requests to Him. And let the prayer we utter come from our hearts; for "God is a Spirit, and they who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth." He is a Father-let us love Him. He is a Saviour-let us trust in Him. Through Christ, who is "the Way," "let us come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." To God alone let us look to shield us from dangers, to preserve us from sin, to comfort us in affliction, to support us in death, and to give us victory over it. And thus, waiting upon God, honouring Him, and doing His will, we shall be prepared for that glorious temple, where the spotless spirits of "just men made perfect," ever bow before His throne : we shall sing the song of saints, and enjoy their bliss throughout eternity. Amen.

SERMON XII.

ON THE SACRAMENTS.

ST. MATTHEW, xxvii. 18, 19, 20.

"All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And, lo! I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world."

(Taken in connection with Acts ii. 41, 42.)

"Then they that gladly received His word were baptized, and they continued steadfastly in the Apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers."

THE Twenty-third Article, which follows that on which I last addressed you, does not come within the scope of my present Discourses, inasmuch as it involves no important point of difference between the Roman and the Anglican Churches. It relates to the appointment of ministers in the Church of Christ, declaring very properly, in accordance with

the order of God, the Apostles' directions, and the practice of all the churches in primitive times, that none may sustain that sacred office, who have not been called and sent by persons duly authorised to invest them with the same. It is cautiously and moderately worded: and this apparently with an eye to the Churches on the Continent, which, though irregularly formed, being without Episcopacy, (the result of necessity, not of choice) could not but be recognized and embraced by us in England as sister-churches, true as to all the essentials of a Church, and faithful to Christ in the same profession of the Gospel. Let us observe the same moderation; and however strong our Episcopalian convictions may be, let us not allow them to carry us into the uncharitable excess of unchurching Communions which once fought by our side the battle of Catholic truth: and, as to other religious bodies, which, on other grounds than those of necessity, have broken away from our Church, apostolically constituted and reformed, and erroneously set up systems differing from that by which Catholic unity was meant to be attained-towards these also let us indulge a charitable spirit: let us avoid rash judgment and harsh expressions: let us not forget that in time past we alienated from us, through our want of faithful preaching, a large portion of the people of the land and though schism cannot be defended and must be condemned, yet let us not dare to exclude from the pale of Christ's Holy Catholic Church those, who, trusting in His name and regenerated by His Spirit,

are joined to Him by the best of all bonds, and will be with Him in Heaven.

The Twenty-fourth Article is another protest of the Reformed Church of England against another thing in which the Church of Rome has innovated on primitive practice, and opposed herself to God's word, that of saying public prayers in a tongue not understood by the mass of the congregation. Whilst it defeats the great object of Divine Worship, and insults God by offering Him the sound of prayer instead of the reality, it can answer no end but to exalt the priesthood by degrading the people. The minister officiating in the Sacrifice of the Mass, raising himself into the character of a mediator, wishes to have it thought by those who see him kneeling and bowing before the Host which he has consecrated, that he is doing the work of reconciliation apart from those by whom he is surrounded. It seems no matter that the people pray not, if he prays for them; and therefore, not only does he pray in Latin, but sometimes in a tone that cannot be heard, and with his face turned from the congregation. Our Article says, that "It is a thing plainly repugnant to the Word of God, and the custom of the primitive church, to have public prayers in the church, or to minister in a tongue not understood by the people." We, in our Reformed Church, place the minister in the midst of the people, in order that every word he says, as he leads the public devotion, in the language of the country, may be heard and responded to by a hearty "Amen." This is the only mode by which

the Church at large can " worship God in spirit and in truth," and we must resist every innovation which, in these days of strange practices as well as of strange doctrines in religion, may be attempted to be made in it.

I now, Brethren, approach another subject connected with the church which Christ sent His Apostles to gather out of all lands, that of the Sacraments. I feel that it is no common subject, but one around which there circles the halo of the presence of God. It has opened a field for religious controversy, and great have been the differences of opinion that have existed concerning it. Some have thought too much of these ordinances of God: others too little. Some have magnified them into very saviours, and put them in the place of heart religion and vital godliness; whilst others have lowered them down into bare naked rites and unmeaning ceremonies, which profit not those who partake of them. Men run into extremes, and adopt the views of a party. So few take a middle course, and consider a subject Scripturally and calmly.

Brethren, my object, to day, is to lay before you, under the guidance of God, those views, Scripturally correct, which our church in her 25th Article has given of the Sacraments. I advisedly say that if I keep to what the Article says, I shall not go from the Scriptures. Upon this point much prayerful caution is necessary. To use the words of a Continental Reformer, deservedly honoured by our Church, the learned and pious Bullinger, "I