Father's name written on their foreheads (Rev. xiv. 1): not that they have a word written there; but that the Divine Love, the nature of the Father, is expressed in all their aims and in their every motive. The forehead of Goliath, however, signifies the motive of those who love and sustain a religion which rejects obedience and love as essential to salvation. It is not love that rejects love; for love is the life of the Lord, the life of heaven, the life of every virtue; "love is the fulfilling of the law" (Rom. xiii. 10). What is it, then, which despises charity, and rejects justice as an essential of true piety? What is it that dares to scorn the commandments of God as the essential laws of the life of a Christian? What is it that has separated religion from life, and made zealots who are bitter, ill-natured, peevish, and who yet think they are true followers of the lovely Prince of Peace? What is it that swells up bombastically, and disdains humble and sincere Christians who diligently follow their Saviour, but who cannot follow them? It is self, self-conceit, pride of intellect. This is the moving cause, the head and front of their offending. The stone of God's truth sinks deeply into this forehead, and the giant is overthrown. The spiritual Christian sees they who are of such a defiant, insolent spirit, "love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil" (John iii. 19). The Lord is love; they are self. Whosoever does not deny himself cannot be the Lord's disciple. He who denies love and obedience, denies the whole Word of God; for on the two grand commandments hang all the law and the prophets (Matt. xxii. 40). Without Christian love there is no faith; for "with the heart man believeth unto righteousness" (Rom. x. 10). It is love that believes all things, says the apostle (1 Cor. 'xiii. 7) and without love there is no church, no good works, no heaven.

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The giant reels, and falls: and David rushes forward, and cuts off his head with his own sword; or, in other words, shews that the whole aim and end of such a system, which professes to defend itself by the letter of the Bible, is condemned by the letter of the Bible: for every part of the sacred book is full of exhortations to the effect of the Lord's own declarations. "If thou will enter into life, keep the commandments” (Matt. xix. 17). "Whosoever shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. v. 19).

SERMON XII.

SAUL'S ATTEMPTS TO DESTROY DAVID.

"And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand as at other times and there was a javelin in Saul's hand.

"And Saul cast the javelin; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall. And David avoided out of his presence twice."-1 SAM. xviii. 10, 11.

WHEN the Apostle Paul, in his Epistle to the Galatians, referred to the history of Abraham, and his two wives, and their children, he said: "Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants." He did not mean that they were not true history; but that the history is recorded in the Word of God for the sake of the spiritual lessons to be taught by it. What the two women with their sons represented in general, and, according to the Apostle, in his time in particular, was the old covenant from Sinai, with its outbirth, the religion of the Jews, and the new covenant from the Lord Jesus Christ, with its offspring, the religion of Christianity. The one was bondage, the other was freedom: the one was of the letter, the other of the Spirit. "For this Hagar," he says, "is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. .. Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now" (Gal. iv. 24-29).

As it was said in that case, so may it be said in the one of Saul and David now before us. These things are an allegory equally with the narrative of Abraham: and the general lesson is the same. It describes those who receive religion externally, and go no farther; who are represented by Saul: and those who go on and become men of the Spirit, men of internal religion, "children of light;" who are represented by David. The

one class are comparatively in bondage; the other in glorious liberty. As he that is born of the flesh persecuted him that was born of the Spirit, as the Apostle says, so did Saul persecute David. A great part of Scripture is in reality taken up with the descriptions of the similarities, diversities and changes of state of these two classes of men; or, as it may be, with the states and activities of the two classes of feelings in the mind of one man; for in each mind there is an outer man and an inner man, a natural mind and a spiritual mind, a Saul and a David. These divine subjects are treated of in the histories of Abraham and Lot, of Rachel and Leah, of Israel out of Canaan and Israel in Canaan, of the disciples before their conversion when Jesus was with them, and the disciples after their conversion when Jesus was in them (John xiv. 17).

The character of a very considerable portion of the religion of the present day is such that its possessors go but little beyond the external religion represented by Saul; the religion of moderated selfishness. They have the religion of fear and of hope: but very slightly the religion of wisdom and peace; of delight in truth for the sake of truth, and in goodness for its own sweet sake.

It is a grand thing, indeed, to come on the Lord's side at all. It is a wonderful thing when a man ceases to do evil and learns to do well. To be a hired servant of the King of kings is of course infinitely better than to be a bond-slave of hell. But great as this new beginning is, in relation to a state reckless, careless, and rebellious against God, it is only a very external state, compared to the further attainments of spiritual and celestial men. It is a grand first step, but it is only a first step.

