3. Without this power of the Holy Spirit ministers are not able to reprove the world. For no man, by his good will, would provoke the enmity of the world against himself. Therefore flesh and blood will never reprove the world of sin; mere formalists countenance sin. But "the Spirit, when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin." When a man hath this power, presently, he bids defiance to the whole world, and provokes the whole world against himself. And this no man either can do, or dares do, except he be first endued with this power of the Spirit. The children of the world cannot endure the declaration that their ways are evil. And therefore they are exceedingly offended, yea, and extremely rage against the faithful teachers of the word; as the examples of all the faithful teachers of the word of God in all ages declare. Yea, and Christ himself testifies touching himself, and the world, "Me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof are evil." But all teachers are not of that strength and resolution, to contemn the hatred and fury of the world. Nay, many of them are quite overcome with the prosperity of this present life, and with the desire of friends, and riches, and preferment, and so are ministers in whose mouths are no reproofs, though "the whole world lieth in wickedness." Thus they escape the rage and violence, and obtain the favour of the men of this world. And thus weak and unworthy are all those men, who are only endued with their own spirits.

4. Without this power of the Spirit, they are unable to wrestle with, and overcome the devil, whose subtilty and wrath, malice and power, they must needs encounter in the work of the ministry. Christ, as soon as he was anointed by the Spirit to preach, was immediately led into the wilderness, to be tempted of the devil," who would fain have taken him off from the work of the ministry. But Christ, endued with this power, overcame the devil. And Christ, before he sent his apostles to preach the kingdom of God, called them together," and gave them power and authority over all devils;" and when they returned, they told him, that the devils themselves were subject to them. They that were invested with this power of the Holy Spirit, were able to wrestle with "principalities and powers, and the rulers of the darkness of this world," and to tread Satan himself under their feet.

Thus you see what necessity all the ministers of the Gospel have of the power of the Holy Spirit to rest upon them. For, without this power, they are unable to preach the word, to preach it powerfully, and to persevere in the course of the ministry; they are unable to reprove the world, to wrestle with and overcome the devil, and to suffer that persecution which necessarily attends their calling. And so without this power, they may minister to themselves, but they cannot minister to others, the manifold grace of God; they may do their own work, but they cannot do God's work; they may feed themselves, but not the flock of Christ. And, as the Holy Spirit, and the power of it, is necessary for ministers, so it is also for other men.

1. To change their nature, which is impossible, but to the power of the Spirit. It would be a great power to change clay into gold, but it is a greater change that is wrought in a Christian. For the power of the Spirit, when it comes into our souls, changes their nature. For

the Spirit finds a man carnal, and makes him spiritual; it finds him earthly, and makes him heavenly; it finds him darkness, and makes him light in the Lord; in a word, it finds him nothing but a lump of sin, and makes him the righteousness of God in Christ. Thus the power of the Spirit changes our whole corrupt nature, and makes it conformable to the Divine nature; as fire makes the iron, heated redhot, like unto itself, by communicating its own nature. After this sort the power of the Spirit changes our nature, and our nature cannot be changed without the Spirit.

2. All Christians stand in need of the power of the Spirit, to enable them to mortify and destroy sin. There is no power in ourselves against sin, but all the power of our depraved nature is for it; and therefore it must be another power that must destroy sin, and that can be no other than the power of God's Spirit. But the power of the Spirit destroys the whole body of sin, and each particular strong corruption; each several influence and operation of the Spirit being a several destruction of some sin or other. For as the Spirit that is in us lusts after envy, or pride, or vain-glory, or covetousness, or uncleanness; so the Spirit we have of God, according to its mighty power, destroys all those sinful works of our corrupt spirit, and mortifies all the deeds of our flesh. Every man hath some one corruption, to which by nature he is more inclined than to another, and this is the bias of a man; but the strength of the Spirit can overpower this, and make us take straight steps to God.

3. All Christians stand in need of the power of the Spirit, to enable them to perform duties spiritually. If spiritual duties be performed carnally, in such duties there is no strength but weakness. For there is no power in any duty, except there be something of the Spirit in the duty. There is no more power in praying, nor in preaching, nor in hearing, nor in meditation, nor in reading, nor in resisting evil, nor in doing good, nor in any duty of sanctification, or of mortification, than there is of the Spirit in them. If there be none of the Spirit in a man's duties, there is no power at all in them, but only weakness and deadness, coldness and unprofitableness. If a little of the Spirit, there is a little power; if abundance of the Spirit, there is great power; and that duty which is most spiritual, is the most powerful.

