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L'exemplaire film6 fut reproduit grAce i la g6n6rosit6 de I'^tablissement prdteur suivant : Bibliothdque nationale du Canada Maps or plates too large to be entirely included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper Inft hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, aa many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrnte the method: Les cartes ou les planches trop grandes pour Atre reproduites en un seul clichA sont fiimAes d partir de Tangle sup6rieure gauche, de gauche d droite et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images nAcessaire. Le diagramme suivant illustre la mAthode : 1 2 3 4 5 6 'Y ^^^^^^ ^ c^ ^: ^d' Th'foUowmj TesU ivho have exa thoughts eonca This certifies tha co\ty of a book cnt: cheerfully rccommc aiul advancement ii sexes. " Cliristian Lib process of publicat I am prepared to i sel and instruction dote to the prevail New Glasgow, Having examine " Christian Libert, its circulation, esp ted to do good. Montreal, T' • Having cursor! tian Liberty and as pious and Eva| in its tendency Quebec, I80I The undersigj a work entitled , recommend it a\ in a clear and s eelical truth. ir/if follow in(j Testimonials are evidence of the opinions of perwns who have examined parts of the icork, and exprossive of thoughts concerning its probable usefidness. This certifies that the undersigned liave examined a part of the Icoji)? of a book entitled " Christian Liberty and its Enemies," and cheerfully recommend its j)erasal to those who desire knowledge and advancement iu Divine life, and especially to tiie youth of boiii sexes. E. S. CURRY, Wesleyan Minister. GEO. HAMILTON, Local Preacher W. M. Church. '• Christian Liberty and its Enemies," is the title of a Avork in process of publication, and from what I have learned of its contents I am prepared to recommend it as adapted to afford suitable coun- sel anf Evangelical piety pervading every portion of this treatise, nmst recommend it to Christian readers of all Protestant Creeds, while as a mere literary produc- tion the style will induce a perusal. If you publish by subscription it will aftbrd me nmch satisfaction to be be able to assist in its publication by subscribing for several coi^ies. With best wishes for your health, happinessi, and success in the pious path you have chosen. I am, my dear Sir, Yours truly, Mr. Lelloy Foote. ' W. II. HENDERSON. Melbourne, Jan. 28, 1867. As far as I have read of the intended volume by Mr. L. Foote, entitled " Christian Liberty and its Enemies," I see nothing but Avhat is both interesting and profitable to the class for whom the author intends it. T. W. JEFFEllY, Wedeyaii Metli. Minister. Having cursorily examined the M. S. of Mr. Foote's work on " Christian Libery and its Enemies," I have great pleasure in testifying to my high opinion of its orthodoxy, the popular style in which it is written, and the spirit of earnest piety that pervades it. A work of the kind cannot fail to be useful to young persons, for whom it is specially intended, in guarding them against the dangers arising from scepticism on the one hand and fanaticisms on the other, with the many phases in v/I.ich they present themselves. I cordially com.mend the book and its author to the aympathy and support of the Christian public. JAMES HUMBERT M. A., Presbi/terian Jliniater and Professor of Natural History, St. Francis College, Richmond, 2\st March, 1867. .(1 ■I i /'^•?i V E^^^T!r C' «—»•■' w / » H^Si ! I ■■ K CHRISTIAN LIBERTY ANU I ITS ENEMIES: A BOOK FOIi YOUTH. ,1 DKINO A COLLECTION OP URIKF ^nA(•TI(^VL KSSAYM AND SEBMONS ON SUBJECTa OK JNTKUEST \yv USEFULNESS, f Bv LEROY FOOTE. For we wrertle not against flesh and blood, hnt aRalnnt prlnclpalitlos, aBalnrt powers, apralnirt the nilers of the darkness of this world, againrt spiritual wiclcodne«8 in high flacctt.—h'phetiani vi. 1 1 Tlie weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty In the Lord to the pulling down of strongholds.— />au< tAe Apottle, PRINTED DY JOHN LOVELL, ST. NICHOLAS OTREET. 1868. t ^ ..> ';Jk,-. 'iC. .-W^V^ Y ' ^ iii* .