most valuable of our possessions, What is the whole amount of our offering? Surely if ever self-complacent thoughts on this point might have been indulged, David might have indulged them, when he, and a willing people with him, offered unto the Lord of their most precious substance with a perfect heart. Yet hear how humbly he speaks of all the costly oblations which he had brought. "Who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort; for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee. Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty; for all that is in the heaven and the earth are thine; thine is the kingdom, and thou art exalted as head above all."

sess.

More particularly, we must yield to God our immortal souls, with all the intellectual powers which they posWe must dedicate our understanding to the Father of Lights, to be illuminated by him with saving knowledge, to be employed in contemplating his nature and perfection ; above all, to know Jesus, and him crucified, in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. We must dedicate our will to that holy rule of resignation which David expressed when he said, "Here I am, let the Lord do unto me what seemeth good in his sight;" and which David's Lord expressed in circumstances infinitely more trying: "Father, not my will, but thine be done." We must consecrate our memories to be treasuries of divine truth, our affections to the pursuit of those things which are above, our senses to the salutary discipline of self-denial, and our members as instruments of holiness to God.

All our possessions and enjoyments must be devoted to God. Our wealth and power, our time and our faculties, nay life itself, which is the foundation of all our comforts, must be entirely resigned to him. Neither must we count death itself grievous, so that we finish our course with joy and true honour. We must yield ourselves to God in all capacities and relations wherein his providence may

have placed us, and improve the advantages of our dif ferent conditions in life for the advancement of his glory. Are we masters or servants, parents or children, pastors or people, rulers or subjects, let us, in all these relations, be devoted to God, and discharge the various duties which result from them with fidelity and zeal, that we may glorify our Father in heaven, who hath appointed to every man his proper work, and will at length demand an account of the manner in which we have performed it,

If it be inquired for what purposes we are thus to yield ourselves unto God, the following particulars will furnish the answer.

1st, We are to yield ourselves to God, to do whatsoever he commands; in all instances of duty, to give a prompt and cheerful obedience to his authority. It ought to be sufficient for us, in every case, to know what God hath pronounced to be an obligation, whatever the world or the flesh may have to say against it. This is the true way to keep our minds in a steady decisive frame. "A double minded man is unstable in all his ways." He who seeks to ascertain other points besides his duty, will find himself perplexed with perpetual difficulties. Embarrassed with attending to distracting and opposite counsels, his conduct will neither be firm nor graceful; and, even when he does what is right, he will be unable to enjoy the satisfaction of it, conscious that he did it not in that simplicity and godly sincerity which alone can render our obedience acceptable. We are therefore to yield ourselves to God as our supreme Lawgiver, who hath an unquestionable title to the service of all our active powers, saying with Samuel, “Speak Lord; for thy servant heareth;" and with the Apostle Paul, "Lord what wilt thou have me to do ?" 2dly, We must yield ourselves to God not only to do but to suffer his will. The rewards of active obedience are not found in the present life: on the contrary, the most faithful servants of God are often visited with the severest dispensations of Providence. We must therefore

not only have our loins girt about for cheerful obedience, but our minds prepared also for patient suffering. We must be ready to resign our most valuable possessions, and our dearest comforts, the moment that they are reclaimed by him who at first bestowed them, saying with Job, "The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord;" and, with David, “ I know, O Lord, that thy judgments are right, and that in very faithfulness thou hast afflicted me.".

We are already in the hand of God, by our essential dependence, as the clay is in the hands of the potter; let us likewise be so by our own consent and choice. This is the true balm of life. It is this that softens adversity, and alleviates the load of sorrow. In this we unite the noblest duty which we can perform, and the most precious benefit which we can reap. What wisdom can compare with the wisdom of resignation, which not only softens inevitable evils, but turns them into real and permanent good; which not only soothes the sense of suffering, but secures a happy and a glorious reward.

3dly, We must yield ourselves to God, to be disposed of by his providence, as to our lot and condition in the world."He hath made of one blood all that dwell upon the face of the earth." He hath fixed the precise issues of life and death, and hath appointed where we shall dwell, and what station we shall occupy in the world. To one he saith, Be thou a king; and to another, Be thou a beggar. All these things come forth of the Lord of Hosts; and in his will we must cheerfully acquiesce, with a firm and meek resolution to be disposed of as he sees meet, and to glorify him in the place and station which he hath assigned us; to serve him cheerfully, while he hath service for us to perform in this world; and at last to resign our souls into his hands, when he shall require them.

4thly, As we must be resigned to the will of God with respect to our outward lot, so we must be satisfied with

his disposal, as to the measure of spiritual gifts which he is pleased to bestow on us. Should he make us but as the foot, we must be as well contented as if he had made us the hand or the head, and rejoice that we are found qualified for being even the least honourable member in Christ's mystical body. We must not envy our brother for being wiser or better than we, more than for being richer or nobler. And though we may covet earnestly the best gifts, yet if, in the use of appointed means, we can not attain to them, we ought, with resignation to the Father of lights, to make a diligent and faithful use of what God hath given us, trusting that they who have been good stewards over a little, shall not fail to receive their proportioned reward in the day of retribution. Every vessel of honour hath not indeed the same capacity, but every vessel of honour shall be completely filled. None shall have a mean station in the heavenly temple, although some shall be more gloriously distinguished than others. They shall all be kings and priests unto God, and mansions shall not be wanting to accommodate every class of guests in the New Jerusalem.

I proceed now to give you some directions as to the manner in which we ought to perform this duty, of yielding ourselves unto God.

I. Before we can perform this duty in an acceptable manner, it is necessary that we have just views both of God and of ourselves. In a particular manner, we must have a deep sense both of our original apostasy, and of the actual transgressions with which we are chargeable. We must yield ourselves to God, like condemned rebels, who cast themselves on the mercy of their sovereign. Yet while we are sensible of our miserable and condemned state, we must also have a view of those riches of mercy which are open to the chief of sinners. We are to remember, with faith and gratitude, that God so loved the world, as to send his only begotten Son, not to condemn the world, but that the world through him might

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have life; that he only is the way, the truth and the life; that he is able to save to the uttermost all who come unto God by him; that in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily; and that he is made of God to all that believe on him, wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctifica tion, and redemption. The knowledge of these fundamental truths must influence the surrender which we make of ourselves to God, that it may be an act of our understanding, accompanied both with humility and with hope. But,

II. We must yield ourselves unto God, with serious, attentive, and awakened minds. It is seldom that any permanent good is obtained, in consequence of a hasty choice. Even when the object of our choice is just and valuable, our esteem of it is apt to decline, if it has been embraced at first with too rash and violent an affection. In proportion as the charms of novelty fade, our attachment to it subsides, and indifference or aversion succeed to the eagerness of a prompt and hasty passion. If therefore we would prove stedfast and faithful, we must not be precipitate, but weigh every circumstance with care, and ponder well ere we fix our choice. We must remember, that yielding ourselves to God, will involve in it the renouncing of many favourite engagements, the performing of many difficult duties, and the mortifying of many desires, which hitherto, perhaps, it has been the whole plan of our lives to gratify. Let us, therefore, represent to ourselves the probable consequences, before we embark in so important and solemn a transaction. Consider the self-reproach, the censures of others, and, above all, the displeasure of God, which you must incur, if you retract from such a deep engagement. God doth not wish to ensnare you into his service. He does not allure you by flattering prospects of ease. He does not conceal from you the hardships which you must endure. It is plainly therefore his will, that ye should consider these things, and that before ye devote yourselves to him, ye should