him in spirit. He is risen to a world of glory, and you must dwell with him in spirit in that world of glory also. Your life is to be bound up in his-you must live only in him: therefore, since he has left this evil world, and has left it desolate by his absence, you must be widowed to it: you must consider yourself as dead here: there is nothing in this barren scene which should afford you solid pleasure, now that your Lord is departed. Your life is now hid, or laid up, with Christ: there all your hopes are fixed, there all your happiness is reposed. Set your affection, therefore, on things above-on that blessed place where is to be found the beloved Object of your hopes and affections, who hath redeemed your souls and delivered you from eternal death. Let your affections often soar upwards, and contemplate the glory of that kingdom in which he reigns, the happiness of those who dwell with him, the excellence and purity of those who with him are made perfect. Anticipate in joyful prospect the day when you shall yourselves be raised to the same place whither your Saviour has gone before; where you shall see Him "whom having not seen you love, and in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory." Anticipate by faith the time when you shall enjoy the full completion of his great salvation; when every taint and blot of sin will be perfectly removed; when every excellence will be implanted in the soul; when every evil will be annihilated; when every obstacle between you and the full enjoyment of the Divine Presence will be taken away; when you shall fall down before him, with all the redeemed of God, and cast your crowns at his feet, and say, with unutterable fervour and joy, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory and blessing."

See, my brethren, how ardently the Apostles fixed their thoughts upon Jesus Christ, how they identified themselves with him, how from him they derived all

their hopes and all their joys. Christ was the object of all their desires: to him they looked as their Redeemer, their Saviour, their Intercessor, their High Priest and Advocate, their model and example, the Author and Giver of all their good things. Let their example lead us to inquire whether we are actuated by a similar regard for Jesus Christ; whether our thoughts, like theirs, are continually fixed on our Lord and Saviour; whether we long to be with him, esteeming ourselves dead to this world in order that our life may be more conformed to the happiness which he enjoys, and which he communicates to his faithful disciples now with him in glory.

And let us also frequently ponder on the excellency of those things which are above as compared with the things which are on earth. There, where our blessed Saviour dwells, every thing is pure and perfect; there, no stain of sin or defilement is found: here every thing is corrupt; marred, and defaced, and spoiled, and polluted by sin. Every thing above is durable and eternal: every thing below is transitory and fading. Every thing above carries with it the full blessing of Almighty God: every thing below withers beneath the influence of his just and holy indignation Every thing above satisfies the soul; for the desires are formed to the place and the place to the desires, and both are adapted to the enjoyment of the highest and purest happiness: every thing below is in its own nature uncertain, disappoints our expectations, and deludes our hopes. Every thing above breathes the air of eternal bliss; for every possi ble cause of unhappiness is studiously excluded by Almighty Power and Wisdom: every thing below tends to unhappines; for our joys are imperfect, our comforts are uncertain, we ourselves are decaying, and all around us proclaims, Seek not your happiness in this uncertain state.

Influenced by such considerations, let us endeavour, my brethren, to elevate and exalt our souls to nobler pursuits and loftier prospects than these transitory

scenes afford. We are immortal creatures, born for eternity, redeemed by Christ from sin that we may dwell in an eternal and endless world, and therefore we should cherish the sentiments natural to the citizens of that glorious and eternal state. Oh! if we value Christ as our Saviour, and prize that blessed immortality which he offers, let us prove our regard for it by often meditating upon its joys, by comparing its nature and happiness with those things which are continually passing before us, by exalting our views and animating our Christian hopes. O let us not feel, and think, and live, and act as if the Saviour of the world had never come down from heaven to save us; as if we never had heard the glad tidings of great joy, of Christ, or of heaven; as if this world were the only world: as if this short, and poor and transitory life were the sum of our existence! O let us not so degrade ourselves, and so debase the Lord who has bought us, and so trample on the glorious hopes he has set before us! Lift up your hearts then. Let the recollection of the ascension of your Saviour cause your hearts to ascend also. Rise to the blissful place where he now lives. Contemplate him standing at the right hand of God, interceding for his people, and preparing for them mansions of glory; and let your spirit join with the spirits of all the redeemed in hailing the day of his triumph, when he shall come to summon his people to his kingdom; and let your hearts say, with them, Even so, Lord Jesus, come quickly. Amen.

SERMON XVII.

ÓN INTERCESSION FOR OTHERS.

1 Timothy ii. 1.

I exhort, therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men.

AMONG the many proofs of Christianity, some are abstruse, and cannot be understood without a considerable share of learning; others are plainer, and intelligible to the most illiterate. My text naturally suggests one of these. It is very obvious that there must be a certain degree of resemblance between every work and the author who has composed it: it must bear some image of his mind and character. Now read the Gospel of Christ; consider the spirit which pervades it, and the principles it inculcates; and say whose image it bears. Is it like the work of the great Father of mankind? Does it bear the stamp of that gracious Being who reigns in light and happiness ineffable among the blessed spirits of heaven, diffusing there universal peace, and harmony, and joy? The work of such a Being cannot be of a doubtful character: it must ex