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ten years in another, and then return to their usual place of residence, without once realizing that it must depend upon the preserving power and goodness of God whether they shall go here or go there, do this or do that. They choose to live without God in the world, and feel and act as though God were not in all their thoughts. There is another way in which they clearly manifest their forgetfulness of God's supremacy and their own dependence. They acknowledge that things temporal are far less important than things eternal; but wholly neglect things eternal at present, and wait for a more uncertain season to obtain things eternal. Thus they boast of to-morrow, though they know not what a day may bring forth. Is this the folly, stupidity and presumption of only a few individuals of mankind? No. It is the folly, stupidity and presumption of the great majority, in every heathen and christian nation on earth. This world is full of rational and immortal creatures, who say in their hearts and by their conduct, there is no God for them to fear, or love, or glorify.

2. Since all men ought to realize that they are constantly and entirely dependent upon God for the preservation of life, they must be inexcusable for pursuing any modes of conduct which they know tend to banish such a realizing sense of the divine presence and preservation from their minds. All men know what modes of acting and living tend to banish God from their thoughts, and to stifle a sense of their obligation to love and glorify him. And they must equally know that whatever practice produces this effect upon their minds is criminal and inexcusable. According to this criterion, it is easy to see the criminality of loving and pursuing the things of the world supremely. Supreme love to the world must necessarily banish supreme love to God from the heart. Though all men ought to be industrious in their various useful and lawful callings, yet they ought to labor in such a manner, and from such motives, as shall not indispose or unfit them for any religious duties. Every man may know whether his employment, or his manner of pursuing it, tends to produce this effect or not. If it does produce this effect, he must know he ought to lay aside his employment, or pursue it in a different and better manner. Every body knows that vain company and vain conversation tend to dissipate the mind and corrupt the heart, and unfit men for the service of God; and of course, that such things ought to be avoided. Every body knows that profane language, intemperance, gambling, frolicking, and festival entertainments, have a stupifying and demoralizing influence upon the minds of all who indulge themselves in such practices. And, therefore, they ought to be universally condemned,

avoided and restrained. No person in the world can justify such practices as have been mentioned, who believes that God ought to be remembered, his preserving goodness ought to be realized, and his name glorified. What was it that banished from the mind of Belshazzar a realizing sense of the preserving goodness of that God whom his father had known, and whom he had known, and in whose hand his breath was, and whose were all his ways? Was it not his vain company, his vain amusements, and abominable festivals? Similar causes will produce similar effects, in every age and in every part of the world. Prodigality, profaneness, intemperance, vain amusements, and worldly-mindedness, will always lead men to forget God, their maker, préserver and benefactor. Therefore every mode of living, thinking, and acting, which leads men to forget and forsake God, ought to be universally condemned and avoided by young as well as old.

3. If men ought to realize that God is their preserver, then they ought to use those means which he has appointed, to keep in their minds a deep and abiding sense of his supremacy and of their dependence. Reading the Bible has a happy tendency to bring and keep God in view. His word clearly exhibits his character, his perfections, and his universal dominion over the lives, the hearts, and the views, designs, and actions of all mankind. It records what he has done in the course of his providence, and what he has designed to do in the government and redemption of the world. It contains his terms of mercy, his promises to the obedient, and his threatenings to the disobedient. It exhibits such truths, and objects, and events, and motives, as are best adapted to make men see and feel that he holds in his sovereign hands their lives, and all their interests for time and eternity. This sacred volume they ought to read every day, that they may keep themselves in the fear of the Lord all the day long. Prayer has a direct and powerful tendency to raise the attention and hearts of men to God, and give them a realizing sense of his supremacy, and their dependence upon him for life, and breath, and all things. It is by this that they draw near to God, and God draws near to them and leads them to live and act as seeing him who is invisible. The keeping of the Sabbath, and the constant attendance on public worship and divine ordinances, naturally tend to inspire the minds of men with a solemn and habitual sense of their dependence upon God to preserve their lives and direct all their steps. These are means by which men can, and without which they cannot, maintain a due sense of the divine presence and preservation. We may justly conclude that those who neglect reading the word of God, and calling upon his name,

and attending public worship and divine institutions, live without God in the world, never obey any of his commands, never submit to any dispensations of his providence, and never perform a single duty. They are practical atheists, let them profess what religious opinions they will. If they are pagans, they are atheists. If they are Jews, they are atheists. If they are christians, they are atheists. If they have named the name of Christ, they are atheists. How many poor, guilty, dependent creatures are there in the heathen world! How many poor, guilty, dependent creatures are there in the christian world! How many poor, guilty, dependent creatures are there in this place! Or, in other words, how many are there who neglect prayer, neglect public worship, neglect divine ordinances, and live and act as though God was not their creator and preserver, and there were no future state of rewards and punishments! What a world do we live in! And whose world is it?

