framed and who upholds all our powers is Himself righteous. Thus our thoughts, if not perverted, rise necessarily to the Maker and Supreme Lord of all as the Moral Governor and Judge of the world.

Hence it is not to human enactments merely that we are to look for the regulation and control of our conduct in life. Provision was made for this before any human enactments were framed; and that provision is still continued, and is laid deep in our spiritual constitution by Him who made us. The Word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures, sets forth our duty; but the principles of duty were imprinted upon the nature of man before they were written or printed in a book. The Scriptures themselves distinctly presuppose this, and point to it. They speak to the consciences of men. The apostle Paul, in the second chapter of his Epistle to the Romans, says, "When the Gentiles, which have not the law "—that is, the written law or the Scriptures-" do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile accusing or else ex

cusing one another." He thus intimates in the plainest terms, that while the written law or the Scripture was for ages communicated only to the nation of Israel, the other nations or Gentiles were not without a law for the regulation of their conduct: they were a law to themselves; their consciences bore witness as to what was right and as to what was wrong. Our Saviour Himself expressly recognised and appealed to the same natural principle, when He said to the Jews, as we read in the twelfth chapter of the Gospel according to Luke, at the fifty-seventh verse, "Why even of yourselves judge ye not what is right?"

Thus it appears manifestly that God has laid within every man the foundations of moral order. He has placed in the midst of our varied powers of thought and of action a power which He has appointed to preside over them, and to speak to them with supreme authority. If this power were invariably submitted to and fully obeyed by any man, his heart and life would present a perfect pattern of moral order or righteousness. And a community or nation, made up of such individuals, would be as orderly and admirable in all their movements as are the movements of the vast mechanism of the heavens. But how

different is the experience of the world! While the forces which operate in external nature are guided with the utmost precision, and accomplish wise and good purposes with the utmost regularity, the forces which proceed from the spirits of men not unfrequently produce disorder and incalculable evil.

The cause of this sad result it is not difficult to find. While men have by the gift of God the power to distinguish between right and wrong, and are warned by the judge within them to choose the one course and to avoid the other, it rests with themselves to decide whether they will follow the dictates of conscience or not. They are free agents. It is quite possible for them, though they know and approve that which is good, to yield to the enticements of evil. When they take this wrong course, they cannot help feeling self-condemned; neither can they put away altogether from themselves, without much effort, the sense of their accountability to the Lord of all. The monitor within them intimates to them with prophetic voice, that there is a day coming when every violation of conscience and departure from the path of duty will be tried at a higher tribunal, from whose judgments there shall be no escape. Notwithstanding these

powerful checks, however, the dictates of conscience have, from the beginning of the world to the present hour, been more or less violated by the human family. Their thoughts and desires, instead of yielding uniform and entire obedience to the inward ruler set over them, have broken loose from its control, and have sought to carry out their purposes regardless of its solemn remonstrances. This is the cause of all the moral disorder on earth, with all the incalculable evils attending it.

Their

In many cases, as may be witnessed in communities in all parts of the world, rebellion against conscience is begun by some individuals early, indulged in habitually, and increased from year to year, till all the restraints of self-government are broken and trodden under foot. evil thoughts and corrupt desires and passions go forth with unbridled impetuosity. In the accomplishment of their objects they are ready to disregard truth and justice. They practise deceit, fraud, falsehood, theft, robbery, violence, and murder, in order to gain their ends. They forcibly silence the testimony of conscience within them; they call evil good, and good evil. They shake off fear by saying in their hearts that there is no God, and that there is

no future retribution. They do their utmost to get others to support them in the maintenance of these abominable doctrines.

In all such persons the foundations of moral order are destroyed; and they are fitted to do incalculable evil not only to themselves, but also to all around them. But here the community or nation within which they live finds it necessary in its own defence to put a check upon their lawless career. When they throw themselves loose from inward restraints, outward restraints are devised and put in operation, that they may be kept within bounds, and that others may be protected from receiving injury at their hands. When a man, contrary to the voice of God within him, defrauds his neighbours by forging documents, for example, or when he seeks to gratify his desire for riches by seizing the property of others, he is laid hold upon, and tried and punished. Or when any one endeavours to carry out his purposes by laying violent hands upon and taking away the lives of others, he is brought before the constituted judges, tried, and condemned and put to death. Thus the spread of crime is checked, and the community are protected from that which would otherwise cause constant terror, and loss, and ruin.