"he might save his people from their sins!"-What can be the meaning of this, but that we must all of necessity be saved from them; that none but he could, and that he certainly will save us, if we come to God by him? What is there in all the world that so nearly concerns us? What is all the knowledge in the world to this? What are all the riches and enjoyments of the world to the comfort of a soul, which has found salvation from sin and is at peace with God through Jesus Christ our Lord? Here is a wide field for our thoughts to range in, and a great number of questions present themselves to be answered by every heart: but as I choose to be short in speaking to you upon these occasions, I shall reduce them all to one; and pray God to come close to your souls with it. Do you think in your consciences that you have any sins to be saved from? I know your answer, one and all, will be, Yes; who lives without sin? who does not know that he is a sinner? But I must tell you at once, that for the most part this is nothing but trifling with the great point in question; and I must endeavour, with the help of God, to clear it up, and carry you into the depth of it. Keep your thoughts awake, be willing to know the state of your souls, as ever you desire to see the salvation of God; and let your hearts, if they can, accompany me with secret prayer for a blessing.

I

It is said, that "when the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, comes, he will reprove, or convince, the world of sin," John, xvi. 8.; that is, he will make men understand what sin is, how hateful it is to God, how great the guilt of it, and that the wage's of sin, of all and every sin, is death. But now suppose the Holy Ghost should convince the whole world of sin, all but yourself, what better are you for his office? What nearer are you to a saving work? The meaning therefore is farther, that he does and must convince every single soul of its own sin;

and that for this plain reason, because till our eyes are opened to see it, and our danger, misery, and helplessness under it, we can see no want of deliverance and redemption from it, as to our own case; we can see no need of a Saviour; we cannot take one step towards Christ, any more than we should go to a physician to be cured of a distemper which we think we have not, though we had otherwise ever so great an opinion of his skill. The question, therefore, I am asking is, Whether, instead of putting all from you with vain excuses, and saying as you do in a confused, ignorant, unbelieving way, that you do no harm, that others are worse, that all are sinners, that God is merciful, and the like; I say, whether you have been brought to the knowledge of your own sin, of an evil heart, and an evil nature, and of your continual breach of every one of God's commandments, when rightly understood, insomuch that you know with infallible certainty, and all the world cannot persuade you to the contrary, that if there was not another sinner upon earth, you are one yourself? And in this state, knowing from the light of Scripture, that all sin is damnable, do you think no otherwise of yourself than as a lost sinner, and sure to perish, without help and mercy from the Lord? This is the order of the Spirit's work, as set down in Scripture; so he begins with us, and so we must all of necessity begin with ourselves; say and do what you will, he will not alter his method, you can never persuade him to begin his work at the wrong end.

You see then why, though you are baptized in the name of Jesus, and call yourselves Christians, all is hidden from you; you see why you believe little, and do less; why you do not "seek the kingdom of God and his righteousness in the first place;" why you do not read the Scripture diligently to know as exactly as you can what you must do to be saved; why you do not pray earnestly for a

blessing upon your souls; why you do not despise every thing in comparison of the Christian hope, and Christian salvation. It is because you never put your souls to answer the question, what sin is? It is because you do not, will not know the greatness of your own; it is because you are blind in this leading point, and do not pray more especially for a sight of your sin, the sin of your nature, the sins of your hearts, the sins of your lives; it is because you do not believe the Scripture when it tells you of your unhappy condition in sin, and that if you are not delivered from it, the wrath of God abideth on you. I do not, I dare not say what degree of this sense, or of trouble for sin, is necessary; it may be more or less, as God pleases; and there are some who perplex themselves too much on this account, as thinking they do not grieve enough for sin. But where this sense is not, nothing can follow, no faith, no holiness, no hope. Where sin is not felt and feared, salvation from it will of course be slighted; and those blessed words you have heard to day, "thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins," will be passed over with graceless unconcern, by all who deny, lessen, or excuse their guilt. What the salvation of Jesus is, I must now tell you in a word: to those who look for it at his hands, in the knowledge of their sinful, undone state, he is a Saviour indeed, the Lord from heaven, all they want, and all their souls can desire; he delivers them from their blindness in sin, from the curse of sin, from the power of sin, and from all their spiritual enemies; he is their peace-maker with God, washes them from all spot of sin in his blood, turns their wills to God in obedience, and if they cleave to him in faith and welldoing, will bestow heaven upon them, and be himself their great and everlasting reward.

PRAYER.

Blessed Lord, we desire to thank thee for all thy mercies; and especially for that holy book, in which thou hast revealed thy covenant of life to perishing sinners. Give us grace to value it as we ought, to read it daily, and so to meditate upon it, that we may discover in it more and more the depth of our misery, and the height of thy mercy; and deliver us from the dreadful guilt of neglecting or despising the means which thou hast, in thy great goodness, appointed for the cure of our blindness and ignorance, in the things which belong to our everlasting peace. Open our understandings, that we may receive the heavenly instructions which thou hast given us; and let thy good Spirit be now and ever present with us, to guide us into all saving truth, and make it effectual to our conversion. Thou madest thy blessed Son to be born of a pure virgin, and calledst his name Jesus, that we might know where to fly for refuge from the guilt that is upon us, and the condemnation that is due to us: we beseech thee, preserve in our souls such a lively sense of the great evil of sin, and of our own sinfulness, of thy dread majesty, of thy infinite purity and holiness, and of thy unspeakable love to us in the offer of thy undeserved mercy, that we may come to the Saviour for healing in his blood, know him to be our Immanuel, and through him be made thy children in a will to all goodness, as well as by adoption and grace. So work upon, and prepare our hearts, that, being established in thy gospel of grace and forgiveness, we may love thy nature and will, live to thy glory, worship thee in spirit and in truth, choose thee for our portion, delight in approaching thee as a reconciled Father, and long for the full knowledge and enjoyment of thee in heaven, through Jesus Christ, our only Saviour and Redeemer. Amen.

SECTION II.

ST. MATTHEW, ii. 1.

BEHOLD, there came wise men from the East.-By what kind of wisdom, or knowledge, they were led to take this journey, we cannot certainly say; and, perhaps, it can only be accounted for by supposing them to be under a divine, supernatural guidance and direction.

Ver. 2. Saying, Where is he that is born king of the Jews?-What was a king of the Jews to them, if they were not brought to the knowledge of his universal, spiritual kingship? What is it to us, if we do not unfeignedly acknowledge him under that title, as our Lord and King? For we have seen his star in the East, and are come to worship him.-Whatever they meant by that word, we know what kind of worship is due to him. We too have a star, a brighter star than they had, "the day spring from on high," the light of Scripture, to guide us to him; and it is our own fault if he himself does not shine into our hearts. O! come, come to him with faith, and longing for all his benefits. What can you say this very hour? Are you come, or are you not?

Ver. 3. When Herod the king heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. - The Jews understood their prophecies so well, as to expect the Messiah just about that time: and therefore it is no wonder that so strange an event as the coming of these men at this: critical season, and the account they gave of it, all Jerusalem should be troubled, i. e. moved, or variously affected; Herod and his party fearing the loss of his kingdom, others with hopes of a deliverer, and all mistaking his business in the world. Let us also be moved; and so moved as to inquire carefully into the one great design of his coming.