life needs food: and the Psalmist, in the spirit of devotion, refers the unfailing supply to its proper source, the universal Parent, God. "He bringeth forth food out of the earth." "The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God." "In this great and wide sea are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts." "These all wait upon thee; that thou mayest give them meat in due season. That thou givest them they gather: thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good." All living creatures have to fulfil, in constant activity, the purposes of their being; and so are they constructed, that for the renewal of their strength, they need the regular supply of food. And their ever-provident Maker has so ordered his marvellous works, that that supply is secured to them.

Thus does regenerate man need food for the support of his new life, and for him, too, is the necessary provision made. This, in the general statement of the fact, is plainly declared by Isaiah. Merely natural advantages he describes as altogether insufficient: "The youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall." Still, "He giveth power to the faint, and to them that have no might he increaseth strength;" for, "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength ;" and this, according to the explicit declaration of the Apostle, (so exact is the doctrinal agreement between the language of the Old and the New Testament,) shall be fully adequate to all the demands of various duty; for, “They shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk, and not faint."

In saving man, it pleases his great Creator and Redeemer to deal with him as a creature capable of the spiritual life, and therefore requiring divine influence,―grace; and of what may be termed the intellectual, the truly rational life, and therefore requiring to be instructed in what really is,― truth and " grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." They, therefore, who would be strong to resist and overcome all the seductions of error, and to receive saving benefit from the Scriptures, instead of wresting them to their destruction, must "grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ."

Here, then, is the great provision for the maintenance of the life of grace. First, there is "the supply of the Spirit of Christ Jesus." And this must be sought by using what have so long, and with such propriety, been termed in the church," the means of grace." Especially prayer. In the apostolic epistles, we see continual reference to the work of God in the maintenance, increase, and establishment of the divine life; and these are always sought by prayer. We quote but a single instance. "Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight." Closely connected with this, designed to instruct as well as animate both our faith and our prayers,—we may observe, secondly,―are the "exceeding great and precious promises which are given unto us,"and for this very purpose, that we might "be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust." And, lastly, there is the word of God, that food of the soul, by which, in the exercise of meditating-might we say, digesting ?-faith, the " creature" may be nourished to everlasting life. Very clearly are the objects of the great principles and affections of Christian sanctification, "faith, hope, and charity," there described; and it is impossible to place them habitually before the mind, without strengthening the principles

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themselves. That which is external and objective in religion becomes thus the very aliment of the subjective. When we look exclusively at the things which are seen, by the things which are seen are we exclusively influenced; but when we look also at the things which are not seen, placing them in their proper position, and maintaining the due subordination of all else, by them are we influenced according to their nature, and we become increasingly spiritual. By the faithful study of holy Scripture, therefore, we become more vigorous in the exercise of every spiritual faculty, more energetic and decided in every species of spiritual action. Desiring the sincere milk of the word, and partaking of this divine nourishment, we grow thereby; the inner man is strengthened.

Sufficient means being thus provided for the maintenance and increase of spiritual strength, to be thus "strong in the Lord" is not only our privilege, but our bounden duty.

4. It may be observed, lastly, that, on impartial and strict examination, its diminution, but especially its absence, will always be found to be occasioned by something positively wrong. We are weak when we should be strong, either because we have omitted what we ought to have done, or have done what we ought to have left undone.

And let us not be misunderstood. We speak not now of bodily weakness, nor of the mental weakness which physical disorder may occasion, nor even of the loss of the more active operations of spiritual power. There are occasions in which it is the Christian duty, in order to the fulfilment of the divine purposes, it may be in labours and toils, to be "strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus;" but there are others in which it is "our strength to sit still," enduring with resignation and meekness whatever may be laid upon us, that in our weakness divine strength may be made perfect. Our great English poet has well described this by referring to Sovereigns, some of whose servants have to engage actively in doing their bidding; while of others he pointedly, and with solemn significance, observes: "They also serve who only stand and wait." This is not physical weakness, though the envious tempter, to disturb our soul, may suggest that it is so. We may be laid aside from the labour that we love, and in which, hitherto, we have been successfully employed. Our place may be supplied by others. A forgetful world, easily overlooking those who are not placed prominently in view, may dismiss us even from memory. We may sit forgotten in our solitude and inactivity. This is not weakness. It is the will of God. We are now called to "rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him." Provided his work be done, it is not for us to complain that we are not the instruments. And though no eye sees us, he says, "Thou shalt not be forgotten of me ;" and the strength he gives us, is now to be exercised in submission and repose. We are speaking of the weakness which can neither do the divine will, nor submit to it. And it is of this weakness we say that it may always be traced to something wrong, to have avoided which was our duty.

