III. TO STATE THE MEANS BY WHICH THIS WILL IS TO BE ACCOMPLISHED.

It is a fact, my brethren, which has need to be pressed upon our notice, on all such occasions as the present, that God works by means and not without them. He might at once teach men sciences, without putting them to the trouble of learning them. He might fill their minds with divine knowledge, independent of their seeking it. He might convert the hearts of the whole world in a moment, apart from any human agency. He might put an end to licentiousness and immorality, without the intervention of any natural causes. And sooner than heaven should want inhabitants, he could "raise up of the very stones children unto Abraham." But all these cases would be contrary to the usual course of things. Means must be used, and labour bestowed, in order to effect any one of them.

It is the same in the moral, as in the natural world the seed must be sown, or it will never grow the soil must be cultivated, or it will bring forth weeds. So the seed of divine truth must be sown in the heart, before it can produce corresponding fruit and the mind must be early initiated in the principles of virtue, piety, and godliness,

otherwise it will become a sterile desert infested with poisonous herbs, to the injury of every thing within the limit of its influence.

Now it is, as we have seen, the will of our Heavenly Father that these little ones should be saved; but something must be done on our part, to effect this. Repentance and faith are the two grand instruments in the salvation of every soul that is saved; and true it is, that these are both the gift of God; but still there is something to be done previous to these, and from which indeed these in some measure spring. For instance, these children must know what they are to repent of, before they will repent-they must know that they are sinners, before they will lament their guilty condition-they must know what sin is, both in its nature and consequences, before they will ever forsake it. Again, they must know what they are to believe, before they can believe-they must know that there is a "God of justice by whom actions are weighed," who has appointed a day in which he will judge the world, and who will then reward the righteous and punish the wicked-they must know that there is a Saviour who died for sinners, and that all who believe in him shall be saved, shall be justified from all things from which they could not be justified by the law of Moses-they must know that there is

a Holy Spirit, who enlightens, renews, sanctifies, and helps all those who seek his gracious influences -they must know, in short, all these objects of faith, before they can possibly exercise faith in them. And, what is of material consequence, they must know what is their duty both to God and man, in order that they may try their faith whether it be of the right kind or not.

Now where are they to learn all this, but from the Bible; and how are they to learn it, except they can read; and how can they read, unless they are taught; and how can they be taught, without expense; and to what source can they look, for the supply of this expense, but to you their patrons and friends? Most of the children are poor, and have not the opportunity of instruction, at least of religious instruction, any where but at the Sunday School. They are exposed, during the whole week, to sinful temptations in countless shapes-the world, the flesh, and the devil, try to bind them in galling chains, and to lead them captive at their will, six days out of seven; and they come to us on the seventh day for shelter from these evils-they come to recruit their strength, and to trim and prove their armour, as it were, to enable them to withstand these deadly

enemies.

What weighty considerations are these, my brethren! What a momentous trust God has committed to us! He has formed the plan of salvation -he has put into our hands a system for renovating the depraved souls of these little ones-the machine is made, so to speak, and is within our reach; but it remains with us both to put it, and continue it, in motion. And we are this day met together to raise supplies for doing so.

We have said that these little ones cannot become acquainted with the truths of Christianity, unless they can read. But perhaps it may be objected, that they may learn them from others, especially from the ministers of God's word when they attend his house. True, they may; but I think it will be found, that very few of those who cannot read, ever feel much concerned about public worship. And indeed that ignorance, which ought to force them under public instruction, often forms the very excuse for their neglecting it. Tell them about their frequent absence from the house of God, and they will reply with the greatest coolness, "We are poor, ignorant creatures—we know no better-we were never taught any thing," as if being ignorant were a sufficient reason for neglecting divine ordinances, when the fact is, it is the most powerful argument for never letting slip

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a single opportunity of hearing God's word publicly explained and preached. But yet, I have seldom known the statement of this truth produce any real conviction of its urgency, on the minds of such persons. And thus they go on, year after year, in a state of unconcern, until their hearts become impenetrably hardened in sin, and their minds too weak to understand even the theory of religion -until they cannot perceive the meaning of the very plainest doctrines of the Bible. And, consequently, when death stares them in the face, and they send for the minister, which they always do as a sort of charm for their troubled consciences, he finds, to his regret, that not one single truth of scripture can they receive to any saving purpose; and the word of life, when offered to them, falls powerless from their expiring grasp. Believe me, my dear brethren, I speak this from personal observation; for I have seen many, very many such cases, during my short experience in the ministry.

The Scriptures are the only satisfactory revelation that we have of the nature of God-of his attributes, his will, his actions-and of the condition of man, as a sinner, and as redeemed by the blood of Christ, and as a moral, accountable being destined to live in either happiness or misery for ever. True it is, that much valuable information