-« fc SPSSH " Ettterei decordiny to Act 6f the Parddment of Cdnada, mtKejfecir (He " Thousand Eight Hundred and Sixty-Nin^, hy TiitRoT FooTH, tn the Office t^ " the Mmitter (^Agriculture." t ft r PREFACE The greatest encouragement at the present time for writers of books, lies in the thought that a multitude of young hearts are beat- ing high with hope for the future, and looking up for words of warning instruction to guide them through their pilgrimage on earth. Each age brings forth its talent for the presentation of truth, and that talent is peculiar and diversified, to meet, in a measure, the demands of its time. The present time demands effort of special character, going forth into the bj-ways and hedges to snatch, as " brands from the burning," the perishing sons and daughters of Adam's race, and presenting the " Sinner's Friend" as their only hope and refuge. To do this work effectually wo must " reprove, rebuke, exhort," and while the pitfalls of sin are briefly presented, the loving spirit of the Master must be manifested as an attraction to the erring. V/hile we poorly attempt the fulfilment of these pretensions in the following pages, we crave the charity and patience of the reader. L. F. ' ' ERRAT/. On page 55, line 2, read embodiment for embodin. Chap "X" is wrongly numbered " XI ". NoTB,— -The article on ElectioQ (page 120) is too strongly sectarian for tbe character of this work. After the article had gone to press the author was conscientiously convinced from scripture proof and reasonable instruction that the text should not hare been rendered as herein. ♦s be as at CONTENTS : Taqb CHAPTER I, Christian Liberty doflned 8 The Fruita of tlio Spirit 8 The definition of Lore,. § Earnest Question 11 CHAPTUB II. Joy described : 11 The Fruit of Conversion 12 Tlio Sinner over barren of real Joy 12 I'eace 18 Tiic Peace that passeth understanding 13 The I'eace of tlio Sinner and Christian compared 18 illustrations 14 CHAPTER III. Long Suffering, a (jracious Evidence of Conversion 14 Its practical value described 15 Example, and Illustrations 16 Gentleness, the Christian Ornament 16 1 ndispengible in the practice of a professor of Christ's teachings 16 (goodness in the general acceptation of the term .' 17 Its special application 17 Illustrations 18 Faith 18 Meekness ,- 19 Temperunco Itt CHAITER IV. On the application of the Truths of the Bible generally 21 Their relation to the natural world and its analogy to the Spiritual 28 Harmony between the works of Grace and those of nature 24 Kcfluctions and Illustrations 26 Exhortation 26 CHAITER V. Doctrines of the Church militant as the land-marks of Christian Liberty 29 Their necessity and definition 29 Comments upon them and objections cited and answered 29 Reflections 29 Of Man's First Estate, and Fall : 30 Of the Trinity in Unity 81 CHAPTER VI. Popery an Enemy to Christianity 83 Some thoughts on its past history 33 lt« bearing on the present state of the world, and surmisings on its future 34 Modern Spiritualism 34 The Sabbath day 87 Brief Sermon ^ Worldly Titles 39 * CHAPTER VII. Univorsalism and Unitarianism 40 Sabbath feasting 41 The Power of Influence 42 The Force of Example.— Novel reading 48 Popular dancing 46 On t ait'ifuless 47 The Force of Habit 48 The Benefit* of Present Salvation 49 Coquetry at a discount, or Elien C 'scxpcriencit 61 Brief Sermon 66 IMH vl ♦ Paok 1-evlty 50 Tho linrt of Faith fiO on (lirintian Union (W The .Spiritual gifts of Ood 66 Kvery day Troubles.— Covfooiisness 67 Sympathy ibr your Mmi«t«r.— Total Ab!>tiuouce 68 The Kinedoing of this World, &c 69 Om Workp 70 Bigotry.— Infldolity 71 Inndellty and Geology 7a CHAITER VIII. On Nationalitiea 7S Feniunism 73 The price of tho Soul 75 Natural Affection 78 Encouragpmcnt to Effort 79 The Fear of tho Lord 79 The Great. Dry 81 Christiana in Politics 82 Thoughts on tho Soul. 83 Lettor to a friend desiring a preparation for the Ministry 85 Thu coming of the Lord 87 Man Worshiji. 90 A Merry Heart 90 The influence of the Holy Spirit 91 Tho philosophy of infiuoncc 92 Slavery m The Lord's prayer 93 The judgments 94 Revelation 95 ■Watchfulness enjoined 96 The nnion of the Godhead and Manhood, in the person of Christ.. 