550 THE EIGHT IDtPEOVEMENT OF LIFE. Life is the only time of such work and service. " Op- portunity, (saith a writer on this subject) is like a golden instru- ment to dig for heavenly treasure : Do not wear it out as many have done in digging for pebbles, and at your latter end become a fool. Plead not your mean capacity : Kings of the earth, and all people, old men and children maypraise the Lord ; Ps. cxlviii. 11, i_. Serveyour age accordingto your talent ; Mat. xxv. 15. He that hadbut one talent, but a single capacity, was called to account for it, and cast into outer darkness. Think how many opportunities you have out -lived, which will never have their re- surrection : Redeem lost time, by improving what remains. Project improvements of life, since your light is near extinguish- ed. Make up in affection what may be wanting in action. If you cannot do much, yet love much. If our servants should work no better for us than many have done for God, we should turn them out of doors. Stir up others to work for God, that rote may do by their hand what you cannot do by your own." Thus thispious author. Let us consider what glorions services have been done for God, by the long continuance of saints in this world. Survey the labours and the sufferings, the ministry, the zeal and the suc- cess of the blessed apostles, who planted the first Christian churches, What monuments of honour did they raise among Jews and strangers, among Greeks and barbarians, the savage and the polite heathens, to their crucified and exalted Saviour! What multitudes of subjects were brought to bow the knee to Jesus by their preaching ! What a large harvest of souls was gatheredunto Christ, when the apostle scattered the seed of the gospel all round the countries, from Jerusalem, through the pro- vinces of the lesser Asia, and through the southern parts of Europe, as some have supposed, asfar as Spain ! And the Re- deemer was glorified by his labours where the name of the true God the Creator was hardly known before. What an extensive blessing to the worldwas the life of Paul ? It is to this, that the following ages of christianity, as well as the primitivesaints, owe the unspeakablebenefit of his writings ; and it is to this, that Great Britain owes the blessing of his divine epistles. How honourable was it for. St. Paul himself, and how happy for us, that he was made an instrument of such service to Christ, such a glorious service, as spread itself around thenations, and reached to distant ages of mankind. His long lifewas an illustrious bles. sing both to himself and to the christian world. III. Life is yours, O Christians, for it allows many a proper season for giving examples of holiness to mankind. And it is a honour to a saint, to 'be made an example of religion amongst a nation of sinners, or a pattern ofholiness, among the churches of
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