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thunders, "Thus saith the Lord, Consider your ways." Blessed alarm that constrains the formalist, perhaps after a delusion of many years, to rise and look about him, to see if all be safe! Blessed sermon or conversation, which, although like a bow drawn at a venture, is at once the occasion of the discovery and the cure of deadly disease! Blessed conviction, however distressful, which rends the soul from refuges of lies, and provokes an earnest cry to him who hath power to save! Blessed angel, whether from earth or heaven, who points to the storm gathering, seizes the loiterer's hand, and says, "Escape to the mountain!" Blessed violence, that thus plucks the brand out of the fire!

It remains, that we propose a remedy for this serious evil, in a few friendly counsels :-and the 1st is, Be well acquainted with the Word of God. Your own heart, your neighbour, your minister, may deceive you; but the Word of God is pure, eternal truth; it cannot deceive you. "Search the Scriptures:" search them with a humble, teachable, praying spirit: continually repair to this oracle, ask wisdom of God, and it will be given you. Yea, "if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding, if thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasure, then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God."

2. Examine carefully the grounds and reasons on which your heart would persuade you

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that you are "something; "that you are interested in salvation: "Blessed is the man that feareth alway: ""He that trusteth his own heart, is a fool." "Let us, therefore, fear, lest a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it." Bring the grounds and reasons of your hope to the infallible touchstone: " prove your ownselves." Fear, lest any thing in yourself, instead of the Foundation which God has laid in Zion, should be the ground of your confidence. Fear, lest the reasons of your hope should be gathered from any thing which is not the effect of the Holy Spirit's saving work. Be faithful to your own soul.

3. If providence has put it in your power, attend constantly on a distinguishing, soul-searching ministry. False-hearted professors and hypocrites cannot endure it: they cannot bear the shining lustre, the convincing power, of the naked truth. They are little other than a terror to themselves, when at any time they are constrained to contemplate God and Christ and their own hearts in that faithful mirror: "Therefore they come not to the light, lest their deeds should be reproved." But if you would not deceive yourself, come to the light where it appears to be most pure and penetrating. Let the Word of the Lord have free course, and bear away every vain conceit and false confidence. Value the instructor whose preaching comes closest to your heart; who deals not tenderly, but faithfully, with

your errors and misconceptions and self-flattering conceits. Be willing to be "saved, though as by fire;" and though the fire still find more and more dross to consume, when the spirit of wisdom and power shall thus have tried you, you shall come forth as gold.

Finally: Be afraid of the flattering insinuations of self-love. Labour to lie low and vile in your own eyes; study much your own heart; contemplate humbling truths; think what you are, independent of what free grace has made you; lay yourself low before God, in self-abasing and graceadoring confession: it is a posture becoming a saved sinner; it is a frame of mind that not only saves from the final horrors of self-deception, but places the child of want near the infinite source of supply, and secures to him the tenderest, fullest ex-" pressions of Divine love. "For thus saith the high and lofty ONE, that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place; with him also that is of a contrite and humble' spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones."-Let this, then, be your language:

A guilty, weak, and helpless worm,

On thy kind arms I fall;

Be thou my strength and righteousness,
My Jesus, and my all.

SERMON V.

ISAIAH xl, 11.

He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.

WE are here presented with a lovely represen

tation of our blessed Redeemer, under the character of a Shepherd: and perhaps no character affords a more perfect description of his mediatorial greatness and grace. Majesty and mercy, power and compassion, are sweetly united here. Here is greatness to command our reverence; here is tenderness to draw our affection; and both to invite our confidence.

Our text will lead us to speak of our great Shepherd's government of his flock generally: and then of his particular regards to the feeble of his flock. Come, Holy Spirit, take of these things of Christ, and shew them unto us! then will our meditation of Him be sweet.

I. We have a representation of Christ exercising his pastoral office, in his regards to his flock generally: "He shall feed his flock like a shepherd."

1. Christ's people are here represented under the metaphor of a flock of sheep.

They are a select company; "a chosen generation;"" chosen out of the world;" separated by God's effectual call, as Israel of old, from all the families of the earth, to be holy unto the Lord; in the world, but not of the world: in the world, as a flock of sheep in the same field with goats and swine; a little flock-yet their protection sure, and their prospects glorious.

It were pleasant, would time admit, to dwell upon their excellencies, their cleanliness and purity, their meekness and harmony, their love and obedience to their Shepherd, their delight in his pastures, and their usefulness living and dying.

Yet some things are to be noticed with concern; the effects of infirmity and weakness. How soon they yield to the impression of fear! often their Shepherd expostulates, "Why are ye so fearful, O ye of little faith?" Sometimes, this excess of timidity hurries them into real evil. Where one goes, others, urged by their fears, too hastily follow, implicitly, and without examination; nay, and deaf to friendly remonstrance, yielding to the influence of example.

2. Christ is the Shepherd who feeds this flock. We are not at a loss for an answer to the question,

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