seen — -uniform, plain, and unmistakeable results in heart and life. Sin will be truly hated, mourned over, resisted, and renounced. Christ will be truly loved, trusted in, followed, loved, and obeyed. Holiness will show itself in all their conversation, in humility, spiritual-minded- ness, patience, meekness, and charity. There will be something that can be seen. The true work of the Holy Ghost cannot be hid.
There will always be some persons in this state of soul, where the Gospel is faithfully preached. Their numbers may very likely be few, compared to the worldly around them. Their experience and degree of spiritual attainment may differ widely, some bringing forth thirty, some sixty, and some a hundred- fold. But the fruit of the seed falling into good ground will always be of the same kind. There will always be visible repentance, visible faith in Christ, and visible holiness of life. With- out these things, there is no saving religion.
And now let us ask ourselves, What are we ? Under which class of hearers ought we to be ranked ? With what kind of hearts do we hear the word ? — Never, never may we forget, that there are three ways of hear- ing without profit, and only one way of hearing aright ! Never, never may we forget that there is only one in- fallible mark of being a right-hearted hearer ! That mark is to bear fruit. To be without fruit, is to be in the way to hell.