ing from city to city, and from one anniversary meeting to another, ought to bury themselves in the recesses of the country, where they might enjoy health, be surrounded with agreeable scenery, and be much in solitude and reflection. Many of our young candidates have never had proper season for deep and long-continued religious meditation, since they made. a profession of religion; and what is rather an unfavourable symptom, there are among them those, who cannot bear such a state of seclusion. They have been accustomed to live in society so long, that they enjoy themselves no where else.Now, I venture to assert, that although these young men may be zealous, noisy, and active professors; and may take the lead in revivals, and in all benevolent enterprises, they will be found, on careful examination, to be shallow Christians. ORDINATIONS AND INSTALLATIONS 1829, August 5. Installed, Rev. SAMUEL NOTT, as Pastor of the Cong. Church in Wareham, Mass. Sermon by Rev. R. S. Storrs. 1829, August 6. Ordained, Rev. HOPKINS, as Pastor of the Cong. Church in Pawtucket, Mass. Sermon by Rev. J. Hawes, of Hartford, Con. 1829, Sept. 24. Ordained as Missionaries, in Park-steeet, Boston, by the Presbytery of Newburyport, Rev. Messrs. HARRISON ALLEN, CALVIN W. BABBITT, ANSEL R. CLARKE, WILLIAM HERVEY, HENRY O. HIGLEY, HENRY LITTLE, CUTTING MARSH, MARTIN M. POST, CHARLES M. PUTNAM, HOLLIS READ, ANDREW II. REED, JONATHAN M. ROWLAND, Henry Shedd, PhaNUEL W. WARRINER, IRA M. WEAD, and JonN K. YOUNG. 1829, Sept. 30. Installed, Rev. STETSON RAYMOND, us Pastor of the Cong. Church in Freetown, Mass. Sermon by Rev. Mr. Stores, of Braintree. POETRY. THE DISCIPLES GOING TO EMMAUS. IT happened on a solemn eventide, Soon after He that was our Surety died, Two bosom friends, each pensively inclined, They spake of him they loved, of him whose life, The further traced, enriched them still the more; What their affliction was, and begg'd a share, A Jordan for the ablution of our woes. O days of Heaven, and nights of equal praise, COWPER. JOHN VI. 27.—Labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life. OUR Saviour was an occasional Preacher. He often took the subject of his discourse from the place where he was, or from the objects with which he was surrounded, or from the present circumstances and views of his hearers. Of this we find many instances in the gospel of John, and a striking one in the words of our text. The day before, he fed five thousand with five loaves and two fishes. This miracle convinced the multitudes, that he was the promised Messiah, and therefore, they proposed immediately to make him King. But as soon as he perceived their intention, he withdrew into a mountain alone. Evening coming on, his disciples left him, and took a boat in order to pass over the sea of Tiberias to Capernaum. Whilst they were in the midst of the sea, and tossed by a heavy wind, they were surprised to see Jesus walking on the waves, and drawing near to them. But as soon as he had calmed their fears, they received him into the boat, and found themselves instantly wafted to the land whither they went. In the morning, the multitudes who had seen the late miracle, perceived that Jesus was gone, though they saw, that he did not go away in the boat with his disciples, and could not conceive how he should get over the sea to Capernaum. However, they determined to go thither, in order to find him. And when they found him on the other side of the sea, they said unto him, with surprise, "Rabbi, when camest thou hither?" Jesus answered them, and said, "Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled. Labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you for him hath God the Father sealed." The eagerness of the multitude to secure temporal enjoyments, led our Lord to urge them to secure those that were more spiritual and permanent. He did not mean to forbid them to seek temporal favors; but to convince them of the duty and necessity of seeking more important enjoyments. This is evident from his using the same mode of expression in a comparative sense, on another occasion. Therefore, I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on: Is not the life more than meat and the body than raiment ? Our Saviour saw the solicitude of man kind to secure the blessings of providence; and from this consideration, he urged them to be still more solicitous to secure the blessings of grace, which he was about to lay down his life to procure for them.— And to set the importance of this in the strongest light, he uses the strongest expressions. "Labor not for the meat that perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life." These words forcibly express this plain truth: That men ought to be more engaged to secure spiritual enjoyments, than they are to secure temporal. I shall, I. Show that men are engaged to secure temporal enjoyments.— And, II. Show that they ought to be still more engaged to secure spiritual. 