striking twice or thrice. We do not "stir up ourselves to lay hold on God:" we do not wrestle with him, and determine not to let him go, until he has bestowed a blessing on our souls. We should "give him no rest," till he has manifested to us the acceptance of our prayers. But we perform all our duties in so cold a way as rather to offend God by our lukewarmness, than to please him by our zeal. The prophet was justly displeased with Joash for not shewing greater ardour in the cause of Israel: "Thou shouldest have smitten," says he, "five or six times: then hadst thou smitten Syria, till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice." This prediction was exactly verified: "Joash did beat them only three times" and thus we find it in our own experience: we gain some victories, it is true; but they are only small and partial, because we war not with all our might - -]

ADVICE

1. Improve the opportunities which God affords you by his ministers

[Elisha ministered for above sixty years: yet Joash never availed himself of his instructions, till they were about to be for ever withdrawn. And is it not so wherever the faithful servants of God are sent? The generality, especially of the great and opulent, disregard their warnings, and despise their messages of mercy. O that it might not be found so in this place! If God has sent you the light, learn to walk in the light, whilst you have it; lest darkness come upon you, and "the word which ought to be a savour of life, become unto you a savour of death."]

2. Trifle not with the impressions which are at any time upon your upon your minds

66

[Joash appeared to be now in a hopeful way; but he soon lost his good impressions, and died, as he had lived, an enemy of God. And are there not found amongst us many, whose goodness is as the morning cloud, and as the early dew that passeth away?" Under the ordinances perhaps, or in a time of sickness, or under the prospect of some painful bereavement, you have been affected, and been made willing to obey the voice of God's prophets: but you have soon forgotten all your vows, and "returned with the dog to his vomit, and with the sow that is washed to her wallowing in the mire." Truly should this be the case with you, "your latter end will be worse than your beginning: for it were better never to have known the way of righteousness, than after having known it to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto you."]

o ver. 25.

CCCLXXV.

THE BIBLE STANDARD OF RELIGION.

2 Kings xvii. 33. They feared the Lord, and served their own gods.

THE views which men in general have of religion are extremely indistinct. Hence arises the necessity of unfolding religion to them in every possible way. Sometimes we attempt it by a clear exposition of its principles from the declarations of the Inspired Volume. Sometimes we bring forth the examples of the Apostles, and shew what their views of religion were. On the present occasion, I will proceed in a way of contrast, that so the difference between true religion and false may the more fully appear.

The persons of whom my text speaks were the inhabitants of Samaria. When the king of Assyria had subdued the ten tribes of Israel, he took away the inhabitants, and dispersed them throughout his own dominions, and sent a number of his own subjects to occupy and cultivate the land. These persons,

coming from different parts of the Assyrian Empire, took with them their own gods, whom they had severally been wont to worship. But, after a season, the lions of the forests multiplied, and caused such destruction among them, that they could not but regard it as a token of God's displeasure, for not being worshipped and served in a way conformable to his own appointed ordinances. The people stated this to the king of Assyria; and requested that one of the priests who had been taken from the land, should be sent back, in order to instruct them how Jehovah, whom they supposed to be a local Deity, and the god of that particular land, was to be worshipped. This request was complied with: a priest was sent to them a number of others were appointed to officiate with him under his direction: and thus the people united the worship of Jehovah with that of their own idols; or, as my text expresses it, "feared the Lord,

and served their own gods"." And in this state they continued even to the time of our blessed Lord; who said to the Samaritan woman, "Ye worship ye know not what"." Now, this will afford me an opportunity of shewing what true religion is; by contrasting,

I. The Samaritan standard of religion

From the history of the Samaritans, as contained in the chapter before us, it will be seen what their religion was

[It had self-complacency for its object, form for its essence, and custom for its origin.

It had self-complacency for its object: for every one worshipped his own gods; as it is said: "Every nation made gods of their own, and put them in the houses of the highplaces which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities where they dwelt"." If they added Jehovah to them, it was from fear of his vengeance: "They feared the Lord, and served their own gods;" fearing him by constraint, and serving them by choice. They had a general idea that it was well to acknowledge some god: and with that they were satisfied.

It had form for its essence: "They made unto themselves, of the lowest of the people, priests of the high-places, which sacrificed for them in the houses of the high-places." Whilst the priests were at their posts, and performing their accustomed round of services, all was well. Respecting religion as a personal concern between them individually and the god whom they served, they knew nothing. It was with them a mere official matter: and if it was performed with regularity by the appointed officers, they felt no want, no cause for selfreproach.

