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the sheep; as the true and living way; as the fountain opened for uncleanness and fin. You will present yourself before him with a fubdued and teachable spirit; meek and lowly in heart, that you may find reft unto your foul. You will implore him to receive you under his guidance; to wash away your guilt with his blood; to lead you into the path of life everlasting; to prevent you with his grace in all your doings, and further you with his continual help; to difpofe and enable you to renounce every finful indulgence, and in the ftrength which He fupplies to work out your falvation with fear and trembling.

III. It remains to make a brief and practical application of the subject.

If you are fincerely anxious that, when the present life shall terminate, your fouls may be admitted into the kingdom of Chrift; you will earnestly and deeply examine yourselves, whether as yet you have come unto Chrift that you might have life. If you have lived chiefly occupied in the pursuits of a tranfitory world, with little concern for your falvation; you have habitually proved yourselves under the power of fin; or if you have regarded yourselves

or if

yourselves as fufficiently righteous, and partly entitled through your own merits to the kingdom of Heaven; you have not yet learned the nature of the religion which you profess; you have not yet come unto Chrift. If with an humble and contrite heart you have bowed yourself before the Lord your Redeemer, trusting wholly and exclufively to Him for pardon, for strength, for fanctification, for acceptance with God; folicitous and refolved through the influence of his grace to evince the fincerity of your repentance, ofyour faith, of your gratitude, of your love, fteadily devoting yourself to his fervice, and bringing forth the fruits of holiness then may you cherifh a lively hope that you have been led to approach your Saviour infimplicity and truth.

To which of thefe defcriptions each of you at present belongs is a fact concerning which every one of you may form, by meek and upright enquiry, a reasonable judgement for himfelf: and it is a fact unequivocally known to God who feeth the. heart. Experience however inftructs a preacher to conclude that in the congregation which he addreffes, perfons of each defcription are to be found. Allow me, therefore,

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therefore to close this difcourfe with fome fhort admonitions, partly directed to those who have endeavoured to come unto Chrift that they might have life; partly to those who have not hitherto fled for refuge to the appointed Saviour.

Those then who have come unto Chrift let me exhort to remember that, as a tree is known by its fruits, fo is faith to shew forth its reality by good works. Let them give diligence to hold faft the true doctrine of the Gospel. And let them give equal diligence to adorn the doctrine of God their Saviour in all things. Jefus Chrift gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity; and purify to himself a peculiar people zealous of good works. Chriftians are commanded conti

nually to grow in grace, and in the knowledge of their Lord and Saviour. They are to ftrive day by day to fubdue fin; to gain the mastery more and more over the evil difpofitions and the evil practices to which they are especially expofed. As long as they remain in the body they will perceive with St. Paul, that the flesh lufteth against the spirit, and feeks to bring them into captivity to fin: that in them, of themselves,

VOL. II.

G.

themselves, dwelleth no good thing; that the good which they would do, which they with, and confefs themselves bound in confcience to do, they often do not; that the evil which they would not, the evil which in their hearts they condemn, which they acknowledge that they ought to avoid, they often do. Continue therefore inftant in prayer, in watchfulness, in diligence to shun temptations, in holy exertions to withstand them. Fulfil your duty as a foldier of Chrift Jefus. Would you lay hold on eternal life? Fight the good fight of faith; perfevere in well-doing. If you draw back from Chrift, he will draw back from you. Unless you perfevere in faith and holiness unto the end, you cannot be saved. Remember too, that you are to study to promote on every occafion the glory of the Lord Jefus. Let your light fo fhine before men, that they may fee your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Let the happy effects of religion on your principles, on your tempers, on your manners, on your actions, recommend religion to others. Employ your influence, your talents, your example, in the fervice of Chrift; and in the greatest of all fervices to your fellow-creatures, in

winning

winning them to the knowledge and love of that falvation, which is in Chrift Jefus, and in him alone. If you ferve not your Redeemer in zealous obedience; where is your gratitude, where is your love? If you labour not to forward the extenfion of his kingdom; where is your zeal for his glory, where is your pity for man ?

With refpect to thofe among you, who have not yet turned unto the Lord Jefus ; I could fcarcely fay too much, if your attention, perhaps already wearied, would allow me to enlarge, on the wretchedness and danger of your fituation, and on the madness of continuing in it. You have disregarded the great object for which you were fent into being. You have lived fo this world. You have added fin to fin without repentance. You have defied the indignation of Almighty God. You have despised his Son Jefus, who stooped from the throne of his glory, and became man, that he might die for you upon the Crofs. You have fcorned his offers of mercy, and done despite to the Spirit of Grace. You lie as yet under the judgement of everlasting condemnation to the lake of inextinguishable fire. What is your purpose? Do you design still to set the Lord God OmnipoG 2 potent