SERMON XV.

MATT. VII. 21.

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth the will of my Father, which is in heaven.

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WE have before us an eternal world, in which there are but two states, the one inexpressibly happy, the other inconceivably wretched; and in one of these each of us must very soon be fixed. But in which? Is it possible we can be indifferent about knowing in which, when an hour, a moment, may place us in one of them? Perhaps you will say, How can a person know? I answer, It may be known, clearly known, by the word of God; for in the Scriptures the characters of saints and sinners are exactly drawn. It is plainly laid down who shall go to heaven, and who shall go to hell; and, having this rule, we are often exhorted to try ourselves by it; "to examine ourselves whether we be in the faith;" and thus "to make our calling and election sure.” The words of our text are of this nature; and you will remember that they are the words of Jesus Christ, who is to be our Judge; so that the same lips which declared this to us will pronounce upon each of us the sentence of life or death. O that we may now learn what all the world shall then learn, that true religion does not consist in words, or profession of regard to Christ; or in gifts, or zeal, or usefulness; but in doing the will of God from the heart!

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I. We learn from these words, that at the great day there will be an earnest desire in many to enter into the kingdom of heaven. By "the kingdom of heaven" is sometimes intended the kingdom of grace in the church of Christ on earth; but here it means the state of glory above, where Jesus shall reign in all his divine glory, and all his subjects enjoy perfect bliss. That this is referred to appears from the next verse- Many will say unto me in that day, Lord, Lord." In that day; it is not said in what day; nor was there any need to say what day, for all the disciples of Christ know what is meant by it. They are often thinking on that day when they shall “ the Son of man coming in the clouds with great glory:" "when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with all his mighty angels in flaming fire.” This is called the great day; a day of the greatest grandeur, a day of the greatest joy, and a day of the greatest terror. It is also called the day of the Lord, and the day of Christ. This is man's day; yea, the devil's day; when sinners triumph, and Satan reigns; but the triumph of the wicked is short, and the prince of this world shall be judged.

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O how careless are most people now about this great day! Scoffers abound in these latter times, and say, "Where is the promise of his coming?" Now and then, indeed, a just concern has prevailed for a season, as under John's ministry, "the kingdom of heaven suffered violence, and all men were for pressing into it." When a nation has been frightened by an earthquake or a plague, multitudes have been alarmed for a while. A few years ago, thousands followed some eminent preachers of the gospel into the open fields to hear the word; and we have lately read of great awakenings in America and other places. O that we could now see the same in Britain! O that now, when the judgments of

the Lord are abroad in the earth, this sinful nation would learn righteousness!

But O, how will it be when the day comes? How will it be when the trumpet shall sound? What terror will seize the heart of the wicked man! "Ah," will he say, "Is the dreadful day come at last; the day I so often heard of, so often laughed at? O my folly! O my vain and hurtful lusts! For what have I lost my soul? For the sake of my business, my pleasures, my companions, I have lost my soul, my heaven, my all. O that I had never been born!" But perhaps, recovering himself a little, he may say, "Am not I a Christian? Was I not baptized and confirmed, and did I not take the sacrament? Lord, Lord, open to me!" But it will be too late; the door is shut; many shall then seek to enter in, but shall not be able. The Judge will profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye workers of iniquity. And this leads us to observe, in the next place, that,

II. A mere profession of religion will then be found insufficient. The judgment of man carries it now; but it is a small matter to be judged of man's judg ment. Man looks only at the outward appearance, but the Lord searcheth the heart; and he will then make the result of his search public. The young man may now rejoice in his youthful lusts and pleasures; he may walk in the ways of his heart, and in the sight of his eyes, but let him know (and oh, that he may consider it), that "for all these things God will bring him into judgment."-Eccles. xi. 9. Yea, God will bring every secret thing into judgment; what is spoken in the ear in the closet shall be proclaimed on the house-top, and then shall the secrets of all hearts be made manifest. Then shall many that were first be last; and many that were last shall be first. Then shall the hypocrites be detected and exposed. Then shall a separation be made between

the tares and the wheat; between the sheep and the goats; between the foolish and the wise virgins. Then shall he say to poor vain formalists, I never knew you, &c. But let us more particularly examine the pretensions of these people.

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It should seem that they used to pray; they used "Lord, Lord!" It is certainly a bad sign for any one that he does not pray; and it is generally a good sign when a person does pray; but it is not a certain sign of grace. "The wicked" sometimes pour out a prayer, when God's chastening is upon them." Afflictions will sometimes extort prayers and vows, and many duties of religion; but when the affliction is over, there is an end of their devotion; and they return to their sins, as the dog to his vomit. So there may be transient convictions of sin, and terrific fears of hell, especially in the time of sickness and apprehension of death; and these may lead not only to a temporary reformation, but to doing many things, as Herod did when he heard John gladly, and as numbers of persons in popish countries who do penance for their sins; but there may be all this and much more while men remain workers of iniquity.

Again, these people appeared to be zealous in religion, as the repetition of the word, Lord, Lord, seems to intimate; and we find in the next verse, that they "prophesied in the name of Christ." Most of the prophets, especially the stated prophets, were "holy men;" but some, especially of the occasional ones, as Balaam, Saul, and Caiaphas, were wicked men. So were some of the first preachers of Christianity, and so are many now. This is an awful word for the carnal clergy of any church, and wicked preachers of any denomination; and it shows that zeal for religion is no absolute proof of sincerity in it.

These men did more still :- "they cast out devils. in Christ's name." When Christ was upon earth, and for some ages after, the devil was permitted to possess the bodies of men; but Christ and his apostles were able to cast them out; and so did common Christians for a long time after, by the mention of his name. But this and other extraordinary gifts were not confined to real Christians; wicked professors sometimes did it; and here, we see, boasted of it, and pleaded it: but the plea is not admitted Other "wonderful works" they also did; for so the Lord permitted, in order to promote the spread of Christianity; but what availed all this while the devil was not cast out of their own hearts, and the wonderful works of God's grace had never been wrought in their own souls? Men may be famous and useful in the church, yet, after all, be "cast-aways."

These people also professed obedience to Christ; they called him Lord. He is "Lord of all." He has all power in heaven and earth; and to him every knee shall bow. But it is to no purpose to call him Master and Lord, if we do not the things which he commands. Christ is not deceived by compliments; and he will reject that false devotion which consists only in words. Saying and doing are two things, often parted in the conversation of men. He that said "I go, Sir," never stirred a step. Matt. xxi. 30.

Now, notwithstanding all the professions of these people, it appears, from the words of Christ himself, that they were workers of iniquity. They loved sin, they lived in sin, they made a trade of sin; it was their calling and business, at which they daily worked, as a man at his proper trade. All this they did under the mask of religion, and are therefore rejected-" Depart from me, I never knew you.

Observe here, my friends, the deceitfulness of sin, and the deceitfulness of the heart. Though these