesus Christ and him cru- 
 cified ? Is your soul committed to his care ? are your 
 immortal interests intrusted to his hands ? Is he your 
 all in all ? and are you his humble and sincere, though 
 unworthy disciple? 
 
 Examine your conduct. What is it in the family, 
 the church, and the world ? Do you imitate the Son of 
 
SUBJECTS FOR SELF-EXAMINATION. 243 
 
 God ? do his laws rule, his precepts guide you ? do 
 you daily set his example before you ? and copy him 
 who was holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from 
 sinners 1 
 
 Examine your tempers and dispositions. Are you 
 humble, gentle, meek, forgiving, courteous, patient ? 
 Not giving way to pride, anger, passion, suUenness, 
 obstinacy ; but mortifying those evil tempers to which 
 by nature you may be most prone? 
 
 Examine your heart. Keep it with all diligence ; for 
 out of it are the issues of life. What harbors there ? 
 do unkindness, self-conceit, self-importance, discon- 
 tent 7 Anger, that fires at a word ; pride, that flames 
 into resentment at every real or supposed offence; 
 envy, that repines at another's good ; and worldly- 
 mindedness, that grovels in the dust, and grasps at 
 earth more eagerly than heaven ? Or are you labor- 
 ing and praying to defeat and kill all this hellish brood? 
 and cherishing within your breast those sweet graces 
 wiiich angels cherish, meekness, and humility, and 
 gratitude, and love ? 
 
 Examine your discourse. Do you watch over your 
 lips, that neither impure nor foolish talking may ever 
 proceed from them; that no slander may wound 
 another's mind, or injure another's character ? that no 
 provoking language may inflame another's passions ? 
 and no unkind expressions pierce and pain another's 
 heart? Is your discourse about even the ordinary con- 
 cerns of time, such as you would not wish to be con- 
 cealed from the Savior ? Does your tongue speak its 
 Creator's praise, and direct, or comfort, or encourage 
 those fellow-pilgrims to heaven with whom you asso- 
 
344 REDEEMING OF TIME. 
 
 ciate? and do you warn and endeavor to reclaim 
 those you see wandering to perdition? 
 
 Tlius examine yourself, and let not this be a rare 
 and strange employment to you. If your circumstan- 
 ces will allow sufficient leisure, every evening take a 
 review of the departed day. Recollect its faults, that 
 you may mourn and avoid them j remember its mer- 
 cies, that you may praise their Giver, and lie down, 
 considering that your last day will soon arrive, and 
 your body be laid in that bed where it must continue till 
 the heavens be no more. But if you cannot obtain suf- 
 ficient time for this exercise daily, yet when the Sab- 
 bath brings its rest from toil and care, not only wait 
 upon your God in public, but devote some part of every 
 Sabbath to serious self-examination. Consider how 
 the week that is gone for ever has been spent; what 
 progress you are making in }Our journey to heaven ; 
 what duties you have neglected; what sins you have 
 committed; what graces most need maturing; what 
 temptations you have to prepare against ; what mer- 
 cies you have received ; and what awaits you in your 
 endless home. An hour thus spent every Sabbath will 
 prove an invaluable blessing. Attendance on the most 
 judicious ministry, and uniting in the most fervent 
 public devotions, will not help you materially forward, 
 without such private communion witn yourself, and 
 then with your God. 
 
 § 7. Redeem the time. The sacred Scriptures direct 
 us diligently to improve the fleeting span of life, to 
 ;ive sensible of its uncertainty, and waiting for its end. 
 " Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy 
 might : for there is no work, nor device, nor know- 
 
REDEEMING OF TIME. 245 
 
 ledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest." 
 ' Redeeming the time, because the days are evil." 
 
 Think how much you have to do in time. How 
 many corruptions to mortify ! How many graces to 
 strengthen ! If you are a child of God, yet how far 
 you fall short of what a child of God should be ! And 
 time is the season given that you may grow in grace, 
 and under the forming hand of God be meetened for 
 eternal rest. 
 
 How will you value time when you approach the 
 borders of eternity ! How will time then appear to 
 have been idled away, that has not answered some 
 profitable purpose ! The great end of your being here, 
 is to glorify God and to secure eternal life. If this 
 be slighted, it matters little whether the reason for 
 which it is neglected be the attainment of a monarch's 
 crown or a day laborer's hire. Some waste time, and 
 leave the business of hfe undone, because they are too 
 busy to regard it ; others, because they are too idle. 
 Some are tempted by the grandeurs of the world to 
 waste the precious day of life, while from the thoughts 
 of others its due improvement is banished by multi- 
 plied cares. Some waste time in airy speculations, 
 which they esteem learning ; others on romances, no- 
 vels, or other foolish trifles that consume their hours 
 but impart no useful knowledge to their minds. 
 
 act a wiser part than they. Waste not that pre 
 cious time, which must so soon end. It flies fast 
 enough, and when once gone, it is not to be recalled. 
 It is too precious to be redeemed, and too steady to be 
 stopped in its course. Thrones and dominions cannot 
 purchase back one hour of wasted time. Did a voice 
 21* 
 
246 REDEEMING OF TIME. 
 
 from heaven every morning tell us how many years, 
 or months, or days we had to live, we should then 
 perceive how fast time departed, and how soon its end 
 must come; but now one day is so like another, that 
 we perceive no difference, and are not affected by think- 
 ing, To-day I am nearer to eternity than I was yester- 
 day. I have one day less to live, and one more to ac- 
 count for at my Judge's bar. Indulge such reflections: 
 let every morning remind you of the great morning of 
 eternity. It comes, it hastens on. Ah, who can tell 
 how fast ! Let every closing evening lead you to con- 
 template the close of life — the period when it shall be 
 said to you. Thy day of service and of grace is no 
 more. Feel your pulse — it beats — what does it de- 
 clare? — that your time is going; for at every stroke it 
 has one less to give. Look therefore on time, as time 
 ever coming nearer to its end; and spend its golden 
 moments as in your dying day you will wish to have 
 spent them. As a follower of Jesus, shun as much 
 as possible such upbraiding reflections as these 
 upon a dying bed, or in the eternal world : — My Sa- 
 vior never spent one idle moment. But, oh! how 
 much of my time that should have honored him, was 
 idled away ! What far brighter holiness might I have 
 reached ! How much better might I have served my 
 Lord ! How much more might I have done for him 
 who did so much for me, had I but well improved that 
 time I trifled uselessly away ! 
 
 § 8. Rising late in the morning is one mode in which 
 much time is lost. It was observed by a pious young 
 lady, that one day well spent condemns a life, so much 
 may be crowded into one well spent day. Of that em- 
 inently pious minister, Joseph Alleine, it is related, 
 
MOTIVES FOR REDEEMING TIME. 
 
 247 
 
 that if he heard workmen pursuing their business be- 
 fore he was engaged in his religious exercises, he 
 would say, "O how this noise shames me 1 Doth not 
 my Master deserve more than theirs ?" And often said, 
 " Give me that Christian that accounts his time more 
 precious than gold." The same spirit appeared in va- 
 rious other expressions which he used ; for instance, 
 at the beginning of a week—" Another week is before 
 us, let us spend this week for God !" In a morning— 
 "Come now, let this day be spent for God. Let us live 
 this one day well. Could we resolve to be more than 
 ordinarily circumspect for one day at a time, we might 
 live at extraordinary rates." 
 
 And does the Savior demand too much, when he bids 
 you sedulously and devoutly to improve that fleeting 
 span of time which must so soon give place to eternity? 
 Is it too much for you to devote the whole of this little 
 life to his glory who will bestow on you eternal ages 
 of salvation? Can you regret to be always Ye]\o\ous, 
 always diligent, always bent on improving time, on 
 honoring Jesus, and growing ripe for heaven ? Let 
 your life be as long as it may, yet compared with those 
 worlds of ages, it is but as a thought, or a dream, or a 
 
 sigh. 
 
 § 9. So far as recreation is necessary, let it be such 
 as accords with your character. Are you a Christian 
 in truth? Then you are a disciple of a compassionate 
 Savior, and compassion should distinguish you. Any 
 amusement that occasions pain, even to the meanest 
 creature, is inconsistent with your character and dis- 
 graceful to your profession. As a Christian, you are a 
 child of God, a member of his family, a temple of his 
 Spirit, a member of Christ, and a citizen of heaven, 
 
248 AVOID IDLENESS. 
 
 And do the vain pastimes of a sinful and blinded world 
 comport with such a character? Is the giddy ball- 
 room, or the wanton playhouse, the midnight assem- 
 bly, or the card or gaming-table, suited to your situ- 
 ation and becoming your profession? Did the Savior 
 of mankind ever frequent such scenes, or were he on 
 earth would he frequent them now? Yet he left you 
 his example, that you should follow his steps. Would 
 any one of his apostles (unless it were Judas) have 
 partaken of such amusements ? Yet if there were no 
 harm in them, there would have been no harm in apos- 
 tles sharing them. And if they were improper for 
 them, they are for you. For the blood that redeemed 
 them was shed for you, and the eternity that awaited 
 them awaits you. Should a Christian, a child of God, 
 be seen standing to gaze at a puppet-show; or mingle 
 with the clamoring, shouting, swearing, drinking, gam- 
 bling crowd that frequent races, and fairs, and other 
 worldly amusements? If the amusement itself were 
 not sinful, to associate with such men is to disgrace 
 the sacred profession of religion. 
 
 Let your recreations accord also with your pros- 
 pects. You look forward to death— you have eternity 
 before you. You hope to join the throng of the re- 
 deemed ; to sing the anthems of heaven ; to become 
 every thing but an angel, among the angels of light; 
 to worship before the eternal throne; to dwell with 
 God ; to live and praise among all the myriads of the 
 blest. Should a dying man trifle away the fair day of 
 life ? Should one who expects to be judged for every 
 hour, waste the hours which go so fast and never must 
 return? Could an angel or a glorified saint sojourn a 
 few w^eeks in this world, where would you expect to 
 
CHOICE OF COMPANIONS. 249 
 
 find him 7 Not in the theatre, not in the ball-room, not 
 at the card-table, not employing the few days of his 
 stay on novels or romances, be they ever so ingenious; 
 but cheering by his presence the abodes of sickness 
 and sorrow, or recreating his mind with admiring the 
 works, and ways, and word of God. And do not you 
 expect to be a glorified spirit soon? Are you not al- 
 ready a member of the family to which glorified spi- 
 rits belong ? O, let even your amusements, then, com- 
 port with such hopes and such a character ! One sim- 
 ple rule, well observed, will lead you right. Let your 
 amusements be such as an apostle might have partaken 
 of, such as you will not regret in your dying moments, 
 nor be ashamed of before the bar of the eternal Judge. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 ON THE CHOICE OF COMPANIONS, AND ON MAR- 
 RIAGE. 
 
 § 1. Of all the snares to which the Christian is ex- 
 posed, perhaps the most fatal, the most ruinous, are 
 those which spring from improper companions. These 
 are often Satan's grand and most successful instru- 
 ments for entangling and finally destroying some who 
 bid fair for heaven. 
 
 To have no intercourse with those who are stran- 
 gers to religion, is in the present state of tilings im- 
 practicable ; " for then must you needs go out of the 
 
250 EVIL COMPANY. 
 
 world." And so to seclude ourselves from the world, 
 as to neglect opportunities for doing good to the bo- 
 dies or the souls of those who may be perishing in sin 
 around us, would be conduct opposed to both the pre- 
 cepts and example of the holy Jesus. Yet with equal 
 plainness and solemn authority the God of the Bible 
 forbids his children selecting their bosom friends and 
 intimate companions from among those who are stran- 
 gers to his grace. 
 
 § 2. The word of God expressly forbids associating 
 with evil companions. "Enter not into the path of the 
 wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, 
 pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away." " If sin- 
 ners entice thee, consent ihou not. My son, walk not 
 thou in the way with them ; refrain thy foot from their 
 path." "Be not unequally yoked together with unbe- 
 lievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with 
 unrighteousness? and what communion hath light 
 with darkness?" 
 
 As the Most High thus forbids intimate friendship 
 between his children and the followers of the world, 
 so his word abounds with weighty motives for obedi- 
 ence to these commands. It describes those as blessed 
 who avoid irreligious associates. " Blessed is the man 
 that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor 
 standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat 
 of the scornful." Separation from the evil is also de- 
 scribed as necessary, if we wish to walk in the paths of 
 piety. The Psalmist said, "Depart from me, ye wicked 
 men ; for I will keep the commandments of my God." 
 As if he had said, I cannot keep those commandments 
 and associate with you ; but I will keep them, therefore 
 we must part. On the other hand, to cherish intimate 
 
EVIL COMPANY. 251 
 
 * 
 
 acquaintance with tliosewho are strangers to religion, 
 is represented as the way to destruction. "A compan- 
 ion of fools shall be destroyed." The history of Lot 
 affords one of the most affecting examples possible of 
 the effect of evil society. When Abraham departed 
 from his country at God's command, Lot accompanied 
 him, and probably then was influenced by a similar 
 spirit of devoted piety ; but when, attracted by the fer- 
 tihty and beauty of the plain of Jordan, he went to 
 dwell in the cities of that plain, how dire was the re- 
 sult ! Part of his family perished at the burning of 
 Sodom, his only surviving daughters, infected with all 
 the depravity of that guilty city, debased their father, 
 by rendering him drunk, and committing with him the 
 most atrocious incest. They became the parents of a 
 guilty and idolatrous race, and he stands upon record, 
 a monument of the bitter fruits of plunging into the 
 society of the evil, for the sake of transitory worldly 
 advantage. 
 
 § 3. But yon may inquire, What company is evil? 
 Not that only of the profligate and profane, of the dis- 
 solute and abandoned; but that of all those who are 
 strangers to vital piety. The vain, giddy, thoughtless 
 multitude, who disregard the interests of eternitj^, and 
 live without God in the world, however moral in their 
 conduct, or amiable in their manners, are associates 
 that would be ruinous to your best interests. 
 
 There is no snare by which young professors of re 
 ligion are more likely to be undone than by this. To 
 urge you therefore to shun this snare, consider its nu 
 merous evils. Consider that evil company is the ro«u 
 of all evil. 
 
 Should you make any that are strangers to religion 
 
252 MISCHIEFS OF EVIL COMPANY. 
 
 ♦ 
 
 your bosom-friends, you will most probably soon be- 
 come like them. If they are lewd and debauched, they 
 will lead you to the same guilty excesses. Though at 
 first your soul may tremble at their abominations, you 
 will soon join in their revelry, and partake of theii 
 crimes. If they are scoffers and infidels, though you 
 may think your faith too firm to be shaken, you will 
 soon find your confidence weaken, your hopes decline, 
 your valu^e for the Gospel and religion lessen, and you 
 will go on step by step, till, Jesus and salvation for- 
 saken, you sit in the seat of the scorner. But if your 
 companions are of a less openly wicked kind, yet their 
 influence and example will be immensely and eternal- 
 ly mischievous to you. Religion will languish and de- 
 cline. When you see your favorite friends neglecting 
 that one thing needful, and perhaps representing de- 
 vout attention to eternal things as enthusiasm, you will 
 most probably imbibe their spirit. At first perhaps be 
 silent, then laugh with them at what they deem pre- 
 ciseness, then venture on the sinful follies they call 
 harmless pleasures. Your soul will grow cold and dead 
 to the Savior and his love. With such companions you 
 will learn to profane your Sabbaths. Devotion will be- 
 come burdensome, and then perhaps be altogether ne- 
 glected. Your mind will be alienated from its sacred 
 exercises, and have no longer any relish for its plea 
 sures. Can you imagine that when you have spent per- 
 haps your evenings with those whose chief concern 
 seems levity, laughter, and mirth, you can retire to 
 read, to meditate, and pray? Ah, no ! the duties of de- 
 votion will become a burdensome task; its most im- 
 portant exercises dull and tedious; your heart will be 
 estranged from God, and fixed upon your beloved but 
 
MISCHIEFS OF EVIL COMPANY. 263 
 
 vain and destructive companions. With them, too, you 
 will incur the heavy guilt of wasting many precious 
 hours— hours given you by God to secure a happy 
 eternity — hours which, when this scene of vanity is 
 ending, you would give worlds to purchase. 
 
 § 4. But if you associate with worldly companions, 
 you will not stop here. V/hen you have lost the power 
 of religion, you will most probably go on from sin to 
 sin. Perhaps, as thousands have been, you may be 
 drawn into crimes which may ruin your reputation, 
 blast your prospects, destroy your comforts, or even 
 shorten your days. If this should not be the case when 
 drawn aside from religion, there will be little hope of 
 your ever enjoying its blessings again. Few backsli- 
 ders are restored. You may live forsaken by God, with 
 a heart hardened hi impenitence ; by your example you 
 may train up your children; and at last, without hope 
 meet death, and under the frown of your Judge enter 
 eternity. 
 
 Then those thoughtless creatures that were your be- 
 loved companions upon earth will be your companions 
 in hell. But their hours of sinful pleasure will then be 
 past; their delights will have reached an eternal close; 
 their laughter at religion and their cheerful songs will 
 be terminated, and all that rendered their intercourse 
 dehghtful will have come to an eternal end. Then will 
 be fulfilled the dreadful declaration, " The companion 
 of fools shall be destroyed." 
 
 § 5. Were you sure that you should not be drawn 
 altogether from religion by worldly companions, yet 
 there would be many reasons to forbid such unhal- 
 lowed intimacies. All that are strangers to converting 
 22 
 
254 CHOOSE PIOUS COIvlPANIONS. 
 
 grace have the carnal mind, which is enmity against 
 God ; and " should you love them that hate the Lord?-' 
 Should you take your chief pleasure in those in whom 
 God takes no pleasure? Should you find your chief 
 delight in them who have no delight in your Savior; 
 and in whom he has no satisfaction? Is it right that 
 they should have your heart, while the world and the 
 wicked one have theirs? What though their friend- 
 ship should not be ruinous to your best interests, yet 
 what pleasure should you find in them who are has- 
 tening to eternal death ? Shortly there must be an eter- 
 nal separation between the children of this world and 
 the children of light. They must soon part, and part 
 for ever. As thus after a moment of time they must 
 separate, and never, never meet again ; it is best for the 
 Christian to begin this separation now, and not to set 
 his heart and affections upon those who soon must be 
 torn from him, and placed at an impassable distance 
 through all eternity. It is best for the Christian to form 
 those friendships now, which may be renewed in hea- 
 ven, and perpetuated for ever and ever. 
 
 § 6. Choose those, therefore, for your friends, who 
 are the friends of God— friends that will be friends for 
 ever. They can sympathize with you in your sorrows — 
 the worldly cannot : they may obtain blessings for you 
 by their prayers — the gay and thoughtless would gain 
 you none, but rather deprive you of the blessings your 
 own prayers might obtain. They would do you good 
 in your pilgrimage, and you might indulge the com- 
 fortable hope of meeting them in heaven, and of join- 
 ing them there in all the nobie employments and ex- 
 alted pleasures of that happy, holy world. How much 
 better, how much happier, to travel to heaven with be- 
 
ON MARRIAGE. 255 
 
 loved companions, heirs with you of the grace of life, 
 than to have associates that are vi^ithout hope, without 
 God, and without Christ ! 
 
 Besides all these motives for shunning evil companyj 
 the blessed God has graciously furnished a motive, 
 wonderfully endearing and encouraging. He promises 
 you his own friendship, if you renounce the friend- 
 ship of the world. When he says, "Come out from 
 among them, and be ye separate," he graciously adds, 
 " and I will receive you, and be a Father unto you, and 
 ye shall be my sons and daughters." With such a 
 promise proclaimed in your hearing, can you hesitate 
 whether to choose the friendship of God, or the attach- 
 ment of some, perhaps amiable, but ungodly and pe- 
 rishing companions? His friendship for eternity, or 
 theirs for an inch of time ? His that would bless you 
 with eternal life, or theirs that would rob you of that 
 prize, and sink you in destruction? His favor, that 
 would fill your soul with present peace, and enrich 
 you with blessings that will be enjoyed without inter- 
 mission through an eternal day of glory ; or theirs, 
 which, when it does its utmost, can but please a few 
 short hours with vain mirth, that is, like a transient 
 blaze, followed by eternal darkness ? 
 
 ON MARRIAGE. 
 
 § 7. As wisdom in the choice of companions is thus 
 important, still more important is the exercise of Chris- 
 tian wisdom in the choice of a companion for life. 
 There is no subject on which many professors of reli- 
 gion seem so inattentive to the rules of duty as on this ; 
 and deplorable are the consequences of their sin and 
 
256 ON MARRIAGE. 
 
 folly. If you have already entered that union, which 
 death only must dissolve, and have formed it with one 
 who is a stranger to the paths of peace, the advice con- 
 tained in this chapter can be of little service to yoU: 
 "The die is cast, and cast for life." Your duty is to 
 watch and pray, that you may not be drawn into the 
 paths of the destroyer. Endeavor to act the Chris- 
 tian's part. Labor and pray for the eternal welfare oj 
 him or of her who may be as dear to you as your own 
 life, but who, you are aware, is not dear to God, but 
 perishing in sin. With what melting pity should you 
 behold the friend of your bosom, the partner of your 
 heart, no sharer with you in even one spiritual bless- 
 ing ! dear to you through nature's ties, but an enemy 
 to your God ! With what sorrow should you think 
 that the friend who was travehng with you the jour- 
 ney of life, sharing its cares and its comforts, has no 
 inheritance in your home ; but when the journey of 
 life ends, must be separated from you, to meet no more 
 through all eternity! How fervent should be your 
 prayers, how watchful your conduct, that if possible 
 you may lead this dear, but perishing friend, to your 
 Savior, for life, and peace, and pardon ! 
 
 § 8. But if you have not entered into the marriage 
 union, then, as you love your soul, as you regard your 
 peace, as you value the favor of your God, never form 
 that connection with any one, however amiable, how- 
 ever moral, however endowed with the gifts of fortune 
 or nature, who is not a decided follower of the Lord 
 Jesus Christ. 
 
 This advice may be enforced by reasons the most 
 weighty and momentous. 
 
 § 9. Marriage between those who partake of divine 
 
ON MARRIAGE. 267 
 
 grace, and those who are strangers to religion, is re- 
 presented in the Scriptures as the source of the greatest 
 evils, and such unequal matches are abundantly con- 
 demned. According to the sense usually attributed to 
 several verses in the sixth of Genesis, unhallowed 
 marriages are represented as the cause of that dreadful 
 wickedness which occasioned the destruction of man- 
 kind by the general deluge. It was when the sons of 
 God chose for their wives the fair but impious daugh- 
 ters of men, that the iniquity of man became so great 
 as to call down that dreadful judgment from a patient 
 and merciful God. These wicked connections matured 
 human depravity, filled up the measure of man's ini- 
 quity, ripened a world for impending vengeance, ba- 
 nished the last lingering traces of piety from almost 
 every heart, made this earth a scene of dreadful deso- 
 lation, and hurried multitudes to the pit of eternal 
 night. When the world was repeopled, the same cause 
 produced in smaller circles effects not less deplorable. 
 What made part of the daughters of Lot slight God's 
 gracious warning to escape from perishing Sodom? 
 They were married to some of its depraved inhabitants. 
 What rendered those who did escape such monsters of 
 impurity? Doubtless they had contracted this among 
 those with whom they had too long conversed. What 
 rendered Solomon, the wisest of men, an idolatrous 
 fool ? What made him, once so favored by God, once 
 so devoted to his glory, an impious apostate, a wor- 
 shiper of pagan abominations? "His wives turned 
 away his heart after other gods, and he went after 
 Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Zidonians ; and Milcom, 
 the abomination of the Ammonites ; and Chemosh, the 
 22* 
 
258 ON MARRIAGE, 
 
 abomination of Moab ; and Molech, the abomination of 
 the children of Ammon." The piety that erected God's 
 most splendid temple, the wisdom that nations admir- 
 ed, could not shield him from the accursed influence 
 of unhallowed connections. When we see the wise 
 Solomon become an aged infatuate apostate, bowing 
 at an idol's shrine, because an impious wife adored that 
 idol, need we wonder if we see professors of religion, 
 that marry unbelievers, joining in the sins and follies 
 that please an ungodly wife or husband, and going, 
 like an ox to the slaughter, where Satan leads them? 
 What aggravated the crimes of impious Ahab, who 
 sold himself to do wickedness in the sight of the Lord ? 
 Jezebel, his pagan wife, urged him forward in his ca- 
 reer of iniquity. 
 
 § 10. The word of God not only represents such un- 
 hallowed unions as dangerous in the extreme, but ex- 
 pressly and d.hso\uie\y forbids them. They were ex- 
 pressly forbidden to Israel of old. The reason of the 
 case might sufficiently prove, that what was thus offen- 
 sive to God under the dispensation of Moses, could not 
 be less offensive under the more spiritual and holy dis- 
 pensation of the Gospel. But we are not left to dubious 
 inference. The Christian law upon this sul jeet is de- 
 cisive and plain. "Be ye not unequally yoked toge 
 ther with unbelievers : come out from among them, 
 and be ye separate, saith the Lord." 2 Cor. 6 : 14-18. 
 Nothing can be a more complete violation of this law, 
 than marriage with a person destitute of heavenly 
 grace. In that case, instead of not being unequally 
 yoked together with an unbeliever, the believer is vo- 
 luniarilu yoked, till death dissolve the union, to one 
 whom God esteems an unbeliever. Instead of coming 
 
ON MARRIAGE. 259 
 
 out from such persons, the believer is permanently 
 united to one in the closest of all connections. Instead 
 of being separate, a union is soyffht and formed, where 
 the interests, hopes, cares, fears, business, pains, and 
 pleasures of the parties are all intimately mingled, and 
 mingled for life. What can be more glaring rebellion 
 against the majesty of heaven ? What more willful con- 
 tempt of the giver of this law ? 
 
 The same law is given in expressions equally defi- 
 nite on another occasion. When the liberty of a female 
 to marry is declared, it is said, " She is at liberty to be 
 married to whom she will, ONLY IN THE LORD.'- 
 1 Cor. 7 : 39. All considerations respecting property, 
 or age, or temper, or health, or prospects, are left to 
 the prudence of the parlies; but this one restriction 
 God lays down, the believer must marry no one who 
 is not in the Lord. The expression in the Lord, is too 
 common in the Scriptures for its meaning to be mis- 
 taken. It evidently signifies a person who is a partaker 
 of saving grace, a true disciple of Jesus, an humble 
 child of God. 
 
 § IL When we behold the conduct of many that 
 profess religion, we might suppose that a law like this 
 did not exist in the Bible. How many thoughtlessly 
 entwine their aflfections and interests with those who 
 are utter strangers to the way of peace — clasp in their 
 arms the children of the wicked one, and give their 
 hearts to those whom Satan rules ! 
 
 To arm you, if in any danger of insnarement,^gainst 
 this common and destructive sin, consider thaWt is a 
 great sin, a sin deeply dyed with wicked ingratitude. 
 God is the giver of the law which forbids your being 
 yoked Vv^ith an unbeliever, and which allows you to 
 
«bU ON MARRIAGE. 
 
 marry only in the Lord. And are not you under the 
 greatest obligations to obey your gracious God ? Are 
 not you under the strongest ties to love him ? Are not 
 you bought with that price, precious and invaluable, 
 the blood of Christ? And are not you directed to do 
 whatever you do, "to the glory of God ?" Should not 
 you then yield your heart to him who has so loved 
 you ? To encourage you to this, he gives the most gra- 
 cious promise possible, "I will be a Father unto you, 
 and ye shall be my sons and daughters." Of what in- 
 gratitude would you be guilty, if, with such a promise 
 given by such a God, you trample under foot his righ- 
 teous law ! 
 
 § 12. To break this law has all the guilt of rebellion 
 against the authority of God. Idolatry, fornication, or 
 adultery yon would esteem great crimes ; for God ab- 
 hors and forbids those crimes; but God as truly for- 
 bids unhallowed marriages; and they who marry stran- 
 gers to religion as truly rebel against God as they who 
 lead lives of unlicensed lewdness. 
 
 The sin committed by a believer in such case is 
 much aggravated by its being a willful and deliberate 
 sin. It is not a sudden fall, like Peter's; it is not a 
 crime committed unawares, or to which persons are 
 hurried in a moment of impetuous passion; but it is a 
 deliberate and willful crime. The young man, month 
 after month, pursues the object on which he fixes his 
 affections, though he knows that whatever charms she 
 possess, she has not that one which excels all others, 
 the charm of humble piety. The young woman, month 
 after month, receives the addresses of her lover, though 
 she is aware that whatever worth he may possess, he 
 is not a disciple of the Son of God. Thus the rebellion 
 
ON MARRIAGE. 261 
 
 against the authority of God is willful and continued ; 
 and month after month, and perhaps year after year, 
 is the Most High insulted by beholding those who pro- 
 fess to serve him, willfully, obstinately, and persever- 
 ingly transgressing one of his righteous laws. 
 
 This crime, great and aggravated in every case, re- 
 ceives a further aggravation in the case of men. They 
 are not under that restraint which custom and modesty 
 impose upon the tender sex. They may look around 
 the whole circle of pious females with whom they are 
 acquainted, to select one on whom the fondest affec- 
 tions of their hearts may repose ; but when they, slight- 
 ing all those with whom they enjoy or might obtain 
 acquaintance, go into the world to look for the com- 
 panion of their days, and fix upon a person who is a 
 stranger to the religion of the Gospel, their conduct 
 is flagrantly criminal. It admits of no palliation or 
 excuse. It is open, hardy, undisguised rebellion against 
 the Lord of heaven and earth. 
 
 If the motives that lead to these unhallowed unions 
 be examined, the guilt of those who contract them will 
 not be lessened. In the least guilty it may be a rash 
 and thoughtless affection. To those who are thus in- 
 fluenced it may be said, Shouldst thou love them that 
 hate the Lord? Surely those professors of religion 
 who, out of love to a fellow-mortal, trample on the au- 
 thority and willfully violate the laws of the Lord of 
 heaven and earth, plainly show that God is not the 
 first in their affections, that the Savior does not rule 
 supreme in their hearts. They show that they prefer 
 the objects of their choice to God and Christ, and thus, 
 that in reality they are joined to idols. 
 
 But many enter into such unlawful marriages from 
 
262 ON MARRIAGE. 
 
 the influence of other merely sordid motives. These 
 see no peculiar personal attractions in the objects of 
 their respective choice ; but they have more money 
 than some, that in every other respect are their supe- 
 riors, and who unite true piety with all their other re- 
 commendations. In such cases it is evident the law of 
 God is broken merely for the sake of money, or other 
 worldly advantage. What would you think of a per- 
 son committing idolatry, or adultery, or swearing, or 
 blasphemy, because he was paid to commit such crime? 
 Would it not be thought a decisive proof that he was 
 destitute of the love and fear of God ? But why more 
 so in this case than the other ? He would break God's 
 law for the sake of the money he hoped to gain by 
 breaking it. And they, who for the sake of money marry 
 strangers to religion, as truly break God's law, and the 
 motive is the same — money is the motive. This is to 
 pay them for their sin. They trample on God's au 
 thority, because they hope to be paid for doing so. 
 
 § 13. Such being the guilt of enterim^ into one of 
 these unnatural marriages, it is not surprising that 
 such conduct should be followed by effects mischiev 
 ous in the extreme. No one is too cunning for God. 
 "Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." 
 
 The evils are numerous. In many cases the total 
 loss of piety is the deplorable effect. In these sad cases 
 the professor of religion gains the object of idolatrous 
 affection, or acquires the property thus sought, but 
 it is at the dreadful price of eternal happiness, and 
 the ruin of an immortal soul. Many who once ap- 
 peared promising fair for heaven, when united to 
 followers of the world have forsaken the path of 
 peace. Some find in their unbelieving partners the de- 
 
ON MARRIAGE, 263 
 
 cided enemies of religion ; others gradually imbibe 
 the spirit of those with whom they are united. These 
 tempt them to join in pleasures they once abhorred; 
 to abandon duties they once loved ; to profane the 
 Sabbath ; to neglect their religious privileges ; to slight 
 their pious friends; to mingle vi/ith associates averse 
 to piety, and to join with them in scenes of dissipation. 
 Gradually, but too surely, the blighting, blasting influ- 
 ence of the forbidden union is felt upon the soul. Re- 
 ligion languishes— declines— and dies. The day of 
 their marriage is the day that sets the seal to their 
 eternal ruin. According to the language of the divine 
 word, they marry, " having damnation, because they 
 have cast off their faith." 
 
 § 14. Perhaps if you, who now read these pages, arc 
 inclined to form such a forbidden union, you are deluded 
 with the hope of bringing the object of your attach- 
 ment to the ways of peace. Alas, this is but delusion ! 
 It is not in your power to change another's heart, and 
 you have no reason to hope that God will reward your 
 sin by granting you the object of your wishes. When 
 persons have been converted after marriage, in many 
 cases husbands and wives have been the means of 
 leading their respective partners to embrace religion 
 also. Thus God has blessed them and their endeavors. 
 But when those who knew religion have married those 
 who knew it not, seldom if ever do we see the uncon- 
 verted party afterwards converted. In numberless in- 
 stances the professor of religion is drawn away from 
 God, and back to the world and destruction ; but in few 
 <;ases indeed do we behold the unbeliever drawn from 
 the world and led to God. If this is your hope, it is 
 delusion. 
 
^4 ON MARRIAGE- 
 
 § 15. In some few cases total apostacy is not the 
 consequence of these unnatural marriages; but in these 
 cases they are often the cause of much unhappiness. 
 Much temporal distress is often their bitter fruit. It 
 appears from various passages of Scripture, that some- 
 times when God forgives the sins of his own people so 
 far as to shield them from their punishment hereafter, 
 he lets them feel painfully the effects of their sin and 
 folly while here. Thus, though David's adultery was 
 forgiven, the sv/ord was never to depart from his 
 house. Acting apparently upon this system, the Most 
 High frequently punishes professors of piety who form 
 these forbidden unions. They expect happiness, but 
 he bids sorrow encircle them; distress and affliction 
 in various forms, and poverty, beset them. Their ex- 
 pectations are disappointed; their hopes fail; and 
 though their hope for eternity is not lost, for time they 
 see little before them but difficulty and sorrow. Thus 
 he frowns upon them, and marks his displeasure of 
 their sin. At other times their distresses are of another 
 nature. They are spiritual distresses. Instead of a 
 helper in their nearest earthly friend, they find a hin- 
 derance. If a family rises up, the instructions of one 
 parent are counteracted by the example of the other. 
 A good writer referring to this subject observes, that 
 the language of a child, so circumstanced, to the mis- 
 erable mother, who intreats him to read the Bible, 
 may be, " Why should I pore over that tedious book 
 my father never reads ? Why should I spend that day 
 in the wearisome services of the church or the chapel, 
 which my father spends in recreation and pleasure ? 
 Why should I be so anxious to obtain what you call a 
 NEW HEART, which my father tells me he has got through 
 
I 
 
 ON MARRIAGE. 265 
 
 the world well enough without, and which he calls 
 folly and fanaticism ? He says that you are too strict, 
 and would rob your children of all the innocent en- 
 joyments and indulgencies of youth."* If not the ac- 
 tual language, yet are not such sentiments likely to be 
 adapted to the feelings of the child, one of w^hose pa- 
 rents follows the Savior, and the other the world? How 
 painful must it be to a father or mother who feels the 
 value of an immortal soul, who knows the Savior's 
 love, and anxiously desires that a beloved family of 
 children should know this also, to think, by marrying 
 contrary to the will of God, I have, I fear, entailed 
 eternal damnation on all ray dear but thoughtless chil- 
 dren. 
 
 § 16. Those who cavil against a divine law because 
 they are unwilling to submit to its restraint, invent va- 
 rious OBJECTIONS against the pjeceding statements, or 
 excuses for rebelling against the authority of the Most 
 High. Some plead that the unbelieving party may re- 
 ceive spiritual benefit, and urge the apostle's words, 
 "What knowest thou, wife, but thou mayest save 
 thy husband ?" 
 
 Ans. A reply to this objection has, in fact, already 
 been given. The good done bears no proportion to the 
 mischief. Few strangers to religion are brought to em- 
 brace it by marrying those that professed to enjoy ita 
 power ; but many that professed religion are led to 
 forsake and renounce it by entering into such forbid- 
 den unions. The words, " What knowest thou, O wife, 
 but thou mayest save thy husband," refer not to a case 
 of this kind, but to those cases where, of those persons 
 
 " Raffles. 
 
 23 
 
266 ox MARRIAGE. 
 
 who are equally strangers to religion, one party aftCT 
 marriage is brought to embrace it. In these cases the 
 wife or husband, when converted, often becomes the 
 means of converting their respective partner; hut it is 
 not so in those cases where professed disciples of Jesus 
 violate his laws by marrying those who knew him not. 
 
 Obj. 2. Still it may be said, in some cases the happy 
 result of a friend of religion marrying an amiable per- 
 son who knew not its power, has been the conversion 
 of the unbelieving party. 
 
 Ans. Allowing this in some instances to be true, it 
 forms no justifiable reason for violating a plain divine 
 law. The principle maintained in this case is neither 
 more nor less than "Let ns do evil that good may 
 come." The good expected may never come, yet if it 
 were certain that it would, the sin of breaking God's 
 holy law is not thereby lessened. Of those who do 
 evil that good may come, it is said their "damnation 
 is just." I recollect reading of a thief who stole a Bible, 
 or other religious book. This book proved the instru- 
 ment of his conversion ; but would any one argue. It 
 is lawful to steal Bibles, because they may convert the 
 thieves that steal them ? Would they not rather ac- 
 knowledge that the dishonest action retained all its 
 criminality, whatever might be its effect? It is the 
 same in the present case. Whether the unbelieving 
 party be converted to God or remain unconverted, the 
 believing party has incurred the guilt of willfully de- 
 spising the authority of the Majesty on high. 
 
 Obj. 3. It is further objected, that so much differ- 
 ence exists between a nominal Christian and a heathen, 
 that the rule which is applicable to the latter will not 
 oe so to the former. 
 
ON MARRIAGE. 267 
 
 Ans. In reply we may inquire, Wlierein does that 
 difference exist? Not in their state in the sight of God. 
 Both are children of wrath. Not in their enjoyment of 
 spiritual blessings; for neither has any. Not in the 
 state of their hearts. The nominal Christian as much 
 needs conversion as the profligate heathen, and is as 
 unable to be saved without it. Not that one needs less 
 grace than the other for salvation. The nominal Chris- 
 tian cannot be saved unless born again of the Spirit of 
 God, and with that great change the heathen may. In 
 fact, in many respects the balance turns in favor of the 
 heathen. The nominal Christian has heard the Gospel, 
 and slighted its message; the heathen has not. In one 
 case, neglect of religion is plainly proved— that there 
 would be such neglect is not plainly proved in the other 
 case. The preponderance in guilt and ruin evidently 
 lies with the nominal Christian. The Lord Jesus re- 
 presented the state of heathen Tyre and Sidon, of So- 
 dom and Gomorrah, as preferable to that of the Jews 
 who heard his message of love in vain. 
 
 Where, then, is the diiference in favor of the nomi- 
 nal Christian? With a heart as hard as the heathen's, 
 and as much needing divine power to soften it; with 
 greater sins and darker prospects, in consequence of 
 sinning against more light and greater obligations than 
 the heathen ever knew, the nominal Christian is going 
 apace to a ruin as sure, but still more tremendous. 
 
268 FA^ULY DUTIES. 
 
 ^ 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 ON FAMILY DUTIES. 
 
 § 1. A very considerable portion of human happi- 
 ness depends on the members of a family cherishing 
 those sentiments and practicing those duties which 
 spring from the relations of domestic life. The reli- 
 gion of the Gospel is designed to diffuse peace, love, and 
 harmony through the family circle; to soften every 
 rugged passion, to strengthen every affectionate feel- 
 ing, and to open in each house, as well as "in each 
 breast, a little heaven." There are persons who abroad 
 appear courteous and humble, gentle and good natured, 
 that at home are harsh and passionate, proud or peev- 
 ish, soon provoked and easily offended. It should ne- 
 ver be forgotten by you that true piety should be shown 
 at home. Let the family that has daily converse with 
 you behold its brightest radiance. Thus Jesus acted; 
 Judas, who knew him best, and saw him in his retired 
 hours, had not one charge of folly or inconsistency to 
 bring against him. How different from those of his 
 professed disciples, who are esteemed abroad, but not 
 at home; loved as Christians by those who know them 
 least, but whose profession is doubted or scorned by 
 those who know them best ; hypocrites in reality, that 
 have given rise to the proverb, "A saint abroad, and 
 a devil at home." The religion of Jesus, however, is 
 not answerable for the hypocrisy it condemns. ,The 
 true disciples of the Savior will act a very different part. 
 
 There is no scene in which the all-important 
 graces, meekness, humility, gentleness, courteous- 
 
PAREls'TAL DUTIES. 269 
 
 ness, are more important than at home. There is no 
 situation in which watchfulness over your words and 
 tempers is more necessary. There, many Httle things 
 will occur to vex and irritate j there you are more lia- 
 ble to be off your guard, and thus more liable, by im- 
 proper tempers and hasty words, to bring sin upon 
 your own soul and to injure the souls of others. The 
 directions given in the Scriptures respecting harmony^ 
 kindness, care not to provoke nor be provoked, and 
 others of a similar kind, should be impressed on the 
 heart of every Christian who would honor religion in 
 the family to which he belongs. 
 
 In the general it may be observed, that whatever be 
 your situation in the family of which you form a part, 
 as a Christian, it should be your constant aim and daily 
 study to display a meek, humble, gentle, benevolent, 
 affectionate spirit, and to maintain a conscience void 
 of offence towards all around you. The Scriptures, 
 however, descend to directions more minute and pe- 
 culiarly expressive. 
 
 §2. Dalles of parents.— To instruct their children 
 in divine truth. "These words, which I command thee 
 this day, shall be in thine heart; and thou shalt teach 
 them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of 
 them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou 
 walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and 
 when thou risest up." "Teach them thy sons, and thy 
 sons' sons." By needed correction to restrain them 
 from evil "Withhold not correction from the child j 
 thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his 
 soul from hell." Eli, though pious, fell under God's 
 dreadful displeasure "because his sons made thera- 
 23* 
 
270 
 
 DUTIES OF CHILDREN. 
 
 selves vile, and he restrained them not." Not to dis- 
 courage or provoke their children. "Fathers, provoke 
 not your children to wrath." "Fathers, provoke not 
 your children, lest they be discouraged." To love 
 their children, and to pray for them, as Job and David 
 did, and to labor for their eternal welfare. " Train up 
 a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, 
 he will not depart from it." " Bring them up in the 
 nurture and admonition of the Lord." 
 
 The expression, " Train up a child in the way he 
 should go," signifies, to draw along by a regular and 
 steady course of exertions. This calls for line upon 
 line, precept upon precept ; continued exertions ; con- 
 tinued watchfulness, and unceasing care. Many pious 
 parents, who have done something to promote their 
 children's religious welfare, have still been far from 
 training them up in the way of life. Numerous in- 
 stances can be adduced of pious parents who have had 
 ungodly children, but perhaps it would be difficult to 
 produce one instance of the kind, in which a parent 
 who has literally trained up his child in the way he 
 should go, has had to encounter this affliction. 
 
 § 3. Duties of children.— To indulge that honor and 
 respect for their parents which flow from filial love, 
 and which God approves, while opposite conduct in- 
 curs his most severe displeasure. " Honor thy father 
 and mother, (which is the first commandment with 
 promise,) that it may be well with thee, and thou raay- 
 est live long on the earth." " Cursed be he that set- 
 teth light by his father or his mother." " Whoso rob- 
 beth his father or his mother, and saith, It is no trans- 
 gression, the same is the companion of a destroyer. 
 To hearken to the counsels of their parents, and obey 
 
SERVANTS AND MASTERS. 271 
 
 their directions, excepting only in such cases as would 
 be sinful in the sight of God. " Children, obey your 
 parents in the Lord : for this is right." " Children, 
 obey your parents in all things : for this is well-pleas- 
 ing unto the Lord." " We ought to obey God rather 
 than men." If in age their parents need assistance and 
 support from them, cheerfully to render this, and thus 
 to minister to their comfort, and requite their kindness. 
 " If any widow have children or nephews, let them 
 learn first to show piety at home, and to requite their 
 parents : for that is good and acceptable before God, 
 But if any provide not for his own, and especially for 
 those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and 
 is worse than an infidel." 
 
