it appear truly honourable in the eyes of angels, good men, and God; it is a pleasure that maketh not ashamed, that leaves no sting behind, for it is substantial; whilst the joy of the hypocrite is but for a moment, and the laughter of fools is like the crackling of thorns under a pot: this holy sensa tion, increasing more and more, is the beginning, the pledge, the presage of eternal happiness; it is! glory begun below; it is a kind of first fruits of the new life, which we shall pluck from heavenly trees in the kingdom of glory above: the saints can tell something of the happiness of the world of spirits, by the bliss which a discovery of divine love causes in their souls, even in the midst of the greatest calamities. Such was the rapture which Peter, James and John felt, when in the mount of transfiguration, with the Son of God! and far greater will be the rapture of the glorified spirits round the throne of God and of the Lamb for ever. That mount, how bright, those forms how fair! Come death, dear envoy of my God, And bear me to that blest abode. Oh, let us never forget that Christ Jesus is the › proper, the appointed, the only object of religious joy. Whatever the christian rejoices in must have some connexion with him. Are the promises the matter of his rejoicing? These were all made by him, are all ratified, are all yea and amen in Christ Jesus to the glory of God by us." 66 Is it any 66 re spiritual blessing? It comes to us only through his mediation. Oh, then, christians, joy in God, by whom have now received the atonement; you joice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven:" "rejoice in hope of the glory of God:" let your heavenly inheritance be the matter of your triumph, "though now for a season, if need be, you are in heaviness through manifold temptations." While the rich man glories in his riches, and the mighty man in his might, do you rather rejoice that your names are written in heaven: declare his works with rejoicing; go to God your exceeding joy; with joy draw water out of the wells of salvation; shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart; joy in God, the God of salvation: finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord; rejoice in the Lord always, and again, I say, rejoice. So shall the Lord your God rejoice over you with singing, yea rest in his love. Let me remark, by way of conclusion, that these sensations, from various causes, are not always felt; but our love is cold, our faith dying, and our spark of joy quenched, so that we go daily mourning; but these things ought not so to be: they indicate that religion is at a low ebb in our souls; and if this be the case with us, we may cry, "O, my leanness! my leanness!" But must we not lay the blame of our little enjoyment of religion upon ourselves? Surely we must. O that the Spirit of true faith and joy would fill us with all joy and peace in believing! Let me ask, how many of us, in the divine presence, can appropriate the language of the text to ourselves, and say of Jesus, "Though now I see him not, I love him, I believe in him, I rejoice in him with joy unspeakable and full of glory?” Let me tell the sinner who has no interest in the bliss of which we have been speaking, the fearfulness of his character, and the certainty of his punish ment. Oh, christian, go on to glorify Him whom having not seen you love, and in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing ye rejoice, with joy unspeakable and full of glory. Amen. SERMON IX. PREACHED MARCH 5, 1809. 1 TIMOTHY VI. 12. 66 LAY HOLD ON ETERNAL LIFE." WHAT a peculiar solemnity is there in the advice of an aged christian to a young convert: to hear one whose hopes of a happy immortality are strong and lively, whose prospects of eternal glory are sufficient to make him long for the cold embrace of death, and look with triumph on the ghastly horrors of the tomb; to hear such a one instructing those who are just commencing their journey to heaven is truly affecting, because we know, that at such a time, the most important truths will drop from his lips; and hard indeed must be the heart of that man, who can think of them without an awe upon his mind, without a determination to fulfil the best wishes of a dying friend. So Moses addressed the children of Israel, just before he died in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord. So Jesus, when his hour was not yet come, discoursed with his disciples and cheered their minds, which experienced the sorrow of disappointed expectations and terminating friendship. And so such a one as Paul, the aged, gives the kindest and best advice to Timothy, his own son in the gospel, while he shortly after presents him with his own situation and the feelings of his own mind, saying, "For I am ready to be offered up, and the time of my departure is at hand." One of his last exhortations to Timothy, before his rapt spirit was borne to God, was, "Lay hold on eternal life;" and permit me to say, that obedience to this injunction is as all-important to us, as it was to the young evangelist to whom it was addressed. I intend, then, to offer a few thoughts upon-the object presented to our view,—and the exhortation concerning it. I. The object presented to our view. Eternal life. By this expression, the happiness of the heavenly world is evidently intended; and when it is called eternal life, we are not merely to understand that it will have no termination, that there will be no more death; but we are taught that every thing that can render life desirable or delightful, will be there enjoyed, without interruption, in rich abundance, so that God's people will be eternally satisfied with his goodness. It is impossible for me to describe to you eternal life, or to tell half the glory which is felt in that happy land from whence no traveller returns. Had I, like Paul, been caught |
