sion, or does it involve a progress and a growth? Is the Christian stereotyped at the moment of the new birth? and does he pass on through a life which is dead level, or does he grow and travel in a path which leads upward where the light is clearer, the atmosphere purer-nearer heaven and nearer God?

To this question the Bible returns no unequivocal answer. It represents the life of the Christian as anything but stereotyped, and the on same plane with the point of his departure. Though he sometimes falls into sin, and sometimes backslides from a point to which he had previously attained, yet, on the whole, his strength increases, and his progress is upwards. Having clean hands, he grows stronger and stronger; and being just, his path shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

In the New Testament, this feature of the saints' perseverance is frequently taught in the clearest form. The Christian is at first a babe in Christ, from which he grows to a perfect man in Christ. His religious life is symbolized by the figure of a mustard-seed growing to a tree; of leaven leavening the whole lump; of grain in the progress of growth: "first the blade, then the ear, afterwards the full corn in the ear."

The figure of a warfare, too, under which his life is represented, and in which he is the habitual victor, includes the idea of progress; just as though he conquered one foe, and then passed on to attack another; subdued one sin or evil passion, and then addressed his efforts to another; and so prosecuted his course, growing in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, until he arrives home in glory.

Thus I have endeavored to educe from the Scriptures their teaching on the subject of the perseverance of the saints. Though possessing free will, and the power to apostatize, they will-for God promises that they shall-persevere in holiness-- a holiness increasing, on the whole, to the end of life--and ultimately enter into glory.

What God knows will occur, and what he hence promises shall occur, I now remark, he knows and promises as depending upon foreseen agency or instrumentality. The saints' perseverance has such a dependence as this. God foresees and appoints it. Do the Scriptures teach us any thing in relation to this dependence?

Most clearly they do; and we turn for a moment to what may be styled the saints' preservation. Though they persevere, it is by virtue of their preservation. They are kept; they do not keep themselves alone: "Kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation."

This power of God, it is evident from the nature of the case, is not the same as that by which the worlds were made, and by which the stars are kept in the heavens. It is the power

it the sense to select or determine upon, the Calvinistic election of grace, and the chain in either case remains alike unbroken. Whom God knew would repent and believe, or whom he loved from a foresight of goodness or otherwise, or whom he selected of his own good will as the subjects of regeneration, them he predestinated to a conformity to the image of his Son, [to be holy.] Moreover, whom he did predestinate, [to be holy,] them he also called; and whom he called, them he also justified; and whom he justified, them he also glorified.

And then, in view of this chain of grace, joining every true believer to glory, the fervid apostle kindles into exultation, and triumphantly exclaims, as if in defiance of all the enemies of the Church of God, "If God be for us, who can be against us? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? . Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors, through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Perfectly confident was the apostle that He who began a good work in Christians would perform (finish) it; and that the gifts and calling of God are without repentance-not abandoned.

And how childish and short-sighted is the answer so often made to the above triumphant passage of the apostle, that this is all conditional; none of these things can separate a Christian from the love of God unless he yields to them? Indeed! and who ever supposed they could? Is there any other way for a Christian to fall than by yielding to evil? Does the objector think this passage means that no creature is stronger than God, and that all this triumphing of the apostle is a mere flourish of trumpets over the fact that no creature of earth or hell can make effectual war upon the Almighty, and tear away an obedient child from his arms? If this is not what he thinks, then he is entertaining himself with a mere truism, which, of course, nobody denies : nothing can ruin the child of God unless he yields. And this is the precise point to which the whole passage relates. As there is no other way to pluck a child from His hands but by inducing apostacy, it is over the want of power in all the enemies of the Christian to effect this that the apostle triumphs so exultingly. His assuranc was, and ours is, that all the wisdom, wonders, temptations, lies, allurements, and enchantments of men and devils, cannot cause a Christian to apostatize from his God!

Another inquiry: Does the perseverance of the saints, thus revealed, thus promised, and hence sure, consist in simply retaining the grace and obedience possessed immediately on conver

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2. The true doctrine of the perseverance of the saints makes the final salvation of the Christian certain. It insures the performance of the condition upon which that salvation is based; it says that he shall hold on his way, and wax stronger and stronger. It puts into the mouth of the Church, in relation to all apostates, They went out from us, because they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us." Christ says that he knows his sheep. This doctrine claims that at the last day he shall truly say to every opostate, with how many tongues soever he may have spoken; with whatever gifts of prophecy, of knowledge, or of faith, he may have been endowed; whatever goods he may have given to the poor; however clean he may have been washed from the pollutions of the world; how often soever he may have eaten and drunk at his table, "I never knew you; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity."

A conditional salvation, and a certain one, both harmonize in this doctrine, because the performance of the condition is certain also.