 Duties of husbands and wives. — On the part of the 
 wife, submission and affection ; on that of the husband, 
 tenderness, forbearance, and love, like that of the Lord 
 Jesus to his church. " Wives, submit yourselves unto 
 your husbands, as unto the Lord. Husbands, love your 
 wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave 
 himself for it. So ought men to love their wives as 
 their own bodies : he that loveth his wife loveth him- 
 self," " Teach the young women to be sober, to love 
 their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, 
 chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own 
 husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed. 
 Young men likewise exhort to be sober-minded." 
 
 Duties of servants and masters. — On the part of ser- 
 vants, respect, obedience, and faithful attention to their 
 employers' interests. " Servants, be obedient to them 
 that are your masters according to the flesh : not with 
 eye-service, as men-pleasers ; but as the servants of 
 Christ, doing the will of God from the heart ; with 
 
272 MOTIVES FOR FILIAL DUTY. 
 
 good-Will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to 
 men.' "Let as many servants as are under the yoke 
 count their own masters worthy of all honor, that the 
 name of God and his doctrine be not blasphemed. And 
 they that have believing masters, let them not despise 
 them, because they are brethren ; but rather do them 
 service, because they are faithful and beloved, parta- 
 kers of the benefit. These things teach and exhort." 
 Exhort servants to be obedient unto their own mas- 
 ters, and to please them well in all things ; not answer- 
 mg again ; not purloining, but showing all good fideli- 
 ty; that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Sa- 
 vior in all things." '' Servants, be subject to your mas- 
 ters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but 
 also to the froward." On the part of masters, kind- 
 ness, moderation, and justice in recompensing services 
 Thou Shalt not oppress the hired servant that is poor 
 and needy." " Wo unto him that useth his neicrhbor's 
 service without wages, and giveth him not for his 
 work." After servants are directed to be faithful, and 
 to serve with good will, it is added, " And, ye masters, 
 do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening- 
 knowing that your Master also is in heaven ; neither is 
 there respect of persons with him." "Masters, give 
 unto your servants that which is just and equal ; know- 
 ing that ye also have a Master in heaven." 
 
 After this brief view of some of the duties incum- 
 bent upon persons in several of the principal relations 
 of domestic life, allow me to beg you to consider the 
 importance of regarding those which belong to the sta- 
 tion that you yourself occupy. Perhaps you are the 
 child of parents still living, whose hearts are wrapt up 
 m you and your welfare. Consider how many solemn 
 
FAREXTAL CARE. 273 
 
 motives, enforced by the most encouraging or awful 
 sanctions, urge you to treat tliem witli filial affection, 
 kindness, obedience and respect. If your heart is open 
 to the impressions of gratitude, you will render this 
 tribute to them, who have watched over you without 
 wearying, who have toiled for you without fainting, 
 who have never thought they could do too much to 
 promote your happiness, who tended you with unceas- 
 ing care in infancy, and who have followed you with 
 kind attentions even to the present hour. 
 
 If the spotless example of the Son of God, when 
 he dwelt on earth, weighs with you, you have that 
 example with all its power to enforce the exercise of 
 filial piety. "This wonderful person, notwithstand- 
 ing his great and glorious character and sublime des- 
 tination, was the fairest specimen of obedience to pa- 
 rents ever seen in the present world. Let children 
 remember, that ifihey have not the spirit of Christ, they 
 are none of his. He was subject to his parents, as a 
 child of their family, until he was thirty years of age j 
 and forgot not, when he hung on the cross, to pro- 
 vide an effectual support and protection for his mo- 
 ther. Let all children remember, when they are wearv 
 of laboring for their parents, that Christ labored for 
 his; when they are impatient of their commands, that 
 Christ cheerfully obeyed ; when they are reluctant to 
 provide for their parents, that Christ forgot himself, 
 and provided for his mother amid the agonies of cru- 
 cifixion. The affectionate language of this Divine ex- 
 ample to every child is, Go thou and do likewise. 
 
 § 4. Are you a parent, a father or a mother ? Con- 
 sider how much depends on your attention to your 
 children's eternal welfare. "I was blessed with a mo- 
 
274 PARENTAL DUTIES. 
 
 ther," says Mr. Ward, the excellent Missionary to In- 
 dia, " who frequently took my sister and me aside to 
 pray with us ; and often have I heard her pray with 
 such earnestness, mingling her tears with her peti- 
 tions, and throwing so much of the feelings of the 
 mother into her prayers, that, young as I was, it went 
 to my very heart." He adds : " I was lately informed 
 by a pious and able minister, that on the evening when 
 the first permanent religious impressions were made on 
 his mind, his pious mother was detained at home. But 
 she spent the time devoted to public worship in secret 
 prayer for the salvation of her son ; and so fervent did 
 she become in these intercessions, that, like our Lord 
 in Gethsemane,she fell on her face, and remained in fer- 
 vent supplication till the service had nearly closed. Her 
 son, brought under the deepest impressions by the ser- 
 mon of his father, went into afield after the service, and 
 there prayed most fervently for hioiself. When became 
 home, the mother looked at her son with a manifest 
 concern, anxious to discover whether her prayers had 
 been heard, and whether her son had commenced the 
 all-important inquiry, 'What shall I do to be saved V 
 In a few days the son acknowledged himself to be the 
 subject of impressions of which none need be ashamed ; 
 impressions which lay the foundation of all excellence 
 of character here, and of all blessedness hereafter. 
 
 "O ye Christian mothers 1 have yoit thus, in refer- 
 ence to your children, ' wrestled in birth again, till 
 Christ be formed in their hearts the hope of glory? 
 Have you taken them aside, and prayed with them 
 and for them, one by one ? There is something most 
 touching in such a scene, and to the heart of a child 
 almost irresistible. It is a holy violence, put forth 
 
PARENTAL DUTIES. 276 
 
 to snatch a darling child from impending destruc- 
 tion; and, like the prayer mentioned by the apostle 
 James, will unquestionably 'avail much.' " 
 
 § 5. If you are a parent, consider the happy effect 
 which results from such pious care. Frequently active 
 parental piety meets its speedy reward, in the early 
 piety of the dear objects for whom it prays, and over 
 whom it watches. Thus were the seeds of piety sown 
 in the hearts of Baxter, and Doddridge, and *Watts; 
 and how speedy, how rich was the harvest ! In other 
 instances instruc tions and prayers for a time have ap- 
 peared in vain. The seed has seemed buried beneath 
 a frozen, barren soil ; yet at length it has sprung up, 
 and bore fruit a hundred fold.* 
 
 * A pious age^ woman had one son; she used every means 
 in her poAver to train him up in the nurture and admonition of 
 the Lord; he was the child of many prayers. The youth grew 
 up, but was of a gay, dissipated turn; she still followed him 
 with her entreaties, faithfully warned him of his awful situa- 
 tion as a sinner before God, and told him what his end would 
 be, dying in that state. One day he went to his mother and 
 said, "Mother, let me have my best clothes, I am going to a 
 ball to-night." She expostulated with him, and urged him not 
 to go, by every argument in her power; he answered, "Mo- 
 ther, let me have my clothes, I will go, and it is useless to say 
 any thing about it." She brought his clothes, he put them on, 
 and was going out; she stopped him, and said, "My child, do 
 not go." He said he would; she then said to him, " My son, 
 while you are dancing Avith your gay companions in the ball- 
 room, I shall be out in that wilderness praying to the Lord to 
 convert your soul." He went ; the ball commenced, but instead 
 of the usual gayety, an unaccountable gloom pervaded the 
 whole assembly. One said, " We never had such a dull meet- 
 ing in our lives ;" ajiother, " I wish we had not come, we have 
 no life, we cannot get along;" a third, " I cannot think what is 
 the matter." The young man instantly burst into tears, and 
 
276 PARENTAL DUTIES. 
 
 The happy and important effect of sucli instrurtions, 
 even where conversion does not immediately follow, 
 has been evident in a multitude of cases. Young per- 
 sons who have received a pious education, cannot easi- 
 ly forget that eternal world which has been often set 
 before them. However they may slight religion, death 
 and judgment still alarm them. They know they are 
 wrong, and that their parents are right. Conscience 
 will not let them sin at ease. Its warnings mar their 
 pleasure, and often check their career, or render them 
 wretched when they expect delight. And perhaps years 
 after those who prayed with and taught them are gone 
 to the grave, they are led to the Savior, whose love was 
 unfolded to them in their early years. 
 
 § 6. If parents would promote the eternal welfare of 
 their family, let them sedulously and devoutly attend 
 to family devotion. If a parent, not only pray for your 
 children, not only occasionally in your closet pray 
 with them, but daily in your family. Let your house 
 be a house of prayer to the living God. Many excuses 
 are offered for neglecting this duty ; but the real cause 
 of neglect is coldness and indifference to the things of 
 God, and the eternal welfare of a family. Let that be 
 subdued, and other excuses will vanish like mists be- 
 fore the rising sun, 
 
 A striking testimony to the effect of family devotion 
 
 said, " I know what is tbe matter ; my poor old mother is now 
 praying in yonder wilderness for her ungodly son." He took his 
 hat, and said, " I will never be found in such a place as this 
 again," and left the company. To be short, the Lord converted 
 his soul. Mr. Irish, his pastor, baptized him. He was soon 
 after taken ill, and died very happy. Praying breath is nevei 
 spent in vain, — Americaii Baptist Magazine. 
 
DOMESTIC PIETY. 277 
 
 and consistent piety, is recorded in the life of the late 
 venerable minister of the Gospel, Mr. Scott. His son 
 observes, " To his constant and edifying observance of 
 family worship, in connection with the steady con- 
 sistent spirit and conduct, which they could not fail 
 to remark in him, is, I am persuaded, very much to be 
 traced, not only the blessing of God, which I trust has 
 descended on his own family, but the further striking 
 and important fact, that in very few instances has any 
 person passed any length of time under his roof, with- 
 out appearing to be brought permanently under the in- 
 fluence of religious principle. And yet it was not much 
 his practice to address himself closely and minutely, 
 as some have done with very good effect, to such per- 
 sons individually. It was not so much by preaching 
 directly to them, as bij livino- before them, making an 
 edifying use of incidents and occasions, and being so 
 constantly instructive, devout, and benevolent in fami- 
 ly worship, that, under the blessing of God, he pro- 
 duced so striking an impression upon them." 
 
 Consider too, that in training up children in the way 
 of piety, you may be diffusing good for ages to come. 
 Many are the instances in which God has so blessed 
 these exertions, that for age after age the stream of 
 piety has continued to flow. One generation after ano- 
 ther has caught the sacred flame, has felt the sacred 
 principle, and though religion flows not in the blood, 
 yet it has descended, like a fair inheritance, from pa- 
 rent to child, through a long succession of years. One 
 inst:ince of this kind, out of myriads, occurs in the 
 case of the celebrated John Wesley. His mother was 
 a pious woman, the daughter, of an eminent noncon- 
 24 
 
278 DOMESTIC PIETY. 
 
 formist minister. He again was descended from a re- 
 ligious mother, who took so much care of his educa- 
 tion, that he was under serious impressions so early, 
 that he declared he knew not the time when he was 
 unconverted. In this instance we see religion flowing 
 on through four generations, and had we information 
 to trace it farther back, might probably trace it for 
 many more. On the other hand, a parent who neglects 
 training up his children in the way of life, may be a 
 principal means of diffusing ignorance and wretched- 
 ness, guilt and damnation, among his descendants for 
 generations to come. 
 
 § 7. Though the remarks here made have a peculiar 
 reference to the effect of parental example and instruc- 
 tion, yet let them not be confined to that only. The 
 influence of displaying piety at home is felt, and may 
 be great, whatever be the situation which the disciple 
 of Jesus fills. When one member of an irreligious 
 family has been converted, if that member has adorn- 
 ed the Gospel, has united piety,' prudence, and prayer, 
 it has often led to the conversion of many others. 
 Some years ago I knew a youth awakened to the im- 
 portance of religion, and deeply impressed v/ith his 
 OAvn condition. He began to inquire for the path of 
 peace ; others of his family imitated his example. He 
 joined the Christian church ; two brothers older than 
 himself, and two other relatives, connected with them 
 by marriage, soon followed him. He has finished his 
 course in hope, and his friends, it is trusted, are now- 
 walking in the way of peace. 
 The child may win the parent.* I know a young 
 ' The child may .win the parent. The following proof of thia 
 occurred not long since in* the United States: " Two daughters 
 
PIETY AT HOME. 279 
 
 disciple of the Savior who, when she set out in reli- 
 gion, had parents who were both of them strangers to 
 the Gospel of salvation. But to see her child embrace 
 religion while she knew it not, impressed the mother's 
 heart, and under God w^as a means of leading her to 
 inquire for the grace of life. She soon became a mem- 
 
 of an irreligious father, while away from home, embraced reli- 
 gion. The father alarmed, immediately sent for them home ; 
 but before the messenger reached them they had made their 
 lasting choice, and found the peace the world cannot give. 
 They returned to their father's— not overwhelmed (as he ex- 
 pected) with gloom and despondency, but with countenances 
 beaming with a heavenly serenity and celestial hope. 
 
 '• They told their father what the Lord had done for their 
 souls — that they were pilgrims here — they kept m view the 
 bright fields of promise as they traversed this desert of sin, and 
 were looking for that city which hath foundations. 
 
 " Soon after their return home they were anxious to esta- 
 blish family worship. They affectionately requested their fa- 
 ther to commence that duty. He replied that he saw no use 
 in it. He had lived very well more than fifty years without 
 prayer, and he could not be burdened with it now. They then 
 asked permission to pray with the family themselves. Not 
 thinking they would have confidence to do it, he assented to 
 the proposition. 
 
 " The duties of the day being ended, and the hour for retir- 
 mg to rest having arrived, the sisters drew forward the stand, 
 placed on it the Bible — one read a chapter — they both kneel- 
 ed—the other engaged in prayer. The father stood, and while 
 the humble, fervent prayer of his daughter was ascending on 
 devotion's wings to heaven, his knees began to tremble, his 
 nerves, w^hich had been gathering strength for half a century, 
 could no longer support him— he also kneeled, and then became 
 prostrate on the floor. God heard their prayer, and directed 
 their father's weeping eyes (which had never shed tears of pe- 
 nitence before) to the Lamb of God which taketh away the 
 sins of the world." 
 
280 MOTIVES FOR PIETY 
 
 ber of the church to which her daughter had been pre- 
 viously united. 
 
 The wife may win the husband ; the husband the 
 wife. Were it necessary, cases of this description 
 might be mentioned, for they are many. In the same 
 way a pious master may produce incalculable good 
 among those he employs. If he considers himself, as 
 he should do, lying under a solemn responsibility wiih 
 respect to his servants, and if he labor and pray for 
 their conversion, his servants may have reason to eter- 
 nity to bless the hour which brought them under his 
 pious care. 
 
 Even the servant may win the employer. The effect 
 of piety in persons in humble life may be great on 
 those in circumstances far above theirs. A pleasing 
 instance of this kind has already been mentioned in 
 chapter vii. § 6, note. 
 
 § 8. Besides all that has been urged, there are many 
 other considerations which should impress on your 
 heart the importance of showing piety in your own 
 home. If you would not be stained with the hateful 
 crime of hypocrisy yon must act this part. For surely 
 no hypocrisy, is more hateful, and none more mischie- 
 vous, than theirs who abroad seem pious, but at home 
 manifest little or nothing of the influence of religion. 
 
 If you would not eternally undo your nearest friends 
 and dearest relit ives, you must show piety at home. 
 Are you the child of parents who are strangers to re- 
 ligion ; and do you profess it? They will form their 
 idea of religion from you. If they see you gentle and 
 humble, affectionate and kind, patient of injury and 
 prompt to good, and shining in all the graces of the 
 Gospel, it will recommend religion to them, and per- 
 
IN THE FAMILY CIRCLE. 281 
 
 haps lead them to the Savior and to lieaven. But if 
 they see you proud, passionate, quarrelsome, unkind, 
 and disobedient, what will they think of your religion? 
 What will your conduct do but seal them up under 
 darkness and impenitence to the judgment of the great 
 day? And at that day they may charge you, as a wick- 
 ed murderer, with having kept them in darkness, and 
 contributed to damn them to eternity. 
 
 It is an awful fact, that where persons profess reli- 
 gion, and yet honor it not by their conduct, they con- 
 tribute in a dreadful degree to harden their own chil- 
 dren or nearest relatives against the truth. Few are so 
 hardened as the children of those professors of religion 
 that display not piety at home. It is far better to be 
 the child of a profligate than the child of an inconsis- 
 tent professor of the Gospel. The child of a profligate, 
 however nurtured in vice, is not hardened against the 
 Gospel by seeing his parents profess it with their lips, 
 but disregard it in their life; and thus, by being con- 
 tinually taught at home, to believe all religion hypo- 
 crisy. Hence there is more hope of the conversion of 
 a profligate's child than of the child of unholy pro- 
 fessors of the Gospel. 
 
 The effects of professing religion without displaying 
 piety at home, are thus awful and dreadful in the ex- 
 treme. Some years ago an aged minister stated to me, 
 that in early life he spent some years under the roof 
 of a person who was a popular preacher of the Gos- 
 pel, and who was the instrument of awakening many 
 ■from a state of carelessness and sin. But while thus 
 successful abroad in turning many to righteousness, at 
 home he displayed little of the influence of religion. 
 24* 
 
282 MOTIVES FOR PIETY 
 
 Family prayer was seldom or never practiced in his 
 liouse. He gave way to harsh and violent tempers. 
 He had six children; but alas! there was not reason 
 to believe that even one of them became a follower of 
 the Savior. They went on, driven, as it were, to per- 
 dition by their father's unholy conduct. Thus it is that 
 persons who profess religion, but do not honor it in 
 their own families, entail on their friends or their chil- 
 dren hardness of heart, and profligacy or infidelity in 
 this world, and eternal enmity lo God and endless 
 damnation in the world which is to come. 
 
 § 9. How will relatives meet the relatives their un- 
 holy conduct has ruined! How will unholy parents 
 meet their injured children at the tremendous bar of 
 final judgment! Ah, in that day, friends united here 
 in nature's strongest, dearest ties, but not united in the 
 lies of grace, must part asunder to meet no more for 
 ever. Families that once met around the same hearth, 
 sat around the same table, and passed the best and hap- 
 piest years of life beneath the same roof, must separate 
 to an' infinite and eternal distance. One part rising 
 high in glory in the blissful climes of heaven; the other 
 sunk deep in eternal despair in the pit of fire and wo. 
 The parents in heaven, and their once beloved children 
 in hell ; or perhaps the children welcomed by the Judge 
 of all to life and bliss, and their unholy, unhappy pa- 
 rents doomed to all the horrors of eternal night. Bro- 
 thers and sisters, husbands and wives, here much and 
 mutually beloved, when they leave this world must 
 frequently separate. for ever. One crowned with glory, 
 will join the family of the first-born, the other sink be- 
 neath a load of unforgiven sin to misery and despair. 
 Thev Avho once were united in such fond attachment, 
 
IN THE FAMILY CIRCLE. 283 
 
 now united no more. They part, and part for ever. 
 They pursued their journey in union through the liille 
 span of time, but now, while some exult in all the lij^ht, 
 and love, and joy of life eternal, their once beloved as- 
 sociates, swept into the gulf of perdition, feel nothing 
 but guilt, remorse, despair, and wretchedness, and an- 
 ticipate not one bright moment in the dreary ages of an 
 eternal night. O, my friend, can you bear the thought 
 of such a separation between yourself and those you 
 hold most dear? Do you not tremble at the idea of so 
 dismal a parting from the child you tenderly love; or 
 the dear parent you revere; oj- the brothers or sisters 
 who have been the aff^iciionate companions of your 
 youthful hours; or the husband or the wife that is now 
 the fond soother of your care ? Yet if you are devoted 
 to Jesus, and they are not, it must come. How should 
 the dreadful idea add fervor to your prayers, and life 
 to your endeavors, to snatch them as brands from the 
 burning ! But perhaps they are consecrated to the Sa- 
 vior and you are not. can you bear to be the wretch- 
 ed outcast? to see your child or your parent, your 
 brother or your sister, your husband or your wife, as- 
 cend to heaven, while you, with a broken heart, look 
 after them in vain? to see them rise to glory and eter- 
 nal life, while you sink to darkness, misery, and de- 
 spair? If the thought is dreadful, what will' be the re- 
 reality? Flee from the dreadful heart-breaking wo, 
 and make their God and Father yours.* 
 
 * Perhaps a brief but impressive narrative may add force to 
 these remarks. '• I have known," said a pious father, "the 
 grace of (iod for nearly thirty years; but in spite of all my 
 advice, my five sons and two daughters, all grown up, ran on iu 
 the broad way to destruction. This cost me many a prayer 
 
284 
 
 FAMILY !N HEAVEN. 
 
 § 10. How hafpy is that family where all, united in 
 the Savior's love, are traveling together to eternal life ! 
 What prayers, what labors of love will not such a pros- 
 pect recompense ! It is true, death will tear that family 
 asunder, and snatch one by one, till all the once happy 
 circle are snatched away : yet they are cheered with 
 the bright prospect of forming a family again, where 
 adieus and farewells are a sound unknown. How sweet 
 is their united devotion, when 
 
 "Kdeeling down to heaven's eternal King, 
 
 "The saint, the father, and the husband prays; 
 
 "Hope springs exulting on triumphant wing, 
 
 "That thus they all shall meet in fuiure days. 
 
 "There ever bask in uncreated rays; 
 
 "No more to sigh or shed the bitter tear, 
 
 "For ever singing their Redeemer's praise 
 
 "In such society, but still more dear, 
 
 "While circling time moves round in one eternal sphere, 
 and tear, yet I saw no fruit of all my labors. In January last I 
 dreamed that the day of judgment was come. I saw the Judge 
 on his great white throne, the holy angels sitting around him, 
 and all nation j gathered before him. I and my wife were on 
 the right hand, but I could not see my children. 
 
 " I then thought that I must go and seek them ; so I went to 
 the left hand, and found them all standing together, tearing 
 their hair, beating their breasts, and cursing the day that 
 they were born. As soon as they saw me they all caught hold 
 of me, and said, ' O father, we will part no more !' I said, ' My 
 dear children, I am come to try, if possible, to get you out of 
 this dismal situation.' So I took them all with m-e; but when 
 we were come within a bowshot of the Judge, I thought he 
 cast an angry look, and said, ' What do thy children with thee 
 now ? they would not take thy warning when upon earth: they 
 shall not share the crown with thee. Depart, ye cursed!' At 
 these words I awoke, bathed in sweat and tears. ^ few days 
 after this, as we were sitting all together on a Sabbath even- 
 iniTf I related my dream to them. No sooner did I begin, but 
 
FAMILY IN HEAVEN. 283 
 
 How sweet will be their future union ! O blessed day, 
 when they who associated below shall meet in realms 
 above! Blessed day, when they v/ho mingled sorrows 
 here shall meet to mingle raptures there ! when they 
 who shared together the trials of earth, shall share in 
 sweeter union the triumphs of heaven! For ever safe ! 
 for ever and for ever blest ! far from every evil ! far 
 from every grief! No longer soothers of each other's 
 wo, but partakers of each other's felicity ! Assaulted 
 by temptation, afflicted by calamity, stained by sin, 
 humbled by imperfection, alarmed by danger, never 
 more! Security is their privilege, as happiness is their 
 portion. The boisterous storms of time cannot foliow 
 them, sheltered safe from every storm. The blasts at 
 affliction shall beat no more on their now peaceful 
 home. The inroads of disease shall no more alarm, 
 nor the assaults of death break their eternal union. 
 The time for these things will be no longer. These 
 began and ended in the field of mortal existence; but 
 the peaceful mansions of the blest are for ever shel- 
 tered from them. Happy tranquillity, which nothing 
 through eternal ages can disturb! lasting harmony, 
 which nothing can dissolve ! delightful security, which 
 nothing through eternity shall ever alarm ! and happy, 
 
 first one, then another, yea, all of them, burst into tears, and 
 God fastened conviction on their hearts. Five of thera are 
 now rejoicing in God their Savior. I believe God is at work 
 with the other two ; so that I doubt not that he will give thera 
 also to my prayers." This good old sr.int, before he exchanged 
 time for eternity, had the happiness of seeing the remainder 
 of his children converted to the truth as it is in Jesus, and 
 adorning the doctrine of God our Savior by useful lives. 
 
286 INSTITUTION OF THE SABBATH. 
 
 happy union, which shall continue unbroken, while 
 the infinite periods of an eternal day are rolling for 
 ever along ! Blessed family I with what melody will 
 they join the everlasting song, "Worthy is the Lamb 
 that was slain, to receive power, and riches, and wis- 
 dom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. 
 Blessing, and honor,- and glory, and power be unto 
 HIM that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the LAMB 
 for ever and ever !" 
 
 O, my friend, with such inducements, who that feels 
 the Savior's love, and true affection for his beloved 
 connections, would not wish to show piety at home ! 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 ON THE SABBATH, AND ITS IMPROVEMENT. 
 
 § 1. Of all the instructions designed by heavenly 
 mercy to promote the temporal and eternal welfare of 
 mankind, there is no one of such immense importance, 
 and productive of such immense benefits, as the Sab- 
 bath. " Wherever the Sabbath is not, there is no wor- 
 ship, no religion. Man forgets God, and God forsakes 
 man." Where the Sabbath is not regarded, man dege- 
 nerates to a brute, a heathen, an infidel, or an atheist ; 
 and hastens, v»^ith a rapid step, to a scene where he 
 will bear all the character and all the features of a 
 fiend. Where the Sabbath is loved, venerated, and im- 
 proved, peace smiles, hope blooms, piety matures and 
 
INSTITUTION OP THE SABBATH. 287 
 
 l:ipens, and the soul hastens onward to the period when 
 the Sabbaths of time shall be exchanged for the long 
 Sabbath of eternity. 
 
 § 2. God, at the beginning of time, appointed a Sab- 
 bath. This solemn season for rest and religion he or- 
 dained should then be the seventh day. " God blessed 
 the seventh day, and sanctified it ; because that in it 
 he had rested from all his work which God created 
 and made." There is reason to believe that this day 
 was regarded as sacred by the patriarchs, and it is de- 
 cisively clear that it was esteemed holy before the time 
 when the law was given at Sinai. For some time 
 before .that period, Moses is described as speaking to 
 the Israelites respecting it, and speaking of it not as if 
 it were a new institution, but one well known to them. 
 " He said unto them, This is that which the Lord hath 
 said, To-morrow is the rest of the holy Sabbath unto 
 the Lord." 
 
 When the Lord with appalling and terrible majesty 
 gave the law from Mount Sinai, the observation of the 
 Sabbath was the subject of one of the ten precepts that 
 he delivered on that tremendous occasion. " Remem- 
 ber the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt 
 thou labor, and do all thy work : but the seventh day 
 is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God : in it thou shalt 
 not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, 
 thy man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy cattle, 
 nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: for in six 
 days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all 
 that in them is, and rested the seventh day : wherefore 
 the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it." 
 
 This solemn law of the Most High does not appear 
 to have been introduced at this time as a new law, but 
 
288 CHANGE OF THE SABBATH. 
 
 as a law referring to a subject with which the Israel- 
 ites were well acquainted. Remember the Sabbath day. 
 This phraseology implies that they were acquainted 
 with the day and with the law which they were now 
 solemnly commanded to regard. 
 
 § 3. With respect to the change of the Sabbath from 
 the seventh day of the week to the first, it may be ob- 
 served, that the Lord Jesus Christ was Lord of the Sab- 
 bath, and consequently possessed authority to alter the 
 day on which the Sabbath is to be observed : " The 
 Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath day ;" and that 
 the Scriptures lead us to believe that he, or his divine- 
 ly inspired apostles, did make such alteration. 
 
 The first day of the week was the day on which the 
 Lord Jesus, after his resurrection, repeatedly appeared 
 to his disciples. John, 20 : 19-26. It was the day on 
 which the Gospel was first preached, with the Holy- 
 Ghost sent down from heaven, and on which several 
 thousands were converted, and a wide foundation laid 
 for the Christian church. " And when the day of Pen- 
 tecost was fully come, they were all with one accord 
 in one place. And tliey were all filled with the Holy 
 Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the 
 Spirit gave them utterance." And the same day there 
 were added unto them about three thousand souls. 
 This fact is peculiarly remarkable. If the Most High 
 had designed the seventh day to be continued as the 
 day for public worship, can it with any reason be sup- 
 posed that tiie abundant effusion of the Holy Spirit, 
 which qualified the apostles to preach for the first 
 time what is stricili/ the Gospel, should have been 
 made on the first uay? and that the first day of the 
 week should have been the day honored by the first 
 
FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK. 289 
 
 preaching of the Gospel, and by the conversion of 
 thousands ? Did not this procedure of the Lord God 
 mark out the first day of the week, as the day on 
 which he designed the Gospel of Jesus to be most ex- 
 tensively and successfully preached ? 
 
 The first day of the week was the day on which the 
 disciples united in that most solemn act of worship the 
 supper of the Lord. " And we sailed away from Phi- 
 hppi after the days of unleavened bread, and came unto 
 them to Troas in five days ; where we abode seven days. 
 And upon the first day of the week, when the disci- 
 ples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto 
 them, ready to depart on the morrow, and continued 
 his speech until midnight." The argument for the first 
 day being the Lord's day, which is furnished in this 
 verse, is peculiarly forcible, in consequence of its be- 
 ing expressly stated that the apostle and his compa- 
 nions abode seven days, or one week at Troas If the 
 seventh day of the week, in which the apostle arrived 
 at Troas had been the day devoted to public worship, 
 he was there to engage in its sacred exercises; but in- 
 stead of the account stating that any thing of this kind 
 took place on that day, it passes that day over in si- 
 lence, and records, that on the first dav of the follow- 
 mg week the disciples met for that solemn act of wor- 
 ship, the Lord's Supper, and that then the apostle 
 preached unto them. 
 
 The first day of the week was the day on which the 
 disciples were directed to make their charitable con- 
 tributions for their suffering friends. 1 Cor. 16 : 2 
 
 There cannot be a reasonable doubt that the first 
 day IS the day distinguished by the appellation of the 
 
290 JtTSTIN's TESTIMONY, 
 
 Lord's day, by the apostle John, in the Revelation. "I 
 was in the spirit on the Lord's day." The name appli- 
 ed to the day expresses its peculiar design. It is the 
 Lord's day. Other days are allotted to man for atten- 
 tion to the needful concerns of this transitory world ; 
 but this day is peculiarly the Lord's, a day to be de- 
 voted to his worship and glory. It may be said, in- 
 deed, that all days are his. They are in one sense ; but 
 so is all creation. The cattle on a thousand hills are 
 his ; yet the Jewish husbandman was allowed to es- 
 teem his cattle his own ; but if a part of his herd were 
 presented as a sacrifice to God, that part, though in 
 one sense the Lord's before, was now esteemed as set 
 apart in a peculiar way for God. So with the Chris- 
 tian every day should be the Lord's ; but while ho 
 claims one day as more peculiarly his own, it suggests 
 that that day is to be set apart from common for sacred 
 purposes, as the beast presented for the sacrifice was 
 no longer its former owner's, but the Lord's. 
 
 Though to look to ancient Christian writers for ar- 
 guments in support of institutions which the Scrip- 
 tures do not mention, is to dishonor the word of God, 
 and to open a wide door to superstition ; yet it is not 
 impleasant to trace in the writings of very early Chris- 
 tians further accounts of institutions which the Scrip- 
 tures do record. Justin Martyr, who wrote his Apo- 
 logy at hardly the distance of fifteen years from the 
 time of the apostle John, observes, "And in every eu- 
 charistlcal sacrifice we bless the Maker of all things, 
 through his Son Jesus Christ, and through the Holy 
 Spirit ; and upon the day called Sunday, all that live 
 either in city or country meet together at the same 
 place, where the writings of the apostles and prophets 
 
OBSERVANCE OF THE SABBATH. 291 
 
 are read, as much as time will give leave ; when the 
 reader has done, the bishop makes a sermon, wherein 
 he instructs the people, and animates them to the 
 practice of such lovely precepts ; at the conclusion of 
 this discourse we all rise up together and pray : and 
 prayers being over, as I now said, there is bread, and 
 wine, and water offered ; and the bishop, as before, 
 sends up prayers and thanksgivings with all the fer- 
 vency he is able, and the people conclude all with a 
 joyful acclamation of Amen: then the consecrated ele- 
 ments are distributed to and partaken of by all that 
 are present, and sent to the absent by the hands of the 
 deacons. 
 
 " But the wealthy and the willing, for every one is 
 at liberty, contribute as they think fitting, and this col- 
 lection is deposited with the bishop, and out of this he 
 relieves the orphan and the widow, and such as are re- 
 duced to want by sickness or any other cause, and 
 Buch as are in bonds, and strangers that come from 
 far ; and in a word, he is the guardian and almoner of 
 all the indigent. 
 
 "Upon Sunday we all assemble, that being the first 
 day in which God set himself to work upon the dark 
 void, in order to make the world, and in which Jesus 
 Christ our Savior rose again from the dead ; for the 
 day before Saturday he was crucified, and the day af- 
 ter, which is Sunday, he appeared to his apostles and 
 disciples, and taught them what I have now proposed 
 to your consideration." 
 
 § 4. With respect to the loay of observing- the Sab- 
 bath, it is to be set apart for God. It is the Lord's day, 
 and not yours. The day is the Lord's, not merely the 
 morning, or the afternoon, or the evening, but the day. 
 
292 PROFANATIONS OF SABBATH- 
 
 The command is not. Remember the Sabbath morning 
 to keep it holy, or the Sabbath afternoon; but the 
 Sabbath day. And so we are informed of the early 
 Christians, that they spent a great part of the day to- 
 gether, engaged in those solemn exercises which were 
 ripening them for a Sabbath above. The day should 
 be begun with God, be carried on with God, and be 
 ended with God. Private prayer, family devotion, 
 self-examination and meditation; reading the Scrip- 
 tures, visiting the sick, public worship, and the reli- 
 gious instruction of the young, and if a parent, of 
 your own children, are the engagements that should 
 occupy the Sabbath. If at the head of a family, you 
 are commanded by God to let your servants and your 
 cattle rest; and if you are employing these, you as 
 much profane the Sabbath as if employed yourself. 
 
 The ways in which this sacred day is profaned are 
 innumerable. Some profane it by buying, selling, 
 traveling or amusements. To such the words apply, 
 
 " What evil thing is this ye do, 
 
 " Who God's peculiar day profane ; 
 
 " Your calling's common work pursue, 
 
 " Your journeys, sports, aod pleasures vain ? 
 
 " Ye buy the curse of God !— ye sell 
 
 " Your souls to sin, the world, and hell !" 
 
 The Sabbath is profaned in numberless instances by 
 attending to household business, that should be done 
 on Saturday or left till Monday. It is profaned by ba- 
 kers busy at their ovens ; by farmers employing their 
 servants in work not absolutely essential to the well- 
 being of their cattle ; by reading improper books, not 
 only books of a profligate tendency, but books not cal- 
 
KEEPING THE SABBATH HOLY. 293 
 
 culated to promote the power of vital piety, as works 
 in science, in history, or on mere speculative subjects 
 in theology. 
 
 The Sabbath is profaned in an awful degree by the 
 indulgence of improper thoughts, and by conversation 
 of a description unsuitable to the day. What has the 
 Christian, who should be improving the Sabbath as a 
 means of meetening the soul for heaven, to do on the 
 Lord's day with politics ? with the state of the nation ? 
 with tattling about the affairs of families ? with the 
 state of trade? with fashions, with diversions? Are 
 these subjects for such a day, and for creatures who 
 have a heaven to gain, a hell to escape, a God to glo- 
 rify, an eternity before them, and but a few Sabbaths 
 to improve? Yet what more common ! What else do 
 many professors of religion on the Lord's day converse 
 about ? Many hearers of the Gospel scarcely leave the 
 house of prayer before they begin discoursing on these 
 or other mere worldly subjects. 
 
 A short and expressive account of the mode in which 
 the Sabbath should be spent is furnished in the fifty- 
 eighth chapter of Isaiah ; and an important promise 
 connected with it : " If thou turn away thy foot from 
 the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; 
 and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, 
 honorable; and shalt honor him, not doing thine own 
 ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking 
 thine own words ; then shalt thou delight thyself in 
 the Lord ; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high 
 places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of 
 Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord hath 
 spoken it." Nothing merely of a ceremonial nature 
 25* 
 
294 KEEPING THE BAEBATH HOLY. 
 
 appears in this description, and though the latter part 
 of the passage contained a promise more immediately 
 applicable lo Israel, yet the promise, "Thenshalt thou 
 delight thyself in the Lord," is so naturally connected 
 with the solemn improvement of the Lord's day, that 
 it may justly be viewed as made to all who pursue the 
 practice previously required. 
 
 § 5. Now allow me affectionately to urge upon you 
 a devout, a strict improvement of this holy day. All 
 that is dear to you as an immortal being, all that you 
 are anxious to promote, if indeed a Christian, enforce 
 such observance. "To this institution," says Dr. 
 Dwight, "we owe far the greater pan of the spiritual 
 blessings which we enjoy ; and in a high sense, we 
 owe them all. But for this day, we should neither 
 have sought, nor secured, eternal life; for where no 
 Sabbath is, there is no religion. But for this day, 
 earthly things would have engrossed all our thoughts. 
 But for this day, the world, as a canker, would rust, 
 corrupt, and consume all the dispositions to piety, and 
 all the hopes of heaven. The soul would be benumbed. 
 Religion would die. God would be forgotten. The 
 death of Christ would be vain. Mankind would cease 
 to be saved ; and heaven would fail of her destined in- 
 habitants. How desolate the prospect ! How strongly 
 would this world resemble the regions of final despair ! 
 where no Sabbath dawns; where no prayers nor 
 praises ascend ; no sermons proclaim pardon and 
 peace to sinners; the voice of mercy never sounds; 
 and the smiles of forgiving, redeeming, and sanctify- 
 ing love never illumes the dreary valley of the shadow 
 of death !" 
 § 6, A strictly religious improvement of the Sabbath 
 
KEEPING THE SABBATH HOLY. 295 
 
 will be fraught with incalculable blessings to yourself. 
 It will counteract the influence of the world ; it will 
 strengthen every grace ; it will nourish the flame of 
 holy love, and mature your soul for all the enjoyments 
 of the heavenly world. Judge Hale observes, " I have 
 found by a strict and diligent observation, that the due 
 observing the duties of this day hath ever had joined 
 to it a blessing upon the rest of my time, and the week 
 that hath been so begun hath been blessed and pros- 
 perous to me. And on the other hand, when I have 
 been negligent of the duties of this day, the rest of the 
 week hath been unsuccessful and unhappy to my se- 
 cular employments. So that I could easily make an 
 estimate of my successes in my own secular employ- 
 ments the week following, by the manner of passing 
 this day : and this I do not write lightly or inconside- 
 rately, but upon a long and sound observation and ex- 
 perience." 
 
 § 7. To strengthen and deepen your impressions of 
 the immense importance of the strict observance of the 
 Lord's day, look at what passes around you, think of 
 your obligations to God, and contemplate the scenes 
 before you. 
 
 Look at what passes around you. Some will tell you 
 that a strict observance of the Sabbath is superstitious ; 
 but observe their character. Can you point to one of 
 this description that displays any eminence in piety? 
 Do their affections seem heavenly ? their hopes bright? 
 their souls devout ? Are they zealous and devout fol- 
 lowers of the Lord? Rather, are they not those, whose 
 profession of religion is a cold, barren, heartless, worth- 
 less thing ? Are these they with whom you would wish 
 
296 SANCTIFYING THE SABBATH. 
 
 to die? and when they quit this transient world, would 
 you wish your soul in their soul's place? 
 
 Look at others, whose piety is elevated, whose zeal 
 is warm, whose faith is strong, whose hopes are bright, 
 who live as strangers here, and as travelers to glory, 
 and whose souls are ripening apace for heaven; to 
 whom religion is their meat and drink, their pleasure 
 and their all : these are they tliat reverence the Lord's 
 day, and strictly improve its holy hours. Would you 
 not wish to die their death, and to have your soul 
 gathered with theirs? Then imitate their example. 
 The rule of the Lord Jesus, " By their fruits ye shall 
 know them," may be applied here. Eminent piety is 
 uniformly connected with the devout and strict obser- 
 vation of the Lord's day : and the want of a strict im- 
 provement of the holy day is, even where a profession 
 of religion is made, as uniformly connected with luke- 
 warmness or hypocrisy. 
 
 Think of your obligations to God. Does he, who 
 gives you every day, and from whom you hope for im- 
 mortality, require too much, when he bids you conse- 
 crate to him one day in seven? Had he condescended 
 to ask you what portion of your time you would so- 
 lemnly set apart for his peculiar service, would you 
 have thought of less ? could you have thought of so 
 little? Part of the Sabbath is employed in receiving 
 needful support, and were a person, from fourteen years 
 of age to sixty, to spend ten hours every Sabbath in 
 employments of a strictly religious nature, in a life 
 of sixty years the time thus employed would by no 
 means amount to three whole years ; and is this much 
 in such a life to consecrate to such a friend ? Besides, 
 
SANCTIFYING THE SABBATH. 297 
 
 While the Lord thus claims the day, he intends the 
 profit of the day for you. 
 
 Think of what is before you— a dying day and an 
 eternal world. And when you come to quit this tran- 
 sitory world, will you then repent of having improved 
 the Lord's day with the most strict devotion ? Will 
 you then wish to have trifled away in idle conversa- 
 tion, or vain amusement, or worldly science, its sacred 
 hours ? Rather, would not the recollection of Sabbaths 
 thus passed fill the hour of death with alarm, and 
 plant with thorns your dying pillow ? What way of 
 spending the Lord's day will yield you most pleasure 
 in death and eternity ? Only spend it in that way. 
 Spend it as you will wish in your last hours to have 
 done. Spend it as a traveler hasting to eternity. Re- 
 member that every Sabbath which passes leaves you 
 one less to improve, and one more to account for; and 
 consider, that for all an account must soon be rendered ' 
 before the bar of the Eternal. Sabbaths improved are 
 precious blessings; but wasted Sabbaths are dreadful 
 curses. O spend them as one who knows that every 
 Sabbath, as it finishes, leaves you one Sabbath nearer 
 heaven or hell ! O improve them as you should do if 
 you wish to be blessed with an eternal Sabbath when 
 Sabbaths below are gone for ever. 
 
 § 8. In addition to all these considerations, it is no 
 inconsiderable motive for a strict observance of the 
 Lord's day, that this may have the happiest efl-ects in 
 promoting- religion. I have heard a respectable minis- 
 ter of the Gospel relate a striking fact illustrative of 
 this observation. A solicitor had a law-suit in hand 
 which was expected to come to trial on Monday morn- 
 mg. Several signatures were necessary to some papers 
 
298 ON SEARCHING THE SCRIPTURES. 
 
 which were to be obtained previously to the trial ; and 
 on the Lord's day before the expected day of trial he 
 applied to a lady, a member of a dissenting church, 
 for her signature. She refused to give it on the Sab- 
 bath, but was willing to sign the requisite deed the next 
 morning. In vain he tried to move her from her reso- 
 lution. All his influence failed ; she was immovable. 
 He then applied to two other persons, also members of 
 a dissenting church in London, but met with a similar 
 reception: they were willing to sign as soon as he 
 pleased in the morning, but would not sign on the 
 Lord's day. The effect of this consistent conduct on 
 their part was very pleasing. He discerned the effect 
 of religion ; it led him to reflection ; he perceived his 
 own want of religion ; and the affair issued in his con- 
 version. He became a firm friend of the Gospel ; was 
 the principal, if not the sole instrument in erecting a 
 house of prayer in his own neighborhood, and after- 
 wards was a principal supporter of the interests of re- 
 ligion there. Such is one out of many instances of the 
 happy effects produced where Christians let their light 
 shine before men. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 ^^N PRIZING AND SEARCHING THE SCRIPTURES. 
 
 § 1. A most important help in the way to eternal life 
 IS the regular and devout perusal of the sacred Scrip- 
 
ON SEARCHING THE SCRIPTURES. 299 
 
 tures. They are an inestimable treasure, and of all 
 books should be your chief and most beloved compa- 
 nion. They are to the disciples of Jesus a light for 
 their feet, a lamp for their paths. To search them is 
 an express Christian duty. " Let the word of Christ 
 dwell in you richly, with all wisdom." " Search the 
 Scriptures." You are commanded not merely to read 
 the Scriptures, but to read them with such attention 
 that your mind may be amply stored with their divine 
 instructions. The precept, " Search the Scriptures," 
 is peculiarly emphatic; it signifies to search them as a 
 miner searches a mine for jewels or for gold ; thus dig 
 into the sacred mine, and search for the precious trea- 
 sures it contains. 
 
