Masters." If they are determined to serve their own inclinations, then it is no wonder that they will not trouble themselves to inquire whether God has chosen any certain way and manner in which He would have them serve Him, but will put aside the enquiry as a little trifling matter not worth a thought. But ask them to give up the particular way which they happen to fancy most: is it a little matter then? No; there you touch the interests of that Master whom they really serve,-you interfere with their own right of judging and choosing for themselves,— and then it becomes a serious thing; they will never give it up. Now this proves that their heart is not really free to serve God, as He would have them; it is already engaged in another service-the service of their own will.

This leads me to conclude with a very few remarks on the true nature of Christian Liberty, and on the best means of gaining it.

The good things of the Spirit are directly opposed to such things as "make a fair shew in the flesh." And so is it with the Christian's liberty, which is a spiritual, not a carnal, blessing. It does not consist, like carnal liberty, in

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our being free to think, speak, and act according to our own will; but on the contrary it consists in our being free from the tyranny of our own will, which is corrupt and enslaved by sin; and in our becoming the servants of God. And this is why the service of God is called "perfect freedom;" because it delivers us from the law of our own hearts and the law of our members, and makes us subject to a new Law, the Law of the Spirit. And therefore the best method, under Divine Grace, of attaining this Christian Liberty, is at all times and by all means to deny ourselves; to deny our own inclinations, which are ever striving to gain the mastery over us, and which will only suffer us to be free, so far as we succeed in bringing them into subjection to the will of God. In order to be free therefore in the Christian sense of the word, we must have God for our Master, and then according to Christ's own word we shall serve none other. Then we shall yield ourselves, both souls and bodies, to be the instruments of righteousness unto God; then we shall receive strength from Him to gain the victory and to triumph over all our spiritual foes; then He will keep us with His perpetual

mercy, not leaving us to our own frailty, which would surely cause us to fall; but keeping us by His help from all things hurtful and leading us to all things profitable to our Salvation, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

SERMON VI.

CHRISTIAN READINESS.

St. Matt. xxiv, 44.

THEREFORE BE YE ALSO READY.

THE doctrine of the Bible concerning that everlasting happiness which God hath promised His people in the life to come, is acknowledged by all of us to be most gracious and blessed, very full of comfort, and one without which we should be very miserable.

But perhaps we do not so often consider that this doctrine, besides being comfortable, is also extremely serious. It is indeed a doctrine which ought to make us think very seriously about ourselves and our condition, both present and future. And the reason why it ought to have such an effect upon us is this;-because

everlasting happiness in Heaven cannot be ours
unless we are ready for it when we come to die.
We shall not, indeed, in any case enter upon it,
in all its fulness, at the time of our death; for
the good Christian when he dies, does not go at
once to Heaven, but enters into a place of happy
Rest, and there peacefully waits for the second
coming of the Son of God, at which coming he
will rise again in his own body and be received
into the joy of his Lord.
But when we die we
must be ready for this happiness,—that is, we
must make ready for it in this present life,-for
if we are unready when we die, we shall remain
so for ever. For we read in holy Scripture that
"where the tree falleth there it must lie; and
again, “there is no work, nor device, nor know-
ledge in the grave whither thou goest;
" and
again we read of the door being closed, and
never again opened; and in short the Scriptures
everywhere teach us, that if we have not done
our appointed work in this our day of life, we
shall neither have time nor power to do it
afterwards.

Therefore when we meditate on Heaven, and on those pleasures which eye hath not seen, nor

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