53

The Third Sunday after Trinity.

MORNING SERVICE.-First Lesson 1 Samuel ii.

Verse 30.-" Wherefore the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the Lord saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me will I honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed."

Ir is a most dangerous thing to commence the downward course of sin. Once it is commenced, it is uncertain when and where it may end. A stone rolling down a hill receives renewed impetus by every turn of its progress, and the resistance must be powerful which can stay it before it arrives at the bottom, there imbedding itself, perhaps irrecoverably, in the earth. Such is the course of sin, such was the course of the sons of Eli; they began by disregarding the counsels of God, which led them on to disregard the counsels of a pious parent; by degrees they became guilty of acts of the grossest immorality, despising the regulations of religion, kicking at the sacrifice and offering of God, and being hardened in the commission of crime they incurred the Divine displeasure, and rendered themselves obnoxious to inevitable retribution. Eli himself was a good man, but of an irresolute disposition, too indulgent to his children, conniving at their sins until the habit of evil grew to a fearful extent, therefore God is said to be angry with him. Every parent should learn a lesson from this, knowing that "he who spareth the rod spoileth the child." The uncorrected child will soon become hardened in sin, break over every restraint, despise the counsel that comes too late, and fall a victim to his parent's indulgence. Eli, when he "was very old," expostulated with his sons respecting their wickedness, but it

was too late, the proper season was neglected, the evil work had been done, and to his mortification and sorrow he found that "notwithstanding they hearkened not to the voice of their father."

In the text, and the preceding verses, God reproves Eli by an appointed messenger whom he sent unto him. And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said unto him, "Thus saith the Lord, Did I plainly appear unto the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt, in Pharaoh's house?" &c., verse 27-30.

We are here furnished with three important practical subjects. First, that man by obedience honours, and by disobedience dishonours God. Secondly, that acts of honour shall be rewarded, and acts of dishonour shall be punished. Thirdly, that God's most positive promises are conditional.

I. Man by obedience honours, and by disobedience dishonours God. Religion is reverence-such reverence that leads not only to respect an object, but also to love, adore, and obey that object. These three things are demanded of us in our reverence of God.

1. We are required to love Him with an unfeigned love; not with a love of passion such as we feel towards a fellowbeing, which often becomes the toy of circumstances, waxing or waning in proportion to the inducements towards the one or the other; but it is to be a love of principle, implanted and rooted in the heart, which no circumstance can change, which no disappointment can uproot, which no inducement can obliterate. The nearest parallel that can be found in human love is that of the parent towards the child; here love is a principle, not a passion. Unless the parent be a monster, he will love his child amid all the reverses and changes of life. He is a part of his own nature. Let him be removed from him to the antipodes of the earth, delinquent, he will love him still. not fully express the nature of our love to God; that love is to be supreme, such as none else can share. It is to love Him

let him be undutiful and Even this however does

with all the heart, with all the soul, and with all the strength, which is the first and great commandment.

2. Possessing this love to God, there is an adoration of Him. The mind feels the greatness of His power and wisdom, as well as that of His goodness and love, so that there is created in it a holy awe of His Divine character. All its thoughts are absorbed in the contemplation of His majesty ; and seeing there such height of glory combined with such condescending love, it falls prostrate before Him under the weight of its own littleness.

3. When this is the case, a prompt obedience is actuated to all His commands. No duty which He imposes seems too hard to be attempted, the yoke is easy, and the burden is light, for there is a heart to obey. Prayer and perseverance are called into action; the life is devoted to the service, and every motion is subservient to the will of God. This characterized the obedience of Abraham, and all the patriarchs and prophets, this characterized the obedience of the apostles and martyrs, this especially characterized the obedience of Christ who came to do the will of Him that sent Him, becoming "obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." Such love, adoration, and obedience honour God, with suc he is well pleased.

Dis

On the other hand, disobedience dishonours Him. obedience is a mark of the want of respect to the authority and the will of the Almighty. This is at the root of every sin, the forerunner of every crime. The sons of Eli despised the instituted services of God, consequently they desecrated the sacrifices, they robbed the sanctuary, they pampered their appetites, they committed the most abominable lewdness. There is a kindred alliance between religion and morality, like righteousness and peace they kiss each other. A man without religion is a most dangerous character. Whatever his situation in life may be, he can no more be trusted than Saul, the King of Israel, who was rejected first, because of his contempt for the stated ordinances of religion, and secondly, because of his disobedience to the command of God.

You may have observed that the sacred historians give for the leading feature of every prince among the kings of Israel and Judah," He did that which was right in the sight of the Lord; " or, "He did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord." The thing that was right consisted of two things; first, there must have been a strict attention to all the prescribed rites of Divine worship; and secondly, there must have been a most minute regard to those oraculous communications which the Almighty deigned to give His favourite people. Saul fell under the bane of the neglect, "Now thy kingdom shall not continue: the Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the Lord hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the Lord commanded thee." He dishonoured God by disobedience arising from contempt of His authority. Thus all who disobey Him are registered in the same catalogue; like the sons of Eli, they make the Lord's people to transgress, causing men to abhor the offering of the Lord. If the leaders of the people especially have no piety, and act as if there were no God, they cause others to despise God's service and become infidels.

We observe

II. That acts of honour to God shall be rewarded, and acts of dishonour shall be punished. "For them that honour me will I honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed." 1. We have the reward. "Them that honour me will I honour." There is no lack of testimony to verify this statement. Has it not been proved to demonstration in every age of the world's history? God honours His honourers in this world by acts of special providence over them. We have the instances of Noah, and of Abraham, and of Jacob, and of Joseph, and of Moses, and of Joshua, and of Gideon, and of Samuel, and of David, and of the pious Kings of Judah, and of Elijah, and of Daniel, and of the Hebrew children, and of Mordecai, and of the apostles, recorded in the Sacred Scriptures to corroborate the fact. Although those inter

positions of special Providence are not so apparent now as they were formerly, still, we have the assurance of God's promises that He has not withdrawn His providential care over His people that honour Him. David had been young, and had become old, but during the experience of his eventful life he could say, "Yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread." The promise has never yet failed, "Thy bread shall be given thee, and thy water is sure." Christ confirms the faith of His followers in the promises of God, when He says, "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." And St. Peter, watching the care of Divine Providence, could confidently ask the scattered tribes, "And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good?" Being satisfied with the providential honours realized by the friends of God, there are other and still more select honours conferred upon them, a part of which they enjoy in this life, but the full portion is reserved for them in the life to come. Here, they are honoured with God's Spirit, adopting them into His family, renovating their minds, strengthening their hearts, comforting their souls, giving them a hope full of immortality, inspiring them with daily confidence, and implanting in them an earnest of what they shall hereafter possess. They are honoured with the cheering fellowship of the blessed Three. They shall obtain the victory over death; and they shall enjoy an everlasting inheritance in the world to come. Grace here, and glory hereafter. "Them that honour me

I will honour."

2. There is a threatening of punishment in the text as well as a promise of reward. "And they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed." Reverse the medal and all the dishonour and destitution of God's enemies will be seen. If Samuel is to be honoured, the sons of Eli shall be discarded, and visited with calamities "at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle." The same contrast is drawn throughout the whole of God's dealings