the hidden man of the heart which God has given me. It is a very common thing for us all to look around us, and with circumspect eyes to scan the actions of other men and to judge of their motives; but we none of us like to look within ourselves closely, strictly, and severely-not after the manner of dissemblers, but honestly before God. If we did we should be wonderfully different men than we are, -widely different Christians. "He discovereth the deep things out of darkness." Now, what is deeper and darker than an unregenerate heart? The deepest caverns of the earth may be explored, the depths of the ocean can be fathomed, and men actually descend into the former and dig thereout coal, iron, lead, copper, silver, and gold. They walk on the bottom of the ocean, and bring up the hidden store thereof: but who can penetrate the secret recesses, the dark chambers, of the human heart? Can I discern the heart, or the thoughts of the heart of any individual now before me? Yet my hopes are that God who sees your hearts will permit those pious reflections which He gives me the power to make to sink deep into them, and create a searching, cleansing, spirit which shall induce you to commune with yourselves upon the deep things of God. It belongs, as I say, expressly to God to search the heart, and to awaken in the sinner's soul those alarms which the knowledge there of what God sees must create. The heart of every man is so deceitful that it can only be by the Spirit of God that it can see its own deceptions. It is full of darkness-it loves darkness-it would abide in darkness, because it would not have its secret evils be brought to light that they may be reproved. It is, indeed, a bottom

less pit, in which man would, if he could, hide even his own intentions from himself. Is it not so, sinner, with your soul within you? What do you not find

in your heart if you examine it closely-I mean what evil? Look into it. You have lived many years, you have seen many evils, and endured many trials. Oh, what a profound of blackness and darkness has your wicked heart contained? How many sins have you there endeavoured to hide? How many that you would not whisper into the ear of your most intimate friend? And God forbid you should, for I believe that, if we were all to confess the depths of our sins to each other, we should appear such monsters of deformity that we should each be terrified at the other and if I can say this of the purest among us—if the righteous are so sinful that they scarcely can be saved-where shall the ungodly appear?

To think that God, who searches the hearts of men, knows not only your hearts and mine, but the inmost thoughts of every living creature, may well make us afraid: when we know also that there is nothing done in those secret chambers but He will search it out and bring it forth to light! Oh, who can tell how oft he offendeth! Oh, cleanse thou me from my secret faults!" We had need utter this continually; for the things we know of ourselves are dark enough, even from our youth up until now; and we need not think it is only our sins of to-day or yesterday that are so great, but we have thousands and millions, more in number than the hairs of our head, enough to make our strength fail us, our knees to knock together, and our souls to tremble with horror, lest the wrathful indignation of an

angry God shall be displayed against us. Job says "God discovereth things out of darkness," and what can be deeper than the thoughts of our hearts? Yet He is a Discerner of our thoughts and intentions long before they become our actions. Every motive of the life of every man is intimately known to Him.

He knew us long before we knew Him, even when we were in the depths of sin, ignorance, and darkness-when we knew not God, when we lived without God in the world, and sought out only our own inventions. Even then God knew us-even then He loved us and sent His Son to call us out of darkness into His marvellous light: as the prophet Isaiah exclaims-"The people which sat in darkness saw great light, and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up :" as Job says " "God bringeth out to light the shadow of death; so, when we lived without God, when sin was sweet to us, and we loved darkness rather than light, God sent His Son into our souls that sin might be confounded within us, and that we might abhor ourselves and loathe the darkness within us! To make this matter more instructive and applicable, I will suppose there are two persons in this assembly, one converted to God, and one not—one in darkness, the other in light. I will address myself first to him who is yet a dark, dreary, miserable sinner, who, as yet neither perceives his wretched state, nor knows vitally the motions of true religion on the heart. Your presence here to-day in the house of God is for what purpose ?-Aye, let me ask you, What you are here for? You will probably say-Is it not my duty to come to church? Cer

tainly it is; but what do you come for ?-to whom is it your duty? You will say, to God. Yes, indeed, it is your duty to God "to assemble yourselves together :" but then it is for His worship. And how have you worshipped Him? Will you say, you have given your attention to the word of God? Will you say, you have seriously and devoutly prayed to Him, that whilst I have been expressing for you the words of supplication and thanksgiving you have either asked a single petition or given God one single thank as you ought to have done? I know you have not. The unawakened, unregenerated sinner can neither pray nor praise. His soul, his life, his mind, his spirit, his thoughts, are all in darkness. You have no consciousness of God's presence you have no earnestness in prayer-no piety in your devotion. You are here to see and to be seen; and truly some scarcely know how to behave themselves as they ought when they are here.

It would not be that the serious-minded are disturbed in their devotions by the impiety of the wicked, the careless, and irreverence of their behaviour, if it were otherwise; but it is so, and plainly, because as yet you know not God, and are in a state of darkness. If you were not, the word of God would be your thought, and how you might be saved from death and misery your most earnest enquiry. And not until God shall send His searching spirit into your soul, making you see with the eyes of an awakened sinner the terrors of an unconverted state, will you ever behave as you ought in the house of God, or listen to what the preacher says, or see your salvation. Oh, that God in His great mercy would only be pleased to open your eyes just

to let you see the watchful angels which surround your camp, waiting until the strength of the Lord shall be given you to enable you to combat with will your enemy! If ever you are converted, you remember with shame the many times you have been in God's house and never thought of God! the number of times you have heard the prayers repeated and never prayed; the calls of God's minister to which you have never attended; but only for the sake of man, if for nothing worse, you have set your feet into this house of prayer! Such, I am sure, is the condition of the unregenerate sinner, and, if any such be here, he must acknowledge its truth.

I will now address myself to the converted-to him who is conscious of his duty to God, and earnestly strives to be what he ought to be-a pious Christian.

time

You are here, and you feel you are here by God's mercy; and, every you come here, you feel that you draw nearer to your God. It is not that you are more righteous than your neighbour in your own thoughts, but it is that you are more thankful. You have seen yourself in sin: you have known by God's grace how contrary is the natural character of man to the spiritual one he is required to be. Your soul has been touched by the heavenly power of divine grace, and you are made to see the worthlessness of everything that is not of faith. The powers of the heavens have been shaken within you : the darkness has been confounded and the light of God has risen upon you: the things which formerly charmed your senses are now become your sorrow, and repentance, daily, hourly, momentary repent