fulfilled in them, who walk not after the flesh, but after The SPIRITRom. viii. 4, 13. May The SPIRIT of GOD Dwell in us, that we be not Servants of sin and Slaves to sensuality; but alive and thirsting only for the hallowing Influence, Which Alone Can Fit and Prepare The Soul for Heavenly aspirations and Heavenly Associations,In another place the Apostle speaks of an influence or law between his members and his mind, his body and Soul, of such continual conflict, that the utmost vigilance was needed, and Aid from Above indispensable, to guard against the downfall of Spiritual Life in the heartRom. vii.-And in the same Epistle the Apostle says, They that are in the flesh cannot please GOD; and that to be carnally minded is death; but to be Spiritually minded is Life and Peace and Joy in The HOLY GHOST-viii. 8, 6.The very effort to do good Acceptably to GOD, without attributing the impulse thereto unto His Dispensation of Grace, in Deference to the Interceding Love of CHRIST, is a fatal error of judgment; and, as insisted on in an Article of our Church, in no way profitable to the Soul; but rather to be counted as sin, and to partake of the character of pride and self-righteousness, which are ever at variance with the humbling Doctrine of the Meek and Lowly JESUS, though Himself The SON of The HIGHEST.To be under Grace is the only sure State of Salvation. When yielding to the Sanctifying Influence of The HOLY SPIRIT, as sought for in supplication and received in holy confidence, we need no other restraint for the avoidance of evil, and no other advancement in the way of true and perfect peace and enduring happiness and entire freedom from every law, that is not based upon, or essentially intermixed with the Love of CHRIST; for, as the Apostle says, The Law of The SPIRIT of Life in CHRIST JESUS hath Made us free from the law of sin and deathRom. viii. 2; vi. 14; and then, Where is thy victory, O Grave! and where thy sting, O Death?

VERSES 19 to 21-Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these, adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like; of the which Í tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they, which do such things, shall not inherit The Kingdom of GOD.

The sad catalogue of the folly and depravity of Human-Kind and of the daring spirit of resistance to the Will of The HOLY GOD, is but too much verified in every view of every Age of Society, of which History or Experience furnishes Evidence. Amidst the narrow span of the most extended life of Man, with the utter uncertainty of its continuance beyond the existing moment; with the alternative, presented even to the conscience (unaided by the Illumination of Revelation,) of happiness or misery as the result of a beneficial or evil course of life; and still more, when the Beams of The SUN of RIGHTEOUSNESS Emblazon the Realities of the Future State, as of endless joy or unmeasured sorrow, awaiting the Elected or Rejected of CHRIST JESUS; with such presentations, in strong and obvious contrast, how wonderful is the infatuation of the Human heart, that, preferring the evil, and rejecting the good part, it should surrender itself to any and even all courses of ungodly living; the very enjoyment whereof is so precarious in its continuance, and the reflection thereon necessarily attended with such self-chidings and remorse, unless the Conscience by inveterate habit have become seared-but this it will cease to be at the last moment of its Owner's existence; and what will be the astounding sensations to the disembodied Spirit, when this World is entirely shut out from its communion, and the Presence of an Offended GOD is inseparably and unceasingly Pressed upon it.

Our SAVIOUR hath Unveiled the heart that has alienated itself from the

gentle controul of The SPIRIT Speaking to it in the Still Small Voice of Conscience, Saying, Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies-things which defile the ManMatt. xv. 19, 18,-and because whereof, as our Apostle elsewhere says, Cometh the Wrath of GOD upon the Children of disobedience -adding the exhortation, which is applicable individually to ourselves, Be not ye therefore Partakers with them!--Eph. v. 6, 7; Coloss. iii. 5, 6. And the loved Apostle St. John hath added the Assurance of DIVINE Discrimination and Destination, that Blessed are they that do the Commandments of GOD, that they may have right to the Tree of Life, and may enter in through the Gates into the City of the Heavenly Jerusalem for without, adds he, are Sorcerers and Whoremongers, and Murderers and Idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie-Rev. xxii. 14, 15.