97 The resurrection 97 Charity 99 On Reward 99 On Kindness , 100 Growth in Grace 101 Love. On 101 Millerisra 102 Arguments for Temperance 103 Intemperance 105 Gaming in" Mormonism 108 I'ride 109 CHAPTER IX. The use of tho body 112 Treasures of the Holy Spirit Reading 116 Character of Paul 117 Dying Rich 118 Dross On 119 Caste 119 Meditation on Death 120 On election 12ij Apostolic Succession 121 Sermon on Conduct ' 121 Idle words 128 CHAPTER XI. Holy Tempers 183 Joy 134 Every day life 134 Repentance 134 Cheerfulness 135 The Character of Josua Christ 185 Texts from Scripture 137 Selections from Paul's Epistles 139 A Prayer 1^ The light from above 139 The fear of man IM False teaching 141 Every day acknowlegments 142 Fruit* 11^ God's order of working 144 Tho Signs of the times . 144 vu Paos Shakogpean! and the Thoatre-going 146 What Is true independence 146 J^ook unto Jesus 148 The Howard of Sin 148 Letter to u friend 148 Popular humbugs , 149 The Grave. 160 Extremes in Religion 16<» The Status of the times 161 A Sign of the times 161 The Philosopliy of Humbugs 154 Brief Thoughts on Bunyan^a Pilgrim 165 Tlie Happy Land (poetiy) 157 Advice to a young man going to California 158 Lip Service 169 Tlie Spirit's influence KiO Temperance Sermon 163 The Christian in Christ 168 Do good 169 The Plan of Salvation 169 CHAITER XII. The power of the Lord 170 The Christian warrior's Hymn (poetry) 171 Prayer lor renewal of grace (poetry) 171 The necessity ot Caution against Evil 172 Letter to a Iriond 172 The necessity of Preaching 174 On the object of Preaching 174 A Common habit reproved 176 Sermon on Truth 176 Salvation for all who will receive it 177 The Comforter 178 Man.— Tlie object of his creation 179 Christian Equality 180 The use of the world 181 Personal application of Christ's saving merits 182 Rulers 18? Watchfulness Enjoined, ^88 Christian Agreement 184 Gospel obedience 284 A cheert'ul disposition lt<6 Be engaged 186 Special providences 186 Subjects for Sermons ; 187 Ought Christians to engage actively in politics 188 Watch, man what of the night 189 CHAPTER XIII. Sermon 194 Letter to a friend 196 Thoughts on the use of ardent spirits 198 The evils of Sedition and Rebellion 199 Forbearance 200 Hard Times 201 Advice to young Christians , 202 The Plan of Salvation 206 Subjects for Sermons 211 Letter to a friend 218 Marian B . or the reward of coquetry 216 Come with us 217 The Simplicity that is in Christ 218 The privileges of the true believer : 218 • Notes of a Sermon 219 Another 220 Ode to a liquor advertisement (poetry) 221 Arguments for total Abstinence 221 Questions for Sceptics with supposed answers 222 Church Etiquette 226 The times 226 A word to Mothers 22? On the Evils Arising fi-om the useof tobocoo 229 Heavenly Aspirations (poetry) 247 The Means or Grace 247 What do people think of me 7 249 CHKISTIAN LIBERTY AND ITS ENTEMIES. CHAPTER I. CHRISTIAN LIBERTY DEFINED— THE FRUITS OF THE 8PIRIT-THE DbFiNl. TION OF LOVE-EARNEST QUESTION. *^ Stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free," the Apostle Paul writes, and what was true in his time, is true to-day with reference io the liberty of the Christian. As the youth come upon the stage of action, it is natural for them, before conversion, to seek in the productions of worldly minds, that food which a never dying soul must have to satiate its cravings. Hence they find extravagant notions of liberty held to view by ambitious and designing men, who, for the purpose of self-elevation and lust for power, speak loftily " concerning oppression," fabricate wrongs which never had existence, and turn the whole- some discipline exercised over them by their rulers, into weapons of rebellion, into instruments to produce anarchy and confusion, yea, into pretences for arraying their fellow men one against another in deadly combat. GJiristian liberty is the result of gospel effort, of the Holy kSpirit applying the teaching of the word of God to the heart of the obedient seeker, and is only per- "icted and secured when the so is sou dly converted to God, and possesses a knowledge of acceptance with its Divine Creator. This liberty sets free from the bondage of sin, subdues the passions, and brings into obedience to the will of Heaven, all those truant aspi- rations which seek to elevate human nature above its proper standard. The fruits of the Spirit, are " love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance ; against such there is no law." These blessed fruits do not require the regulation of law to bring them into submission, for as productions of that grace which is above the law, they stand above the things of time and sense, above all things human, and by their practical working in the life of an individual, embellish character and glorify God. How shall we describe love, that power which draws FRUITS OF TUB SPIRIT. 