of the concerns of their souls! The business is not only awkward, as they are unaccustomed to it, but it is exceeding irksome and painful. And something of this good men themselves feel, when captivated for a while by the cares and pursuits of the world. What a strange backwardness do they complain of to holy and devout exercises! In their slumbers, though not fallen into a deep sleep, they have little heart for those vigorous exercises of the mind which a rapid progress in religion demands. They have put off their coat, as the church expresses it in the Songs of Solomon a, and how shall they put it on!

Now, if a hearty inclination to any business is necessary to a man's considering it, and so being in a capacity to pursue it with attention and success, whatever tends to abate that inclination, or to confirm the opposite aversion, is essentially injurious to such business. In like manner, with respect to the great concerns of religion, the cares, riches, and pleasures of the world, by wholly occupying the mind, indispose it to consideration, and so choke the word and render it unfruitful.—And now this leads us to consider,

III. The sad event of such undue commerce with the world. The unhappy man not having leisure, calmness, or inclination to attend to the word; neither understands it, believes it, nor is obedient to it; and continuing in this wretched state of ignorance, impenitence, and unbelief, he is finally lost.

1. He understands not the word of the kingdom.

And indeed how should he, taken up as he almost constantly is with thinking, reasoning, and caring about other matters! Or if he has a speculative acquaintance with the truths of religion, it is not, it cannot be experimental and practical. Ah! how ignorant is he of God, his perfections, ways, and works! of himself, his capacities and interests, his true state and condition, the plague of his heart, and the danger to which he is exposed! of Christ, the glories of his person, redemption, and kingdom! of the beauty of holiness, the refined pleasures of religion, and the joys and triumphs of heaven! These are things which the objects of sense thrust far away from his view, so that he seldom if ever spends a thought about them. And however sagacious he is in the management of his temporal affairs, he is a perfect a Chap. v. 3.

fool in his conceptions and reasonings about matters of infinitely greater moment. Like a wretch immured in a cell he contents himself with viewing, by the help of a glimmering taper, the. childish figures his fancy has chalked out around him; while the man of wisdom walks in the light of broad day, viewing the stupendous works of God, by the aid of that great luminary the Sun of Righteousness, to his infinite joy and emolument.-And as he understands not the word of the kingdom, so—

2. Neither does he believe it.

It is not his professing it that proves he believes it. Nor does his admitting it all to be true, in the cold, lifeless manner of the generality of people, constitute him a believer in the sense of the New Testament. No; he who believes the gospel to the salvation of his soul, must enter into the spirit of it. But how can that man be supposed to have entered into the spirit of the gospel, of whose heart the god of this world has taken quiet possession? To a mind wherein this wretched demon lives, reigns, and domineers, the faith as well as the knowledge of divine truth is an utter stranger. And O how deplorable the character!-to profess the faith, and at the same time to be no better than an infidel!-to take pains to persuade himself and all about him that he believes, and yet to remain under the dominion of unbelief and sin !-Again,

3. Not rightly understanding or believing the word of the kingdom, he is not obedient to it.

Fruit is not to be expected from seed sown among thorns, at least not good fruit, or much of it. The ears will be, like those in Pharaoh's dream, thin, withered, and blasted with the east wind. So Luke expressly says a, he brings no fruit to perfection. If you look for the fruit of the Spirit, such as love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance b, you will be miserably disappointed. None of these divine graces live in his heart, and shine in his life: at best you will discover only the bare semblance of them, a kind of fruit unpleasing to the eye, and disgusting to the taste. Amidst the cares, riches, and pleasures of the world, the faint, dwindling, impotent efforts of something like religion, are quickly suffocated and lost.-Here perhaps it will be expected, that a Chap. viii. 14.

b Gal. v. 22, 23.

we enter into a particular consideration of this beautiful and striking expression of our Saviour's, they bring no fruit to perfection but as it will be the business of the next discourse, to give a particular account of the nature and quality of the fruit required of every genuine Christian, we shall enlarge no further here. And now,

4. And lastly, What is the final issue of all? Why, the man himself, as well as the seed, is choked; for so Luke expresses

it a.

And Oh! how sad, after a profession protracted to a considerable length, not renounced by avowed apostacy, or disgraced by any gross act of immorality; to miss of heaven and all its joys and triumphs, and to be turned into hell with the wicked, and all the nations that forget God b! O tremendous, to receive the curse of the barren fig-tree from his lips whose name you have professed! to be driven like chaff before the wind! and not having brought forth good fruit, to be hewn down and cast into the fire!

Thus have we considered the cares, riches, and pleasures of the world; their operation on that class of hearers our Lord means here to describe; and the sad event of all. Let us now close the whole with some seasonable exhortations..