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VERSES 22 to 24-But the Fruit of The SPIRIT is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance; against such there is no law: and they, that are CHRIST's, have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

What an endearing representation is here made of the true Efficacy of Gospel faith and Gospel Principles upon the heart and habit of Human Nature! How all but Heavenly would Earth appear, were that Representation realized by an universal adoption and application of that faith and those Principles! and how rich would be the recompense for forbearance from illicit pleasure, in the enjoyment of that, which would embrace with the present, the past and the future; all reflection and experience confirming the wisdom of such a course, and The DIVINE Promises Pointing to the close of this short and transitory life, as the Opening upon a Field of Spiritual Delight vast as Eternity, but Joyous and Blissful beyond, immeasurably beyond, all that the fondest imagination can conceive, or, in this state, Man is capable of experiencing. To Change the Nature of Man, and supplant the base and degenerated carnal affections and sensualities by the pure and prevailing love of Truth and Righteousness, and Brotherly and Kindred love and charity, was the Great and Merciful Object of The HOLY SON of GOD, in the Incarnate and Mediatorial Offering of Himself. And the Example He Graciously Set, when Clothed in Humanity, is That Which it is equally our interest as our duty to follow.- -The Gift of The SPIRIT, by the Prevailing Influence of Its Imparted Grace, is the First-Fruit of CHRIST's Atoning and Reconciling Sacrifice. And it is This That Enables the Soul of Man to fulfil all Righteousness, and to become a living Branch of That True Vine, Which Alone can Bear Fruit unto Perfection: as our SAVIOUR Said to His Immediate Disciples, I am the Vine, ye are the Branches; he, that abideth in Me, and I in him, the Same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing-John xv. 5; See Eph. v. 9, 10.- -In another of his Epistles the Apostle writes, that the Law is not made for a Righteous Man, but for the Lawless and Disobedient, for the Ungodly and for Sinners, for Unholy and Profane; and if there be anything contrary to sound Doctrine according to The Glorious Gospel of The Blessed GOD-1 Tim. i. 9, 11.—The controul of the passions is one of the most prominent Effects of DIVINE Grace upon the heart, by rendering them subservient, at all times and in all respects, to right reason, and to the Will of GOD.

VERSES 25, 26-If we live in The SPIRIT, let us also walk in The SPIRIT; let us not be desirous of vain-glory, provoking One Another, envying One Another.'

To walk in The SPIRIT, as distinguishable from living in The SPIRIT, is to have all our outward actions and conversation regulated and directed by The SPIRIT's supplicated Guidance; and not to rest alone on the internal admission

of the Power of The HOLY GHOST, and the Benign Tendency of Its Agency on our thoughts and our reflections, but to carry them out into action and habit. It is to shew forth the truth and vital importance of Revelation, by a studied conformity of our converse and manners Thereto. By a strict observance of Such Gospel Rules we should check every rising spirit of pride, and jealousy, and arrogance of superiority towards Others. As the Apostle elsewhere recommends, Let nothing be done through strife or vain-glory; but, in lowliness of mind, let Each esteem Other better than themselves-Phil. ii, 3; See also Rom. viii, 3 to 6.

CHAPTER VI.

VERSES 1 to 5-Brethren, if a Man be overtaken in a fault, ye, which are Spiritual, restore such an One, in the spirit of meekness! considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. Bear ye One Another's burdens! and so fulfil the Law of CHRIST. For if a Man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself: but let every Man prove his own work! and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in Another. For every man shall bear his own burden.

