crenturee ae to reflect on our own nnture. The mind e11n ta.ke II view of whnt pnARee within itself, lte propeaeione, 11vereione, passione, affectione, se respectiaa euch objects and In such degrees, and of the several sctions consequent thereupon. fn this BUrvey it approves of one and disapproves of another, and toward II third is affected in neither of these ways, but is quite indifferent. This is strictly conscience." (See previous Homily on eh. xxiii.1.) This subject may be fitly introduced by discussing-What is conscience? What Is its sphere? and What are its limitations? The expressions in the text remind us that the testimonies of our conscience depend upon our cherished stanuiarda. There ought to be a due recognition of both Divine and human rules, and onr conduct has to be reuulated in view of both. St. Paul presents us the example of the man who I& loyal to the revealed will of God, and loyal also to the rules which men make for the regulation of their social rela.tions. Theee may indeed sometimes clash, and then the true-hearted man must follow out the Law of God, whatever may be the conse- quences. But usually there is found a practical harmony between the two, so that the moral life is acceptable both to God and man. In estimating the value of others' opinion of us, let us remember that the great thing to cherish is our will to that which i& right, and our inward consciousness of being right. That conviction wa.s the strength of St. Paul. When Plato was told that he had many enemies who spoke ill of him, "It is no matter," he said," I would so live that none should believe them." It may be impressed, in conclusion, that the merely natural conscience is pra.ctica.lly insufficient and untrustworthy as a guide of life; and it absolutely needs spiritual illumination, a quickening by the power of the Holy Ghoet.-R. T. Ver. 23.-St. Paul's Uberty. "He commanded a centurion to keep Paul, and to let. him have liberty.n It is evident that the prosecution of tbe apostle by the Jewish party had utterly broken down. No charge could be substantiated which made him amenable to punishment according to Roman law. If Felix had been a free man, and, as a judge, free of all other considerations than the doing of justice, he would have liberated St. Paul at once, declaring publicly his innocence. But Felix was not free, No man is really free who does not dare to do the right. And we can recognize a gracious overruling providence in St. Paul's being kept for a while longer under Roman pro- tection. So great was the enmity against him of the Jewish party, that his life would have been in extreme peril if he had been liberated. Knowing that he was dealing unfairly by the prisoner, and impressed by his dignity of bearing, Felix compromised matters with himself, persuaded himself that he could secure Paul from the schemes of the Sa.nhedrim by keeping him prisoner; put off Paul's enemies by an excuse that he would confer with Lysia.s; and privately arranged for Paul to have a. real, though not an apparent, liberty. Through all the ages some of the worst wrongs have been done in the name of compromise, which is too often the weak device of those who cannot "stand firm to the right." I. FELIX BOUND, 1. By the weakness of his moral character. 2. By the desire to please an important section of those whom he had to govern. 3. By the consequences of his own wrong-doings, which it cost him all his effort to keep off as long as possible. 4. By the circumstances in which he found himself placed, and which he had no strength of will or purpose to master. The man of vice and self-indulgence enerva.tea his will, and becomes the slave of his sin as truly as does the drunkard. II. PAUL APPARENTLY BotJND. He had been tied by a cha.in to a Roman soldier day and night, according to the usual Roman custom, and if Felix relaxed this, still Paul was a prisoner in the barracks, and probably a soldier-guard waited on him constantly. If his friends were free to come to him, he was not free to go out to them. 1f we estimate his character aright, we shall feel that even the slightest form of bondage must have bee.1, most painful to him. His was a soul so noble than even the limitations of 11, frail body were to him an agony, III. FELIX GETTING AS FREE AS POSSIBLE FROM HIS BONDS, Not free enough to say, honestly and honourably, " This man is innocent of all crime against the state, and must be set at liberty at once." Only able to shake the fetters off enough to say, "Forbid none of his acquaintance to minister or come unto him," and only able to give t,his order in a privnte way to the centurion. lV. PAUL REALLY PREE. However ho might seem to be still set under outwnru 248 THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. [oH. xx1v.1-2'r.
limitations, nothing can imprison a man save bis own wilful sin, Nobody can put any real fott,ers on any fellow-man, Each man who wears fett;era puts them on himself, each man who dwells in a prison goes in himself, and himself bolts the door, ' • Stone walls do not e. prison make, Nor iron ban! e. oe.ge." But "wh~s~ve~ committeth sin becomes the slave of sin." Bo, whatever may have been the_ hm1tat1o~s of the apostle's circumstances, there was no bondage, for there wBB no conscience of em. The freedom of Paul (1) to commune with God, (2) study the truth, (3) to serve the Churches, may be shown; and it may be pointed out how often the very limitations of a man's circumstances, through sickness or persecution, has found him the freedom for some great and noble service, as may be illustrated from Luther's work while in the Wartburg, and from John Bunyan'e work while in Bedford jail.-R. T.