fore man the divine righteousness. "Lo, The kingdom, then, which Christ sets up in man is one of righteousness. It is the restoration of rightful and divine authority over the soul, before the seat of self-discord and rebellion. The Christian, renewed in the spirit of his mind, sees God as righteous, loves and serves him as righteous, and this by virtue of his having been himself made righteous-having been treated as such governmentally, and made such in heart and life actually. Righteousness is the only valid title to a name and place in this kingdom. "Not every one that saith unto me Lord, Lordbut he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." Every one that doeth righteousness is born of him." "Thy people shall be all righteous." They "seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness." 66 perio is spiritual, composed of spiritual men, associated and working together for mostly spiritual ends. It does not at any point clash with the kingdoms of this world. It neither undertakes to do their work, nor interferes with them in its discharge, nor calls upon them for aid in doing its own. Souls are its chief care. It "minds the things of the spirit." So far from encroaching upon the province of the civil ruler, it bids men render unto Cæsar the things which are Cæsar's," and is satisfied when it has taught those who govern, to know the true sphere and limits of their functions to appreciate their responsibilities, and to discharge their duties with a devout conscientiousness. Hence, while it seeks to act, and does act mightily upon society for its welfare, it exerts its benign influence indirectly rather than directly through the individual in the ordinary relations of life, rather than through combinations which disturb the settled order of society. For the most part, its influence is put forth secretly and silently as befits its spiritual character, and is visible rather in its effects than in its operation, as new and healthy life-blood, tinting with bloom and bracing with strength the enfeebled frame; or as the spring which, rising in the secrecy of the distant mountain tops, makes green and glad the valleys through which its descending waters flow. "The kingdom of God is within you." "It cometh not with observation;" like the course of the wind in nature, and the workings of the mysterious energy of life in the Hence, then, the kingdom of Christ bodily frame, are its entrance into the is a spiritual kingdom. It does not sa- heart, and its progress in the world. crifice this property in becoming social. The material things, and places, and It is social because man is social. The interests with which it comes to be power which rules the "hidden man of connected, while they are necessary to the heart," and is enthroned amidst the its outward development, are so only inmost springs of his being, cannot but as the bodily limbs and framework are affect his conduct, and mould by its to the spirit in our present mode of life. plastic power his outward life. Reli- For the kingdom of God is not meat gion, acting upon the social elements of and drink"-it is not externals-" but our nature, leads us to seek the fellow-righteousness, peace, and joy in the ship of the saints. Hence arises the Holy Ghost.' church, an organized community, with its discipline, and ordinances, and ministrations an audible witness to the existence of this kingdom a visible exponent and embodiment of it. Yet the church, while a visible community having its own constitution, laws, officers, and agencies--an imperium in im 66 While spirituality is a characteristic of this kingdom, love is its vital element. Love is the constraining motive to submission on the part of its subjects, and the_animating principle of their service. It seeks that cheerful obedience which is the self-sprung fruit of love, and not the grudged exaction of fear. Religion is the willing homage of man's love to that in God which is infinitely lovely. Hence this kingdom knows nothing of coercion by outward force. The ranks of its hosts are not recruited by conscription: it seeks only by the use and application of spiritual in fluences to make men willing." It draws "with cords of a man, with bands of love." The rationale of discipleship is expressed in the avowal, "We love him because he first loved Nor is there other bond of union with each other. than that principle which attracts to a common Saviour. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another." How different in this respect to the kingdoms of this world! us." 66 66 66 There is a conversation attributed to Napoleon the First in his later days, in which he well remarks upon this very difference. Alexander, he says, Cæsar, Charlemagne, and myself, founded empires; but upon what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ alone founded his empire upon love, and at this hour millions of men would die for him." Yes, this is the secret of the strength, the perpetuity, and the universality of this kingdom. Kingdoms which rest upon force can never be otherwise than limited in their extent, transient in their duration, and containing within themselves the seeds of mutability and decay. Force evokes resistance, and prompts aggression. Force can be met by force. But love disarms enmity. It has power to turn the foe into a suppliant, the sinner into a saint, the saint into a seraph. "Love never faileth." This kingdom is eternal. Progressing, as time in its widening cycles moves onward, it will not enter upon the final and most glorious stage of its development, until the eventful drama of time is ended, and our earth re-emerges in serene beauty from the wreck of the tempest fires, which have purified it as a "new heaven, and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.' But that development will be final and everlasting. