Subscriptions and Donations will be thankfully received by Messrs. Williams, Deacon, and Co., Birchin-lane; Messrs. Herries, Farquhar, and Co., St. James's-street; Messrs. Hoares and Son, 37, Fleet-street; Messrs. Hatchard and Son, 187, Piccadilly; Messrs. J. Nisbet and Co., 21, Berners-street; Messrs. Seeleys, 169, Fleet-street; Mr. W. H. Dalton, 28, Cockspur-street, Charing-cross; Messrs. Rivingtons, St. Paul's Church-yard; Mr. Suter, 19, Cheapside; Mr. Shaw, 27, Southampton-row, Russell-square; Messrs. Forbes and Jackson, Islington-green; and at the Office of the Association, No. 2, Exeter Hall, Strand.

THE

ANNIVERSARY SERMON

PREACHED

AT SAINT CLEMENT DANES CHURCH, STRAND,

MAY 10, 1839.

BY THE

REV. HUGH M'NEILE, M.A.;

MINISTER OF ST. JUDE'S, LIVERPOOL.

D

SERMON.

HABAKKUK II. 4.

Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.

WHEN we enter into our closets and shut to the door, and commune with our own hearts and are still—when, rising from personal considerations only, we contemplate the providential position in which we are relatively placed, including our families, our friends, our Church, our country-we need then the calm and comprehensive teaching of the Spirit of wisdom, in order that we may see truly the will of God concerning us. We see, in taking such a view, first the professing Church of God fostering and perpetuating abuses, which grieve the heart of every sincere believerand under such relative circumstances, that any exposure of those abuses, or even any faithful remonstrance against their continuance, becomes a source of strife and contention. We see the enemies of the truth and people of God prospering, devising mischief against God's Church, against his Word, and the ordinances commanded in that Word; we see them succeeding in inflicting serious damage and continuing to

prosper in their ungodly course. We see a few faithful servants of God mourning over the state of things, sighing and crying for the abominations that are done by the world and connived at by the Church, acknowledging that correction is required, and at the same time expressing their astonishment at the long-suffering of God, who bears with the wicked and employs the wicked to be His instruments for correction against men who are better than they.

Now in such a state of things, where can the Christianwhere can the Christian minister-find inspired instruction for his own guidance? Is such instruction supplied him in Holy Scripture? Not in the New Testament. The details of suitable instruction for such circumstances are not to be found in the New Testament for this simple reason, that during the period of the New Testament history the Church of Christ wears the aspect of a mission among the heathen, persecuted indeed by the world on account of its holiness, but not corrected and disciplined by God on account of its corruption; and therefore the infant history of the Church, as contained in the New Testament, does not and cannot supply adequate detailed instruction for circumstances such as I have supposed, circumstances such as we actually find ourselves placed in. Is there, then, no inspired instruction suited to such circumstances in detail? Yes; in the New Testament we are referred to the Old. We are told there, that "whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures" (referring to what then constituted "the Scriptures," to wit, the Old Testament,)" that we through patience and comfort of those Scriptures might have hope." And more particularly we are expressly referred to the history of the Jews, which is said to have been written "as an ensample for our admonition and instruction, upon whom the ends of the world are come.”

Referring then, to the history of the Jews, we find parallel