 With respect to the doctrines and duties of religion, 
 make the word of God your sole guide and reject all 
 human traditions. The Lord Jesus taught his disciples 
 how to treat human traditions on religious subjects, 
 when he condemned a regard to those of the elders. 
 "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not 
 according to this word, it is because there is no light 
 in them." The doctrines of the Bible are the doctrines 
 you are to believe. The duties enjoined in the Bible 
 are the duties you are to practice; and all the additions 
 which the traditions of men or human authority make 
 are not worth a rush ; and often become the occasions 
 of sin, when men reject the commandment of God to 
 keep their own tradition. 
 
 As the word of God is thus in religion to be your 
 sole guide, so you are required to add nothing to it, 
 and from it to take nothing. "Ye shall not add unto 
 the word which I command you, neither shall ye di- 
 minish aught from it, that ye may keep the command- 
 
300 BIBLE THE CHRISTIAN'S GUIDE. 
 
 ments of the Lord your God which I command you.' 
 " Every word of God is pure : he is a shield unto them 
 that put their trust in him. Add thou not unto his 
 words, lest ^re reprove thee, and thou be found a liar." 
 
 -} 2. To read the Scriptures profitably, read them 
 Tfiih a docile and humble mind, and with a desire to 
 receive spiritual instruction from them. "As new-born 
 babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may 
 grow thereby." " For the wisdom of this world is fool- 
 ishness with God. God resisteth the proud, and giv- 
 eth grace unto the humble." 
 
 To read the Scriptures profitably, guard agamst their 
 sin and folly who wrest the word of God, who reject 
 its distinguishing doctrines because they are mysteri- 
 ous, and whose self-conceit and wicked pride, while 
 they prevent them from learning of the Savior, are 
 leading them to perdition. "The Lord knoweth the 
 thoughts of the wise, that they are vain." "Though 
 we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel 
 unto you than that which we have preached unto you, 
 let him be accursed." 
 
 To read the Scriptures profitably, always read them 
 with prayer for divine instruction. " They shall all be 
 taught of God." "If any of you lack wisdom, let him 
 ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally and up- 
 braideth not ; and it shall be given him." 
 
 § 3. Many are the inducements presented in the Scrip- 
 tures for such devout attention to their sacred contents. 
 They are in truth " the word of God ;" the word of 
 Jehovah; " the oracles of God ;" " the word of Christ." 
 The truths revealed are spoken by God, " who hath 
 spoken to us by his Son." " For all Scripture is given 
 by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, 
 
VALUE OP THE BIBLE. 301 
 
 for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteous- 
 ness ; that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly 
 furnished unto ail good works." " The holy Scriptures 
 are able to make thee wise unto salvation, through 
 faith, which is in Christ Jesus." They are " the word 
 of God's grace, which is able to build you up, and to 
 give you an inheritance among all them which are 
 sanctified." "Heaven and earth shall pass away," but 
 Christ's "word shall not pass away." "These are 
 written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, 
 the Son of God ; and that believing ye might have 
 life through his name." Error springs from a neglect 
 of the Scriptures. " Do ye not therefore err, because 
 ye know not the Scriptures ?" They promote holiness 
 and peace here, as well as lead to heaven hereaf- 
 ter. " Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his 
 way? By taking heed thereto according to thy word. 
 Through thy precepts I get understanding : therefore 
 I hate every false way." " The law of the Lord is per- 
 fect, converting the soul : the testimony of the Lord is 
 sure, making wise the simple : the statutes of the- Lord 
 are right, rejoicing the heart. More to be desired are 
 they than gold, yea, than much fine gold ; sweeter also 
 than honey and the honeycomb." They who improve 
 this sacred book, shall enjoy in a peculiar degree their 
 Creator's favor. " Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is 
 my throne and the earth is my footstool ; but to this 
 man will I look, to him that is of a poor and contrite 
 spirit, and that trembleth at my word." 
 
 § 4. As you desire happiness, let the word of God 
 be your ever dear delight. You cannot prize the bless- 
 ed book sufficiently. Had it been brought you from 
 26 
 
302 
 
 VALUE or THE BIBLE. 
 
 heaven, in an angel's hand, it could not have been a 
 more precious prize, or a surer guide to immortality. 
 Suppose that but one in the world had been blessed 
 with this treasure, that salvation had been offered to 
 but one, and that this divine book had been sent to 
 that one, to guide him in his way to heaven, how would 
 the rest of mankind have envied that one ! Happy 
 person to possess the promise of eternal life beyond 
 the dark shades of death! and to see heavenly day 
 dawning beyond the gloom of the grave ! O, had but 
 one possessed this treasure, how would all besides have 
 desired his lot ! how would they have wished that the 
 path to heaven were open to them also ! How would 
 multitudes have longed to enjoy, with the possessor of 
 this single Bible, the sweet hope of immortality; and 
 could that one have sold his treasure, how eagerly 
 might all the monarchs of the earth have contended 
 who should purchase the invaluable good ! O consider 
 the Bible is as precious a treasure now as it would bo 
 if there were but one Bible in the world ! As surely 
 will it guide that happy possessor to heaven, who with 
 childlike docility makes it his perpetual guide.* 
 
 * The justly celebrated Sir William Jones, one of the bright- 
 est geniuses and most distinguished scholars of the eighteenth 
 century, observes, "I have carefully and regularly perused 
 these holy Scriptures, and am of opinion thatthe volume, inde- 
 pendently of its divine origin, contains more sublimity, purer 
 morality, more important history, and finer strains of eloquence, 
 than can be collected from ALL other books, in whatever lan- 
 guage they may have been Avritten." It is related that the em- 
 inent English poet Collins, in the latter part of his mortal ca- 
 reer, "withdrew from study, and traveled with no other book 
 than an English Testament, such as children carry to school. 
 When a friend took it into his hand, out of curiosity ,"to see what 
 
VALUE OF THE BIBLE. 303 
 
 § 5. The Bible has been the instrument of producing 
 all the true piety that has for many ages existed upon 
 earth. Were the world deprived of the sun, light and 
 heat, and life, would expire for want of its vivifying 
 beams, and all would become one mass of barrenness 
 and death. Were the world deprived of the Bible, it 
 would soon present one deplorable scene of unmingled 
 wickedness. Nothing would meet the eye but pollu- 
 tion and crime. Hell might exult in a complete con- 
 quest, and claim this world as a province of its own. 
 Among the myriads of mankind not one heir of hea- 
 ven would be found; but all, thronging to destruction 
 together, would rush from the darkness of spiritual 
 night to the darkness of eternal perdition. It may con- 
 fidently be asserted, that no one who slights the Bible 
 is virtuous ; and that no one who loves it, feels its power 
 on the heart, and conforms to its precepts, is vicious. 
 Infidels may rave at such assertions : let them rave. 
 They are monuments of the truth, which excites their 
 indignation. They show what man is when he slights 
 the Bible. 
 
 Let it never be forgotten by you, that those Chris- 
 tians whose piety has shone with the brightest luster, 
 whose hopes have been fullest of immortality, are those 
 
 companion a man of letters had chosen — 'I have only one book,' 
 said he, ' but that is the best.' " — Johnsoii's Lives of the Poets, 
 vol. iv. John Locke, so distinguished as a philosopher, in the 
 latter part of his life studied scarcely any thing but the word 
 of God ; and when asked which was the surest way for a young 
 man to attain a knowledge of the Christian religion, he replied, 
 "Let him study the Holy Scriptures, especially the New Tes- 
 tament. Therein are contained the words of eternal life. It 
 hath GOD for its author— SALVATION for its end— and 
 TRUTH, without any mixture of error, for its matter." 
 
304 VALUE OF THE BIBLE. 
 
 who have loved and valued most the word of God. It 
 is related of De Renty, a French nobleman of most 
 eminent piety, that lie used every day on his knees to 
 read three chapters in the word of God. On the other 
 hand, how many Christians of even eminent piety, 
 when leaving the world, have lamented their folly in 
 ^ot having studied the Scriptures more, and human 
 writings less. " When Salmasius, who was one of the 
 most consummate scholars of his time, came to the 
 close of life, he saw cause to exclaim bitterly against 
 himself. ' O !' said he, ' I have lost a world of lime ! 
 time, the most precious thing in the world ! whereof 
 had I but one year more, it should be spent in David's 
 Psalms and Paul's Epistles! O! sirs,' said he again 
 to those about him, ' mind the world less, and God 
 more !' "* When that eminent Christian, James Her- 
 vey, who died in triumph, "apprehended himself to 
 be near the close of life, with eternity full in view, he 
 wrote to a friend at a distance to tell him what were 
 his senjiments in that awful situation. ' I have been 
 too fond,' said he, ' of reading every thing valuable and 
 elegant that has been penned in our language, and 
 been peculiarly charmed with the historians, orators, 
 and poets of antiquity ; but were I to renew my studies, 
 I would take my leave of those accomplished trifles: I 
 would resign the delights of modern wits, amusement 
 and eloquence, and devote my attention to the Scrip- 
 tures of Truth. I would sit with much greater assidui- 
 ty at my divine Master's feet, and desire to know no 
 thing in comparison of Jesus Christ, and him cruci- 
 fied.' " 
 
 § 6. Consider the Scriptures as a message from God 
 * Simpson's Plea for Religion. 
 
VALUE OF THE BIBLE. 305 
 
 to you on the most momentous subjects. A new world 
 is here presented to you. An amazing eternity appears 
 to overwhelm the poor moments of time. Life is a 
 span, and death is the way to an immense unmeasured 
 life. Read the message of your God : the discoveries 
 that it makes, it makes to you. To you it points out a 
 second life; to you it unveils an eternal world. Your 
 thoughts it leads beyond lije grave- The judgment it 
 discloses, is that at which you must appear. To you 
 God in it reveals a Savior and a heaven, the gift of re- 
 deeming love ; or a hell, the dire desert of sin. To 
 your view he presents the spirits of the just, washed 
 in the blood of the Lamb, and triumphing in the full- 
 ness of joy; and bids you be not slothful, but a follower 
 of them, who through faith and patience inherit the 
 promises. 
 
 § 7. What is there in human science compared with 
 discoveries so important ? What is there in the letters 
 of friends, the dearest and the best beloved, compared 
 with that book, which is an epistle from your God? 
 What are those studies on which youth is so often em- 
 ployed, and much of manhood spent, compared with the 
 knowledge oUhat book— that one book, which God has 
 given? that one book, which guides the soul to lasting 
 peace? that one book, which disperses the shadows, 
 clouds, and darkness, that hang over the grave? that 
 one book, which directs those who love its truth, to 
 glory and honor that will endure when "stars and 
 sun have lost their light?" 
 
 Tliere is one view in which the Scriptures are im- 
 portant beyond all expression. They are the only guide 
 to eternal life. When we contemplate an eternal state, 
 26* 
 
306 GUIDE TO ETERNAL LIFE. 
 
 the most momentous concerns of a few vain years 
 dwindle into insignificance. Health or sickness, pain 
 or ease, liberty or slavery, life or death, appear the 
 merest trifles, compared with those awful and amazing 
 scenes which await man beyond the grave. Then 
 what is learning ? what is human science? When in a 
 few short years all must be forgotten in the dust ! How 
 different that knowledge which the word of God im- 
 parts ! That extends its blessings onward, and will dif- 
 fuse unfading good in ages so remote in the depths of 
 eternity, that no human thought ever reached, no hu- 
 man calculation ever approached them. Or think of 
 appearing in the presence of God— a deathless spirit, 
 appearing to receive a doom that never can be changed ! 
 All the boasted wisdom of human science can afford 
 you no aid in the awful prospect ; but there is one book, 
 one precious though oft neglected book, that discovers 
 all we need to know. Should not that book be prized ? 
 That book is the Bible. Other books are for time, but 
 this for eternity ! other knowledge amuses a few short 
 moments here, this directs to never-ending good here- 
 after ! Other wisdom pleases or profits for the tran- 
 sient day of life, this is the source of unfailing bless- 
 ings for infinite periods beyond the hour when stars 
 and sun shall cease to shine, and " rolling years shall 
 cease to move." Other learning may gain the applause 
 which must soon be hushed for ever by the hand of 
 death ; but divine knowledge will direct the soul to the 
 raptures of eternal day, and insure the approbation of 
 the King of kings, and the welcome congratulations 
 of angelic myriads, in the presence of Him who is, and 
 who was, and who is to come ; the Eternal, the Al- 
 mighty. ThuS; as much as eternity excels time in im- 
 
ON THE lord's SUPPER. 307 
 
 portance, as much as an infinite life of bliss outweighs 
 the advantages of a fleeting hour ; so much the pre- 
 cious Bible excels in value all that orators, philoso- 
 phers, historians and poets ever wrote, all that human 
 wisdom ever inspired, all that vain world ever ex- 
 tolled. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 ON THE lord's SUPPER. 
 
 § 1. Before the Lord Jesus left our world he insti- 
 tuted the sacred ordinance, in which to the end of 
 time there was to be a commemoration of his dying 
 love. Three of the evangelists have recorded the in- 
 stitution of this important ordinance. The substance 
 of their accounts when united into one, furnishes an 
 impressive view of its obligation and design. "And 
 as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, 
 and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said. 
 Take, eat ; this is my body,* which is given for you : 
 
 THIS DO IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME/'f " Aud he tOOk the 
 
 cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, 
 Drink ye all of it: for this is my blood of the new tes- 
 tament, which is shed for many for the remission of 
 
 * Matt. 26 : 26. t Luke, 21 : 19. 
 
308 ON THE lord's SUPPER. 
 
 sins;* and they all drank of it. And he said unto 
 them, This is my blood of the new testament, which 
 is shed for many. Verily I say unto you, I will drink 
 no more of the fruit of the vine until that day that I 
 drink it new in the kingdom of God."t 
 
 After the holy Jesus had left this world, and return- 
 ed to his eternal throne, he communicated by divine 
 revelation, to the apostle Paul, an account of the insti- 
 tution and design of this ordinance.:I:§ 
 
 Can a Christian, who feels unspeakable obligations 
 to the adorable Savior, read these impressive portions 
 of the word of God and not perceive his duty, and the 
 most powerful motives for obedience ? 
 
 " Do this in remembrance of me." Can any com- 
 mand be more plain, more positive, more reasonable, 
 or more important ? Do this— Attendance at the Lord's 
 table is not a subject left to human choice ; but to 
 
 * Matt. 26 : 27, 28. t Mark, 14 : 23-25. t 1 Cor. 11 : 23-29. 
 § The reader of the sacred volume who makes that holy 
 book his guide, may find in the brief scriptural statements re- 
 specting this holy ordinance, a sufficient antidote to the prin- 
 cipal errors that have been broached respecting it. Popery 
 maintains that the wafer its priests offer is the body and 
 blood of Christ, and has murdered myriads for rejecting this 
 monstrous absurdity: the Scriptures declare that it was 
 bread which Jesus took and brake. Popery reserves the 
 wine for its antichristian priests, and withholds the cup from 
 the people : Jesus said. Drink ye all of it; and his apostle de- 
 scribes the members of the Corinthian church as drinking 
 of the cup as well ap eating of the bread. No absurdity how- 
 ever can be too great, no abomination too vile, no supersti- 
 tion too heathenish, and uo cruelty too atrocious for popery, 
 which the Scriptures represent as the mother of harlots and 
 abominations, and which an able writer, Mr. Cecil, described 
 as Satan's masterpiece. 
 
MOTIVES FOR COMMUNmO. 309 
 
 fivery disciple of Jesus his express and solemn com- 
 mand is— Do this. And the command has sanctions 
 superior to those of even his other precepts. It was 
 uttered almost by his dying lips. It was given the 
 same night in which he was betrayed ; and after his 
 ascension was repeated in the revelation made to the 
 apostle Paul. To neglect this ordinance is thus far to 
 reject the authority of the Lord of heaven, and to vio- 
 late an express and positive command, enforced by the 
 most solemn sanctions that even the word of God con- 
 tains. If then you can neglect the Savior's table, where 
 is your faith, your love, your obedience ? 
 
 § 2. When the design of this ordinance is consider- 
 ed, the subject is presented in a still more impressive 
 light. On the one hand, obedience is enforced by mo- 
 tives springing from its design, and pleasing in the ex- 
 treme ; on the other, disobedience appears peculiarly 
 flagrant, because it resists all those charming and im- 
 pressive motives. Behold the Son of God instituting 
 this holy ordinance. The last night of his life has ar- 
 rived. The traitor has gone out to betray him. The 
 bloody agony of Gethsemane, and the horrors of the 
 cross, are in sight. He is about to interpose himself as 
 a spotless victim between an apostate world and of- 
 fended justice. The intolerable load of the sins of 
 countless millions is going to press him down with a 
 weight which none but he could bear. All this is to be 
 borne before another sun shall rise and set. He knows 
 it, yet, full of heavenly love, forgets his own sorrows 
 that he may minister to the comfort of his flock. In 
 that last awful night he broke the bread, and poured 
 out the wine, and said, This do in remembrance of 
 me. Cold is the heart that can forget him. Cold the 
 
310 MOTIVES FOR COMMEMORATINQ 
 
 heart that delights not to cherish the remembrance of 
 such a friend. Follow him from the table where he 
 broke the bread, to the cross on which he died. There 
 he atones for sins numberless as the drops of morning 
 dew, and vast as. the mountains that pierce the skies. 
 There he brings in an everlasting righteousness, and 
 opens wide the gate of heaven. There he dies, and dies 
 that you may live, if you will believe in him ; sheds 
 his heart's blood to wash away your sins; and endures 
 his Father's frown, that on you, a poor ruined child of 
 death and wo, his Father may for ever smile. For you 
 he purchased peace, by agonies intolerably severe. To 
 you he opens heaven. Your shepherd would he be 
 through the wilderness of time, and crown the long 
 eternity that awaits you with glory, honor and happi- 
 ness. In those many mansions in his Father's house, 
 where he is now exalted at the right hand of power, 
 he would give you a peaceful dwelling ! In those re- 
 gions, where, as the Lamb that was slain, he will lead 
 his flock to living fountains of waters, and where God 
 shall wipe away all tears from their eyes, he would 
 enrich you with all the treasures of eternal life. Com- 
 pared with this immense benevolence, what are human 
 benefactors, the wisest, the greatest and the best ! 
 Their kindness, when it shines brightest, and glows 
 with the warmest fervor, is more insignificant compared 
 with his, than the glimmering of a glow-worm com- 
 pared with the meridian sun. What grateful recollec- 
 tions then does he deserve ! All his dying love, and 
 all his living care ; all he has done for your salvation, 
 all he is doing, all he will do through eternity, should 
 unite to impress this precept on your heart, and to 
 render it the most delightful precept in the book of 
 
THE savior's death. 321 
 
 Cod; « This do in remembrance of me." Can thev be 
 Christians who hesitate to obey a precept recommend- 
 ed by such a design as that of remembering such a 
 friend ! Will not the Christian rather say to him 
 " Holy Redeemer, thou hast united my happiness and 
 duty in bidding me remember thee. O thou divine 
 friend ! I would remember thee while memory keeps 
 Its seat within my soul; and rather let my right hand 
 forget Its cunning, let my heart forget to move, my 
 pulse to beat, my tongue to speak, my eyes to see 
 than I forget thee, whose dying love procured eternal 
 salvation for my ruined soul !" 
 
 § 3. These considerations, on remembering Christ 
 with gratitude and love, receive additional weight 
 when we take into view the particular event, in his 
 benevolent course, to which the sacred supper leads 
 our meditations. The event was the most important 
 m the annals of time, the most momentous in the re- 
 cords of eternity. We have no reason for apprehend- 
 ing that such another event ever did take place in eter- 
 nity past, or during an eternity to come ever will 
 The happines of the millions of the redeemed, and 
 the glory of God in their salvation, through eter- 
 nal ages, was suspended on his atonement. If that 
 had not been effected, the apostate world must have 
 been for ever lodt ; heaven must have closed its gates 
 against all the inhabitants of the earth. No songs 
 of redeeming love could ever have resounded through 
 Its blissful regions. No child of Adam could ever have 
 become a child of God. The wisdom and love of God 
 in man's redemption could never have been displayed. 
 1 he triumphs of Satan would have been complete, and 
 the earth have become only an ample nursery for hell 
 
312 MOTIVES rOR COMMEMORATINO 
 
 On this one event all these others were suspended. 
 This one was effected. Jesus died, and dying glorified 
 the law and made it honorable, atoned for sin, and res- 
 cued the sinner. The way to heaven was then open- 
 ed. Myriads, admitted there in consequence of this 
 sacrifice, even before it was oflTered, were confirmed in 
 happiness, and the way prepared to that abode for 
 millions more. The plans of the wicked one were 
 baffled. A display of the love and wisdom of God, 
 that will shine bright to eternity, then commenced. 
 Eternity may roll away its ample ages, but never will 
 this event be forgotten ; this event, to which heaven 
 will owe all the praises of redeeming love ; this event, 
 to whrich multitudes, countless as the sands on the sea- 
 shore, will ascribe their felicity through ages without 
 end ; this event, to which the hosts of angels will owe 
 all their intimacies, and friendship, and mutual joy 
 with the spirits of the just; this event, to which even 
 God will owe all the rich revenue of glory that as the 
 God of salvation will accrue to him through all eter- 
 nity. What is the creation of man compared with this? 
 what the formation of a world compared with this? 
 What even the creation of cherubim and seraphim, 
 and til the sons of light, compared with this? Their 
 creation would never have called forth songs of eternal 
 praise, so fervent, so lofty, so expressive of infinite 
 benefits, as this event will elicit. And glorious as God 
 shines when he appears the Creator of cherubim and 
 seraphim, of angels, archangels, principalities and 
 powers, yet their creation would never have invested 
 him with half that glory which shines around him as 
 a just God and yet a Savior. And shall that one 
 amazing, astonishing, overwhelming event, the aton- 
 
THE savior's death. 313 
 
 ing death of Jesus, thus be remembered to eternity in 
 worlds of light— thus to eternity fill heaven with its 
 sweetest praise, and invest the character of God with 
 its most radiant glories—sliall the hearts and songs of 
 the redeemed be full of it for ever and ever — and shall 
 we not remember it with gratitude and delight? Will 
 you not listen to him who says, '• Do this in remem- 
 brance of me ?" 
 
 § 4. Perhaps you have done it with repeated de- 
 light. Persevere: do it till he come to call you from 
 the sorrows of time to all the blessings of eternal life. 
 But perhaps I address one that has hitherto lived care- 
 less of this sacred ordinance, and disobedient to the 
 Savior's will. Why do you act thus? Perhaps you 
 reply, 
 
 Obj, I. I apprehend I am not fit to approach the 
 Lord's table, and partake of an ordinance so solemn. 
 
 Ajis. This objection must spring either from a con- 
 sciousness that you are a stranger to converting grace, 
 or from incorrect views of the Gospel of Christ. 
 
 If you are a stranger to converting grace ; if you 
 know not what it is to flee from sin and ruin to the 
 Savior ; if you are the slave of allowed sin, then in- 
 deed you are unfit to approach this sacred table. But 
 while this is your condition, you are unfit for heaven, 
 and are really and truly fit for hell. The same remark 
 will apply if you know that you are not decided in 
 your acceptance of the Savior, but halting between 
 him and the world ; an almost-Christian, and no more. 
 You are unfit ; but then the reason is, you have no 
 part in Christ ; you are unfit for heaven, and if you 
 die as you are, sure of not entering there. 
 27 
 
8W OBJECTIONS TO ATTENDANCE 
 
 But perhaps your fear springs from incorrect views 
 of the Gospel. When one wiio professes to love and 
 follow Christ says, I am not worthy to approach his 
 table, it seems to show that the heart is yielding to a 
 self-righteous bias, and that the professed believer, in- 
 stead of seeking acceptance wholly in Jesus, is de- 
 pending on some fancied personal worthiness. It is 
 not as a worthy creature, but as an unworthy, yet 
 penitent believer, that you should commemorate ihe 
 Savior's death. What does the ordinance point out to 
 you, which has any reference to a worthiness of yours ? 
 Is not its very design to remind you, that when you 
 were yet a condemned sinner, an ungodly creature, 
 without strength, Christ died for you? Perhaps you 
 add, 
 
 Ohj. 2. I am not absolutely convinced that it would 
 be improper for me to attend to this holy ordinance; 
 but I have many scruples respecting the propriety of 
 my doing so. 
 
 Ans. Your scruples are either well founded, or with- 
 out sufficient foundation. If they are well founded, 
 you sin in living in such a slate as gives occasion foi 
 them. If there is no sufficient ground for them, you 
 sin if you do not endeavor their removal. Were you 
 heir to a rich estate, but had some doubts about the 
 title, would you not se'^k with earnestness the best ad- 
 vice you could obtain upon the subject? Have you 
 done so on a subject of infinitely more importance? 
 Have you disclosed your scruples to your minister, or 
 other intelligent and pious persons ? If you have not, 
 it seems that the case truly is this— you care liitUi 
 whether you rebel against the Savior's authority, or 
 obey his sacred precepts. 
 
AT THE LOKD'3 TABLE. 315 
 
 Obj. 3. It is true I have neglected communion with 
 the church of Christ ; but the cause of my neglect has 
 been the wickedness of some that were professors of 
 religion. 
 
 Ans. Will this excuse avail you at the day of judg- 
 ment? If they have been hypocrites, will this justify 
 you in rebellion? Suppose that the apostle Paul, 
 %vhen ordered by the Savior to preach the Gospel, had 
 replied, No, Lord ; in secret I will love thy Gospel, but 
 I will never preach it; for Judas preached it once; 
 nor will I ever join thy people ; for Judas once belong-- 
 ed to them. What would the Savior have thought of 
 him? If boundless mercy had not changed him, he 
 would have been left to go on in pride and disobedi- 
 ence, and with all his professed love to the Gospel, to 
 travel to perdition. If you rebel against Christ's au- 
 thority because some false professors have dishonored 
 him, take care lest this should be your case. 
 
 Obj. 4. I acknowledge that I neujlect communion at 
 the Lord's table; but the reason is, my mind is vexed 
 and troubled by the conduct of one who attends there. 
 He has said some very unwarrantable things about me. 
 
 Ans. Are you to fall out with the ordinances of the 
 Lord Jesus Christ because a brother or a sister has 
 fallen out with you? Are you to disobey the Son of 
 God, because a friend has used a harsh word respect- 
 ing you, or an unkind action ? Is your regard to the 
 Lord's precepts, is your love to his ordinances, is your 
 pleasure in remembering him, so small, that the un- 
 kind conduct of an imperfect fellow-sinner should lead 
 you to disobey his commands, and to slight his ordi- 
 nances ? Blush at such weakness, and such weak at- 
 tachment to the best of friends. Be assured this ob- 
 
3^® lord's table 
 
 jection commonly springs from unmortified pride^ 
 
 You are probably indulging rancor and resentment 
 
 While you indulge such hellish dispositions, what is 
 
 your professed religion worth ? Unless you forgive 
 
 you will never be forgiven. But if you feel not these 
 
 passions, let not the unkind conduct of a fellow-sinner 
 
 keep you from that ordinance which reminds you of 
 
 him who died for all your sins. Go there, and think 
 
 that ten thousand talents are forgiven you, and forgive 
 
 and forget an erring brother's debt of a hundred pence. 
 
 Obj. 5. I love the Savior, and wish to follow him • 
 
 but I fear coming to his table, lest I should eat and 
 
 drink unworthily, and thus eat and drink damnation 
 
 to myself. This leads me to neglect his command. 
 
 Ans. It is probable that your fears are founded on 
 mistake. To eat and drink unworthily, and to partake 
 of this ordinance with a deep sense of entire unwor- 
 thiness, are two things as distinct as possible. The sin 
 of eating and drinking unworthily, is committed when 
 persons commune at the Lord's table in a careless, ir- 
 reverent manner. So did the Corinthians, when some 
 were hungry and others were drunken. 
 
 But probably the idea you attach to the expression, 
 eating and drinking unworthily, is of quite a different 
 description, and consequently you have quite mista- 
 ken its meaning. They who were once the chief of 
 sinners, but who have fled to Jesus for salvation, un- 
 worthy as they feel themselves, do not eat and drink 
 unworthily, when commemorating his death, who is 
 their hope. But the proud moralist, the good-hearted 
 young man, or innocent young woman, as the world 
 esteems them, who never knew their sinfulness, and 
 whose religion is no more than a little morality and 
 
APPROACHED WITH REVERENCE. 317 
 
 an outward form, when they come to this sacred table, 
 do eat and drink unworthily. 
 
 Perhaps you have misunderstood the meaning of 
 the expression, eating and drinking damnation. It is 
 evident fi^om the connection that the word does not 
 here signify future punishment, but temporal judg- 
 ments; for the apostle adds, "For this cause (viz. 
 eating and drinking unworthily) many are weak and 
 sickly among you, and many sleep." Sickness and 
 death were the judgment that the members of the Co- 
 rinthian church incurred by their irreverent behavior 
 at the Lord's table. But so different was the judgment 
 they endured from damnation, that it was sent to pre- 
 serve them from that dreadful doom ; for the apostle 
 adds, " When we are judged, we are chastened of the 
 Lord, that we should not be condemned with the 
 world." 
 
 § 6. Tills sacred ordinance should be treated with a 
 peculiar degree of reverence. " Let a man examine 
 himself, and so let him eat of that bread and drink of 
 that cup." The feelings we should cherish at the Sa- 
 vior's table are those of deep self-abasement, sincere 
 gratitude, fervent love, and increasing devotedness to 
 the Son of God. Go not to that sacred ordinance in a 
 light, irreverent way. Go not without self-examina- 
 tion, as to the state of your soul, and your progress in 
 the divine life. Go not there to perform a duty, but to 
 enjoy a privilege. And 0, go there with a mind dis- 
 cerning the Lord's body. Tremble at the thought of 
 partaking with alight irreverent mind of the memo 
 rials of the Savior's love. Place yourself as before his 
 cross, and in the view of an expiring Redeemer devote 
 27* 
 
318 IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNING 
 
 yourself anew to him, and let one subject of self-exami- 
 nation, before partaking at the table, be, how far the 
 resolutions formed at the preceding opportunity have 
 been regarded by you. Pursue this course, depending 
 on the Spirit's aid, and though you should feel yourself 
 the unworthiest of the unworthy, yet you will not eat 
 and drink unworthily. 
 
 Often improve this sacred privilege. It appears that 
 the primitive Christians very frequently, even weekly, 
 and perhaps oftener, partook of the Lord's supper. If 
 partaken of with proper views, it will nourish every 
 grace, strengthen every virtue, and promote your grow- 
 ing meetness for that world of felicity, where, though 
 this ordinance will cease, yet the event it commemo- 
 rates will be celebrated in the triumphal anthems of 
 the redeemed for ever and for ever. 
 
 § 7. There are many lamentable instances in which 
 communicants at the table of the Lord manifest a de- 
 clension in religion by a disposition to neglect that sa- 
 cred ordinance, and at the same time delude them- 
 selves with the notion that they are not going to give 
 up religion altogether. Some extracts from a letter 
 drawn up with the design of sending it to a young fe- 
 male who was falling into this deplorable condition, 
 may perhaps without impropriety conclude these brief 
 observations on the supper of the Lord. This young 
 woman, while expressing her wish to neglect the Lord's 
 table, professed that she should continue her attend- 
 ance at public worship. 
 
 " A sincere desire to promote your spiritual welfare 
 leads me to trouble you with these lines. Be assured 
 they are written with an earnest wish for your ever- 
 lasting welfare. Read them seriously, and weigh their 
 
AT THE LORD S TABLE. 319 
 
 purport as carefully as you would do on a dying bed ; 
 and as you love your own soul, consider well what 
 you are doing before you decide on what I fear will 
 prove one of the most fatal actions of your life. Let 
 me be plain with you. That plainness proceeds from 
 love to your soul. Consider then, my friend, what you 
 are doing, and whom you are pleasing by doing soj 
 think what will be the probable consequences of the 
 step you wish to take, and how you will view it at ano- 
 ther day; and remember that the reasons of your con- 
 duct, whatever they are, must be examined by the 
 Judge of all. 
 
 " Consider what you are doing. You wish to leave 
 the church of Christ. Can you leave it without plung- 
 ing into sin ? and when separated from it, can you help 
 leading a life of sin ? You cannot, for you will live a life 
 of disobedience to the Redeemer. If you were to live 
 uttering an oath with every sentence, you would think 
 this a wicked life, and it would be so. Its wickedness 
 would arise from its disobedience to him who said, 
 ' Swear not at ail.' But you know that it is as much 
 his will that his disciples should be united in church 
 fellowship, as it is that they should avoid profane lan- 
 guage ; and it is as great a sin to break Christ's com- 
 mands in one thing as in another. Did he ever give a 
 more plain or positive command than, ' This do in re- 
 membrance of me V It was his dying precept, and gra~ 
 litude and love, if duty were out of the question, should 
 lead you to obey his command. But in the life you 
 wish to lead you would neglect this precept, and thus 
 live a life of rebellion against the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 whose last command you would habitually violate. 
 Such conduct in any case is a dreadful sin ; but in you 
 
320 EFFECTS OF NEGLECTING 
 
 the sin will be aggravated by the profession you have 
 made. Have not you solemnly confessed the Savior? 
 Have not you, in private and in public, declared that 
 you devoted yourself to the Lord ? and would you fly 
 from these solemn engagements? Have you vowed to 
 the Lord, and would you go back? O, were you to 
 live henceforth free from all other sin, yet this one of 
 refusing and neglecting this sacred ordinance would 
 bring a dreadful load of guilt upon your soul. Surely 
 you could not say to your Redeemer, ' Lord, thou hast 
 commanded me to remember thy dying love in thy 
 own ordinance; but I will forget it, and slight thy ap- 
 pointment. Thou hast taught me that I should be uni- 
 ted with thy flock; but I will forsake it, and cherish 
 no such union.' You could not, I know you could not 
 say this in words ; but depend upon it the eternal Judge 
 reads this as the language of your present wishes. In 
 his sight, as well as in ours, actions speak louder than 
 words. 
 
 "Think whom you are pleasing by your present 
 conduct. Not your God. In his sight obedience is bet- 
 ter than sacrifice. Not your Redeemer ; for he says, 'If 
 a man love me he will keep my words.' But be sure, 
 as the wolf is delighted when he sees thft sheep stray- 
 ing from the fold and exposing itself to his assaults, so 
 are those infernal spirits pleased with your conduct 
 who watch for your halting and wait for your de- 
 struction. 
 
 "Consider, also, what will be the probable conse- 
 quences of the step you are taking. I cannot but fear 
 that it will lead to entire backsliding. A deceitful 
 heart and a deluding enemy may persuade you that 
 there is oo danger of this kind. You may think, *I 
 
THE lord's t^ole. 321 
 
 will keep on attending at the house of God ;' but when 
 3^ou are persuaded to neglect one part of duty, you will 
 soon be persuaded to neglect another. I fear the step 
 you are taking will prove in the issue a principal step 
 in your way from your Redeemer to destruction. 
 While leading a life of disobedience to his institutions, 
 if he should vouchsafe you any of his blessing, you 
 have no reason to expect it in such a measure as if you 
 faithfully followed him, and therefore will probably 
 soon forsake him altogether. You will also be deprived 
 of the watchful care of every religious friend. If you 
 fall now, there are those who are willing to raise you 
 up; if you stray, who are anxious to bring you back; 
 but when separated from the flock of Christ, every ad- 
 vantage of this kind will be lost to you. You will be 
 numbered again with the unconverted world, and most 
 probably will walk in the way of the multitude. And 
 should your conduct, as it most probably will, end in 
 total backsliding, surely you know who has said, The 
 latter end of such is worse than their beginning. 
 
 "Think, also, how you will view your conduct at 
 another day. If you disregard this faithful warning, 
 if by degrees you fall from the truth, O what bitter- 
 ness and anguish will seize upon you when, at death, 
 you review your conduct! Then, when your spirit is 
 just quitting its mortal tabernacle, when your flesh and 
 heart fail, how will you mourn the fatal hour when you 
 began to slight the Redeemer's will ! how wish that you 
 had been faithful to your Lord, whoever may be un- 
 faithful ! Even if your present conduct should not lead 
 to these sad consequences; if its issue should not be 
 total declension; if you should keep up some of the 
 form, and even feel some of the power of religion j 
 
322 WAY3 OF DISPLAYINe 
 
 yet would it not fill your last moments with doubts 
 and fears to remember that you had led a life of willful 
 and obstinate disobedience to one important part of 
 the blessed Redeemer's will? Will not those excuses 
 which now satisfy your mind, then appear but vanity 
 and folly? And after all, what are those reasons, those 
 excuses? Are they such as will stand the test of the 
 judgment bar of Jesus Christ? Alas, does not con- 
 science tell you that the true reason of all is, that you 
 are not so much alive to God as you once were, that 
 you are less concerned about eternal blessings, and, at 
 least in heart, fallen from what you once enjoyed?" 
 
 The fears expressed in this letter appeared after 
 wards too well founded. The young woman by de- 
 grees dropped every thing like the form of religion; 
 and a few years after her withdrawal it was stated to 
 the writer that she had even parted with her Bible, as 
 she declared it would no longer be of any use to her. 
 Thus the way of the wicked seduceth them. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 ON DISPLAYING CHRISTIAN LOVE, ON GLORIFY- 
 ING GOD BY DOING GOOD, AND ON LOVE TO 
 ENEMIES. 
 
 § 1. To a serious mind connection with the flock of 
 Christ will appear the most honorable of earthly con 
 nections. In it a union is commenced which strength- 
 
CHRISTIAN LOVE. 323 
 
 ens when other unions dissolve, and which will be con- 
 tinued through eternity. However despised by many, 
 however slighted by many more, a vital union with the 
 fiock of the Redeemer is a union with the family of 
 God and the heirs of heaven. If you have entered in- 
 to this sacred connection, having first given yoursfdf 
 10 the Lord and then to his church, your own happi- 
 ness, the honor of religion, and the comfort of those 
 connected with you will much depend upon the man- 
 ner in which you discharge the duties of so important 
 a relation. There are many in the flock of the Savior 
 who pursue a steady course of consistent piety from 
 the day they enter the church below to that which re- 
 moves them to the family above. Humble and kind, 
 watchful and holy, beloved and loving, they move for- 
 ward with a steady step to the home on which their 
 best affections center. Their light shines more and 
 more unto the perfect day; nor then declines, but 
 shines brightest at its setting; and when it sets, sets 
 to rise brighter in eternity. Their pastors and their 
 Christian friends never mourn on their account till 
 they mourn their departure hence, and with such sor- 
 row mingle gladness at the remembrance of what they 
 were, and in the confidence of what they are. How 
 different from those professors of religion whose in- 
 consistencies excite many a fear that they are stran- 
 gers to converting grace; whose harsh, or unkind, or 
 conceited, or selfish ways are calculated to provoke 
 disgust rather than win affection, and whose departure 
 is darkened with a cloud of apprehensions that they 
 are perhaps lost for ever. That you may be a happy 
 and useful, and act as an honorable member of tlie 
 church of Christ, pay peculiar attention to the nume- 
 
324 
 
 fTAYS OP DISPLAYINO 
 
 rous precepts addressed immediately to his disciples, 
 with which the New Testament abounds. 
 
 § 2. Consider that Christianity is peculiarly a reli- 
 gion of LOVE. Holy love is its heart and soul. Love 
 was its origin in the breast of the Eternal. Love di- 
 rected its progress when the Son of God assumed our 
 nature to atone for sin. Love governs its sincere vo- 
 taries—the constraining love of Christ; and love will 
 .swell the triumphal songs of heaven. Cherish this 
 godlike disposition, for love is of God. 
 
 § 3. The following are some of the ways in which 
 this heavenly disposition must be manifested to those 
 who are traveling with you to heaven, and, wherever 
 applicable, to those who are not so. 
 
 By rejoicing with them in their comforts, by sym- 
 pathizing with them in their sorrows, and according 
 to your utmost ability relieving them in their afflic- 
 tions. " Let us do good unto all men, especially unto 
 them who are of the household of faith." "Rejoice 
 with them that rejoice, and weep with them that weep." 
 " Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law 
 of Christ." "Comfort the feeble-minded, support the 
 weak." " Whoso hath this world's good and seeth his 
 brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of com- 
 passion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in 
 him?" 
 
 In pursuing such labors of love, the Christian's time 
 and strength are to be employed to administer to the 
 eomfort of others as well as to his own. The apostle 
 Paul said, "So laboring ye ought to support the weak, 
 and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how 
 he said. It is more blessed to give than to receive." So 
 far should the Christian be from heaping upsuperflui- 
 
CHRISTIAN LOVE. 325 
 
 ties for self-gratification, that he is to deny himself for 
 the sake of promoting the benefit of others. "Sell that 
 ye have, and give alms ; provide yourselves bags which 
 wax not old, a treasure in the heavens, that faileth not." 
 To those who act this part, in the day of final account 
 the Judge and King will say, " Come, ye blessed of my 
 Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the 
 foundation of the world : for I was an hungered, and 
 ye gave me meat : I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: 
 I was a stranger, and ye took me in : naked, and ye 
 clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in 
 prison, and ye came unto me. Verily I say unto you, 
 inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of 
 these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." To those 
 who act not this part, whatever, may have been their 
 profession, or their knowledge, or their zeal, or their 
 gifts, the King will say, "Depart from me, ye cursed, 
 into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his an- 
 gels: for I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat: 
 I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink : I was a stran- 
 ger, and ye took me not in : naked, and ye clothed me 
 not : sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Verily 
 I say unto you, inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the 
 least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go 
 away into everlasting punishment; but the righteous 
 into life eternal." 
 
 Christian love to brethren in the Lord is to be shown, 
 by bearing with their weaknesses, by subduing a selfish 
 spirit, and seeking their welfare. Instead of being, as 
 multitudes of professors are, only intent upon their 
 own advantage, the real Christian is to cherish an in- 
 terest in the welfare of all his fellow-pilgrims. "We 
 28 
 
o^o v;ay3 or ei.iplayi^g 
 
 then that are strong ought to bear the iiifininties of the 
 weak, and not to please ourselves. For even Christ 
 pleased not himself." " Let no man seek his own, but 
 ev-ery man another'.s welfare." 
 
 Christian love is to be manifested by visiting the 
 sick and afflicted. '• Pure religion, and nndefiled, be- 
 fore God and the Father, is this, To visit the fatherless 
 and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself un 
 spotted from the world." " I was sick, and ye visited 
 me," This duty is by many much neglected, though 
 the Savior lays so much stress upon its performance 
 as even to mention it in the solemn account of those 
 actions that will meet his approbation when he ap- 
 pears as the Judge of all. Those who are unable to 
 feed the hungry, or clothe the naked, may yet visit and 
 console the sick and afflicted. Would every disciple 
 of Jesus make a point of regularly paying one such 
 visit in a fortnight; o-f spending but one half hour in 
 that time in consoling, or praying with, and instruct- 
 ing the afflicted, how much good would be done ! and 
 at how small an expense of time and exertion ! A 
 church of one hundred members would thus in a year 
 pay two thousand six hundred such benevolent visits. 
 
 The same spirit is to be displayed by refraining from 
 whatever might injure a w^eaker Christian's soul, even 
 though the thing itself should be harmless. ' When 
 ye sin so against the brethren, and wound their weak 
 conscience, ye sin against Christ. Wlierefore, if meat 
 make my brother to oifend, I will eat no flesh while 
 the world standeth, lest I make my brother to offend." 
 
 Christian love is to be shown by attending to those 
 little offices of kindness which may promote the com- 
 fort of others. '• Be pitiful, be courteous." Jesus said, 
 
CHRISTIAN LOVE. 327 
 
 "Ye call me Master and Lord ; and ye say well ; for 
 so I am. If I theiij your Lord and Master, have washed 
 your feet, ye also ought to wash one another's feet, 
 yor I have given you an example, that ye should do 
 as I have done to you." One of the humbler offices of 
 kindness in Judea, where sandals were worn, appears 
 to have been washing the feet. Of this kindness the 
 blessed Savior set an instructive example, an example 
 not designed to inculcate on all his followers that par- 
 ticular action, but that spirit of humility and kindness 
 which, indulged, will lead to kind offices in a thousand 
 varied ways. 
 
 Christian love is to be displayed by honoring and 
 esteeming others above ourselves. " Be kindly affec- 
 tioned to one another with holy love ; in honor prefer- 
 ring one another." " In lowliness of mind, let each 
 esteem others better than themselves." 
 
 Christian love is to be manifested by treating poorer 
 brethren with as much kind attention as the rich. Eead 
 on this subject the Epistle of James, chap. 2 : 1-9. 
 
