not; in heaven the saints suffer no longer, there will be no need of patience there. You shall soon be with Christ, who will wipe all tears from your faces, and give you rest. "Blessed is the man that endureth temptation; for when he is tried he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love Him."

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The Twenty-first Sunday after Trinity.

EVENING SERVICE.-Second Lesson: Ephesians i.

Verses 22, 23.-" And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.”

THE contents of this epistle are extremely important, as they exhibit at once the whole substance of Gospel doctrines, and the various duties of the followers of Christ. The plan of Divine wisdom is here unveiled in respect to the constitution, the union, the extent, and the blessedness of the Church, composed of both Jews and Gentiles, perhaps more fully than in any other separate part of the sacred oracles. The love of God in predestinating, calling, and glorifying His people is here depicted in the most glowing terms; the work of the Spirit, enlightening, quickening, and sanctifying the saints, is painted in the brightest colours; the union of Christ with His Church, together with His authority over the Church, are exhibited in their fairest proportions; and the duty of Christians towards Father, Son, and Holy Ghost is described in the most forcible manner. The similes employed are striking and instructive, the inferences drawn are practical and useful, and the applications made are convincing and experimental. The epistle contains a whole body of divinity worthy of the study of the profoundest divine, and still simple enough to meet the comprehension of the weakest intellect. The commendation given to the whole Bible may be justly applied to this portion, "It contains depths in which elephants can wade, and shallows which lambs can ford."

Christ and His Church are represented as being perfectly adapted to each other. The former having chosen the latter, He has become to her all that she can desire, and has engaged

to furnish her with all that she can need. He has been given "to be the head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all."

Let us enquire, first, What is meant by the Church? secondly, the relative union which exists between Christ and the Church; and thirdly, the dignity conferred upon the Church by virtue of the union.

I. What is meant by the Church? There is much read and much said of the Church of God and the Church of Christ, but we may not all be perfectly clear in our notions respecting the real constitution of the Church.

To explain this we may remark,

1. Negatively, that the Church does not consist in a building compiled of physical materials such as stones, and bricks, and mortar, and timber. There may be a Church without any of those things. There was a Church in Eden, there was a Church in the ark of Noah, there was a Church on the plains of Mamre, there was a Church at Bethel, there was a Church in Egypt, there was a Church in the wilderness, there was a Church in Jerusalem before the Temple was built, there was a Church in Babylon after the Temple was destroyed, there was a Church on Mount Tabor, and on Mount Olives, and on Mount Calvary, there was a Church in the "upper-room," there was a Church going from house to house in the time of the apostles, and there is still a Church wherever two or three are met together in the name of Christ. It matters not whether it be on the mountain top, or in the desert, in a closet, or in a field; the Church exists independently of the building. Neither does a class of men invested with official authority compose the Church; the bishops and the clergy are merely officers constituted for the good order and right discipline of the Church; as to themselves, whatever be their grades, they form but a fractional part of the Church. Nor does the Church consist of any denominational section formed by men. There are many of these, such as the Greek Church, the Roman Church, the English Church, &c., with all their

divisions occasioned by the weakness of man's judgment. Our prejudices bias us in favour of the one or the other, and we think that ours is the only true Church to the exclusion of all others. We are impressed that we are right and all others must be wrong; but the fact is we are all right and we are all wrong; we are all right so far as we rest upon Christ as the only foundation of our hopes, and we are all wrong so far as we substitute any thing else for Christ; therefore, whatever section you may think proper to join (and you are very much influenced by circumstances), never imagine that yours is the Church. If you and I shall be honoured with the inestimable privilege of entering heaven we may expect to meet there some from among the various sections of Christians by whatever name they may be distinguished upon earth. Thousands from the Greek Church, and the Roman Church, and the Protestant Church; whether they be Episcopalians, or Presbyterians, or Methodists, or Baptists, or Independents, will surround the throne of God, and join without a discord in that never-ending anthem, "Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father, to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever, Amen.' The reason of our discord upon earth is our ignorance of each other's real character; if we knew each other better, there would exist a greater union in serving our common Master. Then

2. We may observe positively that the Church of Christ is a number of people who renounce the sin and wickedness of the world, and believe in Christ, resting their souls solely upon Him for salvation. It may be remarked for the information of those who have not had the opportunity of knowing that the original Greek word for church means being called from, signifying that those who compose it have been called from among the wicked world, and have been consecrated to the service of the Lord Jesus Christ. This calling consists of two parts, the one being formal, the other effectual; by the former we are made members of Christ's visible Church, by the latter we are made members of His invisible or mystical

Church. The one is the membership of water baptism, the other is the membership of the Spirit. Our Saviour speaking of the new birth in His conversation with Nicodemus, said, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." To be born of water is to be made a member of the visible Church by the sacrament of baptism, and this I understand to be the meaning of the word regenerate in our Prayer-book, so that all who are thus baptized are members incorporate of the outward or visible Church of Christ, but "all are not Israel who are of Israel." The kingdom of God cometh not by observation; it is "within you." There must be also a birth of the Spirit, an effectual inward calling, changing the heart, and transforming the mind to make it obedient to all the laws of Christ, to constitute true membership of the real invisible Church.

Again, the Church consists of two divisions, separated from each other by the partition of death. The one portion is upon earth, the other is in heaven. The earthly portion is preparatory for the heavenly, there is no entering the one without passing through the other. The Church in heaven is perfect, not having "spot nor wrinkle nor any such thing; the Church on earth is imperfect, but if you would join the heavenly, you must first join the earthly.

We observe

II. The relative union which exists between Christ and His Church." And gave him to be the head over all things to the church which is his body." Christ is the Head, the Church is the body, which infers a union.

1. Of nature. To see a head of one nature and the body of another would be monstrous. To support the consistency of the metaphor He condescended to assume the nature of man, of which the body should be composed. He took upon Him the seed of Abraham, "it behoveth Him to be made. like unto His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God." "For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of