can possess his favor, or enjoy that happiness which he has provided. And there is enough, methinks, in this plain simple declaration to make us all that we ought to be. Without holiness no man shall see the Lord. Look at the nature of the soul, and that happiness which God has provided, and is it not true? When we die, we have done with all that is material and earthly-All which gratified the senses will vanish. There will then no longer be lips to quaff the cup of pleasure. The ear will be shut against the song of intemperate mirth. All, that was once manly and beautiful in the form and feature goes down and mingles with the dust. And what is there remaining but the naked soul, to go into the presence of God, and the world of futurity? and if that soul be happy, what must its pleasures be but those which are intellectual and spiritual? It must have resources within itself, or it cannot be happy. It must have within itself a store of good dispositions and pure affections-a capacity and a taste for those enjoyments which God has provided, or they can impart no pleasure. Without these, God might admit us to a heaven of purity and love, but what has he to do there, who knows not what purity and love are? God may place him among the true worshippers around the throne, yet if he be not prepared for that assemblage by his dispositions and character, he would wander there a solitary stranger-unfriended, where sympathy in holiness is the only bond of union-thirsting where streams of pleasure are flowing-miserable in the midst of the blessed. We say then, if a man would be happy, he must acquire the capacity to enjoy. And how is this done? By holiness of life-by a faithful performance of those duties which God placed him here to perform-by gratitude, love, devotion to God--by cultivating a pure heart and humble mind-by cherishing the dispositions of kindness

and affection-by acquiring and maintaining the graces of the religion of Christ-by a patient continuance in well doing. There is no easier road to heaven than this-There is no other way under heaven by which men must be saved.

Let us remember, then, that without holiness no man shall see God. We may imagine other ways to obtain his favor, we may try other means; but, in that day when we shall render our account, we shall find all else to be worthless. We may hope to gain admittance to the marriage feast, with other qualifications we may say to our judge, indeed, we forgot thee in life and in health, but did we not call upon thy name in the day of sickness and of death, and say, Lord, Lord? Then the Judge will answer-I know you not-Depart from me ye workers of iniquity: Or, we may say, I knew thee to be an hard and austere master; and I thought to take some easier course to do thy will. Then shall the Judge say-Thou knewest I was an hard master, exacting a hard service, reaping where I have not sown, and gathering where I have not strewed? Thou oughtest therefore to have been the more earnest and active and vigilant. Take from him that has mispent his one talent, and give to him that has improved his ten. Thus shall it be in that day which is coming, when the voice of the son of man shall be heard, and they that sleep in their graves shall awake-They that have done well will arise to the resurrection of life, and they that have done ill to the resurrection of condemnation.

I now turn to you, my brother, who have been called by the voice of this people to be unto them a preacher of righteousness. Yours is the honorable employment of forming that holiness without which no man shall see the Lord; and here is the scene of your future labors. I sympathise with you in

the conflicting emotions which at this moment fill your mind, and would gladly suggest the means by which you may accomplish your great duty. But, my brother, this is one of the deep things of God, which it will be the object of your whole life to learn and practice. You will search for it in your Bible-you will pray for it in your closet-you will labor for it when others rest-you will watch for it when others sleep. Go, then, my brother, to your duties in the fear and love of the Lord. Go, and give them the strength of your intellect, and the fulness of your affection; and you shall learn the way of holiness-you shall see its beauty-you shall feel its power. And when you have labored and taught, and the day has declined, and the shadows of night are descending, the testimony of a good conscience to your endeavors will be your best support. As you have been faithful in dispensing the light of God's truth, it shall enlighten you through the dark valley.-As you have been devoted in inculcating the principles of a holy religion, they shall guide you to the presence of the Lord.

CHARGE.

BY REV. JAMES THOMPSON, OF BARRE.

MY FRIEND AND BROTHER,

By prayer and laying on of the hands of the Presbytery, you have been consecrated to the service of God in the gospel of his Son. You have, to-day, in the presence of God, angels, and men, of your own free will and accord, devoted the freshness and ardor of your youth, the powers and faculties of your mind and understanding, the best affections of your heart together with all your attainments in knowledge, to the work of the ministry. You are set for the defence of the gospel. You are commissioned as an ambassador from the high court of Zion's King, to beseech men to be reconciled to God. You are now officially associated with Jesus Christ and the noble company of his apostles as co-worker with them, in promoting the benevolent design, for which, the public institutions of our religion are maintained, and its teachers set apart an object at once the most simple and at the same time the most grand, which can be conceived by the human mind-the salvation of man-his preparation for the happiness of heaven by forming in him a holy heart and character. Consider then, my brother, the dignity of your vocation. Consider to what a glorious company you are this day joined. What an unspeakable honor is yours, to be connected with Christ and his apostles in the sublime work of the spiritual emancipation of man.

God give you strength to do as they did, and honor you with abundant success.

In performing the part assigned to me, on this interesting and solemn occasion, I may be permitted to say, that the ordination of

a minister, though a solemn act, yet like all other religious acts, has no value in itself unless it leads to affections, sentiments and conduct which are worthy the Christian, and beneficial to the church. Ordination communicates no new grace-imparts no additional sanctity-confers no new power or authority in a religious view. We claim no authority over you, by the act we are now performing; for we are brethren in Christ. We cheerfully recognize you as a brother equal in office with ourselves-entitled to all the immunities, invested with the high honors, and bound to all the trying labors and difficult duties of a fellow servant of a common and beloved Master. We would stir up your mind to a recollection of some of the duties which in the new station and relation which you have now assumed, devolve upon you.

Were I permitted to innovate on the form of ordination among us, I would present you with the sacred records at the time I solemnly charge you, in the name and by the direction of this ecclesiastical council, Preach the Word.

As a protestant Christian, and a son of our pilgrim fathers, you will consider the scriptures and them alone, as the only sure guide of faith and practice. Referring you to the instructions of the holy scriptures, especially the gospel for the motives under the influence of which you are to discharge your ministerial duties, and to their examples for their illustration, I give you my affectionate exhortation to use the most vigilant endeavors to imbue your own mind with the spirit of our Master. Form a sacred resolution honorably to support your professional character, and as far as you can, acceptably execute the labors of a minister of Christ in this place.

I charge you to take heed to the doctrines you preach, and the spirit and manner with which you communicate instruction to the people of your care. As to doctrines, the divine testimony is sufficiently explicit. It is abundantly evident that but a few of these are indispensably necessary to be the foundation of the religious principle. The promises of God-the declarations of the prophets-the preaching of Jesus and the writings of the apostles afford ample treasures whence you may draw those moral and religious instructions with which your people need to be supplied. In relation to this subject, I charge you to pay a respectful regard to the simplicity of divine truth. The endless labyrinth of error in which the schools have bewildered the church, began its windings by giving a mystical sense to scripture. And no sooner was this license taken with the written word, than it became meritorious to find out hidden and