Christ, (and it is what every true christian most earnestly longs for, indeed without which no one can be a true christian) consider, what a sacred fellowship he aspires to; with him," who was holy and harmless, and undefiled and separate from sinners;" with him, " whose meat and drink it was to do the will of his Father in heaven;" with him, who came to destroy the works of the devil and to overthrow the whole empire of sin: with him, to whom bodily indulgence and the sinful passions of the mind were wholly unknown; with him, whose whole aim, whilst he was in the world, was to glorify God, and to confer blessings on mankind.

Once more, I ask then, do we live unto the Lord? Or does he live in us? I need not ask those, who are conscious that they are living in sin, in contempt of God and his laws, and in neglect of their own salvation. I need not ask those, who are scoffing at the subject as not worthy of their serious consideration, and fit only for visionaries aud enthusiasts. But I will ask those, who think they have some religion, but are afraid of going too far, who halt between two opinions, who try to serve two masters, who would reconcile the spirit and the flesh, and bring about a communion between light and darkness. I will ask the half-christian, the almost-persuaded,

Do you think you can truly be said to be living unto the Lord? Why, are you not ashamed even to own him? Here in public, where all your neighbours partake in that unfashionable practice of confessing Christ in a general way, you do, under the shelter of such company, make a sort of complimentary acknowledgment of him. But in private life, where you could be marked out for your singularity, would you not be ashamed to own him? In your ordinary society would you not blush to be overheard speaking about him, or any thing relating to him? Would you not think it almost a disgrace to be found reading the scriptures, except on a Sunday? Do you not associate freely and on the best of terms, with persons who are (not disguised and uncertain, but) open enemies of Christ, who not only have not the least thought of any intercourse or connection with him, but are as decidedly opposed to him as those who cried, "away with him, away with him, crucify him?" Do you not without the least scruple, indulge in many things which he most strictly forbids? Think of your common life, your eating, drinking, dressing, conversation, reading, extravagant waste of time in idleness, and expenditure of money on folly and luxury, think of all these things that happen every day, and say whether your coming here on

Sunday, is living unto the Lord? Do not deceive yourselves; it is a difficult and a holy thing to live unto the Lord. Do not profane the expression by applying it to a worldly life, dressed up now and then in the outer cloke of religion.

But, my brethren, it is a necessary thing to live unto the Lord, and I heartily pray God to give us all grace that we may do so more and more. I pray that he may sanctify us wholly, and dispose us to dedicate our lives, and all our powers and faculties of body and soul, and all our substance to his service. This is done by keeping his will constantly in view in all our thoughts, words, and actions; not that in every particular thought and word and action, we can expressly glorify him. But this should be our great and ruling principle, so that all who know us may perceive that we have that end in view, and that we ourselves may not be ashamed to have it so perceived. What a new turn would this principle give to the conduct and conversation, and general habit of mind of many persons, who now most unworthily go by the name of christians! You would not fail to behold some signs and exhibitions of their faith in their daily life. You would see them assembling their families around them, and worshipping

God morning and evening with their little flock thus committed to their care; you would observe them studying the scriptures and religious books more frequently than any other, instead of grudging the time now bestowed upon them ; you might follow them to the abodes of poverty and sickness, seeking out objects of charity, or at least opening their hands wide to promote any work and labour of love deserving of their care; you would remark some curtailments in their expenditure or personal indulgences, for the express purpose of having more for the relief of those in need; you would see them temperate in their diet, and simple in their clothing; you would take notice that their most intimate and valued friends, and most familiar companions were those whose principles resembled their own, devout and holy persons, with whom they could sometimes talk of the common salvation, and freely enjoy the interchange of christian sentiments; and in that ordinary society into which they might occasionally enter, you would find that they never bowed the head to Rimmon for the sake of accommodating themselves to the views of the company around them; that they never connived at any light or irreverent treatment of sacred and serious subjects, but that their presence was a rebuke to every thing approaching to profaneness, and that where they

272 THE BELIEVER'S UNION WITH CHRIST.

could do it discreetly, without the risk of casting pearls before swine, they would always put in a word for the honour of God, and the spiritual improvement of those whom they addressed. If parents, you would behold them anxious above all things to give their children a truly christian education, and to "bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." I will not detain you, yet I might go through all conditions, all ranks and circumstances of life, and show you how these would conduct themselves with regard to the particular duties of their station, whose whole study it was" to live unto the Lord;"-how masters and servants, husbands and wives, rich and poor, tradespeople, labourers, and all classes of society, would behave in those respects in which there is any thing peculiar to their several conditions. But I do not think that if your hearts are truly bent upon living unto the Lord, you will have any difficulty in determining how you ought to act under all these circumstances. Your rule is the will and approbation of Christ; that will never mislead you when rightly understood; all that is needed is, grace in your hearts to make it the rule.

May God give us all that grace, and after we have lived faithfully unto the Lord our destined time, may we also die unto the Lord, and enter into his joy, and be with him for ever and ever.