 Christian love is to be shown when discords arise, 
 by attending to the directions which the Lord Jesus 
 has given for their removal : " If thy brother shall tres- 
 pass against thee, go and tell him his fault between 
 thee and him alone : if he shall hear thee, thou hast 
 gained thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, then 
 take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of 
 two or three witnesses every word may be established. 
 And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the 
 church : but if he neglect to hear the church, let him 
 be unto thee as a heathen man and a publican." 
 
 § 4. For the promotion and restoration of harmony 
 and peace there is not a more important rule than this in 
 
328 
 
 WAYS OF D SPLAYING 
 
 the Bibie, and few so little heeded. Were it regarded, 
 probably the fire of strife would be speedily extin- 
 guished in ninety-nine cases of dissension out of every 
 hundred. The prosperity of churches, the honor of 
 religion, the peace of individuals, and the comfort of 
 families, would all be advanced. But instead of obey- 
 ing this plain and positive law, the generality of those 
 who profess religion act as if there were no such Jaw 
 in the Bible. Some, instead of expostulating in the 
 spirit of Christ with an offending friend, complain of 
 the real or fancied injury, till the report, with a hun- 
 dred exaggerations, spreads through half a town. At 
 the same time they greedily drink in every evil report 
 respecting the person who has injured them ; to these 
 again they give circulation, and thus become a hun- 
 dred times more guilty than he whom they make an 
 offender for a word, or even for a much more serious 
 injury. Thus they injure the cause of religion, and 
 load their own souls with sin. For, first, they are guilty 
 of rebellion against Christ. He says about an offend- 
 ing brother, Go and tell him his fault between thee 
 and him ALONE ; instead of that, they tell any body 
 or every body except the offender, and thus trample 
 under fool the law of God. Were they to plunge into 
 idolatry or drunkenness, they could but rebel against 
 the Son of God, and they who make light of this so- 
 lemn law of his are as truly rebels against him. The 
 evil reports they greedily receive are most probably 
 in a great degree false, and when they circulate these 
 falsehoods they become guilty of scandal and lying. In 
 connection with this they are guilty of indulging the 
 worst and most hellish passions of the human heart, 
 cancor, malice, and resentment : if thev did not in- 
 
CHRISTIAN LOVE. 329 
 
 dulge these hell-born passions, they would not iend a 
 pleased and attentive ear to every idle tale against an 
 offending friend ; nor be pleased, if that person had been 
 ever so wrong, to publish his shame : they see the mote 
 in their brother's eye, but they have a beam in their own. 
 Others pursue a different course, but a course of re- 
 bellion as real, though not carried to the same extent, 
 against the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. In- 
 stead of taking the steps with an offending friend 
 which he ordains, they sit down with sullen pride, and 
 resolve to have no more to do with him. Instead 
 of going and telling him his fault in private, and in 
 the spirit of Christian affection, they at once treat him 
 as "a heathen man and a publican." The rebellion in 
 such cases against the authority of the Lord is as 
 complete as in the former. Nothing can be more op- 
 posite than this law and their conduct. 
 
 This wicked conduct is often rendered still more 
 wicked, from the flagrant fact that it is often indulged 
 where there is no clear evidence that a brother has 
 been an offender, and where perhaps there is nothing 
 but vague report; yet instead of inquiring into the 
 truth of this report, it is at once assumed to be cor- 
 rect, and that course of wickedness commences which 
 has now been faintly delineated. 
 
 If you are one that thus trample under foot the au- 
 thority of Christ, that pay no attention to his positive 
 law on this subject, mock him no longer with the title 
 of your Lord and Savior, while you are a real rebel 
 against him ; but go and join the ranks to which you 
 belong ; the ranks of his enemies, the swearers, the 
 drunkards, the liars, the scoffers, the blasphemers; 
 28* 
 
330 WAYS OF DISPLAYING 
 
 they are but rebels, and while you neglect this precept 
 when a brother has offended you, you are as really a 
 rebel as they, and perhaps a worse enemy ; they are 
 open enemies, not traitors in disguise. Rather let me 
 say to you, if you have acted the part I have describ- 
 ed, deplore your sin. Flee to the blood of sprinkling, 
 and resolve that, in this respect, and every other, the 
 laws of Christ shall govern you. 
 
 § 5. Christian love is to be displayed by not rashly 
 believing unfavorable reports against brethren and sis- 
 ters in the Lord, and by forgiving those who may 
 have committed faults, or even been the authors of 
 repeated injuries. " Charity thinketh no evil ; hopeth 
 all things ; endureth all things.^' " In malice be ye 
 children." " And be ye kind one to another, tender- 
 hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for 
 Christ's sake has forgiven you." " Peter said. Lord, 
 how oft shall my brother sin against me and I for- 
 give him ? till seven times ? Jesus saith unto him, I say- 
 not unto thee, Until seven times; but until seventy- 
 limes seven." 
 
 Christian love is to be displayed by hating tale-bear- 
 ing, and by endeavors to promote harmony and peace. 
 " Let all evil-speaking be put away from you." " Seek 
 peace and pursue it." " Have peace one with another." 
 " Blessed are the peace-makers : for they shall be called 
 the children of God." 
 
 ' Christian love is to be shown by a watchful concern 
 to give our brethren no cause of offence, and, if we 
 have dealt unkindly to any, by speedily seeking recon- 
 ciliation. " Confess your faults one to another, and 
 pray one for another." " If thou bring thy gift to the 
 altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath 
 
CHRISTIAN LOVE. 331 
 
 aught against thee ; leave there thy gift before the altar, 
 and go thy way ; first be reconciled to thy brother, and 
 then come and offer thy gift." 
 
 § 6. Christian love is to be displayed by warning 
 brethren of sin, and by friendly reproof. " Thou shalt 
 not hate thy brother in thine heart : thou shalt in any 
 wise rebuke thy neighbor,and not suffer sin upon him." 
 "If thy brother trespass against thee, TELL him his 
 fault." '• Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye 
 which are spiritual restore such an one in the spirit 
 of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be 
 tempted." 
 
 To reprove sin in fellow-disciples, or in others, is an 
 act of sincere friendship, and an important Christian 
 duty; but in its discharge much prudence should be 
 exercised. Sometimes there is a propriety in openly 
 reproving the profane or indecent conversation of 
 worldly persons. At other times this may be done 
 more effectually by slipping a tract against the sin com- 
 mitted into the offender's hand, or by a friendly private 
 remark. The errors or faults of an offending friend 
 should seldom be publicly reproved. To converse af- 
 fectionately with relatives or friends in private, is the 
 far more probable way of promoting their welfare. 
 Such reproof should ever be administered with kind- 
 ness and affection, not with the authority of a superior, 
 but with the humility of a fellow-sinner. 
 
 On excuses for neglecting this duty nothing more 
 %hall here be said than is contained in a short anec- 
 dote. One day a person being with a poor aged Chris- 
 tian, and lamenting a want of firmness to reprove the 
 abandoned when traveling, had recourse, as an excuse, 
 to that passage, " Give not that which is holy unto 
 
332 WAYS OF DISPLAYING 
 
 dogs; neither cast ye your pearls before swine." She 
 seriously and hastily replied, " O, Sir, keen and just 
 reproofs are no pearls. Were you to talk to a blas- 
 phemer respecting the love of God shed abroad in the 
 heart by the Holy Ghost, and the pleasures of com- 
 munion with God, you might cast pearls before swine; 
 but not in reproving sin." 
 
 j 7. Christian love is to be manifested by endeavors 
 to promote the spiritual welfare of our brethren in the 
 Lord. " Let us consider one another, to provoke unto 
 love, and to good works : exhort one another daily, 
 while it is called To-day; lest any of you be hardened 
 through the deceitfulness of sin." '• Comfort your- 
 selves together, and edify one another." 
 
 Christian love and humility are to be displayed by 
 receiving with meekness and thankfulness the admo- 
 nitions and reproofs of those who wish us well. They 
 are our best friends, whose faithfulness points out our 
 faults and occasions their correction. They who are 
 too proud to listen to reproof, manifest a dreadful want 
 of the Christian spirit. " Let the righteous smite me, 
 it shall be a kindness." '= Whoso Joveth instruction, 
 loveth knowledge: but he that hateth reproof is bru- 
 tish. The way of a fool is right in his own eyes : but 
 he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise." 
 
 Christian love is to be displayed by fervent prayers 
 for the flock of the Lord, and for all mankind. " We 
 pray always for you, that our God would fulfill all the 
 good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith 
 with power." " I exhort therefore, that, first of all, 
 supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of 
 thanks, be made for all men." 
 Finally, Christian love to brethren is to be shown by 
 
-•HRISTIAN LOVE. 333 
 
 avoiding divisions, and cherishing unity of spirit and 
 affection. "Be of one mind; live in peace; and the 
 God of love and peace shall he with you." " Mark 
 them which cause divisions aud offences, contrary to 
 the doctrine which ye have learned, and avoid them." 
 § 8. Cherish the spirit inculcated in these precepts 
 by the authority of the Lord Jesus. Thus act, and 
 you will live esteemed and beloved ; a comfort to 
 others, and a comfort to yourself Thus live, and you 
 will enjoy the fairest evidence that you have passed 
 from death unto life; and may indulge an animating 
 hope that you shall soon join the church triumphant 
 in that happier country, where all the truly pious 
 "shall meet in Christ, and part no more." 
 
 While it is your incumbent duty thus to manifest 
 Christian love to the household of faith, it is also your 
 duty, in all those modes which are applicable to the 
 situation and circumstances of those who are not the 
 friends of the Savior, to manifest benevolence and love 
 to them. Thus will you display to those who know it 
 not, the influence of real piety. Though exhorted to 
 do good, "especially to the household of faith," you 
 are also exhorted to do good unto all. 
 
 § 9. Besides those duties which devolve upon mem- 
 bers of the Savior's flock, in reference to their breth- 
 ren in the Lord, there are others which more immedi- 
 ately respect the ministers of the Gospel and the 
 pastors of churches. The duties of those employed in 
 the ministry of the Gospel are of the most important 
 nature, and connected with the most awful responsi- 
 bility. An idle, inactive, unfaithful minister, deserves 
 neither respect or affection. But a minister of the Gos- 
 pel who zealously endeavors, though with much im- 
 
334 CHRISTIAN DUTIES TO 
 
 perfection, to discharge the duties of his station, is en- 
 titled to the deference, kindness and attention of the 
 people to whom he ministers. Nothing can be more 
 unchristian than the spirit which some professors of 
 the Gospel manifest towards its ministers ; a spirit of 
 suspicion and distrust, as if they esteemed them ty- 
 rants, anxious to grasp power and sway ; a spirit of 
 opposition, which seems bent on thwarting the pro- 
 ceedings of those under whose ministry they sit. 
 
 On this subject, as well as others, the word of God 
 is the surest guide. You are t-o esteem them highly. 
 " We beseech you, brethren, to know them which la- 
 bor among you, and are over you in the Lord, and ad- 
 monish you ; and to esteem them very highly in love 
 for their work's sake." You are to treat their admoni- 
 tions and advice with deference and respect ; and so 
 far to submit to them as is necessary to enable them 
 comfortably to discharge the duties of overseers of the 
 flock. " Obey them that have the rule over you, and 
 submit yourselves ; for they watch for your souls, as 
 they that must give account ; that they may do it with 
 joy, and not with grief; for that is unprofitable for 
 you." As far as they imitate Christ, it is your duty to 
 imitate them. " Remember them which have the rule 
 over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God ; 
 whose faith follow, considering the end of their con- 
 versation ; Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and to- 
 day, and for ever." 
 
 Though the ministerial character is no shield where 
 the conduct is inconsistent with it, yet you are not 
 lightly to listen to reports to their disadvantage. 
 "Against an elder receive not an accusation, but be- 
 fore two or three witnesses." The remarks on the 
 
MIMSTESS OF THE GOSPEL. 335 
 
 guilt and mischief of evil-speaking apply here with 
 double force. In injuring the character of a minister 
 of the Gospel, a peculiar injury is done to religion it- 
 self. Parents who profess to value religion, and who 
 are in the habit of criticising and carping at ministers 
 in the hearing of their children, take a ready way to 
 train their children for perdition. Children thus taught 
 by their parents to despise the ministers of the Gospel, 
 will most probably go on in sin till they sink to hell ; 
 and may then ascribe their eternal damnation in a 
 great degree to the unchristian conduct of their pa- 
 rents. 
 
 The members of a Christian church are bound by 
 the express commandment of God to contribute ac- 
 cording to their ability to the support of their pastor, 
 and in doing this discharge a duty acceptable in the 
 sight of God. " If we have sown unto you spiritual 
 things, is it a great thing if we should reap your car- 
 nal things? So hath the Lord ordained, that they 
 which preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel." 
 "Let him that is taught in the word communicate 
 unto him that teacheth in all good things. Be not de- 
 ceived ; God is not mocked j for whatsoever a man 
 soweth, that shall he also reap." "Not because I desire 
 a gift ; but I desire fruit that may abound to your ac- 
 count." 
 
 The members of churches should pray for their pas- 
 tor, and for each other. The importance of such 
 prayer is strikingly displayed by the earnest desires 
 expressed by the apostle Paul for the prayers of Chris- 
 tian brethren. If such an apostle, miraculously con- 
 verted, endowed with the gift of tongues and miracles, 
 who had been taken up into the third heaven, and to 
 
336 DUTIES DUE TO MINISTERS. 
 
 whom the Lord had actually said, My grace is suffi- 
 cient for thee ; if such an apostle needed the prayers 
 of his brethren, and ascribed much to their efficacy, 
 how much more do ministers of the Gospel now! 
 "Now I beseech you, brethren, for the Lord Jesus 
 Christ's sake, and for the love of the Spirit, that ye 
 strive together with me in your prayers to God for 
 me." " Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of 
 the Lord may have free course, and be glorified, even 
 as it is with you." " Pray for us." 
 
 § 10. These remarks rest upon the supposition that 
 the minister you attend is worthy of your confidence 
 and affection. If he be not a man of this description, 
 why do you attend on his ministry ? why connect 
 yourself with the church to which he ministers ? Your 
 spiritual welfare may be so much promoted by the 
 ministration of a pious and faithful pastor, that it 
 should be in your esteem an object of the first magni- 
 tude to enjoy snch ministrations, and to worship, not 
 where your fancy may be pleased, but where your 
 heart maybe impressed with divine truth ; where your 
 growth in grace maybe advanced ; where the preach- 
 er in good earnest preaches as for eternity. A Chris- 
 tian should esteem such a pastor as one of the best 
 friends ; nor should foibles or imperfections alienate 
 regard ; for who on earth has no imperfections ? Con- 
 sider such a friend as the helper of your faith. Be not 
 backward to unfold to him your trials and your con- 
 flicts. Treat him as a friend in whom you can con- 
 fide ; a friend who is anxious to promote your welfare , 
 as an under-shepherd, who watches for your soul. Such 
 conduct will tend to your pastor's comfort, and to the 
 advancement of your best, your eternal interest. 
 
MOTIVES TO CHRISTIAN LOVE. S.H? 
 
 § 11. Many and important are the motives that should 
 stimulate you to cherish brotherly love. There is much 
 in the character and situation of your Christian friends 
 to call this heavenly grace into exercise. They are dear 
 to Christ ; are the purchase of his blood ; the objects of 
 his care ; his flock ; his friends ; his jewels. Thus dear 
 to him, should they not be dear to you? They are 
 your fellow-travelers to heaven, with whom you hope 
 to spend eternal days. In heaven the family of Jesus 
 will mutually love for ever, and should not love reign 
 in their hearts through the few dark days of mortal 
 life? The sorrows you now-endure they feel ; the foes 
 v/ith whom you wrestle they encounter ; the desires 
 that glow in your heart animate theirs ; the hopes that 
 cheer you encourage them. Now, too, the God you 
 love they love ; in the Savior whom you trust they con- 
 fide; the blood that cleansed you has cleansed them; 
 the Spirit that dwells in you dwells in them; and all 
 that enriches you is their portion. You hope hereafter 
 to inhabit the same heaven ; to belong to the same fa- 
 mily; and, beneath the unclouded luster of the same 
 eternal day, to ascribe blessing and honor to the same 
 Redeemer. Thus united by renewing grace, united in 
 privileges, in trials, in joys and in sorrows, in hopes 
 and in prospects, in friends and in inheritance, united 
 in bands that are to last for ever, should you not be 
 united in heart and affection ? Love and gratitude to 
 your exalted Lord also call for love to your fellow- 
 pilgrims. He commands his disciples to manifest such 
 love, and in the earnestness of his heart prayed that it 
 might be displayed by them. John, 13 : 34; 17 : 11-23. 
 Will you not devoutly cherish that heavenly grace 
 29 
 
ON MODES OP 
 
 which is the subject of commands so binding, and 
 prayers so fervent and divine ? 
 
 If you regard your Redeemer's honor you must 
 cherish love. "By this," said he, "shall ail men know 
 that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to ano 
 ther." So exemplary was the love of the early Chris- 
 nans to eacii other, that even their enemies bore tes 
 limony to its power, when they said, " See how thesf 
 Christians love one another." This love recommended 
 their divine religion so much that the apostate emperor 
 Julian represented their love to each other as contri- 
 buting not a little to spread Christianity. 
 
 If you regard the peace of your own mind you must 
 cherish brotherly love. The word of God declares the 
 possession of this to be one of the clearest evidences of 
 conversion, and its absence to be as dear an evidence 
 of a state of sin and death. " We know that we have 
 passed from death unto life, because we love the breth- 
 ren: he that loveth not his brother abideth in death." 
 In short, of such immense importance is this heavenly 
 gi-ace, that all the knowledge, gifts, and talents in the 
 world are nothing without love. 
 
 § 12. The religion of the Gospel demands from its 
 votaries the active exertion of their different powers, in 
 promoting the glory of God and the welfare of man. 
 The Lord Jesus represents his disciples as servants, 
 whose Master intrusts them with a portion of his pro- 
 perty, which during his absence they are to improve. 
 All have something intrusted to them to improve. 
 While some have five talents, others have two ; but 
 they who have the least have one. Yet these talents 
 are not their own. He delivered to them his goods. 
 The Lord Jesus has intrusted at least one talent, per 
 
CHRISTIAN USEFULNESS. 
 
 839 
 
 haps many, to your care. Your time, your Sabbaths, 
 your means of grace, your property, your opportu- 
 nities for usefulness in any way, your health, your 
 strength, whatever you possess that can benefit man or 
 glorify God, is a talent intrusted to you by the eternal 
 Master. They all belong to him. They are but lent to 
 you. O reckon all you have the Lord's. Important 
 motive for faithfulness ! Impressively important, when 
 it is considered how rich a regard heavenly love will 
 bestow where even one talent has been sedulously im- 
 proved, and how the mere neglect of improving even 
 one renders him to whom it was lent a wicked and 
 slothful servant. 
 
 § 13. Many are the modes by which Christians may 
 promote the glory of tlieir God and Savior, and the 
 eternal interests of their fellow-mortals. Among these 
 are the following : 
 
 Conversing seriously and prudently on vital religion 
 with those loho are destitute of its blessings. An old 
 writer mentions the case of a pious man, who, by his 
 zeal in conversing with his neighbors and acquaint- 
 ance, in their shops or their fields, had been the instru- 
 ment of converting thirty or forty persons. 
 
 Seconding the exertions of Christian ministers, by in- 
 ducing friends or neighbors to hear the word of life; 
 and by encouraging and directing such as appear sub- 
 jects of serious impressions. Incalculable good has thus, 
 under the divine blessing, been effected. It is recorded 
 of a Baptist church in Yorkshire, that soon after its ori- 
 gin, each member, with this view, " made it a point oi 
 duty to endeavor to bring one careless sinner under the 
 sound of the Gospel, and to use every scriptural method 
 to engage him to embrace it. And when the object of his 
 
340 
 
 ON MODES 
 
 cares had enrolled himself among the followers of 
 Christ, he looked about for another wandering sheep, 
 that he might endeavor to bring also into the fold of 
 the church. Were such a spirit and such conduct ge- 
 neral among the friends of Christ, what immense good 
 would result from it." 
 
 Some years ago the writer visited a young man who 
 left this world in peace and hope. He belonged to a 
 family, of which most or all were strangers to religion, 
 and he, till within a few years of his happy departure, 
 had been so too. A Christian friend frequently invited 
 him to the house of prayer. These invitations were 
 often slighted, but he at length attended, and listened 
 to the word of life ; in short, he became a disciple of 
 the Savior; and after a short course in the church be- 
 low, was moved, there was full reason to believe, to 
 the church triumphant. I know an instance in which 
 a young woman sought, in the same way, to promote 
 the everlasting benefit of a female acquaintance. Her 
 efforts long seemed in vain. She who was the object 
 of them promised to comply with her invitations, but 
 still delayed. At length, when perhaps a year had 
 rolled away without success, she went once more to 
 invite her acquaintance, and was so affected by frequent 
 disappointment, that she burst into tears. The other 
 now yielded ; she went to the house of prayer ; she 
 felt the power of divine truth, and became a monu- 
 ment of saving mercy. The writer could mention 
 other instances— they are many, and were all the dis- 
 ciples of Jesus active, would doubtless be many more. 
 Another mode of usefulness open to all the disciples 
 of the Savior, is that of kindly noticing- and encourag- 
 ing persons who become hearers of the Gospel. It is a 
 
CHRISTIAN USEFULNESS. 341 
 
 frequent case, that persons who have lived without 
 God in tiie world, begin to frequent the house of pray- 
 er. They need instruction. They are perhaps im- 
 pressed, and need encouragement ; but they are ac- 
 quainted with no Christian friend. If tlie congregation 
 is numerous, the minister may know nothing of them. 
 Hence they perhaps pine in despondency, or the little 
 spark of holy desire dies for want of some one to fan 
 it to a flame; but where the members of a church 
 are active, and eager to seize opportunities for doing 
 good, such persons will soon be noticed, directed, and 
 encouraged. 
 
 The Christian who watches for opportunities of 
 doing good, will find many: and some that seem in- 
 significant may effect good beyond the most sanguine 
 calculations. A considerable Baptist church exists in 
 Leicestershire, which owed its origin, in a great degree, 
 to a pious remark introduced in a letter on business. 
 This impressed the mind of the thoughtless youth to 
 whom it was addressed. He embraced religion, and 
 opened his house for preaching. Many who had never 
 heard the Gospel attended. A comfortable house of 
 prayer was erected in this then dark village. Many 
 who have worshipped in that house, there is reason to 
 believe, now worship in the better house above, and 
 others are pursuing the path that leads to eternal peace. 
 What cannot God eflfect, by apparently feeble means, 
 when Christian zeal directs the conduct of his chil- 
 dren ! 
 
 By Icndhifc or giving away religious books and Tracts 
 incalculable good may be effected. These apparently 
 feeble instruments have been the means of producing 
 29* 
 
342 
 
 MOTIVES FOR PIOUS EXERTIONS. 
 
 most important benefits. A tract given away on the 
 road, or dropped by the highway side, has awakened 
 a profligate to reflection, and led a child of wrath to 
 the Lamb of God for salvation. Few are there among 
 the followers of the Savior who might not pursue 
 many of these modes of usefulness. 
 
 Sabbath schools open a wide field for the labors of 
 Christian philanthropy. And an immense field for 
 usefulness is now offered by Bible, Missionary, and 
 other benevolent associations. The active collectors 
 in those institutions are a most important part of the 
 grand moral machine by which God is diffusing the 
 Gospel of his Son. 
 
 § 14. The physician who would snatch a dying pa- 
 tient from the grave, must fonn a correct estimate of 
 the malignity of his disease ; nor would his benevolence 
 be admired, if he pronounced the plague a harmless 
 disorder. So in all your schemes for usefulness, bear 
 in mind that the objects of your kindness are not be- 
 ings slightly tainted with corruption, but wholly cor- 
 rupt and depraved. Are you a parent ? you will see 
 many charms in your children. Yet remember they 
 are as depraved as you feel yourself to be, and as others 
 naturally are. A mere moral education may save them 
 from grosser sins, but will never save them from eter- 
 nal death. Teach them that they are sinners, and lead 
 them to the fountain of salvation. Are you employed 
 in teaching the children of others ? or is it friends or 
 neighbors whose salvation you are anxious to pro- 
 mote; still consider they are sinners. You have to 
 warm a heart that is cold ; to enlighten a mind that is 
 dark. Within that heart there are principles of depra- 
 vity opposed to all you wish to inculcate. Need you 
 
MOTIVES FOR PIOUS EXERTIONS. 343 
 
 be surprised at discpuragement? You may say of every 
 object o/your care, Here is an immortal creature, pass- 
 ing a few moments on the stage of time, and thence 
 going to heaven or hell; already lost; a stranger to 
 God, to the Savior, to happiness; blind in mind ; cor- 
 rupt in affections. This view should regulate your ex- 
 ertions, and should lead you to God for his Spirit to, 
 bless them ; but should not discourage, since similar 
 exertions have been the means of leading many to 
 eternal life. 
 
 § 15. All the obligations you lie under to the God of 
 love, should stimulate your zeal to promote his glory in 
 the salvation of your fallen fellow-creatures. Snatched 
 yourself from the burning pit, should you not strive to 
 snatch others from the flame ? Redeeming love has dis- 
 played to us a salvation precious as the blood poured 
 out by Jesus upon Calvary— cosily as the wealth of 
 heaven which he resigned— free as the air we breathe, 
 and lasting as the eternity of God. Redeeming love 
 has blessed us for both worlds— given us wealth for 
 povehy— comfort for misery— hope for despair— for- 
 giveness instead of condemnation— the love of God 
 instead of eternal separation from him— and heaven 
 instead of hell. But the giver of these mercies bids us 
 communicate the tidings of them to others. " Let him 
 that heareth say. Come." Can we be truly influenced 
 by the love displayed in that Gospel, if we do nx)t labor 
 and strive to benefit those who are perishing around us? 
 § 16. Can pity move ? pity must move you here. You 
 live in a ruined world— described by God as a world 
 dead in, trespasses and sins, even all dead. Could you 
 spend an hour in a prison filled with malefactors doom- 
 ed to die ? would not the mournful spectacle melt your 
 
344 MOTIVES FOR PIOUS EXERTIONS. 
 
 heart into compassion, and your eyes into tears ? A 
 more mournful spectacle surrounds you — a dead world. 
 Millions of rational and immortal beings, all lost, all 
 dead ; all hastening to the grave with a sure and steady 
 step, and unless taught of God, all hastening to the 
 death that never dies; all dead, all doomed to die, and 
 all, as sinners, doomed to hell. It is true, heavenly 
 mercy discloses a path to life from these regions of 
 spiritual death ; but, ah ! how few regard those saving 
 dictates ! Excepting only that happy few of the high 
 and low, the kings of the earih, and the great men, and 
 the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty 
 men, and every bond man, and every free man. and 
 the bridegroom and the bride, and the ancient and the 
 young, are dead to God, and dead to sin. Can you be 
 a Christian yourself, if you strive not to snatch some 
 of the firebrands from the flame? Can you look at a 
 parent or a child, a brother or a sister, a husband or a 
 wife, and think this beloved relative is sinking to eter- 
 nal death, and not feel anxious to lead them to the 
 Savior's fold ? 
 
 § 17. If love can constrain you to exertion, you must 
 be active. Can you, if truly a Christian, contemplate 
 the costly sacrifice and nameless agonies of the Son of 
 God, and yet remain indifferent to the prosperity of the 
 cause for which he died ? Can you behold the Father 
 of eternity resigning the Son of his love, in compas- 
 sion to you and to man, and yet be careless about the 
 conversion of a perishing brother ? Did the Son of 
 God sacrifice so much for your eternal happiness, and 
 should you not anxiously render to him all the ser- 
 vices that you can crowd into a few fleeting, mortal 
 days? Do you believe that the Son of God abode in 
 
MOTIVES FOR PIOUS EXERTIONS. 345 
 
 this vale of pollution, this world of death, for more 
 than thirty mournful years ? Do you believe that here 
 he encountered every human wo, and all this for you? 
 Do you believe this, if you feel little concerned about 
 the prosperity of the cause for which he lived and died ? 
 The tongue may say "Yes," but a cold heart and in- 
 active life more truly answer "No," you believe it not, 
 you have but the shadow of belief. Do you believe 
 that through sin death and perdition were your righ 
 teous doom, but that a divine hand has snatched you 
 from the fire— has woven for you a garland of unfad- 
 ing glory— has prepared for you an everlasting rest 
 beyond the scenes of toilsome life? Can you believe 
 this and remain inactive? God forbid that you should 
 ever act so base a part; though, alas! it is acted by 
 multitudes! 
 
 § 18. In the value of the deathless soul you should 
 find another motive for activity. The poor, vain, gid- 
 dy, trifling crowd around you are to live for ever. You 
 know their danger, they know it not; you feel the 
 worth of a soul, they feel it not. 
 
 Ah, my friend, even you know not the worth of an 
 immortal soul ! It doth not yet appear what we shall 
 be. Could a ransomed soul appear to us, arrayed in 
 the glories of eternity and the charms of heaven, we 
 might suppose the happy spirit a high archangel. No, 
 it is no archangel ; it is the soul; the soul which once 
 inhabited a poor afflicted body, and appeared a worm, 
 and no man ; the soul which Satan ruled, but which a 
 mightier power snatched from his hand; the soul over 
 which angels rejoiced; the soul for which Jesus died; 
 and, O, more strange ! the soul which some humble 
 Christian's pious cares led to the Savior and to heaven. 
 
346 MOTIVES FOR PIOUS EXERTIONS. 
 
 If you should be thus successful in but one instance, 
 this one would be a rich reward even for the labors of 
 the longest life. " He which converteth a sinner from 
 the error of his way, shall save a soul from death, and 
 hide a multitude of sins." How tragical a sight is the 
 execution of a criminal ! how much more tragical the 
 perdition of a soul ! How great a benefactor would he 
 be esteemed who might deliver a sinking nation from 
 famine, pestilence, slavery, and the sword 1 but they 
 are instruments of effecting much greater good who 
 lead only one soul to the Savior of mankind. It is in 
 the labors of Christian piety that great events crowd 
 upon each other; events, perhaps judged little by the 
 world, yet great, because their influence is extensive as 
 eternity. A Christian is accosted by a poor beggar- 
 poor for time, and poorer for eternity. He gives the 
 suppliant a trifle, and adds a Tract: the beggar goes, 
 he reads, he feels, his heart is impressed— he feels his 
 state, he flees to the Savior for salvation. The event 
 is unknown to all the world ; the subject of it lives in 
 poverty, and dies like Lazarus. The same day on 
 which this Tract is given a mighty battle is fought; 
 hundreds of thousands engage in the conflict— the fate 
 of nations is decided by its issue. The fame of the 
 victors fills the world, and will be handed down to the 
 last age of time. Which is the great event ? the battle ? 
 Ah, no ! not unless it has more influence on eternity 
 than the other. The great event is the poor beggar's 
 conversion. That will be remembered when the trum- 
 pet of fame is hushed by the archangel's oath that time 
 shall be no longer. That will be a subject of gratitude 
 and joy, of delight and praise, when the triumphs of 
 contending nations are forgotten, and when those na- 
 
MOTIVES FOli PIOUS EXERTIONS. 34? 
 
 tions themselves are swept into oblivion by the besom 
 of destruction. 
 
 § 19. In addition to all the other powerful motives 
 which should stimulate the Christian to activity, there 
 is one which the Son of God assigned as a reason for 
 his unwearied exertions: " The niglit cometh, in which 
 no man can work," the night of death, that will put an 
 eternal end to all our labors for the glory of God in 
 the salvation of man. The longest summer's day soon 
 elapses, and he who toils from its dawn to its close 
 soon has to say, My labor is done. So time M'ill soon 
 end with those you wish to benefit, and end with you. 
 The parent must shortly cease to instruct his child, 
 and the child to pray for his parent. The Sabbath 
 school teacher must finish his last lesson, and the min- 
 ister his last sermon, and every follower of Jesus end 
 his last conflict, ofl:"er his last prayer, and finish his last 
 attempt to lead poor wandering men to heaven. The 
 niglit cometh when no man can work. Endeavor, then, 
 to crowd into the little span of life all the benevolent 
 actions, all the useful services possible. Have you an 
 opportunity for relieving tlie aflflicted, for instructing 
 the ignorant, for comforting the mourner? Say not, I 
 will improve the next opportunity. You cannot im- 
 ' prove the next for this ; the next will be a fresh one, 
 \ that will require its own improvement. To do good 
 twice is better than to do so once. Be active ; be zeal- 
 ous ; for the time is short. Think how short is the day 
 of labor; how long, how near, the eternity of rest! 
 Behold the blood-bought crown which glitters through 
 the skies. Hear the voice which says, "Whatsoever 
 thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might." "They 
 that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the fir- 
 
348 TREATMENT OF ENEMIES. 
 
 mament; and they that turn many to righteousness 
 as the stars for ever and ever." And O, what is the 
 for ever of heaven ! Look to him who became for 
 man's welfare a man of sorrows and of toil. Think of 
 admission to his presence, and there of meeting some 
 snatched by your instrumentality from everlasting 
 night, and there of joining with them in the new eter 
 nal song of glory to the Lamb. 
 
 Think of all this, and can you be the cold, formal, 
 negligent, worthless creature that some professors of 
 the Gospel are ? 
 
 TREATMENT OF ENEMIES. 
 
 § 20. Few are so happy as to pass through this world 
 without encounterinoj hostility and enmity. Even the 
 blessed Jesus had enemies ; and all the gentle graces 
 of his character, all th« harmlessness of his benevolent 
 life, all the good effected by his unwearied labors, did 
 not prevent his being the object of scorn and malignity, 
 hatred and persecution. Perhaps by enemies your 
 character may be defamed, and injury and loss heaped 
 upon you. Should this ever be the case, then remem- 
 ber the instructions of the Bible. The natural feelings 
 of your heart may prompt you to indulge resentment ; 
 to revile those who revile you, to take pleasure in their 
 distresses who take pleasure in yours, or in hearing 
 them defamed who have defamed you. But these feel- 
 ings are as opposite to those the Christian must cherish 
 as hell is to heaven. You are solemnly commanded to 
 do no ill to those who may do ill to you. " Say not, I 
 will do so to him as he hath done to me : I will render 
 to the man according to his work " "Recompense to 
 no man evil for evil. Avenge not yourselves, but ra- 
 
LOVE TO ENEr.nES. ' 849 
 
 ther give place unto wrath." Yon are not only forbid- 
 den to injure enemies, but forbidden to take pleasure 
 in their afflictions. "Rejoice not when thine enemy 
 falleth, lest the Lord see it, and it displease him. 
 
 Inculcating upon you a disposition like his own, the 
 God of mercy solemnly and imperiously requires from 
 you the forgiveness of injuries and of enemies. The 
 Savior teaches you, when praying for forgiveness, to 
 declare to God that you forgive. "Forgive us our sins, 
 FOR we also forgive every one that is indebted to us." 
 He adds, "For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your 
 heavenly Father will also forgive you : but if ye for- 
 give not men their trespasses, neither will your hea- 
 venly Father forgive your trespasses." The divine 
 Savior calls on his disciples not merely to forgive an 
 injurer or an enemy, but to requite injuries by benefits, 
 evil by good. "I say unto you, Love your enemies, 
 bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate 
 you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, 
 and persecute you; that ye may be the children of 
 your Father which is in heaven." "Bless them which 
 persecute you : bless, and curse not. Therefore, if 
 thine enemy hunger, feed him ; if he thirst, give him 
 drink. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil 
 with good." 
 
 § 2L Exemplifying his divine instruction, the holy 
 Jesus, while his enemies were nailing him to the cross, 
 prayed for mercy on those murderers: "Father, for- 
 give themi; for they know not what they do." His 
 first martyr expired with a similar prayer upon his 
 lips. The duties here inculcated are at times among 
 the most diflicult possible ; yet they must be practiced 
 30 
 
350 FORCHVING INJURIES. 
 
 if you would enjoy the Savior's favor. The proud 
 heart must be made to bend, the resentful heart must 
 06 brought to forgive, or your religion will prove an 
 empty name. You may say, I have been so injured 
 that I cannot forgive; but if you cannot you will never 
 be forgiven. Besides, it is absurd and wicked, if you 
 are a disciple of Jesus, to say, I cannot discharge this 
 duty, I cannot comply with this precept. What mere 
 nature cannot do, grace can effect, and will effect, in 
 the case of every heir of heaven. "My grace," said 
 Jesus, "is sufficient for thee." "I can do all things,'^ 
 his servant added, "through Christ, that strengtheneth 
 me ;" and that grace is still sufficient. If you indulge 
 an unforgiving spirit, be candid, be honest, deceive not 
 yourself, you cannot deceive your Judge. Say not, I 
 cannot forgive, but say, I will not; for be assured, 
 while the grace of Christ is sufficient for all who seek 
 his aid, if you have enemies whom you do not forgive, 
 the reason is not that you cannot, but that you will not. 
 Yet remember, unless you do so mortify corruption as 
 to forgive every enemy, the decree is gone forth that 
 will shut you out of heaven. Eternal truth has said, 
 " If ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will 
 your Father forgive your trespasses." 
 
 Cherish humility, and then it will not be a difficult 
 duty to forgive and bless even the bitterest foes. It is 
 pride that renders man so prone to resentment, so un- 
 willing to forgive. Think what have been your crimes 
 against the majesty of heaven I How vast his good- 
 ness! how dire your ingratitude! how many your of- 
 fences ! yet how rich, how free his forgiving love ! Had 
 all the inhabitants of the earth been persecuting you 
 with ceaseless cruelty and hatred ; had every moment 
 
FORGIVING INJURIES. 351 
 
 witnessed fresh injuries inflicted by them, and fresh 
 jTiiseries suffered by you ; if considered merely in refe- 
 rence to you, the guilt of all the ceaseless, causeless en- 
 mity of all those millions, would not have been so great 
 as the guilt of your least sin against your gracious but 
 much injured God. And does he forgive ten thousand 
 talents? Has he for you blotted out sins vast as the 
 mountains of the earth, and countless as the stars of 
 heaven ? Can you believe this, and indulge resentment 
 against a poor fellow-worm that has injured you ? Can 
 you think, "I was a traitor doomed to fire, yet my in- 
 jured Creator has snatched me from the flame by the 
 costly sacrifice of his dear Son ;" can you believe this, 
 and cherish resentment against a poor brother mortal, 
 whose utmost offences against you bear no more pro- 
 portion to those your God has forgiven, than a spark to 
 the noon-day sun, or an atom of dust to the vast world 1 
 § 22. Is the person who has injured you a Christian 
 brother ? Do you believe, that, notwithstanding the 
 conduct you condemn, he is indeed an heir of heaven ? 
 Surely then you should cheerfully forgive. Do you 
 believe that God forgives him ? that the blood of Jesus 
 has washed away his stains ? Do you hope to meet 
 him as a friend, where no dissensions arise; where an. 
 eternal day will be one day of harmony and love ? Are 
 these your hopes ? Ah, what is there by the way that 
 should render those at discord here, who hope to be 
 friends to all eternity ? Or view the subject of dispute 
 as you will, view it from the edge of the grave, or 
 from eternity : " I never," says one of the best of un- 
 inspired writers, " heard of any that stole his winding 
 sheet, or fought for his coffin, or went to law for his 
 grave." And when you are thus near eternity, and 
 
352 christian's conflicts. 
 
 going to wear that last suit, a shroud— in that last 
 earthly abode, a grave— how insignificant will those 
 things appear, that now, perhaps, divide your affec- 
 tions from those you should love as fellow-traveiers to 
 the world of peace ! 
 
 But, perhaps, some have wronged you greatly, who 
 are utter strangers to the grace of God. Surely you 
 should rather view them with pity than with anger. 
 think of their deplorable state ! They have souls 
 immortal as your own ; but these are perishing in sin. 
 The blood of Jesus has washed none of their stains 
 away. No hope for eternity is theirs. Your hope 
 blooms with immortality; but darkness and despair 
 are their probable future portion. They are the ene- 
 mies of God; and all before them, in the endless 
 world, is weeping, and lamentation, and wo. How pi- 
 tiable a condition ! Should you not rather pray for 
 them than indulge resentment against poor fellow- 
 creatures in so miserable a state? surely they have 
 long enough to mourn. If they will seek nothing 
 higher, let them enjoy their short-lived triumph. It is 
 all they ever can enjoy. Repine not at their prosperity, 
 when it is all confined to a few moments, and they have 
 to mourn and weep for ever. 
 
CHRISTIAN CONFLICTS. 353 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 ON THE SPIRITUAL CONFLICTS AND SORROWS OF 
 THE DISCIPLES OF CHRIST. 
 
 § 1. The Christian's path to heaven is a chequered 
 path. Many are the sacred pleasures of liie followers 
 of the Lamb ; but they have also pains and trials pe- 
 culiar to themselves. 
 
 ' Much in sorrow, much in wo, 
 "Onward, Christians, onward go 
 " Fight the fight, and, worn with strife, 
 " Steep with tears the bread of life. 
 " Onward, Christians, onward go ! 
 " Join the war, and face the foe." 
 
 Every disciple of Jesus will find that the Christian life 
 is truly a warfare. Would you behold those who have 
 no foes without, no foe within ; whom no fears dis- 
 tract, no dangers threaten : it must be when you join 
 them in the upper world ; and if you ever join them 
 there, assisted from above, you must persevere in the 
 warfare which they have triumphantly ended. 
 
 "Life is the scene of conflict, not of rest; 
 •'Plan's is laborious happiness at best; 
 "On this side death his dangers never cease^ 
 " His joys are joys of conquest, not of peace." 
 
 § 2. The spiritual sorrows and conflicts which the 
 Christian has to endure are of various kinds. Many 
 30* 
 
354 CHRISTIAN LIFE A WARFARE. 
 
 of his trials proceed from within. He feels the correct- 
 ness of the statement made in the word of truth: 
 '• The flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit 
 against the flesh : and tliese are contrary the one to 
 the other; so that ye do not the things which ye 
 would." By the expression, the flesli, in the Scrip- 
 tures, appears frequently to be meant human corrup- 
 tion, or those remains of depravity with which the 
 believer has to struggle. This is one of the Christian's 
 principal enemies. The world occasionally allures by 
 its charms, or alarms by its terrors. The assaults of 
 Satan take place at times, though not constantly con- 
 tinued ; but the flesh is like a body of death, with 
 which the Christian is perpetually burdened. The 
 Scriptures represent the conquest and destruction of 
 this constant enemy as a painful and difficult achieve- 
 ment. It is not described as dying by a sudden wound, 
 but by a slow and lingering death. "They that are 
 Christ's have crucified the flesh with its affections and 
 lusts." The young Christian commencing his course, 
 full of joy and hope, may for a while be comparatively 
 insensible to the presence of this constant enemy; but 
 soon he will find that he has to struggle with an evil 
 heart, and has need to crucify the flesh with its affec- 
 tions and desires. 
 
 § 3. In every nation, in every age, this has been the 
 experience of the followers of the Lamb. The emi- 
 nent martyr, Bradford, on one occasion observed, "0 
 Lord ! sometimes methinks I feel it so with me as if 
 there were no diff"erence between my heart and the 
 wicked. I have as blind a mind as they; as stout, 
 stubborn, rebellious, and hard a he-art as they." Henry 
 Martyn, so distinguished for piety, wrote in his jour- 
 
christian's conflicts. 355 
 
 nal, " What a dark atheistical state do I live in ! Alas, 
 that this creation should so engross my mind, and the 
 Author of it be so slightly and coldly regarded ! 
 Amazing patience! he bears with this faithless, foolish 
 heart !" Yet he who uttered these complaints, when 
 breathing forth the pious feelings of his soul, could 
 say, '^Let me praise God for having turned me from 
 a life of wo to the enjoyment of peace and hope. The 
 work is real. I can no more doubt it than I can doubt 
 my existence ; tlie whole current of my desires is al- 
 tered — I am walking quite another way, though I am 
 incessantly stumbling in that way — 1 had a most 
 blessed view of God and divine things. I looked for- 
 ward to complete conformity to him, as the great end 
 of my existence, and my assurance was full — I said, 
 almost with tears, ' Who shall separate us from the 
 love of Christ?' This is my bliss, that Christ is all. 
 Uphe-ld by him, I can smile at death. O what have I 
 to do but labor, and pray, and fast, and watch for 
 the salvation of my soul, and those of the heathen 
 U'orld ?" 
 
