of heaven and earth. He can relieve those wants, when- ever He sees fit. He will relieve them, whenever it is good for our souls.
Let the four arguments now adduced sink deep into our hearts, and hear fruit in our lives. Nothing is more common than a careful and troubled spirit, and nothing 80 mars a believer's usefulness, and minishes his inward peace. Nothing, on the contrary, glorifies God so much as a cheerfcd spirit in the midst of temporal troubles. It carries a reality with it which even the worldly can under- stand. It commends our Christianity, and makes it beautiful in the eyes of men. Faith, and faith only, will produce this cheerful spirit. The man who can say boldly, " The Lord is my shepherd," is the man who will be able to add, "I shall not want." (Psa. xxiii. 1.)
We have, secondly, in these verses, a high standard of Umng commended to all Christians. It is contained in a short and simple iajunction, " Seek ye the kingdom of Qt)d." We are not to give our principal thoughts to the things of this world. We are not so to live as if we had nothing but a body. We are to Kve like beings who have immortal souls to be lost or saved, — a death to die, — a God to meet, — a judgment to expect, — and an eternity in heaven or in heU awaiting us.
When can we be said to "seek the kingdom of GodP" We da so when we make it the chief business of our lives to secure a place in the number of saved people, — to have our sins pardoned, our hearts renewed, and our- selves made meet for the inheritance of the saints in light. We do so when we give a primary place in our minds to the interests of God's kingdom, — ^when we