The frailty of our Nature, and the proneness to error, either in judgment or morals, or both, and still more in a departure from the Pure Principles of The DIVINE Law, as Revealed in GOD's Word, or Presented by The SPIRIT through the Conscience, are but too manifest in the view of Human life and character, varying only in degree from the Best to the Basest among us. As however the Surrender of Himself by The SON of GOD was to Propitiate The DIVINE Pardon and Forgiveness in the Believers of That Offering, so from Such Transcendant an Example, and from the Practical Application of such Principle of Prominent Bearing in Christianity, should we be ready to receive back to our bosoms Such as may have offended us, when, actuated by a spirit of sorrow for such offending, they seek such reconciliation, and give the earnest of the sincerity of their regret at injuring or slighting us. So in reference to transgressions from The DIVINE Law, there should be in us a zeal and willingness to bring back from the fatal error of such departure from the ways, that alone lead to Glory Everlasting, Such as once joined in the profession of the true faith, and in communion with the Servants of JESUS CHRIST. And this is to be done in the spirit of meekness and gentle remonstrance, and encouraging exhortation; ever bearing in mind that it behoves us, in every instant of our passing life, to take heed, lest, when we think we stand on the sure ground of our faith and true practical Christianity, we fall from our imagined eminence or point of security; and, in a vain confidence or boasted self-righteousness, are Left by The SPIRIT to our own fond fancies, when Satan is sure to gain a victory over us. Let our aim and effort be to become Spiritual indeed; and from the bottom of our heart, in all holiness and righteousness of life, to rest on JESUS, as The AUTHOR and FINISHER of our faith; ever supplicating the Ever Ready Help of The HOLY SPIRIT to Guide us unto all Truth, and Confirm us in all Christian courses: and then shall we be ever ready to forgive, as we cannot but be ever desirous to be Forgiven. To bring back the wandering Sheep from His Fold was the Great Office and Object of The SHEPHERD and BISHOP of our Souls. So, after His Gracious Example, let it be our study and desire to go and do likewise! To bear the burdens of Others, whatever may be the pressure of our own, is perfectly compatible with the pursuit of the Goal, which is Set before us, of Eternal Beatitude in the Inheritance of the Saints in Light and Glory Everlasting; and without this spirit of Brotherly love and kindness we come short of the Image of CHRIST, and do not act up to the Most Estimable and Endearing Trait in His Character. To be more ready to give than to receive-to be not only ready to distribute, but glad to communicate, not only temporal good, but the Riches, that

Endure Unto Eternal Life, Derived to us from The Gospel of JESUS CHRIST, is but to render unto GOD, the tribute so justly due unto Him for the Unmeasured and Unceasing Mercies and Blessings Vouchsafed by Him through His SON unto us. And a present reward is even with us, in the rejoicings, that the Assurance of DIVINE Favour Resting upon us, from the very suggestion and pursuit of such a line of duty, engenders in our hearts. A false estimate of ourselves, either in our Relationship to GOD or our Fellow Mortals, is of fearful consequence, and should be supplicatingly guarded against. In the regulation of our own conduct, and not exclusively in the admiration of that of others, should our thoughts be mostly engaged; and to obtain the inward feeling of delight that conscious rectitude imparts, we should prove to ourselves and to our inward conviction, that the Law of GOD is indeed within our hearts, and ever uppermost in our minds, and influencing us not only to will, but to do, as we have ability and opportunity, all the Council of GOD, as Conveyed to us in The Gospel of His SON, or otherwise Laid open to our Spiritual view: and then shall we have pleasure, pure and permanent as our Regenerated Nature is here susceptible of, therein. The true spirit of independance, which indeed All should cherish, would prompt to the freely sustaining our own burthens in our progress through life, and not casting them upon Others; and yet a Christian feeling of compassion urges us to acknowledge and to act upon the acknowledgment, that our charity should not end there, but should expand itself to comprehend, within its offices, Others, who are unable or less willing to bear their own. The effect of a charitable effort to bring back the Sinner from the error of his ways is thus Illustrated by St. James, If Any do err from the Truth, and One convert him; let him know, that he, which converteth the Sinner from the error of his way, shall save a Soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins-v. 19, 20. --St. Paul, in the comprehensiveness of his unfailing charity of heart, says, We that are strong (in the faith) ought to bear (with) the infirmities of the weak in faith, and not to please ourselves; but let every one please his Neighbour for his good to edification-Rom. xv. 1, 2-thus shewing in what, true pleasure and Spiritual Profit shall be found.The proof of the propriety of the work we undertake in the avowed Cause of CHRIST, and in obedience to His Commands, is by a diligent examination of ourselves in reference to Those Commands, and of the Example Which CHRIST Himself Set, that Such work may stand in the Sight of GOD, as founded in a right faith, and therefore be Approved by Him; and not as guided by the vain-glory of having only the praise of Men--See 2 Cor. xiii. 5.--Solomon, in the range of his unequalled view of Human Nature and Character, has said, A Good Man shall be satisfied from himselfProv. xiv. 14. The influence of an approving Conscience imparts a joy, that the Selfish and Sensual are utterly Strangers to; and the gladness thereof will survive, when all worldly delights shall have ceased.