 Similar to the experience of these and other bright 
 ornaments of the Christian church, has been that of 
 the least distinguished disciples of the Savior. The il- 
 literate and uncivilized heathen, when truly brought 
 to embrace the Gospel, has felt similar sorrows, and 
 uttered similar complaints. A missionary, referring to 
 negro converts, wrote, " I was much delighted to hear 
 about twenty of them give a simple but affecting ac- 
 count of the state of their minds. They seem to labor 
 under trials from without and from within — from their 
 own country-people, and from the temptations of Sa- 
 tan and the struggles of a depraved heart. They speak 
 
356 christian's conflicts 
 
 strongly as to their good and their bad nearts, the one 
 opposing the other, so that they cannot do the things 
 the}^ would. One said, "Trouble too niuch live in my 
 heart. Me be poor sinner. Me no see, me no feel, till 
 God open my heart. Now my heart trouble me too 
 ranch. Me think me have two hearts ; one good, one 
 bad. Good heart tell me pray — bad heart tell me no 
 pray. I try pray God— my bad heart trouble me ; he 
 speak : he say, 'No pray : go work.' 
 
 "Another complained, 'My heart too wicked. Me 
 can't love Jesus Christ. Me want to love him, but my 
 wicked heart won't let me. When I pray, my heart 
 tell me, What you pray for? Jesus Christ no hear 
 your prayer! You loo bad! May Jesus Christ give 
 me a better heart ! for my heart bad past all hearts !' " 
 
 Such is recorded as tlie simple and expressive lan- 
 guage of these illiterate disciples of the Savior. 
 
 § 4. Perhaps the feelings of your heart have often 
 resembled theirs. Have you not been cast down, and 
 perhaps templed to despair, because of the corruption 
 which you felt within? What has been the cause of 
 vour sorrow '? 
 
 Perhaps you mourn an evil heart of unbelief. The 
 graces that exist in your soul are so opposed and 
 weakened by powerful corruptions, that they seem like 
 light strugglintr with darkness. In some happy mo- 
 ments you think you do trust and will trust the Savior 
 with your all ; but these moments too soon depart, and 
 you feel as if you had no trust in him. Sometimes you 
 are ready to conclude that you do indeed believe on 
 the Savior of the lost; but soon you feel faith so weak, 
 hope so dull, love so cold, that you doubt whether you 
 possess any faith, or hope, or love. You are ready to 
 
WITH UNBELIEF. 357 
 
 exclaim, Can it be that such a cold dull creature as I 
 am believes in the Lord Jesus Christ? Can this be 
 the faith to which so much is promised? Do I indeed 
 believe that Jesus died for me, and yet love him no 
 more? Do I indeed believe that sin is so mischievous, 
 and hate it so little ? Do I believe that heaven is so de- 
 sirable? why then these cold affections, these languid 
 desires ? And do I believe that God will order all things 
 for good? whence then my fears? whence my rebel- 
 lious will ? Surely I cannot be a believer : If I am, the 
 Lord help my unbelief! 
 
 You must not infer that you have no faith because 
 faith is weak, or because you feel within you an evil 
 heart of unbelief. What servant of God, whose piety 
 his word records, did not at some times feel the same? 
 Jacob said, " All these things are against me." Job 
 wished he had never been born. Asaph repined at the 
 prosperity of the ungodly, and was tempted to think a 
 pious life vain. David expressed fear that God had cast 
 him off for ever. Peter, when ordered by liis Lord to 
 walk upon tlie water, through want of faith began to 
 sink. " O thou of little faith," said his Lord, " where- 
 fore didst thou doubt?" Often had the Savior tore- 
 prove the apostles for their unbelief. They had to 
 pray, " Lord, increase our faith ;" and he represented 
 what they had as hardly equal to a grain of mustard 
 seed. If such was the weakness of this grace even in 
 the hearts of apostles when their Lord was with them, 
 be not cast down in despondency, though you have 
 to complain. It is unspeakably desirable for faith to 
 strengthen into full assurance : yet there may be a pre- 
 cious and saving faith in a heart that feels many of the 
 struggles of unbelief, and that clings to the Savior with 
 
358 VARIOUS CAUSES 
 
 trembling. If you have so much faith as leads you to 
 give up earth for heaven, this is genuine ; for " This 
 is the victory that overcometh the world, even our 
 faith." If you have such faith as renders Christ pre- 
 cious to you ; as leads you to love his friends, to walk 
 in his ways, and to count all things loss for him ; this 
 in his word, in plain and unequivocal language, is de- 
 clared to be saving. " To you that believe he is pre- 
 cious." If Christ is precious to you, it is plain you be- 
 lieve. " We know that we have passed from death 
 unto life, because we love the brethren." " Ye are my 
 friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you." " Verily 
 I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, 
 or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the 
 kingdom of God's sake, who shall not receive manifold 
 more in this present time, and in the world to come 
 life everlasting." 
 
 Nor must you suppose that the Savior is unwilling 
 to help you, because you feel the painful struggles oc- 
 casioned by an evil heart of unbelief. When the poor 
 supplicant, begging relief for his child, exclaimed, 
 "Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief ;" did Jesus 
 refuse his aid, and say, Subdue that unbelief; then 
 come to me, and I will help you ? Far was such con- 
 duct from his compassionate heart. Instead of this, 
 he answered the supplicant's prayer, and strengthened 
 his faith by giving him his request. He is " the same 
 yesterday, to-day, and for ever." W^ait then at his 
 footstool till he bless. A time will come when unbe- 
 lief shall die ; nor shall one of its struggles be felt in 
 the happy soul through eternal ages. 
 
 § 5. Perhaps your soul sinks within you on the re- 
 view of former years. Conscience accuses you of thou- . 
 
OP DESPONDENCY. 359 
 
 sands of crimes, and brings lo remembrance mercies 
 abused, Sabbaths broken, sins committed without con- 
 cern, iniquity drank in like water, and many long re- 
 bellious years employed in rebellion against God. Now 
 you think. Can all these crimes be forgiven ? Can one 
 who was so long and so zealously employed in the 
 service of hell, ever reach heaven ? Can one so sinful, 
 so impure as I have been, ever find admission to that 
 holy world where nothing that defileth can enter? 
 
 Perhaps your discouragement springs not so much 
 from what you were, as from what you are. You feel 
 that every grace you have is weak ; that many imper- 
 fections and defects adhere to you ; you find in your- 
 self much backwardness to good, much proneness 
 to evil ; you lament wandering affections and sinful 
 inclinations. You are ready to exclaim, I am like no 
 one else ; no heart is so hard as mine. I can neither 
 repent, nor believe, nor love, nor obey as I ought. I 
 am nothing but unworthiness. 
 
 Do some or all these things sink you in depression 7 
 Then consider for what did Jesus come. Was it not to 
 save the lost 7 Can you be more lost than utterly lost ? 
 yet such are those he came to seek and save, and such 
 were many that have felt his saving power. See in 
 David a murderer pardoned ; in Paul a persecutor and 
 blasphemer forgiven and saved. See from the Corin- 
 thian church many admitted to heaven that once were 
 extortioners, and drunkards, and fornicators, and adul- 
 terers, and idolaters, and even guilty of nameless 
 abominations. But when the Spirit. brought them to 
 repentance, the blood of Jesus blotted out all their 
 atrocious crimes, and it could be said to them, " Ye are 
 washedj ye are sanctified, ye are justified by the name 
 
360 CAUSES OF DESPONDENCT. 
 
 of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God." You 
 are not to seek comfort from the hope that your 
 crimes have been small ; bnt from reposing your hope 
 on Him whose blood cleanses from all sin. Did the 
 servant who sought mercy when he owed ten thou- 
 sand talents, meet a refusal because the debt was so 
 great ? Did the creditor forgive the debtor who owed 
 fifty pence, but refuse to forgive him who owed five 
 hundred ? Did he not forgive one as well as the other? 
 and he that had most forgiven loved the most. 
 
 " But am I so unworthy ?" It is true you are, and 
 the better you know yourself, the deeper will be this 
 impression. Not one of your actions ever was holy 
 enough to stand the investigation of God's pure and 
 searching eye. What worthiness can be expected in a 
 criminal condemned deservedly to die? How much 
 less can worthiness be expected in a sinner, the wages 
 of whose sin is death, eternal death! — Worthiness of 
 good in such a case is impossible. They that dre wor- 
 thy of hell can be worthy of nothing besides. This 
 you, and all, have deserved ; but the gift of God is eter 
 nal life through Jesus Christ. If accepted by God, you 
 will be accepted in him, the Beloved. If eternal life is 
 your portion, you must receive it and enjoy it as the 
 gift of God. 
 
 Allow me to inquire, Does not discouragement on 
 these grounds savor of a legal spirit ? Is not there stil) 
 in your heart a leaning to a righteousness of your 
 own ? If you look for forgiveness as an act of grace, 
 and salvation as a blessing given to a poor condemned, 
 hell-deserving sinner, why these fears ? They seem to 
 flow from a self-righteous bias, which would encou- 
 rage you to hope at least a little from some worthiness 
 
rfiARS RESPECTING REPENTANCE. 861 
 
 possessed, or some freedom from grosser crimes; and 
 because you do not feel that worthiness and remember 
 those crimes, therefore this ground of your hope is 
 shaken. Look to Jesus as altogether ruined in your- 
 self, and expecting your all in him, and then you need 
 not fear. 
 
 § 6. Perhaps with these painful feelings you con- 
 nect the apprehension that your repentance was not 
 sufficiently deep. You remember the number of your 
 sins, and the fewness of your tears ; the evil of your 
 iniquities, and the weakness of your sorrows when be- 
 wailing those transgressions. Or you think what 
 pangs of penitential grief some have experienced, 
 but you have not felt the same; or what joys and 
 peace they have found, far surpassing all that you ever 
 experienced. Hence you are disposed to conclude, 
 Surely I am not a Christian. 
 
 Draw not this conclusion hastily. Some whose con- 
 victions and penitence have appeared very deep and 
 strong, have soon returned to their wallowing in ini- 
 quity; while others, whose impressions were gentle 
 as the descent of evening dew, by lives of humble piety 
 have afterwards proved that their repentance was real, 
 and the change in their hearts the effect of a divine 
 hand. God sometimes displays his power in tempests 
 and tornadoes, but oftener in the gentle breakings of 
 the day. God does not work in all alike. John, and 
 James, and Peter, and Matthew hearkened to a gentle 
 call, and followed Christ. No terrors alarmed them ; 
 and probably the change effected by divine grace in 
 their hearts, was as gentle as the opening of a sum- 
 mer's morning. But Paul, overwhelmed with terrors, 
 31 
 
362 FEARS KE3PECT1NO REPENTANCE. 
 
 was struck speechless to the earth ; and the jailer felt 
 probably as great a commotion in his breast as the 
 earthquake which shook the foundations of the prison. 
 Repentance must be known, not by the strength of its 
 pangs, but by the fruits it produces. The most tor- 
 menting pangs of sorrow are not true repentance, if 
 they do not inspire the soul with haired of sin, and 
 urge it to Jesus for peace and salvation. If your re- 
 pentance has been so deep as to fill you with hatred of 
 sin; as to lead you to forsake, and watch, and pray 
 against sin in all its forms; and as to urge you to flee 
 10 the Lord Jesus, and to accept him as your Savior, 
 your Lord, and your all, it is genuine, it is saving. 
 Do not therefore imagine that others have no grace, 
 whose experience has not been a copy of yours; nor 
 suppose that you have none, because yours does not 
 exactly resemble theirs. If you trust in the same 
 blood, if you love the same Savior, if you w^alk in 
 the same path, serve the same God, and seek the same 
 heaven, depend upon it you have felt the influence of 
 the same Spirit ; and though the operation has differ- 
 ed, the effect is the same. If you saw a valley, like 
 that seen in the vision by Ezekiel, covered with the 
 dead, but among the lifeless multitudes a few possess- 
 ed of life and vigor; part of which had been raised 
 suddenly from death, and the other part so gradually, 
 that none could tell when the vital spark was infused ; 
 would it be argued that these were not alive, because 
 they had risen so imperceptibly into life 1 or would it 
 be reasonable for any of these to doubt their pos- 
 session of the lif£ they felt, because they could not 
 trace its first motions on their frame ? You live in a 
 dead world ; and if you feel a spiritual life begun, be 
 
NVANT OF SPIRITUAL IMPROVEMENT, ibJ 
 
 thankful and rejoice in God, though you should be un- 
 able to tell the time when he breathed into you the 
 breath of life. To know that you live is unspeakably 
 momentous ; but to know when that life began, is of 
 much less importance. 
 
 § 7. Perhaps you lament, that while you wish to be 
 different, you feel so little improvement. You try to 
 pray with all the earnestness you can ; yet still find a 
 cold heart and dead affections. You wish for freedom 
 from worldly thoughts when praying; yet still they 
 haunt your soul and distract your mind. You gain no 
 sensible answer from God, no comfortable sense of his 
 love shed abroad in your heart ; but day rolls on after 
 day, and week after week, and you are still cold, un- 
 happy, and depressed. Perhaps you can say, I have 
 sought the Savior, and if I perish, will perish at his 
 feet; yet no comfort comes into my soul. I seek the 
 rest he promises, but feel none of the delight and 
 tranquillity that I have prayed and expected to find. 
 
 Perhaps, in mercy, God for a time withholds the 
 blessings, or the sensible enjoyment of the blessings 
 you solicit ; yet persevere, and you will obtain them 
 The woman of Canaan, that pleaded for her daughter, 
 seemed to meet a refusal from even the compassionate 
 Jesus. Again she asked, again he seemed to deny ; but 
 it was to exercise her faith, and let its strength and 
 power appear. God long waited, while you refused to 
 listen ; why should you be surprised if he now expect 
 you to persevere in imploring blessings before he 
 lets you feel that you possess them 7 
 
 Consider, too, that they who have true desires for 
 grace, have so much grace as to be blessed. The Lord 
 says, " Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst 
 
364 WANT OF SPIRITUAL COMFORT. 
 
 after righteousness, for they shall be filled." They who 
 hunger and thirst after any good, feel their want, and 
 experience earnest and painful desire; a desire tha» 
 never can be satisfied but with the wished-for blessing 
 Give to him that is tormented with hunger or thirst, a 
 heap of gold or jewels ; this would not relieve his wants. 
 If your desires after spiritual good are those earnest 
 restless desires that the possession of a world would 
 not satisfy, but that an interest in the Savior would, 
 amidst all your conflicts, doubts and fears, you still 
 are blessed ; for, " Blessed are they that hunger and 
 thirst after righteousness." 
 
 § 8. Perhaps you mourn the loss of comforts which 
 you once enjoyed. There was a time when you were 
 cheered with the presence of God. Your soul rejoiced 
 in his love. Your heart glowed with love to him. Your 
 hopes were bright. You anticipated immortality with 
 pleasure. You looked to the Savior with grateful de- 
 light, and could say, He loved me, and gave himself 
 for me. But now your joy is changed for mourning; 
 your day for night ; your light for darkness ; your peace 
 and tranquillity for doubt and fear. You fear that God 
 has withdrawn from you, and say, " O that I were as 
 in months past, as in the days when God preserved 
 me ; when his candle shined upon my head, and when 
 by his light I walked through darkness." Now, instead 
 of possessing cheering comforts, you walk in darkness, 
 and have no light. Your heaven is clothed with black- 
 ness. The light of God's countenance is withdrawn, 
 and he hides his face from you. You fear that you 
 have been a self-deceiver. You walk in darkness, and 
 your prospects for eternity are full of uncertainty ; you 
 know not whither you are traveling, to heaven or hell ; 
 
WALKING IN DARKNESS. 365 
 
 you are full of fearful apprehensions ; and all that should 
 fill your soul with comfort, only tends to increase your 
 sorrows. 
 
 Painful as is this condition, all its pains and sorrows 
 have been felt by many who now rest in heaven. Many 
 a child of light has walked in darkness; many an heir 
 of heaven encountered doubts, and fears, and terrors 
 by the way. The word of God represents those who 
 are the heirs of "an inheritance incorruptible and un- 
 defiled, reserved in heaven for" them, as " for a season, 
 if need be, in heaviness through manifold temptations;" 
 and directs his children how to act in circumstances so 
 painful. " Who is among you that feareth the Lord 
 tbat obeyeth the voice of his servant, that walketh in 
 darkness, and hath no light? let him trust in the name 
 of the Lord, and stay upon his God." 
 
 If thus overwhelmed with spiritual distress, devoutly 
 inquire, whence proceeds your sorrow? Why has God 
 withdrawn his presence from you ? Why does he per- 
 mit you to walk in darkness? Perhaps the cause lies 
 in yourself. You have perhaps yielded to some temp- 
 tation or indulged in some besetting sin. Hence flows 
 your want of peace, your dread of God. Your own 
 conscience condemns you. An uneasy conscience has 
 perhaps kept you from the throne of grace. If it be 
 so, be assured that God is dealing in mercy with you 
 to deprive you of spiritual peace. You cannot expect 
 that God should become the minister of sin, and en- 
 courage you in it, by favoring you as much with spi- 
 ritual comforts when, you sin against him, as when you 
 watch, and pray, and walk humbly with him. If this 
 is the source of your happiness, never expect peace till 
 31* 
 
dOO WALKING- IN DARKNESS, 
 
 the sin which brings your sorrow is forsaken. Would 
 you enjoy that blessing, flee from your sin ; exercise 
 renewed repentance, apply to the blood of sprinkling, 
 and walk humbly and holily with your God. Periiaps, 
 if you have not been indulging in what is esteemed 
 positively sinful, you have given way to a light and 
 thoughtless spirit; have indulged in levity inconsist- 
 ent with your profession, or in trifling unworthy of an 
 heir of heaven. This is a frequent cause of spiritual 
 distress. 
 
 There are, however, many reasons for which God 
 may suffer his children for a time to walk in darkness, 
 even where they have not been indulging in sin or 
 levity. 
 
 § 9. Perhaps God designs to deepen your humility. 
 Thankfulness to God rises highest in the happy days 
 of spiritual joy, but humility is ofien strengthened 
 most in the dark hours of spiritual distress. Then, 
 when the Christian sees utter unworlhiness clinging 
 to all he is and he does; then, when he discerns such 
 a world of iniquity in his heart, that the siglit surprises 
 and alarms his soul; tiien it is that he sinks into the 
 depths of self-abasement, and feels that salvation is all 
 Df grace. Perhaps you need to sink there, to strip yon 
 ( f SI iritiial pride, or to wean you from all self-depend- 
 ence, and to make you feel your uttev helplessness, 
 wretcliedness, and ruin. Something of this the Cjjris- 
 tian learns when he is convinced of sin and enters the 
 way of religion by receiving tl\e Savior; but this im- 
 portant lesson is often taught him more impressively 
 in the dark day of spiritual sorrow than it was in the 
 hours of his early penitence. 
 
 Or perhaps, by leaving you for a while in darkness, 
 
AND iTS CAUSES. 367 
 
 God designs to teach you more of the Savior's worth, 
 and to cause you to bind the Gospel closer to your 
 heart. Perhaps, though you felt so much sorrow for 
 sin as led you to Christ, you liave not felt enougii of 
 the worth of Christ; but now, while the remembrance 
 of former sins distresses you, and you discern in your 
 own heart an extent of iniquity before untnought of; 
 now you can say, with feelings hitherto unknown by 
 you, I am the chief of sinners, but Jesus died for me. 
 Perhaps God intends to teach you to prize your mer- 
 cies and his presence more. Light is most sweet when 
 coming out of darkness; liealih, when rising from the 
 bed of pain ; liberty, when escaping from confinement; 
 and summer, after a long and dreary winter; so the 
 soul learns to prize the presence of God, by being for 
 a time denied that joy. A young disciple of Jesu?, who 
 had lost mucii of her comfort by giving way to a light 
 and trifling spirit, lately observed to the writer, that if 
 she could attain what she once enjoyed, and which she 
 thought she should never lose, she would not part 
 with it again for ten thousand worlds. Perhaps you 
 have not valued your mercies enough ; seek them again, 
 and when obtained, prize tiiem more, and press onward 
 to that happy world where no cloud will ever rise, no 
 drooping winter be felt in the soul ; but God's presence 
 will be enjoyed through one eternal day. 
 
 Perhaps God permits you to walk in darkness, that 
 he may exercise and brighten your graces. Faith and 
 love are exercised most in the dark and cloudy day of 
 sorrow. To believe when all is pleasing, when peace 
 smiles on the soul and comforts bestrew its way, is an 
 easy thing ; but to believe when all is dark and dreary, 
 when no comfort is felt within, when no light is seen 
 
368 god's dealings various. 
 
 without—this is the faith that God vahies. To love 
 when the soul feels the assurance of God's love, and 
 the joys that love imparts, is easy; but to love when 
 his presence is withdrawn, when doubts and fears in- 
 fest the soul, when hope is languishing, and comforts 
 apparently dead — this is love of a stronger, nobler kind. 
 God doubtless often exercises his children with spiri- 
 tual trials, to call faith and love into exercise. Thus 
 they who are in heaviness through manifold tempta- 
 tions, are said to be so, " That the trial of their fait'n 
 might be found unto praise, and honor, and glory, at 
 the appearance of Jesus Christ." 
 
 § 10. Be not therefore dismayed if comfort seems 
 for a while withdrawn from you. If the cause lies ob- 
 viously in your sin, lukewarmness or negligence, seek 
 grace to correct it ; but if you cannot find it there, then 
 think what may be the intention of the Most High in 
 thus trying you, and pray that the design may be fully 
 accomplished. The dealings of God in the dispensa- 
 tions of his grace often resemble those in the world of 
 nature. Look at a harvest field. Behold the waving 
 crop ready for the garner. Yet think what variou* 
 changes it has undergone. If the year had been all 
 winter, the seed would not have grown ; if all summer^ 
 it would have been parched up ; if all wet, it would 
 have rotted ; if all dry, it would have withered. God 
 has given a right proportion of each, and the field is 
 white unto the harvest. God, their gracious God, por- 
 tions to his children the needful share of health and 
 sickness, ease and pain : gives spiritual peace, that they 
 may run in the way of his commandments; or with 
 draws his presence, and leaves them in darkness, that 
 he may lay them low at his feet, or correct them for 
 
cod's dealings various. 369 
 
 their sins, or kill their corruptions, or exercise their 
 graces; and he does all tilings well. 
 
 § 11. Perhaps you imagine that your want of spiri- 
 tual comfort argues that you are destitute of divine 
 grace, and that you have always been a deceiver. In- 
 deed we should watch against self-deception ; and such 
 fears should occasion serious self-examination ; but if, 
 after such examination, you find no real reason for in- 
 dulging such fears, reject them as the suggestions of 
 the wicked one, designed to harass and distress your 
 soul. Were you to see a dutiful child, that was always 
 concerned to do his father's will, and fearful of dis- 
 pleasing him, lamenting bitterly that he did not love 
 his father more, and desiring, above all earthly good, a 
 stronger affection for his parent ; would you not argue, 
 That child loves his father, though he now hardly be- 
 lieves it; if he had no love, he would feel no such sor- 
 rows, and cherish no such desires? You may apply 
 similar reasoning to your own case, or that of any 
 child of God who walks in darkness, but who walks 
 with God. 
 
 An aged Christian, in much distress of mind, was 
 once complaining to a friend of his miserable condi- 
 tion; and among other things said, " that which trou- 
 bles me most is, that God will be dishonored by my 
 fall." His friend hastily catching at this expression, 
 used it for the purpose of consoling him : "Art thou 
 careful of the honor of God ; an-d dost thou think God 
 hath no care of thee, and of thy salvation ? A soul for- 
 saken of God cares not what becomes of the honor of 
 God. Therefore be of good cheer : if God's heart were 
 not towards thee, thine would not be towards God, or 
 towards the remembrance of his name." 
 
370 SOME SORROWS 
 
 § 12. Perhaps with some or all of these inward con- 
 flicts and sorrows you have to encounter outward op- 
 position. The world reviles and slanders you, because 
 you are no longer conformed to its corruptions. You 
 are perhaps represented as a schismatic, an enthusiast, 
 or a fanatic ; or as a melancholy creature, going out of 
 your senses, because you will follow the dictates of Je- 
 sus, and tread where he trod before you. Your regard to 
 his precepts is deemed unnecessary prcciseness ; your 
 religion is pronounced hypocrisy, and your wisdom 
 lolly. Your former associates make you the butt of 
 their ridicule. Your nearest relatives oppose your holy 
 choice, and are changed into enemies because you 
 have embraced the Gospel of Jesus. Perhaps some 
 who read these lines may have parents who even 
 threaten to disown them, and to cast them helpless on 
 the wide world if they adhere to their religion ; or em- 
 ployers who will dismiss them from their service if 
 they faithfully follow Jesus Christ. This kind of per- 
 secution still exists. The carnal mind is as much en- 
 mity against God as it was when Nero, or Pliny, or 
 Trajan, or Diocletian ravaged with persecution the 
 church of God. Sixteen hundred years ago Tertullian 
 observed,' " Some are arrived to that pitch of aversion 
 to the very name of Christian, that they seem to have 
 entered into covenant with hatred, and bargained to 
 gratify this passion at the expense of all the sati-fac- 
 tions of human life, acquiescing in the grossest of in- 
 juries rather than the hated thing of Christian should 
 come within their doors. The husband, now cured of 
 all his former jealousy by his wife's conversion to 
 Christianity, turns her and her new modesty out of 
 doors together, choosing to dwell with an adulteress 
 
A PROOF OF GRACE. S71 
 
 SGonef than a Christian : the father, so tender of the 
 unduiiful son in his Gentile state, disinherits liim now 
 Avhen he becomes obedient by becomin/7 a Christian: 
 ihe master, heretofore so good to his unfaithful slave, 
 discards him now upon his fidelity and his religion. 
 So that the husband had rather have his wife false, the 
 father his son a rebel, the master his servant a rogue, 
 than ♦© have them Christians and good : so much is the- 
 hatred of our name above all the advantages of virtue 
 ilovving from it. Our heavenly Master, and his heaven- 
 ly religion, are both unknown, and both condemned, 
 without any other consideration but that of the bare 
 name of Christian." All this is but a faithful descrip- 
 tion of the spirit of many opposers of genuine religion 
 in the present age. 
 
 In the midst of trials of this kind you have cause 
 for joy rather than sorrow. They are what the holy 
 Jesus told his first disciples to expect. " Ye shall be 
 liated of ail men for my name's sake ; but he that en- 
 durelh to the end shall be saved." " And ye shall be 
 betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolk, 
 and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be 
 put to death." " A man's foes shall be they of his own 
 household." They are what he himself encountered, 
 and need we wonder that a world which hated him, 
 should hate his followers ? " If they have called the 
 Master of the house Beelzebub, how much more them 
 of his liousehold ?" If they represented him as a glutton, 
 a drunkard, and a stirrer of sedition, surely you need 
 not be surprised, and should not be pained at any 
 scandals they may cast on you ! If friends oppose your 
 choice, and deem your wisdom folly, remember his 
 brethren at one time did not believe in him, but said 
 
372 PERSECUTION. 
 
 he was beside himself. If the haters of holiness revile, 
 and inock, and injure you, hearken while your Lord 
 says, " If the world hate you, ye know that it hated 
 me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the 
 world would love his own : but because ye are not of 
 the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, 
 therefore the world hateth you." Since he was hated, 
 why should it grieve you to be hated by a world that 
 hated him ? Why should you mourn at being reviled, 
 when he was reviled before you ? Rather rejoice ; and 
 if ever disposed to mourn and droop on account of the 
 opposition you experience, then hear him saying, 
 " Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteous- 
 ness' sake ; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed 
 are ye when men shall revile you, and persecute you, 
 and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for 
 my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad ; for great is 
 your reward in heaven : for so persecuted they the pro- 
 phets which were before you." 
 
 Thus expect little from the world that hated him , 
 but rejoice, that, if you are dead with him, you shall 
 also live with him ; if you suffer, you shall also reign 
 with him ; if 3^ou confess him on earth, he will also 
 confess you before his Father, and before his angels. 
 Important period ! How trifling then will appear the 
 ridicule of the gay, and the more open enmity of the 
 hostile! Then all the trials of faithful piety will end. 
 Look therefore to the crown, and you will not tremble 
 at the cross. Think of hearing, at the end of life's short 
 day, those gladdening words, '-Well done, good and 
 faithful servant!" and the enmity and contempt of the 
 haters of religion will be as trifling as the chatter! ngs 
 
SATANIC OPPOSITION. 373 
 
 of a magpie, and will no more prevent your pressing 
 on to heaven than the biizzings of an angry fly. 
 
 § 13. Had the disciples of Jesus no other enemies 
 than the flesh and the world to oppose their progress 
 to heaven, the Christian life would be in reality a war- 
 fare. But the word of God discloses to your view other 
 enemies not less formidable. However Unitarians and 
 infidels may reject or ridicule the notion o{ satanic op- 
 position directed against the growth of piety, no truth 
 is revealed in the divine word with more clearness. 
 Satan is there described as an active, a busy, and a 
 powerful enemy ; " as a roaring lion, seeking whom 
 he may devour." This language does not represent 
 him as a weak or timid, a supine or careless foe; but 
 as a mighty enemy, ready to attack the strongest; a 
 watchful enemy, whoever sleeps, not sleeping. The 
 Christian is declared to have to maintain a conflict with 
 this enemy, and with his associates in guilt and ruin. 
 " Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able 
 to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle 
 not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, 
 against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of 
 this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." 
 How awful is this statement ! The angels that kept not 
 their first estate are the rulers of this dark world. Over 
 multitudes they reign with an undisputed sway, and 
 exert all their hellish arts to harass and to injure those 
 who are translated out of their dark kingdom. The 
 followers of Jesus, in pressing on to heaven, have to 
 encounter their opposition, and to wrestle with them. 
 § 14. The great end which Satan and his guilty as- 
 sociates pursue is the destruction of the immortal soul* 
 32 
 
374 WILES OF SATAN. 
 
 and a principal means by which he advances his hellish 
 purposes doubtless is deception. Hence we read of his 
 deceiving the nations ; of the depths of Satan ; of the 
 wiles of the devil ; and of Satan's devices. Are persons 
 brought out of a state of carelessness and presumption, 
 they are tempted to think that it is too late for them to 
 seek for mercy ; that their sins are too many and great 
 to be forgiven ; that their doom is fixed, and that it is 
 vain for them to seek for happiness. If these views are 
 not sufficient to prevent their following after salvation, 
 it is then perhaps suggested to them that they have sin- 
 ned the unpardonable sin, and therefore that there can 
 be no hope for them ; or they are tempted to build on 
 some other foundation instead of that which God has 
 laid. Their minds are harassed and tempted to indulge 
 unbelief. In prayer a variety of suggestions are power- 
 fully injected into the mind, till, distracted and per- 
 plexed, the Christian can scarcely pray : then he is 
 tempted to think that he had better not pray at all, 
 than pray so imperfectly; and if he listens to the 
 tempter, Satan gains an advantage over him. 
 
 Is the temptation designed to draw the believer into 
 sin? The sin is dressed out in its most alluring colors. 
 The advantages, enjoyments and pleasures to be ob- 
 tained by compliance are all arrayed before him. The 
 bait is presented, but the hook is hidden. It is perhaps 
 suggested that the sin is a small one, and may after- 
 wards be repented of; or that many pious persons have 
 fallen into worse crimes : as Noah, David, and Peter, 
 who yet found forgiveness and happiness. Or perhaps 
 the soul is tempted by the suggestion that it would not 
 actually transgress the divine laws; that so much strict- 
 ness as some professors of religion plead for, is unne 
 
WILES OF SATAN. 275 
 
 cessary preciseness; and thus it is rendered bold in ven- 
 turing on temptation, and the next step is transgres- 
 sion. Then from sin it is led on to sin; from smaller to 
 greater crimes, till peace, and hope, and faith, and hap- 
 piness are all sacrificed. Thus Peter fell : he first was 
 tempted to a lie; to this another lie was soon added; 
 and many hours had not elapsed before perjury and 
 profaneness were added to the falsehoods previously 
 uttered. So David first indulged unlawful desires for 
 Bathsheba; then sunk into adultery ; and to shield her 
 and himself from the shame of discovery, proceeded, 
 by the sword of the enemy, to murder the man he had 
 so deeply injured. Had Peter at first been tempted to 
 curse and to swear, or David to murder Uriah, that he 
 might gain Bathsheba, probably the tempter's design 
 had been frustrated ; but step by step they were drawn 
 to the precipice from which they fell. There is no 
 device of the devil which the Christian should fear 
 more than that of being rendered bold in venturing on 
 temptation, and giving way to what may be thought 
 smaller sins. 
 
 § 15. In your warfare with the prince of darkness 
 you have no occasion for surprise or alarm at the 
 strength, the repetition, or the horrid nature of his sug- 
 gestions to temptations. Read the history of our Lord^s 
 temptation, and it may furnish you many useful les- 
 sons. Satan tempted Jesus — hence you may learn 
 that the most pious may expect his assaults. He per- 
 severed in tempting Jesus, and when foiled at one 
 temptation employed another. Hence it is evident that 
 Satan will not easily depart from those whose faith 
 and piety he is anxious to destroy. He tempted Jesus 
 with the most horrid of temptations, even that of fall- 
 
376 Christ's temptations. 
 
 ing down and worshiping himself — a devil. Need the 
 Christian then be surprised if the enemy, who pre- 
 sented a temptation so horrid to his Lord, should ha- 
 rass him with suggestions equally dreadful ? His last 
 and principal offer to the Savior, was the world — " All 
 this will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and wor- 
 ship me.'^ This is the most successful of the false, but 
 alluring offers that he still employs to keep or draw 
 the soul from God. When tempting Jesus, he backed 
 his impious suggestions by passages from even the 
 word of God, and by wresting the Scriptures. Thus 
 the kingdom of Satan is still upheld, and multitudes 
 undone for ever. Yet consider that Jesus, though 
 tempted even to worship the devil, continued holy, 
 harmless, and undefiled. It is not therefore tempta- 
 tion, but yielding to temptation, that stains the soul 
 with sin. Often are the friends of Jesus distressed 
 and perplexed from not regarding this distinction. 
 They think they cannot be his followers who have 
 such horrid thoughts or temptations as they have. At 
 such times they should look to their Lord, and think, 
 Am I, or can I be tempted worse than he? Why then 
 despond? 
 
 That you may overcome in your warfare, watchful- 
 ness is a most momentous Christian duty. The Lord 
 Jesus Christ inculcates a watchful spirit. "Take ye 
 heed, watch and pray ; for ye know not when the time 
 is. I say unto you all, Watch." " Blessed is he that 
 watchelh." "Let him that thinketh he standeth take 
 heed lest he fall." 
 
 Take unto you the whole armor of God, and you 
 will, through Jesus's strength, triumph over the wicked 
 one. Jesus persevered and triumphed, and angels came 
 
TEMPTATIONS OVERCOME. 377 
 
 and ministered unto him. Follow him, and he will 
 minister unto your wants ; and when the last tempta- 
 tion is over, angels will come and minister to your 
 triumphant spirit, and bear it away as a happy con- 
 queror to worlds of light. 
 
 Pray much. By prayer you will conquer. Avoid 
 idleness. The slothful are peculiarly open to the as- 
 saults of the wicked one. With prayer unite reading 
 the Scriptures and devout meditation. Above all, en- 
 deavor to live under the influence of faith in God and 
 Christ in heaven. To communicate your trials and 
 temptations to Christian friends, may also assist you in 
 overcoming the wicked one. An excellent Puritan wri- 
 ter mentions a man who was tempted to blasphemy 
 for the long term of twenty years, and kept in almost 
 continual terror. He thought there was no man so vile, 
 and who had such thoughts as he ; and that if the world 
 knew what they were, he should be abhorred as a 
 monster. He was often tempted to suicide, principally 
 on the ground that it was a pity such a blasphemer as 
 he supposed himself should longer live. Buth earing 
 the subject of these dreadful suggestions preached up- 
 on, and afterwards conversing privately respecting 
 them, he was happily delivered from his sorrows. Be 
 faithful and persevere. 
 
 § 16. Amidst all the discouragement and distress of 
 your spiritual warfare, never forget that you have a 
 faithful " High Priest wlio is passed into the heavens," 
 but who knows "how to succor them that are tempted," 
 as "he v/as in all points tempted like as" they are, 
 "yet without sin." Jesus felt the sting of affliction, the 
 assaults of Satan and the sorrows of spiritual desertion. 
 32* 
 
378 Christ's promises. 
 
 In your darkest hour you may approach him and say, 
 Blessed Lord, behold me in a case that once was thine 
 —harassed by those hellish foes that once harassed 
 thee ; but thou hast conquered, and wilt thou not give 
 thy poor follower grace and strength to conquer too 1 
 Why distrust the gracious Savior ? Are not his pro- 
 mises as rich as heavenly love can make them ? as firm 
 as eternal truth can fix them? as free as an undone 
 world can want? Art thou his servant? He says, 
 " Where I am, there shall also my servant be." Art 
 thou one of his flock? he declares, " My sheep shall ne- 
 ver perish, neither shall any one (neither man nor devil) 
 pluck them out of my hand." Or art thou laden with sin 
 and full of fears ? he says, " Him that cometh to me I will 
 in no wise cast out." " Come unto me, all ye that labor 
 and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." It is said 
 that when bishop Butler lay on his death-bed, he said to 
 his chaplain, " Though I have endeavored to avoid sin 
 and please God to the utmost of my power, yet, from 
 the consciousness of perpetual infirmities, I am still 
 afraid to die."— "My lord," said the chaplain, -'you 
 have forgotten that Jesus Christ is a Savior."—" True," 
 was the answer ; "but how shall I know that he is a 
 Savior for me ?"— " It is written, Him that cometh to 
 me I will in no wise cast out."—'' True," said the bi- 
 shop ; " and I am surprised that, though I have read 
 that Scripture a thousand times over, I never felt its 
 virtue till this moment; and now I die happy." 
 
 In your Christian pilgrimage, in your spiritual war- 
 fare, forget not that you have a Savior : and let that 
 Savior be all your comfort and support. 
 
 § 17. Think of your heavenly Father's love. Jesus, 
 speaking of him, said to his disciples even after they 
 
ENCOURAGEMENT FROM GOD's LOVE. 379 
 
 had fallen through unbelieving fears, " I ascend unto 
 my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." 
 Precious declaration ! With such a Father as the bless- 
 ed God, why should his penitent, though unworthy 
 child despond and fear? Richer mercy you cannot 
 need than that which God displays. Promises more 
 free you cannot desire. Though one sin allowed to 
 reign would undo an immortal soul, yet had a soul 
 which comes to God by Christ sins as numerous as the 
 drops of morning dew, the blood of Jesus would wash 
 them all away. Cannot you trust in God to help you ? 
 He bade the sun shine : has he not power to shine into 
 your sad heart ? Does he want the inclination ? It can- 
 not be that he who gave Christ for you, can be unwil- 
 ling, with Christ, to give whatever your wants require. 
 Jesus has died. Such has been his infinite pity, that 
 through his appointment Jesus has died. O, compre- 
 hend but this aright and nothing more will be needed 
 to banish thy fears, to raise thy hopes, to subdue thy 
 unbelief, to fire and to fill thee with trust and delight 
 in thy great, and good, and gracious God. Think of 
 him as a Father. Does not a father pity his feeble 
 child? If the child lie sick and aflfiicted, unable to 
 utter any thing but sobs and groans, will he pity that 
 child the less ? God is a Father to those that seek him ; 
 a kinder Father than any earthly parent; he knows 
 his children's sorrows; he sees their feebleness, and 
 knows their frame is dust. He pities them, and hast 
 thou been led to seek him, then be assured he pities 
 thee. 
 
 § 18. To animate you in pressing forward to the 
 Christian crown, often think of those who, through 
 faith and patience, are inheriting the promises. Turn 
 
380 EXAMPLES OF MARTYRS. 
 
 to the first ages of Christianity. Christians then es- 
 teemed it an honor to suffer shame for the name of 
 Jesus. They forced their passage to heaven through 
 all that is most dreadful ; and sought admission there 
 at the expense of all that is most dear. Riches, health, 
 ease, pleasure, and life, all were trifles in their esteem. 
 Then tormentors were weary of inflicting pain before 
 martyrs were weary of bearing it. Their path was no 
 smooth and flowery way : sorrows beset its entrance 
 and attended its course, and flames and tortures were 
 at its end : and yet they trod it. These indeed seem 
 like a different race of beings, like creatures of a diffe- 
 rent world. Ah, my friend ; there lay the distinction 
 between them and many that profess the same Gospel 
 now. They were creatures of a different world. They 
 lived on earth, to be ready for heaven. Hence they 
 trod the path to glory, however thorny, and rejoiced 
 in hastening to an early crown. Polycarp, when con- 
 demned to martyrdom, was so fearful lest the prayers 
 of his friends would prevent the execution of the sen- 
 tence, that he begged them to forbear : " I fear," said 
 he, " lest your love should injure me." Does one of 
 all those martyred myriards now repent ? Did one 
 when landing on the heavenly shore ever think, I have 
 borne too much for him who bore the cross for me ? 
 We need not go so far back to view the patience of the 
 saints. Look back a hundred and fifty or two hundred 
 years, and see the persecutions endured by those of 
 whom the world was not worthy. See dungeons filled 
 with their captives, and deserts peopled with their 
 exiles. See persecutors hunting out their little haunts ; 
 denying them the enjoyment of religious worship even 
 in solitary fields or lonely woods. Behold soldiers en- 
 
PROMISES TO THE FAITHFUL. 381 
 
 tering their assemblies, disturbing their meetings, si- 
 lencing their ministers, and dragging hearers and 
 preachers to fines, confiscations, and prisons. O be 
 not slothful ! though not called to encounter their sor- 
 rows, imitate their lives ; cherish their fervent attach- 
 ment to the absent Savior; and their fond eagerness 
 for a better world. When the world tempts you, and 
 Satan suggests. Your hope is vain ; then think of them 
 who once had all these trials, and many more ; but who 
 overcame through the blood of the Lamb. 
 
 § 19. When tempted to despond or shrink in the day 
 of conflict, then hear your Lord saying. Will you go 
 away ; you for whom I died ; to whom I have been a 
 shepherd and friend; who have professed so much love 
 to me ; who have taken on your soul such solemn vows, 
 and sealed them so often at the table of your Lord ; 
 will you go away ? You who never found me faith- 
 less — and never will — will you go away? will you? 
 shall Satan triumph? have you considered the folly? 
 have you weighed the sin? have you measured the 
 ingratitude of hearkening to the tempter? and will you 
 go away ? O do you not reply, Holy Jesus, where 
 should I go? If I left thee, where should I find a Sa- 
 vior? where go for pardon,, peace, salvation, and eter- 
 nal life ? Keep me, and I will not go away. Though 
 the tempter's suggestion were true, that my hope is 
 vain, yet if I perish, at thy feet will I die ! 
 
 If tempted to give religion up, hear your Lord say- 
 ing, " Hold that fast which thou hast, that no one take 
 thy crown." All the enemies thou hast been instructed 
 to watch against, will try to rob thee of that prize ; but 
 hold the beginning of thy confidence fast unto the end. 
 Think of the worth of that crown of which they would 
 
382 PROMISES TO THE FAITHFUL. 
 
 rob thee. Think of the price which was paid, that that 
 crown might adorn thy head, thou child of dust I a 
 price no less precious than the blood of the Lamb. 
 Think of the love that would bestow it on thee ! think 
 of the raptures of receiving, and of the heaven of en- 
 joying, that thornless crown ! Whatever thou mayest 
 lose, or suffer, or fear, or dread, still hold this fast I 
 Though it does not yet beam around thy honored head, 
 3'et follow Jesus, and it shortly will. Hear him speak- 
 ing to thee : " Be thou faithful unto death, and I will 
 give thee a crown of life." No meaner hand than mine 
 shall give the glorious boon. Thy Lord's own hand 
 will bestow the prize. Fear not lest thou shouldst not 
 attain the blessing, for I will give it thee. 
 
 " Be faithful unto death." Thi-s is all ; and come 
 when death may, then this crown, not of merit but of 
 grace, is thine. This promise was given to those who 
 had to pass through persecution. You are not called 
 to such trials; be faithful then when encountering far 
 lighter opposition; and remember that the spirit of 
 martyrs should animate every Christian. If you are 
 afraid of being singularly pious ; if you fear a sneer, or 
 a laugh, or the words fanatic, enthusiast, or methodist; 
 if you shrink from your duty for fear of offending a 
 friend or an employer, can you think that such faith 
 and fortitude would stand a much severer trial? Can 
 you think that you should be faithful unto death, 
 amidst taunts and torments ? If this be the case, are 
 you faithful now? Does not Jesus say. Whosoever 
 shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him will 
 the Son of man be ashamed ? O watch against a cow 
 ardly spirit in religion ! 
 