And here again we may usefully employ the guidance of the analogy between the natural and the spiritual life, to which we have previously adverted. We may thus be weak and declining,

(1.) For want of proper exercise, through slothful inactivity. We all know that as strength depends on health, so health depends largely on exercise. Relaxation is the effect of indolence. And this is not only the case as to constitutional strength generally; it equally holds good as to particular muscles. Mechanical skill shows the power of continual exercise. Certain

muscles seem thus brought to obey the will with a promptness and dexterity most surprising to those who have not reflected on those laws of our constitution which provide for these issues. Now, there are scriptural exhortations which not only imply the existence of analogous laws in our spiritual being, as, "Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men,

be strong," where perpetual vigilance, and readiness for every duty, are required, but directly express it: "Be not slothful, but followers of them that through faith and patience inherit the promises." According to our circumstances, in the fulfilment of general Christian duty, or of our particular providential course, we are to be continually "exercising ourselves unto godliness," by a faithful attention to the divine call for our service. We are always to be running the race set before us. Thus the Apostle describes himself as not running uncertainly, nor fighting as one that beateth the air; but keeping under his body, and bringing it into subjection, that he might not at last be rejected. "This one thing," he says, "I do; forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling." Thus must it be with us. "To him that hath shall be given," said our Lord; "but from him that hath not," that is slothful as though he had not, "shall be taken away even that he hath." It was therefore significantly said by an old Divine, "Use grace, and have grace.” Use it, as God may give occasion for its exercise. Use it by general activity. Use it by exercising every particular grace according to the opportunities that may occur. This is one way in which strength shall be preserved and increased. Whereas, slothfulness most assuredly will produce weakness. A grace unexercised will soon be a feeble one. But this is our own fault. The exercise was our duty; and so therefore was it our duty to possess the vigour which would have resulted from it.

(2.) Weakness may arise from the want of proper nourishment. Physically, this is a well-known fact. Food nourishes and strengthens: the want of it causes weakness. And that this is analogous to the laws of our spiritual being, we have already shown. One or two additional observations may, however, be made.

First, and generally, however mysterious the communication of divine influence may be, the fact that it is communicated is most obvious. By union with Christ, we receive the supplies of the life which, in its fulness, resides in him. The union of the branches to the tree, and the members to the body, are the figures used in Scripture to illustrate this. If we abide in him, the supply continues; if, by a feeble union, we begin the awful work of severance, the supply is diminished; and if we separate our souls from him, we become as the broken-off and withered branches. Two duties, therefore, are here supposed: First, the continued exercise of faith in Christ: a spiritual life is a life of faith in the Son of God: and, Second, the continued exercise of prayer: as it is by "praying in the Holy Ghost," that we are to "keep ourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of the Lord Jesus unto eternal life." Faith and prayer neglected, the certain consequence is diminished strength.

Secondly, and more particularly, our Lord says,-and the language is emphatical," If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you." The indwelling of the Holy Spirit gives life, directly; but this is preserved, instrumentally, by the truth which he gives in his word. He might have kept us in physical health and strength, without the intervention of food; but his appointment

is otherwise. And so might he have preserved the soul in spiritual life and vigour by his own immediate operation, without any instrumentality; but here again his appointment is otherwise; and that appointment absolutely governs our duty. The instrument by which the life-giving Spirit works for our growing sanctification, is the word of God. This we are to "hide in our heart, that we may not sin against him :" and "the word of Christ is to dwell in us richly in all wisdom," transfused, as it were, in its holy principles, into our souls, and thoroughly pervading them. So the "work of the ministry" is for "the perfecting of the saints," and for "the edifying of the body of Christ." Of the regeneration of the Spirit, "the word that by the Gospel is preached unto us" is the instrument; as it is also of our spiritual growth: "As new-born babes desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby."