3. The true doctrine of the perseverance of the saints demands the diligent use of all the means of promoting the divine life. The Christian cannot say, "If I am to persevere, I shall persevere, let me do as I will." The doctrine is, that he wills to persevere; and to say that he will persevere, if he wills not to, is to deny the doctrine. The certainty of a thing by no means tends to relax effort for its attainment, especially when efforts are appointed and ordained to the end. What general ever doubted that his soldiers would fight more bravely, if he could inspire them with the assurance of victory? What teacher ever doubted that his pupils would be more diligent, if he could make them certain of getting their lessons? Paul did not allow the assurance he had of his own salvation to prevent his keeping his body under; he did not allow the pledge he had that he should see Rome, to prevent his seeking the protection of the Roman centurion, that he might not be put to death by the forty Jews who had bound themselves under a curse that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed him. And when he was sailing to Rome, he did not allow the certainty, not only that his own life should be preserved from the perils of the deep, but also the lives of all those who sailed with him, and which certainty he had already proclaimed to them, to prevent his saying, when the seamen were preparing to leave the ship, "Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved."

Anything may be certain and yet conditional, the performance of the condition being certain also. And the certainty of the perseverance of the saints in a growing Christian life, involves their willingness, and watchfulness and prayer; their study of the Holy Scriptures, their crucifying the flesh, with its affections and

lusts. These, together with the Redeemer's intercessions and the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, ever sustain their foreseen and appointed connection with the perseverance of the saints.

So the real tendency of this doctrine upon a mind rightly disposed is to prompt it to an undivided effort to realize the certainty foretold. As to the wicked and the self-deceived, they may abuse it to their injury and undoing, as they do even the long-suffering of God.

4. This doctrine claims that all true Christians have been given to Christ; that they were chosen to salvation, through sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth; that they compose a redeemed fold, gathered from all nations, and kindreds, and tongues, freely following the Great Shepherd; and that none of them shall be finally lost.

But did not Christ say to the Father, some one may reply, "Those whom thou hast given me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition," implying that he had lost one who had been given him?

This passage is easily explained by a reference to similar ones, and to a prevalent principle of language: "Many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias," says Christ, "but to none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, to a woman that was a widow," That is, he was not sent to a widow in Israel, but to a widow in Sidon. And, "There were many lepers in Israel in the time of Eliseus, the prophet, but none of them were cleansed, save Naaman, the Syrian." That is, no Israelite was cleansed; but Naaman, the Syrian, was cleansed. So precisely in this passage: "None that thou gavest me is lost; but the son of perdition" is lost. The avaricious apostle, "a devil,” the betrayer, chosen for wise reasons to be a witness to his works and his innocence, never a Christian-he is lost. He fell from the apostleship, that he " might go to his own place."

It is one of the principles of this doctrine, that the Church is sifted, at least in part, of her hypocrites, and unregenerated members, by the temptations, and trials, and heresies with which they are assailed. Not having root in themselves, as the Saviour teaches in the parable of the sower, they endure but for a while; the cares of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and tribulation or persecution arising, they fall. And "there must be also," the apostle says, heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest."

This doctrine teaches that the true Christian will be kept from fatal heresy as well as fatal crime; and, according to it, the belief of doctrine which subvert the gospel, as decisively reveals an enemy of the cross, as does the practice of iniqui ty a man unwashed from his sins.

5. The true doctrine of the perseverance of the saints has

a place in it for promises, warnings, and to exhortations to comtinuance in well doing. This should be ever held in remembrance by the religious teacher. It includes and demands the ministry and the ordinances of the Church. The Christian is to be trained up from a spiritual babe to a spiritual man. Every moment he carries with him ability to step aside and seal his ruin! Nay, if left to himself, he will certainly do it. In these instrumentalities and agencies, which are of God, is lodged a measure of the power by which he keeps his saints; and he sets them forth as ordained to the end. They tend to the Christian's preservation. The minister of Christ, having all confidence, in the piety of his church, may address them, after the example of Paul, as "holy brethren" and "partakers of the heavenly calling;' and then point them to the Hebrews who rebelled in the wilderness, and fell short of the promised land; and solemnly warn them against sin, and exhort them to watchfulness, lest they fall in the way and come short of the promised rest. No doctrine of the perseverance of the saints inconsistent with this is of God.

Finally, I remark-This doctrine makes perseverance in an increasing holiness an essential attribute of the Christian character. He, therefore, in whom it is not found, whatever may have been his past experience or his present standing, can have no certain ground of belief that he is a member of the family of Christ. The backslider can have no such ground until he returns to his God, and sees himself living in a new and increasing obedience.

On the other hand, my brethren, of this doctrine this is the consolation just so far as any one of you has the assurance that perseverance in an increasing holiness is an attribute of your character, just so far you may have the assurance of your own final salvation God has joined the two together. Weak as you are in yourselves, conscious as you may be of your own hearts instability, the subject of earth's and hell's machination, yet in God is your strength.. He knoweth how to deliver you. Though trembling and fearful you may make your way over the storm-field of earth, you shall not be tempted above what you are able to bear. You have already passed the line between death and life here you are safe; hereafter you shall triumph.