9 together the hearts of Christians, and unites tSem to God. Love is the cement of the soul, uniting the graces of the divine Spirit into a spiritual edifice within the heart, in whose inner courts the Holy Ghost delights to dwell. Love rules in Heaven, for God is Love. Love first gave the world a birth, and man a being. The government of creation was begotten by God's Love for His works ; Love placed man in Eden and the beasts of the field in his hand, yea. Love gave man a companion of intelligence and beauty, for God's care and love for man said, " It is not good for man to be alone." how much do we not owe to God's love toward us. But the greatest evidence of God's regard for us is, that He gave His only begotten Son to die for us. Young friends, you know the story of the fall of our first parents, do you not ? If not, get your Bible, and read in the 3rd chapter of Genesis how Satan tempted them to disobey God, how they yielded to that temp- tation, were expelled from Eden, and forced to labor with their hands to sustain life. But God out of Love for their children, even us, told them that the " seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head," that a child should bjc born who should possess power to crush out and destroy from the hearts of men, the devil or serpent which had tempted them to taste the forbidden fruit. , wondrous Love, power divine, That breaks the bonds of sin and deatb, May Thy rich treasures e'er be mine, E'er keep my heart in living faith. May my poor soul obedience yield, To Thee, its ransomed powers and love, Rejoice m thee, my Sun and Shield, Till Thou wilt call to courts above. f Keep me from dark temptations power, ' Purge me with hyssop, build me up, . ' Upon my heart Thy favors pour. Let me rejoice in Heavenly hope, - That when life's pilgrimage is o'er, Thou wilt to me a welcome give. Upon Thy Love's Eternal shore. And bid me with Thee ever live. B 10 CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. This can be the simple language of our hearts as we journey through the spiritual wilderness around us, Tjet us for a moment stop and view the condition of the world in a spiritual sense as a contrast to that Love which should prevail in all hearts to :he purging out of the unholy leaven of sin and uncleanness. * On this day, (the anniversary of Our Lord's crucifixion,) millions of the human race go forth dressed in their finery, objects of pride and vanity, displaying their glittering tinsel to the gaze of each other, as the peacock parades his colors in the sun. Amid and underlying all this, there is a heartlessness that chills the blood within the veins when a sensitive soul comes in contact with it. A gross selfishness that speaks of sin and spiritual death, a desire of vain-glory, a grievous noisome carcase that stinks in the nostrils of the Almighty. A comparatively /ew? will meet together in the house of God to commemorate the day in Love and prayer, but the mighty masses that go rushing down the broad way wrapped in their ignorance of the real object of this day's importance, " Whom the Lord will consume with the Spirit of His mouth, and destroy with the brightness of His coming " are as far from the possession of that perfect love which casteth out all fear, as Hell from Heaven. what a barren waste the heart is without Love, my young friends. Woe to that heart whose portals open not for the admission of Jesus. Misery abides where the heavenly dew of grace sheds not its fragrance, and love to God and our fellow man is the condition upon which God extends His Heavenly favors. may we ever prize its blessed possession, if it has a place within us, but if not, let us ask that we may receive, that " our joy may be full," that we may not cast away the precious blood-bought privilege of coming to -" throne of Heavenly grace. Then, dear reader, wL, her youth, middle-aged or aged, do not lose sight of the beacon-light of love that shines as a blessed • Composed on Good Friday. JOT DESCRIBED. 