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versation and a holy behaviour, truth, temperance, charity, sobriety, and self-denial, these are the essential fruits of a justifying faith, the inseparable evidence of our becoming an heir of immortality. For the grand deciding question at the last day, when Christ Jesus comes in the glorious majesty of heaven, will be-not what we have said, not what we have professed, but what we have done more than others for religion and for God. The Judge of the universe tells us the very words he will say to mankind at that day. When all nations shall be gathered before him, the Son of man shall separate them, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats. Then the king shall say to them on his right hand, "I was an hungered and ye gave me meat, I was a stranger and ye took me in, naked and ye clothed me, sick and in prison, and ye visited me, come ye blessed of my Father inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." But he will say to them on his left hand, "Depart from me ye wicked into everlasting fire, for I was hungry and ye gave me nɔ meat, I was a stranger and ye took me not in, I was sick and in prison and ye never visited me." They will answer, that they remember not that they thus slighted the Saviour of the world. "When saw we thee, and did not minister to thee." Then will he silence them with a consuming frown. "Inasmuch as ye showed not mercy to one of my hungry, naked, and afflicted creatures, ye showed no mercy to me." So true it is, that these empty professors of religion will make a thousand excuses at the bar of GOD, but they will all avail nothing if charity be not there we speak not of charity alone. Equally necessary to salvation are all the other graces of religion; but the greatest of these is charity: by charity I mean the love of GoD and

inan.

My Christian hearers, how fully doth the preacher on the Mount instruct us, that the knowledge of our duty is no better than a tree which produceth flourishing leaves, but year after year hath no fruit upon it; or, in the higher simile of our divine Teacher, than a house built upon the sand. From that Divine Preacher, then, we gather the true notion of Christian edification, which his servant Jude finely expresses by "building up ourselves in our most holy faith." It is not, as an old divine says, the filling our heads with unprofitable notions of religion, and pleasing our itching ears with a variety of teachers, and pretending to be mightily moved and affected by them, like a sort of people St. Paul mentions, who could not endure sound doctrine, ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. Sound religion, the religion which will save a man, is in the power of the Spirit, and in the faith of Jesus Christ, whose example we must keep before us, to grow in grace-to show, out of a good conversation, our works with meekness-to give all diligence to make our election sure, by adding to our faith virtue, by being just towards man and devout towards GOD.

These are exhortations of the Holy Scripture. How much, therefore, to be blamed, and how far short of the glory of GoD are those persons, who, having lived an uncharitable, or intemperate, or ungodly life, still go the dangerous length of saying, We expect to be saved, because we firmly believe that, through the merits of Jesus Christ, our sins are forgiven us.

This is the Antinomian heresy, an opinion which I trust in God will never find its way into my congregation. For it is a child of hell. To such a one I would say, Who does not believe that the sins of a man, who trusts firmly in Christ, is for

given, provided he both hears the sayings of his Saviour, and doeth them with a cheerful heart and an honest purpose. Christ is an all-sufficient Saviour, but the Gospel hath conditions; eternal glory is not the purchase of a base desire; heaven is not the reward of fruitless prayers and of presumptuous wishes. Christ Jesus is, indeed, the only rock of our salvation. Thanks be to GOD for that unspeakable gift. So entirely do faith, and hope, and mercy, and life, center in him, that an unshaken belief of our pardon and acceptance with GOD through Christ's intercession, and in virtue of his all-prevailing sacrifice, is the foundation, the only, the entire foundation we are to lay. There is, St. Paul says, no other foundation that any man can lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ; and the deeper this foundation is laid the better, for there is no limit to its atoning efficacy, no end to its recompence of glory. It could have saved ten thousand worlds, if so many worlds had fallen. It is infinite, inexhaustible, unchangable, everlasting. It is the power and the wisdom of God.

My brethren, the matter is perfectly clear. St. Paul long since laid it down, and we see every day we live, with hearts more thankful, the beauty, the solidity, which his doctrine gave to our religion when he writes-"By faith a man is justified,” and “GOD forbid that any man should glory save in the cross of Christ." But this faith must be such a principle as the Founder of our religion requires in his sermon on the Mount; it must be a vital obediential, working, sanctifying faith, a faith which, not fearing to wrestle with principalities and powers of darkness, when the glory of GoD and the good of mankind are concerned, demonstrates to the world that the true believer keeps his Saviour's command. ments, because he loves him, and has

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no happiness but that of pleasing him. Away, then, with all the empty vows and fading promises of amendment which we so often hear from the lips of insincere and undecided Christians. No more let them boast of their fond reliance upon the goodness of their hearts, and the honesty of their intentions. The pretence of a good heart will never supplant the necessity of a good life. And very much may you question both the goodness of that man's heart, and the honesty of his intention, who doth not show both by the chastity of his conversation and the purity of his life, that his principal desire is to do the sayings of Christ as well as hear them.