1. I am to show, that men are engaged to secure temporal enjoyments. This truth is too plain to need any proof, and almost too plain to admit any illustration. The love of happiness is implanted in every human breast. All mankind naturally desire to be happy in this life. It is the universal inquiry of the world, "Who will shew us any temporal good?" Visible objects make the first impressions on the human mind, and of course excite the first desires of the human heart.And as these objects constantly surround mankind, through every stage of life, they naturally make deeper and deeper impressions on their minds, and excite stronger and stronger desires after the possession of them. Hence, it is natural to suppose, that men should be eagerly engaged in their worldly pursuits. And if we look into their conduct, we shall find clear and convincing evidence of it. For, I. The men of the world spare no pains to secure the enjoyments of it. They not only rack their inventions to contrive the best and surest methods, to obtain the good things of this life; but they labor, toil, and sweat, to gain a small portion of them. They rise early, and late take rest; they expose themselves to winter's cold and summer's heat; to rains and snows, and tempests, in the pursuit of worldly good. And they spare no pains and avoid no hardships to obtain the objects of their hope.There is no end of the labor and toil, which all classes of men endure› in their worldly pursuits. They never think they can do too much, so long as they see any prospect of success. 2. As they spare no pains, so they omit no opportunities, to secure earthly enjoyments. They look out for opportunities, and when they discover them, they eagerly improve them to the best advantage. H there be any particular place, which affords them a promising worldly prospect, there they will go, if it be possible to get there. If there be any months in the year, any week in the months, any day in the week or any hour in the day, which appears favorable to their worldly designs, they will without delay, seize the favorable moments. How busy and laborious are they, in seed time and harvest? How engaged to improve every hour of such favorable seasons? Besides, 3. They will run the greatest risks, in order to secure what they e as 32 T th deem necessary to their temporal happiness. They will go into the bowels of the earth, and there expose themselves to the most noxious -vapors; they will traverse the mighty ocean, and there expose themselves to the merciless waves; they will go into the howling wilderness, and there expose themselves to beasts of prey; they will go into the field of battle, and there expose themselves to the arrows of death, merely to gain the fleeting objects of time. Indeed there is no employment, eno place, no situation, however hazardous, that they will avoid; provided they see a prospect of attaining their worldly wishes. Such engagedness mankind have manifested in the pursuit of earthly enjoyments, in every age of the world. And they still appear to be equally engaged in the same pursuit. They labor hard, they seize every opportunity, and run the greatest hazards, to obtain the meat that perisheth. In a few years, most men exhaust their strength, impair their health, and wear out their lives, in securing the perishing objects of this world. They show as great engagedness in worldly pursuits, as such objects can possibly deserve. I shall now proceed, II. To show that they ought to be still more engaged to secure spirit-ual enjoyments, than they are to secure temporal. This is the sentiment which Christ so strongly inculcates; "Labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for that which endureth unto everlasting life.”— To set this truth in a plain, familiar, convincing light, I would make the following observations. 1. God has done more to to provide spiritual enjoyments for mankind, than he has done to provide earthly happiness for them. He has ✅ done, indeed, a great deal, to put it into their power to be comfortable in this life. He has formed a material world for their habitation. He has given fertility to the earth, and to the ocean. He has ordained the regular succession of the seasons. He visits the earth with cold and heat and rain. He has furnished the world with useful animals. He gives skill and strength to mankind, to till the earth, to manufacture its produce, and to supply themselves with food and raiment. But all this is nothing in comparison with what he has done to provide them spiritual enjoyments. By an act of his power he called the world into existence; and by an act of his power, he constantly upholds and governs it. But to procure spiritual enjoyments for the guilty, perishing children of men, something greater, than creating, preserving, and governing the world, must be done. More wisdom, more power, and infinitely more goodness must be exerted and displayed. A mediator must be provided, who could unite divinity with humanity, and make an atonement, by suffering in the room of the guilty. This could be no other, than the incarnate Son of God. God therefore so loved the world, as to send his Son into it, to live a life of reproach, and contempt, and finally to pour out his soul unto death on the cross. So much God has done to provide the bread of life for man. And since |