It had custom for its origin: "They feared the Lord, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations who had carried Israel away captive from thence: Unto this day they do after the former manners." "So these nations feared the Lord, and served their graven images, both their children, and their children's children: as did their fathers, so did they unto this day." None of them inquired whether their views were right or wrong: they took for granted that the religion which they had received from their forefathers was right: and, if they only conformed themselves to that, they had nothing to fear.]

And what is the religion which obtains amongst

us?

[Verily, we might almost conceive ourselves to be in Samaria, rather than in Britain, where the light of the Gospel so clearly shines. For what is the object which the generality of us aim at, even in religion? is it not merely to have within our own bosoms a foundation for self-applause? As to any real delight in holy exercises, we do not pretend to it. To read the word of God with a devout application of it to our own particular case; to commune with God in secret, and pour out our souls before him in praise and thanksgiving; these are not really the employments we affect: as for enjoying his presence, and receiving communications from him in answer to our prayers, we scarcely contemplate such a thing as attainable by us: if we do our duty, as we call it, that is all that we are concerned about; that satisfies our conscience; and we neither desire nor think of any thing beyond.

In perfect accordance with these views are all our services. We come to the house of God: we follow the minister in the different parts of the service, standing, sitting, kneeling, as occasion requires, and making our responses at the places assigned us: we then attend to his discourse with interest or indifference, as it may happen: and then congratulate ourselves as having performed a duty, though the soul has not been really engaged in a single word that has been uttered either by the minister or ourselves. Samaritan-like, we devolve almost the whole service on the minister; and, if he have discharged his office with regularity and decorum, we conclude that we have done all that was required of us.

If it were asked of us, Why we professed the Christian faith at all, the greater part of us would have no better reason than that by which the Samaritans were influenced; "We follow the religion of our forefathers." We are Christians, in fact, for the very same reasons that Mahometans or Pagans profess the faith maintained respectively by them. We have taken our religion upon trust from those who have gone before us, without ever having examined it for ourselves: and it is owing to the circumstance of our having been born in a Christian land, and not to any conviction of the truth and excellency of our religion, that we are Protestants and not Papists, or Christians and not Heathens.

God in Christ is professedly the object of our worship; but the gods whom we really worship, and by choice, are the pleasures, and riches, and honours, of this vain world. On them our heart is fixed; to them is our time devoted; and, if we but attain them to the extent of our desires, we bless ourselves as having gained the objects most worthy of our pursuit.]

But now, in opposition to all this, let us notice, II. The standard proposed to us in the Bible— This, also, is fully set forth in the chapter before

us

1. It has God alone for its object

["Ye shall not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them; but to the Lord: him shall ye fear, and him shall ye worship, and to him shall ye do sacrifices." In the first and great commandment that is given us, of loving God with all our heart and mind and soul and strength, there is no alienation admitted, no participation with any creature upon earth. "God is a jealous God," and must have our whole hearts. "If our heart be divided, we shall," as the prophet warns us, assuredly "be found faulty." Now, then, if there be any one thing under heaven that is not truly and entirely subordinated to him, we have not yet taken so much as one step in true religion. We may have some fear of God: but whilst there is any other god in the universe that we serve, or that stands in competition with him, we are yet Samaritans in heart, "having the form of godliness, but not any of its poweri."]

2. It has the covenant of grace altogether for its ground

["The covenant that I have made with you, ye shall not forget." We have no hope whatever before God, but as founded on that everlasting covenant which the Father entered into with his dear Son, as the head and representative of his elect people'. In ourselves we were reduced to a footing with the fallen angels, and had in ourselves no more claim on God than they. By the first covenant we were all condemned. But God has made a new covenant with us, "ordered in all things and sure";" and has "confirmed that covenant with an oath;" and according to the tenour of that covenant, shall mercy be vouchsafed unto us. But who knows any thing about that covenant? Who even thinks of it, or has any more respect unto it than if it never had existed? The utmost that people in general know about religion is, that they need to repent; and that, if they repent, they shall obtain mercy: but under what considerations, and by what distinct means, mercy shall be accorded to them, they know nothing. They

g ver. 35, 36. k ver. 38.

1 Zech. vi. 13. Heb. xiii. 20. m Gal. iii. 10. n2 Sam. xxiii. 5. Heb. vi. 17, 18. P Heb. viii. 8-12.