VERSES 6 to 8-Let him, that is taught in the Word, communicate unto him, that teacheth, in all good things! Be not deceived! GOD is not Mocked; for whatsoever a Man soweth, that shall he also reap; for he, that soweth to his flesh, shall of the flesh reap corruption: but he, that soweth to The SPIRIT, shall of The SPIRIT reap Life everlasting.

The Labourer is worthy of his hire, and when that labour endureth to the Eternal Benefit of those, who are laboured for, surely it is not too much to return a portion of the things of this life, which contribute to its sustenance and Justice even, without bringing to bear also the higher principle of generosity, prompts to such a dealing towards a Benefactor of so high and benevolent a character. Amidst the deceivableness of the heart, and in all its tortuous windings and evadings, it gives, if it give at all, as little as may be, in

requital for Spiritual aid, however largely it may recompense for sensual gratification. Such conduct cannot but be offensive to The GIVER of All Good. The Eye of The ALMIGHTY is everywhere, Beholding the Evil and the Good. The motives of action-the devices and machinations of the heart-how little suspected by Human penetration, are all open, and reflected as in a mirror, before Him. To deal niggardly towards Him, Who has Dealt so Bountifully towards us, cannot but incur His Displeasure; and as Life, in its Everlasting existence and enjoyment, is only in His Favour; so in His Disfavour must be the awful reverse of Life, without measure of days, but with unmeasured misery and remorse, inseparably accompanying it. By our whole course of life here shall we be judged; and if that course be opposed to the Law and to the Testimony, as Revealed to us in GOD's Word, or through The SPIRIT's Promptings to our consciences, how can we expect other than the Recompence of Discomfiture from A JUST, A HOLY, and An Omnipotent GOD. But if in the offerings of a grateful heart, for Goodness so Unmerited on our part, and so Unfailing on His, we seek the Council of The SPIRIT, and delight to fulfil The DIVINE Will, and rest our hope of DIVINE Acceptance on the Gracious Incarnation and Sacrificial Intercession of The SON of GOD, the Rich Harvest of DIVINE Love will for ever and ever be ours.--St. Paul elsewhere asks, If we have sown Spiritual things, is it a great thing, if we reap carnal things? adding, that The LORD hath Ordained, that they, which preach The Gospel, should live of The Gospel -1 Cor. ix. 11, 14; on the other hand, we are admonishingly told, They that plow iniquity and sow wickedness, reap the same-Job. iv. 8; Prov. xxii. 8— and what a reaping will that be, in the Great Day of universal Account! How will the Soul be harrowed up with reflections on its own infatuated and now irreparable folly! Solomon hath said, To him that soweth righteousness, shall be a sure reward-Prov. xi. 18; and as Righteousness tendeth to Life, so he that pursueth evil, pursueth it to his own death-19. But, as saith the Apostle James, The fruit of Righteousness is sown in Peace, of them, that make peace-iii. 18.

VERSES 9, 10-And let us not be weary in well-doing for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. As we have therefore opportunity let us do good unto all Men, especially unto them, who are of the Household of Faith.

Oft indeed as the patience even of Saints is tried, amidst their Christian labours to work conversion in Others, that their Immortal Souls may not perish everlastingly, yet still that patience, which Christian principle inculcates, will have its perfect work, never regarding that work to be done, whilst anything, within the compass of its legitimate aim, is yet to be attained. Amidst whatever physical weariness may be felt, the feeling is ever strong in the truly Spiritualized heart, to be up and doing, what may be done for the Glory of CHRIST and the Great Object of His Gospel Dispensation. The encouragement to perseverance is in the Sure Word of Scripture, and in the Unfailing Promises of GOD. The happiness of contributing in any way by personal effort towards the Progress and the Establishment of The Divine life in Others, is far beyond every other experience of delight; and the inconceivably Rich Reward, in the Approval of Him, Who Gave the power and the will so to do, and with Whom is the Gift of Bliss inconceivable here and Eternal hereafter, will assuredly be reaped in part even here, but fully and exhaustlessly in the Life to Come. As however our powers may not and cannot be commensurate with the ardour of our will, which, like that of St. Paul, would that All might be saved, and that None might come short of an Eternal Life of Holiness and happiness, our first objects should be Those, who most need our aid, whether Spiritual or temporal, who are in the