of Christ conquering sin, and by the mighty flame of his love, consuming the earth and dross that is in them; making their affections more spiritual and disengaged from all creature-delights. And thus as they receive the beginnings of grace freely, so all the advances and increases of it; life from their Lord still flowing and causing them to grow, abating the power of sin, strengthening a fainting faith, quickening a languishing love, teaching the soul the ways of wounding strong corruptions, and fortifying its weak graces; yea, in wonderful ways advancing the good of his children by things not only harsh to them, as afflictions and temptations, but by what is directly opposite in its nature, sin itself; raising them by their falls and strengthening them by their very troubles; working to humility and vigilance, and sending them to Christ for strength, by the experience of their weaknesses and failings.

And as he is the God of pardoning grace, and sanctifying grace in the beginning and growth of it, so also the God of supporting grace, of that supervenient influence without which the graces placed within us would lie dead, and fail us in the time of greatest need. This is the immediate assisting power that bears up the soul under the hardest service, and backs it in the sharpest conflicts, communicating fresh auxiliary strength, when we, with all the grace dwelling within us, are surcharged.

Then he steps in, and opposes his strength to a prevailing and confident enemy, that is at the point of insulting and triumph. When temptations have made a breach, and enter with full force and violence, he lets in so much present help on a sudden, as makes them give back, and beats them out. When the enemy

comes in as a flood, the Spirit of the Lord lifts up a standard against him. And no siege can be so close as to keep out this aid, for it comes from above.

And by this, a Christian learns that his strength is in God; whereas, if his received grace were always party enough, and able to make itself good against all incursions, though we know we have received it, yet being within us, we should possibly sometimes forget the receipt of it, and look on it more as ours than as his; more as being within us, than as flowing from him. But when all the forces we have, the standing garrison, are by far over-matched, and yet we find the assailants beaten back, then we must acknowledge him who sends such seasonable

relief, to be, as the Psalmist speaks, a very present help in trouble.

"Grace taught my wand'ring feet

To tread the heavenly road;
And new supplies each hour I meet
While pressing on to God.

"Grace all the work shall crown,
Through everlasting days;
It lays in heaven the topmost stone,
And well deserves the praise."

FEBRUARY 4.

CHRYSOSTOM.

Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.—Heb. v. 11.

How much of Divine instruction is lost by reason of the dullness of our hearing. Now this takes place when the soul is heavy laden with many burdens of this life. For as the eye when it is clear and transparent is keen-sighted also, and will not easily be tired in making out even the minutest bodies; but when from some bad humor from the head having poured into it, or some smoke-like fumes having ascended to it from beneath, a kind of thick cloud is formed before the ball, this does not allow it clearly to perceive even any larger object; so is naturally the case with the soul. For when it is purified, and has no passion to disturb it, it looks steadfastly on the fit objects of its regard; but when, darkened by many passions, it loses its proper excellence, then it is not easily able to be sufficient for any high thing, but soon is wearied, and falls back; and turning aside to sleep and sloth, lets pass things that concern it with a view to excellence and the life thence arising, instead of receiving them with much readiness.

And that you may not suffer this, strengthen your minds, that ye may not hear what the faithful among the Hebrews heard from Paul. For to them he said that he had many things to say, and hard to be uttered; not as though they were by nature such, but because, says he, ye are dull of hearing. For it is the nature of the weak and infirm man to be confused even by few words as by many, and what is clear and easy he thinks hard to

be comprehended. Let not any here be such an one, but having chased from him all worldly care, so let him hear these doctrines.

For when the desire of money possesses the hearer, the desire of hearing cannot possess him as well; since the soul, being one, cannot suffice for many desires; but one of the two is injured by the other, and, from division, becomes weaker as its rival prevails, and expends all upon itself.

And this is wont to happen in the case of children. When a man has only one, he loves that one exceedingly. But when he has become father of many, then also his dispositions of affection being divided, become weaker.

If this happens where there is the absolute rule and power of nature, and the objects beloved are akin one with another, what can we say as to that desire and disposition which is according to deliberate choice; especially where these desires lie directly opposed to each other; for the love of wealth is a thing opposed to this kind of hearing. We enter heaven when we enter here; not in place, I mean, but in disposition; for it is possible for one who is on earth to stand in heaven, and to have vision of the things that are there, and to hear the words from thence.

