longer attracted there. Now and then a preacher arises who attracts the multitude and rivets their attention. Such men are given to us to show the possibilities of the pulpit, and to point to the time when, instead of being disgraced, it shall accomplish grander results. Some tell us that the press has superseded the pulpit; that men need no longer to be hearers, because they are readers. The Bible is in their hands; if they need any explanations, they have the works of the great commentators. Why listen to sermons of men of little experience and only average culture? But they forget the human element, the power of man over his fellow-men, the force derived from experience, the practical accompanying the ideal. True preaching, as I have said, is not merely the delivery of the message; but the delivery of the message by men who profess to have felt its power and testified to its truth in their own experience.

The preacher not only proclaims the truth; he stands as a personal witness to its power. What political party would go into an exciting canvass relying merely on articles from the press. The press is a valuable auxiliary. It reports the strongest thought of the eloquent theorist. But every party must have conventions, its evening meetings, stump speakers. Without these it fails. What would the temperance reformation be without speakers who themselves have been reformed? What would Murphy's influence be through the press alone? It is the man who was a drunkard, reduced to wretchedness, who was in jail, when the work found him and elevated him, that the crowd go to hear. When that man stands before an audience and tells the story of his fall, his sorrow, his wretchedness, his repentance and reformation, and triumph over appetite, the hearts of the people are stirred, and many are moved to join the good cause. Who has not read the lectures of Gough? And yet, though he tells the same stories over and over, the largest auditoriums are crowded almost to overflowing to hear him.

Wendell Phillips has been for thirty years hunting the lost arts. The synopsis of his lectures has been before the public again and again; yet people hasten and crowd to hear him.

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The Pulpit and the Press.

Though Shakespeare's works are found in almost every library, still the author of the dramas draws theatres crowded for sometimes a hundred nights in succession. It is the man who impersonates the ideas that they wish to see and hear. Some things never grow old. The songs our mothers sung to us in childhood are still the sweetest music in our ears. "Now I lay me down to sleep," was the evening prayer of Quincy Adams when he sat in the presidential chair.

The very men who say the pulpit is a failure, and declare it to be superseded, are themselves unwilling to trust to the press alone. The notorious Ingersoll, who denounces Christianity and denies the being of God, is unwilling to trust to his writings, but eagerly mounts the platform, and thus steals the livery of Heaven to serve the Devil in. Erasmus says: "The Devil preached." He preached to Eve and seduced the human race. Christian preaching shall never fail. The great Commander issued His orders of marching centuries ago. He never changes His plans, and will not be defeated. His order was, "Go preach!" and this stands good until He comes again. Into such an illustrious company does the young preacher enter. Isaiah exclaimed: "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings." The long line of preachers extends in unbroken succession from Christ Himself to the present hour. A line did I say? More than a line. A pyramid, of which He is the basis, and which year by year rises in altitude and widens in its base; and will rise and will widen until it covers all lands, and the preacher shall be seen and heard of every child of Adam on the globe. It is an unbroken succession not by the ordinances of man, nor by the needs of man, nor by the will of man; but by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is a holy fellowship, a glorious association. They were all men of like passions with us. Some have, indeed, entered the ministry without the divine call, others have been overborne by passion; some concerning the faith have been shipwrecked. Peter denied his master, Judas betrayed Him. Men have disgraced themselves and brought reproach upon the office; but it still lives, strengthened because Christ lives, and is deter

Responsibility of the Preacher.

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mined that it shall so stand, while He walks among the skies and holds the stars in His right hand.

VOWS.

Lastly. It is of moment to think of your responsibility. You enter this holy brotherhood. You take upon yourselves holy You perform sacred functions. If you faithfully proclaim your Saviour; if you skilfully handle the two-edged sword; if you wisely pierce between sinners and saints; if you earnestly represent the Lord Jesus Christ in all His beauty; if you live for this one work alone; if you study, pray, preach, and strive to improve men as Christ did, then your reward will be glorious, and the promise, "Thou shalt shine as the brightness of the firmament, and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever," shall be yours. Star may differ from star in glory. All shall be radiant with the light of Jesus.

