ren occupied a similar position to the one which you occupy to-day. Twenty-three years have passed since, but the earnest, loving, fatherly counsel of the now sainted Matthew Robins I have not yet forgotten, and believe I never shall forget. Such was his love for us, and so great was the interest he felt in our welfare, that he expressed himself as wanting us so near to him that he would like to throw his arms around us and fold us close to his heart. My feelings towards you are somewhat similar to his. I am come to this taskconscious of my own weakness-not so much to urge you to become what I am, as what I am striving to be. You will therefore, I am sure, receive a few words of loving counsel from one who desires that each of you may be what the apostle Paul desired Timothy to be,

"A GOOD MINISTER OF JESUS CHRIST."

The office of the Christian ministry is presented under various similitudes in the Word. A minister is a "dresser of the vineyard," tending, early and late, upon the vines; a "fisher of men," toiling through the dark and in the rain; a "master-builder," charged to see that the house is safe and strong; a "shepherd," bound to fold and feed the flock; a "watchman," earnest and unweary in the hours when other men slumber; an "ambassador," to whom is confided the honour of the King; and in each and all of these, "dressers of the vineyard," "fishers of men," 66 masterbuilders," "shepherds," "watchmen," and "ambassadors," it is desirable that you should prove yourselves to be "able ministers of the New Testament.”

"A good minister of Jesus Christ," is a man personally the subject of the saving grace of the Gospel he has to proclaim to others. We believe in a converted ministry, and in no other. An unsaved man may usurp the functions, but he cannot discharge the duties, of the Christian ministry. "A good minister of Jesus Christ" is identified with all the purposes of the Gospel he proclaims, and if this be so there is-there can be no vocation comparable to the ministry of the Word. After a sad and terrible colliery accident in the north a few years since, and when the bodies of the poor fellows who had lost their lives were being brought to the surface, one of the miners engaged in the sad work was unable to make his way with his burden to the top,-the reason was he had to carry his "Davy lamp" in the hand he required to climb with. Said the man, "I couldn't catch hold of the stuff at the side to get to the surface, so I put the dead man's hand through the ring of the lamp and then used both my hands to climb with, and thus with the body carrying the lamp to light me I brought my charge to the top." It is possible that God has used,

and does use, the words and services of unconverted men for light to His people in some instances, but in such cases it is merely a lamp held in a dead man's hand. Brethren, it is of supreme importance that every minister should be in full sympathy with the Gospel he preaches, that it should be to him an experienced Gospel. sincerely hope and pray that you may never deal in the cold traffic of unfelt truth. The blind cannot lead the blind, and nothing can be more wretched than to minister in a service from which the affections are estranged. We are satisfied that you have realized the saving grace of the Lord Jesus. The clearness with which you have given your testimony to-day, in the presence of your brethren and this congregation, satisfies us that you have obtained pardon through faith in the atoning merits of our Lord Jesus; that you have the assurance of Divine favour; that the love of Christ is constraining you to obedience in His service. We recognize you as ministers of Christ because we believe you are saved men; and here let me impress upon you the necessity of watching your piety with a wakeful eye, and guarding it with constant vigilance; it is a hallowed fire glowing in the heart, and it must be kept burning by continuous acts of prayer and devotion. If at any time the Christian character of a minister become questionable or manifestly defective, any other sphere would be more suitable for him than the ministry. Oh! it is sad for a minister to be paralyzed in soul, and to "flaunt on the brow the shrivelled symbols of a former consecration."

In the maintenance of your inward spiritual life will be found the secret of your power. The repentance, faith, conversion, and sanctification of men will largely depend upon the experimental knowledge you have of these doctrines. Repentance becomes a living power when preached by one whose heart has been broken and contrite. Faith produces faith, when preached from the heart that trusts. Conversion awakens to conversion, when preached by a heart renewed. Sanctification begets sanctification, when preached by a sanctified mind, and perfection leads on to perfection when flowing from a spirit perfected in Love. In your preaching you have to seek to overcome the antagonism of the human heart, and this requires not only the force of truth itself, but also the living force of the Divine Spirit who inspired that truth. The sermon, to be thoroughly effective, must come from the heart of the man who preaches it; his mind must be saturated with Divine truth, and as the blood passes through the heart of the body, so truth passing through the heart of the preacher, touches and penetrates the hearts of those who hear. The measure of your power as ministers will be commensurate with the strength

of your spiritual life. A holy, exemplary life will always increase the influence of your ministerial character, and render your labours more effective and successful, both in the edification of believers and the conversion of the ungodly.