Lastly. All Christians stand in need of the power of the Spirit to overcome afflictions and persecutions, from which it is impossible they should be free; Christians being contrary to the world, and the world to them. A man, who hath no other strength but his own strength, faints under affliction and persecution; but the faithful have in them strength above the strength of men, even the strength of the Spirit, and so they endure and overcome. Our own spirits are weak, and may be conquered by every evil; but when they are strengthened by the power of God's Spirit, they overcome all evils, and are 66 more than conquerors." And so much power as we have to do and suffer the will of God and overcome evil, so much of the Spirit we have, and no W. DELL.

more.

ON THE IMPROVEMENT OF TIME.

TIME is an inestimable boon. To man nothing exceeds it in value, either in the wise arrangements of Providence, or beneficent economy of grace; as neither the benefits of the former, nor the promises of the latter are available, only as they bear relation to time. Though no heaven-bestowed gift is more precious, no gift is more lightly esteemed, perverted, and abused; invention is tortured and expedient is exhausted in maniac efforts to destroy it, as if, instead of being a blessing, it were a curse.

Were men seriously to contemplate the immense advantages and weighty motives urging to an improvement of time, the prayer of the Psalmist would be universally adopted, "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom." I propose to offer a few reasons why we should redeem time, and some directions as to how it may be redeemed.

I. A FEW REASONS WHY WE SHOULD REDEEM TIME.

1. Time should be improved because it is very short, comparatively, as it relates to eternity. Eternity is measureless. No concep tion can be formed of its admeasurement, as it neither admits of division into parts nor is it related to locality. Time is the mere offspring of which eternity is the sire. Eternity is endless. Myriads of ages twice told bring us no nearer to its termination; but time will soon expire; its locks are already grey with "the rush of numerous years." "The end of all things is at hand." Soon the angel shall plant one foot on the sea and the other on the land, and shall "swear by him that liveth for ever," that there shall be "time no longer." Time is the tributary stream which takes its rise and empties itself in the pathless, strandless ocean-eternity!

2. Time is short in relation to human life. The most striking emblems and affecting representations are, in the Sacred Page, applied to illustrate this humiliating subject. It is compared, for its brevity, to a span, and an hand-breadth; its transitory duration and speedy flight are likened to the weaver's shuttle, the passing shadow, the evanescent vapour which is evaporated by the solar beam; to the eagle's flight as he cleaves the mid-air in his upward ascent, to the flower which to-day blooms in all its freshness and fragrance, and to-morrow is withered and unsightly. Mutation is stamped on all that is mundane. Innumerable and consecutive successions of changes are taking place in the physical, social, and moral world. The rise of all nations, the revolutions of planets, the varying seasons, the growth and decay of vegetables, all, with emphatic silence, remind us of the decay of our own frail and shortlived nature. Like the leaf, formed of the sap proceeding from the earth through the roots and the branches of the tree, matured by progressive changes, blooming for a season, and then in Autumn fading and falling; so man springs from the dust, passes through the dependent and defenceless stages of infancy and youth, is exposed to a variety of adverse circumstances, exists but for a season, then fades as the falling leaf. Yesterday, and the dust of our feet composed mighty empires,

thriving cities, and teeming millions. To-morrow, and we shall be the dust of other nations, cities, and generations, yet unborn.

"The human race

Drop like autumn leaves, by spring revived.
One generation from the stage of life

Withdrawn, another comes, and that makes room
For that which follows. Mightiest realms decay,
Sink by degrees; and lo! new formed estates
Rise from their ruins. Even the earth itself,
Sole object of our hopes and fears,

Shall have its period, though to man unknown."

3. Time is the only period of preparation for eternity. Momentous as are the concerns of man as to eternity, they must be decided by time. Every thought conceived, every word expressed, every action performed, touches a chord which will vibrate through eternity. Since then such all-important and undying interests are contingent on the use of time-so limited and so uncertain-ought we not to apply every energy to its improvement, and form for ourselves an elevated destiny by giving to our actions an exalted moral character? But, alas! men are so absorbed in earthly pursuits as to be forgetful of these solemn truths. Most men live as if this probationary state were not to be succeeded by another, and appear not to believe that our state of trial is circumscribed within the limits of our earthly existence.

