in as few spirits as possible. I am afraid many of them have gone
on to the next step, and got rid of the one God out of their
thoughts and their belief. I said I am afraid, I ought to have said
I KNOW, that they have done so, and that thousands in this day who
began by saying evil spirits only mean certain diseases and bad
habits in men, have ended by saying, "God only means certain good
habits in man. God is no more a person than the evil spirits are
persons."

I warn you of all this, my friends, because if you go to live in
large towns, as many of you will, you will hear talk enough of this
sort before your hairs are grey, put cleverly and eloquently enough;
for, as a wise man said, "The devil does not send fools on his
errands." I pray God, that if you ever do hear doctrines of that
kind, some of my words may rise in your mind and help to shew to you
the evil path down which they lead.

We may believe, then, from the plain words of Scriptures, that there
are vast numbers of evil spirits continually tempting men, each of
them to some particular sin; to worldliness, for instance, for we
read of the spirit of the evil world; to filthiness, for we read of
unclean spirits; to falsehood, for we read of lying spirits and a
spirit of lies; to pride, for we read of a spirit of pride;--in
short, to all sins which a man CAN commit, to all evil passions to
which a man can give way. We have a right to believe, from the
plain words of Scripture, that these spirits are continually
wandering up and down tempting men to sin. That wonderful story of
Job's temptation, which you may all read for yourselves in the first
chapter of the book of Job, is, I think, proof enough for any one.