given us of the Corinthian Church d. To devote ourselves also unreservedly to God is another exercise of zeal which deserves our earliest attention. The mortifying of every lust, the cultivating of every gracious affection, and the getting of " our whole man, body, soul, and spirit, sanctified unto the Lord1'," this, this should be a prelude to our exertions in behalf of others : we should " first pluck the beam out of our own eye, before we attempt to pull out the mote that is in our brother's eye." I do not mean that we are to forbear doing any thing for God till we ourselves are perfect (for then we shall never exert ourselves for him at all) : but we should make our first and main efforts on our own corruptions, that we may teach others by our example, as well as by our precepts.]
2. Let it be extended to all around you —
[Every man may find abundant scope for his labours in his own immediate neighbourhood : in visiting the sick, in- structing the ignorant, relieving the sick, and comforting the afflicted. But some are called to more extensive spheres of usefulness : magistrates and ministers have a greater scope afforded them for benefiting the world. And O, how loudly do the heathen nations call upon us for the exercise of zeal ! How many in every country under heaven are saying to us, " Come over to Macedonia, and help us !" Now the office of zeal is to overlook our own ease and interests, and to find our happiness in serving God : but, alas ! how little of this zeal is to be found amongst us ! How few, when God is wanting ambassadors to distant climes, are ready to say, " Here am 1 ; send me." This is much to the shame of the Christian world. Our Lord tells us of ungodly men that would " compass sea and land to make one proselyte" to human opinions, and we arc backward to use such exertions for the conversion of multitudes to the faith of Christ. Ah ! let us wipe off this reproach ; and labour, all of us in our respective spheres, and according to our abilities, to promote the salvation of our fellow-men, and to advance the kingdom of Christ to the utmost ends of the earth.]
«' 2 Cor. vii. 11. • Rom. xii. 1, 11. Eccl. ix. 10.
MDCCXCVII. Paul's sermon at troas. Acts xx. 7. And upon the first day of the week, when the dis- ciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, read// to depart on the morrow ; and continued his speech until midnight.
1797.^ Paul's sermon at troas. 501
IF we look at Christianity as it exists at this day, it appears little else than a name, and a form : but if we contemplate it as it existed in the apostolic age, it will be found an active and invigorating principle in the minds of men, engaging all their affections, and stimulating them to the greatest exertions. As for St. Paul's labours for the propagation of the Gospel in the world, we forbear to speak of them at present, any farther than they are connected with the passage which is immediately before us : but his preaching from evening to midnight, and then continuing his discourse afterwards till break of day, will give us some idea of the exertions he made in the cause of Christ, and of the interest which his hearers also felt in all that related to their Christian course.
The account given of his discourse, will lead us to notice,
I. The proper employment of the Sabbath —
The Jewish Sabbath was appointed by God himself to be spent in holy exercises. On it the sacrifices were twice as numerous as on other days ; and the law of Moses was read for the instruction of the people. But under the Christian dispensation, the time of its observance was changed from the seventh day of the week to the first ; in commemoration of the resurrection of our blessed Lord, and of the de- scent of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. It is probable that, for a considerable time, the seventh day still continued to be observed by those who were proselyted from the Jewish religion, lest their neglect of that day should put a stumbling-block in the way of their brethren : but the first day was that which from the beginning was held sacred by the early Christians; and it was dignified with the peculiar title of the " Lord's-daya." On this day the Church at Troas were assembled, to offer unto God their accus- tomed sacrifices of prayer and praise, and particularly " to break bread," that is, to commemorate the death of Christ agreeably to the directions given by our