iu _nll it5 modern forms; e.g. agnostici~m, p0sitivism. 6. Impure forms of Ohl'isli- a111ty. Note that even in Russia. so deep is the void left by the Greek Church, that there a.re fifteen millions of Dissenters, whom Imperialism tries to crush, It would not be difficult to show that the Roman perversion of Christianity has proved incompe'8nt,, and just in proportion t.o its decline from primitive truth. JIL THE SAVIOUR ALlrIGHTY. The whole history of Christ's kingdom, the facts of modern missions, our own experience, demonstrate the competence of Christ to 611 the void of man's neceSBity, and to lift the burden from his surcharged heart; e.g. to enlighten the mind; to direct, purify, and elevate the emotions; to rouse and then soot.be the conscience; to justify the will. And so with the other forms of evil mar- shalled above. Exhibit all this in detail, and demonstrate that •• there is no other God that can deliver after this sort."-R.
: Ver. 1.-Man 1ias a religious nature. It is a valid argument for the existence of God, that every race of men demands some object of worship. Everywhere there is a felt dependence--a conscious need of protection and support. As soon as men are released from the pressing and exhausting care for daily food, their minds " feel after God, if he.ply they may find him." A sense of orphanage afflicts humanity till it finds God. L TaE ll'ATUB.AL ~AN BAB .AN INSTINCT FOB WORSHIP. It is true that while man remairu; in barbarous ignorance, he is prone t.o worship fancied evil agents, whose wrath he deprecates. But even this act is a confession the.t there is somewhere, outside him, a power superior to himself, who is able to work him real mischief. Thie confession is sufficient to este.blish the doctrine of Divine supremacy. And as men exercise their minds upon the variety of events that transpire about them, they discover that their fortunes and destinies are controlled by some Being mightier than themselves. Not- withstanding his power and his imperial rule, N ebuche.dnezzar felt convinced that there was one Deity, or more, who he.d permitted to him this success in war-this magnificence of royal state. 'l'he nature.I instinct of his soul yea!'lled for something to worship, Docs any man living feel satisfied with his stature of moral excellence P Is it not a common confession that we are not as good as we might be P Do we not stretch forth our aspiration towards some ideal yet beyond this ? And if there be ideal perfection somewhere, which our souls strain their energies to reach, can that perfection be impersonal, self-existent? Does it not rather reside in an unseen perfect Being, in whose image degenerate man once was made? This unknown Being men instinctively long to know and to worsl.iip. lL THE lll.ATURAL :II.AN ORAVES AFTER A VISIBLE :MANIFESTATION 01' GOD. Although :Moses had heard God's voice, and he.d received from him the tables of stone engraven with his own hand, yet he ardently craves a vision of the Most High: "I beseech thee, show me thy glory." :Moved by a similar desire to have nearer inter- course with God-a desire to be rid of all doubt and perplexity, Philip asked," Show us the Father, and it sufficeth us." If left t.o himself, man invents aids to his devotion, which become positive hindrances. Hence among all nations there has appeared the demand for some visible object, which might serve as a representation of God; and, because of its injurious effect.upon men, the prohibition was given to the Jews," Thou she.It not make thee any graven image, nor the likeness of anything on earth." If the mind of man be so greatly superior to matter; if it possesses attributes which find no analogy in material forms; if nothing in visible nature can represent thought, foeling, aspiration, will; so nothing in the physical universe can represent the Creator of all things. Wee.re driven to the other pole of existence when we read," God is a Spirit." !IL TaE NATUBAL :MAN .ASCRIBES TO BIS DEITY GREATNESS AND EXCELLENCE. Nebuchadnezzar bad learnt (perhaps from the Jewish Scriptures) that the human form was the nearest approach to the Divi:ne; yet he felt that God possessed a superhuman greatness and a superhuman goodness. The former idea he endeavoured to express by giving to his statue colossal magnitude; the latter idea he sought to embody in the gold which was lavished on the structure. Whether it was literally me.de of gold, or only overlaid with gold, the same feeling was intended to be projected, viz. that the most precious of the metals was required to express the superlative excellence of Deity. '' WLo is like nn.to the Lord our God, who dwelleth in the heaven&?" (JJJ, m. 1--30.) THE BOOK OF DANIEL.