for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life." This charge speaks to the men of the present day, as strongly as when first spoken to the early Christians, and shews them that "Godliness with contentment is great gain, whether a man be rich or poor." Men are not now called upon to give up their houses, and lands, if honestly theirs, nor to leave their families for the kingdom of God's sake; but while they enjoy these, his gifts, they are called upon to remember him in all things, using all things for his service, and there is nothing that is lawful for us to have, that may not be used in his service. Time, money, influence, all may be made to serve God, while we trust him for the eternal life which He only can bestow.

Prayer.

Oh! our Saviour, we too would know of thee, what we must do, that we may inherit that eternal life thou didst leave thy heavenly home to give us. Speak to us in thy word, shew us how we may possess without trusting in our possessions, how we may want without being care-worn by our wants. Give us grace in the daily things of common life, to see the cross appointed for us, and willingly to take it up and follow thee, our beloved Lord and only Saviour. Amen.

LIII.

MATT. XIX.

We have heard what Jesus said of the certain reward of those who received his gospel; He now adds, Matt. xix. 30. "But many that are first shall be last and the last first;" for it is the motive, the state of heart, on which all depends. The para

ble which the Saviour now spoke unto his disciples, clearly shews this. Going on with the sentence, " Many that are last shall be first; and the first last," He says,

MATTHEW XX. 1-17. “For the kingdom of God is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny * a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way. Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise. And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive. So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first. And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny. But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny. And when they had received it, they murmured against the good man of the house, Saying, These last have wrought with thee but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and the heat of the day. But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny? Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto these last, even as unto thee. Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? *The penny here spoken of, is about seven pence halfpenny of our money.

Is thine eye evil because I am good? So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many are called, but few chosen."

In our country it is the custom in many parts, for the young men and maidens who wish for service, twice in the year to wait in the market-places to be hired; but in some parts of the East, even to this day, they, each morning, go forth before sunrise and wait on till evening, in the hope of finding employment.* Thus our Lord drew from a well-known custom, the lesson He wished to impress upon his apostles. He taught them, under the figure of the murmuring labourers, to beware of putting any value upon their works, lest, by losing their humility they might lose their reward, which after all, must be given them, not because they have earned it of right, but because God's goodness is so great that He accepts the service of a thoughtful, humble heart, and rewards it as seemeth to him good.

The Parable sets forth to us the kingdom of heaven as a vineyard in which men are called to labour; thus showing that God, the Master of the household, doth all things according to his pleasure, giving to each servant of his such work as He sees fit; the time, the manner, and quantity, is all of his appointing. None have cause to glory, none have cause to complain. There is but one thing to think of: it is this, that God's will may be done.

By this Parable the Lord Jesus, as it were, nipped in the bud the evil that showed itself in Peter's question," Lord, what shall we have?" we who have acted so differently from this young ruler, who values his earthly possessions more than the

* Morier relates in his second journey through Persia, that having observed labourers standing all day in the market-place, with their spades in their hands, he asked them towards evening, why they thus stood all day idle; and was answered in the very words of Scripture-" Because no man hath hired us."

kingdom of heaven; "We have left all for thy sake, what shall we have?"

Under the figure of labourers in a vineyard, who, having worked all the day, received at even-tide no more than they who had laboured but one hour, the apostles were taught not to value themselves upon the quantity of their work, but to rejoice in the goodness of their Lord, who opens the treasures of his grace to all who obey his call. Herein lies the great lesson of the parable, that acceptance and salvation cometh of God's free grace, "not of works, lest any man should boast;" and this lesson is spoken first, immediately to the apostles, who if they encouraged a boastful spirit, would, notwithstanding the sacrifices they had made, in the end lose their reward.

Secondly, it was spoken to the whole nation of Jews, who valued themselves upon being first called into God's vineyard or church,― scorning the Gentiles because they remained uncalled till a late hour in the working-day of the world.

Thirdly, the Parable is spoken to every one of ourselves, as a warning to watch over our hearts, while earnestly we strive to serve God all we can, that we may feel how little is all we do, and humbly wait his commands in our proper places, appointed by him; seeking "less to serve him much, than to please him perfectly." If we keep the Parable of the labourers in the vineyard in mind, while reading the epistle of St. Paul to the Romans, we shall find that each explains the other. May our Lord and Saviour, give us grace to hear his voice calling to us, and diligently and thankfully to obey him in every duty; not reckoning whether it seems to ourselves and others to be great or small, provided only, that with true hearts we serve him who while He has promised eternal life to all who love him, has spoken this warning to all who would be numbered among his people, to beware of setting a false value upon good works, for God sees into the heart, and pride nourished there shall cause "the last to be first, and the first last: for many be called but few are chosen."

So sinful is our nature, that our very obedience may become a snare to us, we may pride ourselves upon it, thinking ourselves to be something when we are nothing, and so find ourselves last, when we had thought to be first.

Prayer.

O God, blessed be thy holy name, that thou dost not weigh the value of our works; for how should we appear before thee when our day of life is done, if thou wert to bring us to account for the service we have rendered thee? Only let us be thy servants, call us into whatever corner of thy vineyard thou seest good; give us wisdom to understand the work thou dost appoint for us, and give us strength and grace to do it. And O, when our hearts are sad within us to think that we can do so little, let us be cheered by the remembrance that thy rewards are not of debt, but of grace ;* that thou dost not deal with us according to the nothingness of our service, but according to the greatness of thy love in Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen.

LIV.

MATT. XX. 17. MARK X. 32. LUKE XI. 31.

The time of the Passover drew nigh, and with troubled minds, the twelve apostles saw their Lord take the road to Jerusalem. They knew the hatred of the chief Pharisees. They felt the danger that awaited him.† St. Mark describes the journey in these words :

MARK X. 32. "And they were in the way going up to Jerusalem; and Jesus went before them: and they were amazed; and as they followed, they were afraid."

*Romans iv.

John xi. 8—16.