Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.-Let your obedience extend not merely to one portion of your duty, but to the whole, in its various parts. In particular, let your good-will and charity be felt and manifested, not only towards a few more immediate favourites, but towards all men with whom you have anything to do, or as far as you are able to benefit them.

Be perfect. What are we to understand by this, in the full Christian sense of the expression? "What is the perfection of which man is capable while he dwells in a corruptible body? It is the complying with that kind command, 'My son, give me thy heart.' It is the loving the Lord his God with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his mind. This is the sum of Christian perfection; it is all comprised in that one word Love. The first branch of it is the love of God; and as he that loves God loves his brother also, it is inseparably connected with the second, 'Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.' Thou shalt love every man as thy own soul, as Christ loved us."

-" Lord, have mercy upon us; and write all these thy laws in our hearts,

Of Almsgiving, and Prayer.

TAKE heed that ye do not your || alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward || of your Father which is in heaven.

2 Therefore "when thou doest thine alms, || do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their

reward.

3 But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth :

4 That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.

5 And when thou prayest,

not honestly desired and sought. Their hypocrisy is an abomination in his sight. They must prepare to be cast out from his presence with fearful and overwhelming displea

6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

7 But when ye pray, 'use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: 'for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

8 Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.

Or, righteousness. Deut. xxiv. 13. Ps. cxii. 9. Dan. iv. 27. 2 Cor. ix. 9, 10. | Or, with.-a Rom. xii. 8. Or, cause not a trumpet to be sounded. b Luke xiv. He 2 Kin. iv. 33.-d Eccles. v. 2. Ecclus. vii. 14. el Kin, xviii. 26, 29.

READER. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. - Hypocrites, that is to say, persons who pretend to religious feelings or intentions | which they do not really possess, for the sake of attracting the observation, or gaining the applause, of men, may succeed in obtaining that phantom reputation which they covet, but let them expect nothing more. They have sought the honour which cometh from man; and let them be content if they obtain it.

sure.

When thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth; - a proverbial expression, meaning, do it as secretly as possible, and so explained by our Saviour in the words following, that thine alms may be in secret, and more fully by the foregoing sentence, Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them."The thing which is here forbidden, is not barely the doing good in the sight of men; this circumstance alone, that others see what we do, makes the action neither worse nor better; but the doing it before men to be seen of them, with this view, from this intention only. I say, from this intention only; for this may, in some cases, be a part of our intention: we may design that some of our actions should be seen, and yet they may be acceptable to God. We may intend that our light should shine before men, when our conscience bears us witness, in the Holy Ghost, that our ultimate end in designing that they should see our good works is "that they may glorify our Father which is in heaven." But take heed that ye do not the least thing with a view to your own glory. Take heed that a regard to the praise of men have no place at all in your works of mercy. If you seek your own glory, if you have any

design to gain the honour that cometh of men, whatever is done with this view is nothing worth; it is not done unto the Lord: he accepteth it not.

And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are.-Most offensive in the sight of heaven is ostentatious prayer, or ostentatious piety of any kind whatever.-The hypocritical Jews made long prayers, in order to obtain the reputation of eminent sanctity. Sometimes, perhaps, they had in view not merely praise, but profit. They hoped to be not only commended, but trusted, on account of their apparent godliness; and so to find opportunity of making gain. How many are the perverse and corrupt motives which may lead men to perform the outward acts of religion! Let us remember that "purity of intention is destroyed by a view to any temporal reward whatever. If we repeat our prayers, if we attend the public worship of God, if we relieve the poor, with a view to gain or interest, it is not a whit more acceptable to God, than if it were done with a view to praise. Any temporal view or motive, any design but that of promoting the glory of God, and the happiness of men for God's sake, makes every action, however fair it may appear to men, an abomination unto the Lord."

But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut the door pray to thy Father which is in secret.- "There is a time when thou art openly to glorify God, to pray to and praise him in

the great congregation. But when thou desirest more largely and more particularly to make thy requests known unto God, whether it be in the evening, or in the morning, or at noon-day, 'enter into thy closet and shut thy door.' Use all the privacy thou canst; only leave it not undone, whether thou hast any closet, any privacy, or not. Pray to God, if possible, when none seeth but He; but, if otherwise, pray to God. Thus pray to thy Father which is in secret;' pour out all thy heart before him; and thy Father which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.'

999

When ye pray, use not vain repetitions as the heathen do."Do not use abundance of words without meaning; think not that the fruit of your prayers depends on the length of them.

The thing here reproved is not simply the length, any more than the shortness, of our prayers; but, first, length without meaning; the speaking much, and meaning little or nothing; the using (not all repetions, for our Lord himself prayed thrice, repeating the same words, but) vain repetitions, as the heathen did, reciting the names of their gods over and over: secondly, the thinking to be heard for our much speaking; the fancying that God measures prayers by their length, and is best pleased with those which contain the most words."

And thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.-How solemn, and yet, to a pious man, how delightful is the thought that

God is acquainted with our inmost desires and most private thoughts! "Thou God seest me." "O Lord, thou hast searched me out, and known me; thou knowest my downsitting and mine up-rising; thou un

derstandest my thoughts long before. Thou art about my path, and about my bed, and spiest out all my ways;" Ps. cxxxix. 1, 2.-And how encouraging the assurance that the supplications of the faithful, offered even in retirement and in solitude, find a ready access to the throne and the ears of our heavenly Father and friend! "The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him; yea, all such as call upon him faithfully. He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him; he also will hear their cry, and will help them;" Psalm cxlv. 18, 19.

HYMN I.

(ALMS).

FATHER of mercies, send thy grace,
All powerful from above,
To form in our obedient souls

The image of thy love.

Oh, may our sympathising heart
That generous pleasure know;

Freely to share in others' joy,
And weep for others' woe.

Whene'er the helpless sons of grief
In low distress are laid,

Soft be our hearts their pains to feel,
And swift our hands to aid.

So Jesus look'd on dying men,
Enthron'd above the skies;
And, when he saw their lost estate,
Felt his compassion rise.

Since Christ, to save our guilty souls,
On wings of mercy flew,

We, whom the Saviour thus hath loved, Should love each other too.

DODDRIDGE,

HYMN II. (PRAYER.)

Prayer is the soul's sincere desire,
Utter'd or unexpress'd;
The motion of a hidden fire

That trembles in the breast.

Prayer is the burden of a sigh,
The falling of a tear;
The upward glancing of an eye,
When none but God is near.

Prayer is the simplest form of speech
That infant lips can try;
Prayer the sublimest strains that reach
The Majesty on high.

Prayer is the Christian's vital breath,

The Christian's native air;
His watchword at the gates of death;
He enters heaven with prayer.
Prayer is the contrite sinner's voice
Returning from his ways;
While angels in their song rejoice,
And cry, "Behold he prays."
The saints in prayer appear as one
In word, and deed, and mind;
While with the Father and the Son
Sweet fellowship they find.

Nor prayer is made on earth alone:
The Holy Spirit pleads;

And Jesus on the eternal throne
For sinners intercedes.