danger to which, by the step which he contemplated, he would be exposed. The man who would finally be accepted of God, must " not only set out well, but must endure unto the end." He must take care of hankering after the flesh-pots of Egypt, which he has left. "Lot's wife" is a standing monument to all ages, and warns us all, not so much as to cast a look of regret at the vanities we have once renounced. A man at plough will execute his work but ill, if he look back in the midst of it : and a man who is working for eternity will never be judged fit for the kingdom of God, if he be not continually intent upon that which is before him, and carefully prose- cuting his destined work. Let those, therefore, who plead for worldly gratifications, consider their tendency, and dread their effects. I grant that there are many things both seemly and innocent, if abstractedly considered, which yet a man in earnest for heaven will do well to avoid ; lest by means of them he should be ensnared, and diverted from his proper course. The man in a race will not only free himself from encumbrances, but will gird about his loins the garment that would obstruct his way. And in like manner we also should " cast away every weight, and the sin which either does, or may, more easily beset us, and run with patience the race that is set before us." It were "better never to have known the commandment at all, than, after having known it, to depart from it."]
Permit me, then, to recommend to every one of you,
1. Consideration —
[Take not up religion in a light and thoughtless way ; but consider carefully, what duties it prescribes, what exertions it requires, what sufferings it entails ; and, " before you begin to build the tower, sit down and count the cost, and see whether you have wherewith to finish it." If you will possess " the pearl of great price, you must sell all that you have, and buy it."]
2. Decision —
[Whether you be of a higher or a lower rank, it matters not ; you shall surely find, that if you will live godly in Christ Jesus, you shall suffer persecution. David experienced this, after he sat on the throne, no less than whilst he fled from the face of Saul. You must expect it. You must expect it in its utmost possible extent, even to martyrdom itself. And you must be " ready either to be bound or die for the name of the Lord Jesus," if such a sacrifice should be called for at your hands. In nothing must you " consult with flesh and blood." To " follow the Lord fully" must be the one deliberate and determined purpose of your soul.]
3. Constancy —
[Never are you to be weary of well-doing. " If you draw