11 messenger from Heaven through the pages of God's word, the strivings of the Holy Spirit, and the open doors of the Church militant. If yra havo not given your heart to God unreservedly, you must do so e'er you can love Him as He would have you do, or your neighbor as yourself. We may have our carnal regards, our temporal lo' "^s, yet they pass and leave after them a blank in the lioart, a void that naught but heaven] v grace can fill, but when we come to the fountain of God's favors, and seek for an outpouring of His Divine love. He never disappoints if we ask aright. My dear young friends, can you do this ? Can you yield your heart unreservedly to Him, that His service may be a delight to you ? How comparatively few young- persons so delight in God's service, as to prefer it before the service of Satan, and all service ■'•' which is not of faith is sin." This is a terrible truth, but none the less true, and one that is but little regarded in ' ur intercourse with the Avorld, Our love for the world conforms all o' r actions and desires to it, and we have no time to serve God. Dear reader, is this your case ? Do you love the world, the things of time and sense and your worldly associates, better than you do God, and the religion of His dear Son ? God's word tells us, that " if any man love the world the love of the Father is otinhim." We cannot deny this, because the Bible does not lie. Search for yourself and you will find many passages to prove the above. Take these pre- cious truths home to yourself, make them your own, act upon them, and God will bless you with a reward. CHAPTER n. JOY DESCRIBED-THE FRUIT OF CON VERSION -THE SINNER EVER BARREN OP REAL JOY— PEACE-" THE PEACE THAT PASSETH UNDERSTAND^ ING "-THE PEACE OF THE SINNER AND THE CHRISTIAN COMPARED- ILLUSTRATIONS. Joy is a blessed link in the chain of Christian quali- ties, and can only be experienced by the converted soul. 12 CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. The joy of Nature has been beautifully expreBsed thus " There is joy, joy, everywhere, Joy and beauty crown the earth, Riding on the air (ilad in its mirth." v; The soul of the true ChriHtian harmonizes with the beautiful and joyous in God's handiwork, hence the lines above are expressive of the bright realization of a heart cheered by the presence of the Holy Spirit and willing to see in the works of God, the graces of th.at Spirit. What a beautiful and comforting thought is this, — that we can find in God's creation, the attri- butes of Himself. Joy is an inward treasure which usually manifests itself in ecstacy and delight. It may come forth in a smile, a look, or in a cheerful tone of voice, and may find expression in even a move- ment of the body. Joy is manifested by the angels in Heaven. " There is joy in Heaven over one sinner that repenteth." Ah, sinner, think of this ! If you can cause angels to rejoice by turning to God, if your relatives d Christian friends on earth will be glad, and your own soul have salvation, ought you not to come quickly to the call of tlie master ? O come now ! You must be converted and become in the sight of God as a little child, ere you can experience true joy. You may have expressions o^ apparent ]oy at the receipt of intelligence of a worldly character, but you cannot without conversion to God, possess ' " That soul's calm sunshine that Aear/ -felt joy Which nothing earthly gives or can destroy." You must yield up self to the fashioning power of God's Divine Spirit. You must say, " here. Lord, I am, I give myself away," become as " clay in the hands of the potter," and when " the mighty work is wrought," then will the gracious showers of Heavenly grace descend upon, and warm your heart into that joy and love which as a rational being in the sight of God and man, you ought to possess. May real joy be thine through Christ. PEACE. 