SERMON II.

AN ENQUIRY INTO THE REAL CAUSES OF THE NEGLECT OF PUBLIC WORSHIP.

NEHEMIAH xiii. 11.

"WHY IS THE House of GOD FORSAKEN?”

In a preceding discourse we stated and examined the reasons which are generally alleged for the neglect of public worship, and saw that, with very little exception, they were groundless excuses, affording no reasonable plea or scriptural warrant for forsaking the services of the sanctuary. And I am firmly persuaded, the more closely they are examined, the more evident it will appear, that they are adopted rather as pretexts, than acted upon as causes, for forsaking the house of God. I do not mean to imply that this is done knowingly and wilfully, with a wish to impose upon others, or that they are not the means of detaining some from the house of God, and confirming them in their habits of neglect; but I believe they are generally adopted and pleaded

after the individuals have fallen into habits of neglect after they have lost all inclination to attend-after the mind has, by a fatal consistency, become blinded to the utility of public worshipthen, and not till then, are they pleaded as motives for not attending upon the ordinances of religion. And I am persuaded, that were there no other causes for the neglect of public worship than those which are alleged, our congregations would be much more numerous than they now

are.

We now proceed to enquire into the REAL CAUSES "why the house of God is forsaken?” I. The first to which we shall advert is IGNORANCE - IGNORANCE OF RELIGION IN GENERAL, AND IGNORANCE OF THE NATURE AND DESIGN OF

PUBLIC WORSHIP IN PARTICULAR. To remove these evils is an object worthy of the most strenuous Christian efforts. To endeavour, in some degree, to correct the latter, is the design of these discourses, as well as to induce a diligent attendance upon the public means of grace, whereby the former may be remedied. For while such ignorance exists, we must expect to find the house of God forsaken and its ordinances slighted. As we further proceed to examine into the real causes of its neglect, and point out the utility of public worship, we hope this design will be apparent, and our instructions, through the blessing of God, rendered useful to our poorer and less educated brethren, for whom they are in this respect principally intended.

II. A second cause of the neglect of public worship is INDIFFERENCE. This cause of neglect is confined to no one class, but pervades all classes and ranks. It is not the mere produce of ignorance, but is founded in the corruption of our nature. It mainly springs from three sources,

First. The secret infidelity of the heart. Many, without openly rejecting the word of God, through the secret influence of an evil heart of unbelief, indulge in such trains of thought and modes of reasoning, as tend to produce unconcern about their souls, and indifference about the means of grace. Scripture repeatedly warns us against such a state, and forcibly describes it in the following passages-Zephaniah i. 12-where God declares that "He will punish the men that are settled on their lees, that say in their hearts, The Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil.” In Job xxi. 14, 15, the same class of men are described as saying unto God, "Depart from us, for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways." And immediately after, demanding “What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? and what profit should we have, if we pray unto him?” And in Malachi iii. 14, they are charged by God with saying, "It is vain to serve God; and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinances, and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of hosts?" Few, indeed, will openly avow such sentiments as these, who, nevertheless, secretly maintain them, and act under their influence, and the result is, unconcern about their souls and

indifference about the means of grace. That such sentiments, if indulged and cherished, produce indifference to the public duties of religion, will appear evident by considering, that they necessarily deprive us of the powerful influences of hope and fear, which are the great inducements to engage in the service of God. The hope of obtaining good, and the fear of incurring evil, are some of the strongest motives to attend divine ordinances, and it is clear that if, through the secret influence of an evil heart of unbelief, we infer, or begin to suspect, "that the Lord will not do good, neither will he do evil:" such suppositions will deprive us of their influence; for what is the object of hope? Good in expectation. Now, if there is no good looked for, or expected, in the services of the sanctuary, there is no object to excite or call forth hope, hence its influence will not lead us to attend. Again, what is the object of fear? Some evil apprehended. Now, if there is no evil apprehended by the neglect of public worship, if we think the Lord will not do evil, there is no object to excite alarm, or call forth fear, hence its influence will not urge us to attend.

I press the consideration of this subject upon your attention, for in proportion as we are deprived of the influence of hope and fear, in regard to our spiritual concerns, shall we fall into indifference about our souls and the probable neglect of divine ordinances, or, at least, we shall attend from much lower and very inferior motives.

You will perceive and feel the truth and force. of this observation, if you will reflect for a moment on what it is that gives life and energy to men, in all their worldly pursuits and occupations. What are the powerful springs of human action? What governs and regulates mankind in their worldly plans and projects? Whether we

cast our eyes around us, or turn our thoughts inward, we shall find, that the influences of hope and fear are the secret springs of our actions, and the governing motives of our lives. Is a coming good to be obtained, and is there any prospect of success? hope immediately springs up, and stimulates and sustains us in pursuing it. Is a coming evil foreseen or apprehended? fear is immediately called forth, and urges us to avoid or avert it. These form the motives to human activity; these are the springs which set mankind in motion.

Now, the hopes and fears which concern spiritual and eternal things, are designed to exercise the same commanding influence over the believer's mind with regard to things unseen and eternal, as the hopes and fears which concern worldly and temporal things exercise over mens' minds with regard to the things that are seen and temporal. Deprive man of the influences of hope and fear in his worldly pursuits, and you deprive him of the springs of human action, and paralyse his efforts. Deprive the professor of religion of the influences of hope and fear, and you deprive him of the springs of spiritual action; you paralyse his energies, and leave him with

C