this verse refers primarily to the Lord Jesus Christ. "The path of the Just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day." It is true of His path as He went forth upon the earth. It is true of His path as He ascended into heaven in the day of His risen glory. And it is true also in the experience of the child of God. Christ's path in the soul of His saint shines "more and more unto the perfect day." And when the perfect day of glory shall come; then shall come to pass that which is spoken in the 60th of Isaiah: "Arise, shine; for thy Light is come, and the Glory of the Lord is risen upon thee." "The sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory." (Verse 19.) Will not this be sufficient? What a perfect and glorious day! But wait. 66 Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. (Verse 20.) Thy light shall increase into an everlasting day of glory, or into an everlastingly glorious day.

Now, in my text you will see "night" and "darkness"— "Darkness" and "night." These two words, "darkness" and "night are used very frequently in the Scriptures. And they are used in various ways. Sometimes they bring before us times of great distress and calamity, sufferings, troubles, and tribulations. For an illustration of this you can read the 2nd of Joel. Sometimes "darkness" and "night" represent the trying experience of God's children, as they pass through, and are in the midst of great anxiety of soul. "Who is among you that feareth the Lord, that obeyeth the voice of His servant, that walketh in darkness, and hath no light?" "NO LIGHT." "NO LIGHT." What then? "Let him trust in the Name of the Lord, and stay upon his God." (50th Isaiah, 10.) But in our text the two words are used in another sense.

I wish to point out two senses in which these words

are used in the Scriptures. They are used both separately and jointly for the unregenerate man's condition here upon earth. If we turn to the 3rd of St. John's Gospel, and read from the 18th verse:-" He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already"-condemned in Adam. "By the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation." (Romans v.) This condemnation abides upon the unbeliever-"Because he hath not believed in the Name of the only begotten Son of God." The unregenerate man loves "darkness rather than light, but the regenerate man loves light rather than darkness. The works of the one are works of darkness, but the works of the other are works of light, because they are wrought in the Name and in the strength of God. (Verses 18 to 22.) Now the other sense in which these words are used, is for the time state of the believer here on earth. "For now is our salvation,"—or final deliverance from all sin, sorrow, and suffering," nearer nearer than when we believed.' "The night" of affliction "is far spent,-the day" of victory and glory "is at hand." "Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness," which are the works of the old man," and let us put on the armour of light. "Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ" in all holy conversation and godliness, "and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof." (Rom. xiii. 11-14.) It must be clear to all of you in what sense the words "darkness" and night are used in our text. But I must pass on to

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Secondly, the Negation:-"We are not of the night, nor of darkness." What do these words imply? I think they imply, that there are persons who are children of the night and of darkness. The Scriptures warrant us not only in thinking so, but in saying so. How otherwise can we understand the following expressions? "Children of men "-" Children of the

flesh"-" Children of the world"-"Children of disobedience"-" Children of wrath"-" Cursed children" -"Children of Belial"-" Children of the wicked one" -"Children of the devil"-"Children of hell." Surely, such persons are children of darkness and of the night, and not of light, nor of the day. Every unregenerate person is a child of the night and of darkness, and knows nothing of the enlightening influences of the Spirit of God in Christ Jesus. I shall dwell a short time upon some of the sayings which I have just quoted from God's Word.

Children of the night and of darkness, are "children of men." As they are the children of men, their origin is noted, and by their actions, their folly, conceit, and pride are evidenced. I shall give you an illustration of my meaning from the 11th of Genesis. You will remember, that it came to pass in due time that the descendants of Noah began to multiply upon the face of the earth, and that they journeyed from the east, and found a plain in the land of Shinar, and there they dwelt. They held a council and resolved to make good burnt brick, and to gather together suitable materials for the purpose of building a city and a tower whose top would reach to heaven. How like the children of men! They may have designed the city and tower for places of safety in times of danger. The recollection. of the flood would be fresh in their minds, and they may have thought, and very likely did, that, if they could only build a tower which would reach to heaven, they would have nothing to fear from any future deluge. But the Lord visited the city and tower which the "children of men" were building, confounded their language, and scattered them abroad upon the face of all the earth. The Lord has often looked down from heaven upon "the children of men," to see if there were any, that did understand and seek God. But He has never found one yet who did so. What a description we have here of the vain attempts of fallen men to build cities and towers by which to scale heaven! God will not have men's mire and mud and slime buildings

for towers of safety. He will confound their language and their doings, and scatter them far and wide either here or hereafter. Blessed are they whom God confounds here, that He may not have to confound them hereafter for ever. Children of men are children of the flesh, and children of the night and of darkness.

Again, children of the night and of darkness, are "children of Belial." This word Belial means worthlessness, and is often used in describing persons who are lawless, reckless, and vile. You will remember, that the sons of good old Eli, because of their lewdness, are called "sons of Belial; they knew not the Lord.' (1 Sam. ii. 12.) They were worthless, reckless, and lawless sons. In the days of king Saul, there was a band of men whose hearts God had touched, and there were those also who were worthless-" children of Belial." (1 Sam. x. 26, 27.) In the days of Jeroboam, "Vain men, the children of Belial, gathered themselves together unto him, and strengthened themselves against Rehoboam." (2 Chron. xiii. 7.) Now, St. Paul contrasts "Righteousness with unrighteousness," "Light with darkness," "He that believeth with an infidel," "The temple of God with idols," "Christ with Belial." Children of the night and of darkness, are unrighteous, lawless, wicked followers of him who is the very embodiment of all that is evil. But the children of God do righteousness, walk in the light, are with Christ, dwell in the temple of the living God, and are sons and daughters of the Lord Almighty. (2 Cor. vi. 14-18.)

Again, children of the night and of darkness, are "children of disobedience." The character of such as these is given us by St. Paul, in his 2nd chapter to the Ephesians. The words are emphatic and unmistakeable, describing man in his unregenerate state :-" You were . . dead in trespasses and sins; wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience." These children of disobedience are further

described in the 3rd of Colossians. And our Lord says, that "the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light." (Luke xvi. 8.) I suppose that they get their best things here, and their worst hereafter, like Dives and the rich fool. St. Peter speaks as follows of some of the children of Belial :"But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption; and shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day-time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you; having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children.' (2 Peter ii. 12-14.) Can there be anything more frightful than this picture of the children of the night and of darkness? What searching of hearts! What fear and trembling!

Again, children of the night and of darkness, are "children of the wicked one," or "children of the Devil." When our Lord taught His disciples who are His and who are not by declaring unto them the Parable of the tares of the field, He said unto them:-" He that soweth the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the Devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels." Well, what has to become of the tares? Gather them and burn them. "In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the Devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not His brother." (1 John iii. 10, 11.) Abel was a child of God, a child of light and of the day. Cain belonged to the wicked one, for his vile deeds made him manifest. Cain has many followers, and in the end they will be gathered for burning. I do not wish to put these things stronger than they are put