Let none then introduce the things of earth into heaven; let no one standing here be careful about what is at his house. For he ought to bear with him, and to preserve, both at home and in his business, what he gains from this place, not to allow it to be loaded with the burdens of house and market. Our reason for entering into the chair of instruction is, that thence we may cleanse ourselves from the filth of the outer world; but if we are likely even in this little space to be injured by things said or done without, it is better for us not to enter at all. Let no one then in the assembly be thinking about domestic matters, but let him at home be stirring with what he heard in the assembly. Let these things be more precious to us than any. These concern the soul, but those the body; or rather, what is said here concerns both body and soul. Wherefore let these things be our leading business, and all others but occasional employments; for these belong both to the future and the present life, but the rest neither to the one nor the other, unless they be managed according to the law laid down for these. Since from these it is possible to learn not only what we shall hereafter be, and how

we shall then live, but how we shall rightly direct this present life also.

For this house is a spiritual surgery, that whatever wounds we may have received without, here we may heal, not that we may gather fresh ones to take with us hence. Yet if we do not give heed to the Spirit speaking to us, we shall not only fail to clear ourselves of our former hurts, but shall get others in addition. Let us not then be careless hearers. Let us fear lest we come under the condemnation of that word which says, If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin. For what shall we be profited more than those who have not heard, if even after hearing we go our way home bearing nothing with us, but only wondering at what has been said.

Allow us then to sow in good ground; allow us, that you may draw us the more to you. If any man hath thorns, let him cast the fire of the Spirit amongst them. If any hath a hard and stubborn heart, let him by employing the same fire make it soft and yielding. If any by the wayside is trodden down by all kinds of thoughts, let him enter into more sheltered places, and not lie exposed for those that will to invade for plunder: that so we may see your cornfields waving with corn. Besides, if we exercise such care as this over ourselves, and apply ourselves industriously to this spiritual hearing, if not at once, yet by degrees, we shall surely be freed from all the cares of life.

For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.—Psalm xxxvii. 10.

WHY should we fret ourselves because of evil doers, and be envious against the workers of iniquity? They shall fall like grass before the scythe of the mower, and wither as the green herb. A little while and he shall not be. Lest haply because I said, They that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the land, thou shouldest think that waiting to be of very long duration. Wait a little while, thou shalt receive without end what thou waitest for. A little while, a moderate space. Review the years from Adam's time up to this day; run through the Scriptures. It is almost yesterday that he fell from Paradise! So many

ages have been measured out, and unrolled. Where now are the past ages? Even so, however, shall the few which remain, pass away also. Hadst thou been living throughout all that time, since Adam was banished from Paradise up to this present day, thou wouldst certainly see that the life, which had thus flown away, had not been of long duration. But how long is the duration of each individual's life? Add any number of years you please prolong old age to its longest duration: what is it? Is it not but a morning breeze? Be it so, however, that the Day of Judgment is far off, when the reward of the righteous and of the unrighteous is to come: your last day at all events cannot be far off. Make thyself ready against this! For such as thou shall have departed from this life, shalt thou be restored to the other. At the close of that short life, you will not be, where the saints shall be, to whom it shall be said, Come, ye blessed of my Father: inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world. You will not be there? Who does not know that? But you may already be there, where that beggar, once covered with sores, was seen at a distance, at rest, by that proud and unfruitful rich man in the midst of his torments. Surely laid in that rest thou waitest in security for the Day of Judg ment, when thou art to receive again a body, to be changed so as to be made equal to an angel. How long then is that, for which we are impatient, and are saying, "When will it come? Will it tarry long?" This our sons will say hereafter, and our sons' sons will say so too; and, though each one of these in succession will say the same thing, that little while, that is yet to be, passes away, as all that is already past hath passed away already! O thou sick one! Yet a little while and the sinner shall not be. Yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and thou shalt not find him.

He shows what he meant by, he shall not be-not that he shall cease to exist altogether, but that he shall not exist for any good end. For if he shall cease to exist altogether, he will not even be tortured. Then is security given to the sinner, so that he will say, "I will do what I will so long as I live; afterward I shall be no more!" Will he be no more in existence, that he may suffer pain, that he may be tormented? What then will become of, Depart into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels? "But perhaps they will not be consigned to that