to abandon the post which he is occupying and to go somewhere else. The reluctance which some congregations of our own denomination discover to being occasionally deprived of the services of their pastor to break to a destitute and famishing flock the bread of life, with which themselves, perhaps, have been fed from sabbath to sabbath till they are surfeited, is an evil of no uncommon occurrence, and merits a severe reprehension.

V. The next particular which we are to notice, is, the duties which the Apostles were to perform.

Of these, preaching, as it is the most important, is the principal that is expressed, while there are others that are obviously implied, in the concise terms in which their instructions are necessarily couched. And as ye go, preach, saying the kingdom of heaven is at hand ;—that is, say, that the period for setting up the gospel dispensation is near. That these terms admitted of great latitude in their interpretation, and that the Apostles did not consider themselves as bound to adhere to their literal signification, is evident from the fact that when they went forth they preached every where that men should repent.

The term "preach" was originally employed to describe the office of a public crier, and in its appropriation to the ministers of the gospel, denotes the earnestness and energy which should accompany the delivery of their message. They were to cry aloud-to spare not, and to lift up their voice like a trumpet. It may not be in the power of every preacher to speak in a loud tone of voice. Nor is vociferation either necessary or proper. But it is in the power of every preacher-and this is demanded of him to evince by his manner, that he is in sol

emn earnest, and zealous for the Lord of Hosts. If he take for his models-as he should do-the primitive preachers of christianity, in his address he will be bold, plain, natural, affectionate and solemn.By boldness, I do not mean that he will be assuming or self-confident; but divested of the fear of man which bringeth a snare, and impressed with an absorbing consciousness that he stands as "the Legate of the skies," to propose from the King Eternal the conditions on which he will be reconciled to his revolted subjects. By plainness, I do not mean that he will be harsh, or abrupt and offensive; but pointed, discriminating, and intelligible. A studied attempt to excite the irascible feelings of men, and to court opposition, as is sometimes done by presenting the truth in a rough and repulsive garb, is one of the worst of ministerial miscarriages, and is a proof of folly instead of faithfulness. When I add, that, in his address, the preacher should be natural, affectionate, and solemn, I mean that in his action and intonations he should follow the promptings of nature-should be free from affectation and rant— should be governed by a tender solicitude for the souls of his hearers,-and appear to be awed by a consciousness of the Divine presence. It has been said by an acute observer of human nature, that a tone in the performance of religious exercises is a mark of hypocrisy. But whether this observation be strictly correct or not, there can be little doubt that it is unfriendly to true devotion, disgusting to persons of judgment and taste, and indicative at least of a deficiency in deep and powerful feeling of any kind. An individual in pleading for his life, would as soon fall into a sleep as into a tuneful monotony.

Therefore avaunt all attitude, and stare,
And start theatric, practis'd at the glass!
I seek divine simplicity in him,

Who handles things divine; and all besides,
Though learn'd with labour, and though much admir'd
By curious eyes and judgments ill-inform'd,

To me is odious as the nasal twang
Heard at conventicle, where worthy men,
Misled by custom, strain celestial themes

Through the press'd nostril, spectacle-bestrid.

Of the subjects of preaching, which are numerous and important, the plan which we have proposed to pursue will permit us to take but a cursory view. They consist of the doctrines which are to be explained, and the precepts of divine revelation which are to be enforced. Of the former, the most essential are those which relate to the existence, the attributes, and the purposes of God-the mode of the Divine subsistence, and the distinct Personality, and perfect Divinity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost-the guilty and helpless condition of man -the method of his recovery by the atonement of Christ-the nature and necessity of regeneration, repentance, and faith-the progressive sanctification and final perseverance of all true believers-the inspiration of the Scriptures-the immortality of the soul-the resurrection of the dead, and the certainty and solemnity of a future judgment, when the wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment, and the righteous into life eternal. To each of these doctrines their appropriate place is to be assigned. All are to receive a distinct recognition, and no one is to be dwelt on to the exclusion of the rest. With the whole of these, the perceptive parts of divine revelation are to be intermingled; and every doctrinal illustration should be made subservient to some im

portant practical purpose, that the word of God may be rightly divided. The grand aim of the preacher should be, to make men holier as well as wiser-to make them do better as well as feel happier. To accomplish this desirable object, care must be taken that he be correct in his representations of the character of God, whom he must exhibit not as an austere tyrant, who is to be dreaded, but as a kind and compassionate Father, who is to be loved. The sacrifice of Christ, as the constraining motive to obedience, must be uppermost in his ministrations, and form the foundation for every thing that is desirable in the character and conduct of men.

In opposition to a latitudinarian spirit on the one hand, which annihilates all distinctions between truth and error, and is ready to hold communion with every thing but orthodoxy, and against sectarian bigotry and intolerance on the other, he is to bear a decided testimony;-while of the hurtful extremes of formality and fanaticism, into both of which there is a powerful propensity in human nature to run, he must admonish his hearers to beware-apprising them that the sacrifice which God demands of them, is a rational as well as a living one.

On the distinguishing evidences of grace and its counterfeits, he must frequently insist, and be clear in discriminating the one from the other-proposing, at the same time, as the only sure test of a gracious condition, a life of obedience to the commandments of Christ. By their fruits shall ye know them. In a word, the aim of the preacher should be, to make christians intelligent, liberal, benevolent, and active. The religion, which consists altogether in talking and merė flashes of feeling, he should teach them is worth no

thing. To "be pure and undefiled before God and the Father," it must be willing to make sacrifices for Christ. It must fall in with the benevolent operations of the day, and do something to help them forward. I have often been surprised, that covetousness, which the apostle calls idolatry, has never been made a disciplinable offence in members of churches. The notorious miser should no more be allowed to sit at the communion table, than he who should bow down to his god in "the house of Rimmon." This is a sore evil; indeed, it is the root of all evil,-is the besetting sin of professing christians,—and impedes, more than all other causes combined, the conversion of the world. Perhaps, however, there is a neglect of discipline in this particular, because each is so much convicted of guilt in his own conscience, that there is a general reluctance at casting the first stone.

For all his religious opinions and practices, it is obvious to remark, that the preacher must be able to adduce a-Thus saith the Lord,-and to show their accordance with the declarations of the Bible. We live at too late a period of the world for discoveries in theology. The canon of scripture has long since been closed-is without deficiency or redundancy-is a sufficient and infallible directory for our faith and practice ;-and, therefore, if men have superior endowments, they must display them in some other way than by attempting to improve on the system of faith which is disclosed in the scriptures; for an inspired Apostle has declared, that though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. All, then, that superior abilities can do, to impart interest to religious discourses, is,