Strange that a rational being, who hath all this constantly sounding in his ears, and applied to his conscience, and he at the same time believing it to be true, can yet all the while be very little, if any, affected by it. Worse than sandy is the foundation on which he builds his house of hope. When the winds, and the rains, and storms of temptation, adversity, and affliction, beat against that house, it is certain to fall, and dreadful will be the fall of it. For such a vain and false professor hopes to be saved against the very nature of that salvation which Christ brought down from the throne of grace; he hopes against every precept, promise, and threatening of the Gospel; he hopes against our Lord's own words, declared and enforced again and again ; nay, he hopes against the very end and design of the Saviour's coming into the world, which was to redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. If such a man, sheltering himself under the fortifications of spiritual pride and its most impious offspring, self-righteousness, should lastly urge as his refuge, that having been elected, he cannot fall from grace, I would answer, the conclusion may be

just, but the argument is false. Where is the proof of his election? Where the life of the Gospel? Suppose that an elected person cannot fall from grace, which is allowing him all he asks, yet he is no nearer the kingdom of GOD, because he never was in a state of grace, and therefore could not be elected.

There is no falling from a state to which a man never reached; no losing what he never possessed. But, ah, thou poor blind wandering creature, are these the best evidences thou hast for heaven? Are these that repentance, that faith, that love, that obedience upon which thou hopest to see thy Saviour in peace and safety, when thou hast passed through the gloomy valley of the shadow of death? Assure thyself that God will deal with thee upon very different terms. Mercy will fill the Judge's throne, but justice I will hold the scales of heaven. Hath not that God and judge before whom thou must appear, when every secret will be revealed, and the hidden things of darkness brought to light, hath He not enjoined thee to do whatsoever his Son hath commanded, and to fly from whatever he hath forbidden? | Hast thou done this? Hast thou strictly observed those laws and lessons which he hath laid before thee as thy duty? Hast thou subdued the passions, forsaken the pleasures, despised the world which he expected thee to mortify and deny thyself? Go again to hear the preacher of the Mount; listen to that heavenly sermon which God himself delivered; there thou wilt learn, from the lips of the Saviour in whom thou declarest that thy hope is placed, that if thou wouldst reach the kingdom of heaven, thou must be poor in spirit, and where is thy spiritual poverty? Thou must be pure in heart, and in what part of thy heart does purity dwell? But it is

needless to argue, where truth is so plain and peremptory.

In the path way to heaven, that kingdom where none can dwell but the holy, the merciful, and the just, the candidate for immortality must subdue his unruly appetités, curb his impetuous lusts, restrain his anger, and suppress his revenge. And if any thing prove an hindrance to him in his Christian pilgrimage, though it be dear to him as a right eye, he must pluck it out, or precious as a right hand, he must cut it off and cast it from him.

Thus, O professor of a divine religion, must thou take up thy cross and follow Christ. For thy Saviour expects that thou art ready to endure persecutions, revilings, and hatreds, not only patiently but also for the truth's sake. Therefore, he calls upon thee to love thine enemies, and to do good for evil, to bless those that curse thee, and to pray for those that despitefully use thee.

Go then, I again exhort thee, to the preacher of the Mount, if thou wouldst learn thy duty and save thy soul. If thou art a faithful hearer of Christ, thou will return from his preaching, convinced that thou must, whether in the bosom of thy family, or the bustle of the world, be meek and lowly, chaste and temperate, just and merciful, pious and a peace-maker; in a word, thou must strive to be, as far as the frailties and infirmities of thy nature will permit, pure as thy blessed Saviour is pure, perfect as thy Father in heaven is perfect. This, I say again, is the sum and substance of those sayings of the Divine preacher, which, if a man hear and do, thus adding to a steadfast faith an honest purpose, heaven with all its glories will be his, and not all the powers of darkness shall be able to move or hurt him.

If then we know from the lips of Him who loved us unto death, that

through the power of faith a conscien- | both holy and happy during our resitious observance of his laws will speak dence in this vale of uncertainty and peace to our conscience here, and stand sorrow. He will do more, even bebetween us and the wrath of GOD here- yond what we can wish or ask; he after, let us take that course which is will, at the day of judgment, when we certain to lead us first to earthly conso- are standing at his right hand among lation and afterwards to heavenly joy. his friends and disciples, "liken us unto Let us, amending our hearts and lives, a wise man who built his house upon and conforming our manners and affec- a strong foundation, and though the tions to his kingdom and his righteous- rains descended, and the winds blew, ness, leave all our hopes at the foot of his and the floods came, and beat against cross. Then, for he hath said it, he will that house, it fell not, for it was founded love us and dwell with us, and make us upon a rock." Amen.