18 We come now to Peace. An emanation from Heaven's Court is this blessed quality. how valuable to the promotion of that happiness to which we all as Christiana strive to attain. Under the gentle dominion of Peace, the graces of the Holy Spirit develop their heavenly offices in the heart, and crop forth in holy affections, divine expressions, and glorious efforts for the promotion of Christ's kingdom. If Love is the holy cement of the soul, Peace is the sentinel that keeps the door, and preserves the harmony of its inner courts. At peace with God ! How sweet the sentence ! When the peace of the Christian " flows as a river," all the attributes of the measure of the Divine Spirit which he possesses, have their proportion of influence, and a heaven-born soul sends forth its blessed invitations to a world of strife and turmoil. if all men knew the value of Peace, soon would the nations of the earth cease to learn war, soon their ungodly lusts and carnal strivings would be brought under the mild dominion of King Enniuuiuel. Jesus is styled the " Prince of PeacCy' and verily whosoever yields to His divine sceptre, will possess the " peace that passeth under- standing." Why does it " pass understanding ?" Be- cause it fills the boundless ocean of God's love, which the human underst nding can never fathom. young friends, would you possess this peace ? If so, turn to God through the merits of Christ. Come to Jesua just now ! Let us compare the peace of the Christian with that of the Sinner ! The former, like the Prince who gave it, is eternal ; the latter is a lull of the elements, to break forth at the first eruption of Satan within the soul. Reader, have you this peace that looks to Christ as its author ? Or, is the peace that possesses your soul an oflfspring of fear of the penalty of the law ? Remember there is a vast diiTerence between the two sources from which peace may flow, and their corres- ponding effects are as widely different as the sources from which they are produced. We must not, cannot 14 CHRISTI/V LIBERTY. be mistaken in thiH^jnatter. If we rest on a carnal peace and substitute it for heavenly peace, we split upon a dangerous rock and deny the faith. may we be careful and prayerful that while it is called to-day we may press forward to the mark for the prize of our high calling of God in Christ Jesus. How shall we pointedly illustrate this comparison ? You see that rock upon the mountain's brow ? That has stood there for centuries, and may be found there for centuries to come. That rock is an emblem of the Christian's peace. It is enduring. While the troubled sea which spreads far away at its base is " casting up mire and dirt," is an emblem of the Sinner's heart, the rock above is basking in the bright sunshine. Thus it is with the heart in whom the grace of God has found a lodgement. A strong tower is His love and peace, and without it none are on a safe founda- tion. may you, dear reader, possess the " peace of God that pa.^seth all understanding." CHAPTER III. LONG-SUFFERING A GRACIOUS EVIDENCF. OF CONVERSION-ITS PRACTICAL VALUE DESCRIBED— EXAMPLES AND ILLUSTRATIONS-GENTLENESS THE CHRISTIAN'S ORNAMENT-INDISPEX8IBLE IN THE PRACTICE OF A PROFESSOR OF CHRIST'S TEACHINGS-GOODNESS IN THE GP'.NERAL ACCEI'TATION OF THE TERM-ITS SPECIAL APPLICATION— ILLUSTRA- TIONS-FAITH -MEEKNESS-TEMPERANCE. Long-suffering is a glorious evidence of the con- verting power of grace divine, and when it is found wanting in the practice of a disciple of Christ, notwithstiinding his professions as 6uch, we at once suspect his genuine claim to the name. Continuance in the truth of God, in the observance of his laws and the ordinances of His house, are the true signs of a Christian, and long-suffering is a quality that must be exercised to carry out the glorious plan. God has appointed means whereby the Christian can " work out his salvation with fear and trembling," and the LONQ-BUFFKRINa. 15 graces of the Holy Spirit are divinely applied in the economy of grace to that end, hence the necesHity pre- Hents itself to the mind of looking unto Him in child- like confidence and true simplicity, that He may bless us with all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus. He ooirmands us to " persevere unto the end that ye may be .savfcd." Here long-suffering is necessarily brought into exercise, that the obstacles which rise up to meet the Christian, may be patiently overcome, that grace may abound in the heart, that the elements of nature may be completely subdued, and the whole man brought into sweet subjection to the will of heaven. Jesus was the greatest example of long-suffering the world ever