one moment, deceive God, for he searcheth thine heart, and knoweth all its ways, and wishes, and thoughts afar off. So long as thou art content to put on a fair appearance among men, and while thou carest not, and endeavourest not to set the Lord always before thee, and to walk uprightly, thou wilt have no room to hope or expect that he will be a sun and a shield to thee, or that he will give thee grace, and withhold no good thing; much less hast thou any room to hope that he will give thee glory in his own kingdom. No, but instead thereof, thou mayest expect to be given up of him, thou mayest expect that his providence will cease to follow thee, and that his grace and Holy Spirit will be taken from thee, and that in the end thou shalt receive according to thine evil and hypocritical doings; then wilt thou perish for ever; but God will be glorified through Jesus Christ.

"And art thou, gracious Master, gone,

?

A mansion to prepare
for me
Shall I behold thee on thy throne,

And there for ever sit with thee?

Then let the world approve or blame,
I'll triumph in thy glorious name.

"Should I, to gain the world's applause,
Or to escape its harmless frown,
Refuse to countenance thy cause,

And make thy people's lot my own;
What shame would fill me in that day,
When thou thy glory wilt display!

"And what is man, and what his smile? The terror of his anger what?

Like

grass

he flourishes awhile,

And soon his place shall know him not.
Through fear of such a one shall I

The Lord of heaven and earth deny?

"No! let the world cast out my name, And vile account me if it will:

If to confess the Lord be shame,

"What transport then shall fill my heart, When thou my worthless name wilt own:

When I shall see thee as thou art,

And know as I myself am known!
From sin, and fear, and sorrow free,
My soul shall find its rest in thee."

SERMON XIII.

THE FIGHT AND VICTORY OF FAITH.

I TIMOTHY VI. 12.

Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life."

I JOHN V. 4.

"This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our

faith."

This is no

THE real Christian is a spiritual warrior, a soldier of Christ Jesus. fanciful or imaginary title. He has a battle to fight; he has enemies to conquer; and these he must either conquer or perish for ever. Let us inquire,

First, Into the nature of this warfare, and the enemies he has to encounter. Secondly, The consequences of conquering, and of being conquered. Thirdly, The armour he has to use. First, It is a spiritual conflict. It has nothing to do with earthly crowns, titles,

and honours. On the contrary, he who fights and gains most victory in this war, is almost sure to be hated and despised by the world. Moreover, it is but seldom that the rich and noble, the great and mighty are found fighting in this battle. They love the things which the christian soldier puts away; they love and covet those persons and things which the soldier of Christ knows and feels are his enemies, and against which he is called. to fight manfully under the banner of his Lord. The enemies of the christian soldier may be properly considered as forming three distinct parties or armies, namely the world, the flesh, and the Devil. Each of these must have our consideration.

The world is a mighty host of enemies; and it has conquered and destroyed millions of souls in one way or other. Hence the Word of God warns us to be continually on our guard, to watch and pray, and to fight against all its unholy, vain, and polluting ways, as against a world that lieth in wickedness, and which is

doomed to perish on account of its sins. The ways and customs, the opinions and practices of the world have, in every country and in every age, been, in general, so contrary to the mind and word of God, that it is impossible for a man to be a friend of these things and to be a child of God at the same time. James iv. 4. The rich and the poor, the young and the old, the seaman and the landsman, who are lovers of the pleasures and sins, of the follies, the opinions, and customs of the world, are, one and all, the enemies and despisers of those who love God, and desire to love and obey him, in the gospel of his Son. The thing is, they hate God in the first place, and then they hate the people of God in the next. "If ye were of the world," says Christ, "the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." John xv. 19. At one time this deceitful world smiles on us, and tempts the soul to follow it, and whispers in our ears, that if we will