selves, and the same moral and intellectual powers-that they relish the same pleasures and enjoyments, possess the same feelings, and are subjected to the same wants and afflictions-that they are involved in the same general depravity, and liable to the same temptations and disasters-that they are journeying along with us to the tomb, and that our dust must soon mingle with theirs-when we consider the numerous relations in which we stand to our brethren around us, and to all the inhabitants of the globe-our dependence upon all ranks and descriptions of men, and upon almost every nation under heaven for our sensitive and intellectual enjoymentsand that thousands of them are traversing sea and land, and exposing themselves to innumerable dangers, in order to sup. ply us with the comforts and the luxuries of life when we consider, that they are all destined to an immortal existence, and shall survive the dissolution of this globe, and bear a part in the solemn scenes which shall open to view when time shall be no more-in short, when we consider, that the great Father of all, without respect of persons, makes the same vital air to give play to their lungs, the same water to cleanse and refresh them, the same rains and dews to fructify their fields, the same sun to enlighten their day, and the same moon to cheer the darkness of their night-we must be con vinced, that love to our brethren of mankind is the law of the Creator, and the most rational and amiable affection that can animate the human heart in relation to subordinate intel. ligences. He who is destitute of this affection is a pest in society, a rebel and a nuisance in the kingdom of God, and, of course, unqualified for the enjoyment of celestial bliss."For he who hateth his brother is a murderer; and we know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.”*

But, our love is not to be confined to our brethren of the race of Adam. It must take a loftier flight, and comprehend within its expansive grasp, all the holy intelligences in the universe, in so far as their nature and qualities have been made known to us. We must love the angelic tribes. They are beings who stand near the summit of the scale of intellectual existence; they are endowed with faculties superior to man; they dwell in the glorious presence of God, and are employed as his ministers in superintending the affairs of his government. They are possessed of wonderful activity, invested with powers of rapid motion, and flourish in immortal

* 1 John. iii. 15.

youth. They are adorned with consummate holiness and rectitude, and with peculiar loveliness of character. Pride and vanity, envy and malice, wrath and revenge, never rankle in their breasts. They never indulge in impiety, never insult the Redeemer, nor bring a railing accusation against their brethren. They glow with an intense and immortal flame of love to their Creator; they are incessantly employ ed in acts of benevolence; they occasionally descend to our world on embassies of mercy, and are ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation. On all these accounts they demand our esteem, our approbation, and our affectionate regard. And, although they are at present placed beyond the reach of our beneficence, and we have no opportunity of expressing our benevolent wishes, yet we may afterward be joined to their society, and co-operate with them in their labours of love.

The indispensable necessity of love to mankind, and to every class of holy intelligences, as a preparation for heaven, will appear when we consider, that we shall mingle in their society, and hold intimate fellowship with them in the eternal world. For the inhabitants of our world who are admit. ted into heaven, are represented in Scripture, as joining "the general assembly and church of the first born, the spirits of just men made perfect, and the innumerable company of angels ;" and hence they are exhibited, in the book of Revelation, as joining with one heart and one mind in contemplating the divine operations, and in celebrating the praises of their common Lord. In the society of that blessed world, love pervades every bosom, it reigns for ever triumphant; and therefore, every exercise and intercourse is conducted with affection, harmony, and peace. Among the other evils which shall be banished from the New Jerusalem, it is de. clared in the book of Revelation, that “there shall be no more crying," or, as the word should be rendered, "there shall be no more clamour, broils, or contentions," arising from the operation of malignant principles. No jarring affection is ever felt, no malevolent wish is ever uttered, and no discordant voice is ever heard, among all the myriads of those exalted intelligences. Kindness and benignity, expansive benevolence, condescension and humility, are the characteristics of all the inhabitants of heaven. Without these qua. lities the celestial world would become a scene of eternal confusion, and happiness would be banished from its abodes. If, therefore, we would be qualified to associate with those

glorious beings, and to participate in their enjoyments, we must cultivate the same virtues, and be animated by similar dispositions, otherwise, we could experience no delight in the society of angels, and "spirits of the just made perfect." Were an individual whose heart is full of rancour and envy, who delights in broils and contentions, and in the exercise of revenge, to be admitted into that society, he would find no associates actuated by congenial feelings, he would disturb the harmony of the celestial choir, and would be instantly expelled, with every mark of indignation and horror, from those blessed abodes. "For what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? what communion hath light with darkness? and what concord hath Christ with Belial?" By a law which pervades the whole moral universe wherever it extends, which can never be rescinded, and which, like the law of gravitation in the material world, connects all the individuals of which it is composed in one harmonious system;—such characters must, of necessity, be for ever excluded from the mansions of the blessed. On the other hand, the man whose heart glows with love to his Creator, and with expansive affection to mankind, and towards all holy beings, is secured of eternal happiness, as the neces sary result of the possession of such divine principles; and must enjoy felicity, while such principles remain in exercise, during all the future periods of his existence, and in every region of the universe to which he may be transported.

