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"man knoweth not his time; as the fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds are caught in the snare, so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it cometh suddenly upon them." Old persons are ready to drop off themselves, and the youthful are easily shaken down into their graves. The former stand evidently on the brink of eternity; the latter walk upon a treacherous quicksand, into which they are every moment in danger of sinking. We are all, therefore, highly concerned to use life, while we have it; to catch every opportunity, lest none be allowed To make haste, in good earnest, and not delay "to keep God's commandments,"-to watch, as our Saviour enjoins, "for we do not know the day, nor the hour, when the Son of Man cometh ;"" to take heed to ourselves, lest at any time our heart be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness, and cares of this life; and so that day come upon us unawares ;"" to have our loins girded about, and our lamps burning; and to be like men that wait for their Lord." For, to sum up all, my brethren, the time is short. We are but guests in a strange land, who tarry but one night. We wander up and down in a place of graves. We read the epitaphs upon the tombs of the deceased. We shed a few tears over the ashes of the dead; and in a little time, we shall claim from our surviving friends the tears we now pay to the memory of our friends departed. Time is precious. The portion of it is now passing that fixes our fate for ever. The hours are, at this instant, on the wing, which carry along with them your eternal happiness, or eternal misery. Time is irrecoverable. The clock is wound up once for all; the hand is advancing, and in a little time, it strikes your last hour. Let me, therefore, beseech, let me implore you, my brethren, in the bonds of friendship, and in the bowels of the Lord; by the tender mercies of the God of peace; by the dying love of a crucified Redeemer; by the precious promises and awful threatings of the Gospel; by all your hopes of heaven, and

fears of hell; by the worth of your immortal souls, and all that is dear to men; let me conjure you to accept immediately of the offers of mercy, and fly from the wrath to come. "Behold, now is the accepted time, behold, now is the day of salvation." All the treasures of heaven are now opening to you; the blood of Christ is now pleading for the remission of your sins; the Church on earth stretches out her arms to receive you; the spirits of just men made perfect are eager to enrol you among the number of the blessed; the angels and archangels are waiting to break out into new hallelujahs of joy, on your return; the whole adorable Trinity is now employed in your behalf; God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, at this instant, call upon you, weary and heavy laden, to come unto them, that ye may have rest unto your souls. O hearken, while you may, to his heavenly call, and then will you be numbered among "the blessed, and thrice blessed souls, whom the Lord, when he cometh, shall find thus prepared for his summons." And now to God the Father, &c. &c. &c.

SERMON XIX.

THE TRIUMPH OF CHRISTIAN HOPE,

WHY ART THOU CAST DOWN, O MY SOUL; AND WHY ART THOU DISQUIETED WITHIN ME? HOPE THOU IN GOD, FOR I SHALL YET PRAISE HIM, WHO IS THE health of MY COUNTENANCE AND MY GOD. Ps. xlii. 11.

It is a mistaken notion, which some persons are fond of entertaining, that the life of a Christian is one continued scene of tranquillity, cheerfulness and joy,-that the path to heaven is strewed with roses,-that there is nothing thorny or uneven to annoy the pilgrim's feet, no storms or tempests to retard his progress, no difficulties or dangers to encounter in the way. Such sentiments as these have a very pernicious influence on the practice of mankind. Naturally prone to indolence in spiritual things, and averse to religious exercises of every description, they are apt to catch at the pleasing delusion, and are willing to believe that the victory is obtained, before they have even armed themselves for the combat. The truth, indeed, is this: ever since the original transgression of man, good and evil are so mixed and interwoven in the present chequered and imperfect state of things, that we can neither obtain the former, nor avoid the latter, without inexpressible labour, pain and anxiety. The disorders introduced by sin into the moral, have darkened and corrupted the natural world; so that, in either system, it requires more than human abilities to separate the evil from the good, and thereby to obtain

temporal or spiritual felicity. By the glorious scheme of redemption, indeed, the good providence of God has overruled these disorders and irregularities in such a manner, as to render them beautifully subservient to the supreme happiness of his moral creatures. Storms and tempests, pain and labour, are become necessary for the health and preservation of the natural world: sorrows and anxieties, distresses and afflictions, inward pangs and struggles, are alike expedient for the purity and perfection of moral accountable creatures. God, therefore, who at one intuitive glance, beholds all the relations and connexions of things like a wise and provident Father, affectionately anxious for the welfare of his children, makes use of all these natural means in various measures and degrees, according to the particular situation and circumstances of men, to restore to them that primitive felicity, which had been lost by sin. Or, to express myself in plain scriptural language,—“It is through much tribulation we enter into glory: we must mourn before we can be comforted. If we would be Christ's disciples, we must deny ourselves, and take up our cross and follow him. The world must be crucified unto us, and we unto the world. If we would receive an eternal weight of glory, we must have our share of those light afflictions, which are but for a moment. If we would taste the peaceable fruits of righteousness, we must be exercised by those chastenings, which, for the present, are not joyous, but grievous." But, if such be the unavoidable state of a Christian; such the dangers, difficulties, and distresses that attend it, surely he can have little joy or comfort in his progress. There is something gloomy, melancholy, and forbidding in the prospect. So speaks the natural man, who is void, as the Apostle tells us, of all spiritual discernment. Would such a man, however, deem any toil or danger too great to encounter, for the acquisition of some earthly object of primary importance? Would he not compass sea and land, risk his health, and oftentimes his life, to obtain

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