4. For the right use of time we are held responsible. Man is a steward, as well of his time as of every other talent, and upon the proper use of the former depends the efficient employment of the latter. There are few who remember that they are as responsible for the right employment of their time, as for the moral character of their actions. If for every idle word we shall have to give an account, how much more for every idle hour, day and week.

5. On the diligent improvement of time depends the character of our piety, usefulness and happiness. "Sloth is the rust of the soul." Slothfulness is disgraceful in any profession, especially in that of a Christian. He is admonished not to be "slothful in business," and commanded to be " fervent in spirit, serving the Lord." Is religion a "race?" We must run diligently. We must "press toward the mark of the prize." Is it a "kingdom ?" The "violent take it by force." Is it entered by a "gate?" We must "agonize" to enter thereby. The indolent time-wasting professor is unhappy, as he is useless. In the constitution of things activity is promotive of happiness—often essential to it. Just in proportion to the diligent use of time will be the degree of our happiness. No professor is so happy as he is who is always abounding in the work of the Lord." If it were possible to behold a person wholly inactive and unemployed, we should perceive the very personification and embodiment of misery. The time-wasting professor is at best a cypher in society and in the church-nay, his influence is not merely neutral, but injurious, inasmuch as it places occasion of stumbling" in the way of others. Most professors seem not to be aware of the influence they necessarily exert on those around them, either for good or evil; that others will be excited to diligence or depressed into indolence in proportion as they are lively or lifeless.

an

"No man liveth to himself," should be the Christian's motto; and, with the laudable desire and determination of " leaving the world better than he found it," he should earnestly" redeem the time."

5. The loss of time is irrecoverable. There are losses capable of reparation. The tradesman who by unsuccessful speculation, or by adverse providences loses his capital, may by dint of unwearied perseverance regain the full value of his loss. The criminal who has lost his character by practices of dishonesty, may fully redeem his character by practical repentance and unbending integrity. But time when lost can never be recovered, nor can any equivalent or compensation be obtained. Were men fully impressed with this conviction, how apparent would the folly of indecision and procrastination appear. Vain will it be to wish for a repetition of the probationary term beyond the tomb. The deeds done in the body, not out of it, will shape our eternal destiny. Here a fountain is opened, a Saviour is offered and urged upon our acceptance. Here the Spirit strives, heaven's gate stands open to all who believe in Christ, and those who neglect salvation; but hereafter the fountain will be sealed. When heaven's doors are closed, there will be no Saviour, no intercessor, no comforter; all will be for ever lost. Death-beds are solemn scenes. Here, if conscience be not seared, it will present its account with all arrears, and interest in full. Here neglected opportunities, despised privileges, wasted, murdered moments, hours, days, and years, will be clothed with new life, invested with re-existence, and will demand an important reckoning. The very best of men, the "wise of God," the "excellent of the earth," who have carefully improved their time, and consecrated it wholly to the Divine service for twenty, thirty, or fifty years, may discover many opportunities mis-improved, and many hours unredeemed, and may perhaps wish they had their time to live over again. But if this may be the experience of the diligent and holy, what will be the feelings of the lukewarm, Laodicean professor? what will be the feelings of the impenitent, unsanctified sinner? One may exclaim, as did once a dying queen, "A million of money for an inch of time," and another may cry with an expiring infidel, "Oh, time, how dost thou strike thy murderer to the heart?" But the request of the one and the despair of the other will be unheeded. If anything will give a point to the monster's dart, an edge to the serpent's fangs, and add fuel to the deathless flame, it will be the agonizing recollection of time once available for the securing of "pardon and heaven," but suffered to pass unredeemed till irrecoverably lost. If then time be so short, if it be the only period of probation, if for its use we are solemnly responsible, if the character of our piety and usefulness, present and eternal happiness, depend on its improvement, how momentous are the reasons urging us to an improvement of time! I propose to offer

II. SOME DIRECTIONS FOR REDEEMING TIME.

1. Care should be taken that too much time be not spent in sleep. No universal rule can be laid down for our guidance here. Constitutional weakness or peculiarity of circumstances in some cases will require more time for sleep than will be necessary for persons who enjoy a good constitution, and are otherwise favourably circumstanced. Six hours' repose may be sufficient for many healthful constitutions,