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed" (Dan. vii. 14.) In accordance, then, with the character of Christ's kingdom, are the means by which it is to be extended and estab lished throughout the world. As spiritual, it rejects all carnal weapons and appliances. Its subtle influences cannot be linked with such gross and earthly instruments. As righteous, it is scrupulous in the choice of its means and agencies, refusing all with which the Holy Spirit cannot co-operate-all that are repugnant to his purity, and zeal, and love. As love, it forbids the most distant resort to intimidation and coercion. It will not stoop to work on baser motives and passions. It rebukes the zeal which would draw the sword in its behalf. It checks the rulers of this world when they would seek its direct advancement by their legislation. Meek in its demeanor and bearing, it has yet the sturdy firmness of self-reliance, depending for its power to live, and spread, and conquer, on the essential character and disposition of its subjects, and not on the accidents of their condition. Clad in its native simplicity, it is strong, though destitute of that which is highly-esteemed among men." Surrounded with the pomp and prestige of earthly greatness, it is so far trammelled and weakened. Armies, fleets, taxes, subsidized priesthoods, legislative enactments, but conceal its nature while they obstruct its progress. The only agency competent to its spread, are its true spiritual disciples, men and women "twice born.' On them the solemn responsibility devolves. The chief instrument which they are to employ, is "the word of the truth of the gospel"-the truth of Christ believed and felt then spoken in love, bathed in the contagious fervor of those holy emotions which it has excited in the heart. This is the great weapon of heavenly fabrication and appointment, "the sword of the Spirit." It is worthy and adapted, and it is a weapon "mighty through God." No heart can withstand it, no conscience resist, if He does but aid and bless in its use. My brethren, let us think of the conquests which this weapon has wrought in olden times, and in days not long gone by, and increase our confidence in it. Let us tell the simple story of the cross, as occasion offers, to our fellow-men; and if we only tell it simply and truthfully, and with the warm gushings of sincerity and love, we shall not tell it in vain. This is the instrument appointed of God for the establishment of his kingdom upon earth-the weapon by which the victories of His grace are to be won; and though our arm may be feeble, and our heart but rude, yet if we use it with an honest and hearty purpose, He will certainly succeed us. II. The Psalm brings before us, THE UNIVERSAL EXTENT (eventually) AND PERPETUAL DURATION OF CHRIST'S KINGDOM. 66 tical literality, every human being shall 66 66 These are declared in very plain terms. They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon endure-throughout all generations." The boundaries of this kingdom are to be indefinite. Those of the promised land were to extend from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean, and from the desert unto the river Euphrates. But these shall be indefinite, and therefore world-wide; from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth.' They that dwell in the wilderness," the nomade races of mankind who represent the lower types of civilization, shall be overtaken in their wanderings and shall "bow before" this king, while his enemies, in prostrate submission, shall "lick the dust. The powerful races of the Western world, with their higher civilization -with their more elaborate systems of polity, their teeming cities and boundless wealth-these, represented by their highest rulers, shall be anxious to do homage. "The Kings of Tarshish and the Isles shall bring presents.' While the lands of the distant South, where Nature has been more lavish of her gifts the lands of gold, and gems, and spices, these shall present their choicest products as thank-offerings for the blessings bestowed upon them by that reign. "The Kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts." Nor those of the West, the East, and the South only, for "all kings shall fall down before him." "Men shall be blessed in him-pating the sufferings of the cross, “if I all nations shall call him blessed." While we have here the very frequent indistinctness of prophecy as to the distance of time involved the prophet's usual disregard of perspective-these points are plain, that Christ's kingdom is to be enduring and finally universal. Once set up, it is to know no end until time has run its course; once established it is to win its ever-widening way until "all the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the Lord; and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before him" (Psalm xxii. 27.) Whether, in the most rigid arithme | 66 by myself, the word is gone out of my 66 be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me" (John xii. 32.) While the Apocalypse in its sublimest visions represents this as in substance accomplished.. And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever" (Rev. xi. 15,) "After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands" (Rev. vii. 9.) This scanty gleaning from the wide field of prophetic Scripture shows that we have indeed the firmest warrant for our faith and our hope when we sing Jesus shall reign where'er the sun His kingdom stretch from shore to shore, On this prophetic word we confidently rely. For us it is enough, and more than enough, that "the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it." Our faith "stands not in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God." Yet we do not slight or disregard any considerations which may tend to confirm our faith, from whatever source they proceed; whether from reasoning, which conducts us to a consequence as logically necessary, or from facts which point forward to the consummation of which we speak as probable. Two or three out of many considerations which present themselves, as confirmatory of our faith, we will briefly mention. 1. The world-wide aspect and refe rence of our Lord's atoning death, requires, as necessary to its realization, that men everywhere should be brought into contact with his spiritual kingdom. The fathers and founders of our body sought to publish, in honest literality of meaning, and fearless confidence of tone, the glorious truth which, in their day, was in many quarters obscured by tradition, or distorted by the narrowness of system, that " Jesus, by the grace of God, tasted death for every man"-that he "gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time." This, under God, was their distinction and their power. We grasp this truth as firmly, love it as dearly, use it with as full a confidence as they did. Like them, we do not enunciate it in one form, to deny it in another; nor clog it with reservations which make it of no practical value. Yet we are thankful, if, as is often alleged, our honest and out-spoken testimony on this point has ceased to be the badge of distinction it once was. We only wish that our testimony never faltering, may be less and less so, until it ceases to be distinctive at all. No theology can be true to God or man which denies or tampers with this clearly asserted and fundamental doctrine. But if our Lord died for all men, then the essential design of his atoning work cannot be realized, unless the gospel be preached to all, and men everywhere hear for themselves the tidings of reconciliation. Hence our Lord's commission to his disciples, "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." But the fulfilment of this commission involves, substantially, the universal existence and establishment of Christ's kingdom. The great an avowed design of our Lord's death cannot be realized unless his kingdom be so widely diffused, that men everywhere-every man without exception-shall be brought into such a contact with it as may be sufficient for, and haply effectual to his salvation. But this is for the kingdom to be universal. 