are felt. In the sight of God there can be no true penitence which is not founded on a sense of our transgressions against him, and which is not accompanied with the acknowledgment of them in prayers for his mercy.

And until this mercy is exercised upon us, brethren, we are in a state of condemnation, exposed to the justice of that holy and Almighty Being who hath denounced indignation and wrath against every soul of man that doeth evil.

Let us then "search and try our ways;" let us bring to view, as far as possible, all our omissions of duty, all our violations of the laws of our God. Let us conduct this scrutiny as in the presence of Him that searcheth the hearts and trieth the reins of the children of men, and who cannot be deceived, and who will not be mocked. It is in vain to attempt to hide from him the transgressions which privacy and retirement may have concealed from the view of men. Who indeed can fully understand his errors? Who can detect his secret faults? Who can bring to remembrance all the transgressions which may have marked his life? Search then thou, O God, and try the ground of our hearts; prove us, and examine our ways: and when we come unto thee confessing our manifold iniquities, look upon us, we beseech thee, after the multitude of thy mercies, and blot out our sins.

4. But, my brethren, another subject of our faithful scrutiny should be-Whether it is our constant desire and endeavour to be renewed in the spirit of our minds, and to become holy in heart and life.

This is the great end, and this is the only evi

dence of genuine repentance. The most humble expressions of our unworthiness, and the lowest humiliation under a sense of our transgressions, can be of no avail in the sight of God, except as they are an evidence of that deep detestation of sin which engages us in the sincere and diligent renunciation of it, and in the pursuit of that universal holiness which, by conforming us to his image, can alone prepare us for the enjoyment of the favour of God.

In this respect, then, "let us search and try our ways:" let us compare the dispositions of our hearts and the habits of our lives, our daily character and conduct, with the standard of holiness prescribed by the Gospel. Every disposition which is at variance with the Christian temper, it should be our constant endeavour, through divine grace, to subdue-every habit, contrary to the purity of the Christian character, to renounce and every practice forbidden by the divine law, and inconsistent with our Christian profession, utterly to forsake.

My brethren, are we thus diligently engaged in the great business of our Christian calling-mortifying and correcting our evil tempers, and, through the renewing of the Holy Spirit, conforming our hearts and lives to the requisitions of the laws of God? It is not sufficient that we have embraced the Christian profession: it is not sufficient that, in the sense of our unworthiness, we have humbled ourselves before God, and cherish a lively dependence on his mercy through a Redeemer: it is not sufficient that we diligently attend on the means of grace. These exercises and acts are designed only as instruments of our renovation, by which we may be enabled to put off the body of sin to which we

are subject, and to "put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness;"* and unless they are thus employed by us, they are neither acceptable to God, nor of any avail to our salvation. All our religious professions, and all our religious exercises, must be brought to this test-Whether they have effected a holy change in our hearts, and engaged us in the constant renunciation of all sinful dispositions and practices, and the faithful discharge of all our Christian duties.

Let us search then and try, brethren, whether our religious exercises and professions will stand this test. Is it our supreme desire, our fervent prayer, our constant endeavour, to obtain the victory over every sinful passion, to renounce entirely every thing that is evil, and to be holy in heart and life, conformed to the image and obedient in all things to the will of our heavenly Master? Does the imperfect progress which we make in obtaining the victory over sin, and in the exalted graces and duties of the spiritual life, while it humbles us before God in the acknowledgment of our weakness and in supplication for his succour, excite us to more circumspection, more diligence, more watchfulness, more zeal in the great work of our Christian calling?

My brethren, the Christian life is not a life of indolence. It does not admit of the wilful indulgence of any sinful passion. It is not compatible with the habitual practice of any sin. Heaven is the glorious prize for which the Christian is to contend; and heaven, infinitely rich, and full, and exalted in its rewards, will not be awarded but to * Eph. iv. 24.

those who, in their conquest, by divine grace, of their sinful passions, and in the attainment of the Christian virtues, are born of God, and thus made. meet for the enjoyment of his celestial glories.

5. With this general inquiry as to our progress in the renunciation of sin, and in the attainment of the Christian graces, ought to be connected a scrutiny as to the particular sin to which we may be the most prone, or the Christian virtue in which we may be the most deficient.

This scrutiny is essential to our obtaining the mastery over that sin to which we are most prone, and to the full attainment of the virtue in which we may be most deficient: and wilful devotion to any sin, and voluntary deficiency in any Christian grace, will disqualify us for the kingdom of God. Here then is a most important scrutiny, and demanding peculiar fidelity and perseverance; for self-love will be apt to conceal from us the sinful passion to which we are the most addicted, or the deficiency in any spiritual grace which most strongly marks us. Let us search and try, then, where is our weakness, and where is our deficiency. We may abstain from one sinful passion, and indulge in another: we may shun one vice, and rush into its opposite. We may cherish, for example, purity, and yet indulge revenge; and may avoid extravagance, and yet be enslaved by covetousness. We may distribute our wealth in those channels where it will be least wanted, but where it will advance our reputation-some civil and temporal project and withhold it where it will do the most good, but the least redound to our credit-plans for advancing the spiritual happiness of our fellow

men. We We may avoid all excess in worldly plea sure, and yet indulge a morose, unsocial, and censorious temper. We may humble ourselves before God in the most profound expressions of our unworthiness, and yet display towards our fellow-men a proud, domineering, and tyrannical spirit. We may inveigh against worldly pride and ostentation, and yet we may delight in the incense of spiritual flattery. In all these respects we may deceive ourselves we may even deceive the world. But let us remember, we cannot deceive our God. He will search and prove us. And that we may escape his condemning scrutiny, let us search and try ourselves: let us, in the spirit of humility and prayer, faithfully examine our hearts and conduct; and whatever sinful passion we may have most frequently indulged, let that be the object of our most jealous caution; to whatever evil temper we may be the most prone, against this let us most sedulously guard; and in whatever Christian grace we may have been the most deficient, this let us cherish and pursue with increased ardour and zeal.

6. Let us search and try ourselves as to our attendance on those means of grace which are essential to our progress in the spiritual life.

Are we constant in our intercourse with heaven, by supplications and praises in private and in our families? Are we uniform in our attendance on the public worship of God, not only as a reluctant offering once on the day devoted to him, but in the regular afternoon as well as morning service of the sanctuary? Is our behaviour in his courts characterized by reverence, attention, and devotion? Do the prayers and praises by which we hold commu