of soul much more than of body, for the time of your return here. And even those whose home is far different from this picture, nay, if there be any so unhappy as even in your own household to have none to help you forward in the knowledge and love of God, yet even you will have some opportunities more than you enjoy here,—greater leisure with less of rude interruption; and even if you have no encouragement in good, you can, at least, dread no persecution for it. And remember, too, that this is a matter of life and death; and though, if your homes be so unhappily situated, your task is undoubtedly harder, yet still your salvation depends upon it; and the question is, not whether the path of good is easy or not, but whether we do tread it or no: this is the real question for this world, and for eternity.

And now briefly for all of us here assembled, who are going so soon to part, never to be all again here united, may we, if we are enjoying the prospect of our approaching rest, in the common sense of the word, take care to make it a spiritual rest also; to use it for our good, as well as for our refreshment. We expect that it will be pleasant, but that does not rest with us to determine; we may at any rate make it profitable, for that, through Christ, we can do if we will. Those of us who return here, may return with a spirit strengthened and purified, to do God's will at school. Those

who are going to enter on another sphere of duty may well need some such interval of Christian rest, to prepare for a new line of Christian labour. These intervals will not always come so readily and so free from care in more advanced life, even though we may need them more. Would that we may feel God's goodness in granting such to us in our peculiar line of life here! and let us all pray earnestly, that he will give us grace to avoid the double condemnation which awaits those to whom much is given, and at whose hands their Lord, when he comes to reckon, finds no return.

SERMON XXVI.

EPHESIANS, V. 17.

Be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

It is plain, that when the Apostle bade the Ephesians not to be unwise, he spoke of a want of wisdom which they might remove if they would; when he told them to be understanding, he spoke of something which they might get if they would: and we also can get it, unless we can show that our case is different from that of the Ephesians, and that what was within their power is, for some reason or other, not in ours. I do not suppose that any grown-up person, at least among the richer classes, would venture to plead such an excuse: they, at least, cannot pretend to have less means of understanding what the will of the Lord is, than were possessed by the Ephesians. But young persons of all classes, and grown-up persons amongst the very poor, may think, perhaps, that to them the excuse does apply. A poor man will often say that he is no scholar, meaning by that, that he

cannot understand about the things of Christ; and will say that

a young person, whether rich or poor, he is not old enough, and that added years are necessary before he can understand what the Bible wishes him to learn.

Now certainly this excuse, both in the case of the poor and in that of the young, is, to a certain degree, true. To a certain degree it is true, that they cannot understand the things of Christ; that is, that if we take three persons equally well disposed, and of equal natural abilities, the one a grown-up man who has been well educated, the second a poor man, and the third one who has not yet grown up to manhood,-it is very certain that there is a great deal in the Bible which the first will understand better than the other two. And so, if we could compare the understanding of spiritual things enjoyed by the very best and wisest Christian in the world, with that which the same person will gain when he shall see God face to face, the difference would be not like that of the other case, but something infinitely greater;— greater, perhaps, than we can ever conceive, unless we shall be so happy as to experience it. But as a good man's understanding of God's will, though far less than it will be hereafter in heaven, is yet quite enough to light him on his way thither; so, and in a much greater degree, is the knowledge to be attained by the poor, or by the young, how

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ever in some respects inferior to that of others, yet quite as effectual as theirs to bring them to the kingdom of God through Christ Jesus.

To the youngest then, and to the poorest, we may use the words of St. Paul: "Be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is." From the youngest, and from the poorest, Christ looks to find some fruit; and if he finds none, the tree is ready to be cut down, and cast into the fire. They have, indeed, a great claim upon the assistance of all those who, from being richer or older, may be able to help them to understand more; but even if this assistance be withheld, or unskilfully given, however great the fault may be in those who do not afford it, yet this is no excuse for those who have not received it: because, if they could not bring forth much fruit, still they could have borne some; and where there is none at all, there will fall God's judgment. And this I suppose to be our Lord's meaning, when he said, that he who knew not his lord's will, and did commit things worthy of stripes, should be beaten with few stripes. We might expect rather, that if he knew not his lord's will, he would not be beaten at all; but Christ meant to show us that there is no such thing as a complete and helpless ignorance about our duty; that a man may know little, it is true, but that there is no one who knows nothing; no one, in short, who knows so little as