to say: "Oh, that I knew where I might find him! that I might come even to his seat?" Let them never lose this desire, till holy affections supply its place. Let them never suffer these impressions to wear away; till they obtain peace of conscience and joy in the Holy Ghost. Let them never cease to fear; till their fear is cast out by perfect love. Let them repent and return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon them. Now is the accepted time. This is the day of grace. The Spirit of God is striving with you. Resist not his suggestions. Embrace the offered mercy. Lose not the opportunity by delay. Return; come. To-day, if you will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

3. Look forward to the future. Are any impenitent sinners now perfectly easy and contented in their sins, speaking peace to their souls, believing a lie, trusting to a refuge of lies, going down to the grave with a lie in their right hand? Let such be once more warned of their danger. The evil day will surely come. How often is the candle of the wicked suddenly put out! Your false hopes will, sooner or later, be cut off and perish, and, without repentance, you will have your portion with hypocrites and unbelievers. Neglect not, I beseech you, this warning, lest you should suffer the day of grace to pass unimproved; lest you should not see your danger, till it is too late to escape; lest you should finally fall under this heavy, but just, denunciation of the Almighty: "Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; But ye have set at nought my counsel, and would none of my reproof; I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; when your fear cometh as desolation and

your destruction as a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you." Wherefore be persuaded to "seek the Lord, while he may be found, and call upon him, while he is near." And may he, who caused the light to shine out of darkness, shine into all our minds, to give us the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.-AMEN.

LECTURE XXVI.

SALVATION BY GRACE, WITH A TEST OF CHRISTIAN CHARACTER.

1 CORINTHIANS VI. 20.

YE ARE BOUGHT WITH A PRICE; THEREFORE, GLORIFY GOD IN YOUR BODY, AND IN YOUR SPIRIT, WHICH ARE GOD'S.

CHRISTIANITY is a consistent religion, worthy of its divine Author, and adapted to the wants of man. Like a well proportioned and well finished edifice, all its parts are fitly joined together, and compacted by that which every joint supplieth. In it, all the divine attributes appear in harmony; and the character, the condition, the duty and the destination of the human race are clearly exhibited. It unites justice with mercy, grace with truth, pardon with sanctification, holiness with felicity. While it offers forgiveness, it calls to repentance; while it promises assistance, it demands active obedience; while it opens the gates of heaven, it marks out the straight and narrow way, by which alone they can be entered. It is truly a religion of mercy, of grace, of love; but it is likewise a religion of justice, of truth, of purity, of holiness. In it, indeed, justice and mercy meet together; and and righteousness and peace embrace each

other.

Christians are taught by their inspired instructors, that they are saved, not by works of righteousness, which they have done, but by grace through faith; and yet they are required by the same authority, as evidence of their faith and proof of their gracious acceptance with God, to maintain good works; to bring forth fruit unto holiness; to deny ungodliness with every worldly lust, and to live soberly, righteously and godly in the world. They are even taught, that sanctification is the only sure evidence of justification; that genuine repentance will always bring forth "fruit, meet for repentance;" that saving faith must work by love; that a well-grounded hope cannot fail to purify the heart; that, if any man be in Christ Jesus, he is a new creature; and if any man have not the spirit of Christ he is none of his. Thus the doctrines and the duties, the promises and the precepts, the consolations and the commands of the gospel are united; and rendered subservient to each other.

Our text is an example of this union and mutual subserviency. It consists, you perceive, of a doctrinal statement and a practical exhortation. The exhortation is a direct inference from the doctrine; and the doctrine furnishes the purest and most commanding motives, to induce us to regard the exhortation. The doctrine is a doctrine of grace: "Ye are bought with a price." The exhortation is an exhortation to holy obedience: "Therefore, glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's."

Our text, then, naturally divides itself into two distinct parts. The doctrine, which stands first in order, first claims our attention.

I. "Ye are bought with a price." If it be asked, of whom the apostle says this; we answer, of them in the first place, to whom the language of the text

was originally addressed. They are described in the preface to the epistle itself, in these words: "Paul called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sothenes our brother unto the church of God, which is at Corinth; to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus, our Lord, both theirs and ours: Grace be unto you and peace from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ." All that is implied in the statement of the text, then, was said with primary reference to believers at Corinth, when the epistle was written. But, it may be asked, Was the application intended to be confined to them; and is the language of the statement to receive this restricted interpretation? In answer to this inquiry, it might be deemed sufficient to remark, that the divine government proceeds upon general principles, that God is no respecter of persons, that what was true, therefore, of those, to whom the language of the text was originally addressed, will in every age and in every place, be true, of all who possess the same character. The question, however, seems to have been anticipated and answered, in a clause of the introduction to the epistle, already quoted; where the apostle subjoins to the description of the Corinthian Christians, the following comprehensive language; "with all, that in every place, call upon the name of Jesus our Lord, both theirs and ours." But if this is not sufficient to justify an extended interpretation of the statement, we have an inspired canon of interpretation, decisive of the question; for we are expressly told that "no Scripture is of any private interpretation." We are not required, therefore, to restrict the meaning and limit the application of a Scripture promise or declaration to the particular persons to