Acts xiii. 9 — 11. Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him, and said, 0 fall of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shall be blind, not seeing the sun for a season.
IN general, the duty of ministers is to " have compassion on them that are ignorant and out of the way," and to " instruct in meekness them that oppose themselves :" but there are occasions whereon it is necessary for them to " rebuke men sharply," and with all authority. We do not indeed think that it would be proper for an uninspired minister to use exactly the language of our text, because he could not tell what measure of impiety existed in the mind of the person reproved : but, whether inspired or not inspired, it becomes every servant of God to make a firm stand against infidelity and impiety, and to de- clare without reserve the judgments of God against the enemies of his Gospel. St. Paul was certainly under no bad impression when he addressed Elymas ; for, it is said, he was " rilled with the Holy Ghost :" and under the influence of that same blessed Spirit we may speak with all boldness, and yet not violate, in any degree, the decorum or the charity which our office requires.
In the address before us, we notice, I. The true character of the Gospel —
None of the inspired writers ever spoke in a doubt- ing manner respecting the truth or excellence of the Gospel: convinced in their own minds, they uniformly spake with the decision that became them. St. Paul here calls the Gospel " the right ways of the Lord:" and this is indeed its proper character ; for it contains the only right way,
1 . Of seeking his favour —