in thy faith and fear; beseeching thee to give us grace so to follow their good examples, that with them we may be partakers of thy heavenly kingdom. Grant this, O Father, for Jesus Christ's sake, our only Mediator and Advocate." EARLY LOVE AND SEEKING OF GOD. Preached in the Parish Church of Amesbury, 66 'I love them that love me: and those that seek me early shall find me."—Prov. viii. 17. I AM going to speak to young people about great things. I am going to speak to them about the love of God, who loves them better than their mother does; and about "the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge." So I hope, my dear young friends, you will give me your attention, and I will make what I say to you as plain and as interesting as I can, that so you may remember it, and think of it at times for many a day-many a year to come. And perhaps, (for God sometimes works great purposes by small means,)perhaps, He may be pleased to make my simple remarks serviceable to you at some critical moment in your future life; and they may serve as a gentle memento to you to make a right choice, when duty points one way and inclination is tempting you to another; and may be a help to you to refuse the evil and to choose the good. My sermon shall not be a long one. I will give you the text again; "I love them that love me: and those that seek me early shall find me." It is not I, the preacher, who say this; though, God knows, I love children. I suppose this feeling grows upon us, as we ourselves grow older. Perhaps it may unhappily be, that we have experienced but too much of the insincerity and coldness and selfishness of grownup people, and so our hearts turn towards the young; and then they are generally so kind and cheery and light of heart, it is no wonder. But what can I, or others like me, do for them beyond a kind word or a kind look, or, as occasion may sometimes offer, a little seasonable advice, which age and experience suggest? It is God-the great God who made us all, and the blessed Saviour who redeemed us all-who gives this the sweetest promise in all the Bible: "I love them that love me: and those that seek me early shall find me." O! how these words bring back to me the days of my own childhood, and my dear mother who first taught me to look up to God, and to love Him, and to pray to Him! Young people, you dearly love your mother; do you not? If you do not, God has no promises for you, and then what hope is there for you either in this world or in another? For he who loves not the parent whom he has seen, how shall he love God whom he has not seen? But you do love your mother with all the morning freshness of early love. O you know not how she has travailed for you O! -nursed you in your baby days-perhaps watched by your sick bed since, night and day-thought for you (I only would hope not too anxiously)-prayed for you: you know not the half of this, but you do know from all her looks, and all her words, and all she does, that she loves you; and you love her in return: to be sure you do! But there is One who loves you better than she does: One who gave you that mother, and who gave you to her, and who, in the midst of perpetual perils which surround you both, preserves you to each other. She would die for you; but He did die for you. He left the glory and the joys of heaven for the sorrows of this sinful world, and died that you might live. He gave Himself for you, that He might deliver you from the misery of another world after this, and make you happy for ever in heaven. I am not going further now into this wonderful subject, of which it may be said, in the words of the author of Ecclesiasticus; "The first man knew it not perfectly: no more shall the last find it out." But the Lord forbid that I should be set here to teach, and should not say one word of this wonder and this mercy to you that God so loved you as to give His beloved Son for you; and that Jesus Christ died upon the cross, in order that you, believing in Him, "should not perish, but have eternal life." This is the God and this is the Saviour who say to you, "I love them that love me : and those that seek me early shall find me." I need not, I think, say many words to explain to you what it is to love God, or how you are to act if you do so. Set Him always before you in your thoughts; for He always is present with you, although you cannot see Him with your eyes. God is a Spirit, and so long as we are in the body, (that is, so long as we are alive in this world,) we cannot see spiritual beings. Hereafter, when we become angels, we shall see God face to face. We must now see Him by faith; that is, we must believe and be as perfectly persuaded that He is at all times present to see what we do and to hear what we say, as if we could look upon Him as we do on a fellow-creature who is standing by us. This is faith; nothing short of this is faith; and without faith it is impossible to please God, and then we are lost. Set Him, therefore, always before you, for there He is to help, as well as to see and to hear you. Wherever you go, you will chance to meet with evil companions, whether it be in the streets of a little village, or among the hundreds in a great public school. You will be out of the sight of your mother, that kind, gentle, watchful guide whom you have at home; but you will be in the sight of God. You may be far away from that home where your fond mother is, but God will be with you. Set Him, then, always before you. And let the certain truth, that wherever you are God is there too, be at once your warning, and your encouragement, and your comfort. Let it be your warning. If you are tempted to any wicked act; think, How can I do this, and sin against God? Let it be your encouragement. If you are ill-used by one older and stronger than yourself, cheer up your heart, as the Psalmist did; "O God, my soul trusteth |