seducer, the old serpent, Satan, who continually suggests that the gospel is not an iron law, a tyrannical yoke, a pitiless restraint; that Christian liberty has its privileges; that, provided the heart be not enslaved to its passions, it may enjoy them; and that within certain limits the pleasures and the enjoyments of the world are not forbidden-nay that they are even useful to the children of God; that to break entirely with the world, to put away the so-called charms of life, to "mortify and bring under the body," to discipline the heart by self-denial and abstinence, would be to outdo religion and to render it ridiculous.

Believers-you who fear the Lord, and desire to be the friends of Jesus-what will you do? Will you grieve the Holy Spirit of God by whom you are sealed, in renouncing your rank, in derogating from your celestial dignity? Will you forget that you bear upon you the name of the Holy Trinity—that you have been sprinkled with the blood of the Lamb, and made recipients of the Spirit of grace? Will you not, rather, like Daniel, supporting your whole soul on the promise of the Lord, determine within yourself, and proclaim in the face of the world and its prince, and under the eye of heaven, "I am Christ's?" Temptations, sins, corruptions, uncleanness, prevail not against his anointed. Will you not say to these, "Depart, depart from me, for I bear the vessels of the Lord!”

And, my brethren, shall not this assurance of your election lead you, like the saint of old, to abstain absolutely and entirely from the meat and the wine of the king? Yes, to abstain from it entirely nnd without re serve, for this is the requirement of God; this is the holiness that his Spirit exacts; this is the chastity that Jesus expects from his bride. The love that is acceptable to him, is the love of the whole heart and soul.

Are you, then, friends of the Saviour? Stretch out your hand and put from you the cup which sin presents. Let there be no delay, no secret compromise with evil, no treason, no duplicity of heart toward him, who, having loved you with a perfect love, and being in himself perfectly holy, desires and accepts no other offering than that of hearts freely giver. Is not the thought of what he has already done for your souls, of what he is still doing, and of what he will yet do, enough to knit your whole heart to him, and to fix upon him your every desire? Must he bestow still larger benefits, in order to gain your affection and gratitude, and, in consequence, your devotedness? Had Daniel a more beneficent Goda Saviour more worthy of love than him whom you adore? Have you not the same God, and Father, and Redeemer that he had? And if the mercies of such a Lord constrained the entire love and obedience of that believer, shall they not have the same empire over you? O! let it not be with a reluctant, scanty, and half-yielded love, that you reply to the claims of such a God.

Again, think you that you can be happy in a sort of equivocal servicein some sort of middle course between the demands of sin, and the yoke of the Son of God? But I am speaking of impossibilities: for what man

ever served two masters-loved both, pleased both? Think you that a soul ever tasted that sweet peace which the Holy Spirit gives in communion with the Saviour, in any other than the path of holiness?

Think you that the bridegroom of the church regards his spouse with no jealousy, or that he will not testify his displeasure to the adulterous soul, however insignificant be the idol which she worships? Ask these questions of those young Hebrews who do not scruple to feed upon the forbidden meats; that is to say, of those disciples of the gospel, who, while they profess to be Christians, yet hold secret ties with the world, and with sin. Let them lay open their hearts before you; let them expose their experience in their undecided walk, their equivocal obedience, and you will be struck with fear and awe by their uneasiness, their secret self-reproach, their habitual languor, their spiritual leanness, and the withering state of their souls, which neither the fat meat that the world offers, nor the mixed wines of their own desires can satisfy.

I am well aware that, in the judgment of the flesh, Daniel's pulse would be esteemed a meagre and despicable aliment. "What a sustenance!" will be exclaimed. What foolish abstinence! What health or strength can that person expect who condemns himself to it? Thus reasoned the world in the days of Daniel; thus will it always reason; thus will the pulse of the gospel be despised and maligned. This will be ever said of that food which grows in the garden of the Lord, and which Eir Spirit presents to the happy children of his house. Yes, the bread of heaven, that bread with which eternal life is nourished will be disdained, as was the manna in the desert by those believers who are not willing to submit to Jesus. And neither coldness nor contempt will be withheld from those who prefer it.

