CHRISTIAN:

A COURSE

OF

PRACTICAL SERMONS.

BY THE

REV. SAMUEL WALKER, A.B.

CURATE OF TRURO IN CORNWALL.

WITH

AN INTRODUCTORY ESSAY,

BY THE

REV. CHARLES SIMEON,

CAMBRIDGE. ་

GLASGOW:

PRINTED FOR CHALMERS AND COLLINS;

WILLIAM WHYTE & CO. AND WILLIAM OLIPHANT, EDINBURGH;
R. M. TIMS, AND WM. CURRY, JUN. & CO. DUBLIN;
AND G. B. WHITTAKER, LONDON

TENOX LIBRARY

NEW YO
YORK

Printed by W. Collins & Co.
Glasgow.

INTRODUCTORY ESSAY.

WE can have derived but little improvement from our intercourse with the world, if we have not observed how rare an attainment self-knowledge is, and how superficial is men's acquaintance with their own hearts. This is an observation which every one makes in relation to others, whilst no one suspects its applicability to himself. In many cases we are perfectly astonished at the degree in which men are blinded, in reference to their own characters, which are as manifest to those around them as the sun at noon-day.

Now whence arises this? Every one knows what he does, and, to a certain degree, why he does it: and he has within himself such a knowledge of good and evil, as would suffice for forming, in some degree, a correct judgment, if only he brought his conduct fairly to the test, But there is in every one a principle of self-love, which indisposes him for exercising any great strictness, (we had almost said, any great degree of candour,) in scrutinizing his own habits.