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Judge will make allowances; but not surely for that irreligious foolishness, which helps some men afterwards to brave reproof, under pretence of being only as bad as the rest.

I think now, my good friends, I have said more than enough to make out the charge which, with real sorrow of mind, I must bring against this village of ours; that we are, most likely, deep in God's book on account of our want of religious consideration. There may be, I trust there are, many among you, who are free from blame in either of the two ways I have mentioned, many who have neither defied their God by neglecting His solemn assemblies, nor their King by rioting and violence, in disobedience to his known commands. Happy are they, so far; only let them not lose that happiness by leading inconsiderate lives in any other manner, secret or open. And let us all remember what conscience tells us of our own faults, and not speak or think unkindly of any one for what it is hoped they will repent of ere long.

I say it is hoped, for I am by no means sure of it; considering how little every one seems to think of this fault of inconsideration in any case. Men lie down on their death-beds, and depart for ever and ever into the presence of the great and terrible Judge; and if they have not gone wrong very wilfully, if they have not been habitual thieves, or murderers, or adulterers, never turn their minds to this choice, which however is the only one that awaits them; the choice, I mean, between endless death, and deep repentance for their inconsideration. And how should they think of it, poor souls? They are so got into the habit, that the Holy Spirit of God has left them, and they die, as they had lived, without considering.

Will you do so, Christian brethren? Will you affront your great God and merciful Saviour, and throw away your souls at random? Or will you in good earnest, now that by the favour of our heavenly Father we are come to another Advent, another new year according to the Prayer-book, will you in earnest consider your ways?

God grant that we may do so, every one of us, to so good purpose, that the sins of the past year may indeed be forsaken and forgiven, and especially let us beseech Him, that no such great public sin as we have now to repent of may ever again disgrace our names or endanger our souls.

And grant, O Lord, that the course, &c.

Nov. 24, 1830.

SERMON XXIV.

ST. MARK v. 28.

"For she said, If I may touch but His clothes, I shall

be whole."

WHOEVER will read the Gospels with attention will find, I think, one day in the course of our blessed Lord's ministry marked above all the rest by many great and various miracles, performed one after another with little or no rest and intermission.

The day I mean is that which began whilst He was on the Lake of Gennesaret, and a violent storm arose in His sleep; the first thing He did on waking was to quiet that storm with a word, the very winds and the sea obeying Him. The moment He came out of the ship, He shewed Himself endowed with irresistible power, not over this world only, but likewise over infernal spirits, for He delivered two poor sufferers from a whole legion of such, and permitted. them only to destroy a herd of swine. Very soon after He had returned from performing this great work, a father came to Him in great distress, begging Him to lay His hand on his daughter, who was lying at the point of death. And while He was on the way to do so, that happened of which the verse just now read for the text is perhaps the most instructive and affecting circumstance. A certain woman which had an issue of blood twelve years, and had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that

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she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse, having heard of Jesus, came near Him, nearer than she would have dared to come alone, (for according to the law of Moses, her complaint made her unclean, and she would not be allowed to touch any one;) therefore, seeing that much people were following Him, and thronging Him close, she took advantage of that crowd, and came in the press behind, and touched the hem of His garment, For she said, If I may but touch His clothes, I shall be whole. And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.

Such is the very exact account given in St. Mark's Gospel of the proceedings of that wonderful day; and being in St. Mark's Gospel, it is in fact St. Peter's account, for it is with good reason believed, that St. Peter by the Holy Spirit approved and set to, as it were, his own seal in testimony of all that St. Mark wrote. Now St. Peter was then close to our Saviour, taking notice of all that happened, and that perhaps is one reason why the account of these things in St. Mark is more particular than in the other Gospels. But however that may be, the example of one so kindly approved and so highly praised by our Lord Himself, must be worth our best consideration. And let this first be observed upon it, that however acceptable her faith was, her knowledge seems to have been very imperfect. For immediately after her cure, when Jesus, knowing in Himself that virtue had gone out of Him, turned Him about in the press and said, Who touched my clothes? and when He looked round about to see her that had done this thing, then the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what was

done in her, and finding that she could not be hid, fell down before Him, and told Him all the truth. It should appear, then, as if at first she had thought she might be hid; as if she had an indistinct notion of obtaining her cure from Jesus Christ, without His knowing it Himself.

But

Now, if she had known (as He said to another woman on another occasion), if she had thoroughly known the gift of God, and who it was to whom she drew nigh, she would have been well aware how impossible it is that anything whatever should be hidden. from Him, much more His own gracious works. though she had no clear notion of this, she came to Him in the right spirit. She thought herself unworthy and unfit directly to approach the blessed Jesus, yet knew not in what other way she might ever obtain a release from her plague; and often as she had been disappointed, she felt a strong and serious hope, that if she could once draw near to Him, in the way those did who were least favoured, she should not depart without a blessing. Both these good dispositions, both her faith and her humility, are affectingly expressed here in the text: If I may touch but His clothes, I shall be whole. Her humility kept her from even imagining any nearer approach to Him, and her faith made her quite satisfied, that even so much would be sufficient. That it was real faith and humility, and not mere superstitious fancy, we are certain; not only by the fact of her cure, but also by the condescending encouragement which our blessed Lord vouchsafed to give her, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.

Here then is the great practical lesson which the

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