crop in his field than has the spiritual sower; for they both equally depend on the blessing of Him who sendeth down the early and the latter rain, and who alone giveth the increase. Again, like him, the minister knows beforehand the kind of fruit to be produced from the character of the seed. If wheat, he expects not barley. If he has sown the threatenings, he knows there will be a moving with fear, such as Noah felt when he prepared the ark. If promises, hope; if eternal glory, holiness; for "He who hath this hope purifieth himself, even as he is pure." Again, this seed is incorruptible : "Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world." He that receives it "hath everlasting life."

The sower is the preacher. Preaching is a religious ordinance. The minister's business is to sow, not to "lord it over God's heritage." He is but a husbandman!-your servants!!-He sows beside all waters; "in the morning casts abroad his seed, and in the evening withholds not his hand." He is the bearer of the seed-basket; he has nothing but what he has received. O! to sow from one well filled, shaken together, running over! It is hard work to preach without the heavenly seed. Many, for want of this, have filled the basket with chaff; and the people are hungering before him, and with anxious eye desiring to be fed!-fills their belly with husks and others, for want of seed, have filled their baskets with tares and darnel, and are desolating the garden of the Church with noxious weeds! O! these scatterers of firebrands, arrows, and death!

And yet how often is the faithful pastor after God's own heart seen to go forth weeping, though bearing precious seed! How often to adopt the inscription on Fletcher's tombstone!* How is this! that with good seed and a faithful sower there is so great a disparity between the seed sown and the produce? Our parable informs us that it arises from the different states of the hearers. We may divide these into four classes.

I. Careless hearers.

"Some seed fell by the wayside, and the fowls came and devoured it." However, they are "hearers"-so far it is good-better than they who never attend God's house. We do not tell you to stay away; oh no! we are sent to you, not to the righteous; we want the sick in the hospital. But,

1. They are only occasional hearers not regular in their attendance. Perhaps they are attracted by a new or favourite preacher, or they are in a strange place, and want to see the church as a public edifice; to "see what manner of stones, and what buildings are there!" or they are at a friend's house, and they go out of courtesy to him.

2. Again, they are unprepared hearers" by the wayside." Their minds are unploughed thoroughfares; thoughts pass up and down them all the time in quick succession, and they seldom hear a word, though the voice of the preacher still sounds in their ears. If aroused by an emphasis, they see not the reason of it; and if the conclusion of an argument strike them, they cannot judge of its propriety, for they have not followed the train of reasoning. Satan, with his hellish host, hovers up and down like the fowls of the air, and picks up and devours the fallen seed. Thus the mind is the devil's thoroughfare; he has ingress, egress, and progress as he pleases; for whoever else may or may not be at church, Satan is there. When "the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, Satan came also among them."

Luke says, "The devil cometh, and taketh away the word out of their heart, lest they should believe and be saved." This he does in two ways: First, by diverting their attention-they understand, they consider not; like "the eyes of the fool, their thoughts are in the ends of the earth:" the least thing diverts their attention as a child from his task -the flitting of a bird

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Secondly, by preventing their remembrance-catching away what was sown on their hearts. When they leave the church, all is forgotten, even the text; then they complain that they have bad memories!

* * * Every sermon is the savour of life or death. O hear, that your souls may live! Come prepared, and be regular in your attendance. We will yet pray for you; but "who hath bewitched you?" Do you believe that we are acting a part that we feel not? or that we are honest men ? If so, are ye wise men? Every sermon either softens or hardens. O that you would consider! (Newton's anecdote of the ungodly son.)

II. Superficial hearers.

These are much better than the former; they have advanced considerably.

1. They are in general persons of good understandings; they know how to appreciate the preacher's arrangement. It is pleasing to us to address such. To such we have no need to explain at every sentence. We feel that we are understood, and we go forward boldly. Meanwhile, their intellect is delighted, they are pleased and charmed with what they hear. Possessing fine sensibilities also, they are easily affected; they weep under the word, and would fain join the daughters of Jerusalem. But they would feel the same under a play, or at hearing a tale of fiction, &c., &c. But the conscience! Ay, that is untouched-there is no individual application to themselves. Talk of criminality, and they take up the Newgate Calendar.- (H. More.)

Now these "withered away!" The reason of this was, 1. An inward defect-the rock was under, and had never been broken up. "They had no depth of earth," and thus they lacked moisture. 2. Outward circumstances were perhaps unfavourable. They had not the benefit of church communion, or of those who, like Jonah's gourd, might have screened their naked heads. The sun rose and "they were scorched:" temptation came, and they stumbled; the reproach of Christ.

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*** We admire your understandings, and if eternity were not connected with our discourses, we should be perfectly satisfied-our point would be gained. We admire your sensibilities we could weep with you. We have wept over you in secret, and oh! how often have our expectations been raised when we have seen the effect produced upon you. But religion must enter your hearts deeper than this! "Break up the fallow ground!" Cry unto God to do it for you.*

III. Worldly-minded persons.

"And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them." These are superior to the two former classes. Perhaps they are the greater portion in the church of God, for the text gives us reason to infer their membership. This class is not confined to one grade in society. "The cares of this world" are not confined to the poor, nor the love of "riches" to the rich and oh! the danger of those that "will be rich!"-The seed has taken deep root; we have seen the grace of God in you! But the poor became "careful about many things," and others could not bear prosperity, and thus these "thorns" have overtopped the good seed. It is now pale, yellow, jaundiced, sickly, and ready to perish, and bears no fruit to perfection!

* The love of God is a tender plant! it must not be shut out from the sun. "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world; for all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof; but he that doeth the will of God [and he only] abideth forever." "Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God?" (Fletcher.)-Oh! what a blight has come over you-(Wolsey) and that when he thinks his prospects are ripening. Oh! how have we anticipated the ripe fruit in the ear!- Vain!

IV. Good and honest hearts.

"But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some a hundred-fold, some sixty-fold, some thirty-fold." Thank God, we have some reward then! These are prepared, regular, fruitful-they are planted in the house of God, and hence fat and flourishing in old age-evergreens -bearing fruit every month.

Application. See that you make up the deficit of the ungodly-bear fruit, thirty-fold, sixty-fold, a hundred-fold! While others blaspheme, do you hallow; while they defame, do you entreat; when they curse, do you bless : "Be filled with the fruits of righteousness." -The reapers, the angels, are at hand!

Finally. One reflection connected with the subject is truly awful, that three parts out of four of the seed goes to waste! Good seed too! the fault is not there. Is it in God? "Lord, pardon me the question!" Is it in the sower ? "Lord, lay not this sin to my charge!" Is it in the hearers then? Oh! I am sick at heart! That three out of four in this assembly may receive the seed in vain! Oh! fearful! Let every man put the question to himself, "Lord, is it I?"

But oh! at the harvest, the end of the world! Shall three out of four in this assembly perish? Lord, who is it? "Lord, are there few that be saved ?"

SERMON XXX.

CHRISTIAN PERFECTION.

Hebrews, vi., 1.-Therefore, leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection.

PAUL'S style is parenthetical. In the preceding chapter he had been giving a luminous view of the priesthood of Christ, and that in the highest point of comparison possible: the Melchisedaical. But, as if feeling the incompetence of his hearers, he is struck off from his purpose in the eleventh verse of fifth chapter, and through the remainder of that as well as of sixth chapter he follows the train of thought induced, and resumes his plan only in the beginning of seventh chapter: "For this Mel