by such a contest, they "will consider one another, to provoke unto love, and to good works,” (Heb. x. 24.)

From their conduct toward one another, we may easily infer what will be their conduct in regard to the Church, as a spiritual community, and as a Divine institution for spreading the knowledge, manifesting the glory, and promoting the worship of God. The comfort, edification, and happiness which they at all times derive from each other's society, will be particularly felt when they meet together in the observance of public ordinances. They will not account the Sabbath

a weariness." They will "not forsake the assembling of themselves together, as the manner of some is;" but, on the contrary, they will think that " a day in God's courts is better than a thousand" "in the tents of wickedness," or in the scenes of worldly pleasure. Their love to one another will naturally be enlivened by uniting in the worship and listening to the words of Him who has so highly commended his love to them all; and the more that their brotherly love is enlivened, the more susceptible will they be of the raptures of his worship, and the more acceptable as his worshippers. By every competent means, and in particular by their prayers, they will become the fellow-labourers of those who have been solemnly intrusted with the duty of publicly preaching the gospel of peace. The more that its power is felt over their own hearts, the more will they abound in prayer for the faithfulness, encourage-> ment, and success of those through whose ministrations they are accustomed to hear it; and for its being conveyed and proclaimed, with similar efficacy, to the souls of multitudes who are perishing "for lack of knowledge." In their conscientious preference for the peculiar views, forms, and usages of the particular denomination of professing Christians with which they are connected, they will be careful not to overlook those great principles, by the maintenance of which the unity of the Church at large may be preserved and

promoted, notwithstanding all such diversities. They will cherish a deep and abiding impression, that no religious community can expect to enjoy any lasting prosperity, unless it manifests a sacred and lofty concern for the general harmony and welfare of the Christian commonwealth-for "the unity of the faith," and for "the edifying of the body of Christ," (Eph. iv. 12, 13.) Certain diversities are, at present, perhaps unavoidable; but all who truly love the Lord Jesus will be solicitous to prevent them from leading to useless or hurtful divisions; and, without any formal and premature attempt to sweep them away, they will wisely consider the propriety and the duty of being more and more assiduous and devoted in upholding and disseminating those grand fundamental doctrines of the gospel, by the progress and general prevalence of which, this most desirable object shall eventually be accomplished.

3. It is necessary, however, in the third place, that we should direct our attention to the general conduct which communicants ought to maintain, in regard to the relative duties of social and domestic life. It is quite possible that many who have uniformly maintained a most irreproachable deportment toward their Christian brethren, in so far as regards their intercourse with each other as members of the same religious community, and who have, on all occasions, exhibited the most exemplary attention to the public ordinances of the gospel, may nevertheless be chargeable with a lamentable disregard of some of the most important duties that they have to discharge, either toward the public, toward their more immediate neighbours, or toward the members of their own families. It is not only in the ordinances of religion, or in those assemblages which are held for religious purposes, that the principles of genuine religion require to be exercised and displayed. If the feelings which are called forth by these ordinances are really spiritual in their nature, they will be found

invariably to strengthen every principle of duty, and to shed a hallowing influence over the temper, speech, and deportment of men, in all the relations, and all the intercourse of human life. There are many persons, however, among professing Christians, who, while they feel a certain interest and even enjoyment in religious ordinances, and take a conspicuous part in religious enterprises, are in no small danger of forgetting that they have to carry the spirit of religion itself into the sanctuary of the family circle, and that there they ought not only to keep up the seemly usages of religious worship, but to cherish and display all the charms and charities, all the courteousness and heavenly-mindedness of a truly religious character. Although they may come to the house of God as his people come, and may sit before him as his people sit, and hear his words; although they may be regular in their attendance, serious in their deportment during the whole of the public service, and not a little affected by many of the representations and appeals which are made to them by the ambassadors of the gospel; yet is there reason to fear, that when they come into collision with the daily annoyances, vexations, and trials of ordinary life, they may be in danger of giving way to various irregularities of feeling and temper, which it is far easier to explain than to justify. They may be in danger of giving way to wrath, illhumour, fretfulness, or caprice, and of gratifying themselves with various indulgences which, neither in their extent, nor perhaps in their nature, are at all consistent with the strict proprieties of Christian deportment, or the regulating and controlling influence of Christian principle.

Now, these are things which all who have partaken of the Lord's Supper must be careful to avoid. Whatever be the relations of life which they occupy-whatever the public or private station in which they are placed, they are carefully to consider what manner of persons He would have them to be; and to reflect that

both his honour and their own happiness are deeply concerned, not only in the faithfulness with which their outward duties are discharged, but also in the spirit and temper which are displayed in the most private scenes of intercourse with their fellow-creatures. They must studiously endeavour to maintain "a conversation such as becometh the gospel," whether they be parents or children; husbands or wives; brothers or sisters; relatives or friends; masters or servants; magistrates or subjects; ministers or people; rich or poor; neighbours or strangers; fellow-countrymen or foreigners. In all these relations, the intercourse which they have with one another must be characterised by humanity and justice; by integrity and candour; by good-will and kindly affection; by fidelity and truth; by meekness and gentleness. It is thus only that men can know them to be Christ's disciples, or that they themselves can experience how good and how pleasant a thing it is for them to live for the benefit of one another-to "live not unto themselves, but unto Him who died for them and rose again."

4. We come now to direct our attention, in the fourth and last place, to the conduct which communicants ought to maintain, in regard to their personal and secret duties. To some of these we have already adverted, when speaking of the Lord's Supper as an ordinance intended to promote the spiritual nourishment of those who partake of it. Independently, however, of this object, a conscientious and habitual attention to the personal and secret duties which are required of communicants, is in itself, and ought to be in their estimation, a matter of the utmost importance. Without such an attention to secret duties, there is no likelihood, nor even possibility, that either public or domestic duties. will be adequately performed; and, in this case, the honour of Christ and the interests of religion must be seriously injured. If communicants, therefore, would seek to promote either their own spiritual improvement,

or the welfare of that spiritual kingdom to which they profess to belong, it is necessary that they should apply themselves with the greatest diligence to the discharge of their secret duties. The fidelity and relish with which these duties are discharged, afford the true means of estimating the real amount of spiritual life which exists in the soul,-just as the degree of heat which is indicated by an instrument placed in the shade affords the true means of estimating the amount of heat which is diffused through the whole body of the surrounding

air.

What these duties are, it is not difficult to determine. Among the first of them may be mentioned that of self-examination, as indispensable to that thorough knowledge of one's own heart and life, and imperfections and necessities, without which nothing effectual can be attempted, and no suitable plan adopted, for the promotion of one's own improvement. This selfexamination, however, cannot be properly conducted, neither can this self-knowledge be attained, without a diligent and daily examination, at the same time, of the Holy Scriptures, which were given by inspiration of Him who knows what is in man, and in which we are furnished with a key to all the intricacies and windings of the human heart. And then, this selfknowledge is not more important than watchfulness as to the state of the heart, after it has once been ascertained. The vessels of the sanctuary must not only be examined, but kept constantly clean and fit for daily use. A person in delicate health, or one recovering from sickness, is careful to notice his state and progress from day to day. Communicants, in like manner, are especially bound to keep their hearts with all diligence, and to be on their guard against the entrance and indulgence of evil thoughts, and of all those corrupt affections "which war against the soul." In order, however, to the right performance of this duty, it is necessary that, in their most secret retirements, they