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"A good minister of Jesus Christ" has a distinct call from heaven to the work in which he is engaged. You, my brethren, are not appointed to this office by, or through, the intervention of the Church merely, for it is only in a secondary sense that the Church can ordain a minister. In the primary sense it is God only that can ordain, for He only can call, equip, inspire, and fit for the sacred work. We recognise to-day what God has done. "Ours is not the production of the prophet's power," only the recognition. We welcome you to our ranks as preachers of the Gospel because we believe God has called you. Paul was an apostle "through the will of God;" so he says himself. The Divine will was brought into immediate contact with his, and it became the strong yet gracious force which placed him in the apostleship and sustained him in his apostolic labours and sufferings. He did not attribute his being an apostle to the vigour of his faith, to his gratitude to God for the Divine goodness manifested towards him, or to the completeness of his consecration to the service of the Lord Jesus; he lived and acted under the control of forces which had their origin beyond and above himself; in a word, his apostolic work was the effect and expression of the Divine will. He was apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God; " to this fact he also refers when he says, "I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of His power. Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach unto the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ." It was as if he had said, "What marvellous condescension on God's part, what wonderful grace in making me a minister and appointing me to preach unto the Gentiles,' me,' who before was a blasphemer and a persecutor and injurious." It is very evident, brethren, that his call was as strikingly Divine as his work was distinctively peculiar. Such is the call of every good minister of Jesus Christ. Such a call is yours. You may not be able, in precise terms, to define its nature and characteristics. It is a matter of feeling, conviction, conscious experience that will scarcely admit of verbal statement. It is not the choosing of this out of the many walks of life because you may think it is best suited to your tastes, disposition or temperament. God forbid that any man should enter the Christian ministry from such or similar motives. Such is the spirit of the hireling, not of the shepherd. This were to touch the Ark of God with hands unconsecrate, and to

enter the ministry without realizing its sacredness. We rejoice to believe that you are among those of whom Christ spoke when he said, "Ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain." As you go forth to have the care of churches and charge of circuits you will be necessitated at times to fall back on your call. The ground will be hard to work; little or no success in some instances may be realized. Your plans will be thwarted— thwarted by some who will oppose, and by others who will treat you and your work with stolid indifference. You will meet with weak men, unreasonable, narrow, selfish, prejudiced, ambitious, sensitive, crotchety men, and your patience will be taxed to its utmost limits. Often you may be tempted to leave your work and seek some other occupation, and if you have any doubt as to the genuineness of your call, that will be a source of weakness, and will tend to discourage and depress you; but if you have the consciousness of being where God has placed you—if you have a settled conviction that you are in your right sphere, that will inspire you with manly courage and dauntless intrepidity, and will give force and directness to your utterances which will exert a moral supremacy over the minds of others. The man who feels he is called to the work of the ministry and has a message from God to deliver, has the assurance that a power not his own is allied with HIS weakness, which will make him "fearless as a prophet and brave as an apostle." It was the consciousness of his Divine call that led the apostle of the Gentiles to say, when the Holy Ghost witnessed to him that bonds and imprisonment awaited him in every city, "None of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the Gospel of the grace of God."

"A good minister of Jesus Christ" is a saved man, a called man, a workman. St. Paul exhorted Timothy to "study to show himself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth."

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A workman. There is the work of the ministry. There is specified work to be done, and certain qualifications are necessary for the doing of it. A workman-a man-one who has, as I understand it, all the natural attributes we look for in manhood. not over-look or undervalue a healthy, physical development. Reverence the body, take care of it, never abuse it; do not turn night into day. Some of us would be better able to do the work of the ministry to-day if we had been more careful when we were your age and all the years since that time. A strong body is not to be despised, and when possessed it should be utilized for the highest

ends. In the work you have undertaken you need not only a warm heart, a consecrated soul, a sound mind, but a strong arm, good lungs, and vigorous muscle. "There are some people who seem to think that because Richard Baxter and Robert Hall were invalids, and Kirke White had a consumptive cough, and William Cowper was sadly dyspeptic, therefore the most saintly must be necesssarily sickly and delicate." This is a piece of folly. Do not disregard the laws of health. Keep up, as far as you can, your constitution. I am thankful to see you with robust bodily health. Long may you enjoy it. The old pagan proverb, "Those whom the gods love die young," is not true. I have higher authority for saying to each of you who has chosen heavenly Wisdom for himself, "Length of days and long life shall it add to thee." "Quit you like men; be strong." When thrown on your own resources, play the man.

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By a man, Paul further means, one who has sound sense and true courage. Do not be insipid, childish, full of senseless crotchets or ridiculous affectation. Real men are needed for the ministry. All down through the ages this has been one very distinguished feature in the most successful ministers. The apostles were not twelve exquisites, twelve drones, twelve mere readers,-weak, white, and under-vitalized through indoor life and midnight meditations. They were not twelve ascetics who fasted until they were skeletons. No, no! You find them thorough men. They knew the wild joy of living. They could endure hardness and look life in the face. They had sound bodies, robust intellects, warm hearts, and could ring out God's truth in clear, manly language. Moses, Gideon David, Daniel, and a host in more modern times, were of the same type. Physically, intellectually, spiritually, may you be men.

Workmen. There are your pulpit duties, and preparation for them. You are to be ministers of the Word,-this you cannot be, without real work. If you mean to be ever intoning a few sentimentalisms, or to beat out constantly a few superficial platitudes, then work will not be required. If, however, you mean to be ministers of the Word, "good ministers of Jesus Christ," you must search the Scriptures as for hidden treasure. Devout, careful preparation for your pulpit duties is necessary; preaching is your great work. Dr. MacLeod has forcibly said, that "if a church is weak in the pulpit, she is weak everywhere:" when there do your very best-and do it not from the spur of duty, but from the living inspiration of love. Give your best, freshest, most sustained thought, to this work of preaching Christ. "Up to the height of your capacity build the glorious structure-spare no pains to put in goodly, polished stones. Let your work glow as the wall of the new Jerusalem, which you help to build, so that in its foundations your people may see the beryl,