Still trust in God: for I shall yet praise him,

Who is the health of my countenance, and my God."

Is there any of you awakened since last Sabbath-day, by some fall into sin, to feel that Christ is away from you? Doubtless, there must be some who, within this little week, have found out that, though they ate bread with Christ, they have lifted up the heel against him. And are you sitting down contented-without anxiety? Have you fallen, and do you not get up and run, that if possible, you may find Christ again? Ah, then! I stand in doubt of you; or rather, there is no need of doubt; you never have known the Saviour-you are none of his.

III. Believers in darkness are sick of love, and full of the commendation of Christ-more than ever.

In the parable, the bride told the daughters of Jerusalem that she was sick of love. This was the message she bade them carry ; and when they asked her about her beloved, she gave them a rich and glowing description of his perfect beauty, ending by saying: "He is altogether lovely."

So is it with the believer in time of darkness: "He is sick of love." When Christ is present to the soul, there is no feeling of sickness. Christ is the health of the countenance.

When I have

him full in my faith as a complete surety, a calm tranquillity is spread over the whole inner man; the pulse of the soul has a calm and easy flow; the heart rests in a present Saviour with a healthy, placid affection. The soul is contented with him; at rest in him: "Return unto thy rest, O my soul." There is no feeling of sickness. It is health to the bones; it is the very health of the soul to look upon him, and to love him. But when the object of affection is away, the heart turns sick. When the heart searches here and there, and cannot find the beloved object, it turns faint with longing: "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick." When the ring-dove has lost its mate, it sits lone and cheerless, and will not be comforted. When the bird that hath been robbed of its young, comes back again and again, and hovers with reluctant wing over the spot where her nest was built, she fills the grove with her plaintive melodies-she is " sick of love." These are the yearnings of nature. Such also are the yearnings of grace. When Jesus is away from the believing soul it will not be comforted. When the soul reads, and prays, and seeks, yet Jesus is not found, the heart yearns and sickens-he is "sick of love." Hope deferred maketh the heart sick."

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Did you ever feel this sickness? Did you ever feel that Christ was precious, but not present; that you could not lay hold on Christ as you used to do, and yet your soul yearned after him, and would not be comforted without him? If you have-1. Remember it is a happy sickness; it is a sickness not of nature at all, but of grace. All the struggles of nature would never make you “sick

of love." Never may you be cured of it, except it be in the revealing of Jesus! 2. Remember it is not best to be "sick of love;" it is better to be in health, to have Christ revealed to the soul, and to love him with a free, healthy love. In heaven, the inhabitants never say they are sick. Do not rest in this sickness; press near to Jesus to be healed. 3. Most, I fear, never felt this sickness; know nothing of what it means. Oh dear souls, remember this one thing: If you never felt the sickness of grace, it is too likely you never felt the life of grace. If you were told of a man, that he never felt any pain or uneasiness of any kind all his days, you would conclude that he must have been dead-that he never had any life; so you, if you know nothing of the sick yearnings of the believer's heart, it is too plain that you are dead; that you never have had any life.

Last of all, the believer in darkness commends the Saviour. There is no more distinguishing mark of a true believer than this. To the unawakened there is no form nor comeliness in Christ; no beauty that they should desire him. Even awakened souls have no true sense of Christ's perfect comeliness. If they saw how Christ answers their need, they could not be anxious. But to believers in darkness there is all comeliness in Christ; he is fairer than ever he was before. And when the sneering world, or coldhearted brethren, ask: "What is thy beloved more than another beloved?" he delights to enumerate his perfections, his person, his offices, his everything; he delights to tell that "he is the chiefest among ten thousand "his mouth is most sweet"-yea, “he is altogether lovely."

A word to believers in darkness.-There may be some who are walking in darkness, not having any light. Be persuaded to do as the bride did; not only to seek your beloved, but to commend him, by going over his perfections.

1. Because this is the best of all ways to find him. One of the chief reasons of your darkness is your want of considering Christ. Satan urges you to think of a hundred things before he will let you think about Christ. If the eye of your faith be fully turned upon a full Christ, your darkness will be gone in the instant. "Look unto me, and be ye saved." Now, nothing so much engages your eye to look at Christ as going over his perfections to others.

2. Because you will lead others to seek him with you. Oh! dear brethren, the great reason of our having so many dark Christians nowadays, is, that we have so many selfish Christians. Men live for themselves. If you would live for others, then your darkness would soon flee away. Commend Christ to others, and they will go with you. Parents, commend him to your children; children, commend him to your parents, and who knows but God may

bless the word, even of a believer walking in darkness, that they shall cry out:

"Whither is thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women?

Whither is thy beloved turned aside, that we may seek him with thee?"

St. Peter's, 1837.

SERMON LX.

A THORN IN THE FLESH.

"And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong."-2 Cor. xii., 7-10.

