companion in the tomb? Will light never rise on the long night of the grave? Does the mighty flood that has swept away the nations and the ages, ebb to flow no more? Have the wise and the worthy; the pious and the pure; the generous and the just; the great and the good; the excellent ones of the earth, who, from age to age, have shone brighter than all the stars of heaven, withdrawn into the shade of annihilation, and set in darkness to rise no more? No. While "the dust returns to the "earth as it was, the spirit shall return unto "God who gave it." Life and immortality are brought to light by the Gospel of Christ. "We know, that if our earthly house of this "tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, "eternal in the heavens,"

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The periods of human life passing away; the certainty of the dissolution which awaits us, and the frequent examples of mortality, which continually strike our view, lead us to reflect with seriousness upon the house appointed for all living. Death is the great teacher of mankind; the voice of wisdom comes from the tomb; reflections, which shew us the vanity, will teach us the value of life. Such meditations are particularly suited to beings like us, who are subject to infirmities

and defects. For such is the weakness of human nature in this imperfect state; such is the strength of temptation in this evil world, that frail man is often led astray before he is aware. The enemy of the soul attacks us in every quarter; approaches often under false colours, and tries every disguise, to deceive and to destroy, Vice often borders on virtue; the narrow path and the broad way lie so near, that it is difficult to distinguish them, so as to order our goings aright. Inadvertence may frequently betray; the impetuosity of passion may precipitate, and the gentleness of our own nature mislead us into steps fatal to our peace. I speak not of wicked men, who acknowledge no guide but their passions, and submit to no law, but what one vice imposes upon another. I talk of the sincere and the good. The most watchful Christian has his unguarded moments; the most prudent man speaks unadvisedly with his lips, and the meekest lets the sun go down upon his wrath Alas! man in his best estate is altogether vanity, and always stands in need of the lesson from the tomb. "O that they were wise," said Moses, “that they understood this, that, "they would consider their latter end!"

SERMON VII.

THE CHRISTIAN'S VICTORY OVER DEATH.

1 Cor. xv. 55, 57.

O death! Where is thy sting? O grave! Where is thy victory? Thanks be to God who giveth us the victory, through our Lord Jesus Christ,

THE Messiah is foretold in ancient prophecy, as a magnificent Conqueror. His victories were celebrated, and his triumphs were sung, long before the time of his appearance to Israel. "Who is this," saith the prophet Isaiah, pointing him out to the Old Testament Church," Who is this that "cometh from Edom; with dyed garments " from Bozrah? This that is glorious in his "apparel, travelling in the greatness of his

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"strength ?"-" I have set my King upon

my holy hill of Zion.-I shall give him "the heathen for his inheritance, and the "uttermost parts of the earth for his posses"sion." As a Conqueror, he had to destroy the works of the great enemy of mankind; and to overcome Death, the king of terrors.

The method of accomplishing this victory was as surprising as the love which gave it birth. "Forasmuch as the children are par"takers of flesh and blood, he himself like"wise took part of the same, that through his " own death he might destroy him that had "the power of death, that is the devil, and "deliver them, who, through fear of death, "were all their lifetime subject to bondage." Accordingly, his passion on the cross, which you have this day commemorated, was the very victory which he obtained. The hour in which he suffered was also the hour in which he overcame. Then he bruised the head of the old serpent, who had seduced our first parents to rebel against their Maker; then he disarmed the king of terrors, who had usurped dominion over the nations, then, triumphing over the legions of hell, and the powers of darkness, he made a shew of them openly. Not for himself, but for us did he conquer.

The Captain of our salvation fought, that we might overcome. He obtained the victory, that we may join in the triumphal song, as we now do, when we repeat these words of the Apostle : “O death! where is thy sting? O grave! where is thy victory?"

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It is the glory of the Christian religion, that it abounds with consolations under all the evils of life; nor is its benign influence confined to the course of life, but even extends to death itself. It delivers us from the agony of the last hour; sets us free from the fears which then perplex the timid; from the horrors which haunt the offender, though penitent, and from all the darkness which involves our mortal state. So complete is the victory we obtain, that Jesus Christ is said in Scripture to have abolished death.

The evils in death, from which Jesus Christ sets us free, are the following: In the first place, the doubts and fears that are apt to perplex the mind, from the uncertainty in which a future state is involved. Secondly, the apprehensions of wrath and forebodings of punishment, proceeding from the consciousness of sin. Thirdly, the fears that arise in the mind upon the awful transition from this world to the next.