wonderful discoveries, for instance, of the last hundred years which enable men to come together so much more rapidly, or to communicate with one another so much more expeditiously; all the discoveries in agriculture, by which so much more food is produced; all the discoveries in medicine, which have so wonderfully alleviated human suffering, and have actually made the term of human life so much. longer; all these have been given to His brethren by the Redeemer; they have all come to us through His hands. He has regulated the time at which they should be discovered, and the time at which (perhaps long after they have been discovered) they should be made available. All human progress (as it is called) has been absolutely controlled by Him. Every beneficent or wise change of government, every opening for civilization or commerce, has been brought about by Him. All this we must perforce believe and acknowledge, if we believe and acknowledge that article of the creed: "He ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty."

From all this we gather that there is nothing whatsoever that can ameliorate the moral or spiritual condition of man apart from Him. For the root of all evils that pertain to our race is the evil nature of the race itself. Do you suppose, for instance, that by bringing

men together by all the improvements of all the various inventions by which one place is made so much nearer to another you will permanently and effectually ameliorate the race? Certainly not; the men who are brought together are still the same; they are the same fallen beings.

The same with any system of government; no matter how you change your government, whether one man governs or many men, or all govern themselves, the governors and the governed are involved in the same evil nature.

It was supposed, for instance, a few years ago, that if men could be brought together to contend in what was called the race of civilization, that is, if they could meet together to show one another how well this man could make this, and that that, that people would contract such a love and friendship for one another that they would lay aside all their animosities, that they would" beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; that nation would no more lift up sword against nation, neither would they learn war any more." Well, men did so meet, and during the ten years since they met, there has been no quarter of the globe unstained by bloody and desolating wars.

But still an objection may be made, and I am glad to meet it, because the answering of it will lead to another matter of practical

moment.

If He, the Redeemer, has come, how is it that the world He has redeemed is in the state that it is?

To which we answer, (and may God bring the answer home to all of us,) He has come to us, but we have also, (so God has decreed,) if we would profit by Him, to come to Him, and we have evermore to look to Him that we may have life. We may not look for another, and yet we may not savingly look to Him. God has given the remedy, but we must come to the Divine Physician and trust to the Divine Physician, and take the medicines of the Divine Physician, and persevere in taking them, and at His hands. Judge for yourselves what a load of human misery would be at once removed, if all men could be made to do this. Look at the misery and sorrow arising from alienation from God; the dark cloud at the edge of the brightest human prospect; how would this be dispersed if all men thought of God as Christ does, and this they could do if only they would be reconciled to God through Christ. Then look at the misery in families arising from disobedience to parents or superiors; how would this be done away if all children had the mind of Christ as a child, who, though God and man, was subject to human and fallible parents.

Again, what misery arises from intemperance. How would all this be done away

if men in the use of the meat and drink that God has given us would be self-denying, after the example of Christ. How would the untold misery arising from the indulgence of malicious passions be eliminated if men only followed the example of Christ's forbearance and forgiveness and charity. How would the wretchedness arising from impurity and unchastity be all gone if men would strive to purify themselves even as He is pure.

And if these few things were removed, alienation from God, disobedience, intemperance, impurity, malice, covetousness, what real misery, I pray you, would be left in the world?

Yes, we are sick because we do not use the remedy; we are alienated from God because we do not come to God through Him whom God has ordained; we are discontented because we do not think enough of the eternal kingdom of Christ; we are ignorant because we do not learn and lay up in our hearts and minds that knowledge of God which we get through Jesus Christ.

He then Who was to come has come, and we do not look for another; but though we do not look for another, we look for Him.

There is no one else to come, but He is to return. When He comes again may He find us ready. May we all come to Him, may we all be looking to Him, may we all be feeding on Him, may we all be waiting for Him.

43

SERMON IV.*

LIFE THROUGH THE SON OF GOD.

1 JOHN iv. 9.

"In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him."

men.

SATURDAY next will be Christmas-day, the festival of the Nativity of our Blessed Saviour. How are you going to keep it? Are you going to keep that holy day as the world keeps it, or as the Church would have you keep it? Now the world keeps Christmas-day in such a way as to dishonour Him who then came amongst There is nothing so good that the evil nature of man does not pervert from its right uses, and so it comes to pass that the holy days that the Church has set aside for the devout remembrance of God's greatest blessings are turned by the world into positive curses, for on these days we are bid to rejoice with holy joy because God has done on them something to break the chains of Satan from our necks, and on these days, careless and impenitent men rivet these chains firmer upon themselves by sensuality and self-indulgence.

* Preached in 1858.