SERMON VII. THE NATIVITY OF CHRIST. ST. MATTHEW, ii. 11. "And when they were entered into the house, they saw the young child, with Mary his mother." AT this season*, my brethren, our attention is naturally turned to the consideration of those circumstances which the evangelists have related respecting our Lord's nativity. They are few in number; but it is impossible to imagine any more beautiful and interesting. How much solemnity in the salutation of the holy virgin by the "angel, who came unto her and said, Hail! thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. When she saw him (continues the evangelist), she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favour with God. And behold thou shalt conceive and bring forth a Son, and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David; and * Christmas. he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end." The vision of angels which appeared to the shepherds at the time of our Lord's birth, is another circumstance of inimitable beauty. "There were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo! the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory, of the Lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not; for, behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day, in the city of David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." My text is taken from the account of another incident, not less striking than any of those already mentioned, and which marks, perhaps, in still stronger colours, the universal importance of that event which was then transacting in the world: the account I mean of the journey undertaken by the wise men from the east, in search of that prince whose approaching birth they had been taught to expect, and guided by the star, which led them on rejoicing, till it brought them to the place where he was found. The beauty and solemnity of these miraculous occurrences are greatly enhanced by the plain and homely character of the natural appearances with which they are contrasted, and with which, at the same time, they so harmoniously combine. The mighty event which called down an angel of God to visit the virgin solitude of the daughter of David; which brought the host of heaven to speak peace and joy to the simple innocence of shepherds; which interrupted the calm speculations of the eastern sages, and impelled them to follow a miraculous sign into a foreign land; seemed, to all outward appearance, to be nothing more than the birth of a child in some of the lowest circumstances of human fortune. "When they were come into the house (says the evangelist, speaking of the wise men), they saw the young child, with Mary his mother." It is possible, my brethren, that this simple and unimposing form in which our Saviour is first presented to us, may operate with some minds to the prejudice of his religion: I shall, therefore, endeavour, in a very few words, to show that, on the contrary, it affords a strong confirmation of its truth; that it corresponds exactly with the wants and wishes of the human heart; and, finally, that there is a striking coincidence between this first appearance of our Lord, and the whole genius and spirit of Christianity. In the first place, then, is it possible that any messenger from heaven could come before us in circumstances more completely inconsistent with the supposition of artifice or imposture?" When they were come into the house, they beheld the young child, with Mary his mother." What is there here to excite our most jealous apprehensions, or to afford a ground of suspicion to the most vigilant distrust? Is it possible that, in this simple domestic scene, the seeds of deception should be striking root? Was the mother mingling with her caresses the proud thought that her son was destined to lead after him a deluded world? or was the infant, while he answered to her smiles, dreaming of the enterprise which lay before him? When we behold a dark-minded prophet issuing from the depth of solitudes and deserts, infusing a lofty enthusiasm into the minds of a bar. barous people, and leading them on to conquest and devastation, we, who are beyond the sphere of the delusion, can at once affirm, notwithstanding the splendour of his success, that he owed it to hypocrisy and deception. How different the scene here presented to us! It is humble, and makes no pretensions; but it finds its way into our souls by the same passages by which truth is conveyed to them. When we are in the presence of the young child, and Mary his mother," do not our hearts inform us, that the God of truth is not far from us? In the second place, I affirm, that the very humility of this scene is the circumstance to which the human heart must be most attached, however it may disappoint some wandering irregularities of the imagination. When the children of Israel were terrified with those awful manifestations of the divine majesty which accompanied the promulgation of their law, their words were, "Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I die not." This, my brethren, is the language of human nature. Encircled by the frailty of the flesh, man is afraid to hold any direct intercourse with the Almighty. It was then that, condescending to the infirmity of his creatures, God said to Moses, "I will raise them up a prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth." What the heart desires in a divine instructor is, that while he has the words of God in his mouth, he should yet be raised from among his brethren of mankind. I need not inform you how remarkably this wish of the human heart is accomplished in the whole dispensation of Christianity, or how admirably the character and condition of our Saviour at all times correspond with the description of a prophet who, possessing the words of the living God, was yet subject to all the feelings and affections of a man, and was often severely "touched with a sense of our infirmities." I am only at present led to remark to you in what a pleasing manner this circumstance is corroborated by the little simple incident now before us, and the short glimpse afforded us of the infant years of Jesus, while he was yet an inmate in the house of his parents, and be fore he felt himself called upon to execute the mighty designs for which he was sent into the world. How beautifully is the awful character of a supernatural instructor, softened down by these means to our hearts and affections! Can we be afraid of approaching a child? Is there any thing in the house of Mary which can excite our apprehension and alarm? My third remark was, that there is a very striking coincidence between this first appearance of our Lord, and the whole genius and spirit of Christianity. It is a remarkable characteristic of our religion, that while it is doing every thing for the good of mankind which can be done, it yet seems to be doing nothing. It resides in the hearts of the faithful, and silently influences the conduct of their lives. It flows in a quiet stream through nations and communities of men, and by an unobserved principle of improvement, refines and beautifies their manners and institutions. It is secretly, and by slow degrees, bringing in that "better kingdom, |