against you, despair not on that account of ultimate success. The seed, although you suspect it not, may be springing in the heart; Christ, although you see Him not, may have gained an entrance there; the prodigal may return, while you are yet living to receive him. Or else, after the lapse of years, when your eyes are closed in their last long sleep, the voice of penitence may reach your ears in the far-off land of spirits. So "the bread you cast upon the waters will be found by you after many days." Behold these children of our love, Who love not Thee, nor tread Thy ways; Vast is their peril, deep their sin; Oh should they perish, and our sons Not for their sake, nor yet our own, The_Twenty-second Sunday after Trinity. THE COLLECT. LORD, we beseech Thee to keep Thy household the Church in continual godliness; that through Thy protection it may be free from all adversities, and devoutly given to serve Thee in good works, to the glory of Thy name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. THE EPISTLE. "Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ."— PHIL. i. 6. HIS is a comforting reflection: the pledge that He THIS will finish is that He has begun the work; and the reasoning is just, for what man "intending to build a tower," as our Saviour said, "sitteth not down first and U counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it, lest haply after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it, begin to mock him, saying, This man began to build and was not able to finish." Again, when the Lord was about to extirpate the rebellious Israelites in the wilderness, the intercession of Moses prevailed, "lest the land whence thou broughtest us out say, Because the Lord was not able to bring them into the land which He promised them. . . . He hath brought them out to slay them in the wilderness." (Deut. ix. 28.) The tradesman who has set his hands to a work will not feel easy till his work is done, and well done; for he cannot bear that an indifferent article should come from under his hands. Now we are "God's workmanship, created for good works." He saw the dry bones lying still and bloodless. He that fixed the mainspring, will He not add the wheels? He that quickened us when dead in trespasses, will He not nourish us, babes in grace, with the sincere milk of His word? O Christian! whatever may be your views upon the mysterious doctrines of grace and election, be assured at least of this much, that upon the supposition of God's having "begun a good work in you," it must be your own fault if He does not eventually crown it with perfection, and "perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." "Then came Peter to THE GOSPEL. Him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my and I forgive him? till seven times? brother sin against me, Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants," &c.-MATT. xviii. 21-23. THE application of the parable is obvious, that they who expect to be forgiven the greater debt which they have incurred against the law of God, must consistently forgive the smaller trespasses which have been committed by their fellow men against them. But we may develope the reflection by adding, that as every day the truly sincere Christian will find something, if not in his actions, yet in the quality and temper of his heart, to reprove himself with, so these daily experiences of infirmity should form daily motives to a daily forbearance towards our brethren. And as our daily walk will furnish us with arguments for forgiveness, so the daily walk of our neighbour will generally try us with some trifle, at least, to forgive. "Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us." If this passage, as has been said, reminds us, that we ourselves shall as regularly require sins to be forgiven by God, as e shall require meals to be supplied, does it not equally teach us that we may expect trespasses by others as frequently to be repeated against ourselves? Let then our own daily falls not only increase our daily humility, but our daily compassion to our brethren. God is constantly bestowing Countless blessings on our head; Hopes from Him, our hearts expanding Hear Him cry with voice commanding, Shall we anger's deep defilement As we hope for God's salvation, May we feel the obligation, |