hold his beauty, and cannot bear the brightness of his countenance. When they sit down with him at his table, they are sensible of his presence: While their hands receive the sacred symbols, their eyes behold the Lord of Glory. In the spirit of devotion, and on the wings of faith, they rise from earth to heaven; they pierce beyond the clouds, and enter within the veil. The everlasting doors are thrown open; the King of Glory appears upon his throne; Angels and Archangels cover themselves with their wings, and all the pillars of the firmament tremble.

But not to heaven is the Divinity confined. He fills the earth; he dwells with men. Look around you, and behold the marks of his presence, and the impression of his hand. In the gay and lovely scenes of nature, behold him in his beauty smiling on his works. In the grand and awful objects of creation, in the tempest, in the thunder, in the earthquake, behold him in the Majesty of Omnipotence. When," like the prophet who retired to the wilderness, you hear that voice which rends asunder the mountains, which breaks in pieces the rocks, and which shakes the pillars of the world, you hear behind it a still small voice, saying, " It is 1, be not afraid."

Thus, good men see the Creator in his works: they have the Lord always before them. They know where they can find him, and can come nigh to his seat. They go forward, and he is there, backward, and they perceive his footsteps; on the right hand his wonders are seen; on the left his goodness is felt. They cannot go but where he is. The Great Universe is the temple of the Deity, built by his hand, consecrated by his presence, bright with his glory.

The second thing proposed, was, to set before you the advantages which accompany this solemn approach to God, which are the following: There is honour in approaching to God, there is joy in approaching to God, there is consolation in approaching to God, there is preparation for heaven in approaching to God.

First, then, there is honour in approaching to God, The superiority of man to the animal world has been inferred from the structure and formation of his body. While the inferior animals, prone and grovelling, bend downwards to that earth which is their only element, man is formed with an erect figure, and with a countenance that looks to the heavens. His erect figure is given as the indication of an elevated mind, and the countenance that looks to the heavens is bestowed, in order to prepare us for the contemplation of what is great and glorious. With this formation of body, and with this tendency of mind, man feels that the earth is not his native region; he looks abroad over the whole extent of nature; he has an eye that glances from earth to heaven, and a mind which, unconfined by space or time, seizes on eternity. The eye that glances from earth to heaven, the mind which seizes on eternity, draw the line between the intellectual and animal world. The beast of the field, indeed, beholds the face of the heavens: the bird of the air is cheered with the splendour of the sun; but man alone has the intellectual eye, which beholds in the heavens the handywork of Omnipotence, and which traces in the sun the glory of its Creator. To him, high-favoured of his Maker, a scene opens, unseen by the eye of sense; a new heaven and a new earth present themselves; the intellectual world discloses its rising wonders, and, seen by his own light, in the majesty of moral perfection, God appears. It was reserved to be the glory of man, that he alone, of all the inhabitants of this lower world, should be admitted into the presence of his Creator, and hold intercourse with the Author of his being.

Accordingly, in the happy days of the human race, when the age of innocence lasted, and the garden of Eden bloomed, there was an intercourse between heaven and earth, and God did dwell with man. Our first parents in Paradise were sensible of his presence; they heard his voice among the trees of the garden; they held converse with him face to face, and found

that the chief honour of their nature consisted in draw-
ing nigh to God. Nay, it is the happiness of higher
natures, it is the glory of superior beings, of the prin-
cipalities and powers in heaven, to dwell in the pre-
sence of their King, to worship at the throne of infi-
nite perfection, and draw nearer and nearer to the
fountain of all felicity. But this honour have all the
saints. To thee, O Christian! it is given to hold com-
munion with the Creator, and to become the friend of
the Almighty. Truly your fellowship is with the
Father, and his Son Jesus Christ. If it be great and
honourable to be near the person and round the throne
of an earthly king, how truly glorious are they whom
the King of heaven delighteth to honour! No won-
der then, that though exalted to the highest dignity
which the world can bestow, the king of Israel was
ambitious of higher still; " One thing have I desired
"of the Lord, that will I seek after, that I
may dwell
"in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to
"behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his
temple."

man.

