and infirmity; but also from all sin. A deliverance this, in sight of which all the rest vanish away. This is the triumphal song which every one heareth when he enters the gates of paradise:-"Thou, being dead, sinnest no more. Sin hath no more dominion over thee. For in that thou diedst, thou diedst unto sin once; but in that thou livest, thou livest unto God."* 5. There, then, "the weary are at rest." The blood of the Lamb hath healed all their sickness, hath washed them throughly from their wickedness, and cleansed them from their sin. The disease of their nature is cured; they are at length made whole; they are restored to perfect soundness. They no longer mourn the "flesh lusting against the Spirit ;" the "law in their members" is now at an end, and no longer "wars against the law of their mind, and brings them into cap tivity to the law of sin." There is no root of bitterness left; no remains even of that sin which did "so easily beset them;" no forgetfulness of "Him in whom they live, and move, and have their being;" no ingratitude to their gracious Redeemer, who poured out his soul unto death for them; no unfaithfulness to that blessed Spirit who so long bore with their infirmities. In a word, no pride, no selfwill is there; so that they who are "delivered from the bondage of corruption" may indeed say one to another, and that in an emphatical sense, “Beloved, now are we the children of God; and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is." 6. Let us view, a little more nearly, the state of a Christian at his entrance into the other world. Suppose "the silver cord" of life just "loosed," and "the wheel broken at the cistern;" the heart can now beat no more; the blood ceases to move; the last breath flies off from the quivering lips, and the soul springs forth into eternity. What are the thoughts of such a soul that has just subdued her last enemy, death? that sees the body of sin lying beneath her, and is new born into the world of spirits? How does she sing, "O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? Thanks be unto God,' who hath given me the victory, through our Lord Jesus Christ!' O happy day, wherein I shall begin to live! wherein I shall taste my native freedom! When I was born of a woman' I had ‘but a short time to live,' and that time was 'full of misery;' that corruptible body pressed me down, and enslaved me to sin and pain. But the snare is broken, and I am delivered. Henceforth I know them no more. That head is no more an aching head: those eyes shall no more run down with tears: that heart shall no more pant with anguish or fear; be weighed down with sorrow or care: those limbs shall no more be racked with pain: yea, 'sin hath no more dominion over' me. At length, I have parted from thee, O my enemy; and I shall see thy face no more! I shall never more be unfaithful to my Lord, or offend the eyes of his glory; I am no longer that wavering, fickle, self-inconsistent creature, sinning and repenting, and sinning again. No. I shall never cease, day or night, to love and praise the Lord my God with all my heart, and with all my strength. But what are ye? Are all these ministering spirits sent forth to minister to' one 'heir of salvation? Then, dust and ashes, farewell! I hear a voice from heaven saying, 'Come away, and rest from thy labours. Thy warfare is accomplished; thy sín is pardoned; and the days of thy mourning are ended.'" 7. My brethren, these truths need little application. Believe ye that these things are so? What, then, hath each of you to do, but to "lay aside every weight, and run with patience the race set before" him? to "count all things" else "but dung" and dross; especially those grand idols, learning and reputation, if they are pursued in any other measure, or with any other view, than as they conduce to the knowledge and love of God? to have this "one thing" continually in thine heart, "when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up?"-to have thy "loins" ever "girt," and thy "light burn ing?"-to serve the Lord thy God with all thy might; if by any means, when he requireth thy soul of thee, perhaps in an hour when thou lookest not for him, thou mayest enter "where the wicked cease from troubling, and where the weary are at rest?" *The sentiment which is here again expressed, that it is death which destroys sin in the human heart, though couched in the language of an Apostle, is a branch of that philosophical Mysticism which Mr. Wesley entertained at this carly period of his life, and which he afterward renounced for the scriptural doctrine of salvation by faith. According to the New Testament, every believer is already delivered from the dominion of sin; and the Bible never represents the entire sanctifi cation of our nature as effected by death. It is the work of the Holy Spirit; and is not suspended upon the dissolution of the body, but upon the exercise of a steadfast faith in the almighty Saviour -EDIT. END OF THE SECOND VOLUME. ),、་、, NOTES ON THE SERMONS. VOLUME I. PREFACE, p. vii—“ HUTE KAKVOS,” [Like smoke.] TABLE OF CONTENTS, p. xii. The Sermon numbered *LVIII, ought to be LIX. With this correction, the true aggregate number of Sermons in the two volumes will now be found to be CXLI. SERMON IV, p. 41. Non persuadebis, etiamsi persuaseris: [Thou shalt not persuade me, though thou shouldst persuade me.] SERMON XIII, p. 110. Ipso facto, [By the act itself.] SERMON XV, p. 132. Esse quoque in fatis reminiscitur, affore tempus, Quo mare, quo tellus, correptaque regia cali Ardeat, et mundi moles operosa laboret. [It is remembered also to be fated that a time will be, when the sea, the land, and the court of heaven, wrapt in flames, shall burn, and the mighty fabric of the universe shall labour.] SERMON XX.