of the Holy Spirit, who penetrates your hearts, enlightens your understandings, inclines your will, and helps your weakness, without being serious. You cannot think of death and the grave; you cannot think of a resurrection and final judgment, on which will depend your sentence either to eternal happiness or eternal misery, without being serious. All these subjects are of most high concern to those who profess themselves Christians: show, therefore, by your behaviour in this sacred place, where you are now met; show it, more especially, when you approach the altar, that you have on your minds a sense of seriousness suitable to the nature of the present holy solemnity.

You are

All the ordinances of religion are designed and calculated to make us better. The office, which you are now attending, will have that effect, if you will duly consider the substance of what you are about to say, and the consequence to which it should lead. about to promise you will be the disciples of Christ. If, indeed, you will be Christ's disciples, you must renounce and resist sin; for positive is the obligation of this precept, "Let every one that nameth the name of Christ "depart from iniquity." (2 Tim. ii. 19.)

You will find continual opportunities for making it evident, that you came to this solemnity with good intentions; and, that by the grace of God assisting you, it is your purpose to derive improvement from it. Begin this day. It will not be dec hat you should depart from the church till al have been confirmed, and till Congregation

anity to the present times. Following the good example set them by millions of wise and pious persons, who had lived before them, your parents brought you to be baptized, whilst you were yet infants. In so doing, they manifested true and pious regard for you, since they would not withhold you from the covenanted benefits of an appointed ordinance. Thus in your infancy you received the sign of the covenant; but now you must undertake to fulfil the terms of it.

The religion which we profess, we derive from the Gospel. That Gospel teaches us to acknowledge one God; one Lord; one Holy Spirit; one baptism; one hope of our calling, even the hope of being blessed by God in a future state, if we believe what the Gospel requires, and observe what the Gospel commands.

You are here assembled this day, for the solemn purpose of declaring that you do believe what the Gospel requires you to believe, and that you will labour to observe what the Gospel commands. After that declaration, as divine assistance is no less necessary for your souls, than divine providence for your bodies, you will pray yourselves, and prayers will also be offered up for you, to Almighty God, that, by the powerful help of his Holy Spirit, you may increase in goodness, and be enabled to persevere in the practice of all Christian duties to the end of your lives.

Every subject and every circumstance connected with the present solemnity should make you serious. You cannot think of God, who is just to punish sinners, as well as merciful to forgive penitents, without being serious. You cannot think of the divine nature and exalted dignity of Christ our Lord; you cannot think of all he vouchsafed to do for the human race, that He might redeem us from the guilt, punishment, and practice of sin, without being serious. You cannot think

of the Holy Spirit, who penetrates your hearts, enlightens your understandings, inclines your will, and helps your weakness, without being serious. You cannot think of death and the grave; you cannot think of a resurrection and final judgment, on which will depend your sentence either to eternal happiness or eternal misery, without being serious. All these subjects are of most high concern to those who profess themselves Christians: show, therefore, by your behaviour in this sacred place, where you are now met; show it, more especially, when you approach the altar, that you have on your minds a sense of seriousness suitable to the nature of the present holy solemnity.

All the ordinances of religion are designed and calculated to make us better. The office, which you are now attending, will have that effect, if you will duly consider the substance of what you are about to say, and the consequence to which it should lead.

You are

about to promise you will be the disciples of Christ. If, indeed, you will be Christ's disciples, you must renounce and resist sin; for positive is the obligation of this precept, "Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity." (2 Tim. ii. 19.)

66

You will find continual opportunities for making it evident, that you came to this solemnity with good intentions; and, that by the grace of God assisting you, it is your purpose to derive improvement from it. Begin this day. It will not be decent that you should depart from the church till all, who are now present, have been confirmed, and till the whole service for this

congregation has been completed. But when you are dismissed from the church, you will act as becomes you, if all are careful that their deportment should be grave; and if all return to their own homes, not only

anity to the present times. Following the good example set them by millions of wise and pious persons, who had lived before them, your parents brought you to be baptized, whilst you were yet infants. In so doing, they manifested true and pious regard for you, since they would not withhold you from the covenanted benefits of an appointed ordinance. Thus in your infancy you received the sign of the covenant; but now you must undertake to fulfil the terms of it.

The religion which we profess, we derive from the Gospel. That Gospel teaches us to acknowledge one God; one Lord; one Holy Spirit; one baptism; one hope of our calling, even the hope of being blessed by God in a future state, if we believe what the Gospel requires, and observe what the Gospel commands.

You are here assembled this day, for the solemn purpose of declaring that you do believe what the Gospel requires you to believe, and that you will labour to observe what the Gospel commands. After that declaration, as divine assistance is no less necessary for your souls, than divine providence for your bodies, you will pray yourselves, and prayers will also be offered up for you, to Almighty God, that, by the powerful help of his Holy Spirit, you may increase in goodness, and be enabled to persevere in the practice of all Christian duties to the end of your lives.

Every subject and every circumstance connected with the present solemnity should make you serious. You cannot think of God, who is just to punish sinners, as well as merciful to forgive penitents, without being serious. You cannot think of the divine nature and exalted diguity of Christ our Lord; you cannot think of all he vouchsafed to do for the human race, that He might redeem us from the guit, punishment, and practice of sin, without being serious. You cannot think

of the Holy Spirit, who penetrates your hearts, enlightens your understandings, inclines your will, and helps your weakness, without being serious. You cannot think of death and the grave; you cannot think of a resurrection and final judgment, on which will depend your sentence either to eternal happiness or eternal misery, without being serious. All these subjects are of most high concern to those who profess themselves Christians: show, therefore, by your behaviour in this sacred place, where you are now met; show it, more especially, when you approach the altar, that you have on your minds a sense of seriousness suitable to the nature of the present holy solemnity.

All the ordinances of religion are designed and calculated to make us better. The office, which you are now attending, will have that effect, if you will duly consider the substance of what you are about to say, and the consequence to which it should lead. You are

about to promise you will be the disciples of Christ. If, indeed, you will be Christ's disciples, you must renounce and resist sin; for positive is the obligation of this precept, "Let every one that nameth the name of Christ "depart from iniquity." (2 Tim. ii. 19.)

You will find continual opportunities for making it evident, that you came to this solemnity with good intentions; and, that by the grace of God assisting you, it is your purpose to derive improvement from it. Begin this day. It will not be decent that you should depart from the church till all, who are now present, have been confirmed, and till the whole service for this congregation has been completed. But when you are dismissed from the church, you will act as becomes you, if all are careful that their deportment should be grave; and if all return to their own homes, not only