sell all, and follow Him. Thou thoughtest that He would have spared thy idol; and then thou wouldst have been willing to do many things for the sake of obtaining heaven. But no, nothing else will suffice: thy goodness cannot profit God: that idol, mammon, which thou hast set up in the place of God, must be first renounced, or thou must forego the hope of heaven.'

What, then, did the poor young man do? “When he heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions." His departure, when he was required to make a painful sacrifice, made manifest-what our Lord saw from the first-that he did not really possess that honesty and integrity of heart, for which others would give him credit, when he came kneeling, to ask instruction; and which he doubtless flattered himself that he possessed. His case resembled that of many-young persons espe cially-who, being naturally inclined to think favourably of their own sincerity, which has been little tried, and encouraged by the favourable opinion of, perhaps, partial friends, are forward to make professions, and to enter into engagements of a religious nature, without weighing well, or being at all adequately aware of, what they are professing

and undertaking. Such persons, when exhorted to attend to the concerns of eternity as "the one thing needful;" seeing-what no person of plain understanding can help seeing-that this life, compared with an endless life, is but a vapour; readily acknowledge that it is reasonable to make any worldly sacrifice which the word of God requires, for the sake of obtaining the happiness of eternity: they scarcely suspect, that any can be required which they would not be willing to make for such an object: they know not the hold which worldly things really have upon their affections; and how hard they would find it to obey, if they were really called upon to give up all, or what they value most, for Christ.

In St. Mark's account of this conversation, our Lord says to the young man, "One thing thou lackest *." We are not, however, to suppose, from this, that he lacked only one thing; but that it was enough at that time to mention this one; because this was quite sufficient to shew how grievously he had been imposing upon himself, in thinking that his own merit was almost equal to the purchase of heaven; and that the little, which was wanting, he

*Mark x. 21.

could easily make up, as soon as the deficiency should be pointed out to him. Our Lord took him, as before, on his own ground: Thinkest thou that thou canst do enough to complete thy title to eternal life? Here then is one thing which I require of thee: Sell all that thou hast, and give to the poor.' Our Lord knew that he was not at all prepared to do this one thing: this one requirement, therefore, might suffice to bring him to a more just estimate of the present disposition of his heart towards God. If the same question had been addressed to Jesus by a person of different disposition, and differently circumstanced—if, for instance, sensuality had been the prevailing sin of the inquirer-some sacrifice would have been proposed, or something required to be done, to which none but a person of pure heart would be disposed to submit and such a requirement would have had the same effect upon a sensualist, as the command to sell all, and give to the poor' had upon this respectable young man of great possessions. In like manner, whatever had been the peculiar character of the inquirer, a corresponding test might have been applied, to prove his sincerity, and expose him to himself.

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The subject is particularly deserving of the attention of those, young persons especially, who, to an amiable disposition, or to other qualifications which cause them to be regarded with favour amongst men, add, like the young man mentioned in the text, the advantage of large possessions or expectations. But the instruction to be derived from it is by no means confined to such persons : for not only are all worldly possessions great or small, chiefly, by comparison, but there are other things of a worldly nature which quite as much engross the hearts of some persons as large possessions do those of others. Sensual pleasures, or distinctions of whatever kind, personal attractions, even gay clothing and the admiration of foolish spectators, contemptible as they may appear to persons of understanding-not to say, religious persons-have such strong and unsuspected hold on the minds of some persons, that when either these must be given up, or the interests of eternity renounced, eternity is given up, and they are held fast. There is, in truth, nothing so mean and worthless, that people of carnal mind will not prefer it to eternal life. Like Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright, there are persons, who, whenever the temptation to drunkenness or

uncleanness falls in their way, will, in defiance of the voice of conscience, and in spite of vows and resolutions which greatly enhance their guilt, at once swallow the bait, and run the desperate risk of precluding for ever the possibility of repentance. The fear of being laughed at, or of forfeiting the favour and good opinion of this or that individual or party, often induces a man to leave undone what he has solemnly pledged himself, before God, to do; or to do what he has again and again resolved to refrain from doing. Many, especially of the young, have thus, through false shame, made shipwreck of their hope.

After interesting the affections-perhaps for a season gladdening the hearts-of those who most earnestly desire their welfare, by professions, and by promising appearances of a determination to devote themselves unreservedly to God-like Demas, they have been drawn aside by the love of the present evil world; and, instead of leading and encouraging their companions, as they might have done, by their example, in the way that leadeth unto life, they have become stumbling-blocks, or beacons, by which others have been turned from the right way—not warned of their danger.