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desire him; he trusted to his own righteousness; he expected that his own imperfect morality would secure the salvation of his soul; he was unwilling to submit to the empire of Jesus, or to be saved by his blood. But God who is rich. in mercy, pitied his infatuation, and rescued him from destruction; his eyes were opened by the Spirit of God; the rays of redeeming love were reflected upon his mind, and the man who was engaged in levelling to the earth the system of Christianity, laid down the weapons of his rebellion at the foot of Calvary; embarked in the cause of the Gospel; "proclaimed among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, opening their eyes and turning them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God."

To conclude. "He came to heal the broken hearted." Should any of you be labouring under a conviction of sin should your minds be oppressed with sorrow at the recollection of your ingratitude to God; take comfort, I beseech you from the existence of that sorrow in your hearts, and fly in supplication to that Saviour who died for your salvation. It is through the influences of his Spirit that you have been brought to reflect; it is through the light of divine grace that you see your unworthiness, and that you feel weary and heavy laden. Christ thus forms the source of your relief, the present and eternal refuge of his people. Mourner in Zion, be at rest, for "blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted." The knowledge you possess of your unworthiness, is the greatest blessing God could have bestowed upon you; it has made you feel the value of the Saviour, and has led you to a throne of grace for mercy. Should any of you be convinced that you have been led captive by Satan; that you have listened to his temptations; that you have turned your backs upon God, and resisted the pleadings of his grace; that you have preferred the world to the duties of religion, fly to him who is mighty to save. Christ Jesus will deliver you from the tyranny of sin, and rescue you from the oppressive power

of Satan. "He came to preach deliverance to the captive."

Should any of you be labouring under spiritual blindness, ignorant of the plan of redemption; should any of you wish to be instructed in the truths of Christianity; anxious to know the manner in which Jehovah can be just, and yet the justifier of him against whom the violated law of God pronounces destruction, fly to Jesus Christ and entreat for divine illumination; cry aloud, "Lord that I may receive my sight," and that Saviour who came to give recovery of sight to the blind, will hear your prayer and enable you to comprehend the plan of salvation, and see its perfect adaptation to the situation of all mankind.

Beloved, in the Redeemer there is salvation for all who will seek it in sincerity of heart; his blood will cleanse the most polluted, and render the vilest offender pure in the sight of God. "Seek him then while he may be found, call upon him while he is near," and you will discover that he is able and willing to save all men to the uttermost, who come unto God by him; seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them-he will afford you present comfort, and after death receive you into glory.

SERMON X.

"God be merciful to me a sinner."-LUKE, Xviii. 13.

HUMILITY of heart is an unfailing attendant upon the religion of the Redeemer: it is the first effect produced in the mind by divine grace, and forms the best evidence we can give the world of our acquaintance with God and with ourselves. A self-justifying spirit flows not from the fountain of the Gospel: it is the offspring of human pride, the enemy of true religion. That person who really knows himself, and is thoroughly acquainted with his own heart, must be sensible that his imperfections are very numerous; and that his personal virtues fall so short of the purity of the Gospel, and the requisitions of the divine law, that he is indebted to the mercy of God for the continuance of his existence, and his escape from destruction.

Under a conviction of his own unworthiness, the sincere Christian always approaches the footstool of the Almighty; his own infirmities claim his continual attention; they engross so much of his thoughts, they appear so magnified to his view, that instead of condemning others, he thinks himself the least of all the saints, and pleads for forgiveness through the precious blood of Christ. Like the Centurion mentioned in the Gospel, he exclaims, "Lord I am not worthy thou shouldest come under my roof; speak the word only, and I shall be healed."

The farther that we advance in the divine life, the more do we become established in the principle of humility. The nearer that we approach the Almighty, and the more we study his perfections, the more sensible do we become to our own failings; the closer we draw to the light the more visible are our imperfections: our growth therefore in grace is always attended with an increase of humility. We compare our lives with the precepts of Scripture, and find them so deficient that the inquiry produces a lowliness of heart; we discover that we have no ground for boasting, but that we are really sinners and need cleansing in the blood of Christ.

That this view is correct, is fully illustrated in the parable before us; and as the representation was made by the Saviour himself, no one can doubt that the doctrine it contains is agreeable to the nature and attributes of God himself; purposely intended to check the advances of a selfrighteous spirit, and to countenance and support the convicted sinner in his humble approaches to a throne of grace. It shows the trembling penitent that, notwithstanding that pressure of sin which rests upon his conscience, notwithstanding that dread of Deity with which his mind is oppressed, and which renders him afraid to raise his eye to heaven, still the devout breathings of his broken heart will not be disregarded, nor the sighing of a contrite mind be overlooked; but before he calls, God will answer-while he is speaking God will hear, have mercy; pardon and forgive him.

In order to improve the subject, and to represent some of its beauties to your view, permit me to carry your attention to the sacred Temple.

"Two men went up to the Temple to pray; one a Pharisee, the other a Publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself; God I thank thee that I am not as other men are; extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this Publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess."

In all this Pharasaic harangue, there is not one essential

feature of prayer, not a sin is confessed, not a supplication for pardon made. His breast was so inflated with a conceit of personal merit, that he forgot the business for which the sanctuary of Jehovah is intended, and set apart. He came to the temple to pray; but instead of supplicating for forgiveness, he pronounced an eulogium on himself; a pompous declaration of performances, and of an exemption from gross offences, composed his devotion. He was so pleased with himself, that he fell in adoration at the shrine of his own excellencies; and instead of worshipping God in the humble accents of a disobedient child, he plead the merit of his own ideal purity; "I fast twice in the week, 1 give tithes of all that I possess." So delighted was he with the repetition of his own negative and ceremonial perfections, that when he beheld the Publican he looked upon him with contempt; "God I thank thee that I am not as this Publican."

Is this, I would ask, is this devotion? Could such conduct become a frail mortal, when approaching a Being in whose sight the heavens are unclean? Was such a temper becoming a sinner, when appearing in the presence of a God of holiness? The Pharisee, we acknowledge, was to be commended for that uniformity to the moral duties of the law which he possessed. We rejoice at that abstraction from criminal pursuits of which he spake; but was fasting twice in the week to be plead as an atonement for his sins? Was his giving of tithes to be offered to the Almighty as an apology for his transgressions? Brethren, there is no devotion, there is no devotion acceptable to God, which does not embrace a conviction of our own defects; a deep penitence for sin; a renunciation of self; a dependence upon unmerited mercy.

From a scene abounding with such arrogance and inconsistency, let us turn our attention to the poor convicted Publican, and learn a lesson of instruction from his reverential, his appropriate conduct. "The Publican, standing afar off, would not lift up his eyes to heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner." How