glory and honour and immortality"1." We must therefore abound in every good work";" and, "whatever our hand findeth to do, we must do it with all our might0."]
3. When the salvation of the soul is concerned —
[That salvation is the gift of God, is no reason why we should neglect to seek it. On the contrary, our Lord says, " Labour for the meat which endure th unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you1'." All the images which are used to represent the Christian life imply great exertion on our part. We are to " run a race ;" to " fight a good fight ;" to " strive for the mastery :" but these things are not done with- out great exertion : so that, if in the hope and prospect of the heavenly prize, we were to sit still, we should insure to our- selves nothing but shame and loss. No election of God will ever save us, if we do not labour to save ourselves: " We must give all diligence to make our calling and election sure;" and must " add one virtue to another," without any partiality or re- serve, if ever we would " have an entrance ministered unto us into the kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christq."]
Still, however, there are occasions where it is proper to forbear working, and where " our strength is rather to sit still:" in confirmation of which, I will shew when activity may be suspended, and,
II. Under what circumstances it is to give way to confidence in God —
We may then " sit still,"
1. When, from the nature of the circumstances, activity can be of no avail —
[When God commanded the paschal lamb to be slain, and all the Hebrews to sprinkle their houses with its blood, as the means of averting from them the sword of the destroying angel, to what purpose would they have put forth any efforts of their own ? Could they ward off the stroke which inflicted death on all the first-born of Egypt ? No : " their strength was to sit still ;" and to confide in God, who had promised to deliver them. Again ; When the Red Sea was before them, and mountains and morasses were on either side, and the hosts of Egypt in their rear, what could they do to ward off the de- struction that menaced them ? They were as incapable of resisting Pharaoh, as if they had been already bound in chains before him. Their only hope was in God, who opened a way for them through the sea ; and made that, which was a path to them, a grave to all their foes.
m Rom. ii. 7. n 2 Thess. ii. 17. ° Eccl. ix. 10.
p John vi. 27. "■ 2 Pet. i. 5—11.