knowing good and evil. The same desire has followed man in all ages; he is not willing to stand dependant on God Almighty, who opened a way which was easy and clear for every individual; God has not varied on his part, and had men improved the gifts he gave them, they might all have acted the same part that Jesus did. This was intended, in the creation, no doubt my friends.

We find that his trials were great. He is represented to us as being tempted by the Devil. But was it any thing but the propensities of our human nature,and the desires of an immortal soul? We are placed here with free agency, which nothing but God could ever endow his creatures with. Some may say, Why did he give man this liberty, seeing man would turn aside? We should not reason against God, as our finite senses cannot open it to us, unless his spirit reveals to us why it is so. If we were under the right exercise of the gift of God, the exercise of our rational powers, we should see that this free agency was the foundation of our probationary state; and that this was the most complete place and situation, which an infinite God could have placed man in. We have every reason to form this natural and rational supposition. As God had wisdom and power, to make man just

what he thought best to make him, surely he would exercise that power and wisdom, and place him in that situation, which would most surely effect the great and glorious end of his creation. Here he speaks to us only as rational creatures, and we must make use of our rational faculties. These are blessed benefits which he confers on us by the light of his own spirit. As reason is a dormant principle, without revelation, so when God is pleased to reveal things unto the immortal souls of the children of men, they are then seen rationally, and then reason has an opportunity to exercise its balancing and comparing principle in man; and therefore there is a two-fold revelation to man. We see an outward revelation, by the outward sun, which seems to be an image of God; because there is one sun, and only one, in the universe. All the other planetary bodies which appear to give light receive it from this only sun. There are many things which give some light, so God, in his dispensation, shines upon the children of men every where, and some of them he makes stars in the firmament of his power.

We are abundantly sensible that all the light in this system of the universe, is derived immediately from this outward sun. It is always one and the same thing; and will continue eternally

the same, while it has a being. Although it is emit ting light and heat continually, yet it alters not, because it returns to the same ocean of light from which it came. It never changes. The light of the moon is self-evidently derived from the sun; for when any thing intervenes, there is a state of darkness; when the earth gets in between the sun and moon, an eclipse is produced. Just so it is, my friends, when the mind becomes sensual, it is like the moon in an eclipse; it is darkened, and cannot see any thing aright.

But to proceed a little, (as time will not permit me to enlarge,) to the more glorious dispensation. How beautifully and how excellently Jesus Christ manifested his mission on earth, and when Moses was sent to do the commands of the Almighty, we see the gracious goodness of the Almighty towards him; when Moses permitted his temper a little to get up, and render him impatient as it were: (and it is marvellous that he was not rendered more so by the rebellion of the children of Israel.) When Moses was commanded to go and get water out of the rock, in the first instance, he was ordered to smite upon the rock; and when he smote the water gushed forth. And when Israel again murmured, the Lord commanded him to go and speak, but not to smite upon the rock: But here now, when

he reflected upon the hardness of their hearts, his impatience got a little up. And when he lead the people up, instead of speaking mildly, he showed a little selfishness, and to bring out water he smote the rock, "saying, hear now ye rebels, must we fetch you water out of this rock. Although the Lord, to favour the people, caused the water to flow, still what an offence it was to the Almighty; and how much more would he have instructed the Israelites, if he had proceeded to show them, that he did not always do the same way; because they never could comprehend, till it was manifested to them, that speaking would have the same effect that striking would have. So we see that he shut himself out of the land, but I do not believe that he shut himself out of Heaven. Because all the rewards to that people, with respect to the law covenant, consisted in an outward land; an outward, local Heaven, and the enjoyment of pleasurable things on earth. And it is a pitiable thing that there are an abundance of the professors of Christianity at the present day, who are looking forward to a local Heaven. What ignorance! Heaven is every where, where God is.. It is

his

presence that makes Heaven; and when the soul is prepared to meet him there is life: "In thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand

there are rivers of pleasure for evermore. Heaven is every where where God and his rational creatures are. It is not a local place by any

means.

We read that Jesus gradually came up from his childhood; and as the Scriptures inform us, he was not much distinguished till he was about thirty years of age, except on a particular occasion, when he was found talking with the doctors, when he had fallen among them. It seems that when his parents found him, his mother said unto him, Why hast thou thus dealt with us? Behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. He answered them and gave satisfaction in a good degree. He found occasion to plead for his Heavenly Father, against the Scribes and Pharisees; and he excited their admiration. And we find it so, sometimes, in children at the present day; they baffle all the wisdom that poor creatures can learn, by science and the strength of their own power.

But we read that he returned and became subject to his parents; and that he grew in stature, and in favour with God and man, and the grace of God was upon him.

He had a measure of the grace of God, to direct him to the fulfilling of the Jewish covenant and law; and when he had completed this, and

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