1267.] Relative Duties To God And Man. 579

men, whether they be right in themselves, and whether a compliance with them be agreeable to the mind and will of God ? But there is no room for such questions respecting any of the commands of God. If God say, " Abraham, take now thy son, thine only son, Isaac, whom thou lovest, and offer him up ; slay him with thine own hand, and consume him to ashes ;" there is no room for deliberation : Abraham has no right to gainsay the decree of heaven ; he is not at liberty to offer any objections : it is sufficient for him to know what the will of his Maker is ; and then he must perform it instantly, without reluctance. Had the command" been given by an earthly superior, there had been ample ground for hesitation, for expostu- lation, for disobedience : no parental, no magisterial authority should be regarded in such a case. But against a Divine command there never can be any ground for the exercise of carnal reason : a prompt, a steady, a determined acquiescence on our part, is our truest wisdom, and our bounden duty. Our obedience however is not to be that of a slave to an imperious and cruel master, but like that of a dutiful child to an affectionate and beloved parent. We ourselves consider the mind and disposition with which we are served, as affecting very materially the acceptable- ness of the service itself. That which is done for us grudgingly, and through mere constraint, is of very little value in our eyes : it is the willing, cheerful obedience that engages our esteem, and endears to us the persons actuated by such a spirit. Similar to this is the service which God requires. He justly expects that we should be like " the angels, hearkening to the voice of his word," and waiting for the slightest intimations of his will, in order to execute it with all possible readiness and despatch. We should come into his presence with the confidence of beloved chil- dren : we should ask from time to time, " Lord, what wilt thou have me to do ?" We should set about the duties of our calling as regularly as the most dili- gent servant prosecutes his accustomed labours : we should never think any thing done, as long as there