in you.

WHIT SUNDAY.

ST. JOHN, XIV. 15.

Jesus said unto his disciples, If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him ; but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be I will not leave you comfortless; I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me; because I live, ye shall live also. At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you. He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me; and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. Judas saith unto him (not Iscariot), Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words, and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings; and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me. These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my Name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have

But

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give

Let

said unto you. unto you not as the world giveth, give I unto you. not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe. Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me. But that the world may know that I love the Father and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do.

THIS is a long passage, but our Church gives it to us in its full length as the Gospel for today. Whit Sunday is one of the most important seasons of the year. It was the day on which the promised gift of the Holy Ghost was bestowed on the disciples.

No doubt the Holy Spirit was given oftentimes before. Holy men of old felt the Spirit's power in teaching, comforting, sanctifying their hearts. But on the day of Pentecost, or Whit Sunday, He came down from heaven with a fuller power than had ever been felt before: He came to abide in the hearts of Christ's people. And O that the blessing of Pentecost may be given, as it were, over again! O

that the Holy Ghost may come down in all the fulness of His grace upon the Church now!

In the parting address which our Lord delivered to His disciples just before His crucifixion, He repeats four times over His promise that He would send the Comforter to them. One of these promises we considered last Sunday; but two more come before us in the Gospel for today.

Our Lord says, in the sixteenth verse, 'I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him; but ye know him, for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.' And again, in the twenty-sixth verse, 'The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.'

Now, in these promises there are three or four things which I would have you notice.

First, our Lord speaks of the Holy Ghost as an abiding Comforter. He Himself had been their daily companion while on earth; but He was soon going to leave them. But this other Comforter' would never leave them; He would abide with them for ever.

Then our Lord also declares that to many the Spirit's coming would bring no joy and gladness. The world,' He says,

เ

'cannot receive him: because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him.' St. Paul declares the very same thing in 1 Cor. ii. : The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness. unto him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.'

We speak of the Holy Spirit, of His work in the heart, and of His powerful influence in the world; but the natural man, the unenlightened man, understands it not; it is folly to him. He cannot see the Holy Spirit with his bodily eyes, and therefore he does not believe in Him. It is very different however with the people of God; 'But ye know him, for he dwell

eth with you, and shall be in you.' They understand what the Holy Spirit is; for they have experienced His mighty power within them. And whatever they know of God, or of true holiness, they feel that they owe it all to the gracious Spirit who has bestowed His gifts upon them.

Our Lord further speaks of the Holy Ghost as the great Teacher of His Church. He calls Him'the Spirit of truth,' to show the difference between Him and all the false spirits that were in the world; and to show also that He above is able to keep us from error, and to bring home God's truth. to our hearts. And then He declares concerning Him, He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance whatsoever I have said unto you.' The fact is, we know nothing as we ought to know, unless the Spirit teaches us. We cannot feel our sins as we ought to feel them, we cannot find pardon and peace in the Saviour, if the Spirit does not enlighten us. 'No man,' says the Apostle, 'can say that Jesus is the Lord but by the Holy Ghost.' He must take of the things of