the other hand held a weapon. For the builders, every one had his sword girded by his side, and so builded."

What a lovely picture have we here of the bold and determined spirit with which these labourers of the Lord gave themselves to the work! And what a striking example for ourselves! Brethren, we live in a world at war with God and with the Gospel. Unconverted men are not neutrals between right and wrong; they love what is evil, and they hate what is good. They hate the Master whom, as Christians, we love and serve. They seek to quench that light of the Gospel which he has kindled. They will, in many instances, hate and resist you, if you are faithful to your God and Saviour, and contend earnestly for the faith that is given to the saints. For you, then, also, it is necessary to have the trowel in one hand, and the sword in the other; it is for you to remember (and here I am especially speaking to young people; you must be bold in the service of your God)-it is for you to remember, that while you are to be mild in the manner, you are to be strong, and upright, and determined in the act; to set your face as a flint against corruption; and to lift up the banner of the cross in the front of every opposer.

How base and how contemptible is a cowardly religion! Ashamed of Jesus! Can that be? How noble, and how suited to His service who died in the cause, is it to resist even unto blood where God and his honour are concerned! After all, brethren, I think that we are apt to undervalue the difficulties of religion as to this point. It wants much courage to be a true servant of God. It was urged upon Joshua-and we may urge it upon every soldier in the camp of Christ-"Be strong; be of good courage; and I will be with thee." Dear brethren, I trust there will be many in this congregation who will bring all their manhood to bear on religion; who will speak for their Lord in all places, and in all societies; and who will endeavour to make known that they have chosen the Lord's side, and that they mean to live and to die under the banner of his cross.

But it is time that I come, in conclusion, to notice the particular object of this sermon. As I said in the opening of this discourse, I believe that it is not necessary that I should urge, either upon the minister or upon the settled congregation of this place, that you should put your hearts into the work in which you are engaged. I have reason to believe that great sacrifices have been made in the maintenance of this place of worship; and I am sure it is no common subject of satisfaction to any Christian mind to witness such a congregation as this, and to believe that, to a considerable degree, large numbers of them are actually concerned honestly to promote the preaching of the Gospel in this place with the utmost possible effect. I trust, Christian brethren, that you render God the praise for whatever you have been permitted to do already. My object this evening is, particularly to press upon all who are present, the recollection that, humanly speaking, the maintenance of this place of worship, the maintenance of this congregation, the supply of their spiritual wants, (as assembled here, at least,) depends, next to the divine blessing, not upon any support from without, but upon yourselves within-on certain sermons preached during the year for promoting those particular purposes. Now, let me draw

from the text some natural, common-place conclusions, with regard to the accomplishment of this end.

In the first place, you have observed from the text-or at least from the passages connected with it, in the third and fourth chapters of Nehemiah-that all classes contributed to that end. There must be unity among ourselves; all classes must contribute to this end-the great a larger portion, and the poor a smaller portion; but all are to do what we can.

You observe that, in all these cases, there was an endeavour that each man should discharge his own particular office; to "repair," as it is expressed, "before their own door." That must be your endeavour: you must be cultivating personal religion in your own souls. You must not merely be looking to the religion of your neighbour; you must be looking to your own religion, your own vineyard, the state of your own heart. You must be asking yourselves, "Do I love my Lord and Saviour? Am I his, and is he mine?

Moreover, you are to be doing your own particular work as to this church of which you are a member. If you have money to give, you must give it: if you have time to give, you must bestow it: if you have, as you certainly have, prayer to give, you must be pouring out your supplications before the God of all grace, that a special blessing may rest on the congregation assembling here.

You observe that, in this particular case, there was much of the spirit of union. Every man carried a trowel, and every man a weapon of defence. And may God, my Christian brethren, breathe more and more upon this congregation, the spirit of love, unity, sympathy, and brotherly affection, in this distracted, quarrelsome world! May there be found here one corner of it, at least, in which the true spirit of Gospel love prevails!

Then again, you have seen that, in these builders of Jerusalem, there was a giving of money and where there is a willing mind, providence constantly supplies the means. It is astonishing, where there is a disposition to do, how easily things are accomplished.

And observe, also, from these chapters, how much the spirit of prayer prevailed among these builders. Yes, brethren; and prayer is the very sinew of our spirits. You must begin, continue, and end, in prayer, if you mean, not merely that the walls of your place of worship should stand, but if you desire that the glory of the Lord shall be found to illuminate its walls. Prayer keeps the lamp of the altar bright: prayer gives you the presence of God.

I can truly say, in conclusion, how satisfactory and cheering the spectacle is to myself, of seeing a place of worship like this raised up from the midst of a poor population, as it was, at least, a few years since; large numbers collected together; a full congregation; and, as I venture to hope, the Gospel simply and faithfully preached to you. We ought to bless God who is the great Author of this work. Brethren, I commend it to his care. I desire for each and all of you, that Christ Jesus may become more precious to every one of your souls: that you may grow in grace, and in the knowledge of your God and Saviour; that large numbers may go from within these walls to fight the battle of the Lord; that your minister may find the seed sown striking root downward, and

bearing fruit upward; and that his labours may be watered by the dews of heaven, and bring forth fruit a hundred-fold; to the glory of God, and the salvation of a lost world. May God be with you! May the power of the Spirit rest upon you! And may you be enabled to go on your way peacefully and rejoicingly!

