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CHRIST. Let us not forget that when our Saviour redeemed the world, he did it to purchase to himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works, He has told us that we must take up the cross and follow him. He has shewn us the path of life, and promised to assist our humble endeavours by his holy spirit; but he has told us, that strait is the gate, and narrow the way, and that we must exert our utmost powers to enter into it,

It shall be my endeavour, by the blessing of GOD, to explain to you the particular duties which we are commanded to perform, and to enforce them by the example of our blessed Saviour, as pointed out to us in the New Testa ment; at present I will only mention the fol lowing awful consideration, which I earnestly wish to impress most strongly on the minds of all who hear me. Though Christianity holds out the most comfortable hopes of assistance to the weak, consolation to the afflicted, and pardon to the penitent; it offers no hope while we continue in any known or habitual sin.

Repentance, faith, and obedience, are the indispensable conditions of the Christian covenant. We must believe in the Son of GOD, who alone is able to save; not trusting in our own merits,

but in his manifold and great mercies; but we must add to our faith, virtue; and by patient continuance in well-doing, we must work out our own salvation with fear and trembling.

Be not deceived, but attend to the words of St. Paul. "The works of the flesh are manifest, which are these, adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, hatred, variance, emulation, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like; of the which I tell you before, as I have told you in time past, that they who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."* O terrible voice of most just judgment, which shall be pronounced on all obstinate sinners; "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels."+

But they who are CHRIST's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts: they walk religiously in good works by the assistance of his grace; and when they have finished the work which he gave them to do, they will know that their labour has not been in vain. Their LORD will return from a far country, to demand an account of the talents he had entrusted to their Matt. xxv. 41.

* Gal. v. 19, 21.

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care; and happy are those to whom he shall say, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant, enter thou into the joy of thy LORD,”‡

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SERMON III.

ST. JOHN vi. 38,

I came down from Heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of Him that sent me.

HAVING endeavoured to collect from holy

Scripture what we are permitted to know of the nature and office of the Son of GOD, and considered him as our Creator and Redeemer; I will now proceed to point out to you what we may learn from the same sacred book of his character as man, and shew in what respect he has left us an example that we should follow his steps. Even as man we must follow him at a humble distance. None of us can say, "which

of you convinceth me of sin ?"* None of us can

*John viii. 46.

go through all the troubles, and perform all the duties, of life without any imperfection or error. And as we cannot attain to the perfection of his virtue, we have also some duties to perform which could not belong to a character in which was no fault. He had no need of repentance, self-examination, and all the humble duties of sinful man. But there are many parts of his character which we can and ought to imitate, that we may follow as closely as possible the great example which is set before us; and, in order to consider these more distinctly, I will take a view of his conduct towards GOD, and towards man. Our Saviour tells us in my text, that he came down from heaven, not to do his own will, but the will of him that sent him; and this is evident

through every part of his life.

In his childhood,

when his parents returned to Jerusalem seeking him, and found him in the temple, he thus addressed them, "Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?"*. In the course of his ministry he said to his disciples, "My meat is to do the will of Him that sent me, and to finish his work." Before his death, in his last solemn dedication of himself to GOD, he says, "I have *L* Lukešii, 49. John iv. 34.

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