--The Lord Our Righteousness. [This Sermon, and the concessions made to Mr. Whitefield in 1743, with the hope of maintaining union with him, are instances of Mr. Wesley's anxiety to approach his Calvinistic brethren, in his modes of expression, as far as possible. In this effort he sometimes exposed himself to be misunderstood on both sides; and became afterward convinced of "a leaning to Calvinism," which he did not fail to correct. In the Minutes of 1770, he remarks:-"We said in 1744, 'We have leaned too much toward Calvinism:"" and then proceeds to show "wherein," and to apply the corrective. This led on to the controversy which produced the immortal Checks of Fletcher. Since that period, (so complete has been the effect of those admirable writings,) the Methodist preachers and societies have been in no danger of Calvinism; nor has there been any occasion since the Conference of 1770, to ask wherein they had leaned too much thereto.-See Watson's Life of Wesley, pp. 210-226.] SERMON XXVIII, p. 263. Linquenda tellus, et domus, et placens Ulla brevem dominum sequetur! [Your land, and house, and pleasing wife, must be left behind; nor of these trees which you plant, will any, except the hated cypress, follow you, their short-lived lord!] SERMON XXXVII, p. 330. Evsoraopos, [Enthusiasm.] SERMON LVI, p. 501. Quæritur, Egysthus quare sit factus adulter? In promptu causa est: desidiosus erat. [Is it asked why Egysthus became an adulterer? The cause is obvious: he was slothful.] VOLUME II. SERMON LXXIX, p. 157. Totam Mens agitans molem, et magno se corpore miscens: [The Soul that pervades and actuates the whole fabric of the universe.] SERMON LXXXII, p. 179. Totam Mens agitans molem, et magno se corpore miscens. SERMON LXXXIV, p. 194. Nec me, qui cætera vincit Impetus, et rapido contrarius evehor orbi. [I am carried on against the rapid current of the world; nor does its force, which conquers others, conquer me.] SERMON LXXXIX, p. 226. Virûm volitare per ora. [To be in every body's mouth.] SERMON XCII, p. 250. Populus me sibilat, at mihi plaudo Ipse domi quoties nummos contemplor in arcâ. [The people hiss me, but I applaud myself while at home I gaze upon my hoarded money.] SERMON XCIII, p. 260. Eutrapelus, cuicunque nocere volebat, Vestimenta dabat pretiosa. [Eutrapelus, whenever he wished to injure any one, made him a present of a suit of fine clothes.] SERMON CIV, p. 343. Homo sum: humani nihil a me alienum puto! [I am a man: I take an interest in whatever relates to man.] p. 359. SERMON CVII, p. 357. Qualia nunc hominum producit corpora tellus. [Men of such stature as the earth now produces.] Difficilis, querulus, laudator temporis acti [Hard to please, querulous, praising the time when they were boys, and censorious reprovers of the young.] SERMON CXVII, p. 417. Necesse est Multa diu concreta modis inolescere miris. Ergo exercentur pœnis. Alia panduntur inanes Suspensa ad ventos: aliis sub gurgite vasto Infectum eluitur scelus, aut exuritur igni. [Of necessity, many long accumulated crimes wonderfully adhere [to the souls of the wicked.] Hence they are plied with expiatory tortures. Some are hung up to the subtile winds. From others the deep dyed guilt is washed away under a vast whirlpool, or is burnt out by fire.] SERMON CXXIV.-On the Wedding Garment. [In Mr. Wesley's Journal for March, 1790, he says, " Friday, 26.—I finished my sermon on the Wedding Garment; perhaps the last that I shall write. My eyes are now waxed dim; my natural force is abated. However, while I can, I would fain do a little for God before I drop into the dust."] INDEX ΤΟ MR. WESLEY'S SERMONS. The Roman numerals refer to the volumes; the Arabic figures to the pages. Ability of the Lord to save his people | Angels, the existence of, discovered by from all sin, i, 122 Abyssinia, state of, in regard to religion, Account, which every one must render Actions of men, none of them purely in- Adam, the representative of all men, i, Adoption, Spirit of, described, i, 81 Advice proper to be given to an awaken- Affliction, advantages of, ii, 481—the Aged people, duty of, to avoid public faith, ii, 407-the nature of, ii, 134 Angelic Perfection, what, ii, 168 310-the sin of indulging, i, 189-sin- Animals, creation of, ii, 28 Animals, our ignorance of many of the, Animated Nature, future state of, ii, 86 Αγ -νιζεσθε εισελθειν, explained, i, 200 , explained, i, 238 American Indians, state of the, ii, 122 Ananias and Sapphira, the case of, ii, 60 Ανετράφημεν, explained, i, 103 Angel, no proof that one attends every Athanasian Creed, remarks upon the, ii, -prac- Atheism, described, i, 483-a disease of Atterbury, Bishop, anecdote of, ii 278 Attributes of God, described, ii, 429— Augustine, character of, ii, 110-quoted, Auto da Fés, account of, by Dr. Geddes, Awakened Sinner, described, i, 78 Babe in Christ, experience of a, ii, 221 Backsliders, despair of many, ii, 239- Balaam, address of, to Balak, ii, 378 ation, ii, 214, 480-difference between Bodily disorders, a cause of spiritual Bondage, spirit of, described, i, 78 Brerewood, Mr., his calculations respect- Brute Creation, original state of the, ii, Baptism, not the new birth, i, 404-Brutes, subjected to vanity, ii, 53—fu Barclay, Robert, denied the imputation Baronet, a rich, annoyed by a puff of Behmen, Jacob, strange conceit of, ii, 85 Believers, in Christ Jesus, who, i, 68 Bentley, Dr., haughtiness of, ii, 346 Bigotry, defined, i, 345-the evil of, i, 345 Birds, creation of, ii, 29—our ignorance Blessedness of those that hunger and ture state of, ii, 54-conjecture con Building upon a rock, i, 301-upon the Bull, Bishop, erroneous doctrines of, ii, Burkitt, Mr., mistake of, ii, 456 Business, best way of transacting, ii, 269 Called, what, ii, 40 Calvin, quoted respecting the imputa- Campbell, Mr., opinion of, refuted, ii, Cards, remarks upon playing at, ii, 272 Catholic Spirit, defined, i, 354-illustra- Catacombs of Rome, mentioned, ii, 358 Chesterfield, Lord, infamous principles |