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burdened with woes. Deep throes of anguish rise from the heart of humanity every day :

"Each new morn

New widows howl, new orphans cry-new sorrows
Strike Heaven in the face, that it resounds."

But thank God! I know too that there is one come from heaven to "heal the broken-hearted."

Germs of Thought.

SUBJECT:-The Great Contrast; or, The Past and Present State of the Redeemed.

"And such were some of you; but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the spirit of our God."-1 Cor. vi. 11.

Analysis of Homily the Three Hundred and Thirty-third.

HERE the apostle states a fact, a fact relating to two distinct periods;-the past and the present. With the skill of an artist he presents to our view two distinct portraits of the same persons: one representing the Corinthians in their natural wretchedness, covered with pollution, clothed in rags, and enslaved by sin; the other representing them in a changed condition, morally cleansed, robed in righteousness, and enjoying the high privileges of Christian men. Everyone acquainted with the low state of morality at Corinth, sees at once the force and propriety of these words. That city, like Athens, was "wholly given to idolatry;" and with idolatry prevailed every form of vice and wickedness. The catalogue of crimes given in the preceding verses is black in the extreme, and painfully indicates the depth of moral depravity into which human nature has sunk; and though the mere recital of some of those deeds of darkness would be extremely offensive to the chaste and virtuous, they are still

awfully prevalent in many lands; yea, the very principles whence they proceed are common to man's sinful and polluted nature.

Now, in reminding the Christians at Corinth of their former character, the apostle had no desire to discourage them, and to wound their feelings, but to impress upon their minds two very important thoughts; viz., The impossibility for an impure man to partake of the blessings of Christ's kingdom. And also, the obligation laid upon them as believers, to renounce sin, and to lead a holy life. He was anxious that they should carefully examine both portraits, and mark the contrast. "And such were some of you; but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the spirit of our God."

This passage of Scripture directs our attention to:

"And such were

I. THE PAST STATE OF THE REDEEMED. some of you." These words are applicable not only to the believers at Corinth, but to all the redeemed everywhere; not that all have been guilty of the sins and atrocities here recorded; but, because all sinners are by nature governed and influenced by the same principles. The heart, the great fountain of life, is impure-hence the thoughts, feelings, and habits, are at variance with the standard of holy living.

Four things may be said relative to the redeemed in their past unregenerate state :—

First: They were void of moral rectitude. Their conscience was burdened with guilt. The throne of the heart was occupied by an intruder, and every feeling of the soul was enslaved by sin. It was a distinguished feature in man's character in his state of innocency, that in all things he sympathized with God. His heart throbbed in unison with the pure heart of his Maker. But the moment he sinned he lost this divine sympathy-this love of truth and purity, and became the slave of every wrong and unhallowed feeling. This is the real state of all sinners. "They are all gone

astray; there is none righteous, no, not one." They are void of moral rectitude-they are destitute of sympathy with holiness-" they love darkness rather than light."

Secondly: They were subject to impure influences. Their affections were defiled. When conscience loses its authority, a love of truth dethroned, and a sense of justice deadened in the bosom, there is nothing to prevent the soul becoming the slave of the most debasing influences. The Corinthians seemed to be entirely in the power of such influences, but not more so than sinners in general: the only difference is in the forms which those influences assume. The streams of unholy affections are as impure, vile, and deadly, now as ever -only that they flow in different channels. The influences which ever control sinful men are love of self, love of pleasure, and love of the world. These three mighty powers subject the soul to their entire control. Every thought, every emotion, every feeling of the heart is in the power of one or more of these influences. And if in appearance we are better than the people of Corinth, it is not because we are "by nature" governed by holier principles, but because those principles are more successfully checked in their outward development.

Thirdly: They were slaves of wrong habits. "Their deeds were evil." When both the conscience and affections are wrong, the deeds must be inconsistent with truth and righteousness. We view mens' deeds as practical expressions of their principles. The lives of the Christians at Corinth were once shamefully immoral. Their original portrait reflects the very image of sin incarnate. Every feature fills the beholder with profound abhorrence. "And such were some of you."

Fourthly: They were incapable of spiritual enjoyment. "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God." The unrighteous have no capacity, no taste, no moral fitness, for the exalted pleasures of religionthe pure joys of the heavenly world. It is utterly impossible for a man bearing in his bosom a guilty conscience, influenced

by impure principles, and whose life is inconsistent with the laws of truth and justice, to partake of the blessings of Christ's kingdom. The "new creature" alone is adapted for the divine and living pleasures of the "new heaven." Guilty and sin-loving souls are unfit for the hallowed society and exalted joys of that glorious city, "whose builder and maker is God."

We will now turn aside from this foul, old portrait, and gratefully proceed to examine the new.

"But ye

II. THE PRESENT STATE OF THE REDEEMED. are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the spirit of our God."

Here are presented to our notice the change, the means, and the agency. (1) The change. It is expressed in three words" washed, sanctified, justified." These expressions suggest to us three very important thoughts:

First An initiatory act. "But ye are washed." There is probably an allusion here to the ordinance of baptism, which is a striking emblem of moral cleansing. The believers at Corinth having renounced idolatry with all its rites and absurdities were baptized, and thereby initiated into the privileges of Christ's spiritual kingdom. But as the water of baptism can neither wash away the deep stains of sin, nor infuse new life into the soul, the apostle evidently refers to some other washing-the work of the Holy Spirit on the heart. This is the commencement of the wonderful change which takes place in the believer's soul: it is the opening of the understanding, the impressing of the heart, the moving of the affections, and the enkindling of new thoughts and new desires in the mind. It is separation from the world— conversion to God.

Secondly: A progressive development. "But ye are sanctified." This does not imply faultless perfection. Those early Christians were heirs to many moral infirmities. But they were consecrated to the service of the Lord Jesus. So are all the true followers of the holy Redeemer. But the

believers at Corinth were also under a process of spiritual cleansing. The preparation necessary for heaven is a progressive work-impurities are removed every day-and Christian graces, like living plants, gradually mature. We ascend the hill of eternal life by slow, gradual, continued progress. Every step we give is a real gain; and, reposing on the Almighty arm, we mean not to rest until we reach its bright and glorious summit.

His life is

Thirdly A beautiful completion. "But ye are justified." This act, though mentioned here last, is generally considered the first in this great change. There are three great causes at work in man's justification. The merits of Christ." Being justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." The faith of the believer. "We conclude that man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law." The influence of the Holy Spirit. "And by the Spirit of our God." For an illustration-think of a man, who, having fallen overboard, is carried away by the current. in imminent peril-he struggles, he sinks, he despairs. But, at last a rope is thrown towards him-he eagerly grasps it— and he is thereby rescued from a "watery grave." What effected his deliverance? We have here a combination of causes. The kind friend who threw the rope-the rope itself-and the man's own eager grasp. Thus the Saviour's merits, the penitent's faith, and the influence of the Spirit are necessary to secure the salvation of the soul. (2) The means. "In the name of the Lord Jesus." "By the precious blood of Christ." No other influence could have touched the depraved hearts of the Corinthians, awakened their dormant sensibilities, and infused into their bosom the life of God, but the influence which flows from the Cross. No name but the "Name of the Lord Jesus" has sufficient power to change the heart. No means in God's government can wash and sanctify a polluted spirit but the waters of John's crystal river-the living stream that flows through the "city of our God." (3) The agency. And by "the Spirit of our God." This glorious change is the work of the Holy Spirit.

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