of the immensity of the sin against God. It is, however, not only the consideration that God's law has been broken, that will mark the person that sorrows after a godly sort, but added to this will be the reflection, who God is, and what claims God has. Godly sorrow will be much affected by the consideration of the character and nature of God. The godly sorrower for sin, will not only mourn because he has transgressed a law which God has given, but because his transgression marks the opposition and enmity of his mind to the nature of God. And hence the godly sorrower will not only mourn for this or that particular act, but for the state of heart which it discloses, the alienation it manifests from all that is pure, and lovely, and good. Now the more God is known, the more this contrariety will be evident; thus Job says, " I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine. eye seeth thee." (Now I know thee more fully and experimentally.) “Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes." And therefore the godly sorrower is always one who meditates much upon God who learns to judge of God as his word makes him known to us; but more especially who learns to judge of him from the great manifestation which he has made of himself in Jesus Christ. It is in him alone that we can know God fully. The abstract nature of God can scarcely be conceived by us. It is like the sun upon which the eye of man is unable to gaze; and therefore God, as it were, wrapped himself

9 Job xlii. 5, 6.

;

in the cloud of human flesh, that we might see and live. It is in this state we can behold him in some measure even face to face; but, above all, it is in this state that we can contemplate what the eye of man can bear to look upon-his love; and it is the view of God as love, that fills the heart of the sinner with godly sorrow. It is therefore not only as we see God in Christ, but as we obtain believing views of our own interest in all his work of love, that godly sorrow is excited. What an illustration of this we have in the tears of the poor sinful woman, whose sorrow seems to have borne an exact proportion to her faith and love. Strange therefore as it may appear, the clearer our sense of pardon, the more deep will our sorrow be, because it stamps not only on every individual act, but upon our whole character, the additional mark of ingratitude. But this sorrow is still further a godly sorrow with respect to its AUTHOR. God is not only the object of it, but God is the giver of it. It is the work of God the Holy Ghost. He is the only author of any sincere conviction of sin. He it is who alone can disclose to us the holiness and the strictness of the law of God, its breadth and spirituality. He alone it is who can take of the things of Christ, and manifest them to us, and apply them to our hearts, and at the same time overwhelm us with a deep sense of our exceeding vileness in resisting this love, by convincing us of our unbelief and hardness of heart, and showing us its exceeding sinfulness. In giving this description however of godly sorrow, we would not

exclude all lower degrees of sorrow from having a claim to be considered as such, for in so doing we might break the bruised reed whom God would not break. We know in how many different ways he works, and how differently he leads men to the same end some he may draw with the cords of his love, while to others he may open all his terrors. We cannot, therefore, be justified in saying, that sorrow induced by terror may not be godly sorrow, because if it be the Holy Spirit's work, it must be such; and it is certain that the Holy Spirit often commences his work in that way, and that "the fear of the Lord (in the strictest sense) may be the beginning of wisdom;" and that the terrors of mount Sinai may prepare the way for the entrance of the gospel of pardon and peace. But in setting before the characteristics of godly sorrow, we must confine ourselves to those which are essential to it, and which form its distinction from all other sorrow and as the sense of danger and the fear of an offending God often pass away, we must warn you not to rest securely upon such signs. We cannot say that such sorrow is not godly sorrow, but we cannot say that it is. There is nothing to cast you into despair, because for the present you only feel this, but there is much to make you prayerfully anxious that you may feel more. In nothing short of this can you rest, that you feel not only the danger which threatens you, but the ingratitude of which you have been guilty; and that a believing view of Jesus has melted your heart. We do not say, turn from

you

the consideration of God's holy law, of God's awful judgments; but we do say, set Christ before you, meditate upon his love, pray for the Holy Spirit ; and rest not contented until God "hath shined into your hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."1

Another feature of this godly sorrow is that it is followed by REPENTANCE. It "worketh repentance." This word is sometimes used to signify the state of mind to which a sinner is brought when his sin is disclosed to him, in which use of it little more is meant than that sorrow which we have been considering. But here it means something more, for it is spoken of, not as that sorrow, but as its effect and consequence. It is that portion therefore of repentance which consists in forsaking sin. Now this will be the necessary consequence of godly sorrow; not as if godly sorrow were the cause, for it is only the instrument, whereby the Holy Spirit of God effects his purposes. But you will easily perceive, that where there is godly sorrow there must be a forsaking of the things which gave birth to it. Godly sorrow implies an aversion to, and a loathing of, our former self and our former ways. To hate then and at the same time to cherish any thing, is a palpable contradiction. Sorrow, therefore, not only implies our turning from ourselves, and from our evil ways, but our turning unto God and his ways. The true sorrower for sin is, and must be, a convert to holiness. I admit the fact of the constant opposition of the flesh; but I do say that the bias

1 2 Cor. iv. 6.

and inclination of his heart will be towards God; and that he will love the character and the law of God. There will be continual, prayerful endeavour to conform to it, and that to its fullest extent, in all its breadth and comprehensiveness. There will be a constant anxiety to "cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of flesh and spirit, and to perfect holiness in the fear of God." These are "fruits meet for repentance;" and if the fruits be not produced, we have little reason to conclude that the repentance has taken place. Believe me, my dear brethren, no sorrow is to be depended upon without this. Do not try to escape from it by saying that this is a legal view of repentance, that with such a view of it you never can have peace. It is the of souls who would suggest this to you, enemy your with the view of keeping you contented with sorrow, or with what he would lead you to suppose was sorrow, without change of life. The word of God recognises no such sorrow. O let not the deceiver blind you. There are many who are perpetually sorrowing but never changing. This was not the repentance that gave Paul joy on behalf of the Corinthians. He does not merely speak of this sorrow, but points out its effects. "For behold," he says, "this self-same thing that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge!" Had their sorrow evaporated in lamentations and tears the apostle would

1 2 Cor. vii. 1.

2

2 2 Cor vii. 11.