THE COMMENDATION AND REWARD OF THE BENEVOLENT MAN.

REV. EDWARD STEANE,

SALTERS' HALL, CANNON STREET, APRIL 1, 1835*.

"He hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor; his righteousness endureth for ever; his horn shall be exalted with honour."-PSALM, cxii. 9.

THE author of this Psalm seems to have intended a description of the most remarkable properties of a good man, together with the happiness consequent upon the exercise of his virtues. He lays the basis of his entire character in religious principle, associated with religious practice: "He feareth the Lord, and delighteth greatly in his commandments." Such terms, agreeably with the genius and spirit of the ancient dispensation, describe a man who, under the new economy, would be distinguished as an eminent Christian. It is perfectly consistent, therefore, to consider the several attributes of character ascribed to him, and the effects resulting from them, in an evangelical sense. The fear of God, and the love of God, if they are not precisely the same affection of the mind, are essentially connected with each other, and in the heart of a good man are never separated. The former was the regulating influence in the conduct of ancient believers, as the latter is in the deportment of Christians; and however they may be distinguished in their metaphysical nature, they are identified in their practical results. The fear of God led the one to delight greatly in his commandments, and his love constrains the other to every instance of Christian obedience.

Nor do they conduct to a different issue, in regard to the happy consequences which flow from their exercise. In blessings more congenial with the mode of the divine government as administered under the law, than under the spiritual constitution of the Gospel, the reward is indeed described by the Psalmist, as it is natural that it should be; but the spirit and intention of them all is expressed by the Apostle when he says, "Godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life which now is, and of that which is to come."

The passage immediately before us is in exact coincidence with the entire Psalm, commending the benevolence which is so considerable a property in the character of the pious man, and declaring its reward. His commendation is expressed in the former part of the text: "He hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor." His reward in the latter: "His righteousness endureth for ever; his horn shall be exalted with honour."

THE CONDUCT OF THE BENEVOLENT MAN IS in my text not simply * At the 103d Anniversary of the Widows' Fund.

described, but COMMENDED.

It is mentioned to his honour that he is liberal

in the use of his property, and bountiful in its distribution to the poor.

The sovereignty of God, which has place in every thing, is especially to be recognized in the communication of wealth. "The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich; he bringeth low, and raiseth up." By whatever secondary means riches may be acquired, the pious man will consider them as bestowed from above. The inquiry, therefore, will naturally arise in his mind, for what purpose they are given to him? His possession of them he knows to be precarious and short. They belonged to others before they were possessed by him, and after he has enjoyed them for a little while, they will pass away to his successors. He will consequently be solicitous to employ them in such a manner aɛ to make the reflection pleasant, should he be deprived of them, or to enable him to render a satisfactory account to Him. by whom they were committed to his hands. That such account must be given, is the uniform doctrine of the inspired writers; for of the property which every man holds, ho is not the absolute proprietor, but simply the steward. It is committed to him in trust; and obligations of a solemn nature are connected with it. His responsibility lies in part to society, but in an infinitely greater degree it passes over to God.

He who possesses wealth is entrusted with the means, to a very important extent, of alleviating the distresses and trials of human life. The rich and the poor are, in many respects, alike incident to the calamities of our common nature. They are equally participants of the frailty and feebleness, the passions and susceptibilities of fallen humanity. Disasters and afflictions overtake them both. They are alike born to sorrow, and fall a prey, without distinction, to diseases and death. But when any of the innumerable woes which beset our path fall upon the poor, they are less provided with the means of mitigating their severity, or of sustaining their pressure. The poor man has no resources laid up against the hour of adversity. His daily wants consume the daily produce of his toil. He labours hard, and lives meanly, and learns, in its full import, the primitive malediction, "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground." For the purpose then of meeting such exigencies as these, the rich are endowed with their wealth. It is in their power to administer materially to the comfort of their fellow-creatures, to mitigate their distresses, to bind up the broken heart, to wipe away the tear of the sorrowful, and to snatch the miserable and the wretched from lingering affliction, or untimely death. That society is so constituted as to bring the rich and the poor into continual intercourse, is among the wise arrangements of Divine Providence. Opportunities are thus afforded for the growth of some of the best affections of our nature, and scope is given for the exercise of those generous sympathies and benevolent actions, which are at once the redeeming virtues, and the chief embellishments of our apostate world.

The possessors of wealth, it may be added, have it in their power to render efficient aid in that higher department of philanthropy which contemplates man not in the frailty of his mortal existence, but as the capable and destined inhabitant of an eternal world. In this point of view, riches acquire a worth incomparably beyond what intrinsically belongs to them. Without them it is difficult to perceive how the various enterprises of the Church for the conversion of the world could be carried on, By what means, in the absence of pecuniary