pernicious member of society. Make it clear to them as day then, that your Christianity which is a religion of faith is also a religion of virtue-that all the fit and graceful moralities of life follow in its train—and that, while it assimilates to the angels who are above, it scatters beauties and blessings innumerable over the face of society in this lower world. Strive thus to recommend to others the gospel which you profess. Strive mightily according to the grace of God that is given to your prayers, and that worketh in you mightily.

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LECTURE LXIV.

ROMANS, viii, 31.

'What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?

THE apostle, in the utterance of these words, evidently proceeds on the belief that God is upon his side; and it is a belief grounded on certain things which may be found in the preceding context: What shall we then say to these things?' And surely it concerns us to search what the things were, that we too, if possible, may realise the same glorious confidence; and be raised to that highest vantage-ground on which a creature can be exalted, even the vantage-ground of the Divine favour, whereupon he stands secure, amid the shock and the conflict and the hostility of all those subordinate elements which be in the universe-and just because he can count on the greatest Being of the universe as his friend.

In taking a retrospect then of this epistle, with a view to ascertain the footing upon which our apostle rests the assurance of God being for him, we shall find that there are two distinct considerations upon which the assurance turns. The first consideration is that of God's truth in His promise -a consideration which lays hold on those who have

faith, and which lays no hold on those who want it. What first then led the apostle to count upon God as his friend, was faith in God-a faith that counted Him to be faithful-a faith that hung direct upon the promises of God. Of this an example was given by Abraham, and is quoted by Paul, in the preceding argument. The patriarch relied upon God, from the time of his very first communication. He did not wait the experience of God's truth-he believed in it from the outset. He did not ground his confident anticipation of the whole promise being fulfilled, from the fulfilment of one or any part of it. He trusted from the moment of its utterance. He reckoned upon God's friendship, so soon as God had made any overture to him at all. He believed, ere he set out from his native country; and prior to all the subsequent tokens that he obtained of God's faithfulness, in the course of his journeying over distant lands. He believed in Him the first time, and before that he met with Him a second time. The truth of God's whole promise was more unlikely to the eye of nature, before that Abraham had got any part of it made good to him, than after that part of it was verified by an actual accomplishment. But it was at the time of greatest unlikelihood, that his faith made its brightest display, and was most acceptable to God. It was because that against hope he believed in hope-it was because he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief-it was because fully persuaded that what God had promised he was able also to perform-It

was because of all this that his faith was well-pleasing to God, and because of all this that his faith was imputed unto him for righteousness..

Now this very footing upon which Abraham placed reliance upon God as his friend, is a footing furnished in the gospel of Jesus Christ to one and to all of us. "It was not written for his sake alone that it is imputed to him, but for ours also, to whom it shall be imputed if we believe on him that raised up Jesus from the dead." The The very first address of the gospel message to your understanding, should be met by your faith. You should not postpone your belief in the promises contained there, till one or more of them have been accomplished. You might see a truth and honesty in all the promises from the first, and, anterior even to the very least experience, confidently wait for the fulfilment of them all. Man's faith should come immediately on the back of God's utterance; and my reason for insisting upon this is, if possible, to convince one and all of you that even now you may step over to the place on which the apostle is standing in our text, and join him in the triumphant affirmation that God is upon your side. The most alienated of God's rebellious creatures has a warrant in the gospel for changing sides, and that immediately, from a state of variance with God to a state of friendship aad peace with Him. With the uttermost stretch of our charity we cannot believe, that all of this congregation are within the bond of the covenant-that all have entered into reconcilia

tion, and are now encircled within the limit of God's adopted family. Of more importance then is it that you should be told, that, among other grounds for the assurance of God being indeed your friend, there is one of which the most hopeless of outcasts might instantly avail themselves-one which brought Abraham out from the land of idolatry, and which should now bring out you from amongst the idolatries of a present evil world-one upon which the patriarch of old entered forthwith into the friendship of God, and upon which you also might forthwith enter into the same friendship, and that without the intervention of any given period during which you have to wait for signs and fulfilments and for more of the reiteration of the gospel testimony in your hearing. There is warrant and warrant enough for your proceeding upon the gospel testimony now. It is addressed to you as well as unto others. The voice of " Abram Abram," heard from the canopy of heaven by the patriarch, was not a more specific call-than the voice of "whosoever will let him come," read in your bibles, is a specific call on each who is here present to proceed upon this invitation; and to set out, not on that journey by which he describes a great physical distance from the land of his fathers, but most assuredly to set out on that journey by which he describes a great moral distance from the vain conversation of his fathers: And with the very first footstep we contend, and it is a footstep that should be taken now, might there be this delightful confidence to urge and to animate the whole movement