4. If God be the preserver and disposer of the lives of men, how fast must the guilt of those arise and increase, who never glorify him, in whose hand their breath is, and whose are all their ways! Though God raised Nebuchadnezzar to the throne of Babylon, and sunk him below the beasts that perish; and though his son Belshazzar knew all this; yet he forsook the God in whose hand his breath was, and whose were all his ways, and bowed down to the worship of the god of this world, in contempt of the God of heaven, who had made him a rational and immortal creature, and raised him to the head of the greatest kingdom then in the world. This highly provoked the God of heaven, his creator, preserver, and 'benefactor, who saw him rise in guilt as fast as he rose in power, in wealth, in magnificence, voluptuousness, and profaneness. And though he waited to be gracious to him for years, yet in the night of his highest revelry, he sunk him and his mighty kingdom in perpetual ruin. If Belshazzar, who was a heathen, rose so high and so fast in guilt for not glorifying God, how much faster and higher must those rise in guilt, who do not glorify the God of their fathers, whom they have been taught to glorify from their earliest days! Their guilt has constantly been increasing, as their years, their months, and moments have increased. Their guilt has increased as fast as their knowledge, their wealth, their prosperity, and their opportunities of doing and getting good have increased. How many mercies have they received and abused! How many talents have they buried or perverted! How much have they injured God, their fellow men, and themselves! If impenitent sinners seriously and impartially look into their hearts and lives, they will find

that this is a just description of the great and aggravated guilt they have contracted. It is impossible for those who sit in heathen darkness and ignorance to sin so fast and to rise so high in guilt, as those who sin against the gospel, which has brought life and immortality to light, unfolded the character of God and man, and the glorious and awful realities of the invisible and eternal world. This is the dictate of reason, and is confirmed by the declarations of Christ, concerning Jews and Gentiles. He represented the sins of Tyre and Sidon, Sodom and Gomorrah, as far less criminal than those of the sinners in Zion who had heard and rejected the glorious gospel of divine grace. It will be much more tolerable in the day of judgment for Belshazzar and the impenitent sinners in Asia and Africa, than for the disbelievers and rejecters of the gospel in Britain and America; and hence,

5. The patience of God towards this atheistical, guilty, and ungrateful world, is astonishingly great. He is constantly displaying before their eyes his power, his wisdom, and his goodness, in preserving their lives, and loading them with the rich blessings of his providence and grace; and yet they overlook the hand and the heart of him, in whose hand is their breath, and whose are all their ways. Though he sees all their stupidity, infidelity, ingratitude, and disobedience, and carries their lives and all their interests in his hand, and could destroy them at any moment, yet he spares the lives of such sinful creatures from day to day, and from year to year. Is this the manner of men? No; far from it. Will one nation exercise patience towards another nation of their enemies, whom they are able to chastise or destroy? Are personal enemies disposed to exercise patience, when they imagine they have power to retaliate? God's patience is infinitely great towards his weak, guilty, dependent, incorrigible enemies. He preserves the lives of millions every year, who deserve every moment to be cut down as cumberers of the ground. His patience is equal to his power and goodness, which infinitely surpass the power and goodness of man; and he claims the honor of it. He says by his prophet Hosea, "How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? how shall I deliver thee, Israel? how shall I make thee as Admah? how shall I set thee as Zeboim? Mine heart is turned within me, my repentings are kindled together. I will not execute the fierceness of mine anger, I will not return to destroy Ephraim: for I am God, and not man." To such divine patience do millions of the human race owe the preservation of their lives from day to day, and year to year. From this we must conclude,

6. That all impenitent sinners are constantly and imminently

VOL. III.

53

exposed to temporal and eternal ruin. It is of the Lord's mer cies that they have not before now been consumed. His patience is not boundless, but limited. It will in a few days or few years come to an end. It does come to an end every day in respect to many, and every year in respect to millions. The year which closes to-day has closed the eyes of millions. The living in every part of the world are monuments of sparing mercy. Though there has been no epidemical or very mortal disease prevailing in this place the current year, yet this year has put an end to twenty-six lives among us. Four very aged persons, five a little past the meridian of life, five young persons, eight children, and four infants. All these instances

of mortality call upon us to realize that God is the preserver of our lives, and holds in his hand our breath, and directs all our ways. They call upon the young to remember their creator and preserver in the days of their youth. They call upon the strong and healthy to realize that health and strength cannot save them from death, whenever God sees fit to send it. And they more loudly call upon the aged to set their souls and houses in order, for another year or month may not be added to their lives. Serious questions now occur, Who among the young and the middle-aged are prepared to live and glorify him, in whose hand their breath is, and whose are all their ways? And who in particular are prepared to follow the next year their relatives and friends, that have gone into eternity this year? It would be strange, if some of such mourners should not be called away before the ensuing year closes. But if none of them should be called away so soon, numbers of others most certainly will. Who they are, we know not, and they know not. What then I say unto one, I say unto all : Watch and pray, that ye may be also ready.

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