It was a great day when Saul was chosen King of Israel, and the people made the air ring with their acclamations of joy, and shouted "God save the King!" But what troubles revealed themselves afterwards; and how sad was the monarch's end on the mountains of Gilboa ! So, how often it is that one who began his religious career well, was full of joy at his deliverance, and for a time ran cheerfully in the religious path, at length has paused, become half-hearted, vacillated, exhibited failings that have saddened all who loved him, sunk from bad to worse, and perished in his sins. This is a state like Saul's. We must never forget that it is well to begin with the letter of the Word and religious life in its plainest, simplest form; but we must not stop there. We must mount up in truth and love into

angelic states; never pausing or turning back until the kingdom of the Lord has been fully formed and the glory of the Lord revealed in us, and dwelling in the spirit of love, we know that we are dwelling in God, for God is Love (1 John iv. 16).

We will endeavour to point out some of the characteristics of the Saul-state and of the David-state by which we may with greater clearness discern the failings of the one and the excellencies of the other. And may the Divine David from His eternal throne guide us, and grant in His light to see light that will lead to the mountain of His holiness.

First, then, the Saul-state of the religious man is one in which self-love has been but little subdued, and he is soon puffed up and easily offended. How jealous Saul was of David! how envious at his success! Although he could not have slain the giant himself, yet when the women sang, "Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands," Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him (xviii. 8). David was confident in the Lord, but perfectly unassuming. When questioned by the king as to who he was, he did not even refer to his great service not long before, in having healed the troubled spirit of the king by the music of his harp; but simply replied, "I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite" (xvii. 58). Interior religion in the spiritually-minded man is that love which the Apostle describes which "envieth not, vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up: doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own (but the Lord's will), is not easily provoked; thinketh no evil” (1 Cor. xiii. 4, 5). This spirit, as it entirely destroys the elation of self-love, cannot be borne at first by the external Christian; he takes the javelin of his hatred, and would fain destroy it. He wants to be great in religion, and he is told he must be humble. He resists hard, and would fain away with it again and again; but it is nevertheless eternal truth, and must prevail. The Pharisees hated our Lord, because they were in this very state. They wanted a Messiah that would lift them up above all nations; and when they were taught: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. v. 3); "He that is greatest among you shall be your servant" (xxiii. 11); "Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven" (xviii. 3); Saul-like they strove to put the Lord to death. Happy would it have been for Saul had he conquered this spirit in himself! Let us take this blessed course; and follow Him who, though the Highest of all, said,

"Learn of me: for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls" (Matt. xi. 29).

The second characteristic of the external man is that he thinks much of outward glory: he likes a popular religion, a great show. He would not think much of heaven itself, if it were not for the crowns, thrones, robes, and external glories which he associates with the angels. It inflates his self-love to dream of sitting like a Sultan, and having celestial beings passing to and fro to do his bidding. When internal religion comes, and says, "All these things must be spiritually understood: the crowns are wisdom; the thrones are fixed principles of heavenly judgment; the robes are robes of intelligence and righteousness; the joys, the blessedness of doing good, the delights of ever-increasing progress in all celestial and spiritual graces: The kingdom of God cometh not with observation; neither shall they say, lo here! or lo there! for the kingdom of God is within you:' "he is startled as from a fond dream, and at first he would fain destroy the unwelcome herald, and cling to his fond delusion. He persecutes David, until he finds it is entirely useless, and in fact that David is really his best friend. He then grieves at his ungrateful conduct and hardness of heart, and acknowledges that David must be King.

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The third feature in the character of the externally religious man is that he is vacillating, and easily drawn aside. Saul's whole life was one of sinning and repenting, and falling again. How many failings the Lord's disciples had when in their external state! What murmurings, what jealousies, what disputings, terminating with an entire forsaking of their Master in his hour of direst trouble! How conspicuous was this in the case of Peter! No one was so ready as he in confident declarations and professions of attachment: yet when trial and danger came, he vacillated and fell, sunk most dismally and disgracefully into cursing and swearing, and the denial of his Divine Benefactor and Friend (Matt. xxvi. 74). Such is the external Christian. But when these same men became internal men, and entered into the spirit of Divine things, they became true, firm, and faithful unto death.

Fourthly, the externally religious man cares little for spiritual truth. He may have been charmed and soothed with the sweet revealings of heaven, as Saul was in earlier times with the music of David's harp; but the flesh has been strong with him again, and now he dreads and hates what before was like

"The faint exquisite music of a dream."