cross, and their being exhibited in this connection, that gives them their saving efficacy. Their efficacy is all comprised in the cross of Christ. Everything which has the nature of a motive, and everything which renders motives efficacious - everything which manifests the goodness and the authority of God — the excellence of his law the evil of sin and the beauty of holiness-the value of eternal blessedness and the dreadfulness of eternal misery; in short, everything which can lead the sinner to repentance, and move the heart to gratitude and love, is found in the cross of Christ. And its being found here is the circumstance which gives it a true and saving efficacy. - Take the very same thing as exhibited in other ways; take, for example, the benevolence of God. Prove it, as you may, by general reasoning. Produce the evidence of it from the works of nature and providence. Unrenewed men may feel the weight of your arguments, and may be convinced that God is benevolent, and the conviction may excite their imagination to a pleasant activity. But their hearts are not subdued, and their love is not kindled. But when in the exercise of faith they look at the cross of Christ and see the benevolence of God displayed there; conscience is roused, love and gratitude are kindled, and the character is transformed. Take another example, the evil of sin. From various considerations with which the science of ethics is familiar, you may clearly prove that sin is wrong in itself, and pernicious in its effects; a disorder in the moral system a perversion of our nature, and contrary to the purity and goodness of the Creator. But all this, presented merely in this light and proved in this manner, plays only upon the surface of the mind. It leaves the sinner coldly convinced, not savingly converted.

But let a man in the exercise of a lively faith, look to calvary; and learn the evil of sin there. Let him learn from the sufferings of the cross, how sin is regarded by a just and righteous God. Let him see what it brought upon the holy Saviour, and what it would have brought upon a world of sinners, had not he died in their stead. Let him judge of the evil of sin from the precious blood which was shed to atone for it. Now he is

awakened from his lethargy. Now he finds, that all which the Scriptures declared, and all which the most terrible judgments of God declare, is a reality that sin is indeed "exceedingly sinful." And placing himself by the side of the cross, he is ashamed and blushes to lift up his eyes to heaven, and with a broken heart cries, God be merciful to me a sinner.

Such are the effects produced by the doctrine of the cross, when apprehended by faith; and such the inefficacy of moral truth, contemplated in other ways.

The mere philosopher may reason correctly about abstract, speculative truth, and may please his imagination and his intellect with its harmony and sublimity; but he lives and dies under the bondage of sin. - The Christian contemplates the doctrine of Christ crucified, and the simple truths comprised in it, and contemplates them in the exercise of faith; and behold! his fetters are loosened; he casts off the bondage of his corruptions, and enjoys the liberty of the sons of God.

How was it with the Apostle Paul? What did he do to bring men to repentance and obedience? He preached Christ crucified. That was the burden of his instructions. And he always referred to the death of Christ, when he would most powerfully enforce any moral precept. He regarded the doctrine of the cross as the substance and glory of divine truth; the great motive, the main-spring of action in the kingdom of grace. The Apostle had been a very learned reasoner in the science of morals and divinity before his conversion. A thousand moral and religious truths had passed before his mind, and had been made familiar to his thoughts; but they all left him an enemy to God. It was the sovereign efficacy of Christ crucified, which at last produced the renovation of his character; -it was this that turned him from pride and malice to humility and love-from persecution and murder, to a pious zeal for the glory of God, and a willingness to endure all things for the elect's safe.

The Apostle Paul was sent forth to convert the Gentile world, to turn them from their sins to serve the living God. In this great work, what means did he use? He used the very means

which had been effectual in his own case. "He determined to know nothing, save Jesus Christ and him crucified;" and his experience everywhere taught him, that the preaching of the cross, was made the power of God to salvation.

