events of God's chosen people, the posterity of Jacob, commonly called the children of Israel, represents very fully the character of real Christians, and the manner of God's dealing with them. They are not, from a state of bondage, darkness, and sorrow, at once transplanted into a paradise of rest and enjoyment; but are brought through a dreary wilderness, and to a land good in itself, but, for the possession of every foot of which they are compelled to fight. Possession is the result of danger and conflict, and the death of some. We must, my brethren, through much tribulation enter into the kingdom. My young bro ther, who art entering on the Christian course and the Christian warfare, thinkest thou, all at once, to gain the ascendancy over thy evil propensities? There is not, my brother, reason, if we judge by the experience of those who have preceded thee, to expect it. The enemy of God, who is still allowed an existence in the universe, will not so readily desist from whatever may be in his power to harm thee. The influence of corrupt nature, and the effects of habit, are not so easily overcome-thy resolutions made to-day and broken to-morrow, do not so readily attain a fixed and determined character. There is no period, my brother, on this side the grave, at which a Christian can say, "My warfare is accomplished," much less at the beginning of his career. This representation is, we believe, the fact; and being by Heaven's permission, it is therefore wise and good. No doubt God could make the earth bring forth spontaneously all that is necessary for man, without his effort or labour. But it was not done even in Paradise. No doubt Heaven could perfect the Christian life, and complete the Christian character at once; but it is not done. We therefore infer, that industry and effort are better, both for the natural and spiritual man, than ease and indulgence: and hence also God is pleased to permit infirmities, temptations, trials, and persecutions, during the whole of a Christian's sojourn on earth.

Is the Christian then abandoned and unsupported? left single-handed to withstand the assaults of the devil, the world, and the flesh? O, no! There is a voice from heaven,

speaking audibly to his anxious spirit, and that voice comes from the Lord Christ, saying,

"Sufficient for thee is MY grace; for MY power is in (thy) weakness perfected.”

This supplies a fifth topic, to which I respectfully solicit your attention. And we must here stop for a moment to attend to the Person speaking. At the commencement of our discourse, we adverted to the fact, that the Lord Christ, who gave the promise, was the Person to whom the Apostle prayed. To remove the "infirmity," or weakness, or temptation, which St. Paul spoke of metaphorically, as a thorn in the flesh, he thrice, in solemn prayer, besought the Lord. But the Being who is prayed to, must, according to the Christian Scripture, be the true God. Angels, who are of a higher nature than human creatures, in Holy Scripture, refuse to be worshipped; and they direct mistaken mortals, that worship must not be offered to them, but to God. Our text is one of many passages contained in Holy Writ, from which light incidentally falls upon the great and fundamentally important question of our Lord's real character. That is, his two-fold character-very God, and very man. St. Paul speaks of the Man Christ Jesus, and St. Paul prays to the Lord Christ. Did St. Paul then worship a mere man? or a superhuman being? or, did he worship God? Admitting that Christianity is true, and that St. Paul understood and practised it; if he worshipped either man or angel, we see no difference in this respect, between Christianity and the hero or demon worship of China, or of any other part of the world; and their worship also, on this supposition, must be proper. But if, when he worshipped the "Lord Christ," the object of his worship was not similar to objects of worship in the pagan world, but was God; then the Lord Christ is God. This, my brethren, as you well know, is the fact of Divine Revelation of the nature or mode of God's existence, and how the divine and human natures are united, we know nothing. But, as is perfectly reasonable, we human creatures, (even if our nature were of a higher order than it is, and possessed all the intelligence of innocence and perfection)

