There is a counterpart to this character, described in strong and glowing language by the prophets. There are idle shepherds, who feed not the flock, but themselves; who neither attempt to heal the sick, to strengthen the feeble, to bind up that which is broken, nor recover that which has been driven away; shepherdst, who cannot understand, greedy lovers of gain -and who, by a change of metaphor, are compared to slumbering watchmen, and dumb dogs that cannot bark. The New Testament teaches us to expect that such persons, under the name of ministers, will be found likewise in the visible church of Christ; men of corrupt mindst, destitute of the truth, who serve not the Lord Jesus; but their own belly; men who are of the world§, and speak of the world; and therefore the world heareth and favoureth them. But, alas!neither the wretched slave who toils at the galley-oar, nor he that is doomed to labour in a deep mine, where the light of the sun never reaches him, nor the lunatic who howls in a chain, are such emphatical objects of our compassion, as the unhappy man who prostitutes the name and function of a minister of Christ to the gratification of his pride and avarice; and whose object is not the welfare of the flock, but the possession of the fleece; wholl intrudes into the post of a watchman, but gives no alarm of the impending danger. If the Scriptures be true; if the Gospel be not indeed, as pope Leo the tenth profanely styled it, a lucrative fable; the more he accumulates riches, the more he rises in dignity, the more his influence extends, the more he is to be commi * Ezek. xxxiv. 2. Isa. lvi. 10, 11. 1 Tim. vi. 5; Rom. xvi. 18. § 1 John iv. 5. serated. He may have the reward he seeks: he may be admired and flattered; he may for a season, be permitted to withstand and discountenance the efforts of the Lord's faithful servants; he may shine in the accomplishments of a scholar or a courtier: but nothing less than repentance, and faith in the Redeemer, whose name and cause he has dishonoured, can finally screen him from the full effect of that terrible denunciation"Wo to the idle shepherd that forsaketh" or neglecteth "the flock! The sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, "and his right eye shall be utterly darkened*." SERMON XIV. REST FOR THE WEARY. MATTH. xi. 28. Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. f WHICH shall we admire most; the majesty or the grace, conspicuous in this invitation? How soon would the greatest earthly monarch be empoverished, and his treasures utterly exhausted, if all that are poor and miserable had encouragement to apply freely to him, with a promise of relief fully answerable to their wants and wishes! But the riches of Christ are unsearchable and inexhaustible. If millions of millions of distressed sinners seek to him for relief, he has a sufficiency for Zech. xi. 17. them all. His mercy is infinite to pardon all their sins; his grace is infinite to answer and exceed their utmost desires; his power is infinite, to help them in all their difficulties. A number, without number, have been thus waiting upon him, from age to age; and not one of them has been sent away disappointed and empty. And the streams of his bounty are still flowing, and still full. Thus the Sun, his brightest material image, has been the source of light to the earth, and to all its inhabitants, from the creation; and will he equally so to all succeeding generations, till time shall be no more. There is, indeed, an appointed hour when the sun shall cease to shine, and the course of nature shall fail. But the true Sun, the Sun of Righteousness*, has no variableness nor shadow of turning; and they who depend upon him while in this world, shall rejoice in his light for ever. Can we hesitate to accept of these words, as affording a full proof of the divine character, the proper Godhead of our Lord and Saviour, supposing only that he meant what he said, and that he is able to make his promise good? Can a creature, however excellent and glorious, use this language? Can a creature discharge the debts, sooth the distresses, and satisfy the desires of every individual who looks to him? Who but the Lord God can raise up all that are bowed down, and comfort all that mourn? Again; as is his majesty, so is his mercy. In acts of grace amongst men there are always some limitations. If a king proclaims a pardon to a rebellious nation, there are still exceptions. Some ringleaders are excluded. Either their crimes were too great to be forgiven, or their obstinacy or influence are supposed to Mal. iv. 2.; James i. 17. † Psal. cxlvi. 8.; Isa. Ixi. 2. be too great to render their safety consistent with the But the Saviour excludes none but safety of the state. those who wilfully exclude themselves. As no case is too hard for his power, so no person who applies to him is shut out from his compassion. "Him that "cometh to him," whatever his former character or conduct may have been, "he will in nowise cast out*." This glorious exercise of sovereign mercy is no less a divine attribute, than the power by which he created. the heavens and the earth. It is the consideration of his mercy in pardoning sin, and in saving sinners, which causes that admiring exclamation of the prophet, "Who " is a God like unto theet?" This passage, (including the two following verses,) closes the first part of the Oratorio. In tracing the series of the Scriptures thus far, we have considered several signal prophecies which foretold his appearance; we have seen their accomplishment in his birth, and have, I hope, joined with the heavenly host, in ascribing glory to God in the highest, for this unspeakable gift and effect of his love. We have learnt from the prophets, his characters, as the great Restorer, and the great Shepherd. The evangelist proposes him to our meditation here, in a gracious and inviting attitude, as opening his high commission, proclaiming his own sovereign authority and power, and declaring his compassionate purpose and readiness to give refreshment and rest to the weary and heavy laden. The two principal points in the text are, the invitation and the promise. I. The invitation is expressed in very general terms. "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy "laden." There is no qualifying or restraining clause, to discourage any person who is willing to accept it. Whoever hath an ear to hear, let him hear. "Let "him that is athirst come, and whosoever will, let him "take of the water of life freely*." I cannot doubt but these words authorize me to address myself to every person in the assembly. I speak first to you who are "spending your money for that which satisfieth nott;" who are wearied in seeking happiness where it is not to be found, and "in digging pits, and hewing out cisterns "for yourselves, which will hold no water," and have hitherto been regardless" of the fountain of living wa"ters," which is always near you. While you are pursuing the wealth or honours of this world, or wasting your time and strength in the indulgence of sensual appetites, and look no higher, are you, indeed, happy and satisfied? Do you find the paths in which you are led, or rather hurried and driven on to be the " paths of "pleasantness and peace?" With what face can you charge the professors of religion with hypocrisy, if you pretend to satisfaction in these ways? We have trodden them far enough ourselves, to be assured that there are feelings in your heart which contradict your assertion. You know that you are not happy, and we know it likewise. Are you quite strangers to a secret wish, that you had never been born? or that you could change condition with some of the brute creation? "Are you "not heavy laden," burdened with guilt, and fears, and forebodings; harassed with crosses, disappointments, and mortifications? Are you not often, at least sometimes, like children in the dark, afraid of being alone; Rev. xxii. 17. † Isa. lv. 2. Jer. ii. 13. § Prov. iii. 17. |