But what will be the issue? What, O mocking world? what, O fearful disciples? what, O unfaithful Christians? what will be the issue of this decisive preference of the saints, and of your reluctance?

I will depict it to you, and it shall be by facts. I will point to the faithful young Hebrews, stronger and fairer than all the rest. I will tell you of the serenity which filled their souls, of the sweet confidence which they had before God, and of the certainty of his paternal favor. On the other hand, I will show you those other young Jews, who had followed a different course, less strong, less active, less powerful, and filled with envy and shame by the uprightness of their brethren. Judge between the two cases.

But, further: look at those true Christians of the present day, whom the Lord Jesus calls his friends, because they do what he has commanded them; because they abstain from the unclean viands of the world; because they are content with the pulse of wisdom and holiness, and judge of their state. Do they appear to you feeble, melancholy, or unhappy? Rather, do they not proclaim-by their peace, their joy, their habitual calmness; by the equality of their minds, the purity of

their lives, the gravity of their deportment; by their cheerful piety, their unfeigned charity, their firm and glorious hope, their patience and humility-that their souls are full of life, that their support is truly that which comes from God; while those that feed at the world's table know neither the vigor of faith, nor the comforts of peace, nor the delightful serenity of hope.

Draw the comparison, Christians, then take Daniel's resolution. Like him, search the word of God, that you may learn what he wills from you. Seek the assistance of the Holy Spirit, which your heavenly Father has promised; and thus prepared, go forth to the trial, nor stop short until the end of your ten days of life.

For, finally, my beloved brethren, it is not long that you will have to renounce the baits and allurements of the world, to prove yourselves faithful to Jesus, before he introduces you into his presence. The span of human life is not long at most. The three-score years and ten, or if it may be, the four-score, are soon told out. Season quickly followe season; one winter rapidly ensues upon another; the ciphers which name the year oft change their form and signification. The father quickly sees his sons reach his own stature; their children again surrounding them, and this rising generation leading his own, as it were, to the tomb. From moment to moment, all that surrounds us, all in which we play a part is changing, fading, dying. Scarcely has life's day dawned, when its noon has arrived: its noon is passed, the shadows of eve draw on, and night falls-"the night wherein no man can walk.”

O! who among you will be wise, and consider how short his time is? Look forward, I pray you, look forward to the approaching time, when the ten days, or three years, of life and of probation shall be passed; when you will be called upon to appear before God, before the King, before that Jesus who has shed his blood for you, and who says to you: "Surely I come quickly."

Think, O think seriously, and with solemnity, my brethren, how you would desire to have passed these few years of probation, during which you are commanded to renounce the evils of the world, and to give yourselves up to the leading of the Holy Spirit, think, I say, how you would wish to have passed them when time shall be no more; when your years and days shall be numbered, when the short journey of life shall be over, and eternity shall burst upon your soul.

O! think of this, and consider whether it is not right toward Godwhether it is not for your own happiness, in every way, even with respect to this world, and above all, with respect to eternity-that before you are called to appear before him, while a day of grace is still vouchsafed, you purpose in your hearts not to defile yourselves with the meat or the wine of this world, but, like Daniel, honor the Saviour in taking upon you his commands !

DISCOURSE XIII.

ADOLPHE MONOD, D.D.*

DR. MONOD was a son of the late Rev. John Monod, of Paris. He had seven brothers and three sisters, all of whom, it is believed, survive him. Three of his brothers are in the ministry of the gospel—all evangelical, faithful, and most highly esteemed brethren, The oldest is the Rev. Dr. Frederic Monod, who is pastor of one of the churches in Paris connected with the Free Church of France. The Rev. William Monod, another brother, is now pastor of a Protestant church in Paris. The youngest brother is the Rev. Horace Monod, one of the French pastors at Marseilles.

Dr. Adolphe Monod, as well as his brothers, was educated mainly at home, under private teachers and professors, and then, according to the liberal practice which prevails in France, he underwent an examination in one of the colleges of Paris, and, paying the usual fees, he received his diploma as Bachelor of Letters. His theological studies, we believe, were pursued at Geneva, in the theological department of the Academy (or University, as we should call it) of that city. For two or three years he preached to a French congregation at Naples, holding the post of chaplain to the embassy of Prussia. From that city he was called to be one of the pastors of the National Protestant Church in Lyons, in France, when his great pulpit talents soon made him widely known. He was even chosen president of the consistory of that church.

