indulge ourselves in the refined pleafures of literary pur fuits, nor wander even for a moment into the delightful regions of science or imagination? Were this a true picture of our duties, and of the fac rifices which Christianity requires from us; were these the commands of our divine lawgiver, well might we fay with the astonished difciples, "who then can be saved?". But the God whom we ferve is not fo hard a master, nor does his religion contain any fuch fevere restrictions as these. Christianity forbids no neceffary occupations, no reafonable indulgencies, no innocent relaxations. It al lows us to use the world, provided we do not abuse it. It does not spread before us a delicious banquet, and then come with a "touch not, tafte not, handle not."* All it requires is, that our liberty degenerate not into licen tiousness, our amufements into diffipation, our industry into inceffant toil, our carefulness into extreme anxiety and endlefs folicitude. So far from forbidding us to engage in business, it exprefsly commands us not to be flothful in it,t and to labor with our hands for the things that be needful; it enjoins every one to abide in the calling wherein he was called, and perform all the duties of it. It even ftigmatizes thofe that provide not for their own, with tel ling them that they are worse than infidels. When it re quires us to be temperate || in all things," it plainly tells us that we may ufe all things temperately; when it directs us "to make our moderation known unto all men," this evidently implies that within the bounds of moderation we may enjoy all the reasonable conveniences and comforts of the prefent life. But how then are we to reconcile this participation in the concerns of the prefent life, with thofe very strong declarations of fcripture," that we are not to be conform ed to this world; that the friendship of the world is enmity with God; that we are to take no thought for the mor row; that we are to lay up treasures no where but in hea *Colofs. ii. 21. + Rom. xii. II. 1 Cor. iv. 12. § 1 Tim. v. 8. I Cor. ix. 25. ven; that we are to pray without ceafing; that we are to do all things to the glory of God; that we are not only to leave father, mother, brethren, fifters, and for the fake of Christ and his gospel, but that if we do not hate all thefe near and dear connections, and even our own lives, we cannot be his disciples*.” Thefe, it must be acknowledged, are very strong expreffions, and taken in their ftrict literal fenfe, do certain ly imply that we are to abandon every thing that is mo dear and valuable and delightful to us in this life, and to devote ourselves fo entirely to the contemplation and love and worship of God, as not to beftow a fingle thought on any thing else, or to give ourselves the smallest concern about the affairs of this fublunary state. But can any one imagine this to be the real doctrine of fcripture? You may rest affured that nothing fo unreasona ble and extravagant is to be fairly deduced from these faered writings. In order then to clear up this most important point, three things are to be confidered. Firft, that were these injunctions to be understood in their literal fignification, it would be utterly impoffible for us to continue a week longer in the world. If, for instance, we were bound to pray without ceafing, and to take no thought whatever for the morrow, we must all of us quickly perifh for want of the common neceffaries of life. 2dly. It must be observed that all oriental writers, both facred and profane, are accustomed to express themselves in bold ardent figures and metaphors, which, before their true meaning can be afcertained, require very confiderabie abatements, reftrictions, and limitations. 3dly. What is most of all to the purpose, these abatements are almoft conftantly pointed out by fcripture itself and whenever a very strong and forcible idiom is made Rom. xii. 2. Jam. iv. 4 Matth. vi. 20. 34. 1 Theff. v. 17. Ephes, vi. 18. I Cor. x. 31. Luke, ziv. 26, K ufe of you will generally find it explained and modified by a different expreffion of the fame fentiment, which either immediately follows, or occurs in fome other paffage of Scripture. Thus in the prefent inftance, when Chrift fays, "Ye cannot ferve God and mammon; therefore, take no thought for your life what ye hall eat and what ye fhall drink, nor yet for your body what ye fhall put on:" this is moft clearly explained a few verses after, in these words, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things fhall be added unto you*." The meaning therefore of the precept is evidently this; not that we are abfolutely to take no thought for our life, and the means of fupporting it; but that our thoughts are not to be wholly or principally occupied with thefe things. We are not to indulge an immoderate and unceafing anxiety and folicitude about them: for that indeed is the true meaning of the original word merimnaō. In our English Bible, that word is translated take no thought; but at the time when our tranflation was