mediation of Christ. To him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus. We should never have dared to offer the sacrifice of praise to God, had it not been for this glorious Redeemer; since he has by his cross glorified the divine perfections, we can contemplate them with holy pleasure and delight, and adore him for them all. But he would spurn at our attempts at adoration, if we had no reference to the atonement of his Son. Our praises will never be acceptable in his sight, unless they are offered through faith in Christ Jesus. Besides, he must present them to God, even the Father; hence we rejoice that " we have a High Priest passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God," who bears our praises to the eternal throne. Yes, he stands at the altar, "having a golden censer, and there is given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which is before the throne." How pleasing is the thought, that our imperfect praises are conveyed to God the Judge of all, by the Angel of the covenant. What need have we of saints to be our advocates, when we have Christ Jesus? Who else can render our acknowledgments worthy of the acceptance of the eternal Father, but Jesus only? hence, Jesus alone shall bear my cries Up to his Father's throne; He, dearest Lord, perfumes my sighs, And sweetens every groan. And so shall it be with our songs of praise, even till we are admitted into his presence. Oh, to him be glory by Jesus Christ. 3. The honor must be rendered to him to the latest period of time, and throughout eternity. "To him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus, throughout all ages, world without end. Amen." So long as Jehovah possesses this divine power, so long must he be honored on account of it. And I leave with yourselves to judge, whether this will not be forever and ever. It must be throughout all ages; when the present generation shall have passed away, and another shall have come; when our heads shall be all laid beneath the clods of the valley, and the worms feed sweetly on our bodies; even then there will be a generation to call Jehovah blessed, and a seed to serve him. For then this power shall be exerted, and the people that shall be created shall praise the Lord. Yea, till all his saints are gathered in, must the Head of the church be glorified, and world without end. When all the redeemed shall be united in Christ, this glory shall be rendered to Jehovah; since the sweet work of praise shall be our employment in heaven, forever and ever. Now, to all this, you are called upon to add the solemn word-Amen. My text is a prayer for the glory of God. Oh, offer it up from the bottom of your hearts! And what think you, sinner, of the power of God? it will be exerted in destroying you. Oh, dread his anger, and take refuge in Jesus, the Sanctuary. * We have before noticed, that Mr. Spencer was accustomed to enlarge on his written notes, in the improvements of his Sermons: we annex the following specimen, which was taken down in shorthand. 66 'Now, to all this, my dear hearers, you are required to pronounce the solemn word-Amen! Because God possesses this power, you ought to rejoice in it; because he can do exceeding abundant above all that you can ask or think, you ought to entreat him, from the bottom of your hearts, that he would do it for you. "My text is a prayer, a prayer for the glory of God, to which all our exertions ought to be directed. Is this, then, the object to which your exertions are directed? Are you saying, by your lives and conversations, 'Worthy is the Lamb? Are you glorifying Jesus by your lives? Remember, that you have now an opportunity of showing that you desire to glorify him; and I trust that Jesus will receive a revenue of praise, within the walls of this place, at this opportunity. "Sinners! what aspect does the mighty power of God wear toward you? It wears the most terrific aspect. You may think of defying the power of God; but once hath God spoken, yea, twice have I heard this, that power belongeth unto God; and power to destroy as well as to save. I have told you that there was a power that worked in the hearts of them that believe; but oh! you have not submitted to it; your lusts are your guide; and God may say of you, He is joined to his idols, let him alone! He is able to inflict exceeding abundantly more pain upon you than you can think; he has so much ability, that he can terrify you by his anger, frown you into hell, and make you the eternal subject of the gnawing of the worm that never dies. Whither will you flee from his anger? Jesus shall be a sanctuary; but if you refuse him, whither will you flee from the divine anger? A man shall be a covert from the tempest, and a shelter from the wind, and you can only take shelter in that way. But so soon as you have embraced him, he will present you to God as one who has received his good Spirit. The moment you lay hold on the hope set before you, that moment the omnipotence of God shall be engaged on your behalf, and the prayer of Christ shall be answered, 'Keep through thine own name, those whom thou hast given me." 'Now to the God whose power can do More than our thoughts or wishes know, Through all the church, by Christ his Son.' Amen." SERMON XVII. INFLUENCE OF THE GOSPEL ON THOSE WHO BELIEVE IT. "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation, hath appeared to all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world."-TITUS ii. 11, 12. Ir any thing is calculated to excite the tears of commiseration from a generous mind, surely the wretched state of the lost sons of Adam must produce such an effect. Placed upon the stage of life as they are, with a propensity to evil, and pursuing, as they do with eagerness, the desires of the flesh and of the mind; surely when we recollect that state of primeval dignity and eminence in holiness from which they have so awfully, so deeply fallen, we must say, "How is the gold become dim, how is the most fine gold changed!" The children of men, from their natural depravity, and the influence of habits acquired by continuance in sin, are all unholy and impure; the image of God, which was once impressed in such lively and pleasing characters upon the heart of their first parent, their head and representative, is now entirely lost, the glory is departed. Sin, that abominable thing which God's righteous soul hateth, which breaks his law, opposes his government, and insults his Spirit, is the delight, the unhallowed source of pleasure to the creatures he has made. He looks down from his high throne in glory, he sees men walking in a vain show, and he says, concerning us, considered in the condition in which we were born, "There is none that doeth good, no, not one." Well may we then look around us for help; it surely becomes us to enquire what shall raise us from this abject state of sin, and deliver us from those iniquities which prevail against us. How shall our tempers, which are by nature evil, become excellent and divine? How shall our conduct, which is that of the children of disobedience, be so changed as to become that which men. shall love, angels admire, and God himself approve? Shall we sit at the feet of heathen sages? They will, indeed, give us excellent precepts, but they cannot touch the springs of action; they cannot reach the heart. Their advice may be excellent, but the reformation which it can accomplish is, after all, but partial; it arises from no noble principle it is imperfect, it is unacceptable in the sight of God. Shall the law of Moses produce in us that holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord? Its commands are, indeed, represented by the pen of inspiration, as holy, just, and good it is a transcript of the divine mind; it is an exact rule for the conduct of men; but instead of possessing power to render us Israelites indeed, in whom there is no guile, its office is, by its own spirituality, to show us our exceeding sinfulness, to condemn us, and to declare to us that we are accursed, because we have not continued in all things written in the book of the law to do them. Whither then shall he who hungers and thirsts after righteousness direct his attention? Where shall those of us, who, sensible of the plague of our hearts, and the sins of |