LUKE Xii. 15. A man's life confifteth not in the abundance of the things which he poffeffeth. EVERY living and thinking creature, my pious hearers, is ftriving and panting after happiness, childhood and youth, maturity and hoary age, the rough uncultivated man of nature and the more civilized and polished member of fociety, the ignorant as well as the learned, the volatile as well as the grave, he who has reflected on happiness and explored its various fources, as well as he to whom both the term and the idea are alike unknown and ftrange. Every one is defirous to rejoice in the life and the faculties which he feels within him; every one to enjoy as much property, as many accommodations and pleasures, as he knows and can acquire; every one abhors and fhuns all disagreeable, painful ideas and feelings; every one, on the other hand, wishes to augment the fum, as well as the vivacity and force of his agreeable ideas and feelings. If the one acts with confcioufnefs and confideration; the other, in the fame purfuit, follows merely an inward irresistible inftinct, an obfcure fenfation. If the one acts upon principles and determinate views; the other fuffers himself to be blindly led by the impres fions and collifions of outward things, or by his fenfual animal feelings. All run after the fame object but the ways they ftrike into to that end, tend very far afunder. None even entirely mifs of their purpose: but most of them attain to it along very toilsome roads, after long and dangerous deviations, after many vexatious disappointments; attain to it only late, only very imperfectly, and pains and forrows mark most of the fteps they have made. But, fince the longing and the endeavouring after happiness is so natural to man, and is so intimately blended with all that he thinks and wills and does; it is undoubtedly of the utmost moment, that he fhould give them the proper direction; that direction whereby he may the most certainly, the most safely, the most completely accomplish his defire. Whoever is once arrived at that stage of human culture that he can reflect on happiness and mifery, and on the means and fources of it, and is frequently and cogently fummoned to reflect upon them, fhould not fatisfy himself with obfcure and confufed ideas on these fubjects. Otherwife he would be ftill farther from the mark than his unenlightened, entirely fenfual brother. He fhould rather strive to adjust and ever more accurately to afcertain his ideas on thefe important matters. We, my pious hearers, we are at that stage of civilization: as perfons who are acquainted with their intellectual faculties and understand the use of them; and as christians, who have a fuperior light to enlighten and to guide them on the way of truth. Let us affert our privileges by forming to ourselves juft conceptions of human happiness. This is the defign of my present discourse. A man's life confifts not, fays Jefus in our text, no man lives, no man is rendered happy, by the abundance of his poffeffions. This expreffion of our divine teacher points out to us the track by which we are to feck, or not to feek our happiness. Let us purfue this track by circumftantially weighing wherein our happiness consists or does not confift, and by what way we may most furely arrive at it. Subjects of reflection, certainly meriting our ut moft attention and our moft cordial participation. A man's life confifteth not in the abundance of his poffeffions; therefore, human happiness consists not in the poffeffion of outward goods and advan tages, not in wealth and affluence, not in elevation and power, not in those things that mankind reckon worldly profperity. Experience teaches us that a man may have all these things, that he may possess them in an ample, a fuperfluous degree, and yet be unhappy; and that on the other hand he may be deftitute of all or of the greatest part of these things, and yet be happy. Or, are all, are even most of the rich and great and powerful happy? Are they content, pleased, fatisfied? Are they truly comfortable in what they have and poffefs? Do they find in the use and enjoyment of it, all that they hoped and expected from it? Do they enjoy it without apprehenfions and without cares? Do thefe advan tages tages fhield them from all the troubles and vexations of life, from pains and ficknesses, from the effects of envy and jealousy, from the pernicious violence of inordinate and corrupt paffions? Are not their wants very often only fo much the more numerous and great, their defires and appetites the more violent and infatiable, in proportion as they have more means and opportunities to comply with them, and to give ear to their impetuous cravings? Does not frequently their dependence on others, their bondage, their actual flavery, increase in proportion as they want more things and perfons to the gratification of their defires and to the execution of their projects? On the other hand, are all those unhappy, who live in an inferior station, who are deftitute of the goods of fortune and outward advantages? Are all, are many of the fources of pleafure, fhut up against them? Are peace of mind, content, delight unknown and foreign to them? Do they not frequently enjoy them in a far fuperior degree, far more carelessly and freely, than those. pretended favourites of fortune? Does not the lowliness and obfcurity of their station fecure them from a thousand dangers and troubles? Have they not all that nature and religion offer to the man and the christian, in common with the rich and the mighty? Is not generally their tafte lefs vitiated, and their fenfibility stronger and more lively? Is not their happiness lefs dependent on accidents and viciffitudes? Cannot a man very often be far more 4 blithe blithe in himself and his existence, in filence and in folitude than in noise and tumult? No, my dear friends, outward welfare, wealth, fuperfluity, eleva- · tion, power, pomp and splendour may in and of themselves confift with happiness; they do not always difcard it; they may rather, as means, when rightly estimated and ufed, promote it: but they form no neceffary, no effential part of it. The abfence of them is not always, is not in moft cafes, attended by the want of happiness. This can very well fubfift without them, it is feen very often without them. Of this neither reflection nor obfervation will allow us to doubt. A man's life consists not in the abundance of the things that he poffeffes. Just as little neceffary is it to human happinèfs, that all our undertakings fhould fucceed, that all our plans and defigns fhould be accomplished, all our wishes fulfilled, all our defires be gratified. Our defires are but too often fordid and corrupt, our wishes foolish, our plans and defigns injurious to ourfelves and others, our undertakings unjuft, or incoherent, or impracticable. Were it not for the various bounds prescribed us by the nature and the course of things and the over-ruling providence of God, there would certainly be far more pain and fuffering, more grief and mifery among mortals ; and never would creatures who fee no farther than we do be more unhappy than if all went with them according to their wishes. Were it not for the numerous obftacles and difficulties that we meet with |