principle of our fallen nature. Wherever it exists, it eats out every good principle, and calls forth and strengthens every bad principle, in our fallen nature. How feeble are the operations of honour, friendship, love, compassion, when covetousness has gained an ascendant in the heart ! On the other hand, what injustice, falsehood, wrath, and malice will not this horrid prin- ciple produce ! Well may it be said, " The love of money is the root of all evil ;" for there is scarcely an evil in the world which may not arise from it. The opposition between this principle and every Christian virtue, is strongly intimated in the advice given by St. Paul to Timothy p — and the utter abhorrence in which it is held by God, is marked q, yea marked with an emphasis not exceeded in any part of the sacred volume : " An heart they have exercised with covetous prac- tices; cursed children1." O that we were all duly sensible of its hatefulness and baseness !]
4. A destructive principle — .
[See it, in whomsoever it prevails, how it militates against the welfare of the soul, and destroys its eternal interests. The Rich Youth, in despite of all his amiableness, renounced all hope in Christ, rather than he would part with his possessions5. The hearers of the Prophet Ezekiel, notwithstanding all their approbation of his ministry and their professions of personal regard, could never be prevailed upon to renounce and mortify this evil propensity l : and we read of some in Isaiah's days, whom neither the frowns nor chastisements of Jehovah could reclaim from itu. The great proportion of those who make a profession of religion in our day, are like the thorny-ground hearers, in whom " the good seed is choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life, so that they bring forth no fruit to perfection*." But the most terrible of all examples is that of Demas, who, after having attained such eminence in the Christian Church as to be twice joined with St. Luke by Paul himself in his salutations to the saints, was turned aside at last, and ruined by this malignant principle ; " Demas hath forsaken us, having loved this present world y." Thus it will operate wherever it is indulged : it will have the same effect as " loading our feet with thick clay," when we are about to run a race ; and will shut the door of heaven against us, when we apply for admission there. Of this God has faithfully warned us : and, to fix the warning more deeply in our minds, he even
p 1 Tim. vi. 10, 11. Mark the connexion between these two verses.
i Ps. x. 3. r 2 Pet. ii. 14. s Matt. xix. 22.
' Ezek. xxxiii. 31. u Isai. lvii. 17. x Luke viii. 14.
y 2 Tim. iv. 10.