must believe implicitly the testimony of our Creator concerning himself. From Revelation we know that Jesus is Emmanuel, which being interpreted from the Hebrew into the English tongue, means, "God with us." The Saviour is styled, "God manifest in the flesh," or in human nature. It is written, that," Christ Jesus, being in the form of God, was made in the likeness of men." The evident scope and import of the Bible is, that Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world, is God-man: that in the Person of Christ, we behold Deity-incarnate. And, according to the Scriptures, it is equally evident that the Person of Christ, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, constitute One Jehovah. For most clearly do the Sacred Writings declare the doctrine, that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Ghost is God; yet there are not three Gods, but ONE only; and He is the living and true God. The Jehovah, or God of the Bible, is ONE-Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and whichever term be used, the import still is, that this Three-one Jehovah is the only true and proper object of worship. In the practice of mankind, there is nothing more usual than to speak of the same person under different relations, and our Saviour, the Lord Christ, is, throughout the New Testament, also spoken of in this variety of manner. In the language of our text he is evidently spoken of in relation to his divine nature; for, most apparent is it, that the grace or favour promised to St. Paul, is not the grace or favour either of man or of angel, or super-angelic being, but the grace or favour of the Divinity. Alas, what consolation could it afford to be told by a human being, "My grace is sufficient for thee; for my strength is made perfect in weakness." If Jesus were a mere man, as some in our day assert, (and we fear blasphemously,) why should not the Apostle Paul as well trust in himself, as trust in the Prophet Jesus; and glory in his own Apostolic power, as glory in the power of Christ? According to the heterodox opinions of Arius and of Socinus, O what a meagre, miserable, system is Christianity! and how discordant the various precepts and declarations of the Bible. In places unnumbered, we have

idolatry denounced, and curses heaped on the head of him who shall trust in an arm of flesh; whilst, in the passage before us, we have St. Paul, the chief of the Apostles, (supposing Socinianism true,) praying to a creature—a mere human being.

But according to the orthodox creed-the twofold nature of Christ, and the Trinity-in-Unity-Holy Scripture is all plain, perspicuous, and consistent. The consolations that are in Christ are divine consolations, the promise of his favour, and the presence of his power, secure to the Christian in the time of his infirmity or weakness, the gracious regards of infinite benevolence, and the unweared support of an Almighty arm. Here we see sense, and significance, and propriety, and wisdom, in St. Paul's determination to glory in the power of Christ resting on him; but, on the other supposition, neither common sense nor common propriety are at all discernible. Glorying in a deceased fellow-creature's power resting upon him! How utterly incredible! If this be well, they also do well who remove their confidence from God, and trust in living fellow mortals, or glory in their own wisdom, power, or skill. But "thus saith the LORD, (he whose name is Jehovah,) Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty glory in his might; let not the rich man glory in his riches; but let him that glorieth, glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me that I am the LORD, which exercise loving-kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth for in these things I delight, saith the LORD." Well, but, Jesus Christ promises to exercise "loving-kindness, judgement, and righteousness, in the earth," therefore the Lord Christ is the true Jehovah.

One disposed to cavil may object, "I have misrepresented St. Paul: he says, he will "glory in his infirmities ;" but does not say, he will "glory in the power of Christ.” In answer to this, I reply, True, St. Paul says he will "glory in his infirmities," but it is not in the infirmities themselves that he gloried, for he anxiously desired to have them removed. He gloried in their proving an occasion for Christ's power to rest upon him; and, therefore, manifestly

it was that power which was the object of his glorying. He was no longer mortified and distressed about those things which proved the means of so glorious a result.

Having good reason then to conclude that the promise of the Lord Christ is the promise of the true and proper object of worship, that is, of One possessing all the attri butes and perfections of Diety-self-existence, eternity, omnipresence, omniscience, omnipotence, incomprehensi bleness; also wisdom, goodness, justice, mercy, holiness, and truth, all in an infinite degree; we may see clearly the value of his promises. Oh how rich the consolation to be derived from-oh how rational the confidence to be reposed in, a promise of Jehovah-Jesus! whose deep and intense interest in the happiness of man has been so wonderfully displayed. For he took not on him the nature of angels, but of the children of Abraham-the nature of man. For man's sake he condescended to be born into our world, to sustain the form of a servant; to bear poverty, insult, agony, and death, even the death of the cross-the slow and ignominous death of the accursed tree!

But it may be objected, the promise I refer to was made to Paul, not to us. An answer to this brings us to a sixth topic of discourse.

It is true, that there are, in Holy Scripture, specific promises on some subjects, made to particular individuals ; and we believe it is equally true, that there are very many precious promises made, not to particular individuals, but to all who sustain a given character; as for example, to those who fear God, who trust in him, who believe in Jesus, who are humble, and pure, and peaceable; and, further, some of those promises made to individuals, may safely be applied to all, who resemble the characters of the individuals to whom the promise was originally made.

The case before us, we apprehended, comes under this class; all who, like St. Paul, are conscious of their infirmities, lament them, and pray to God either for deliverance or help either for a removal of the temptation, or a way to be opened to escape from it-may consider the Saviour's promise as justly applicable to themselves. For seeing