A Sermon

DELIVERED BY THE REV. JOHN VAUGHAN, LL.B. CURATE AND LECTURER, AT ST. CLEMENT-DANES'S CHURCH, JULY 3, 1831.

2 Timothy, iii. 15-17.-" From a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of GOD, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness; that the man of GOD may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works."

WHEN the children of Israel were passing through the wilderness on their journey from the land of their captivity to the land of promise, "The Lord," we are told by Moses, in the thirteenth chapter of Exodus and twenty-first verse, "went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud to lead them on the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light." For the same gracious purpose for which the Lord was pleased to give them the pillar of a cloud, and the pillar of fire, he has been pleased to bestow on us the inestimable gift of the Scriptures.

We, my brethren, are pilgrims in the wilderness of this world; we are merely passing through it on our way to another. There is a better land of promise than Canaan; a land of which Canaan was but the type and shadow-a land of everlasting rest, and happiness, and glory, promised

to the people of GoD, when our warfare is accomplished, our course finished, and our pilgrimage ended. But how shall we find the way to it? For certain it is that many may miss it, and never arrive at the heavenly Canaan. They miss it, just as the children of Israel would have missed their way to the earthly Canaan, had they neglected to attend to the miraculous pillar of the cloud, and the pillar of fire. For, as these were given to guide them by day, and give them light by night, so are the Scriptures given to guide us on the road to heaven, and to afford us that light in a dark world by which we may be enabled to walk in "the narrow way which leadeth unto life."

They, then, who neglect the Scriptures, will have no reason to complain, if, when an entrance shall be ministered unto others abundantly into the

everlasting kingdom of our Lord and | the title given to the Scriptures by an

Saviour Jesus Christ, they find it denied to them.

May the same divine Spirit who indited the Scriptures, direct and bless what may be offered respecting them, while, from the passage before us, I shall take occasion to remark:

First-THE TITLE GIVEN TO THE SCRIPTURES. Secondly-THEIR AUTHORITY. Thirdly-THEIR IMPORTFourthly-THEIR GREAT

ANT USE.

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The Scriptures, or writings, contained in the Bible, have this title given to them, to distinguish them from all other writings of whatever description. Other books may have in them much that is good, but the Bible alone is HOLY. Other books, whether good or bad, are but the books of men, but the Bible is the book of GOD. To no other writings, therefore, could the title "Holy" be with propriety given-to these Scriptures it exclusively belongs. These in every respect are holy-they were dictated by the Holy Spirit to holy men-they contain holy precepts and promises, and reveal holy doctrines -point out holy motives, principles, and springs of action-display the beauty of holiness-declare its necessity, and are a principal instrument in producing it: agreeably to the words of our blessed Lord, recorded in the seventeenth chapter of St. John and seventeenth verse'Sanctify them through thy truththy word is truth."

None but the serious and diligent students of the Holy Scriptures-none who neglect the directions, precepts, and promises contained in them-will ever attain to that holiness, "without which no man shall see the Lord." Is such

inspired Apostle? Are they the Holy Scriptures? Then see, my brethren, that you regard them in their proper light. You cannot value them too much, reverence them too highly, or search them too diligently. Suffer not a day to pass without reading some portion of God's most holy word, and whenever you approach it, let it be with solemn awe, reverential regard, meek and teachable hearts, implicit submission, simple faith, and humble prayer. Beware of a careless and trifling spirit, beware of a curious and cavilling spirit-rocks on which thousands have made shipwreck. When the Holy Bible is taken up and opened, the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. Consider, in the Second place,

THE AUTHORITY OF THE HOLY SCRIP"All Scripture is give by in

TURES.

spiration of God.”

And

Can words be more plain? yet, in direct contradiction to this testimony of the Apostle, there have been, and are those, who have had the folly and hardihood to assert, that the Scriptures are not wholly inspired, but only some parts of them. But the assertions of men are of no value and merit, no regard, when they thus contradict the declarations of GOD in his Holy word. May the Lord Jehovah, by the influences of his Holy Spirit, open the eyes of such persons, and deliver them from the guilt and misery of an evil heart of unbelief! "All Scripture is given by inspiration of GoD." The Holy Scriptures are not the effusions of human genius, talent, and invention-they are not the offspring of human labour and learning-they are not the mere productions of men, but a revelation of the mind and will of GOD, made by GOD himself. Those by whom the various books of Scripture were written, wrote under the immediate influence of the Spirit of

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