3dly. It is transitory. This is too obvious in view of all that has been said to need further illustration, and yet it is too important to be passed without distinct recognition.

They have their portion in this life and what is this life? It is even a vapor which appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. They themselves, however, are to exist forever: and having had their good things here, they have no more a portion forever. To-day full of anxiety on account of some unfavorable turn of affairs, or full of exultation at the success of their plans, and to-morrow overwhelmed with horrors at the notice of approaching death, with no preparation for the event, and no power of escape:-all their acquisitions to be relinquished, and remembered by them only as the price at which they sold immortal blessedness. "O Lord! deliver my soul from the wickedfrom men of the world, which have their portion in this life!" Who of us, my hearers, belong to the class that is thus described? Who of us, as distinguished from the people of God, are men of the world? Whose thoughts tend to the things of this world, and not to the things of God? Whose feelings are interested, whose desires and regrets, hopes and fears, joys and griefs are excited by worldly incidents and objects, and not by the objects and concerns of the spiritual and eternal world? Whose converse with kindred minds flows easily and naturally, as water from a fountain, out of the abundance of worldly thoughts and affections within, and not from the fullness of spiritual knowledge and experience? Whose conduct is decided by respect to the interests, opinions, customs, and friendships of the present world, and not by a regard to God the Redeemer, a judgment to come, and the recompense of the reward?

Such naturally are we all-and it would be wonderful if many in a congregation like this were not such still-and some who hope and profess to be different. To be really no longer of the world while we are in it; to be no more governed by its spirit, conformed to its principles, or devoted to its ends; to be transformed in the renewing of our minds, to be walking by faith, to be living to God;-looking to things eternal, and setting our af fections on things above, is no slight thing; and to set it down that such is our own experience if we are not conscious that it is really so, is a horrible delusion. A speculative conviction-a transient impression-a hope-a profession-a nominal and even respectable standing in the church, cannot prove that we are not of the world. "Verily, verily, I say unto you," is the word of the great Teacher, "except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." Whose experience and life prove him by this standard to be not of the world, but called out of the world? Whom will Christ acknowledge as such when the world will have passed away, and the lusts thereof? The test may seem to some of you severe; but I did not make and I cannot alter it. It is

.

established by the word of God; "and who may abide the day of his coming?"

Have you indeed received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God, that ye may know the mercies that are freely given you of God? Then never envy the men of the world however God may fill their bosoms with his treasures. Rather pity them that they have so poor a portion: and the more because they refuse a better-immortal beings choosing a portion in this life-a portion so unsatisfying, embittered with so many anxious cares and tumultuous passions; affording them so little solace under the ills of life, and leaving them comfortless to the miseries of eternity. O! let the bowels of your compassion be moved for them, however any of them, in the pride of their elevation, may scorn or tread upon you. Let the consideration of the restlessness of their lives, and the miseries of their end, subdue every feeling of resentment, and turn all repining thoughts into prayers for their repentance; and above all constrain you so to live as to convince them that you believe there is a better portion, and have made choice of it. And oh! "Ye men of the world"

-Ye hungry, starving souls,

That feed upon the wind,

And vainly strive with earthly toys
To fill the immortal mind-

I exhort you to consider these things.

My object in urging them I freely acknowledge is to make you unhappy; to make you discontented with your portion; to make you dissatisfied with yourselves-for unless you become so, in this world, you will be so most intensely and desperately in the next. Until you are utterly and absolutely dissatisfied to be men of the world, you will never be in earnest for a change. Cleaving to a portion here, you will be careless of a portion hereafter. I pray you, therefore, think of these things; and if they make you unhappy, let them put you upon seeking a happiness which they will not disturb. If there is any truth or importance in these things; if you have any concern in them; if the things which await you as accountable and immortal beings make haste, and you have any thing to do that you may secure a good part, that shall not be taken from you-a treasure in the heavens that will not fail-then I entreat you think on these things. If you find it difficult to think on them-to get deep and influential impressions of them, be the more alarmed at your state, strive the more earnestly, with the more determined purpose, and the more ago nizing prayerfulness against the worldliness that is destroying you, think on these things-think on them till they have the character of realities in your minds-think on them till you feel and act in regard to them, as your reason and conscience approve.

These, indeed, are not the only things that claim your earnest thoughts. Were there no other, I would not have said a word to you of them. Were there not a better portion-a portion large as your desires, and lasting as the mind, I would leave you cleaving to the world while you can enjoy it.

But, "See," is the call of God himself, "I have set before you life and death-therefore choose life that you may live." He offers himself to be your Portion, and calls upon you to choose him as such. He demands that you give him your hearts, and promises that he will be your God. He invites you to make his service your delight, and engages to make your wants his care. Though you are sinful, he calls you to his throne of grace, confessing your sins, and promises freely for Christ's sake to forgive you. Though you are blind and weak, and tempted, he bids you come to him, and he in Christ will be your wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption. Will you then hesitate? Will you put your trust in this vain world, and not in the God who made and redeemed you? Will you set your affections on those things that are on the earth, and not on those things which are above, where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God? Will you turn your backs on the proffered love of the Infinite God, and the melting invitation of a bleeding Saviour, and the everlasting glories of his heavenly kingdom, that you may spend your inch of time in the lust of the fleshthe lust of the eyes and the pride of life? Oh! come this daythis hour obey the persuasive call. Come-come yield yourselves to God. Say, What have I to do any more with idols? Lord, I give myself to thee. Truly I am thy servant-I am thy servant. Thou hast loosed my bonds.