 It is true, our difficulties are not like those of some 
 
ENCOURAGEMENT. 383 
 
 who have preceded us. They are less formidabJe j and 
 perhaps on that account more dangerous. When at- 
 tacked by the enemies they encountered, there re- 
 mained no opportunity for parleying with the trial. 
 No alternative remained to them but victory or death. 
 But the evils we encounter in our spiritual warfare 
 seem to demand less decision, and so are often more 
 destructive. The warm beams of the sun led the tra- 
 veler, in the fable, to throw aside the cloke which the 
 rough tempest could not tear from him. 
 
 Look to that crown ! and to him who gives it ! Look 
 to those promises that they are inheriting, who in his 
 strength have overcome. They felt all your trials ; they 
 knew all your sorrows ; they encountered all your dan- 
 gers, and struggled with all your enemies j had hearts 
 as cold and groveling ; enemies as many and as mighty ; 
 fears as painful ; doubts as perplexing, and temptations 
 as harassing; but they overcame through the blood of 
 the Lamb. Now they are inheriting the promises ; and 
 opposition, and danger, and death, and temptation, and 
 sin, are things unknown where they repose. A few years 
 ago many of them were in the field of warfare, but now 
 in the land of victory. Their pilgrimage is ended ; their 
 warfare done ; their voyage of life is finished ; they have 
 reached the harbor, and landed on " the peaceful shore 
 of blest eternity." The crown of life, the rivers of plea- 
 sure, the fullness of joy, the house not made with 
 hands, the mansions in Jehovah's dwelling, the heaven 
 we desire, the eternity that fills our souls with conflict- 
 ing hopes, and fears — all, all are theirs. Happy con- 
 querors ! happy end of the struggles of a few fleeting 
 years! And may you ere long enjoy the same? You 
 may. Eternal love has opened to your soul the gate 
 
384 VICTORY OF OTHERS. 
 
 of heaven. Eternal love would place upon your head 
 the crown of life. Your journey is no longer than 
 theirs ; your enemies no mightier. Your helps are no 
 less. Jesus was their strength ; and he would be yours. 
 Your encouragements are no smaller. To them he 
 promised immortality, and the crown of life; and he 
 would give the same precious gift to you. O blessed 
 immortality ! is this the gift of Jesus to a pardoned 
 penitent that once deserved the depths of hell? O 
 crown of life, of glory ! is it this that his kind hand 
 will place on every humble believer's unworthy head? 
 Blessed gifts ! blessed recompense for a life of four- 
 score years, wholly devoted to his love and service ! 
 Of fourscore years ! whose years are those? more than 
 probable not yours, not mine. But if they were, four- 
 score years or fourscore moments are the same, when 
 compared with those boundless, endless oceans of ages 
 that eternity contains. O the heights, and depths, and 
 lengths of that love which gives, as a free gift to an 
 unworthy sinner, that eternal life I Precious encou- 
 ragement for following the Lamb, through light or 
 darkness, life or death ! Look to him, and look to hea- 
 ven, then onward go, till life concludes, and Jesus 
 gives the crown 
 
ON BACKSLIDING. 386 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 ON BACKSLIDING. 
 
 § 1. Many are the painful spectacles presented in 
 this world to the Christian's view, but none more pain- 
 ful than to see those, who once promised fair for heaven, 
 turning back into perdition. In all ages this sad night 
 has been too frequently beheld. Among the twelve 
 apostles was a Judas, who betrayed his Lord. Among 
 the companions of the blessed Paul was a Demas, who 
 forsook him, "having loved this present world." 
 Among those to whom he preached the Gospel were 
 foolish Galatians, who, as if bewitched, obeyed not 
 Christ crucified ; and fallen Corinthians, of whom he 
 said, " I fear lest my God will humble me among you, 
 and that I shall bewail many which have sinned, and 
 have not repented of the uncleanness, and fornication, 
 and lasciviousness which they have committed." 
 
 No new thing then happens to the flock of Jesus, 
 when some of whom they once hoped well, forsake 
 the Lord. Nor, though it pain, need this discourage 
 his sincere disciples. He knows his own, and says of 
 them, "Thou hast a few names even in Sardis that 
 have not defiled their garments, and they shall walk 
 with me in white, for they are worthy." 
 
 § 2. The causes of backsliding are many and various. 
 
 Probably the prevailing cause is the want of real grace. 
 
 Many profess religion who never possessed it. When 
 
 they fall away the church of Christ sustains no real 
 
 33 
 
386 '"" CAUSES OF BACKSLIDING. 
 
 loss ; the number traveling to lieaven is not diminish- 
 ed; for they were hypocrites or self-deceivers. The 
 word of God represents this as a principal cause of 
 backsliding. "They went out from us, but they were 
 not of us." " He that receiveth the seed into stony 
 places, is he that heareth the word, and with joy re- 
 ceiveth it : yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth 
 for a while." Persons of this description never were 
 the children of God. They might seem pleased and 
 profited, but the root was always wanting. The fool- 
 ish virgins were always different from the wise. They 
 had the lamp, but they never had the oil ; no one is 
 truly a disciple of Christ who does not at heart for- 
 sake all things for him. Many profess religion that 
 are never brought to this. They leave some sins, they 
 make some sacrifices while their feelings are roused, 
 and perhaps they stand for a time ; but when the world 
 bids high enough for their services, they renounce re- 
 ligion, and return to the ways they professed to for- 
 sake. A celebrated statesman used to say that every 
 man has his price. However we may disbelieve this 
 assertion, we may assert, that every one who profess- 
 es religion, without being truly converted to God, has, 
 as to this world, his price. For some the world must 
 bid higher than for others. The offer of an ungodly, 
 but pleasing wife or husband, is a price sufficiently 
 high for multitudes ; for this they will forsake their 
 profession, and renounce their Lord and christian 
 friends. Others want a higher price; but all who have 
 not the root of religion within, will only stand their 
 ground till the world tempts them with something 
 sufficiently valuable, in their esteem, to draw them 
 aside. Love to the world is a common cause of back- 
 
CAUSES OF BACKSLIDING. 387 
 
 sliding. " Demas hath forsaken me," said the apostle 
 Paul, "having loved this present world." Anxious 
 cares respecting the things of time, and inordinate at- 
 tachment to them, occasions others to fall away. " The 
 cares of this world," among the lower and middling 
 classes of society ; and the " deceitfulness of riches," 
 among the wealthy ; " and the lusts of other things en- 
 tering in," in all stations, and ranks, and ages, " choke 
 the word, and they become unfruitful." The fear of 
 man insnares some ; the love of gain entangles others ,• 
 and worldly companions and worldly marriages draw 
 multitudes away. 
 
 § 3. Backsliding may properly be distingushed into 
 secret and open. The former takes place in the case 
 of those who do not openly renounce religion, but 
 who no longer feel its vital power, or on whom its 
 influence is gradually declining. Such was the case 
 of the church at Ephesus, when the Lord Jesus, 
 after commending their labors, fidelity and patience, 
 added, " Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, 
 because thou hast left thy first love." Such also was 
 the case of many in the church at Sardis, when the 
 Savior said, " I know thy works, that thou hast a name 
 that thou livest, and art dead. Be watchful and 
 strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to 
 die." Such also, in a still more deplorable degree, was 
 their case at Laodicea, of whom he said, "Because 
 thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will 
 spue thee out of my mouth. Thou sayest, I am rich, 
 and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; 
 and knowest not that thou art wretched, and misera- 
 ble, and poor, and blind, and naked." In none of these 
 cases was the form of religion laid aside. But, alas ! its 
 
388 SECRET BACKSLIDING. 
 
 life was going, or gone. They at Ephesus, who had fall- 
 en least, had left their first love. That they had dread- 
 fully, though secretly and inwardly fallen, is evident 
 from the admonition which the Lord addressed to them. 
 They at Sardis had sunk still lower. All was not dead, 
 but all was dying. They at Laodicea had sunk the low- 
 est, and they were in a kind of middle state between the 
 careless worldling and the zealous Christian. Not cold, 
 as those who are dead to every religious feeling ; not 
 hot, as those who are pressing on to glory ; but like 
 lukewarm water, in a middle condition, between the 
 cold and the hot. 
 
 As some thus secretly backslide by losing love to 
 the Savior and religion, others do so by forsaking him 
 as the ground of their hope. The apostle evidently 
 represents the Galatians as falling away from Christ : 
 " Christ is become of no effect unto you ; whosoever of 
 you are justified by the law. ye are fallen from grace." 
 The sin of those who are thus addressed, appears to 
 have been the uniting the works of the law with 
 Christ, as the ground of their dependence. In doing 
 so, they are described as getting into a state in which 
 they would lose their interest in the Savior, and thus 
 in reality fall away from him. 
 
 Secret backsliding is inexpressibly dangerous. Per- 
 sons who have thus declined from religion may yet 
 maintain its outward forms, frequent the house of 
 prayer occasionally, keep up some connection with the 
 church of Christ, and feel few or no suspicions respect- 
 ing their real state. The Lord describes such as saying 
 that they are rich, and have need of nothing ; but de- 
 clares that they are wretched, and miserable, and poor, 
 and blind, and naked. How dreadful is their delusion I 
 
PROGRESS OF BACKSLIDING. 389 
 
 They Ihink that all is well, when all is ill ; and deem 
 all safe for eternity, till they enter that solemn state, 
 and find that their religion was delusion, and that they 
 are lost for ever ! How needful a duty is self-examina- 
 tion ! how needful is it to watch the heart, and to keep 
 the heart with all diligence, since out of it are the is- 
 sues of life! 
 
 Open backsliding takes place when they who have 
 lost the life and power of religion openly forsake their 
 adherence to the Savior, and return to the world, to 
 folly, and sin. 
 
 § 4. In both cases backsliding is an inexpressibly 
 dreadful evil. No language can describe its mischief, 
 and where willful and continued, no words express its 
 enormity. 
 
 This dreadful evil is commonly a gradual evil. Few 
 are backsliders all at once. Backsliders, in turning 
 from God and happiness, commonly go step by step 
 till they plunge into final apostacy and eternal perdi- 
 tion. First, love to the Savior and religion declines in 
 Iheir hearts. As this love lessens, their hatred to sin 
 becomes weaker and the world regains its influence. 
 Some then give way to a spirit of pride, and vanity, 
 and self-importance. Others yield their affections to 
 the world. They allow this to be busy with them in 
 their closets and in the house of God. By degrees se- 
 cret communion with God is neglected. Little delight 
 is found in devotion, and private prayer is first occa- 
 sionally, and then habitually disregarded. If at the 
 head of a family, family worship is dropped. Public du- 
 ties are soon neglected. They grow less attentive to4he, 
 house of God. Its services are thought long and tedi- 
 33* 
 
390 EFFECTS OF BACKSLIDING. 
 
 ous ; and first one is neglected, and then another. The 
 Lord's table is slighted. Social meetings for prayer 
 and religious conversation are altogether abandoned. 
 Their inclination is turned another way : they had ra- 
 ther spend two hours a day in trifling conversation, 
 than half an hour a week in seeking spiritual benefit. 
 They grow more and more wearied of the strict- 
 ness of religion. Their taste for its pleasures gra- 
 dually dies. Their Christian friends are forsaken. 
 They grow tired of true friends, and pleased with false 
 ones: like the Israelites who were pleased with the 
 spies, but thought Joshua and Moses their enemies. 
 They form new intimacies, or revive old ones with 
 those that are strangers to the path of peace. At 
 length they become again mere followers of the world, 
 and their conduct and deportment are commonly suit- 
 ed to their fallen condition. Do Christian friends en- 
 deavor to stop them in their progress to destruction ? 
 In some a few painful feelings are excited, some half- 
 formed resolutions are made ; but all soon vanishes, 
 and again they pursue their declining path. Others 
 receive with disgust the warnings of Christian friend- 
 ship, and go on without perceiving their folly, and in- 
 sensible of their guilt. " I do not perceive that I am 
 fallen," says the lukewarm professor. Unhappy man ! 
 why then do all else perceive it ? Why is your place 
 at the house of God st) often empty ? Why are all re- 
 ligious exercises with your Christian friends neglected ? 
 Why is the table of the Lord slighted ? Why is the 
 prosperity of the Savior's cause a matter of no concern 
 to you ? Why so different from what you once were? 
 ""Oh^ replies the self-deceiver, " I am dissatisfied. The 
 minister does not preach as he used to do, nor friends 
 
LETTER TO A BACKSLIDER. 391 
 
 behave as they formerly did." Such are the excuses 
 and complaints of many backsliders. Unhappy crea- 
 tures ! they are like a man that, having lost his sight, 
 finds fault with the sun instead of his eyes, and says 
 of that bright luminary at noon-day, " It does not shine 
 as it used to do." 
 
 § 5. On the g2iiU and mischiefs of backsliding the 
 writer will insert, with some small alterations, a letter 
 written several years ago to a young female who had 
 fallen from religion, but of whose restoration there ap- 
 peared some flattering, though, alas! delusive hope. 
 
 "My dear Friend, — Allow me, by writing a few lines 
 to you, to give you another expression of my anxious 
 concern for your eternal welfare ; yes, your eternal 
 welfare; for what will long seem worth a single 
 thought, except the blessings of eternity ! 
 
 " I would hope that the repentance and grief for 
 your conduct, which you expressed on the Sabbath, 
 have not again vanished like the morning cloud or the 
 early dew. I prayed for you, not merely at that time, 
 but often before ; and if you truly return to the paths 
 of peace, shall think these prayers answered. 
 
 "And what, Sarah, is now the state of your heart ? 
 Is it again thoughtless? again hardened? God forbid! 
 and grant that it may be tender, humble and penitent! 
 My dear friend, you have need of repentance. I do 
 not wish to upbraid you with any thing that is past; 
 yet love to your soul makes it needful to say to you — 
 You have need of repentance, of deep repentance. 
 Surely you must have fallen away far from God. But 
 are you penitent? If you are, I would not break the 
 bruised reed. Rather would I direct you to the prom- 
 ises of your loving, though lately forsaken God. Then 
 
292 LETTER TO A BACKSLIDER. 
 
 hear him saying in his word, * Return unto me, and I 
 will return unto you.' ' Return, ye backsliding chil- 
 dren, and I will heal your backslidings.' ' If we confess 
 our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, 
 and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.' 'The 
 blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, cleanseth us from all 
 sin.' To you these promises are made,- let them not 
 be made in vain. Still God is willing to receive you ; 
 still Jesus is willing to welcome you. His blood may 
 yet cleanse you from your sins, and his kind hand sup- 
 port your feeble steps. Behold backsliding Peter. He 
 found mercy ; and, gone from this world, joins in the 
 songs of the redeemed above. Oh, Sarah, seek the 
 Savior's grace afresh : you will not seek in varn r 
 
 * His bleeding heart will make yon room^ 
 ' His open'd arms will take you in.' 
 
 Yet he would give you peace, give you pardon, give 
 you heaven, and join you soon to his redeemed above. 
 And does it not melt your heart to think, 'And would 
 my injured Savior again receive me? and would my 
 forsaken God again welcome meV He would, indeed 
 he would. ' And may I sit down with his saints above ? 
 and may my happy spirit adore his love, when this 
 now healthful body is a lifeless corpse, and this cold 
 heart is colder in the grave ? O ! may eternal blessedness 
 then be mine?' It may. 'And shall I slight it longer? 
 Shall I turn from the way of life ? Shall I forsake my 
 kind Redeemer ? Break, O my God ! the hard heart 
 that has deceived me, and let it never deceive me 
 
 more i 
 
 "But, my dear friend, while the promises of grace 
 should encourage your return; to strengthen your 
 
BACKSLIDER ENTREATED. 393 
 
 earnestness, you may profitably unite with the motives 
 they furnish, the consideration of what you were do- 
 inff. You had, I am persuaded, nearly given up reli- 
 gion altogether. If you had done so quite, think what 
 you would have done. Where would have been your 
 hopes, your friends, your comforts, and where, ere 
 long, your soul ? In such a state, if turning your eyes 
 to heaven, you might have said, There dwells the 
 Lord ; once I could say. There dwells my God ; but 
 alas! no longer mine. Once he was my friend; but 
 now I have made him my enemy. His love was my 
 portion ; but it is mine no more. There dwells the Sa- 
 vior, once my Savior; but now I have no interest in 
 him. Others are happy in his love ; but I have lost 
 that happiness: others are safe under his care; but I 
 am out of his protection : others have their siqs blotted 
 out in his blood ; once I thought mine were ; but I 
 have crucified him afresh, and brought a double load 
 of guilt upon my own soul. There dwell also his faith- 
 ful friends. They toiled and suffered here, but rest in 
 heaven ; and once I hoped to partake of their joys ; but 
 now that hope is gone. God is my God no longer ; Christ 
 is my Savior no longer ; heaven my hoped-for home 
 no longer. 
 
 " I do not say, Sarah, that these should be your me- 
 lancholy reflections now. I pray that this letter may 
 find you returning to God. But they might have been 
 so, if you had continued backsliding ; and should be so, 
 if you ever fall from Christ. And let the thought of 
 the dreadful danger you have been in fill you with 
 watchfulness and humility, and lead you to prayer. 
 Great has been your danger; for, O ! it is beyond hu- 
 man power to describe the evils of backsliding from 
 
394 DREADFUL GUILT 
 
 the living God. To backslide altogether, is to give tip 
 God ; to give up Christ ; to give up hope, comfort, and 
 heaven ; to make yourself the slave of Satan ; to pre- 
 pare your soul for a miserable eternity ; to throw eter- 
 nal life away, and choose eternal death. To backslide, 
 is to slight your best friends, and please your worst 
 enemy to make heaven mourn, and hell rejoice j to 
 act as guilty a part as Satan himself acted ; to treat 
 with the basest ingratitude a loving God ; and to tram- 
 ple under foot the pains, and groans, and sorrows of a 
 dying Savior. To backslide, is to choose devils for 
 your companions instead of angels; hell for your 
 home instead of heaven ; weeping, wailing, and de- 
 spair for your portion, instead of peace and praise. In 
 fine, Sarah, to backslide is to act so wicked, so mad, so 
 hellish a part, that even devils themselves can scarce- 
 ly wish any to act a worse. And had you begun to 
 act this part ? God be praised, if you now mourn that 
 you did so ! Flee to him, my friend, afresh ! Plead 
 with him the promises I have mentioned from his 
 word. Praise him that he did not give you over to a 
 hardened heart ! and O may you hereafter praise him 
 for this in heaven ! 
 
 "Depend upon it, my dear friend, the view now given 
 you of the guilt of backsliding is not too strong. The 
 word of God represents confirmed backsliders as 'turned 
 aside after Satan ;' as ' having damnation, because they 
 have cast away their faith ;' as drawing ' back unto per- 
 dition ;' as being shut out of the eternal rest ; as crucify- 
 ing to themselves the Son of God afresh, and putting 
 him to an open shame ; as having trodden under foot 
 the Son of God, and counted the blood of the covenant, 
 wherewith they were sanctified^ an unholy thing j as 
 
OP BACKSLIDING. 395 
 
 doing despite to the Spirit of grace; as falling into the 
 hands of the living God, who is to them a consuming 
 fire ; as having their latter end worse than the begin- 
 ning. For them there remains a certain fearful look- 
 ing for of judgment and of fiery indignation, which shall 
 devour the adversaries. They are those, who, having 
 fallen into the snare of the devil, are taken captive by 
 him at his will. What awful descriptions ! how should 
 they rouse you ! how alarm you, lest you should turn 
 aside again ! To be led captive by Satan— what can be 
 worse? Could you see that dreadful enemy dragging 
 an unhappy soul to perdition, how would you tremble ! 
 yet remember that the backslider, though he see it 
 not, is led captive by the devil at his will. Oh, let these 
 awful thoughts lead you to watch and to pray ; to look 
 into your own heart ; to examine your own state ; to 
 distrust yourself; to depend on your Redeemer, and to 
 dread the guilt of backsliding more than the wretched- 
 ness to which it leads. 
 
 "Again, Sarah, if you have felt the pangs of a 
 wounded conscience, seek for peace afresh through 
 the blood of the Lamb, and let the unhappy hours you 
 have passed, and the tears your fall has occasioned, be 
 so many motives with you to return to God and to 
 cleave to Christ. Surely you have found that thought- 
 lessness and laughter cannot make the backslider's; 
 state happy. You know something of this truth ; many- 
 others know much of it. I reminded you of a friend 
 who told me how happy he was in the ways of God. 
 Peace with God made life pleasant. The night and 
 the day were alike comfortable" and fear fled far from 
 him. But the tempter suggested to him. What need so 
 much ado about religion 7 These words, or something 
 
dyb EVILS OF BACKSLIDING. 
 
 to this effect, run in his mind. At length he yielded , 
 he went backward, and the tempter triumphed. And 
 now his comforts were gone. He could not lie down at 
 night without fear of waking in eternal torments before 
 the morning. He found it was a bitter as well as guilty- 
 thing to forsake his Redeemer. Learn wisdom, Sarah, 
 from your own unhappiness; learn it from that of oth- 
 ers. You have been near the edge of a precipice, from 
 which many who reach it never return, but fall from 
 God to rise no more. O be thankful that you have not 
 fallen quite so low ! O be watchful lest you should ! 
 O strive ! O pray ! that your repentance be not this 
 time what it was a few months back. 
 
 " Should I say more, Sarah ; then again I would ad- 
 monish you to look forward to future things. Think 
 of your dying bed, of your pulse fluttering, your heart 
 failing, your friends bidding you a last farewell, and 
 you departing to meet your God. What comfort it will 
 give you if you have a Savior then ! What misery it 
 will cause you, should you then be found a backslider, 
 and then have to think that this friendly warning did 
 you no good ! Think yourself standing before your 
 Judge. How happy if you meet his smile ! if you find 
 his blood has blotted out every sin, and the sin of for- 
 saking him among the dreadful list I And, Sarah, this 
 happiness will be yours, if you return and cleave to 
 him. But, 01 how wretched would you be if you 
 should meet his frown, and hear him say, You forsook 
 me in yonder burning world— depart — depart for ever ! 
 What bitter groans would burst from your heart ! 
 What bitter tears, if tears can then be shed, flow from 
 your eyes ! How would you wish that you had watched, 
 iand prayed, and bore all crosses, and endured all hard- 
 
BJiCKSLIDER ENTREATED. 397 
 
 ships, and denied all allurements, and even died for 
 Jesus rather than have forsaken him ! 
 
 "Go through a churnh-yard, Sarah. Look at its 
 graves and think, Here lie the young, the healthy, and 
 the st.ong. Here lie those whom the world once 
 charmed, and those who for it slighted their immortal 
 souls ; and what is the world to them now ? And soon 
 shall this youthful and healthful body, like theirs, be 
 moldering dust, and soon shall these active limbs be 
 common earth. Soon will my eyes be shut upon the 
 world, and all its cares and all its pleasures will neither 
 pain nor please me in the grave. But then, where will 
 be my immortal spirit? That cannot die ; that lives for 
 ever. And shall I sell that soul to Satan, and get this 
 world only for it? and shall I give up my Savior, and 
 throw my hopes away? O, foolish heart, that ever 
 thought of doing it ! O, deceived and miserable creature 
 that I have been ! for I began to do so. 
 
 " My dear friend, what shall I say more? I mourn 
 the thought of seeing you hereafter at the left hand of 
 the eternal Judge. I mourn the thought of never meet- 
 ing you in the world of peace, to whom I have often 
 broken the bread of life. Could I prevent your depar- 
 ture, never should you depart. Return to God, and 
 peace will again be yours. Return to Jesus, and you 
 will yet be happy. But let it be with full purpose of 
 heart. Let it be with earnest prayer. Let it be with a 
 watchful jealousy lest you should deceive yourself in 
 a concern of endless consequence. Learn to live on 
 Christ. Depend on him. Look to him. Resist the 
 world for a little time, and you shall reach a better. 
 Fight the good fight of faith, and you will soon receive 
 34 
 
«>yo BACKSLIDER ADDRESSED. 
 
 the crown of glory. The conflict is short, the rest eter- 
 nal. Then, at length, beyond the reach of sin, Satan, 
 the world, and a deceitful heart, may you there praise 
 the grace which first awakened you— the greater grace 
 that brought you back to God. May God grant it ! 
 Amen !" 
 
 § 6. Do I address a backslider ? Probably all that has 
 now been said will have no more effect on you than I 
 fear it had on her to whom it was originally written, 
 and who is since gone to her dread account. Yet shall 
 I leave you for ever, and not make one more attempt 
 to restore you to the paths of life? Stop then, I be- 
 seech you, before the shades of death close round your 
 head, before the voice of mercy is withdrawn for ever; 
 stop, I beseech you, and a little more consider 3'our 
 ways. 
 
 Think of your sin : many are its aggravations. You 
 have sinned against the world. You have thrown a 
 stumbling-block in the way of the unconverted, and 
 exposed th^m and yourself to the wo denounced by 
 the Lord Jesus Christ : Wo unto the world because of 
 offences; but wo unto that man by whom the offence 
 cometh. And are not you that WTCtched creature ! O, 
 how awful is it for one that has professed religion, to 
 injure the immortal souls of others ! and to assist Satan 
 in leading multitudes to perdition ! 
 
 You have sinned against your relatives. If they are 
 the disciples of Jesus, how have you blasted their 
 hopes respecting you, and hov/ ill requited them for 
 all their tenderness, kindness, and care ! If they know 
 him not, you have probably hardened them in careless, 
 ness and sin, and thus contributed to sink those who 
 are dearest to you down to hell. 
 
backslider's guilt. 399 
 
 You have sinned against yourself. You might have 
 been respected and beloved, esteemed and useful in life, 
 and have possessed a bright inheritance in heaven ; but, 
 alas! how low has your conduct sunk you! how has 
 it deprived you of respect and affection in this life, and 
 of every cheering hope for the eternal world ! 
 
 You have sinned against your Christian friends. 
 You professed to be their friends, yet have acted the 
 part of the worst enemies. The world is ready to re- 
 proach them without cause ! but you have given the 
 world occasion to do so ; and those who pity you, yet 
 abhor your conduct and disown you, may share in 
 your reproach. 
 
 You have sinned against the Lord Jesus Christ. He 
 died to redeem you from sin. Often have you heard of 
 his dying love. You professed to ground your hopes 
 upon it. But O ! for all his dying love and living care, 
 for all his sorrows and his bitter death, what a return 
 have you made him ! You have pleased Satan, and 
 displeased your Redeemer I have done the will of the 
 devil, and injured your gracious Savior, and brought 
 reproach upon his holy cause ! 
 
 Think how different is your state now from what it 
 was when you solemnly yielded yourself up to your 
 Redeemer. Look back to that day. Who would then 
 have thought of this ? How will the profession you 
 then made rise in the judgment against you! How 
 will every opportunity you have had of sitting down 
 at the Redeemer's table, every sermon you have heard, 
 every warning you have received, aggravate your guilt 
 and double your condemnation ! How may the serious 
 friends who once were your companions, and the mi- 
 nisters who have preached to you the everlasting 
 
400 backslider's guilt. 
 
 Gospel, appear as witnesses that you once knew the 
 ways of God, and then turned back unto perdition! 
 They who now pity and pray for you, will then pity 
 you no longer, but own that your destruction is just. 
 
 And have all your professions come to this? Did 
 you profess religion, but to make yourself more com- 
 pletely a chiUi of the devil by forsaking it? Has that 
 Redeemer who shed his blood for you deserved no 
 better than this at your hands? Do you thus requite 
 all his sufferings, all his love, and all his goodness? 
 Have you found something more worthy of your love 
 than Christ? That should be a treasure indeed, for 
 which you sell your own soul to the devil, and re- 
 nounce God, and Christ, and hope, and holiness, and 
 happiness, and heaven. Will your irreligious compa- 
 nions make up to you this dreadful loss? Oh, poor, 
 deceived, unhappy creature ! if you go on in your way, 
 they who are now your companions in folly will 
 soon be your companions in hell ! How will you meet 
 your injured and forsaken Redeemer? 
 
 You have sinned against the Holy Spirit. Sin grieves 
 and quenches the Spirit. O beware lest he leave you 
 to yourself; for then you would be sealed up under 
 eternal impenitency of heart. 
 
 You have sinned against God. David mentions this 
 as a peculiar aggravation of his iniquity. " Against 
 thee, thee only, have I sinned." If your profession was 
 sincere, how awfully have you sinned against God! 
 Did you not profess that he had, by his Spirit, opened 
 your eyes to see your ruined state ? Did you not be- 
 lieve that, through his lovp, he gave his Son to die for 
 you? and by the workings of his Spirit led you to the 
 Savior ? and made you a child of his own, instead of 
 
backslider's guilt. 401 
 
 an heir of wrath ? And is this your return to your 
 merciful Creator? 
 
 Your sin against God is of the most dreadfully hei- 
 nous kind. Are you not under the most solemn vows 
 to be the Lord's? Should you forget them, God will 
 not forget them ; and if you break them, your soul will 
 sink under the horrible guilt of lying unto God. How 
 many solemn engagements have you made to be the 
 Lord's ! How many vows in private, when no eye but 
 God's saw you, no ear but God's heard you ! What 
 solemn professions before the church and the Lord ! 
 —the engagements of your baptism, and those repeated 
 again and again at the table of the Lord! Will you 
 break all these promises, and become guilty of telling 
 not one lie only to God, but many ? How hateful is a 
 lie ! all liars shall have their part in the lake that burn- 
 eth with fire and brimstone. The Lord Jesus describes 
 the devil as the father of lies, and of liars. If lying to 
 men is so hateful, what must it be to lie to God ? Of 
 this horrible crime you will be guilty, if you forsake 
 the way of peace. It may be said at last, You promis- 
 ed to be the Lord's ; but, miserable liar ! you broke all 
 those promises ; you took the vows of God upon you, 
 and then became a poor perjured wretch, by slighting 
 all those vows. my fellow-sinner! no lies are so ag- 
 gravated as the backslider's lies to God. They are will- 
 ful lies ; for he goes willfully from Christ, and will not 
 stop, though God and man entreat him to return. They 
 are lies whose guilt is heightened by thebase ingratitude 
 of forsaking a good God and a gracious Savior j and 
 heightened still more by the horrible choice he makes: 
 he leaves Christ for the world that crucified his Lord; 
 34* 
 
402 backslider's misery. 
 
 and forsakes God for sin and the devil. I have read 
 of a backslider that said, " I will not have salvation- 
 nothing for me but hell. Come, O devil, and take me." 
 
 Few speak thus plainly ; but all that willfully forsake 
 Jesus make this dreadful choice ; and would they 
 speak what in reality they do, each would say, Lord 
 Jesus, I renounce thee, I leave thee. Satan, I choose 
 thee as my lord. Heaven I forsake. Come, devil, you 
 shall be my owner, and hell shall be my home. Like 
 Altamont, every backslider may say, " I have been too 
 strong for Omnipotence, I have plucked dov/n ruin." 
 
 O, when the Judge comes to pronounce the doom of 
 •every liar, what will be their state who have lied to God ! 
 
 Oh, my fellow-sinner ! how can you live with such 
 a load of guilt upon you! how can you make a choice 
 so horrible ! Does not eternity haunt your guilty 
 hours ? eternal damnation gained— eternal salvation 
 trampled under foot— eternal despair— eternal enmity 
 to God— eternal likeness to the damned— eternal hell- 
 ishness acquired ? Oh, dreadful choice ! Perhaps you 
 laugh; but will you laugh in misery? Perhaps you 
 jest; but will you jest in hell? Perhaps you call that 
 place of wo a bugbear ; will you on a dying bed ? Did 
 Voltaire? Did Tom Paine? did the unhappy wretch, 
 once an infidel, who cried, "O thou blasphemed, yet 
 most indulgent Lord God ! hell itself is a refuge, if it 
 hide me from thy frown ?" 
 
 listen not to the delusions of unbelief, and the sug- 
 gestions of an infernal foe ! Rather seek mercy. Flee 
 from the wrath to come. Is not death already clad in 
 terrors ? Then turn to him who would take the sting 
 of death away. 
 
 Behold your once dying, but now risen Lord ! Shall 
 
backslider's misery. 403 
 
 all his dying love be lost on you ? Will you reject that 
 gracious, heavenly friend ? Behold his dying sorrows, 
 his nameless agonies, his torturing cross, his flowing 
 blood — and think of the immense eternal love that 
 prompted him to bear those sorrovv's for you. Can you 
 see this, and yet forsake the Lord who bought you? 
 Or think of his kingdom. Think of the meeting of his 
 friends, when all his ransomed flock shall meet in hea- 
 ven. unhappy creature ! shall your pious friends 
 miss you there? Shall your minister see that you are 
 absent? Shall those, with whom you have often sat 
 down at the Savior's table here, sit down without you 
 there? When the little flock that you belonged to are 
 landed safely, and those who were baptized, or who 
 otherwise professed the Gospel with you, rest above, 
 where will you be? and, millions of years beyond the 
 day of doom, where will you be? If sorrow could be 
 felt in heaven, your Christian friends might mourn 
 while they exclaim. Where now is our poor compa- 
 nion, our brother or sister, that professed to set out in 
 the way to heaven with us, and then, O foolish crea- 
 ture ! turned aside ? Where now the thoughtless youth, 
 that loved a dying world, and left our Lord ? and where 
 all his vain delights? Where now the unhappy girl 
 that once promised fair for glory? and where all for 
 which she denied her Redeemer, and sold her soul ? 
 Ah, had she persevered, how different had been her lot ! 
 That hapless soul, which is now overwhelmed with 
 eternal night, had then been one of our happy band; 
 had then enjoyed the crown that fadeth not away. 
 
 Ah, my friend ! these things are not cunningly de- 
 vised fables. The time will come when your Chris- 
 tian friends, who cleave to the Savior, will rest in hea- 
 
404 
 
 backslider's misery. 
 
 veil ; and when, if you return not to him, you and they 
 must part for ever. Oh ! if you leave them now, this 
 willful parting is the dread forerunner of an eternal 
 separation. Now to be parted from the flock of God 
 perhaps you feel but little ; but what will it be to be 
 parted from it for ever? 
 
 If you would return to the ways of peace, inquire 
 seriously, what has been the occasion of your fall? 
 and forsake it, though it may cause you as much pain 
 as to cut off a right hand. Forsake especially worldly 
 associates, or every attempt to return to God will be 
 in vain. Begin with religion again, as you began at 
 first. Seek salvation through the blood of Jesus. Pray 
 much. Frequent divine ordinances. Cherish religious 
 conversation : and God will hear your prayers, and 
 help your soul, and give you grace to escape from the 
 snare of the devil. Then, who will sing of redeeming 
 love with a heart so warm as you? All the motives 
 that love and gratitude can furnish urge you to return. 
 All the motives that can spring from pity to yourself 
 urge your immediate return. All the blessings of eter 
 nal life invite you back to God. All the sorrows of the 
 Savior urge you to flee to him. And all the terrors of 
 eternal death should frighten you from the paths of the 
 destroyer. 
 
 § 7. Shall I, by a statement of painful facts that I 
 have witnessed, endeavor to offer one motive more for 
 your immediately returning to the Savior, who is will- 
 ing to have mercy upon you; or for your watching, 
 praying, and persevering ? I was once called to see a 
 person in much distress of mind, who professed reli- 
 gion, but who declared that his conduct had been in- 
 consistent with his profession. He spoke of the ex- 
 
backslider's misery. 405 
 
 treme distress that he then felt, and observing that he 
 had been two months in that condition, said that those 
 two months seemed lilvc two millions of years. At 
 another time he said, " If I possessed it, I would give 
 ten thousand millions of worlds to be out of my pre- 
 sent misery." Depend upon it, if you forsake the Sa- 
 vior, or if you have forsaken him, and return not to 
 him, you are hastening to sorrows thus excruciating 
 and severe. On another occasion I repeatedly visited a 
 young woman who had been a professor of religion, 
 but who had fallen, and led a life of carelessness. She 
 was confined to a bed of affliction, and apparently near 
 the grave. With a countenance full of bitter distress, 
 she often spoke of her guilt and folly in such expres- 
 sions as the following : " I once knew the way ; I once 
 could look at death with comfort ; but now I cannot — 
 I fear there is no mercy for me." Unexpectedly her 
 illness took a favorable turn ; she would then say, " I 
 have suffered much, but not half so much as I deserve 
 for my base ingratitude to God." Speaking of her 
 views when at the worst, she observed she would have 
 given the world to have had her sins forgiven ; and 
 said, tliat at that time she saw nothing before her 
 but death, and hell along with it I How dismal a pros- 
 pect for the day of suffering or dissolution ! Yet if you 
 are, or ever become a backslider, what other prospect 
 can be yours ! watch and pray. Return to the Sa- 
 vior, or cleave to him. So, when your fainting head 
 can rise from its pillow no more ; when the blood 
 grows cold at your heart, and your spirit is about to 
 take its final flight : your prospect may be bright as 
 eternal life, and your peace unshaken as the promises 
 of Christ. 
 
^06 ENCOURAGEMENT FROM 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 CONSOLATIONS AND ENCOUPwAGEMENTS FOR THE 
 CHRISTIAN IN HIS SPIRITUAL PILGRIMAGE. 
 
 § 1. You have now contemplated some of the duties 
 Of the Christian life, and some of the trials of the 
 Christian warfare ; yet many are the fountains of con 
 solation to which the Sacred Scriptures direct the 
 thirsty pilgrim's view. For happiness, look to your Re- 
 deemer, to your God, and to your home. 
 
 Look to your Redeemer, and listen to the gracious 
 words that proceed from his compassionate lips. "Let 
 not your heart be troubled ; ye b lieve in God, believe 
 also in me. He that loveth me shall be loved of my 
 Father, and I will love him and will manifest myself 
 to him. If a man love me, he will keep my words ; and 
 ray Father will love him, and we will come unto him, 
 and make our abode with him. Peace I leave with you' 
 my peace I give unto you ; not as the world giveth] 
 give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, nei- 
 ther let it be afraid." " The Father himself loveth you, 
 because ye have loved me, and have believed that I 
 came out from God." " My sheep hear my voice, and 
 I know them, and they follow me : and I give unto 
 them eternal life ; and they shall never perish, neither 
 shall any man pluck them out of my hand." 
 
 Perhaps your soul may, at times, be cast down and 
 distressed ; but remember, when friends are absent, 
 the Lord Jesus is present. The chief Shepherd is for 
 ever near you ; and he who laid down his life for you, 
 will .loublless make your comfort and welfare his care. 
 Let your faith but repose aright upon the Savior's love, 
 
DIVINE PROMISES. 40''' 
 
 and nothing will seem dark on this side the grave, 
 and all appear bright beyond it. If at times you sow 
 in sorrow, you will doubtless reap in joy. Hear your 
 Lord saying, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.- 
 Above all, hear him saying, " My grace is sufficient for 
 thee. Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the 
 world." What more can you desire? Jesus always 
 with you — can you then ever indulge distress ? Jesus 
 always with you — can you then ever want a counsel- 
 lor ? Jesus always with you — can you then ever des- 
 pair of final conquest? He who laid down his life for 
 you, ever attentive to your welfare — no moment pass- 
 ing in which he is absent ; no moment coming when 
 he shall leave you, or his helping hand be far away. 
 rejoice in these promises ! they are worth more than 
 all the world. 
 
 § 2. Let the consideration of what the Savior is, fill 
 your soul with comfort. There is nothing in him to 
 render him an object of dread to the suppliant at his 
 feet. When the Apostle John saw his glory, beheld 
 "his countenance as the sun shining in his strength," 
 and " his eyes as a flame of fire," while he heard " his 
 voice as the sound of many waters," he fell as dead at 
 his Redeemer's feet; but Jesus said, " Fear not ; i am 
 the First and the Last : I am he that iiveth and was 
 dead." Though he appeared in such tremendous ma- 
 esty, his humble follower had no cause for fear; and 
 he still remembered what he had borne for man. 
 Doubtless the same compassion still dwells in his 
 breast. The flight of a few short years changes man ; 
 but the revolution of eternal ages will not change the 
 compassionate Son of God. Think what tenderness he 
 displayed, in a thousand forms, during his short so- 
 
408 ENCOURAGEMENT FROM THE 
 
 journ below. His business was to save. His office, to 
 Ileal the broken-hearted. Imperfect friends and bitter 
 foes received the tokens of his tender compassion. Be- 
 hold the Savior in his intercourse with friends. Sym- 
 pathizing with them in their sorrows, he wept at the 
 grave of Lazarus. He bore with the dullness and errors 
 of his disciples ; and though he corrected their faults, 
 treated them with one unvarying flow of kindness. 
 When they, who should have watched with him in his 
 agony, slept, instead of severely reproving tfcem, he 
 tenderly excused their fault, and said, '' The spirit in- 
 deed is willing, but the flesh is weak." When Peter 
 denied him, and afterwards repented, he still owned 
 him as a brother, and said, when sending a message to 
 him and the other disciples, that had so lately been fu- 
 gitives in the hour of his sorrow, " Go, tell my breth- 
 ren that they go into Galilee, and there shall thev 
 see me." When Thomas, after his resurrection, said, 
 " Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, 
 and put my finger into the print of the nails, and 
 thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe," 
 he gratified his unreasonable scruples; and said to 
 Thomas, " Be not faithless, but believing." Even when 
 he severely rebuked the dreadful lukewarmness of his 
 professed friends at Laodicea, he did not conclude the 
 solemn warning without expressing affection for them. 
 " As many as I love I rebuke and chasten ; be zealous, 
 therefore, and repent." To the sons and daughters of 
 affliction, who sought his aid, he ever showed tender- 
 ness and love. The centurion besought him to heal 
 his servant, and Jesus said, " I will come and heal him." 
 Jairus, worshiping him, said, "My daugh'.er is even 
 now dead j but come, and lay thy hands on her, and 
 
savior's corvIPASSIo^^ 409 
 
 she slmll live." Attentive to the cry of .sorrow, Jesus 
 arose and went. The leper said, " Lord, if thou wilt 
 thou canst make me clean." Jesus answered, " I will ; 
 be ihou clean.'' Blind Barlimeus cried, " Thou Son of 
 David, have mercy on me." The disciples, less com- 
 passionate than their Lord, rebuked the importunate 
 ??ufferer; but Jesus said unto him, " Receive thy sight; 
 ihy faith hath saved thee." The widow of Canaan im- 
 plored his help for her afflicted daughter. At first he 
 seemed to hesitate; but only hesitated to prove her 
 faith ; and then said to her, '• O woman, great is thy 
 faith ; be it unto tliee even as thou wilt." Often unso- 
 licited he bestowed his aid. Thus to him, who lay by 
 the pool of Bethesda, he said, " Rise, take up thy bed, 
 and walk." When he met the widow who mourned 
 the loss of her only son, he said, "Weep not;" and 
 with a voice powerful as that which shall at length 
 awaken all the dead, he said, to the lamented object of 
 her affection, that lay stretched lifeless on the bier 
 " Young man, I say unto thee, arise." Even the poor 
 guilty adulteress, that was conveyed into his presence, 
 experienced his mercy. When Jesus said to her, '' Hath 
 no man condemned thee ?" and she said, " No man 
 Lord :" he said, " Neither do I condemn thee ; go, and 
 sin no more." The tenderness of Jesus was strongly 
 displayed even to his bitterest foes. He wept over im • 
 penitent Jerusalem; shed tears at the misery of those 
 who were about to shed his blood. He prayed for his 
 murderers, and desired their life who wrought his 
 death ; their happiness who loaded him with wo. Not 
 in an hour of cool reflection, before or after his dread- 
 ful sorrows, but in the midst of those sufferings, he 
 35 
 
41Q IINCOURAGEI'lEIiT FRO>M THE 
 
 prayed, " Father, forgive Ihem ; for they know not whal 
 they do." And after his resurrection, breathing forth 
 the same unconquered tenderness, he directed the 
 tidings of mercy to be proclaimed first to his murder- 
 ers; and commanded .his apostles to begin publishing 
 forgiveness at Jerusalem. The tenderness thus dis- 
 played in his conduct is represented as essential to his 
 character. While, as a Shepherd, he feeds all his flock, 
 he shows peculiar compassion to the weak. It is said, 
 " He shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry 
 them in his bosom ! and shall gently lead those that 
 are with young." How safe is the lamb on the shep- 
 herd's arm ! or folded within the shepherd's bosom ! 
 How happy their lot whom Jesus gently leads in secu- 
 rity and comfort on to heaven, the fold where all his 
 flock will meet ! " The bruised reed he will not break, 
 and the smoking flax he will not quench." Weak as a 
 reed, might be a proverb for weakness : but a bruised 
 reed is still weaker : yet those, who are thus weak, will 
 he not reject, but support : and where grace is like a 
 little spark, he Avill not despise or quench that spark; 
 but will fan it to a flame. 
 
