corrupted by, malignant influences from which we have been providentially shielded?

Lastly, I ascribed to the Psalmist the devout wish,not only that he might be preserved from the snares of idolatry, but that they might no longer be spread in the land; that there might not be this 'vanity' for any eye to see. And thus the Lord's Prayer includes the petition that we may not be led into temptation, and also that the kingdom of God may come, and his will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Our heart's

desire and prayer should daily be for the diminution of human guilt and wretchedness. We should encourage, and support, to the best of our ability, whatever tends to effect that diminution. The expression of our own opinions, the observation of our example, may so tend, in a narrower or wider circle, according to our stations. Let us give their full force to the side of truth, piety, justice, and charity. The formation of some new institutions, the amendment of others which exist, may have that tendency; let them have our ready countenance and active aid. The diffusion of knowledge has that tendency, in an eminent degree; be, then, the friends of universal education, till its blessings cover the land, and are as common as heaven's air and sunshine. Religious worship and instruction are means to this end-be they the means of our personal adoption, of our constant recommendation. By whatever social arrangements men are placed in circumstances which present fewer temptations, history and experience assure us we may confidently reckon that vice itself will be diminished. These let us advance; and leave to oth

ers despairing lamentations over the total depravity of human nature, which, were they true, would reduce goodness to the result of miracle alone, and make it unimportant whether man's eyes were turned away from vanity, or ceaselessly directed towards its most powerful allurements.

May it, then, be a constant object with us to adopt that course which is most favorable to the cultivation of piety and goodness. Let us avoid temptation as the surest mode of avoiding transgression. So far as the lot of others depends upon us, what we do should be regulated by the same principle. Servants, children, pupils, relatives, friends; for whomsoever we have to act, do (in this) unto others as ye would that they should do unto you. As much as possible prevent the collision of their earthly interests with their religious and moral duties. They may be the poorer for it, and yet the better-and if the better, then the happier, here and hereafter.

And if temptation must be encountered, as often enough it must, without any voluntary addition on our part, then let us call up the energy of Christian motives in our minds, summon before us the blessings and the terrors of the world to come, endure as seeing Him who is invisible save to the eye of faith, by humble, fervent prayer invoke him to be strong in our weakness, and beseech him to turn away our eyes from beholding vanity, and fix them on the crown of glory which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give, in the day of retribution, to all thein that love his appearing, and await it in holy obedience.

SERMON XVII.

ON TEMPTATION.-PART II. RESISTANCE.

PROVERBS Xvii. 13.

The fining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold; but the Lord trieth the hearts.

The good man, if he be wise withal, will not needlessly expose himself to trials and temptation: though clear principles and long habit may seem to ensure the firmness of his standing, he will still take heed lest he should fall; and, so far as he is consistent with the demands of duty, he will keep out of circumstances which would surround him with inducements to transgress the laws of piety, integrity, and benevolence. "Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity' was the supplication of the Psalmist; 'lead us not into temptation' was the prayer which Christ taught his disciples to offer; to avoid even the appearance of evil' was the earnest precept of an apostle. And so long as it is easier to shun than to resist; so long as it is true that 'pride cometh before a fall, and the Lord loveth the humble;' so long as we see in the world that the amount of vice bears a constant proportion to the amount of temptation; so

long must this be the path of wisdom and of safety. But it would be a mistake to infer from this doctrine that Christian excellence is nothing more than negative goodness, which could be found in one who should be so situated as from birth to death never to encounter temptation at all. It would be a mistake to suppose that the avoidance of temptation should be a practical principle paramount to the claims upon us of God and truth, of duty to our fellow-creatures and even to ourselves. It would be a mistake to imagine that the temptations which abound in the world are not under the superintendence of Providence; have not their ends to answer, and those important ones, in the moral government of God; and are not essentially necessary as portions of his plan for the ultimate excellence and felicity of his rational It would be a mistake to suppose that the Christian warrior is not inuch oftener to fight than to fly; through much tribulation to enter the kingdom of heaven; to bear the cross before he wears the crown; and by successful conflict to lay hold on the promise to him that overcometh, that he shall sit down with the Saviour on his throne of glory. We should preclude these mistakes by coupling with such petitions and precepts as have just been quoted, the doctrine of the text. It teaches us that temptation has its agency, in the Providence of God, for the purification of man's heart; that the ways of God with us may be compared with those of the refiner of precious metals. He subjects them to a process which seems destructive, but the result of which is to separate the vile from the valuable, and to bring forth the

creatures.

latter free from debasing alloy, not only uninjured, but the more pure, useful, and resplendent. It is by trial that every faculty is developed; it is by successful resistance to evil that strength of character is not only exhibited but actually formed; it is by repeated triumphs over perils that character is conducted to maturity and perfection. "This sore travail hath God given to the sons of men to be exercised withal;' and he hath given it in wisdom and in love; for his glory and for their highest good.

A character strong in the power of resisting temptation, partakes in a high degree of moral sublimity. What is the charm of that noble sketch of the seraph Abdiel in Milton's 'Paradise Lost?' It is this principle of resistance. There is nothing imposing in his native dignity. He is surrounded with intelligences of a higher order: thrones, dominations, powers, the nobility of heaven. There is nothing particularly admirable in his conduct, considered apart from his circumstances. He merely retains his allegiance to Jehovah; he simply preserves gratitude towards goodness, and yields obedience to omnipotence. But he is alone faithful among the faithless. And our admiration is not mere effect of contrast. That has its effect: but the materials of the contrast were the varied aspects of the temptation. There was example; but he resisted that. There were promise, and threatening, and ridicule; but he resisted them. There was the inducement of associations to which he had been accustomed-of affections which he had cherished-of reverence which he had paid; but he resisted these. There was the appearance of safety, and the hope even of