SERMON DCXXXI.

BY REV. NOAH PORTER, D.D.,

FARMINGTON, CONNECTICUT.

THE PORTION OF THE SAINTS.

"Thou art my portion, O Lord."-PSALM CXix. 57.

So said Holy David. So ought we every one to be prepared to say. To every living man God offers himself in the Gospel as his portion, and it is the highest duty as it is also the highest felicity of every one to accept the offer. To impress you with this, I would show in what sense God is the portion of his people, and how as such he is distinguished from every other portion.

I. In what sense God is the portion of his people. The portion of any one is that on which he depends for his happiness; the object of his highest delight and confidence; his chief good. Moses, speaking of the division of the earth by the Most High among the posterity of Noah after the deluge, says, that this was done with reference to his design of establishing the people of Israel in the land of Canaan; and he assigns this as the reason: "For the Lord's portion is his people, Jacob is the lot of his inheritance"-a form of expression truly remarkable. That God should be the portion of His people is not wonderful, except on account of his condescension in sustaining to them such a relation. Being offered to them in this relation, it is most reasonable that they receive and regard him accordingly. But that they should be his portion-the portion of Him "who is before all things, and by whom all things consist," and therefore can neither need them nor receive any thing from them, may well excite our admiration. But when we consider that they are the only part of mankind who are voluntarily subservient to his praise, and whom he can regard with delight, the declaration, though not on that account the less gracious, is more intelligible. Though all the world is his, the children of Israel were, and the church of the redeemed now is, separated by his grace, from the rest of mankind, especially for his service and praise; and as such is the object of his peculiar delight, his "treasure," his "inheritance," his "portion." "Know ye, that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself." So among men, although one may have other possessions, that which he especially depends upon and values, is his portion. It may be his farm, or the emolument of his office, or his treasures; or it may be a friend, parent, husband, guardian, child. There is a widow desolate and poor. She has neither house, nor land, nor treasure-nothing of this kind that she can call her own. But she has an only son; he is of age, and is all that her hopes had promised-dutiful, healthful, active, prudent, successful. He, under God, is her provider and protector, her solace and joy. He is her earthly portion-a portion better than houses, or lands, or gold, since he is not only all that to her which these could be, and without the care of them, but as he is a partaker of the same intelligent and immortal nature with herself, and bound to her by ties that are peculiar to that nature. In him she has a delight which only mind in mind is capable of enjoying, and this, as the case may be, although he is far from her sight, on the other side of the globe, and communicating with her only in such methods as society has established. You may well imagine how peculiarly she regards him; how much he is present to her in thought; how affectionately he dwells in her heart; with what delight she leans upon him; how satisfied she is with her lot, so far as earthly things can give satisfaction, while she knows of his welfare, and what a

wilderness the world would be to her were she to hear of his death. All this you understand; and you have only to put the living God in the place of such an earthly friend, that you may as well understand in what sense God is the portion of his people. "The Lord appeared unto Abraham in a vision, saying, Fear not, I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward." Observe the form of this language. It is much more than saying, “I ensure thee protection, and will give thee a reward." It imports that he himself, the Almighty God, would be his protection and reward, interposing himself between Abraham and every threatening danger, and becoming himself the object of his complete and everlasting joy. To the same purpose he afterwards revealed himself to Abraham as the Almighty, that is, the All-sufficient God-and commanding him to walk before him and be perfect, subjoined, "As for me, behold my covenant is with thee, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee." Whatever he was in himself as God, that he would be to Abraham and his seed. He would be "their God;" his wisdom would be theirs to guide and counsel them; his power would be theirs to protect and succor them; his goodness would be theirs to supply and comfort them; his dominion would be theirs to overrule all things for their good; and the glories of his infinite nature would be theirs to satisfy their eternal confidence and delight. The condition of the promise was, that they should walk before him, and be perfect, not in the sense of sinlessness, but of sincerity: that they should truly and practically acknowledge him as their God, should worship and glorify him, live as under his eye, aim in all things to please him, and be constant and unreserved in their belief of his word and obedience to his will.

These promises of God are made in Christ to all believers. "For is he God of the Jews only? Is he not the God of the Gentiles also? Yes, of the Gentiles also, seeing it is one God which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and the uncircumcision through faith." The end of Christ in giving himself for us, the just for the unjust, was to bring us to God; and this is attained when in our justification through him his God becomes ours. "Behold the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah. Not according to the covenant which I made in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the house of Egypt, because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord. I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts, and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people. And they shall no more teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, know the Lord, for all shall know him from the least unto the greatest. For I will be merci