3. Humility is another essential qualification for enjoying the felicity of the future world. There is nothing that appears more prominent in the character of the bulk of mankind, than pride, which displays itself in a thousand different modes in the intercourses of society. It is uniformly accompanied with haughtiness of demeanour, self-conceit, obstinacy, arrogance, and a whole train of malignant passions and affections. It is the pest of general society, the source of domestic broils and contentions, and the greatest curse that can fall on a Christian church, when it insinuates itself into the minds of those who "love to have the pre-eminence." It is a source of torment to its possessor, and to all around him; and of all the malignant passions which rankle in the human breast, it is the most inconsistent with the present character and condition of man. It is peculiar to fallen and depraved intelligences, for it is certain, from the very constitution of the moral system, that no emotions of pride or haughtiness are ever felt in the breasts angels, or any other

holy beings; because such affections are incompatible with the principle of love to God and to our fellow-creatures.

66

In opposition to this principle, which predominates in the minds of a fallen men, and apostate angels,-humility is a distinguishing characteristic of the sons of God, whether on earth or in heaven. Hence, we are told that "God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble,"-that even a proud look is an abomination in his sight," while he beholds with complacency "the humble and the contrite spirit." Hence, we are exhorted "to clothe ourselves with humility;" and "to forbear one another in all lowliness and meekness of mind, and to esteem others better than ourselves." Humility consists in a just sense of our character and condition, both as dependent beings and as apostate creatures, accompanied with a correspondent train of dispositions and affections. However much this disposition has been disrelished by Hume and other infidels, who consider it as both vicious and con. temptible,-when viewed in its true light, it appears congenial to the best feelings of our nature, and to the plainest deductions of reason.-When we consider our condition as creatures, dependent every moment on a Superior Being "for life, and breath, and all things," when we reflect on the curious organization of our corporeal frame, the thousands of veins, arteries, muscles, bones, lacteals, and lymphatics, which are interwoven through its constitution; the incessant pulsation of the heart in the centre of the system, and the numerous other functions and movements over which we have no control. When we reflect on our character as guilty and depraved creatures, in the presence of Him "who is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity;" and on the numerous diseases, pains, sorrows, and physical evils from the war of the elements, to which we are subjected,-when we consider, that, ere long, our bodies must crumble into dust, and become the prey of noisome reptiles; when we reflect on the low station in which we are placed in the scale of intelligent exist. ence that we are only like so many atoms, or microscopic animalculæ, when contrasted with the innumerable myriads of bright intelligences that people the empire of God-and that the globe on which we dwell is but as "the drop of a bucket," when compared with the millions of more resplen. dent worlds that roll through the vast spaces of creation ;and, in short, when we consider the grandeur of that Omnipotent Being whose presence pervades every region of im mensity, and in whose sight "all the inhabitants of the world,

are as grasshoppers, and are counted to him as less than nothing and vanity," there is no disposition that appears more conformable to the character and condition of man, than "lowliness of mind," and none more unreasonable and inconsistent with the rank and circumstances in which he is placed, than pride, haughtiness, and arrogance.

This amiable disposition forms a peculiar trait in the cha racter of angels and other pure intelligences. It is poor, puny, sinful man, alone, who dares to be proud and arrogant. It is that rebellious worm of the dust alone, (if we except the angels of darkness,) that looks down with supercilious contempt on his fellow-creatures, and attempts to exalt himself above the throne of God. No such affections are ever felt in the breasts of superior beings who have kept their first estate. In proportion to the enlarged capacity of their minds; in proportion to the expansive views they have acquired of the dominions of Jehovah, in proportion to the elevated conceptions they have attained of the character and attributes of their Creator, in a similar proportion are their minds inspired with humility, reverence, and lowly adoration. Having taken an extensive survey of the operations of Om. nipotence, having winged their way to numerous worlds, and beheld scenes of wisdom and benevolence, which the eye of man hath not yet seen, nor his imagination conceived, and having contemplated displays of intelligence and power, which are beyond the reach even of their own superior faculties to comprehend--they see themselves as finite and imperfect creatures, and even as it were fools,* in the presence of Him whose glory is ineffable, and whose ways are past finding out. Hence, they are represented as "covering their faces with their wings," in the presence of their Sove. reign ; and, in the Book of Revelation, they are exhibited as casting their crowns before the throne, and saying, "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory, and honour, and power."+ What a striking contrast does such a scene pre. sent to the haughty airs, and the arrogant conduct of the proud beings that dwell on this terrestrial ball, who are at the same time immersed in ignorance and folly, immorality and crime!

* In the book of Job, Eliphaz, when describing the perfections of the Almighty, declares, that "the heavens are not clean in his sight," and that even "his angels he chargeth with folly." Job iv. 18. xv. 15.

+ Isaiah vi. 2.

Rev. iv. 10, 11