PREFACE. IN affectionately dedicating this little volume to the congregation before whom its contents were spoken, it may be well to explain that the idea of a consecutive series of discourses had to be abandoned early in the project, and the choice of hearers consulted rather than that of the writer. It was in compliance with the repeated wishes of many friends that the book was compiled, and when it came to an election between his own taste and the desires of those he was anxious to gratify by its publication, there was no room for pause on the Author's part. There is no attempt at a series, therefore; but the work consists of such familiar sermons as have seemed to strike others as likely to do good. If they should do so, by God's blessing, no one can be more conscious than their Author, that it will not be from any original or literary merit they possess, but simply from their earnest adherence to the old lines of thought and doctrine, which make Christ crucified |