 § 3. All the tenderness the Savior ever displayed still 
 governs in his breast. He is not less compassionate be- 
 cause removed to his eternal throne ; nor less interested 
 in the welfare of his flock, because he has left the wil- 
 derness where they sojourn. In the most expressive 
 language he represented his interest in their happiness, 
 his feeling for them, when, stopping Saul in his perse- 
 cuting career, he said, '* Saul, Saul! why persecutest 
 thou ME 7" Thee, Lord ! were not thy sorrows ended ; 
 wast thou not far above the reach of his mighty malice 
 and his cruel hand ! Thou wast ; but still didst say. 
 
savior's tenderness. . 411 
 
 ' Why persecutest thou ME?" Thy flock was perse- 
 cuted ; and injury done to them, was done to thee. 
 The head in heaven felt with the members suffering 
 upon earth. 
 
 Conformably with this representation, it is elsewhere 
 declared, that he nourisheth and cherisheth the church: 
 " For we are members of his body, of his flesh and of 
 his bones." How gracious a representation ! Man na- 
 turally feels interested in the welfare cf his body ; and 
 anxious to supply it with food, to shield it from harm, 
 to guard it from pain, and to minister to its comfort and 
 welfare. This care to nourish and cherish tiie body, is 
 declared to be like that care which the Lord Jesus en- 
 tertains to nourish and cherish his flock, and to be but 
 an imitation of his care. With more than the fondness 
 of a parent bird fostering her young; with more than 
 the tenderness of a nurse cherishing her infant charge ; 
 with more than the afi'ection of a mother fondling her 
 tender offspring ; with a love powerful as that self-love 
 which prompts man to feel for his own body, does the 
 Lord Jesus feel for his church ; and tend, and watch, 
 and cherish, and feed, and bless his flock. 
 
 Think of him, whose love fills heaven with happi- 
 ness; whose dying sorrows have procured immortal 
 life for countless multitudes ; whose compassion shines 
 like the noon-day sun, but has no setting beam; 
 and can you distrust such tenderness, or droop be- 
 neath the noon-day warmth of such compassion 1 Is 
 he so kind, why do you not rejoice incessantly in 
 him ? Surely when you droop in sadness, he might 
 say, "0 thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou 
 doubt? didst thou find in thy Redeemer aught to occa- 
 sion thy fears ? Dost thou see any want of love in him 5 
 
412 ENCOURAGEMENT PROM THE 
 
 any want of richness in his grace, or of freeness in his 
 promises ?" O look more to him for peace ! Say of this 
 compassionate Jesus, Ke is God my Savior; of this 
 lender yet Ahiiighty Shepherd, He is my Shepherd; 
 and you may adii. " I shall not Avant. He maketh me 
 to lie down in green pastures : he leadeth me beside the 
 still waters. Yea, though I walk through the valley of 
 the shadow of death, I will fear no evil : for thou art 
 with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me." 
 
 § 4. The disciples of Jesus are also taught to view 
 him as their intercessor ; and hence should flow into 
 their souls that " peace which passeth all understand- 
 ing." The Most High has not revealed the mode of the 
 Savior's intercession for his flock; but has fully as- 
 serted its reality. Christ " is even at the right hand of 
 God, who also maketh intercession for us." " If any 
 man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus 
 Christ the righteous." " He is able to save them to the 
 uttermost that come unto God by him ; seeing he ever 
 liveth to make intercession for them." '• We have a 
 great High Priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus 
 the Son of God. Let us therefore come boldly unto 
 the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and 
 find grace to help in time of need." 
 
 To intercede, is to present petitions in behalf of ano- 
 ther. To act as an advocate, is to plead another's cause, 
 and attend to his interests. This the Lord .Tesus Christ 
 is declared to do for his disciples. He intercedes in 
 their behalf; he pleads as their advocate ; and so pre- 
 valent is his intercession, and of such immense mo- 
 ment in advancing their salvation, that on his ever liv- 
 ing to inlercede, is grounded his ability for ever to save ; 
 and because he acts as their High Priest in heaven, his 
 
savior's intercession. 413 
 
 disciples are exhorted to go boldly to the throne of 
 grace, and to hold their profession fast. 
 
 Look to Jesns as your advocate. What efficacy must 
 his intercession impart to the sighs and lispings of his 
 weakest follower ! Think of him as the Son of God^ 
 the brightness of his Father's glory : and can he plead 
 your cause in vain? or can it fail when trusted in his 
 hands? His intercession has availed for multitudes, 
 which no man can number. Go then, O go to him! 
 He loved thee as angels cannot love, and feels for thee 
 as angels cannot feel. They know not what it is to 
 sigh, to sorrow, and to weep: but he, for thee, has felt 
 all this. They know not what it is to hunger and thirst, 
 to be wear}' and faint, to be persecuted and scorned, to 
 pray in sadness and to die in wo; but he, Avho is thy 
 intercessor, knows all this ; for he has felt it all. And 
 since he ''himself hath suffered, being tempted, he is 
 able to succor them that are tempted." Tell him of thy 
 sorrows — he once had sorrow. Tell him of thy ene- 
 mies — he once had enemies. Unfold to him all the 
 secret sadness of thy heart — he once felt the bitterness 
 of wo. When weak, ask his grace to strengthen thee; 
 when troubled, implore his smile to cheer ; when fallen, 
 beg his strength to raise thee. In darkness look to him ; 
 and when thy poor defective prayers are but the moan- 
 ings of a broken heart, still look to him, who lives to 
 plead thy cause. Solace thy soul, by thinking what an 
 intercessor thou hast— an intercessor for ever the same. 
 Let faith display him to thee as exalted in eternal day; 
 yet think that among the praises of the blest he hears 
 the lispings of thy feeble voice. He is thy advocate 
 with his Father and thy Father. Thou mayst go to 
 
414 
 
 BLESSINGS FROM THE 
 
 him and say, Blessed Jesus ! angels praise and saints 
 adore thee. They are as holy as they are happy; but 
 I, thy poor disciple, have many sorrows, and'all I do 
 deserves thy frown. So much unbelief mingles with 
 my faith; so much coldness with mylove;"so much 
 languor with my hope; so much imperfection with all 
 my services; so many wandering imaginations even 
 with my most solemn prayers ; that if thou dost not 
 help me I must sink, and die. If thou dost not plead 
 for me, I must give up every hope ; but thou wilt plead 
 for me. Thou art my intercessor, and in thee let me 
 find my everlasting all ; and cold as is this heart, does 
 it not wish, and pray, and long to love tliee ? and weak 
 as is this faith, does it not fix upon thee, and still turn 
 to thee? and dim as is this hope, yet thou knowest 
 this glimmering, trembling hope would not fix on any 
 thing but tiiee ; nor would I be without this hope for 
 all the works thy hands have made. But let this hope 
 brighten ; and plead thou for me ; and take into thy 
 care my everlasting concern ; and let me rejoice in 
 thee, as my advocate and eternal friend, and then thy 
 will be done for every thing besides ! 
 
 § 5. The Christian is represented as the peculiar pro- 
 perly of Christ. " Wliether we live, we live unto the 
 Lord ; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord ; whe- 
 ther we live therefore or die, we are the Lord's;" and 
 his through the purchase of his blood, " bought with 
 a price" inestimable. The thought is delightful—" We 
 are the Lord's." What more can the soul desire to se- 
 cure its happiness? Whether we live, we are the 
 Lord's— then all his dealings must be meant in mercy, 
 and all must end in good. Whether we die, we are 
 the Lord's— then ail must be well in t)ie world unseen. 
 
savior's friendship. 415 
 
 The Christian may say, '• I know not where heaven is ; 
 but Jesus knows, and I am his. When soul and body 
 part, my spirit v/iil be a stranger to the wondrous path 
 that conducts the righteous to the presence of their 
 God ; but Jesus knows the way, and I am his. What- 
 ever srenes may open on my view, how solemn soever 
 the realities that await me when I enter eternity, this 
 one thing assures me that all must be right— " Whe- 
 ther we live or die, we are the Lord's." " We are the 
 Lord-s"— delightful words— sweet as the harmony of 
 heaven. A thousand and a thousand times might the 
 charming declaration be repeated, and yet not all its 
 power be felt, nor all its value comprehended. We are 
 the Lord's— then welcome life ! that we may live to 
 him; and welcome death I that we may go to him: 
 welcome the services of time ! they are v.'hat he re- 
 quires ; and welcome the rest of eternity ! it is what 
 he prepares. Welcome the christian warfare! being his 
 makes victory certain. W'elcome the battle ! being his 
 secures the crown. Welcome health or weakness, life 
 or death, time or eternity, earth or heaven ! Let ns 
 but hear, " We are the Lord's," and each shall be wel- 
 come — all shall be v/elcome. 
 
 § 6. The Lord Jesus Christ is also declared to be the 
 frieiid and brother of his flock. He owns the endear 
 ing appellations. '• Ye are my friends, if ye do what 
 soever I command you." Hov/ wonderful the love 
 which applies such endearing names to those who were 
 once so far from God and holiness ! How boundless 
 the blessedness of having in Immanuel a brother and 
 a friend! All that is valuable in earthly friendships 
 and infmitely more, is comprehended in his. The ten- 
 dere^t friendships of earth are but a mutual tribute of 
 
^^6 BLESSINGS FROM THE 
 
 affection, wliere each receives, and each gives. Your 
 friends love you because you love them, and your love 
 to them is strengthened by their love to you • but O 
 how different is his friendship who died for you when 
 you were his enemy ! He is an almighty friend. Thp 
 dearest relatives below are frail as the flower of the 
 fie d ; but he is liable to no decay. When thev have a 
 willing heart they often have a feeble hand^and fer- 
 vent pi-ayers and unavailing pity is frequently all the 
 relief that they can administer to those thev "love the 
 best. But his means are not thus limited. When thev 
 can only mingle sorrows with our sorrows, he can 
 drive those sorrows away. He can cheer when thev 
 can only weep. He can infuse into the heart the peace 
 which passeth all understanding, and can so strengthen 
 the faith of his disciples, in invisible and eternal things 
 that they may sometimes seem almost the objects of 
 sight, instead of belief; and by such seasons of delight, 
 ful intercourse with heaven, he can fill their souls wHh 
 strong consolation. All the treasures of wisdom too are 
 his. When perplexity and distress beset his friends and 
 earthly counselors fail, or stand confounded, he'will 
 guide those who look to him for wisdom, in the right 
 way, to a city of habitation. Even with respect to tem- 
 poral concerns, he can suggest a thought, or fix on the 
 heart an impression, which shall influence all the fu- 
 ture life, and extend its influence to eternity itself His 
 friendship is unchangeable; having loved" his own that 
 were in the world, he loved them to the end. Earthly 
 friends are often fickle and mutable; but Jesus Christ 
 IS the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever." No ene- 
 mies can lessen his love to his beloved flock; no slan- 
 derer pour his venom into the Redeemer's ear His 
 
 i 
 
savior's FRiENDSHIPi 417 
 
 friendship endures the same through the short sum 
 mer of prosperity and the dark winter of adversity ; 
 and it endures for ever. When other friends are most 
 faithful and affectionate, dear as the light that visits 
 our eyes, or as the blood that warms our hearts, such 
 is this world, that they often may be absent when 
 wanted most. Distance may deprive us of their sym- 
 pathy and affection when these are most desirable ; 
 but this heavenly friend is ever near. He said, "If a 
 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." If Jesus is our friend, we have 
 one friend ever at hand to hear the faintest whisper 
 that solicits his aid. His friendship is eternal too, and 
 this is the crown of all the rest. It lasts for eternity. 
 Blessed eternity! It is eternity that will infuse the 
 most rapturous delight into the triumphant believer's 
 overflowing cup of happiness. It is eternity that will 
 form the brightest lay in the triumphant believer's far 
 more exceeding weight of heavenly glory : and it is 
 eternity that renders the friendship of Jesus Christ so 
 immense a blessing, that its worth might be forever 
 telling, yet for ever untold. Our most beloved friends 
 must die; and we must die; and the fondest earthly 
 connections must shortly be dissolved. To mourn for 
 the death of those we hold most dear, or to have them 
 mourn on account of ours, is what we all are doomed 
 to here. " The loss of friends is the sad tribute, I had 
 Imost said the sad equivalent, that in these regions of 
 death we must pay for loving and being beloved ;" but 
 death shall never terminate the friendship of Jesus 
 with his humble flock. That sNvcet, that av^'ful word, 
 eternitj, makes him ours for ever. The sun which 
 
418 BLESSINGS FROM 
 
 shines on the dwellings where we live with our be- 
 loved friends below; the solid earth on which we tread 
 with them ; the stars that shine on our evening walks 
 in their company; these, like us, are frail ; and lasting 
 as they seem, must come to nothing; but the friend- 
 ship of Jesus Christ is stronger and more lasting than 
 they. It will flourish in those new heavens wherein 
 dwelleth righteousness. Beyond the gulf of death it 
 will diffuse immortal good, through ages more nume- 
 rous than the drops of summer rain apxd the flakes of 
 winter snow, from the creation to this day. The spirits 
 of the just made perfect, the goodly company of the 
 redeemed can witness that Jesus Christ is an eternal 
 friend. Death has long ago taken away their worldly 
 possessions, their health, their strength, their time; but 
 not their Redeemer ; that perfect and most blessed 
 friend, with whom they shall abide to everlasting ages. 
 § 7. Dear is the friendship of Jesus Christ ; blessed 
 is it to be his friend ; but his Gospel opens a richer 
 treasury of happiness. It represents him as assuming 
 a still dearer name than that of friend. He is the bro- 
 ther of his flock. When he rose from the grave, he 
 said, " Go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee. 
 Go to Jiiy BRETHREN, and say to them, I ascend unto 
 my Father and your Father, unto my God and your 
 God." " He is not ashamed to call them brethren." 
 As his brethren they are beloved ; but there is a re- 
 markable passage, in which he expresses for them an 
 affection stronger than that of a brother. He said, 
 " Who is my mother? and who are my brethren ? Be- 
 hold my mother and my brethren I For whosoever 
 shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the 
 same is my brother, and sister, and mother." His mean- 
 
UNION WITH CKRIS"; 
 
 419 
 
 ing evidently was, that every one who does his Fa • 
 ther's will, becomes united to himself in the closest re- 
 lation; in one so close as singly to obtain as mucJi of 
 his affection as a mother, and sister, and brother could 
 share among them. 
 
 § 8. How honorable, how delightful, such a union 
 with the Son of God ! How wonderful the compassion 
 and grace of the holy Jesus, in bringing into so sa- 
 cred a connection those who were once the heirs of 
 sin, and wrath, and death ! What raptures should fire 
 the soul at the thought of such a connection ! That Je- 
 sus, who gave angels and archangels their seats in 
 glory, is our friend, our brother, and even more than 
 a brother. Their exalted nature he never wore. Never 
 did he deign to be called their brother, but he has be- 
 come ours. Could we see a host of happy angels, what 
 an honor should we deem it to be able to say to them, 
 Your Lord is our brother ; he has himself acknowledg- 
 ed the relation. O I my fellow pilgrim, rejoice in think- 
 ing that he has. He has lived in this land of darkness, 
 this field of death, this vale of pollution, and now in 
 heaven owns as his brethren all that truly love his 
 name. In this low world of sin, misery, and death, the 
 divine Jesus seeks friends and brethren that will be 
 eternally dear to his heart. Creator, Redeemer, Friend, 
 and Brother, all unite in him. 0, truths astonishing, 
 yet delightful ! truths surpassing wonder, yet full of 
 consolation ! truths, that, had they not come from hea- 
 ven, it would have been sin to credit, and which it is 
 now sin to disbelieve! O what is mortal praise, or 
 mortal love, when offered to that Savior whose conde- 
 scending goodness is so vastl Could we offer the 
 praise of angels— praises like those which angels offer 
 
4SQ 
 
 BLESSINGS Of 
 
 would be languid, poor, and cold. Lord, what is ran- 
 somed man!" Man, that, when washed in thy blood, 
 claims thee as a brother, thou Ruler of the skies! thou 
 Lord of heaven ! Happy they who enjoy this sacred 
 connection with the adorable Son of cfod ! This, my 
 brother, or my sister, is our highest honor. Ah, mon- 
 archs ! may the followers of the Lamb exclaim, keep 
 your crowns, wear your vain titles, govern your wide 
 empires, let us but reign in the presence of Jesus, and 
 in heaven itself be known as the blood-bought kindred 
 of the Son of God ! 
 
 § 9. Blessings immense and countless, for time and 
 eternity, flow from such a union. If this enriches you, 
 and peace and comfort should be your lot, you may 
 placidly look forward to a world, where these shall be 
 enjoyed in higher perfection through eternal days. If 
 sorrow embitter your way, and cloud your sky, you 
 may rejoice in your hasty advances to that state, 
 where the love of Jesus shall banish every grief. The 
 friendship and love of this adorable Savior and bro- 
 ther will be the stay of his friends, when rocks crum- 
 ble to dust, and mountains tremble to their base ; when 
 the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and when 
 the fashion of the world, and the world itself, have pass- 
 ed away. Sweet will it be to smile amidst that last 
 storm, and sweet indeed then to enjoy the brotherly 
 love of a divine Savior. 
 
 It is said, that on one occasion a poor aged Chris- 
 tian was observed making her scanty meal on bread 
 and water, but expressing the warm gratitude of her 
 heart, because the Savior was hers. "All this," said 
 she, "and Christ too." Rich are the poorest that have 
 such a friend : poor are the richest that have not. It is 
 
UNION WITH CHRIST. 421 
 
 related, that a gentleman one day took an acquaintance 
 on the leads of his house, to show him Ihe extent of 
 his possessions. "There," said he, waving his hand 
 about, " that is my estate." Then pointing to a great 
 distance on one side, "Do you see that farm ? That is 
 mine." Then pointing to the other side, "Do you see 
 that house ? That also belongs to me." His friend said, 
 '' Do you see that little village yonder ? There lives a 
 poor woman in that village who can say more than all 
 this." "What can she say?" "She can sa}^, Christ is 
 mine ! And can you say, Christ is mine ? Then indeed 
 you should rejoice in the Lord always." O that others 
 would seek the treasures of v/hich grace has made you 
 an heir ! Whatever be your lot, you should be happy. 
 You are so now, and will be so to everlasting years. 
 Let sickness come, and blast your youthful days; let 
 paleness overspread your countenance, and the last 
 enemy be stopping the blood at your heart; yet still 
 in Christ you will be happy; happier infinitely in 
 pain, and death, with a Savior, than you could be with- 
 out him, though health, and life, and the riches of king- 
 dom.s were your portion. Think more hov/ many 
 blessings are centered in your Savior; and rejoicing in 
 your Lord, pursue your way to his presence and abode. 
 § 10. Though the chief work of the Lord Jesus is to 
 secure the happiness of his disciples when this mo- 
 mentary scene is passed away, yet he kindly desires 
 their comfort while it lasts. It is true, to him who 
 views eternity, our few hasty years must appear no 
 longer than a moment : yet this life, in his sight, like 
 a moment, a sigh, or a nothing, must have its peace 
 and comfort, and have it too from him. He spoke that 
 36 
 
422 CHRisr'iS gare for 
 
 divinely gracious discourse, recorded in the fourteenth 
 and two following chapters of the Gospel of John, that 
 he might promote the temporal comfort, as well as the 
 spiritual welfare of his disciples. " These things have 
 I spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace." 
 Precious words ! We may hear this gracious Savior 
 saying in them, Look, to me, and though you should 
 liave little peace besides, in me ye may have peace. 
 In that troubled world you shall have tribulations; in 
 me a refuge against them all; in me ye shall have 
 peace. In that hostile world hatred and persecution 
 may befall you; in me you have a shelter from every 
 storm, a support in every sorrow; in me ye shall have 
 peace. In that transient world you may expect languor 
 and disease, changing comforts, dying pleasures, and 
 piercing griefs; but through life, through death, on 
 earth, in heaven, in me ye shall have unchanging com- 
 fort, in me ye may have peace. To promote this peace, 
 the Lord Jesus lias given many gracious promises. O 
 exercise faith in them ! Consider they are as firm, and 
 as t^ure, and as precious, as if you heard the Lord Jesus 
 speaking them to you. When pensive and alone, me- 
 ditating on the world to come, think you see your Sa- 
 vior approach, and hear him say, "Let not your heart 
 be troubled. In my Father's house are many mansions. 
 I go to prepare a place for you." If oppressed by the 
 malignity of men, go from their company, " enter into 
 thy closet, and shut thy door ;" there try to realize the 
 presence of your Lord, and hear him saying, " If the 
 world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it 
 hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would 
 love his own : but because ye are not of the world, but 
 I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world 
 
HIS disciples' comfort. 423 
 
 haleth you." If encountering sorrow and pain, hear 
 him saying, " Ye now have sorrow ; but I will see you 
 again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no 
 man laketh from you." When wandering among the 
 tombs, thinking of dear departed friends, whom you 
 must meet no more on earth, and thinking how soon 
 the grave must be your home, as it now is theirs, tlien 
 hearken to the sweet promises of Jesus : "Where I 
 am, there shall also my servant be." " i will come again 
 and receive you to myself, that where I am ye may 
 be also." O would he, who once sojourned below, again 
 descend and utter these and other heart-reviving words, 
 where, with your Savior speaking by your side, would 
 be the darts of affliction or the sting of death? and 
 where would be the victory of the grave ? If the Lord 
 had been pointing you to a dwelling in the heavens, 
 could you cease to rejoice in the prospect of that hap- 
 pier land? Would you not weep as though you wept 
 not, and rejoice as though you rejoiced not; and often 
 think. It was there, beyond these lower skies, that ho 
 taught me to expect my endless home? Or had he been 
 warning you to expect hatred or affliction ; yet adding 
 that you were his friend, and that you should soon be 
 glorified with him, could you mourn much at human 
 hatred, or repine at earthly sorrows? Would you not 
 rather think. My best, my most unalterable friend, has 
 entered within the veil, and I am following apace; wel- 
 come then trials, if by trials he will train me for his 
 own abode? Jesus will not come from heaven to con- 
 verse with you ; he will not visibly commune with you ; 
 he will not sit with you in the house of mourning, or 
 walk with you among the tombs; yet he is as truly 
 with you, as if he were thus to appear. By day, by 
 
424 BLESSINGS OF THI! 
 
 night, when you walk, or rest, or labor, or sleep, your 
 Lord is with you; and his promises are as firm as if 
 you heard them from his lips, or as if an angel, com- 
 missioned by him, brought them to you from his hea- 
 venly throne. 
 
 § 11. If grace has made this Savior and these pro- 
 mises yours, how many blessings do you possess ! It 
 is delightful now, with humble, yet cheerful confidence, 
 to call Christ ours ; yet if this confidence now diffuses 
 through the soul a peace that passeth understanding, 
 what is the rapture it will impart when he shall appear 
 in the clouds of heaven ! Then, when the sufferer of 
 Calvary descends, attended by all the angelic hosts, 
 and comes as the " worthy Judge eternal f when the 
 sneers of infidelity are hushed in eternal silence; when 
 his followers no longer appear a despised, afflicted, 
 persecuted train, but, led by him, ascend to heavenly 
 thrones; then, Vv'hen the confusion of despairing sin- 
 ners, trembling before his awful bar, exceeds, in ter- 
 rible disma)^, all that any heart can conceive, as much 
 as eternal ruin is worse than temporal wo— then, what 
 will be the joy of belonging to him ! And when all 
 these solemnities are passed, and vast unbounded eter- 
 nity stretches in infinite prospect before the triumphant 
 soul— then, what will it be to belong to Jesus ! Here 
 imagination must stop; none can conceive the holy 
 overwhelming rapture. 
 
 (j 12, Among the innumerable privileges which the 
 children of God enjoy, the Scriptures expressly men- 
 tion the ministering care of holy an^sls. The word of 
 God represents them as strong in power, great in glo- 
 ry, and favored with near access to the throne of God. 
 It declares, that at times they are employed by their 
 
JUDGMENT DAY. 
 
 425 
 
 heavenly Father on commissions of judgment; but 
 that their more frequent and delightful office is to min- 
 ister to the heirs of salvation. So extensively are these 
 countless multitudes thus employed, that the Scrip- 
 tures say, "Are they not ALL ministering spirits, sent 
 forth to minister to them who shall be heirs of salva- 
 tion ?" They are employed in protecting and uphold- 
 ing the children of God. Tlieyministerto them through 
 the fleeting span of life; and conduct to rest the tri- 
 umphant spirit, when life's last conflict ends. How 
 happy they who have such invisible but kind attend- 
 ants ! How rich the Savior's love, that employs these 
 glorious spirits to minister to the welfare of his feeble 
 flock ! How warm sliould be the gratitude, how fer- 
 vent the love, how devout the holiness, of that feeble 
 flock ! 
 
 Thus animated by your Redeemer's love, and blest 
 in his care, pursue your pilgrimage to heaven. M'hen 
 you contemplate his lovo, whut is all you can render 
 to him. but like the dust of the balance weighed against 
 the world ? When you stretch your views to eternal 
 life, what is mortal life but the twinkling of an eye? 
 And what the sorrows of time but like a drop of grief 
 compared with an ocean of delii^ht? 
 
 § 13. A principal source of hHppiness to the follow- 
 ers of the Lamb, is found in their coniieciinn icilh'ihe 
 great and blessed God, and in what he is to them. 
 
 Conie, solace thy soul by viewing God, thy God, ar- 
 rayed in all his mild attractive glories. He is "the. 
 God of all ffi-ace, who hath called us to his eternal 
 glory." " The God of all grace !" Precious words ! 
 What more comprehensive, what more kind, can a 
 36* 
 
426 
 
 GOD THE FATHER 
 
 wounded soul, a contrite heart, desire ! The God of 
 all grace ! How vast must be the treasures of his com- 
 passion I how boundless the riches of his love ! Nor 
 less boimdless his strange and amazing condescension. 
 ''He hath called us to his eternal glory by Jesus 
 Christ." Where now rise the heights of his love? 
 where sink its depths? God, as the God of all grace, 
 hath called us, the children of sin and wo, to glory- 
 to eternal glory— and O, more amazing still, to his 
 eternal glory. What is there in the character of so 
 • good, so compassionate, though so great a God, that 
 should excite one fear in an humble and contrite heart? 
 In a not less attractive light is this great and holy 
 God displayed, when his word says, " God, who is 
 rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he lov- 
 ed us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quick- 
 ened us together with Christ." How emphatic is 
 this language ! Who can ever unfold the wonders of 
 grace and goodness it reveals ? God is not only merci- 
 ful, but '• rich in mercy ;" not merely kind to man, 
 when penitent and pardoned, but "loving with great 
 love" poor perishing man, •• even when dead in tres- 
 passes and sins." Amazing grace! what grateful of- 
 ferings does it not deserve ! what fervent love and 
 cheerful confidence should it infuse in every humble 
 hea-rt ! The Lord Jesus Christ, in whom dwelt all the 
 treasures of wisdom and knowledge, displayed his Fa- 
 ther's tenderness in the most impressive and gladden- 
 ing manner, when he said to Philip, "Have I been aso 
 long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, 
 Philip ? he that hath seen me, hath seen the Father." 
 Whatever else the divine Savior intended to express 
 by these words, it is evident they must include the idea 
 
OF HIS PEOPLE. 427 
 
 that tenderness, compassion and love, like what dwelt 
 in hira, dwell in the eternal Father. When Jesus abode 
 below, and appeared kind to every mourner, gracious 
 to every suppliant, and full of melting love and tender 
 pity for all that sought his aid, what humble, penitent, 
 or downcast believer could have dreaded him? But 
 he says, he that hath seen me hath seen the Father. 
 Blessed declaration I It is as if he had said, " His com- 
 passion is like mine; his tenderness as vast ; his love 
 as boundless; his goodness as great." Fear not then, 
 my fellow pilgrim ; think what Jesus was, and think, 
 thy God is like him. When God represents his own 
 Jcind condescension and compassion, he says, "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 
 spiritf to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive 
 the heart of the contrite ones." Ah, gracious conde- 
 scension ! What more than to be revived by God, and 
 cheered by his presence, can an humble heart desire ? 
 How good is God, who thus encourages your trust in 
 him ! How should his immeasurable grace, and rich 
 compassion, drive fear, and doubt, and distress away I 
 § 14. Art ihou, my brother or sister, indeed a fol- 
 lower of the Lamb ? Then God is more than all thi-s 
 to thee, thy Father, Friend and Portion. " The Lord 
 is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous 
 in mercy. For as the heaven is high above the earth, 
 so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As 
 far as the east is from the west, so far hath he remov- 
 ed our transgressions from us. Like as a father piti- 
 eth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear 
 him. For he knoweth our frame, he remembereth that 
 
428 GOD OUR FATHER, 
 
 we are dust." With what peace should these gracious 
 declarations fill the soul. God is a Father — a Father 
 in heaven — a Father who knows the frame of his chil- 
 dren. He sees its weakness; he perceives the dangers 
 to which he is exposed ; the sorrows to which it gives 
 birth ; and not only knows, "but remembers" that we 
 are dust. Formed from the dust, man fades like a 
 flower, perishing before a scorching blast. " His days 
 are as grass ; as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth ; 
 for the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the 
 place thereof shall know it no more. But the mercy 
 of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon 
 them that fear him." Charming contrast ! the frailty- 
 and vanity of man render the love of God more glo- 
 rious. Man is for a moment ; but the love of God for 
 ever. Mortat man, in his best estate on earth, is like a 
 withering flower ; but the love of God to ran9l[)med 
 man never fades, it endures and shines for ever and 
 ever. 
 
 God is the Friend, and Father, and Portion of those 
 who belong to the holy Jesus. What nobler happiness 
 can an immortal being require? The humble disciple 
 of the Savior may exclaim with the Psalmist, "Thou 
 art my portion, O Lord." "Thou art my God, and 
 I will praise thee; thou art my God, I will eialt 
 thee." The followers of the world have their posses- 
 sions j riches, honors, profits, pleasure; these are their 
 treasure; but thou, the Lord of heaven and earth, art 
 n.-'^e. Thou art my God, my Father, and Friend. 
 Thou, -."'bom angels venerate, and devils dread ; whose 
 smile is life, whose frown is death — thou art my God 
 Thou, whose possessions are heaven and earth — whose 
 dwelling-place is eternity — whose favor is more to me 
 
FRIENDj AND PORTION. 429 
 
 than all the world — thou art my God. Thou art ray 
 Father too — mine in life — amidst its bustling, changing, 
 vexing scenes, thou art my God. In pain and in ease, 
 in prosperity and adversity, in sickness or in health, 
 thou art my God and Father; and thou wilt be mine 
 in death ; and then, in vast eternity, thou wilt be for 
 ever mine. 
 
 § 15. Such an interest as this in the favor and love 
 of God, is the greatest blessing^ an immortal creature 
 can enjoy. None can conceive how much is contained 
 in those gracions words. Friend and Father, when the 
 great and blessed God is he to whom they are applied. 
 Were the high and low, the rich and poor, of every 
 nation under heaven, uniting to minister to our com- 
 fort, all would be far outdone by the single blessing — 
 God our friend. Were it possible for us to call down 
 legions of angels from their starry thrones, to surround 
 us with ceaseless care, to wait our commands, to min- 
 ister to our welfare, or fetch us supplies of happiness 
 from unseen worlds — all would be outdone, far out- 
 done by this single blessing, God our friend. Suppose 
 that you were endowed with everlasting strength, and 
 that the irresistible power and infinite wisdom of the 
 great Almighty were bestowed upon you, whom could 
 you then fear? what enemies could excite the smallest 
 alarm in your peaceful breast? And what could you 
 want, when possessed of might sufficient in a moment 
 to call men, angels, or a world into being ? Now, though 
 we are crushed before the moth, and perish like a leaf, 
 yet if God be our friend, we have in some sense om- 
 nipotence our own. The eternal God is the refuge of 
 his people ; and this almighty power and infinite wis- 
 dom are engaged, under the direction of infinite love 
 
430 BLESSINGS OF GOd's LOVE. 
 
 in their beha]f. How glorious are his works ! how 
 much more glorious himself! When we survey the 
 spacious earth, the wide-spread heavens, the glowhig 
 SUM, the silent sky glitteping with ten thousand stars^ 
 how lofty should be our thoughts of him who formed 
 them all ! and 0, how high our view of the blessed- 
 ness of having God our Friend and Fatlier ! Though 
 once he pronounced those good, the time draws nigh 
 when he shall delight, in them no more ; but the trea- 
 sures of this invaluable blessing will never be exhausted. 
 Stupendous God ! though heaven is thy throne, and 
 eternity thy dwelling-place, the dust that lies at thy 
 feel, the penitent that bows at thy footstool, claims 
 thee for his Father, his everlasting Father: and thou 
 wilt own the claim : and when the grandeur of this 
 world is all forgotten ; when the sun shall be turned 
 into darkness, and this creation die, thy love will bless 
 eternity, and last unchanged through all its ample 
 round. 
 
 The love of God insures every other blessing ; for 
 he can do all you want, and more than all you wish. 
 The love of earthly friends, when most fervent, is fee- 
 ble love. Little is the most, and weak the best, that 
 they can do. When pain and sickness cloud your days, 
 they cannot bid disease depart and health return; but 
 he can ; or else he can make pain better than ease, and 
 sickness a greater good than health. If sin and sorrow 
 oppress your soul, no earthly friends can take the load 
 of guilt away ; nor CaU they comfort the troubled con- 
 science, mourning for years of sin and folly; but this 
 almighty Father can fill the broken heart with heaven- 
 ly peace : he can say, Be of good comfort ; thy sins are 
 foi given thee. He can forgive all the guilt that ren 
 
AFFLICTIONS MERCIES. 431 
 
 ders judgment terrible, and fill your soul with peace 
 so sweet, and hope so strong as to quell every fear and 
 silence every doubt. And all you want besides he can 
 bestow. He can enrich you vi^th plenty, or make loss 
 and poverty better blessings than prosperity and wealth. 
 He can fill your heart with love, and help you to be- 
 lieve, confide, rejoice. And when the solemn hour ar- 
 rives in which you must die, even in that momentous 
 hour he has power to give all your departing soul will 
 need. Then earthly friends, the dearest and the best, 
 can only mourn. They cannot drive your fears away ; 
 nor can they open the portals of heaven, and say. Come 
 in, thou blessed. But God, your kind heavenly Father, 
 can do more than this: he can make death better than 
 life, and render your last your happiest hour. He can 
 banish every gloomy fear, and make death itself wear 
 a smile, and seem the messenger of heavenly love 
 come to summon you to the abodes of glory. He can 
 gladden with immortal hopes j^our dying moments, 
 and give you an abundant entrance into his eternal 
 kingdom. 
 
 § 16. Perhaps the scenes through which God leads 
 you are scenes of trial ; yet consider, whatever be the 
 immediate source of affliction, that trials come from 
 God. Even when wicked men are the authors of his 
 sufferings, the Christian may say, "They are the sword, 
 the hand is thine.'"' That afflictions come from God, is 
 the declaration of his word. "When we are judged, 
 we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be 
 condemned with the world." "If ye endure chasten- 
 ing, God dealeth with you as with sons: for what son 
 is he whom the 'ather chasteneth not ? But if ye be 
 without chastisfcujei-?j whereof all are partakers, then 
 
432 AFFLICTIONS MERCIES. 
 
 are ye bastards, and not sous." As afflictions thus pro- 
 ceed from God, so they are declared to be the effect of 
 his love. "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: 
 be zealous, therefore, and repent." " Whom the Lord 
 loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom 
 he receiveth." 
 
 If any escape affliction, the children of God are not 
 of that number. All whose holy example is displayed 
 in the sacred Scriptures, and whose piety shone with 
 the brightest lustre, passed along a chequered path to 
 "heaven. Job and Joseph, and the patriarchs, Elijah and 
 Daniel, and the prophets, Paul and the apostles, were 
 trained for glory and happiness in scenes of earthly 
 trial. Even Jesus was a man of sorrows, and acquainted 
 with grief. Yet in the darkest day of trouble many are 
 the sources of Christian consolation. Is God leading 
 you through the fire, or the waters of affliction ? think 
 of the gracious design he has in view. He chastens 
 " for our profit, that we may be partakers of his holi- 
 ness." He afflicts you to ripen your soul for that hap- 
 pier land, where no affliction is ever felt. He sinks you 
 on earth that you may rise in heaven ; and makes you 
 sad for a moment here that he may make you happier 
 through eternity there. God has various ends to ac- 
 complish in the afflictions of his children. Sometimes 
 he afflicts them to humble and to purify their souls. 
 To keep him humble, Paul was afflicted ; and Job said, 
 " When he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold;" 
 and his word declares, '"'Now, no chastening for the 
 present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous : neverthe- 
 less, afterward it5ieldeth the peaceable fruit of righte- 
 ousness unto them which are exercised thereby." At 
 other times the Father of mercies designs to brighten 
 
AFFLICTIOInS MEuCiES. 433 
 
 their graces, to strengthen their faiih and patience. 
 Hence iiis word says, " The trying of your faitli work- 
 eth patience." " Now for a season (if need be) ye are 
 in heaviness through manifold temptations; that the 
 trial of your faith, being much more precious than of 
 gold that perisheth, might be found unto praise, and 
 honor, and glory, at the appearing of Jesus Christ.'' 
 Sometimes God, by alHiction, would lead the affections 
 of his children upwards to a better world, while he en- 
 ables them to declare, " Our light aflliction, which is 
 but for a moment, Avorkcth for us a far more exceed- 
 ing and eternal weight of glory ; while we look not at 
 the things which are seen, but at the things which are 
 not seen." At other times, by chastening them, he 
 teaches them to exercise resignation and submission. 
 " Tribulation worketh patience." On some occasions 
 afflictions are employed to restore wanderers to the 
 path of peace. The Psalmist said, " Before I was af- 
 flicted I went astray; but now I have kept thy word." 
 At others, afflictions make them feel more sensibly the 
 vanity of all below, and endear their God and Savior 
 to them. Then the language of the Psalmist expresses 
 the feelings of the humble, happy soul. " Whom have 
 I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth 
 that I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart fail : 
 but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion 
 for ever." 
 
 § 17. While such are God's gracious designs in the 
 chastisements his hand inflicts, the Christian has rea- 
 son to rejoice, even in afflictions. God promises to sup- 
 port his suffering family, and teaches them to contem- 
 plate a day when all their afflictions end. All their 
 
iU 
 
 EN COURAG EMiINT 
 
 trials are under his control, are sent in mercy, and will 
 end in good. " We know that all things work together 
 for good to them that love God." While they last, he 
 promises to his children divine support. " God is our 
 refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble : 
 therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, 
 and though the mountains be carried into the midst of 
 the sea." "When my father and my moth^ forsake 
 ine, then the Lord will take me up." I, even I, am he 
 that comforteth you." " When thou passest through 
 the waters, I will be with thee •, and through the ri- 
 vers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest 
 through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither 
 Khali the flame kindle upon thee." " I will never leave 
 tliee, nor forsake thee." How precious are these pro- 
 mises! What more can be desired than the support 
 and presence of our God ! 
 
 Does affliction cloud your sky ? do sorrows over- 
 whelm your sinking spirits? yet forget not that God 
 is kind. '• He carelh for you." Gracious declaration I 
 what words can be more expressive of his tender inte- 
 rest in your happiness? " He careth for you." Not' 
 only gives you blessings, but cares for your welfare; 
 makes your little interests his concern. Surely all must 
 be right that so gracious a Friend appoints ! all must 
 lend to good that so kind a Father ordains ! " 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?" Did he thus give his best Beloved for you, 
 and can you think that he will refuse you any real 
 good? Are you oppressed with sickness and pain? 
 God could give you health: to give you health would 
 be a iillle thing compared with giving you Christ, 
 
UNDER AFFLICTION. 433 
 
 Surely if he does not give you health, the reason must 
 be, he sees it best to appoint you sickness. Are yoti 
 poor? God could give you wealth. He gave you 
 Christ ; and if he keeps you poor, the cause must be, 
 that poverty is best for you. Were riches best, he who 
 gave Christ would give you riches. Whatever fancied 
 good you may desire, you may argue, If this were real 
 good, God would give it me. He who gave Christ, that 
 great and precious boon, would not refuse this trifling 
 gift, if this would prove a blessing to me. A suffering 
 Christian, after a night of pain, observed, " It has been 
 a night of great pain, but it was a night appointed me 
 by Jesus Christ, and sure it must be a good one that he 
 appo-ints." Thus reason respecting your heavenly Fa- 
 ther's conduct. Doubt not his love, who gave a Savior. 
 Depend on his interest in your happiness through the 
 few moments of time, who sent his only begotten Son 
 into the world, to make you happy to eternity. 
 
 § 18. The trials of life will soon conchide. Vain is all 
 below the sun, except the blessings of your heavenly 
 Father's love. The pleasures of this world pass away. 
 The wisdom of this world is fading and dying. The 
 head that has often ached in acquiring science, soon 
 lies down in the dust, and forgets its vaunted know- 
 ledge. Expect not therefore living comforts in a dying 
 world. Your trials too are short, for eternity is near. 
 In the light of eternity, how insignificant will those 
 short trials seem ! Time and sorrow are hastening by, 
 eternity and bliss are approaching; and when you 
 wake amidst eternal things, how little will seem what 
 you enjoyed or suffered here. What will the loss of 
 property, or the loss of reputation, signify then ! When, 
 ten minutes after death, you look back on this world. 
 
43i6 AFFLICTIONS SOON ENDED. 
 
 how vain a dream will all the scenes of life appear! 
 What poor trifles will its pleasures seem ! what dying 
 things its friendships ! what little griefs its heaviest 
 woes ! And when ten thousand ages have fled away, 
 and you look back on Avhat now seems like a sea of 
 trouble, that ocean of affliction will be like the drop of 
 a bucket. Formidable as it once seemed, it will then 
 appear like nothingness itself. Let the thought of eter- 
 nity mingle v.'ilh the trials of time ; and its weightiest 
 trials will be felt " as light affliction which is but for a 
 moment." And while those momentary trials continue, 
 think whither they hasten you. Every day of affliction 
 hastens the child of God to the haven of eternal peace. 
 As the tossing of a tempest may hurry a shattered ship 
 sooner to its harbor than the fairest wind that blows; 
 so the rough storm of worldly sorrow, as well as the 
 peaceful gale, and perhaps more hastily, may urge the 
 Christian to the port where every storm shall cease. 
 Keep that peaceful port in view. Faith will soon be 
 lost in sight; hope make way for certainty; time and 
 its shadows be perhaps almost forgotten amidst the 
 glories of eternity. The dark night of life will shortly 
 close ; affliction's last tempest be hushed in peace ; and 
 the bright morning of eternal day open on the tranquil 
 and enraptured soul. Then farewell to chastisement, 
 to grief and pain. 
 
 § 19. Happy are they who enjoy the love and care 
 of a gracious Savior, and a heavenly Father ! Happy 
 amidst the scenes of time, and happier when quitting 
 them for ever ! Their great work is done, their best 
 interests are secure. Should even sudden death hurry 
 them from health and vigor to the cold tomb, yet they 
 are blessed, whose home is in the skies, whose Father 
 
THE christian's HOME. 437 
 
 is in heaven. When life dpflines, glory will dawn ; and 
 the moment that bears them hence will bear them 
 home. 
 
 Come, my fellow-pilgrim, let us contemplete that 
 home. IIow fair is the prospect ! how bright the eter- 
 nal day ! how sweet the peace the hope of that eternal 
 day imparts I The Christian is blessed, who, looking 
 beyond the shadows of time, can exclaim, "As for me, 
 I shall behold thy face in righteousness." " Thou shalt 
 guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me 
 to glory." Though my path may be rough and thorny, 
 thou shalt guide me, and, blessed hope! thou wilt re- 
 ceive me — even me, to glory. The world have their 
 fading satisfactions and dying pleasures, which must 
 vanish when their poor possessors lie down to die ; but 
 thou art my Father and my God, and when my flesh 
 and heart fail, wilt be the strength of my heart, and my 
 portion for ever. For ever ! For ever ! How gladsome 
 is the prospect of peace and bliss, where peace and bliss 
 must endure for ever! And is this your animating 
 hope? Glorious hope! Compared with, this the wealth 
 of worlds is poverty. Perhaps your thoughts delighted 
 rove over those scenes of never-fading bliss ; but death 
 still appears terrible. The dark valley seems so dark, 
 that you dread descending into it, though it is the pas- 
 sage to eternal day. 
 