But should you handle the Word of God deceitfully; should you, as ambassadors, forget God's message, and tell your own words; should you woo the smiles of the people and court their favour, and neglect the preaching which God bids you preach; should you, as stewards, embezzle the gifts which God gives you for others; should you, as builders, put in wood, and hay, and stubble; should you, as soldiers, flee from the field in the day of battle; should you, as trumpeters, give an uncertain sound, and the walls, hence, go down to ruin, who can measure the awful responsibility? I shudder when I think of what is in the range of possibility-the terrible inquisition when God says: "Where is thy brother? His blood crieth to me from the ground!" Better would it have been never to have been born; better would it have been if a millstone had been hung about your necks and you had been cast into the midst of the sea; better that rocks and mountains might fall upon you and hide you from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, though we thus speak.

II.

THE CALL TO THE MINISTRY.

Gentlemen:-The subject which next demands our attention is the personelle of the ministry, or who should enter the sacred office. Two points are worthy of special consideration: First, do the Scriptures teach that there is a special call to the ministry? Secondly, if so, by what evidence may a young man be assured that he is so called? The reasonableness of the divine call may be inferred from the structure of the Church and the titles given to it. It is the body of Christ-Himself being the glorious head. As the brain directs the human frame, so does Christ the Church. All its plans are from Him. The Church is represented as a country over which Christ reigns. Though invisible, He inspires its movements and has promised to be present with its ministers. They are His agents, His ambassadors; they stand in His stead. Every earthly government selects the ambassadors which it sends. It would be an offence against its majesty if one not selected by itself should appear as its representative. So we may well suppose that Christ selects His own ministers, whom He sends forth to proclaim His message and to promote the interests of His kingdom. The Church is a vast army; the Captain of our Salvation directs its movements. It is His prerogative to select the officers who are to marshal this army, and to appoint them to their places, that the great plans of the campaign may be carried out successfully. He is the great Shepherd of the sheep. He owns the flock for which He gave His life. It is His right to appoint pastors after His own heart to feed the flock.

Another indication is found in the Jewish dispensation. God selected the tribe of Levi, the family of Aaron, to minister before Him. From time to time He raised up prophets as teachers,

The Call always comes from Christ.

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judges, and leaders of the people, selected at His own pleasure. So might we well expect that in the Christian dispensation the teachers should be selected by Himself. We are not left, however, to mere conjecture or reason in a matter so important. The example of Christ is authoritative. For His ministers He selected a few disciples, and enjoined them to follow Him. After their number had increased, He chose twelve by name for the special office. Subsequently He selected seventy, whom He set apart, and whom He sent forth to go before Him into every city to preach and do wonderful works in His name. After His resurrection He commanded His disciples to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature, enjoining upon them, at the same time, to tarry in Jerusalem until they were endowed with power from on high. After His ascension, Matthias was selected by lot to fill the place of Judas, after prayer had been offered that God would show whom He had chosen. St. Paul was also in a miraculous manner called to the work of the ministry. It is remarkable how frequently he refers to the fact of his calling. Many of the epistles begin with the declaration that he is an apostle "called of God," or "commanded by God," or "by the will of God." He indicates, also, the divine selection of Timothy when he says: 66 Stir up the gift of God which is in thee." After the ascension of Christ, we find a difference in the mode of the call. He selected His twelve disciples, and when He set apart seventy He spoke to each one audibly. He made the selection visibly and publicly, that all might know and recognize their authority. So when Paul was added to the apostles, though Christ had ascended to Heaven, yet He appeared to him near Damascus, took the persecutor captive, and appointed him to the work of this ministry. But the period of this direct and audible call passed away. Neither by voice from Heaven, nor by the light of Divine glory, nor by any other external agency was it directly given. It came, however, none the less from Christ. He ascended up on high, and received gifts for men, and gave them unto men; and it is added, "He gave some apostles, and some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the