made, that expreffion fignified only be not too careful. Our hearts, as it is expreffed in another place, are not to be overcharged with the cares of this life*, fo as to exclude all other concerns, even thofe of religion. In the fame manner with refpect to pleasures, we are not forbid to have any love for them; we are only commanded not to be lovers of pleasure more than lovers of Godt. When therefore it is faid, ye cannot ferve God and mammon, the point contended for in respect to God is not exclufive poffeffion, but exclufive dominion. Other things may occafionally for a certain time, and to a certain de gree, have poffeffion of our minds, but they must not rule, they must not reign over them. We cannot ferve two maflers; we can ferve but one faithfully and effectually, and that one must be God. The concerns and comforts of this life may have their due place in our hearts, † 2 Tim. iii. 4. * Luke, xxi. 34. but they muft not afpire to the firft; this is the prerogative of religion alone; religion must be fupreme and paramount over all. Every one, it has been often faid, has his ruling paffion. The ruling paffion of the Christian must be the love of his Maker and Redeemer. This it is which must principally occupy his thoughts, his time, his attention, his heart. If there be any thing else which has gained the afcendency over our fouls, on which our defires, our wishes, our hopes, our fears, are chiefly fixed, God is then difpoffeffed of his rightful dominion over us ; we ferve another mafter, and we fhall think but little of our Maker, or any thing belonging to him. His empire over our hearts muft, in short, at all events be maintained. When this point is once fécured, every inferior gratification that is confiftent with his fovereignty, his glory, and his commands, is perfectly allowable; eve ry thing that is hoftile to them must at once be renounced. This is a plain rule, and a very important one. It is the principle which our blessed Lord meant here to establish, and it must be the governing principle of our lives. Next to this in importance is another command, which you will find in the 12th verfe of the seventh chapter » "All things whatsoever ye would that men fhould do to you, do ye even fo to them; for this is the law and the prophets." As the former precepts which we have been confidering relate to God, this relates to man; it is the grand rule by which we must in all cafes regulate our conduct towards our neighbor; and it is a rule plain, fimple, concife, intelligible, comprehenfive, and every way worthy of its divine author. Whenever we are deliberating how we ought to act towards our neighbor in any particu lar inftance, we must for a moment change fituations with him in our own minds, we must place him in our circumftances and ourselves in his, and then whatever we should wifh him to do to us, that we are to do to him. This is a process, in which, if we act fairly and impartially, we can never be mistaken. Our own feelings will determine our conduct at once better than all the cafuifts in the world. But before we entirely quit the confideration of this precept, we must take fome notice of the obfervation fubjoined to it, which will require a little explanation. “Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, de ye even fo to them; for this is the law and the prophets.” The concluding claufe, this is the law and the prophets, has by fome been interpreted to mean, this is the fum and fubftance of all religion; as if religion confifted folely in behaving justly and kindly to our fellow creatures, and beyond this no other duty was required at our handsBut this conclufion is as groundless as it is dangerous and unfcriptural. There are duties furely of another order, equally neceffary at least, and equally important with those we owe to our neighbor. There are duties, in the first place, owing to our Creator, whom we are bound to honor, to venerate, to worfhip, to obey, and to love with all our hearts and fouls, and mind, and ftrength. There are duties owing to our Redeemer, of affection, attachment, gratitude, faith in his divine miffion, and reliance on the atonement he made for us on the cro ́s. There are laftly, acts of difcipline and felf government to be exercised over our corrupt propenfities and irregular defires. Accordingly, in the very chapter we have just been confidering, we are commanded to foek firit the kingdom of God and his righteoufnefs. We are in another place informed, that the love of God is the first and great commandment, and the love of our neighbor only the fecond; and we are taught by St. James that one main branch of religion is to keep ourselves unfpotted from the world*. It is impoffible, therefore, that our bleffed Lord could here mean to fay, that our duty towards our neighbor was the whole of his religion; he fays nothing in fact of his religion; he speaks only of the Jewish religion, the law and the prophets; and of these he only fays that one of the great objects they have in view is * James i. 27. |