Now, brethren, I am happy to say to you, that the cross of Christ has lost none of its heavenly virtue. It can produce the same effects upon us, as it did upon the Apostle, and upon those to whom he preached. It is invested with a sanctifying power, which can never be exhausted. This, I am sure, must be a welcome, precious truth to the humble and contrite in heart; precious to all who mourn for sin, and pant after deliverance from it; to all who are burdened with remaining corruptions, and are looking for some almighty efficacy to subdue them. Hear then, and rejoice, ye humble souls, while I declare to you the healing power. Indulge no feelings of despondency as to your success in overcoming sin. Despondency here is utterly groundless and inexcusable. Suppose that you have a thousand times resolved against this and that sin, and all sin, and a thousand times endeavored to guard against it, but without success. Suppose you have been long and earnestly laboring, in various ways, to be rid of your spiritual diseases, but laboring in vain. What then? Was it not so with her, in the gospel, who tried many ways to be cured of her disorder, and spent all her living upon physicians, and yet grew nothing better, but rather worse? And how was she cured? She was cured, by applying to Jesus. it been with multitudes, who have tried a variety of fruitless means to subdue sin and obtain purity of heart, but who have at last, in the simplest, easiest way, obtained success. And how have they obtained success? By looking to Jesus, — by believ ing in Jesus. This way is open to all. Let your hearts then swell with gratitude and joy, while I tell you, that there is a sovereign remedy for all the evils under which you labor. There is not a single spiritual disease, however inveterate-no, not one, which may not be cured and which might not have been cured long ago, had you used the gospel remedy. Your spiritual maladies may be such as to baffle the skill of all other physicians, and

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may bid defiance to the highest human power. But there is a power, that can subdue them. There is a remedy, that always proves sure. Come then, ye who labor and are heavy laden come to Calvary come to the cross come with humble confidence to Christ crucified, and he will give you rest.

The cross of Christ - I repeat the momentous truth — the cross of Christ, apprehended by faith, is the great and effectual means of subduing the power of sin, of overcoming the world, and growing in grace. It is the secret spring of a spiritual, holy, and useful life. And this, brethren, is sufficient by itself. It operates best alone. All means devised by the wisdom of man, are here unnecessary, and out of place. If there is any evil to be removed, by the cross of Christ, you may remove it. If there is any moral excellence to be obtained, by the cross you may obtain it. The humble, confiding Christian, who makes use of this simple, gospel means, is successful above others in resisting sin and in striving after sanctification. If then you should at any time be ready to yield to temptation and commit sin; I would not go about to dissuade you by arguments suggested by the wisdom of the world. I would point you to something of more certain efficacy. Look to the cross of Christ. There see the holiness, the justice, and the mercy of God, the excellence of his law, and the exceeding sinfulness of transgression. There see the love of Christ, the atonement made by his precious blood, the worth of the soul, the necessity of obedience, and the holy nature of salvation. There see in blazing light, everything that can subdue and purify the heart-everything that can make sin in all its forms an object of perfect detestation. Could you but look with strong and habitual faith, to Christ crucified, the great work would be done. You would become dead to "all that is in the world," "the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life." Temptation would lose its power. And so awake would your conscience be, so pure and holy the frame of your mind, that you would rather be nailed to the cross, than to sin against God. O Christians, could we but have that faith, which would make the cross of Christ a present reality, and keep

could

us near it, and show us its glorious meaning and design; we but have that faith which would bring us as it were to live on Calvary, and to take up our abode at the foot of the cross; what blessed effects should we experience! Love to Christ would become our ruling passion, and would constrain us to live, and to labor, and suffer for his sake. And this sacred passion reigning within us, would be a strong bond of union among us; so that we should be of one mind and one heart; and all our intercourse with each other would be marked with forbearance and kindness. We should lay aside all malice, and guile, and envy, and evil speaking, and love one another with pure hearts fervently. Our supreme attachment to Christ crucified would withdraw us from all the pursuits and interests of worldly men. It would make us lowly in heart, circumspect, watchful, obedient. It would excite us to fear and avoid the very appearance of evil, to be diligent in doing good, to be holy, harmless, undefiled. And thus it would become manifest, that by living near to Christ crucified and beholding his glory, we had been changed into the same image.

We have seen, brethren, what Christianity was in the view of the great Apostle. We have seen what it was in its influence on his character, and on the character of those who received it from him. And thus we have seen what it is to be Christians. For Christ crucified is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever. And his religion is the same; and whenever it is received by faith, its influence is the same. It is not a subject which we may begin and end in mere speculation or mere belief. It is a subject which relates to feeling and to practice. It comes directly to the heart, and accomplishes its chief work there. And if its transforming power has not in some measure reached our hearts, then we are ignorant of its real nature; and it is of no more use to us, than to those who never heard of it.

Let us bring this subject home to ourselves. Christianity is a subject of a practical nature. The doctrine of the cross, which is the sum of the gospel, is a practical doctrine. It is designed and adapted to subdue sin; to make us dead to the world; to fill our