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ges, they abounded in faith, which, for the degree of it, was not to be found in Israel. Thus we are often provoked to jealously. persons whose religious advantages have been small, compared with ours, are, nevertheless, before us in faith, and love, and heavenly-mindedness. Thus it is, that the pride of man is stained, and no flesh suffered to glory in the divine presence,

Having commended her faith, our Saviour proceeds to grant her desire :-Be it unto thee even as thou wilt. The Lord does not ex

cite a willing mind, with a view finally to cross it; or an earnestness of desire, in order to disappoint it: such willingness and such desire, therefore, are indicative of his designs. Christ only can satisfy the desires of the mind; and Christians are the only men in the world whose desires are satisfied. Cæsar, in the full possession of empire, is said to have exclaimed, "Is this all ??, And such is the disappointment that every sinner will meet with, who sets his heart on any thing but Christ. It is not in the power of the whole creation to say to an immortal, guilty creature, Be it unto thee even as thou wilt; but Jesus hath the words of eternal life.

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The tender and affectionate manner in which our Saviour commended the faith, and fulfilled the desire of the poor petitioner, is deserving also of remark. It is introduced with an interjection, O woman! In the lips of a speaker abounding in affectation, such words signify but little but Jesus never affected to feel, when he did not. Whenever, therefore, an interjection is seen in his speeches, we may be certain he felt. He felt compassion towards her, on account of her affliction; but chiefly admiration and delight, on witnessing the peculiar energy of her faith. Thus he marvelled at the Roman centurion. The genuine, and especially the eminent exercises of grace, are, more than any thing, the delight of Christ's heart. In looking at the poor and contrite spirit, he overlooks heaven and earth.

It may be rather surprising to us, that our Saviour should hold this poor woman so long in suspense; but, if he had not, her graces would not have been so apparent, and the exercise of them so grateful to him. And thus we may account for many of the afflictions through which the Lord brings his servants. If tribula

tion work patience, and patience experience, and experience hope; and if, in his esteem, the exercise of these graces be of greater account than our present ease, it is not surprising that he should prefer the former to the latter and this consideration should reconcile us to those providences which, for a time, hold us in painful suspense.

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From the whole, we may remark, that genuine, yea, great grace, may be exercised in respect of temporal mercies. It was not for the salvation of her soul, or the soul of her daughter, that this poor woman was so importunate; but for the removal of an affliction. Yet, such was the grace which was exercised in it, that there is no doubt of her being eternally saved. The exercise of spirituality is not confined to the seeking of spiritual blessings. We may serve the Lord in our daily avocations, and it is essential to true religion, that we do so. Such prayer may be offered, and such faith exercised, in respect of our daily bread, as have the promise of everlasting life.

Finally: If our Saviour suffered himself to be overcome by one who sought for a temporal blessing, much more will he accept of those who come to him for such as are spiritual and eternal. His promises are much stronger in the one case, than in the other. Though there were several general intimations, that the Messiah would exercise compassion towards the bodies, as well as the souls of men; and the numerous miracles which he wrought afforded full proof of his readiness to do good in every way; yet he no where bound himself, that I recollect, to heal all that came to him. I believe he never sent away an individual without a cure: but still, he seems to have reserved to himself a kind of discretionary power to do so. But in matters of everlasting moment, the word is gone out of his lips. Him that cometh unto me, I will IN NO WISE cast out. Here, every one that seeketh findeth, and to him that knocketh, we are assured by the keeper of the gate, that it shall be opened. If any man, therefore, be hereafter shut out of the kingdom of heaven, it will appear in the end, that he sought not after it in the present life; or, at least, that he sought it not by faith.

We shall all be importunate, sooner or later: but importunity will one day be unavailing! Many will then seek to enter in, and shall not be able. Yea, they will cry earnestly, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us.—We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But he shall say,-Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. O my hearers! let us agonize to enter in at the straight gate. All the zeal and earnestness which we may feel in other things, is spending our money for that which is not bread, and our labour for that which satisfieth not. Incline your ear, and come unto Him; hear, and your souls shall live; and he will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David:

THE FUTURE PERFECTION OF THE CHURCH CON. TRASTED WITH ITS PRESENT IMPERFECTIONS.

SERMON XIV.

EPHESIANS v. 25-27.

Christ-loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word; that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy, and without blemish.

It is a distinguishing feature in the apostolic writings, that motives to the most ordinary duties are derived from the doctrine of the cross. Who but an apostle would have thought of enforcing affection in a husband to a wife, from the love of Christ to his church? We are, undoubtedly, hereby taught to act, in the common affairs of life, from Christian principle; and I am inclined to think, that our personal Christianity is more manifested in this way than in any other. It is not by a holiness put on, on religious occasions, as we put on our Lord's-day dress, that we shall prove ourselves to be Christians; but by that which is habitual, and which, without our so much as designing it, will spontaneously appear in our language and behaviour. If the Apostle's heart had not been full of Christ, he would have thought of other motives than this: but this, being uppermost, presented itself on all occasions. We VOL. VII.

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