ance in heaven. Art thou converfant with the Word of God, and ignorant that facrifices, if lefs in amount, yet fimilar in nature, are required from every Christian? Compare the demands of confcience and of intereft. How continual the oppofition! How prevailing the temptation! How lawful, ftrange as the expreffion may found, how lawful, in certain cafes and within certain limits, in the eftimation of many who arrogate the praise of uprightness, is difhonefty! In the daily and hourly dealings of life what opportunities of undue advantage! what inducements to profit by them! In the numerous departments of public fervice what openings for peculation! How commonly is "the custom of "trade" but another name for lucrative deceit! By the purchase of articles unwarrantably brought to fale; by frauds wilfully practised on the collectors of the revenue; by filence under their errors, their partiality, or their fupineness; how frequent is the evasion of burthens legally imposed! But it is not to dishonefty, according to the ordinary acceptation of the term, that the guilt of unjuft regard to interest is reftricted. Look around and thou fhalt dif cern countless occafions of acquiring or of retaining

retaining money, or of furthering thy ease, or thy advancement, or fome other of thy worldly objects, by various methods, the iniquity of which, light as it may be deemed, is in many inftances not inferiorto that of dishonefty; by flattery, by bribery, by complimentary affiduities, by hypocritical obfequioufnefs, by finful compliances, by falfe and injurious pretences, by miniftering to preju dice, to antipathy or to pride, by raising or diffufing unfounded reports concerning thy. competitors. Does the man who pursues his present benefit by any of these means leave all for the fake of Chrift? He prefers intereft to Christ. Even he who profecutes a lawful calling by lawful methods, yet permits it to withdraw his chief attention from the falvation of his foul, to occupy too large a proportion of his thoughts, or to agitate his mind with undue folicitude ; has not left all for Chrift, nor given to Chrift the dominion of his heart.

IV. We are to renounce our own righteousness; to caft away all reliance on merit of our own for acceptance with God. Why did Saint Matthew become a difciple of Jefus Chrift? Why did he leave all to be with that man of forrows? Because he VOL. II. beheld

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beheld in that man of forrows one who bare our griefs; one who bare the fins of many, and made interceffion for the tranfgreffors. He recognized the appointed Saviour; the Lamb of God which took away the fins of the world. With what feelings does the true Chriftian in every age approach the Son of God? He looks into his own heart. He fees it full of depravity. He furveys his conduct. He perceives it to be a mafs of fin. He confeffes the holinefs of God: and is confcious how odious he has rendered himself in the fight of his Creator by tranfgreffion. He contemplates the divine juftice: and trembles at the punishment which he has incurred. He confiders the divine power, and beholds the impoffibility of efcape. Again he turns his eyes upon himself; and acknowledges that there is nothing in him, which can make an atonement. An atonement is fet before him in the blood of the Son of God. There he beholds a ranfom: there he beholds pardon and peace and happiness. Though my fins," he exclaims, "be as fcarlet; yet in that fountain fhall they be "made white as fnow. Let my righteoufnefs be the righteoufnefs which is of God by faith in the Lord Jefus. He that hath

'

+

"the Son of God, hath life; and he that "hath not the Son hath not life. There is

no other name under heaven given among "men whereby I may be faved."

Such was the

He remained

V. We muft, in the laft place, follow our Redeemer unto the end. ftedfaftnefs of St Matthew. conftantly with Chrift until the evening before the crucifixion. On that evening he fhewed, in common with the other Apoftles, what man is, when the divine grace withdraws itfelf, and leaves him to his native weaknefs. All the Difciples of Chrift forfook him and fled. Of that guilty flight St. Matthew was a partaker. After the Refurrection, he received, in conjunction with the other Apostles, pardon and ftrength from his forgiving Lord. When Jefus had afcended into heaven, we behold St. Matthew continuing clofely in prayer and fupplication with the women and Mary the mother of Jefus, and the brethren (g); and bearing his part as an Apof

tle in the election of a fucceffor to the traitor Judas. Boldly remaining at Jerufa lem, when havock was made of the Church after the martyrdom of Stephen; he (g) Acts, i. 13, 14.

H 2

proved

158610A

away.

proved that he was not of those who have no root, and in time of perfecution fall And the early hiftory of the Chriftian Church informs us that, in the face of danger and death, he perfevered until the end of his days in preaching the Gospel of his Lord. From every Chriftian patient continuance in well doing is indispensably required. Who is it that the Scripture faith shall be saved? He that endureth unto the end. Who is it that shall reap the everlasting recompenfe? He who preffeth onward in the path of righteoufnefs, neither weary through floth, nor fainting through timidity. No man having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God. The righteoufnefs of the righteous fhall not deliver him in the day of his tranfgreffion. When the righteous turneth away from bis righteoufnefs and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth; fhall be live, faith the Lord? All his righteoufnefs that he hath done fhall not be mentioned: in his trèfpafs that he hath trefpaffed, and in his fin that he bath finned, in them shall be die-(b).

(2) Luke, ix. 62. Ezek. xviii. 24. xxxii. 12.

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