confidence of his regard; feel an hatred to the very appearances of evil; and ardently desire to obey every précept which is revealed in the Gospel for the govern›ment of your heart, the regulation of your life, under every character you sustain, and in every department allotted you in the world. Actuated by this blessed Spirit, you not only abound in hope, and have joy and peace in believing, but your duties and privileges, as the sons of God, will afford you a thousand sacred sweets. The word of God, whether preached or read, you will receive with attention, humility, and joy. Let your path in life be afflictive or prosperous, you can, on the Lord's day, praise your God; and, if I may so say, sing your very cares away! So far from indulging an improper temper to any followers of the Lord, or members in your community, you are taught, as the children of God, to put on bowels of tenderness, compassion, and good will to all. The prosperity of Zion will lay near your heart, Your cup will sometimes overflow with compassion for sinners, and earnestly pray for an harvest of souls. Its influence will aid you materially to walk within your house with a perfect heart, desiring that those sweet pleasures of the Sabbath may be enjoyed by all who surround you. Thus God accomplishes that charming promise in Ezekiel xxxiv. 26, I will make them, and the places about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in its season; there shall be showers of blessings. May the Lord do so to us, and more also !

4. It remains only that I instruct you, that those who are in the Spirit on the Lord's day, are assisted with inconcievable pleasure to anticipate the ETERNAL SABBATH-the rest which remaineth in heaven for the peo ple of God. True, the natural eye hath not seen, nor the

ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man to concieve what things the Lord hath prepared for them that love him; but God hath revealed them unto us by the Spirit, who has not only described those great and eternal realities in the Gospel, but makes them known, and realizes them to the heart. Thus, the true worshipper on earth hath his conversation in heaven. This is equally true, whether we name the great Jubilee Sabbath, which is the Millennium, the thousand years personal reign of Christ on the new earth, or the ultimate state of felicity and glory. Through the aid of the Spirit, by the medium of the word, you may contemplate the state, the place, the numberless throng, their employ, purity, felicity and glory! You may also hold converse with Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath, now at the Father's right hand, as your Redeemer, Intercessor, and Friend; who creates the bliss of heaven with his smiles, and who will shortly recieve you to himself, to be for ever blessed. Thus the Lord promised, Thine eyes shall behold the King in his beauty; thou shalt behold the land that is very far off. What a vast addition does the contemplation of futurity make to the enjoyment of the present Sabbath? We now see through a glass darkly ;—there, face to face! Now we are surrounded with a multitude of evils ;—there, freed from all, beneath the smiles of God, we shall for ever sing the praises of redeeming love! Let this, then, be our fervent desire,

Thy Spirit, O my Father give,

To be my guide and friend,
To light my way to ceaseless joys,
To Sabbaths without end.

The only reflection we shall make is, how distinguishingly happy are those who are in the Spirit of the Lord on the Lord's day, enjoying the sweets of communion with God, a transforming view of the Lord of the day; experiencing the satisfaction of an adoption into the family of God, and rejoicing in hope of spending a Sabbath in the realms of eternal bliss! especially, if we make the contrast between them and those truly unhappy persons who, notwithstanding their professed belief of the Lord's day, are found in the spirit of the world, the spirit of pride, the spirit of envy, or the spirit of satan. That multitudes are influenced by such spirits, will not admit of controversy. Let us, therefore, examine ourselves. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so, the knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God; that we may know the things that are freely given to us of God. This is the testimony of the primitive disciples, and the source from whence they enjoyed the pleasures of devotion. Making good our claim to this blessed Spirit, let us remember to plead his influences on the dawn of every Sabbath, and we shall assuredly find the possession of those joys which can alone be exceeded, by the pleasures which are at God's right hand for ever more.

things of God

Now we have

LECTURE V.

ADVICE TO YOUNG MEN.

PSALM CXix. 9.

Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to thy word.

Geat God, instruct this youthful breast,

Prepare it to enjoy thy rest;

To hoary hours my life prolong,
And let thy mercies be my song.

OUR expectations being so much alive for the virtue of the rising generation, we cannot exert ourselves too much in affording them instruction. Nor ought we to be discouraged by that thoughtless disposition which is too much attendant upon early life. If our endeavours are successful but to a few, it will not only afford us an ams ple compensation, but that few, by their advice and example, may prove of the utmost benefit to others, when our heads recline upon the lap of earth.

I

It is to you, therefore, the young men of this family, would now address myself, presuming you will honour me with your attention. My text are the words of David, who, when a youth, was distinguished by the Almighty in the family of Jesse to bear the sceptre of Israel. Nor was he unmindful of the favour of his God in the decline of his years. O God, said he, thou hast taught me from my youth, and hitherto have I declared thy wonderful works; now also, when I am old and grey headed, O God, forsake me not! Be assured the virtues of youth are a * material part of the solace of old age. I stand before

you as a faithful witness for that God who hath been the guide of my youth, and who is still the staff of my life! From the pleasures of my past experience-the importance of your early conversion, and an hope that God will bless my instruction to you, I shall direct your attention to the words of my text.

By casting your eye upon them, you will instantly percieve they contain a QUESTION, and an ANSWER; the former addressed as a petition to God, the latter as an answer for your information. We begin with the

QUESTION. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse kis way?

It is observable, although childhood and youth are vanity, David fixes his attention in preference to a young man. A person, passed from infancy to youth, and from youth to maturity of age; a period this, when the passions are more exposed to temptations, and the world exhibits its most delusive charms. Examining this ques tion, you may learn that a young man's ways are cor rupt that it debases his nature, and exposes him to the displeasure of his Maker-that the question is proposed by one who is sensible of his state, and that he is anxious to receive instruction and relief. On each of these I shall offer some remarks.

It is hoped, few are lost to that consciousness as not to know the path of youth is accompanied with many vices. Allowance may be made for the habits of education, natural restraints, and the stations in which youth may be placed; but the fact is as certain as its consequences are serious, that the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth, and that continually. Though you, my young friends, should be unwilling to confess the operation of your mind, yet we who have passed our juvenile stage