are verily and indeed taken and received by the faithful" at the Lord's table. Sermons, if eloquent, able, and stirring, are things of natural power in their estimation, but they do not take into account the effectual working of the Holy Ghost accompanying the Word preached, and making it the power of God unto salvation. And so it is through- out, both in the world and in the Church. 'l'he carnal judgment of men takes into account only the natural and the material; those who have the mind and judgment of Christ recognize the supernatural and spiritual agency of God. II. The other example furnished by this section of the contrariety between the judgment of man and the jnd!ffilent of God is that which is so pointedly put by St. Luke, both here and in his Gospel: the preference given by the Jews to Barabbas over Jesus Christ. " Ye denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted unto you, and killed the Prince of life; whom God raised from the dead." Here, then, we have the Lord Jesus, the well-beloved Son of God ;-in whom he was well pleased; who always did those things that pleased him; to whom he said, "Sit thou on my right hand, until I make thy foes thy footstool;" whom God exalted far above a.ll rule, a.nd authority, and power, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come; to whom he has given "a. name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, . . . and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." That was the judgment of God. Now let us see the judgment of men con- cerning this same Jesus. He was in the world, in all the simplicity of his spotless righteousness, in all the dignity of his sinless humanity, in the majesty of the Son of God ; the fulness of wisdom, of love, and of pure goodness beamed forth in his every word and work. but "he was despised and rejected of men." He was reviled as a blasphemer, as one that had a devil, as a gluttonous man and a winebibber, as a friend of sinners, as a seditious, turbulent man. as one that was not worthy to live. So he was bronght before the judges of the earth, accused, arraigned as a criminal; smitten. buffeted, scourged, spit upon, condemned ; led forth to execution, numbered with the tran8gressors, nailed to the cross, left to die amidst the jeers and taunts of his mur- derers. And when Pila.ta himself offered to release him, the offer was met with the cry, "Not this man. but Barabba.s;" and Bara.bbas was a robber. That was the judg- ment of man. And have we not here a type of the frequent contrariety between the ju<lgment of men and the jud,,ament of God? The things, the persons, the characters, that God approves, find no favour with a corrupt and perverse world; the things, the persons, the sentiments, that God disapproves, receive the praise of men. The opinions of the dJiy, the voice of the multitude, the prevailing tone of thought amongst men, are no safe criterion of worth and truth. We must ever remember that there are two judgments, the judgment of man and the judgment of God, and that these arc often diverse the one from the other. It should be our constant prayer that God's Holy Spirit may give us" a right judgment in all things; n so that, on the various questions of interest which engage the thoughts of our own generation, we may be found 41 harmony, not with the conceits of men, but with the all-seeing mind of Go<l,
HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. • Vers. 1-10.-Helplessness 0,'11,d heoJ,ing. In this interesting incident we have e.n illustration of the urgent spiritual necessities of our race, and of the sufficiency of the gospel to meet them. We have- L A GREAT AND BAD CONTRAST. They brought daily to the Beautiful gate of the temple e. lame beggar, who a.5ked alms of all that entered (vers. 2, 3). What a striking contrast is here !-the large, strong, handsome gate, wrought by the most skilful workmen, intended to add beauty and attractiveness to the magnificent temple, an object of keen, universal admiration; and, la.id down at the foot of it, a poor, ill-clad, deformed, helpless beggar, fain to find a mii;erable existence by asking the pity of all that 1,assed through. Such contrasts has sin introduced into this world. If we look on this whole fabric of nature as a temple in which God manifests his presence, and on our earth, with all its loveliness a~d grandeur, ae one of its be'1,utiful gates. CB, III, 1-26,] THE AOTS OF THE APOSTLES. 99