WHAT is contained in this passage? I. Paul's wonderful privilege; caught up into the third heaven, and into paradise; got a day's foretaste of glory; saw and heard wonderful things. II. Paul's humbling visitation; a thorn in the flesh. He had been in the world of spirits, where is no sin; now he was made to feel that he had a body of sin-to cry, "O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" He had been among the inhabitants of heaven; now one from hell is allowed to buffet him. III. His conduct under it; fervent repeated prayer. "I besought (marking his earnestness) thrice;" no answer; still he prayed. Before, he was more engaged in praise, or thinking of telling others; now he is brought to cry for his own soul, lest he should be a castaway. The answer: My grace is sufficient for thee." God does not pluck the thorn away; does not drive the devil back to hell; does not take him out of the body. No; but he opens his own breast, and says, Look here; here is grace enough for thee; here is strength that will hold up the weakest. IV. Paul's resolution; to go on his way glorifying in his infirmities. He is contented to have infirmities, to have a body of sin, in order that Christ may be glorified in holding up such a weak vessel: That the power of Christ may rest continually on my soul; that his mighty hand may have one to hold up to his own praise. I take pleasure in all humbling dispensations; for they teach me that I have no strength, and then I am strongest.

I. Paul's wonderful privilege.

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He had gained a glorious foretaste of heaven given to him. It was a wonderful season to his soul. He was caught up to the third heaven, or to paradise. He was taken up to the Father's house with many mansions. He was taken up to be with Jesus and the saved thief in paradise. Much he could not tell. How it was, whether he was in the body or out of the body, he could not tell. The words he heard, the words of the Father, the words of Jesus, the songs of the redeemed, and of the holy angels, they were unspeakable. Still, he could never forget that day. Fourteen years had gone over his head, and yet it was fresh in his remembrance. The sights he saw, the words he heard, he never could forget. It was just a day of glory, a foretaste of heaven.

Dear believers, you also have wonderful privileges. You also have your foretastes of heaven. You may not have the miraculous visions of paradise which Paul here speaks of; yet you have tasted the very joy that is in heaven; drunk of the very river of God's pleasures. If you have known the Lord Jesus, you know him who is the pearl of heaven, the sun and centre of it. If you have the Father's smile, you have the very joy of heaven. Above all, if you have the Holy Spirit dwelling in you, you have the earnest of the inheritance. On such days as last communion Sabbath, are not the joys of a Christian unspeakable and full of glory? "Whom having not seen we love." Are not such days to be looked back upon? Even fourteen years after, when many will be gone to the table above, some will look back to last Sabbath as a day spent in his courts, better than a thousand. To those of you who get no joy on such occasions, what can we say, but that you would get no joy in heaven! If you are not made glad at the table below, you will never, I fear, be made glad at the table above.

II. Paul's humbling visitation.-Verse 7.

1. What was given him.

The thorn in the flesh here spoken of is variously understood by interpreters. (1.) Some understand it to have been a bodily disease; some sharp-shooting pains which were given him. Pain and disease are very humbling. They are often used by God to bring down the lofty spirit of man. (2.) Some understand by it some remarkable temptation to sin immediately from the hand of the devil. A messenger from Satan which was like a thorn in his soul. (3.) Some understand it to have been some besetting sin, some part of his body of sin of which he complains so sore (Rom. vii.)-some lust of his old man stirred up to activity by a messenger of Satan. It seems most probable that this was the thorn that made him groan.

Whatever it was, one thing is plain, it was a truly humbling visit. It brought Paul to the dust. A little before, he had been in the sinless world, he felt no body of sin, saw the pure spirits before the throne, and the spirits of just men made perfect; now,

he is brought down to feel that he has a body of sin and death, he has a thorn in the flesh. A little before, he was among holy angels, trampling hell and the grave below his feet; now, a messenger from hell is sent to buffet him. "O wretched man!"

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Ques. Why was this given him? Ans. Lest he should be exalted above measure. This is twice stated. What a singular thing is pride! Who would have thought that taking Paul into paradise for a day would have made him proud? and yet God, who knew his heart, knew it would be so, and therefore brought him down to the dust. The pride of nature is wonderful. A natural man is proud of anything. Proud of his person, although he did not make it, yet he prides himself upon his looks. Proud of his dress, although a block of wood might have the same cause for pride, if you would put the clothes on it. Proud of riches, as if there were some merit in having more gold than others. Proud of rank, as if there were some merit in having noble blood. Alas! pride flows in the veins; yet, there is a pride more wonderful than that of nature-pride of grace. You would think a man never could be proud who had once seen himself lost; yet, alas! Scripture and experience show that a man may be proud of his measure of grace; proud of forgiveness: proud of humility; proud of knowing more of God than others. It was this that was springing up in Paul's heart when God sent him the thorn in the flesh.

Dear friends, some of you last Lord's day were brought very near to God, and filled with joy unspeakable and full of glory. Some, I am persuaded, have since then had Paul's humbling experience. You thought that you were for ever away from sin, but a thorn in the flesh has brought you low. You have fallen into sin during the week; or something has brought you low indeed. "O wretched man!" Why do you thus fall after a communion season? 1. To make you humble; to teach you what a vile worm you are, when you can go to the Lord's table, and yet fall so low; this may well teach you that you are vile. You thought, perhaps, that sin was clean away, but here you see it is again. What constant need you have of Jesus' blood! 2. To make you long for heaven. There we shall sin no more for ever. Nothing but holiness there. No unclean thing can enter. Oh, press forward to it! Do not sit down by the way. Look forward to glory.

III. Paul's remedy-prayer.

Here is the difference between a natural man and a child of God. Both have the thorn in the flesh; but a natural man is contented with it. His lusts do not vex and trouble him. A child of God cannot rest under the power of temptation. He flies to his knees. The moment Paul felt the buffetings of Satan's messenger, he fell upon his knees, praying his Father to take it away from him. No answer came. Again he goes to the throne of grace. Again