gently do their duty in that state of life to which it has pleased God to call them; —that they never forget, that a disobedient child has seldom proved a good man; and that he who died for their sins, lived a life of penury to teach them, that it is "through much tribulation" that every child of Adam, and every disciple of Christ, must ever hope to enter into the kingdom of heaven.

SERMON VIII.

THE ENLIGHTENED FAITH OF THE ROMAN

CENTURION.

MATTHEW viii. 8.

The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed.

THE account here given of the remarkable proofs of faith shown by this Roman centurion, deserves our attention for more reasons than one;-because the full meaning of it is not evident at first sight; because his faith in Jesus seems to be a type of the faith of that Roman centurion Cornelius, who was the first heathen convert to Christianity, and of those which were to follow in his path; and because some lessons, practically useful to ourselves, may be easily drawn from its consideration.

The individual who is the main subject of this narrative, was a subordinate officer in the Roman army, stationed among the Jews for the purpose of keeping that turbulent people in subjection, of superintending the collection of taxes, and maintaining order. Being a Roman, he was by birth a heathen,-a worshipper of false gods. But, probably by long residence among the Jews, by studying their remarkable character, and reading their wonderful books, he had been at least so far convinced of the truth of their religion, and, therefore, of the falsehood of his own, as to entertain a very favourable and friendly impression towards the nation in which he was sojourning. This appears from the account which St. Luke gives us of the event before us. He tells us, that the centurion does not himself venture to ask a favour of our Saviour, but requests the elders of the city to do it for him; who accordingly do so with great earnestness, asserting that he was worthy for whom he should do this; for, they add, "he loveth our nation and hath

built us a synagogue." Having himself felt the blessing which the knowledge of the one true God had brought him, he naturally thought that he could not better show his gratitude to that God, or to that nation from whom he had derived his knowledge, than by building, among God's chosen people, a temple to his praise. Our blessed Saviour, in consideration, as it would seem, of his excellent character, and in compliance with the joint request of the centurion and of the Jews, at once grants their petition. "I will come," says he, " and heal him"." Now we must remark the fact of Jesus' coming to heal him, which, trivial as it may seem, was what probably neither the Jews nor the centurion expected from him. The centurion, we must remember, though a person of some authority, was still a foreigner, and, therefore, in the eyes of every Jew, an abomination-but " as a heathen man and a publican." To come into his house, therefore, was, according

1 Luke vii. 5.

2 Matt. viii. 7.

to the creed of an Israelite, an act not to be performed by Jesus, not to be expected by the centurion. "Ye know," says St. Peter to the gentile Cornelius, when he entered into his house, " ye know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to keep company, or come unto one of another nation'." But our blessed Saviour, pleased with the account which he had received of the believing centurion, and wishing, probably, to teach the Jews who gave it, a lesson of liberality, answers immediately, "I will come and heal him." The centurion hears of his approach, and, knowing the opinions of the Jews on this subject, is shocked at an act of condescension, which he had no right to expect from any one of that nation, least of all from Him, whom he had every reason to believe their great Messiah. When Jesus, therefore, was not far from the house, he sent friends to him, (for it was no more right for him to approach Jesus, than for Jesus to approach him, but he sent Jewish friends to him,) saying unto him, "Lord, trouble not thyself;