2. The force and restless energy of self-propagation which are inherent in this kingdom, furnish presumptions in favor of its universality and lasting duration. It is right in any case, to derive a presumptive argument from inherent tendencies, unless we know of causes which will certainly operate to make them of none effect. Now we affirm that the inherent tendency of spiritual religion, as existing in the kingdom of Christ, is both to live and propagate itself indefinitely; and we know not of causes which necesarily and effectually tend to neutralize it. Resisting forces there are, in the heart of every member of this kingdom, and in the world, and they have often operated, for a while, with baleful effect; but as facts show, they are forces of no fixed strength necessarily, and while they have for a season retarded progress, they have never been able to destroy the spirit which dwells in the heart of piety. They never will be. Life is a self propagating force. Divine life implanted in one soul has power to beget the like life in another. It seeks by a native resistless instinct to do so. It can live only by reproducing itself. Hence, the truly converted man, in addition to the influence which unconsciously emanates from him, begins to put forth voluntary efforts for the conversion of others. And hence, again, the church, which is but the organized body of such individuals, is animated by an earnest, restless spirit of aggression. It will not let its immediate neighbourhood sleep in the darkness of can never destroy. It must go on from strength to strengh, and by every effort it makes gaining more. "The stone 66 cut out of the mountain without hands," must become a great mountain and fill the earth." nations is such as to furnish them largely with the resources necessary for the spread of Christ's kingdom. We are sometimes told that Christianity has now chances in favor of its universal diffusion and triumph distinct from its own nature, in the fact that it is the religion of the Anglo-Saxon race, those who have the most energy of character, the most plodding diligence, the most courage, enterprise, and wealth ignorance and sin. But it soon overleaps the narrow boundaries of vicinage, and pants to bless its country. Nor does this satisfy. The breezes of heaven waft from far distant lands the accents of those who, "bound in fetters and iron," by Papal superstition, or 3. The influence of evangelical reliGreek formalism, or Mahommedangion on the character and condition of delusion, or Pagan idolataries, cry,"Come over and help us." And the church responds to that cry; not forsaking home, not neglecting the claims of country, but redoubling attention and effort there, it goes forth to bless and save. Whither, in obedience to this spirit, as the Missionary of the Cross not penetrated? He has outstripped the daring enterprize of the spirit of gain, and been the pioneer of civilization. Beautiful, upon the polar who are fast spreading themselves mountains of eternal ice, have been his throughout the globe, and are plainly feet as the "bringer of tidings ;" beau- destined to be the dominant race of the tiful upon the sands of the scorching future. There is truth in this, but it is desert; beautiful upon the mud of the not, we apprehend, the whole truth. Ganges; beautiful upon the gem-like It does not render full justice to Chrisisles of the Western sea; beautiful, in tianity. Without denying or underthe rank and unbroken prairie; beauti- rating other helping influences, we ask, ful, in the valleys clad with verdure, what has tended half so much to raise and decked with golden harvests. No! the Anglo-Saxon race to its present you may more easily imprison the winds elevation-to make it in point of energy, or stagnate the currents of ocean; or boldness, enterprise, and wealth, what lull to slumber that energy by which it is, as its Protestantism, its purer at times the earth heaves proud cities Bible faith? Nothing so powerfully from its breast, and burries them in its stimulates the growth of national greatdepths, than you can confine the aggress-ness, or so rapidly developes the mateive and all-diffusive spirit of true piety. It will stay anywhere till its work is substantially done; but then, "having no more place in these parts," it hurries away to some new and needy field, only to repeat again and again the same process, till the world can present no new spot for its foot, no new field on which it can sow the seed of life. Such a tendency as this, inhering essentially in the kingdom of Christ, furnishes, at least, a strong presumptive argument for its ultimate universality and its lasting duration. The spirit of aggression in relation to earthly kingdoms is but an accident depending mostly on the temper and character of the people, or of their ruler. And if largely indulged it is always a source of weakness, often a precursor of destruction. But as existing in the kingdom of Christ, it is a presage of final and universal triumph. Lukewarmness and declension may for a while retard, they cannot ultimately prevent; opposition may wound and maim, but it rial resources of a nation, as a pure Christianity. Its power in this respect is precisely proportioned to its purity. The faith which depresses the individual impoverishes and sinks the nation in the scale of greatness. Passing through Europe and the world, you may tell at once, by the very outer appearances of society, where a pure and spiritual Christianity has taken root. You may guage the quality of their faith by the condition of the people. Every form of superstition and of corrupted Christianity sits like a nightmare upon a people. Why does Scotland thrive, while Ireland is withered and blasted?—why is France, with all its greatness, in many respects in the rear of England?-why are the Papal States in indigence and beggary, while Sardinia, which has thrown off the yoke of Rome, is rising? Why can you tell the difference as you pass from a Romish canton in Switzerland to a Protestant one? Why is Prussia immeasurably ahead in material prosperity to |