the express purpose of doing good to their immortal part, or merely for curiosity or entertainment? Whether some are not soon wearied and fatigued in their attention; and whether they do not go on for years exactly in the same state, with the same indifference and lukewarmness, the same love of the world, and under the dominion of the same bad passions? Is it that they have arrived at so great a degree of perfection as to need no improvement; or did they never seriously lay these things to heart-never desire or expect any improvement from public worship and instruction? Brethren, if you really had prayed for God's grace in this house from Sabbath to Sabbath, in the name of his Son Jesus, grace, would infallibly have been afforded. Take notice in a life of only forty years, there are more than two thousand Sabbaths, -and you are bid to grow in grace. I am satisfied that if you had spent any considerable number of these well, you would necessarily have begun to grow, and would have continued to grow in grace.. It is a great thing when the plant strikes root well, and sets off well from the first. I freely allow there may, in many particular cases, be very good reasons why persons cannot attend the public worship of God. Bodily infirmities, together with a great variety of circumstances that might be mentioned, may render it sometimes impossible, and often perfectly inexpedient, for a man to attempt the hazard of joining the public services of religion. But we are ever to take care that we do not substitute conveniences for necessities we should ever be on our guard in this matter, ever be suspicious of our real inclinations. It must be granted, however, that in such things no man can judge for another, and it must therefore be left between God and his own conscience. Remember, there are other duties on the Sabbath besides attention to public worship,—many and important duties. But perhaps you tell me you have been too much engaged in the affairs of the world: your duties to yourself, to your families, and many peculiar pressing circumstances, have taken up your attention from spiritual things,—circumstances that required attention, things that must have been done. It may have been so but most probably many persons lay too great a stress on these things. Besides, the true answer is, no circumstance, no business, no duty, can have interfered, that is one-thousandth part of the importance of the care of the soul. This is the "one thing needful;" it is the "pearl of great price." Besides, God, who knows your situation. far better than you do yourselves, has allowed you six days for your worldly business, and has expressly prohibited you from attending to it on the Sabbath day and the Saviour has promised you, that if you do but take care to "seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, all these things shall be added unto you." : You have been once, or perhaps twice, at public worship on a Sunday. It is well but then, in having so done, do you think you have satisfied the commandment of dedicating one-seventh of your time to Almighty God and the care of your salvation? What, when you have perhaps neglected entirely the duty of holding communion with God in private prayer, that he might by his grace enable you to make good use of his Sabbaths! What, when you have neither besought him to open your eyes, warm your hearts, strengthen your memories, nor keep up your attention during divine service, and preserve you from worldly distraction! Yet you have been at public worship twice! Alas! this is not keeping the Sabbath-day holy for though you may have done some things which you ought to have done, you have left other very material things undone which you ought also to have done; and with such an inattention to the sacred business of the Sabbath, and such a lukewarm observance of its duties, no blessing is to be expected.Brethren, I appeal to the consciences of those who unhappily spend their Sabbaths in this defective way, whether they themselves are in the habit of expecting the blessing of God on their heartless services; whether, when such services are over on the Sunday evening, they are not more inclined to muse on what is to be done in the way of business, or pleasure and diversion, on the Monday following, than on the spiritual comforts and blessings they have experienced in discharging the duties of the Sunday. Those who verily and indeed obey the Fourth Commandment, and remember to keep the Sabbathday holy, have a very different tale to tell. Their closet witnesseth to them that they pour out their spirit to God-though not at all times, I allow, with equal fervour or earnestness, yet always with a sense of their necessities and unworthiness they pray for the blessing of God on their attention to the duties of his holy Sabbaths, and that they may comprehend the excellency of Jesus Christ and his redemption; that they may have their hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and his love shed abroad in them; according to the promises of the Gospel. Moreover, they are particularly distinguished by their attention to their family duties. It cannot be expected that those who have no great Sabbathday concern for themselves, should be very solicitous about it for others. The discharge of duties to ourselves, and to our neighbours, our relatives, and our dependants, I believe usually keep pace with one another. To conclude. Whenever you are inclined to feel cold and heartless about the Sabbath, or when you find your minds pressed with the crowding of worldly business or pleasures, it may have its uses to ask yourselves such questions as these:-Is this remembering the Sabbath day, and keeping it holy? Was it for this that God blessed the Sabbath, and sanctified it, from the beginning? Was not this day given to man before he fell, as a day of devout and grateful commemoration of his |