priety, reasonableness, duty and necessity of prayer,

Prayer is the devout aspiration of the soul, the offering up of our desires to the God and Father of the spirits of all flesh. To this religious exercise, objections of various kinds have been offered. It has been pronounced inconsistent with the sentiments which we ought to entertain of the infinite wisdom and goodness of the Creator: For we are told that Jehovah knows all our wants, and will, if consistent with what he knows to be for his glory and our good, bestow all needed blessings, without being importuned by weak and erring man. As plausible as this objection may appear, it is both unsound and deceptive: For as parents, you are aware of most of the wants and necessities of your children, before they are expressed, or even known to these children; and would you consider it improper, or incompatible with that filial and dignified respect which they ought to pay to you, to enumerate their wants, and ask the display of your kindness in supplying those wants? So far from this, you would consider it rather a mark of disrespect if they neglected to ask the bestowment of your favor.

Again. Prayer is an acknowledgment of our dependence on God, for all the blessings and mercies which our condition requires. And is it not one of the strongest expressions of our sense of dependence to bow before the throne of the universe, in humble invocation for the blessings which he alone can bestow? That it is eminently calculated to promote and keep alive the virtues of humility and meekness, is evident from the very nature of the exercise which the duty implies.

It is also proper to remark, that prayer is necessary to excite and maintain the duties of gratitude and devotion. For it is a fact, attested by common observation and common experience, that what we receive without asking for, seldom commands a grateful return, or a thankful tribute of the heart. And so far as the duty of devotion to God is con

cerned, prayer is absolutely essential to its existence; for whoever neglects the wholesome duty of prayer, will be sure to cast off most of the salutary restraints of religious fear.

The duty of prayer is equally necessary in keeping alive a sense of the divine presence: And where is the man whose thoughts and moral feelings would not be chastened and his life amended, by a sober conviction that God is present with him, and is familiar with all the secrets of his soul and all the purposes of his heart?

It is the means which God has appointed for the depressed and afflicted mind to unburden itself and cast off its gloomy thoughts and cares, and catch a glimpse of heavenly glory and peace. It is one of the highest privileges which we can enjoy in this vale of tears, to draw nigh to God in prayer and thanksgiving, and hold communion with our Maker. Then is the world with all its busy cares, dismissed, while God and heavenly things gently absorb the powers of reflection, and kindle up unspeakable rap-. tures in the conscious soul.

No privilege ought more highly to be prized than that of bending with reverence before the throne of mercy and love, in devout acknowledgment of our dependence upon God, and in the spirit of unaffected humility to implore his grace in the forgiveness of our sins, and to seek the salutary instructions of his wisdom to direct us in the faithful discharge of every duty. Here, at the footstool of heaven, the afflicted heart may pour forth its strong desires, present its needy condition, and commit all its interests to him who delights to communicate his favors and extend his gracious protection and relief to the suffering and the oppressed. Nor is this duty incompatible with the first dictates of the law of nature: For it cannot be denied that the burden of affliction gives birth to those ardent desires of the soul, and acts as an impelling force in moving us to seek the assistance of a superior agency, and

prompts us to lean upon a power which is independent of ourselves.

Prayer is a duty every where enjoined by the authoritative language of holy inspiration, and sanctioned by the luminous examples of patriarchs and prophets, from time immemorial; by the precept and worthy example of the Son of God, and by the examples and commands of all his apostles, to whom the unerring instructions of the spirit of divine inspiration were given. So that reason, nature and revelation, all harmonize to impress this duty upon the mind of man.

It is true that the Deity can neither be benefitted, affected, nor changed by the prayers of his creatures; but it is man, himself, that is benefitted, affected and changed. It is a method appointed by infinite wisdom to relieve the troubled mind of its sorrows and its woes; to tranquilize the feelings of the heart, and to strengthen and renew the confidence of the soul in the God of the whole earth.

Finally, Prayer is evidently a duty, which, according to the scriptures, has been enjoined by the Creator and Preserver of the world. This fact being admitted, it follows of necessity that it is the subject of reward, and is therefore connected with blessings which will not, and cannot in equity, be received and enjoyed without a compliance with the command. So that he who "casts off fear and restrains prayer," robs himself of heaven's blessing; withholds the honor which is due to God; incurs the disapprobation of the Sovereign of all worlds, and brings condemnation and misery to himself. Let these considerations sink deep into our hearts; and when we retire from this public assembly to our respective habitations, let the importance of those services which God requires, impress us with gratitude, solemnity and joy; and lead us to seek, in secret retirement of the heart, a peaceful and prayerful intercourse with our Maker; that we may ever bear the seal of his divine approbation, and enjoy the

sweet and cheering "promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come."

In the course of Lectures which has been commenced this evening, it is my intention, by divine permission, to lay before you, a brief but plain and systematical defence of divine revelation. This contains the only charter of all our choicest hopes, and is the only true and infallible guide to immortality and eternal life.

LECTURE II.

ISAIAH xl. 5.

"The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together."

In my former Lecture, I laboured, (and I trust not without some degree of success,) to prove, from the evidences of nature and the demonstrations of physical science, the being and attributes of God; and to deduce from the evidences of the divine existence and government of God, the nature of that service which must be acceptable to him as a guardian, friend and Parent.

We endeavored to show by the most plain and undeniable facts which are brought to light by the science of geology, that there must have been a time when the globe which we inhabit did not exist as a solid body, but was in a confused, soluble and chaotic state. That the particles which constitute the internal structure of the earth were deposited in perfect order, according to their specific gravity. That in the lower strata of the primitive rocks of which the earth is composed, no fossil remains are to be found, which demonstrates, that at the time those substances were deposited, there existed neither plants nor animals; otherwise some remains of them would have been there deposited, as well as in the other strata which lie nearer the surface, where such remains are found in a state of petrifaction, in all their profusion of variety.

We were led by these facts to the unavoidable conclusion, that there was a time when the earth did not exist, and when neither the vegetable nor animal kingdoms were in being: And if there was a period when these did not exist, they must have been produced by some power which was independent of them: For it would be an affront to common