1. Let the professors of religion have no more to do with the world than duty clearly requires.

This is sound, wholesome, scriptural advice. The Bible does not teach us to affect preciseness and singularity, to assume a severe, gloomy, ascetic countenance and manners, and peevishly to withdraw ourselves from society and the civil concerns of life; yet surely it does require more of us than escaping the gross pollutions of the world, and the preserving a good, sober, moral character. Otherwise I know not what tolerable rational account to give of the following precepts: If any man will be my disciple, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow • Whosoever will be a friend of the world, is the enemy of God d.' 'Be not conformed to this world; but be ye formed by the renewing of your mind e.' 'Come out from among them, and be ye separate, and touch not the unclean thing f

me c.'

trans

c Matt. xvi. 24. ƒ 2 Cor. vi. 17.

• Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness.See that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise a' ← Abstain from all appearance of evil b.' A Christian, especially if he be a good-natured man, is in greater danger from compliances of a doubtful ill tendency, than from temptations to direct immoralities. The latter he will know how easily to resist, while the former may prove a snare to him before he is aware. Heaven is the good man's object; and in order to imbibe a spirit suited to that state, he will find the discipline of the heart a necessary and painful business; but how that can be carried on amidst the drudgery of avaricious pursuits, or the levity of vain amusements, I am at a loss to say. Let us then endure hardness as good soldiers of Christ; and as we wish to please him who has chosen us to be soldiers, let us take heed how we entangle ourselves with the affairs of this life c.

2. If thorns, before we are aware, get in, let us instantly root them out.

The best of men are exposed to temptation, and too often foiled, though not overcome by it. The Christian like an eagle soars to heaven, yet his flight may on a sudden be impeded by the grossness of the atmosphere through which he passes; and though, like that prince of birds, he has an eye that can look at the sun, yet his eye may for a moment be captivated by the false glare of terrestrial objects. But he will quickly, animated by the grace of God, turn away his eye from beholding vanity, and with redoubled vigour renew his flight to heaven. He has a taste for sublime enjoyments, and that taste, though it may be in a degree vitiated, cannot be wholly lost.

Consider then, O men of God, your high character and noble birth. Walk worthy of the vocation wherewith you are called. Demean yourselves in a manner becoming your holy profession and glorious prospects. If the objects of sense, before you are aware, catch your attention, and captivate your passions, disentangle yourselves as quickly as possible from the charm; hesitate not a moment; exert all the power of Christian resolution; tear up by the roots the briers and thorns of worldly cares, and the poisonous weeds of fascinating pleasures; they are of luxuriant growth, and if not instantly checked, and by severe dis a Eph. v. 11, 15. c 2 Tim. ii. 3, 4.

b I Thess. v. 22.

cipline destroyed, they will overspread the heart, choke every pious sentiment and virtuous affection, and in the end create you infinite trouble and anguish. No time is to be lost. The farther you advance in a course of life, which, though not directly criminal, yet tends to embarrass your mind, weaken your graces, and indispose you to the duties of religion, the more difficult will be your retreat. Oh! how have some good men, in the close of life, lamented in the bitterness of their spirit the advantage which the world has gained over them; and warned those about them to beware of the encroachments, which this insidious enemy imperceptibly makes upon the human heart!

3. Receive the good seed.

It is not enough that the ground is cleared of noxious weeds, if it be not sown with the proper grain. Neither is it sufficient to guard against the corrupt maxims, customs, and manners of the world, if our hearts are not impregnated with divine truth. What that is we have already shewn you. It is the word of the kingdom, the pure gospel of Jesus Christ. We exhort you therefore to hear the word diligently, to take pains to understand it, to yield a cordial assent to it, to lay it up memories, and to revolve it frequently in your minds. word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom a. with meekness the ingrafted word, which is able to save your souls b. And be assured it will build you up, and give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified c.

in your

Let the

Receive

An experimental acquaintance with the gospel is the best mean to fortify the heart against the assaults of the world. Reason and observation every now and then extort from our lips a cold feeble acknowledgment, that the riches, honours, and pleasures of this life are uncertain and unsatisfying; yet, alas, they still cling about our hearts, disturb the peace of our minds, and obstruct our progress towards heaven. But a believing contemplation on divine truth, fixes such a deep conviction in our bosoms of the vanity of the world, as fails not to interest our warmest passions, and so to have a commanding influence on our conduct. In those happy moments the world appears very little indeed, just such a trifling object as it is in the eye

a Col. iii. 16.

b James i. 21.

c Acts xx. 32.