But this is so impressively put forth in the first Psalm, that it will be sufficient to direct our attention to its statements. Vegetable organization is sustained in life by water. This may be said to be its food; and derived chiefly from the soil in which it is planted, by means of the roots. In warmer climates, where the atmosphere is more dry, and rain seldom falls, the absolute necessity of water is more obviously apparent. To supply the absence of rain, artificial irrigation, by which water, perhaps from some neighbouring river, is conducted to the plants and trees requiring it, is extensively practised. Damascus may be quoted as a remarkable illustration. It is noted for the exuberance of its vegetable productions. In the vicinity of deserts, it appears as a flourishing garden. The rivers that with a full and flowing stream come down from the neighbouring mountains, on approaching the city, are conducted, by innumerable canals, into all the gardens, and, by smaller channels, almost to the root of every tree. The rivers are thus absorbed in the support of vegetable life, and beyond the city are scarcely seen. Frequent and various, but always as instructive as beautiful, is the use made of such practices in Scripture. As when, in a flourishing church, the members are described as springing up and growing like the herbage and trees supplied with abundance of water: "as willows by the water-courses." Generally, the influences of the Holy Spirit are thus symbolized. But not always so. This is the case in the first Psalm. A state of spiritual prosperity is thus described there :-" And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." Now, what is it that to the righteous man is, analogically, what the rivers of water are to the flourishing tree? First, the evidences of regeneration, and spiritual life, are stated: "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful." He has turned to God, and found mercy and grace. And this is indispensable. Food nourishes the living, but it gives no life to the dead. Perfect as may be the organization of a lifeless body, the stomach acts not on the food. Nor will the dead stick grow, though placed in the richest soil, and abundantly supplied with water. It must be a living tree. But, on the other hand, neither is life self-supported. Let the living tree have no water, and it will die. God must "rain righteousness upon it." And a sufficient supply of water must be afforded to the roots. And this is divine truth, received by the perusal of the word of God, and made our own by devout meditation. This is put beyond question by the explicit language of the Psalmist : "His delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night."

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It then follows: "He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water." Yes in holy Scripture flows the river of the water of life, proceeding from the throne of God and the Lamb. It is by "preaching the word" that Ministers are to "feed the church of God." It is by drawing water from this full stream, and conducting it, as it were, to the very feeding-roots of our inmost soul, that we are to maintain spiritual life, and supply matter for all that it is required to produce. Holiness, in general, is the combination of spiritual life and divine truth. And holiness, in all its minute details, is the combination of the same life with the minute details of truth. If, therefore, we are not faithful here, the result will as surely be declension and weakness, as prosperity will be secured by faithfulness. Where we see the tree to whose roots the water has been conducted sparingly, and with intervals of neglect, its very appearance will exhibit the negligence of which we have been guilty. Here again, therefore, spiritual strength is our duty, as resulting from the enjoined use of a provision made for us by the wisdom and bounty of God.

(3.) Loss of strength may result from the admission into the system of something deleterious, and even destructive. As we may be nourished by food, we may be destroyed by poison. And so it is in religion. If in this a principle of life, implanted by the Holy Spirit, is supposed, yet its seat is in the soul, and its operations are all in accordance with our mental constitution. It is therefore, instrumentally, maintained by truth; it is weakened by error; it is destroyed by falsehood. From this great law of the divine life arises the importance which the Apostle, in writing to the Galatians, attributes to the purity of the Gospel. The Galatians had imbibed certain erroneous principles on the vital subject of justification. And in the epistle addressed to them we see the consequences. They had fallen from grace. They had again become entangled in the yoke of bondage from which Christ had set them free. The principles of corrupt nature were regaining their former power, and the principles of the new life had become comparatively weak. The Apostle had to say to them, in reference to this state of declension, (for it is only to this that his language is applicable,) "The flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh, so that ye cannot do the things that ye would." Such is the poisonous nature of false principles. How can they, for instance, who doubt whether Christ be truly the Son of God, trust in his atonement? Or if they doubt whether the Spirit is a divine person, how can they look for his indwelling agency and sanctifying energy? If they place the essence of religion in the form, apostasy from the power must follow. What is full-grown Popery but the development of the poisonous tendency of the errors respecting justification so early admitted into the church? And there is another poisonous leaven, influencing the heart, more than the judgment; the indulgence of dispositions and affections contrary to the real nature of the inward life, hid with Christ in God. There is earthliness, opposed to the purity of that life; self-will, in opposition to its submissiveness; selfcomplacency, in opposition to its lowliness; self-seeking, in opposition to its generosity; coldness, in opposition to its Christ-like tenderness and sympathy; anger and resentment, in opposition to its charity. It is impossible to admit these tempers without weakening the soul. Therefore St. Peter enjoins, in strict accordance with the analogy on which we are remarking, that we not only seek proper food, but carefully guard against poison. Not only must we "desire the sincere milk of the word," but "lay aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil