from it; and with these feelings of oppression the convinced sinner is seen coming unto Jesus, glad to hide himself under the banner of his love; glad to have imputed to him the righteousness of one who has been accepted by the great Law Maker, whose atonement has been considered quite adequate for the satisfaction of an offended Judge; and these feelings are the accompaniment of faith.

But there are degrees of faith. The soul that has received a pardon will be desirous of honouring the Saviour in every possible way; his motto will be, believe and do. Good works are always faith's accompaniment and evidence; for faith, to be saving, must be influential that is to say, it must operate upon the mind so as to influence the actions; and in the same proportion that faith influences the mind will the conduct of the believer speak; or, in other words, the tree is known by its fruit.

Faith, like many other things, has its proportions or degrees; there is such a thing as little faith; and there is abounding in some, to the praise and glory of God, a great and overcoming faith; and each of these degrees and their intermediate proportions have their consequences: where there is but little faith, there will be but little fruit; and, on the contrary, where there is much faith, there will be much fruit. "Shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works." There is also a consequence of being without faith; and it is, that there will be no fruit that can possibly be acceptable to God.

To prevent any mistake arising from these remarks, I would observe that, according to the notions of men, there may be performed many good works by those who are entirely destitute of faith; there may be and are many acts of charity performed, which yet

are not the offspring of faith, but arise either from a desire to merit salvation, to salve the conscience, or to be seen of men. Such works as these, however they may benefit society, are in no wise acceptable to God, because they are not the fruit of a rich and genuine faith.

I trust it will clearly be seen what is intended by being "rich in faith," or, as it is expressed in other passages of scripture, "strong in faith." An instance : In the sight of God, Abraham was the father of the faithful, "who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; and being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body, now dead, &c.; he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God." Another instance of being "rich in faith" we have in the firm assurance and unshaken confidence of that wonderful woman, the woman of Canaan, who, in the face of opposition, and repulses, and hard names, still persevered in believing.

God hath chosen "the poor of this world, rich in faith." These words may be construed as implying, rich in the things to which their faith entitles them. We know that all who are rich in faith will be rich in the fruits of faith; and will they not also be rich in hopes of the heavenly inheritance,-rich in their anticipations of the glory that will follow,-rich in their enjoyments, when they experience the earnest of the inheritance within them? Will they not feel rich in privileges? for God hath also chosen them "heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him."

It appears from the foregoing remarks that it is not only possible to know whether or not we have faith, but also whether or not that faith is of the right kind;

whether or not the faith we individually possess will save our souls; it will also appear that the proportion, or degree, of faith that we possess may be correctly determined, "Every good tree bringeth forth good fruit, but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit."

Now, I would appeal to your heart; are you prepared to prove your faith by your works? Does your conscience whisper in your bosom that you possess genuine faith? How frequently have you given an undoubted testimony of sincere and unalterable attachment to the Saviour? How much of your worldly goods have you expended for the promotion of his interests?-His, whom you profess to love? Have you supported his institutions by your presence? Have you sustained his ministers with your substance? Have you strengthened their hands by constant attendance on their ministrations? Have you done all that is in your power to promote the kingdom of God in the hearts of your children or dependents? Have you deprived yourselves of fireside enjoyments, and the rest of sloth in your beds, for the sake of attending upon the appointed means of grace? Have you contributed of your possessions, or your earnings, to send the glorious message of the gospel to those parts of the world where it has never yet been heard? Are you aware of the eternal importance of the salvation of the soul, and are you unwilling to be instrumental in making others acquainted with it? You a partaker of the faith of the gospel, and indifferent as to whether others partake of it or not? Impossible; for is this not a trait of genuine love to the Saviour; this is not the fruit of faith.

The apostle, in charging the Hebrews with shewing respect of persons, teaches us that we ought to esteem believers according to their faith in the Lord Jesus

Christ, and not according to the amount of worldly riches that they possess, or according to their worldly dignity, or alliance with great families: "If there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; and ye have respect unto him that weareth the gay clothing, and say to him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or, sit here under my footstool: are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?" And then to enforce his argument asks this pointed question, “Hath not God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom?"

The rich and the poor are set in opposition to each other; by the rich we are to understand, not those who are rich in grace, but the worldly rich, who are generally esteemed before and above the believing poor; and who are generally poor in gracious habits. The above quotation would seem to be an echo to the address of St. Paul to the Corinthians, "For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called. But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen; yea, and things which are not to bring to nought things that are, that no flesh should glory in his presence."

Considering these different portions of God's word, we may think there is abundant reason to congratulate the poor, because God hath chosen them to be rich in faith! And we should do right in congratulating the poor, if poverty were the terms on which salvation is offered; then perhaps many who read these pages

would stand pretty fair for heaven; but we have been reading that faith is the passport to heaven, consequently poverty will stand in no stead. There is no merit in being poor, nor is there any crime in being rich! But the stress is laid upon the influence that poverty or riches have upon the individuals who are thus differently circumstanced. We are taught in God's word, and it is also our every day experience, that those who are rich in this world's goods are too apt to rest in their possessions, and to solace themselves in the thought that they possess abundance for futurity, and are so occupied with present enjoyments that they have not time to think about eternity; and thus it is easier for a cable to go through the eye of а needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. And, on the contrary, the circumstances of a poor man have just the opposite effect; a state of toil and deprivation, a state of sorrows and afflictions, a state of losses and crosses, naturally lead him to look forward to a state of rest. A poor man who is in his right mind sees that there is nothing in this life in which he can solace himself; he is therefore more likely through the influence of his circumstances to be persuaded to attend to the interests of his soul; he has more reason than the rich man to desire an interest in the rest that is prepared for those who are "rich in faith;" not for those who are poor in this world's goods.

Let us bear in mind that poverty gives no title to heaven; nor do sufferings and afflictions; they give no title to heaven; nothing but faith can win heaven. I know it to be a prevailing notion among the untaught poor, that because they are sufferers in this life that therefore they shall be rewarded in the life to come; but this is not scripture doctrine: suffering