" I

eye,

Secondly, there is joy in approaching to God. "will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding "joy." The idea of a perfect being is the most joyful subject of contemplation that can be presented to Moral qualities, even when they shine in a lesser degree, have a charm for the soul. The The prospect of natural beauty is not more pleasant to the than the contemplation of moral beauty to the mind. A great and good action, a striking instance of benevolence, of public spirit, of magnanimity, interests us strongly in behalf of the performer, and makes the heart glow with gratitude to him, although he be unknown. We take delight in placing before our eyes the illustrious characters that stand forth in history, wise legislators, unshaken patriots, public benefactors of mankind, or models of goodness in private life, whose virtues shone to the past, and shine to present times, whose lives were glorious to themselves, and beneficial to the world. If an imperfect copy

1

gives so much satisfaction, how will we be affected at the contemplation of the great Original? If a few faint traces and lineaments of goodness, scattered úp and down, yield us so much pleasure, the pleasure will be supreme, when we contemplate His nature in whom every excellence, every moral perfection, all Divine attributes, reside as in their native seat, flow as from their eternal source, and ever operate as vital and immortal principles. For all created beauty is but a shadow of that beauty which is uncreated; all human excellence but an emanation of that excellence which is Divine; all finite perfection but á faint copy of perfections which are infinite; and all the traces of goodness to be found among men or angels, but a few faint rays from the Father of lights, the uncreated, unclouded, and unsetting sun of nature, who at first gave life to the universe, who kindled the vital flame which is still glowing, who supplies all the orbs of heaven with undiminished lustre, and whose single smile spreads joy over the moral world.

Thus, the very idea of a perfect Being is a source of high pleasure to the mind; but to us there is more implied in the idea of the Deity. For these perfections are not Dormant in the Divine Nature; they are perpetually employed for the happiness of man. This glorious Being is our Father and our Friend. He called us into being at first, to make us happy; he hath given us many proofs of his goodness, and he hath allowed us to hope for more. He is soon to give is an opportunity of commemorating the most signal display of his grace, his noblest gift to the children of men. And, if he spared not his own Son, but freely gave him up to the death for us all, may it not be depended upon, that with him, he will give us all things? Entering into these ideas, and animated with this spirit, the pious man is never so much in his element, as when he is drawing nigh to God. The mind never makes nobler exertions, is never so conscious of its native grandeur and ancient dignity, as when holding high con

1

verse with its Creator: The heart never feels such unspeakable peace, as when it is fixed upon him who made it, as when its affections go out on the supreme beauty, as when it rests upon the Rock of Ages, and is held within the circle of the everlasting arms.

66

Hence, the good men of old, in approaching to God, broke forth into the language of rapture, "As the "hart panteth after the water-brook, so panteth my "soul after thee, O Lord. O God, thou art my God, early will I seek thee. My soul thirsteth for thee. My flesh longeth for thee in a dry and parched "land, wherein no water is; that I may see thy glory "as I have seen it in the sanctuary. Because thy loving kindness is better than life, my mouth shall "praise thee with joyful lips. Surely we shall be sa"tisfied with the goodness of thy house, and thou "wilt give us to drink of the river of thy pleasures.-"Whom have we in the heavens but thee, and what "is there upon earth we can desire beside thee? My flesh and heart shall fail, but thou art the strength "of my heart, and my portion for ever."

66

6.6

Thirdly, There is consolation in approaching to God. Alas in this world, afflictions so abound, that consolation is often our greatest good. In how few days of this mortal life do we not feel the want of a comforter? Ever since the introduction of sin into the earth, human life hath been a scene of misery. Man is born to trouble, and sore is the travail which is appointed to him under the sun. We come into the world the most forlorn of all beings; the voice of sorrow is heard from the birth; man sighs on through every path of future life, and the grave is the only place of refuge, where the weary are at rest. Sometimes, indeed, a gleam of joy intervenes, an interval of happiness takes place. Fond man indulges the fa vourable hour. Then we promise to ourselves the scenes of paradise; perpetual sun-shine, and days without a cloud. But the brightness only shines to disappear; the cloud comes again, and we awake to our wonted anxiety and sorrow.