But he had not been long settled in the church in Lyons before his mind was led by the grace and Spirit of God to embrace heartily the evangelical system. As soon as he had clearly apprehended Christ as the Son of God, as well as the Son of man-as the only Mediator between God and man-his preaching began to partake of the glorious change. At first, and for a while, the rich and worldly church of Lyons to which he (with two other pastors, men of a very different spirit) ministered, were astonished. Soon dissatisfaction with the truth began to manifest itself, and in a few months this distinguished but humble servant of Christ was compelled to resign his place, and open an independent chapel, on truly evangelical principles. About seventy people, mostly poor but pious persons, followed him. He commenced his labors in a large room in the third story of a private house. Soon it was filled to overflowing. It was again and again enlarged, until it held nearly four * The name of Dr. Monod was on the list of French preachers at the time of commencing the preparation of this work. He has since deceased; but we should not be justified in leaving his place unfilled. Especial indebtedness is acknowledged, in making up this sketch, to a letter from Dr. Robert Baird, published shortly after Dr. Monod's death. Some of the facts have been drawn from other sources.

hundred people. As it could be enlarged no more, it was resolved to build a chapel or church in a more central part of the city.

Such was the commencement of the evangelical movement in Lyons, in which city and its immediate vicinity there are now nine or ten evangelical Protestant chapels, three evangelical ministers, and a goodly staff of evangelists, colporteurs, and pious school-masters and school-mistresses.

From Lyons, Dr. Monod was called, in 1836, to the Theological Seminary at Montauban, where he became Professor of Sacred Eloquence. This appointment he received from the hands of Baron Pettit, a Protestant nobleman of evangelical sentiments, who was for a considerable period Minister of Public Instruction in the reign of Louis Philippe. For several years Dr. Monod filled with great ability the professorship which he held in the only theological institution of the National Reformed Church of France. During that period he wrote several of his most valuable publications. In his vacations he visited Paris and other important cities, and was always heard, when he preached, by great crowds of people; or else he made missionary tours in the ancient provinces of Saintonge, Poitou, or other districts in southern and south-western France.

The last seven or eight years of the life of Dr. Adolphe Monod were spent at Paris, where he preached the gospel with great effect to large and delighted audiences. His labors, and those of Dr. Grandpierre and other distinguished brethren of the same school, have done much to make the evangelical doctrines known and respected among those who attend the churches of the reformed body in that great and important city.

It was on Sunday, April 6, 1856, that this honored servant of Christ ceased from his labors. His death-bed was one of intense suffering, and, at the same time, of glorious and gracious triumph. In the full and perfect assurance of his salvation: through Christ, and in peace, he commended his spirit into the hands of his heavenly Father. A few days previous to his decease, he was heard to say: “My ministeriai labors, my works, my preaching, I reckon all as filthy rags; a drop of my Saviour's blood is infinitely more precious."

At the time of his death, he was not far from fifty-six years of age; and to show how deeply he was beloved among the pious men and women of France, it is only needful to say, that while he lay dying in Paris, in the remotest extremities of the nation the dispersed Protestants were holding circles of prayer for him. French Protestantism universally wept at the news of his death.

As a preacher, it would not be asserting too much to say, that Adolphe Monod occupied the first rank in France. Although not a large man, or a man of commanding appearance, he was nevertheless a prince among preachers. His voice is said to have been melody itself, and ever under perfect control. As to his discourses, those which he delivered in large assemblies were almost invariably prepared with great care, written, and committed to memory. And yet his extemporaneous, or rather his unwritten sermons or lectures, were represented as admirable for beauty of style, for clearness of conception, and for adaptation to the occasion.

Says Dr. Baird, in a letter written several years ago, "I have no hesitation in saying, that Adolphe Monod is the most finished orator I have heard on the continent. Modest, humble simple in his appearance and dress, possessing a voice which is music itself, his powerful mind and vivid, but chaste, imagination, made their influence felt on the soul of every hearer in a way that is indescribable. The nearest approach to giving a true idea of it would be to say that his eloquence is of the nature