 § 20. Think then of Jesus's power to save, and to 
 cheer even the solemn hour of dissolution with a hope 
 so full of immortality that death shall be swallowed 
 up in victory. He can make pain, sickness and death, 
 the way of comfort, the way of life. Not only apostles 
 and martyrs, but myriads unknown to the busy world, 
 37 
 
438 SUPPORT IN DEATH. 
 
 cheered by his presencej have passed the gulf of death 
 ill peace. I have known one who said, " Blessed be the 
 Lord ! the sting of death is gone. I feel that the fear 
 of death is taken away. I wish for death. I think 
 every day, when it is night, I am a day nearer my 
 blessed home." I have heard another humble disciple 
 of the Savior say, " The blood of Jesus cleanses from 
 all sin, and cleansed me. I hope and trust Jesus Christ 
 is my all. He is my supporter and my all. The near- 
 er I get to my journey's end, I hope the more comfort 
 I find. The nearer I get, the more fear is gone." I 
 have known a young follower of the holy Jesus, when 
 about to quit this world, declare, that she would not on 
 any account change places with her Christian friends; 
 thinking her condition so much better than theirs be- 
 cause her course was nearer ending. " I am rejoiced," 
 said she, " when I think myself worse. I never thought 
 I should be so comfortable on a sick bed. I am very 
 comfortable. The Lord is my support : I want no other. 
 I know that religion is not a vain thing; I have found 
 that it is not." I have heard another, when gospel con- 
 solation was mentioned to him, observe, "It makes a 
 death-bed pleasant:" and heard the same humble, un- 
 lettered disciple declare, "I am fixed on Christ: he is 
 all my dependence. I believe the Lord is waiting to 
 receive me." These expressions, dropped from dying 
 lips, were not uttered by apostles or martyrs ; but were 
 the testimony of plain and humble Christians to the 
 support their gracious Lord imparted. How precious 
 such support! Cheered by it, what is death? How its 
 terrors dwindle into insignificance! Death thus cheered, 
 is indeed the coming of the Savior to call his followers 
 home. Th'^ Lord Jesus Christ gave this view of death ; 
 
SUPPORT IN DEATH. 439 
 
 " I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and pre- 
 pare a place for you, I will come again and receive 
 you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be 
 also." How pleasing a representation of that, solemn 
 event ! Death but the coming of a Savior. Then what 
 is it to die, but to lean a languishing head on his com- 
 passionate arm, and to commit a ransomed spirit to his 
 faithful care? Could he personally appear to take his 
 followers home, who that loves him would fear to die? 
 Ah, could we look into the unseen world, and behold 
 his dealings with his humble flock, what sacred peace 
 and holy ecstacy would the view inspire! Then we 
 might hear him say to ministering angels, " Go fetch 
 my follower; let all her trials end; let disease set the 
 captive free; let it dissolve the bonds of transient life; 
 let the purchase of my blood ascend to me ; and let my 
 promise be fulfilled. Where I am shall ye be also." 
 Yes, death, to the blood-bought family of God, is the 
 coming of Jesus; and it is his presence that has ena- 
 bled some to say, "Happy, happy;" and others to ex- 
 pire with, "Victory! Victory!" on their dying lips. 
 One to breathe out her spirit, saying, "Now I will go 
 to my God;" and another to declare, "My Savior has 
 sent his messenger for me, and I wish to go to him." 
 My fellow-pilgrim, when you read of the supports 
 that others have found, look to him who upheld their 
 fainting heads, for your support in the last struggles of 
 dissolving nature. Cleave to him, and he will not forget 
 you in that awful hour; for he is the same yesterday, 
 to-day, and for ever. 
 
 " Come now, be his in ev'ry part! 
 "Nor give him less than all your heart, 
 *'And when the closing scenes prevail, 
 
440 BLESSIKGS OP 
 
 "When wealth, state, pleasure, all must fail, 
 
 " All that a foolish world admires, 
 
 " Or passion craves, or pride inspires ; 
 
 " At that important hour of need, 
 
 " Jesus shall prove a friend indeed. 
 
 "His hands shall smooth thy dying bed, 
 
 " His arm sustain thy drooping head ; 
 
 " And when the painful struggle 's o'er, 
 
 " And that vain thing, the world, no more, 
 
 " He'll bear his humble friend away 
 
 '• To rapture and eternal day." 
 
 Now raise your eyes, and look beyond the gloomy 
 vale of death. The Scriptures teach you, that to the 
 believer death is gain. Death is yours. That last ene- 
 my, through heavenly love, is constrained to become 
 a friend. Death will end your labors and your dan- 
 gers; will conclude your trials, and reward your toils; 
 will bring the crown of victory, and satisfy your long- 
 ing desires for immortality. Of those who sleep in Je- 
 sus it is said, "Blessed are the dead which die in the 
 Lord." " I beheld, and lo, a great multitude, which no 
 man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and peo- 
 ple, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the 
 Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their 
 hands; and cried with aloud voice, saying. Salvation to 
 our God, which sitteth Hpon the throne, and unto the 
 Lamb. These are they which came out of great tribu- 
 lation, and have washed their robes, and made them 
 white in the blood of the Lamb." Of that abode it i^^ 
 said, "And I saw no temple therein : for the Lord God 
 Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the 
 city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to 
 shine in it ; for the glory of God did lighten it, and the 
 Lamb is the light thereof." " And there shall be no 
 
THE PIOUS DEAD. 4^11 
 
 more curse: and there shall be no night there: and 
 they shall reign for ever and ever." In the sweet pros- 
 pect of this inheritance, a dying saint exclaimed, "I 
 have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, 
 I have kept the faith ; henceforth there is laid up for 
 me a crown of righteousness, v/hioh the Lord, the 
 righteous Judge, shall give me at that day ; and not to 
 me only, but unto all them also that love his appear- 
 ing." Another, who loved his Master, said, "How 
 thankful am I for death, as it is the passage through 
 which I go to the Lord and Giver of eternal life. These 
 afl^Iictions are but for a moment, and then comes an 
 eternal weight of glory." 
 
 § 2L Come, survey that hamper land. It is the bliss- 
 ful rest which God prepares for you, if you are his. It 
 is the blest abode where saints and angels meet. It is 
 the happy place where all the family of Jesus shall see 
 him as he is, and in his presence spend eternal ages. 
 
 Think of that happy world as that which God 
 prepares. There Jesus declares are many peaceful 
 dwellings. He has said, "In my Father's house are 
 many mansions. I go to prepare a place for you." 
 Those happy mansions God, your gracious Father, for 
 his family prepares. This sweet, this cheering fact, 
 his own word declares. It is said of Abraham, "He 
 looked for a city which hath foundations, whose build- 
 er and Maker is God." Of others eminent for piety it 
 is said, "They desire a better country, that is, an hea- 
 venly : wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their 
 God - for he hath prepared for them a city." What 
 must that abode be which a God of love provides for 
 those he condescends to own ! how rich must be the 
 inheritance which God himself prepares! how im- 
 
442 
 
 christian's happy home. 
 
 mense the love which leads him thus to take delight 
 in the happiness of ransomed penitents ! 
 
 In a passage, if possible, still more delightful, it is 
 said by the Lord Jesus himself, " Fear not, little flock; 
 for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the 
 kingdom." Here God appears the Father of the fami- 
 ly that is bound for heaven ; and a Father so interested 
 in their happiness, that to give them a kingdom above 
 is pleasure even to him. Gracious God ! can it be that 
 such is thy interest in the happiness of those poor pe- 
 nitents thy love has ransomed from eternal death! O 
 what heights, and depths, and breadths, and lengths of 
 love are thine ! what vileness is ours, if we do not 
 love thee with all the grateful fervor of affectionate 
 hearts !— Ah, let us repeat the charming words once 
 more, " It is your Father's good pleasure to give you the 
 kingdom." And will he give that kingdom as the com- 
 pletion of his amazing designs of love 7 And is he 
 pleased to give you the kingdom ? Ah, what must be 
 that heaven which such a God, which such a Father, 
 gives, and delights in giving, to those he loves with an 
 everlasting love! Surely we may exclaim, O vile un- 
 grateful hearts, to love this heavenly Friend no more ! 
 O vain deluded minds, to see one attraction in any 
 thing beneath the sun, while such a kingdom waits our 
 coming I 
 
 That gracious God who thus blesses his humble 
 friends, will bless them in the abode his love prepares 
 with all the comforts of his presence. Of them, when 
 fixed there, his word asserts, " Therefore are they be- 
 fore the throne of God, and serve him day and night 
 in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall 
 dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, nei- 
 
 i 
 
christian's happy home. 443 
 
 ther thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on 
 them, nor anj^ heat. For the Lamb, which is in the 
 midst of the throne, shall feed them, and shall lead 
 lliem unto living fountains of waters." "Behold, the 
 tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with 
 them, and they shall be his people, and God himself 
 shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall 
 wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall 
 be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither 
 shall there be any more pain : for the former things 
 are passed away." 
 
 O, happy, happy they, who thus rest in the presence 
 of their God ! They have done with the dark services 
 of time; and all they love, and all they wish, all that 
 a vast eternity requires to make it one blest scene of 
 unmingled joy, they lind in God. O, happy end to 
 life's short pilgrimage ! happy abode ! Why does not 
 every follower of the Lamb, with longing, ardent, rest- 
 less desires, wait for that peaceful home? 
 
 § 22. There too the disciple of Immanuel shall rest 
 with him. That gracious friend has said, " If any man 
 serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there 
 .shall also my servant be : if any man serve me, him 
 will my Father honor." "I go to prepare a place for 
 you. I will come again, and receive you unto myself; 
 that where I am, there ye may be also." Happy state I 
 There the declaration of his word will be fulfilled, 
 "So shall we ever be with the Lord." Sweet is this 
 prospect to them that love their Lord. To be where 
 their Redeemer is, is all the anxious heart can crave, 
 and all the rising soul can wish. While wandering 
 through the wilderness of time, the Christian may feel 
 that much which is strange and solemn must open on 
 
444 dwelli:;g with ohrist. 
 
 the soul when starting forward into vast eternity; but 
 to be where the Savior is, this is enough— this must 
 be well. 
 
 " My knowledge of that state is small, 
 " The eye of faith is dim : 
 . " But 'tis enough that Christ knows alL 
 " And I shall be with him." 
 
 Cheering prospect ! The Christian may say, I would 
 not wander on earth a weary pilgrim through eternal 
 days; nor would I find my endless home in some re- 
 mote province of my heavenly Father's kingdom. This 
 would be banishment to me. Trie heaven I seek, must 
 be the heaven where my Redeemer reigns. Not all his 
 glowing works can bound the flight of my aspiring 
 soul. It presses beyond them all, and seeks a rest more 
 glorious than their brilliant fires, more lasting than 
 their short duration. When my freed spirit takes its 
 last farewell of earth, those golden lamps that glitter 
 in the firmament shall not stop its rising flight. They 
 are mean, compared with the mansions to which I as- 
 pire, those mansions where I may dwell with God. 
 They are not my Redeemer's home, but to the world, 
 that is, would I ascend. There, blessed .Tesus ! would 
 my aspiring spirit fix, and there alone. There it can 
 rest for ever. There it can love for ever. There it 
 can praise for ever.— My fellow-pilfrim, is not this 
 your hope? do you not join in saying, "My Savior, 
 the soul thou hast redeemed presses on to thee ; O re- 
 ceive it to thine home when its wandering pilgrimage 
 on earth concludes?" It is a gladdening tliought that 
 he has promised to do this, and has, doubtless, to mil- 
 lions that once trod our earth, fulfilled the gracious 
 
"absent prom the body." 445 
 
 promise, " Where I am, there shall also my servant 
 be ;" and he will fulfill it to myriads more. Happy they ! 
 while we mourn, they rejoice; they rest while we la- 
 bor; praise when we sigh; are secure when dangers 
 threaten us. They hear no complaints ; shed no tears ; 
 utter no groans. They are in the dwelling of their 
 Lord. Blessed change I from the gloomy chamber of 
 pain ; from the cottage of poverty ; from the society of 
 feeble friends; or the labors of the shop, or the field, 
 or the mill. There, absent from the body, they are pre- 
 sent with the Lord. 
 
 § 23. Perhaps you mourn the loss of some, once the 
 beloved associates of your days, and fellow-pilgrims in 
 the course to heaven. Come then, let us meditate on 
 those few sweet words, " Absent from the body and pre- 
 sent with the Lord:' These few sweet words describe 
 their happiness; and if we follow the holy Jesus, tell 
 us what shall soon be ours. When meditating on these 
 words, we may confess that the weakness of our faith 
 IS in no way more apparent than by our languid de- 
 sires after heavenly blessedness, and by our sorrow for 
 those who leave time for eternity. We mourn when 
 the blessed rejoice; and shed tears for those who will 
 never shed them more. We lament a change, with 
 which those on whom it has passed are infinitely sa- 
 tisfied. We mourn over their beloved remains, as if all 
 •we loved in them were there. But the better part has 
 fled— the dark coflin does not receive it. The solemn 
 grave will never confine it. The beloved spirit, which 
 gives animation to the lifeless body, will never become 
 an inhabitant of the tomb. '• It is absent from the body 
 and present with the Lord." Blessed, thrice blessed! 
 38 
 
446 
 
 MEDITATIONS ON BEING 
 
 change 1 more worthy for ourselves to be welcomed 
 with eagerness than beheld with dislike ! more worthy 
 for those most dear to us to be reviewed with tears of 
 joy and gratitude than remembered with regret. 
 
 "Absent from the body:" the feeble, languishing, 
 disordered body. Ah, happy friends, beloved fugitives 
 from these vain scenes, mourn for us ; we need not 
 mourn for you. The gloomy scenes which strike our 
 imaginations with regret, disturb not yours. The dis- 
 mal hearse, the narrow coffin, the gloomy grave, affect 
 you not. Absent from the body, you are far from these. 
 However bitterly we mourn at your funerals, you 
 mourn not at your own. These sad scenes call from us- 
 increasing grief; from you not a single tear. By you 
 they are not seen. Absent from the body, you are ab- 
 sent from them. As whatever passes in dwellings where 
 we once abode now affects us not, so all the dark insig- 
 nia of death, and all that passes round your beloved 
 remains, disturbs not your tranquillity, nor lessens 
 your delight. 
 
 "Absent from the body." 0! blessed conquerors! 
 then are you absent from its pains, and absent from 
 its cares. Sickness and languors shall no more afflict 
 you; for that feeble dwelling of languors and of pains 
 lies far beneath you in the unconscious dust. Care and 
 grief will no more intrude upon you. These are all 
 forgotten, unless remembered to heighten your hea- 
 venly bliss. 
 
 " Absent from the body." In vain then, ye once dear, 
 still dear objects, do we sorrow over you. You are not 
 here— you are departed. You are not in the dust. 
 There rests the forsaken dwelling; but you are not 
 there. You are gone. The tomb then does not contain 
 
" PRESENT WITH THE LORD." 447 
 
 our treasures. Ye are now saints on high, whom we 
 lament below. 
 
 " Forgive, ye blest, the tributary tear 
 " That mourns your exit from a world like this : 
 
 "Forgive the wish that would have kept you here, 
 "And stayed your progress to the seats of bliss. 
 
 " No more confined to darksome realms of night, 
 " No more frail tenants pent in mortal clay : 
 
 " Now should we rather hail your glorious flight, 
 " And trace your progress to the realms of day." 
 
 Let faith then follow you now, and we will follow 
 you ere long. Let faith trace your course to brighter 
 worlds. It is true, you are "• absent from the body ;" 
 but, O you are " present with the Lord." Though ab- 
 sent, you are not lost. Though removed from us, you 
 are removed to better society and fairer scenes. 
 
 " Present with the Lord." O, happy conquerors ! 
 why then do we mourn your removal from such socie- 
 ty as ours — infinitely belter society is yours. It is true, 
 you are severed for a time from all the tender names 
 of earth ; but " dearer, better friends " exist beyond the 
 grave, and those dearer, better friends are yours. 
 
 " Present with the Lord." It is this that must com- 
 plete our happiness, and this is yours. The heavenly 
 mansions would not be so blest were not our God and 
 yours, your Redeemer and ours, there. You see them 
 without the thick veil of flesh between. You are not 
 in a remote province of the heavenly empire. You 
 dwell in the palace itself ; for you are " present with 
 the Lord." Happy they who sojourned with the Lord 
 of heaven when he dwelt on earth I but, more happy, 
 
448 MEDITATIONS ON BEING 
 
 far more happy you, who see him in his heavenly tem- 
 ple, and see him as he is ! Now can you sound his 
 praise in strains to mortal ears unknown ; and now en- 
 joy the infinite riches of his love. 
 
 " Present with the Lord." Ye dear departed friends, 
 what blest employments, what delights, are yours! 
 Eye hath not seen them, ear hath not heard them, 
 heart hath not conceived them. Our imaginations trace 
 you through the scenes of mortal converse. We see 
 you as we saw you once, and regret the pleasing hours 
 which you and we once enjoyed— but, O ! why regret 
 Ihem ? far better employments engage you than those 
 of earth; far better delights are yours than you ever 
 found in wandering, in conversing, in resting with us. 
 
 " Worlds would not bribe you back to tread 
 
 " Again life's dreary waste, 
 ** To see again your sky o'erspread 
 
 " With all the gloomy past." 
 
 " Present with the Lord." Ye dear departed, des- 
 tined to outlive a falling world ! ye are not lost 1 Fain 
 would we have had you continue longer here ; but why 
 continue? What is taken from your time is added to 
 your eternity. Our memories tell us of prospects you 
 indulged in for earth and time— and these views are 
 blasted. Yes, blessed disappointment ! earth is changed 
 for heaven, and hopes of transient comfort for the frui- 
 tion of unfailing joy. You formed plans for the voyage, 
 but God took you to the harbor. You sought tranquilli- 
 ty through a few declining days on earth ; but he has 
 called you to " rapture and bliss in the skies." You ex 
 pected to pass a few more days with beloved friends 
 
" PRESENT WITH THE LORD." 449 
 
 below ; but he has snatched you hence to join with 
 nobler friends above. You bless that friendly wave of 
 time, which, while you thought it was bearing you to 
 some earthly attainment, landed you in heaven. 
 
 " Present with the Lord." Blessed conquerors, then 
 are you safe ! Had you continued longer here, temp- 
 \ation might have seduced you, Satan might have over- 
 wme you, or pernicious error have led you astray ; but 
 10 temptations now seduce you, no enemies assault 
 you, no errors now mislead you. 
 
 " Present with the Lord." Ye dear departed, why 
 do we mourn your happiness? What was it that you 
 prayed for? To be "present with the Lord." What 
 was it that you sought? To be "present with the 
 Lord." Your prayers are answered, your desires ful- 
 filled. And shall we regret this ? The children of this 
 world lament not when the labors of their friends are 
 concluded, when the voyages and the battles of those 
 they love are over. But, alas ! the children of this world 
 are wiser than the children of light ! What is it that 
 we seek? to what most earnestly aspire ? for what most 
 anxiously hope ? To be " present with the Lord." Be- 
 loved, lamented friends, is this the summit of our own 
 desires? and was this the summit of yours? and yet 
 shall we regret your desires gratified ? Rather should 
 we congratulate your departure, while our faith pur- 
 sues you to your heavenly dwellings. 
 
 " Present with the Lord," but not with us; yet may 
 W8 ere long be so with you. You cannot come again 
 to us, but we may shortly go to you. Our loss is the 
 loss of your beloved society for a little span ; but soon 
 will that little span be past. Then we too will leave 
 38* 
 
^yO HEAVENLY REWARD 
 
 our feeble clay-built tabernacles, we too be " absent 
 from the body and present with the Lord.''* 
 ^^ § 24. Admitted to that happy home, and blessed with 
 the crown, not of merit, but of grace," the Christian 
 will find all his toils and labors amply recompensed. 
 Where but one talent has been possessed, and well im- 
 proved, the gracious Savior will manifest as much ap- 
 probation as he will to those who may have had many, 
 but made no more improvement of them. Perhaps, if 
 your abilities are small, and your opportunities of do- 
 ing good very limited, you may be disposed to antici- 
 pate a less share of the Savior's favor than you ima- 
 gine will be the happiness of those who have many 
 more talents than you. But it is not the number of ta- 
 lents you possess, but the improvement of them, which 
 the eternal Master notices. Td him who had five talents 
 intrusted to him, and who could say, " Behold, I have 
 gained beside them five talents morej" his lord said, 
 " Well done, thou good and faithful servant; thou hast 
 been faithful over a (ew things, I will make thee ruler 
 over many things : enter thou into the joy of thy lord." 
 But to him who had made an equal improvement of 
 two talents, his lord said, " Well done, good and faith- 
 ful servant, thou hast been faithful over a iew things, 
 I will make thee ruler over many things : enter thou 
 
 * Perhaps there may be a propriety in the writer observing 
 that most of this section was written on the evening previous 
 to the tuneral of a dear and affectionate, a kind and valuable 
 father, John Baxter Pike ; a father to whose care and kind- 
 ness he IS unspeakably indebted-a father, who, to promote the 
 welfare of his family, struggled hard through a chequered and 
 stormy life; and who manifested much peace in the prospect 
 ot eternity. 
 
OF CHRISTIAN LABORS. 451 
 
 into the joy of thy lord." The number of talents pos- 
 sessed was different, but the improvement was equal, 
 and their lord's expressions of approbation equal. 
 Though all that the blest in heaven will enjoy is un- 
 deserved, and all flows from heavenly grace, yet the 
 Savior does teach us, that he will make that reward 
 proportionable to the diligence of his servants. In the 
 parable of the ten pounds delivered to ten servants, the 
 lord said to him who had made the one pound ten, 
 Have thou authority over ten cities; and to him who 
 made the one pound hut Jive, he only said, Have thou 
 authority over Jive cities. In the great recivoning day, 
 and the eternal state, events the most unexpected will 
 take place. Even of those admitted to heaven, many 
 of the first may be last, and the last first. Many wealthy 
 Christians, who were applauded, and eminent in their 
 day, may sink far below the poor believer, who toiled 
 through life in obscurity and want, but whose piety 
 was more fervent, whose heart more liberal, than were 
 those of his wealthier brother. The unfamed tenant of 
 the cottage will often rise higher in glory than the 
 possessors of stately mansions and extensive fame; for 
 in many instances his single talent will be found to 
 have been better improved than their five, or ten, or 
 twenty. 
 
 The pious female, only known in the narrow circle 
 of domestic life ; the laborious Sabbath-school teacher, 
 all whose energies were employed in training the 
 young for heaven, may, in numberless cases, rise far 
 above ministers of the Gospel, popular and admired in 
 their day, but whose activity in doing good was not 
 proportioned to their opportunities; whose more 
 
452 
 
 DWELLING OF THE SAINTS. 
 
 splendid talents were not improved so well as the hum- 
 bler ones of their more pious friends. 
 
 Whatever be your situation, let considerations of this 
 kind thus animate you to press forward to eminent 
 piety. The Lord will approve of your feeble attempts 
 to honor him. If all you can do is little, yet do that 
 little, and he will esteem it much. Where nothing 
 more can be imparted, "a cup of cold water only," 
 given to a disciple, " in the name of a disciple, shall 
 in no wise lose its reward." You cannot exert an 
 humble endeavor for the Savior's glory, however un- 
 successful, that will not meet his approbation. With 
 what delight may the Christian exclaim, Compassion- 
 ate Savior ! wilt thou, when seated on thy glorious 
 throne, own my humble attempts to please thee? Shall 
 I share in the honors of thy kingdom, and then be 
 welcomed with thy approbation ? Condescending Re 
 deemer ! I know I may ; and O let this condescending 
 love of thine constrain me to lay at thy feet whatever 
 I possess. 
 
 § 25. Are those your hopes ? O soul-reviving hopes ! 
 Such blessings might seem all we want, yet more will 
 the Savior's bounty give. To enjoy his presence, to 
 be for ever with the Lord, is the height of heavenly 
 happiness. But another source of joy, shall be the 
 company of all the spirits of the just. The heavenly 
 home is described as their abode. In sweet eternal 
 union there are joined all the angels of light, and all 
 the ransomed heirs of glory. 
 
 " The holy host of saints, that once have known 
 *' Each dreary path in life's perplexing maze, 
 
 " There ever circle yon eternal throne 
 " With harpings high of inexpressive praise." j 
 
PIOUS IN HEAVEN. 453 
 
 Of Ihem the word of truth declares, They which 
 shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, are 
 equal unto the angels, and are the children of God. 
 " Ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of 
 the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an in- 
 numerable company of angels, and to the spirits of 
 just men made perfect." " Thou wast slain, and hast 
 redeemed us to God by thy blood, out of every kin- 
 dred, and tongue, and people, and nation." 
 
 What glorious joy will union to this blessed family 
 impart! There dwell the great benefactors of man- 
 kind, apostles and evangelists, who sacrificed every 
 earthly good to lead immortal multitudes to heaven. 
 There martyrs, dear to our hearts for their faith and 
 patience, rest in eternal repose. There those, the me- 
 morials of whose piety has animated ours, all are as- 
 sembled ; and shine far brighter in their Father's king- 
 dom, than they ever shone on earth. Unnumbered 
 millions that never met below, there meet never to 
 part. Amidst that goodly company are doubtless found 
 a Baxter and a Howe, an Elliot and a Brainerd, a 
 Martyn and a Ward, and millions more, perhaps less 
 known on earth, but not less happy in heaven. And 
 now their piety glows with purer lustre; and all the 
 lovely graces that religion produced in their disposi- 
 tions and characters, are far more lovely there. O 
 glorious happiness, to join that blissful throng! and 
 far from all these polluting and sinful scenes, to spend 
 eternal day with happy myriads of spotless saints and 
 exalted angels ! 
 
 § 26. But when you contemplate this happiness, 
 perhaps the inquiry arises. May I hope there to meet 
 the dear companions of my earthly course ? May I 
 
454 
 
 CHRISTIANS WILL KNOW 
 
 hope there to know and love those valued, pious 
 friends, whom I have known and loved upon earth ? 
 The Scriptures furnish reasons for believing that the 
 happ)^ inhabitants of heaven shall enjoy this addition 
 to their happiness. The word of God represents some 
 eminent saints, who have left this world, as recognized 
 long after their departure hence. Thus the ransomed 
 are represented as sitting down with Abraham, Isaac, 
 and Jacob. Lazarus is described as conveyed to 
 Abraham's bosom, and Dives as knowing Lazarus and 
 Abraham. And at the time of our Lord's transfigura- 
 tion, the distinguished saints who appeared in glory, 
 (probably as they appear m heaven,) and who con- 
 versed with him, were known to be Moses and Elijah. 
 There is no reason for supposing, that while these are 
 recognized in the world of glory, it should be alto- 
 gether unknown who others are, and whence they 
 came. We may rather believe, that as Abraham is 
 there known to be that Abraham who once forsook 
 his country at God's command, saints of later days 
 enjoy the mutual happiness of knowing and being 
 known. 
 
 A still more conclusive argument to prove that the 
 blest shall be acquainted with each other, arises from 
 the language of the apostle Paul, in which he expressed 
 his confidence of seeing and recognizing his Christian 
 friends. " 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 ?" As he expected in a 
 happier state to renew his intimacy with those who 
 had been converted under his ministry at Thessalonica, 
 they must mutually know him. The apostle does not 
 mention this as a privilege peculiar to himself: other 
 
EACH OTHER IN HEAVEN. 465 
 
 laborers in the Savior's vineyard would, without doubt^ 
 enjoy a similar felicity. But if the minister shall recog- 
 nize his flock, can we think the pious parent shall be 
 unacquainted with the pious child whom he trained 
 for heaven ? Can we suppose that brothers and sisters, 
 husbands and wives, relatives and friends, much and 
 mutually beloved on earth, and helpers of each other 
 in the way to glory, shall not renew their friendship 
 with each other there ? Important as is the connection 
 between the pastor and the flock, these connections, 
 when sanctified by grace, are often much more im- 
 portant. Here religious intercourse takes place more 
 dear and more continued ; prayers as fervent, and more 
 frequent, are offered in union. Surely we may believe 
 that when the minister meets the people of his charge, 
 the flock he has been instrumental in leading on to 
 heaven ; Christian relatives and friends, united in bands 
 as sacred and as strong, will also renew their friend- 
 ship, and find in the society of each other new delight 
 infused into the bliss even of eternity. 
 
 It may further be observed, that the comfort which 
 the Gospel administers to those who mourn friends 
 that sleep in Jesus, appears to be drawn in a great 
 measure from the hope of their happy reunion, and 
 their eternal dwelling in the presence of their Lord. 
 The inspired writer says, " I would not have you to 
 be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are 
 asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have 
 no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died, and rose 
 again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God 
 bring with him. For the Lord himself shall descend 
 from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the arch- 
 angel, and with the trump of God : and the dead in 
 
45j8 PIOUS FRIENDS IN HEAVEN. 
 
 Christ shall rise first : then we which are alive and re- 
 main shall be caught up together with them in the 
 clouds, to meet the Lord in the air : and so shall we 
 ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one ano- 
 ther with these words." The heathen sorrowed with- 
 out hope, for they had no well founded hope that their 
 departed friends had entered a happy immortality; and 
 their friends once lost, seemed lost for ever : but if pious 
 friends did not meet and recognize each other in hea- 
 ven, the Christian would be as much without hope of 
 beholding his loved and lost companions, as even the 
 heathen themselves ; and if not lost to happiness, they 
 would be lost to him : the moment of death would be 
 the moment of an eternal separation ; and what had 
 become of them would be to him unknown. Surely 
 the language of the divine word leads to ideas very dif- 
 ferent from this ! It speaivs of these friends being hap- 
 py, of their coming with their Lord, and then of them 
 and those they left behind being with him for ever. 
 Can this imply any thing less than a happy reunion 
 in his presence ? 
 
 Have you kindred in the skies ? beloved kindred ! 
 they bless the hour that set them free from earth and 
 time. Follow their Lord, and you will soon bless that 
 hour which lands you on the happy shore, where death- 
 divided friends, that meet in Christ, shall never part 
 again. There " Adieus and farewells are a sound un- 
 known." Happy they who meet in bliss ! Their union 
 is not the union of a day : it is a meeting that will never 
 be followed by a painful parting. How should the hope 
 of it animate those, whom piety unites in death-defy- 
 ing bands, to walk with God, to pray and praise toge- 
 ther here, as they hope, through everlasting days, to 
 
HEAVEN AN ENDLESS HOME. 457 
 
 praise their God together there ! O happy meeting '. 
 when they meet, no more to share each other's griefs, 
 no more to mourn each otlier's woes, no more to grieve 
 for each other's defects; but to share in each other's 
 joys, to triumph in each other's happiness, and mu- 
 tually to behold friends esteemed so dear and amiable 
 below, infinitely more amiable, as well as eternally glo- 
 rious and happy. 
 
 § 27. Think too, that all these blessings are /or ever. 
 The happiness of that world is everlasting. Tears and 
 sorrows, sickness and pain, temptation and danger, sin 
 and death, are excluded for ever. There, where all is 
 peace and praise, all is peace and praise for ever. O, 
 blissful day ! may the Christian think, when I shall see 
 my Savior ! when I shall be with him, and be like him. 
 Then shall I see, and know, and love, and praise my 
 Lord, more and better through eternal days ! Eternal 
 days! who shall unfold the meaning of those trans- 
 porting words — Eternal days ? O look forward beyond 
 the end of time. Let faith assist you to discern the 
 state of the just when time shall be no more. Think 
 that you see the scenes of eternal judgment finishing. 
 The archangel's trumpet has sounded, and is hushed 
 in silence, never to sound again ; the ransomed my- 
 riads of the blest have heard the gracious sentence of 
 their Lord, and received the crown of glory that fa- 
 deth not away. All the eventful scenes of life, of death, 
 of judgment are concluded; and now behold them — 
 where are they — in heaven — around them all is happy. 
 Their views, joys, praises, friends, and home eternally 
 the same ; their sorrows, cares, and sighings for ever 
 fled away. " Violence shall no more be heard in their 
 39 
 
458 
 
 HEAVEN AN ENDLESS HOME. 
 
 land, wasting nor destruction within their borders; 
 but they shall call their walls Salvation, and their gates 
 Praise. The sun shall be no more their light by day ; 
 neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto 
 them : but the Lord shall be unto them an everlasting 
 light, and their God their glory. Their sun shall no 
 more go down; neither shall their moon withdraw it- 
 self: for the Lord shall be their everlasting light, and the 
 days of their mourning shall be ended." Before them 
 all is glorious. Before them stretches one immense 
 eternal day of bliss. They see no end, they fear no ill. 
 How brightly shines the sun of their happiness ! how 
 happily glide on the infinite ages of their felicity ! Go 
 forward in thought myriads of numberless ages. Ima- 
 gine years as countless as the blades of grass that cov- 
 er the ground, or as the drops that fill the ocean, to 
 have passed away. Then look again at the inhabitants 
 of heaven ; their day is still bright. No cloud has dark- 
 ened its glory in the immense duration that has pass- 
 ed. Their happiness is still undiminished. No transient 
 pain has brought a momentary interruption of their 
 felicity in all the mighty periods that are gone. 
 For no moment, during all those countless ages, has 
 the stain of imperfection polluted them. No ruffling 
 passion has ever been felt within their peaceful breasts. 
 The light of God's countenance has never been with- 
 drawn. No foes without, no fears or corruptions with- 
 in, have disturbed the sweet composure of their happy 
 spirits. Through periods so long, that, compared with 
 them, time and all its ages is the twinkling of an eye, 
 the unruffled day of heaven has glided blissfully along. 
 Nor do they mourn its departure ; eternal day is not 
 shortened; eternal felicity is not lessened. The im- 
 
HAPPINESS OF HEAVEN. 
 
 459 
 
 mense and amazing prospect of everlasting life still 
 stretches before their view, as bright, as fair, as glad- 
 dening, and as long as ever. Happy conquerors ! Ima- 
 gination fails, and cannot reach their blessedness, nor 
 comprehend what it is to be enjoying heaven. 
 
 The eternal God is their Father, and they are for 
 ever with the Lord. But 1 what no heart can con- 
 ceive, no imagination comprehend, you, my brother, 
 or my sister, may enjoy. Be thou faithful unto death, 
 and that eternal day will cheer your soul with infinite 
 delight, and raise your raptures to heights of infinite 
 felicity; while you look back to the stormy scenes of 
 time, to the day of danger and conflict, to the solemni- 
 ties of death and judgment, and exult that these are 
 for ever finished; that redeeming love has fixed you 
 safe in heaven ; and that now vast, boundless, joyful 
 eternity, will be to you one long, immense, infinite 
 scene of unmingled tranquillity, praise, and pleasure, 
 in the presence of God and of the Lamb. O what is 
 life in the view of this happiness! What its cares, 
 pleasures, pains, but shadows lighter than vanity ! O 
 what is redeeeming love, that opens to your soul these 
 triumphant prospects ! 
 
 $ 28. Soon will all the glories of the bright scenes 
 dawn upon the faithful soul. Though eternal day will 
 never end, eternal day will soon begin. When tne 
 husbandman commits his seed to the ground, a few 
 wintry days revolve, a few bright suns shine, a few 
 moons wax and wane, and the harvest comes, and the 
 ripened crop is gathered into the garner. So fast 
 comes the harvest of eternity. The Christian's hap- 
 piest days are hastening him forward to its solemn 
 scenes, and the sad and gloomy days of darkness are 
 
460 HEAVEN TO BE KEPT IN VIEW. 
 
 carrying him as fast to the world where gloomy sea- 
 sons and distressing days are unknown for ever. I'he 
 Christian's state in this world is like that of a manner 
 pursuing a long voyage, yet tending to his native land. 
 Month after month, all he beholds is the ocean and 
 the sky. When within a day's sail of home, he still 
 sees nothing but sea and sky : the unvarying prospect 
 is the same as it was months before: yet his situation 
 is very different ; then he was far from harbor, now 
 a few hours will bring him there. So the Christian 
 hastening to heaven, sees no more of that happy home 
 than he did when entering his course, yet he is nearer 
 every hour. He is drawing apace to the harbor, 
 though he sees it not, and in a little while will enter 
 there. 
 
 § 29. If grace has made you a partaker of the hope 
 of that felicity, draw comfort from that hope ; antici- 
 pate that heaven. When meditation leads your con- 
 templations beyond the narrow bounds of time, then 
 think. Am I to walk those heavenly fields? Am I to 
 dwell in those regions of light? Then what is this 
 world to me ? Am I, born as it were but yesterday, 
 and hastening to a grave, to live in glory, when sun 
 and stars, with all their glory, shall expire ? Am I, un- 
 moved, to behold "the wreck of nature and the crush 
 of worlds," to see, without regret, the bright lights of 
 heaven sink into eternal darkness; and then shall I, 
 amid the blest inhabitants of heaven, rejoice that my 
 day of glory and happiness will never, never end? 
 Then shall I, with all the blood- bought nations of the 
 saved, walk in the light of the heavenly city, and dwell 
 before the throne of God? Rise then, my soul, rise to 
 thy blissful home. There place thy treasures ; there 
 
THOUGHTS OF HEAVEN. *61 
 
 lav up thy store; there fix thy love; there hope 
 lo^ra'se iy Savior and thy Lord; and watt and 
 watch, till he shall call thee home. 
 
 Dai y cherish the thoughts of that feUcty, and 
 strive and pray, by meditation, to checl. unreasotiable 
 auLchment to tWs dying world ; to sU loose to all be- 
 ow aT>d to live as one who hopes ere long to ,ve tn 
 hclven. Why are not the followers of the Lamb more 
 eager for thefr rest7 does the sailor, tossed by storms, 
 lonroncemore to reach his home? the chdd des.re 
 ZnhoodTthe sick man health 7 the tradestnan pant 
 Trlhes? the prisoner for liberty? the condemned 
 p rdon. and should not you desire the blessedness 
 ™, ^eek? is heaven indeed tlte objectof your cho.ce 
 ^^d voitr wished-for home, why not more eager for 
 it" C unreasonable to love a dangerous journey 
 more than a peaceful rest? a boisterous ocean more 
 Tan tb safe a'nd pleasant harbor! Who loves the s.p 
 hat wafts him over raging waters more than the 
 country where all who are dearest to htm dwell? Who 
 ovTs the horse on which he rides, or the carr.age m 
 which he travels, more than the dear home where he 
 
 ,n,-e.t refu.^e- the securest rest; and yet how one. 
 Ce we mtl^ famtliarity *ith that better cou„.y 
 How much ado has God to get us home ! Ah ^U f d 
 hearts! to love a journey, a toilsome, a dangerou 
 39* 
 
^62 CONCLUDING ADDRESS. 
 
 journey, more than an everlasting home, whence toils 
 and dangers are banished for ever. Watch against this 
 dangerous, this guilty fondness for the present state. 
 Think much of heaven. If your home is there, your 
 heart must be there. You would not think much of the 
 affection of a friend who might forget you at the mo- 
 ment of parting, and think of you no more till you 
 met again. We should not value a person's professed 
 fondness for his family or home, who could travel 
 days and weeks without thinking of them j nor can 
 we think much of their attachment to heaven, who go 
 days and weeks without having their thoughts and af- 
 fections rising thither. Watch against that too com- 
 mon sin, much forgetfulness of a better world. 
 
 § 30. He who has thus, in the preceding pages, en- 
 deavored to help you in your spidiual pilgrimage, is 
 now about to lay down his pen; yet before he lays it 
 down, probably for ever, let him once more say to you, 
 Go onward, looking to Jesus, and keeping God and 
 heaven in view. Then, ere long, when summoned 
 hence, you may depart in peace, and say, " I have 
 fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have 
 kept the faith : henceforth there is laid up for me a 
 crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous 
 Judge, shall give me at that day ; and not to me only^ 
 but unto all them also that love his appearing." Fare- 
 well, vain world ! Farewell, scenes of transient fond- 
 ness and dissolving affection ! Farewell, world of real 
 grief, but fancied pleasures ! Farewell, sin, and with 
 sin, farewell sorrow ! But welcome, bright and blessed 
 immortality ! Welcome the scenes of indissoluble love ! 
 Welcome the mansions in my Father's house ! Wel- 
 come the kingdom of my redeeming Lord ! the dwell- 
 
ADDRESS TO THE IRRELIGIOUS. 463 
 
 ing of joy, the crown of glory ! Few and evil have 
 been the days of the years of my pilgrimage, but now 
 those few and evil days have come to their end ; and I 
 enter an eternity, where days, and weeks, and months, 
 and years have no place, but all is one eternal day. 
 Happy are they, who, being washed in the blood of 
 the Lamb, ascend at the end of life's short pilgrimage 
 to that endless rest. Happy they, whose blessedness it 
 is, that the holy Savior prepares heaven for them, and 
 them for heaven. May this be your happiness, who 
 have now been reading these pages ! When neglecters 
 of the Gospel, in overwhelming sadness, exclaim. The 
 harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not 
 saved— when those who have slighted the Savior's love 
 vainly shrinking from the eternal Judge's wrath, say 
 " to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us and hide 
 us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and 
 from the wrath of the Lamb"— then, and through eter- 
 nity, may you, with ransomed millions, unite in the 
 sweet and everlasting anthem, " Blessing, and honor, 
 and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon 
 the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever." 
 
 § 31. Probably some who may glance over the pre- 
 ceding pages are destitute of an interest in all the bless- 
 ings there described. Is this the case with you, whose 
 eyes are now fixed upon this little book? Are you a 
 careless profligate? an open scoffer? or an almost 
 Christian? If either be the case, let me beseech you 
 to reflect on your dreadful condition. Whatever you 
 are, if you are not an humble follower of the Savior, 
 your state is fearful in the extreme. In those blessings 
 that have been described as the Christian's portion, 
 you have no share. God is not your reconciled Father; 
 
464 ADDRESS TO THE IRRELIGI0U9. 
 
 Jesus Christ is not your Shepherd ; heaven is not your 
 home. As sure as the Scriptures are true, you are an 
 heir of death, a slave of Satan, a child of wrath, an ene- 
 my of God, a traveler to hell. Every moment you are 
 on the brhik of destruction. There is only the breath 
 in your nostrils between you and hell ; and nothing is 
 wanted to sink you there but God's command. A cold, 
 an accident, or almost any trifle, may be sufficient to 
 cut your thread of life, and plunge you in eternal de- 
 spair. There is no wide gulf between you and the tor- 
 ments of eternal fire, the bowlings of accursed spirits, 
 and the horrors of damnation. The place of misery is 
 your own place : you are ready for it. Your sins are 
 all unpardoned— wrath follows you— hell is waiting to 
 receive you. Death, your dread foe, is drawing nigh. 
 Your last moment, your last comfort, are approaching. 
 In Christ you have no interest. For you his death is 
 vain. In heaven you have no inheritance. There is a 
 blessed heaven, but not for you. Unhappy creature ! 
 you may trifle with this warning, but trifling will not 
 alter your condition, or save your ruined soul. You 
 may laugh or scoff at fervent piety, but will you laugh 
 in the sad world of misery ? When lost for ever ; when 
 before you is eternal night ; when millions of years of 
 misery will not lessen your wretchedness, nor seas of 
 tears efface one guilty stain; when the world is gone, 
 and every pleasure gone, and your soul lost, eternally 
 lost ; then what will you think of a slighted Savior and 
 a neglected Gospel ? 0, my fellow-sinner, think of eter- 
 nity ! think of eternal banishment from heaven ! think 
 of eternal wailings and despair in hell ! If the Savior's 
 love soften not your heart, let his terrors alarm you ! 
 Flee from the wrath to come! Ere long, if you had 
 
ADDRESS TO THE IRRELIGIOUS. 465 
 
 them, you would gladly give millions of worlds for an 
 opportunity to flee from endless wrath ; but it will be 
 too late then. O pity yourself ! it is not too late now ! 
 You may have mercy, will you reject it ? The Savior 
 would have compassion upon you, can you have so 
 little for yourself as to neglect his great salvation 1 O 
 pity an unhappy creature condemned to die ! you are 
 that unhappy creature. Seek mercy, while mercy may 
 be found ! God Almighty make you so wise and so 
 happy. Yet if you will not, if you will continue to 
 slight a dying Savior, a gracious God, and your own 
 immortal soul, then make the most of your few vain 
 delights. They are all you will ever have. Rather re- 
 member that perhaps tl»e decree is gone forth already 
 against you, Cut it down, why cumbereth it the ground? 
 O have compassion on yourself, and pursue those 
 blessings now, which, on the bed of death, at the day 
 of judgment, and through vast eternity, you will wish 
 to have obtained. May the God of all grace make you 
 thus wise and happy I and raise you from the death of 
 sin unto the life of righteousness ! Amen. 
 
 EXD.