saw. When denied l)y His own kindred, and cast out of His native city, He murnmred not, when reviled and insulted by the Pharisaical Jews He " reviled not again," when beaten, scourged, and spit upon, he com- plained not, and when extended upon the fatal tree, He cried out " Father forgi'^e them for they know not what they do." Young friends, think of this long- suffering so patiently endured for our sakes. Can you endure the little discouragements to which you are subject, in the spirit of Christian meekness and long- suflering ? You cannot without the divine aid of your heavenly father ! Unless you trust in God you can do nothing ! Unless you come to Jesus and give yourself unreservedly to him. all efforts to please Him will prove unavailinf^^ and wlien He gives you over to blindness of mind and hardness of heart, vou cannot exercise that long-suffering so necessary to the " pa- tient continuance in well-doing," that is so urgently enjjined in the wore A God. Paul was a precious example of long-suffering ? He persevered until death in the service of God. what a reward for long-suflfering was Paul's. He could say at the end of the race, " I have finished my course, I have kept the faith, henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness." Glorious crown! Would you wear such an one, young reader ? If so, continue unto the 16 CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. end in well doing, looking unto God the author and finisher of your faith. We would now speak of gen- tleness as a Christian grace. The apostle was gentle among his Christian brethren, " even as a nurse cher- isheth her children." Paul was a gentleman, but not in the loorldly acceptation of the term. His qualities did not consist in the appearance of a gentleman only, but in the real inward constituents of a gentleman, in the hidden man of the heart, in the possession and exer- cise of the graces of the Holy Spirit, one of which is gentleness. Gentleiiefes affects the manners of its pos- sessor in a way that makes him at once acceptable among well-bred people. Gentleness is an open door to Christian association and brotherly feeling. It is opposition to rudenesi^, a rebuke to rough ways and uncouth demeanor. Young men, do you realize as you live, that every day has its work in the formation of your character ? Can you hope to build up a good character in the sight of God and man, while sin reigns in your mortal body to the development of a careless, reckless life ? How many of the youth are daily going down to perdition, through voluntary recklessness, through a love for the very opposite of gentleness, and, in their imitation of semi-rowdyism, " glory in their shame," to the serious annoyance of parents and friends. Go out into the street, see the groups of youth standing on the corners making light of the pas._ *rs by, who are often obliged to run the gauntlet of heard abuse and detraction. how sad the picture when presented in its real aspect. Look through the lives of those boys, and unless a reform is wrought within their hearts by the saving grace of God, what will be their life-record. Recklessness, dis- sipation, violence, and bloodshed. my dear young reader, is this the record you wish to fill ? When carried to your last resting place, would you have tlie clods of the valley rattle over the form of a drunkard, a gambler, a brute in human shape ? Yet the ribald jest, the humorous joke, the cf^Teless off-hand manner GOODNESS. IT you so confidently assume, are the first steps to that ultimate. And yet it is easier for you to get into this way than to keep from it. how watchful and prayer- ful we ought to be ! The first step, ah how fatal ! Many poor victims upon the gallows, could look back with a sad review upon life, and see that the first ungentle act they had done airter leaving their home circle, was the first visible grasp the tempter had upon their hearts. Beware of his wiles. Beware of the little things that seem at first innocent, yet become the paved way to your soul's destruction. Are you ready to " watch and pray lest you enter into temptation," knowing that " your adversary the devil goeth about seeking whom he may devour ?" A true gentleman should be a Christian at heart, and he will then be found in the pursuit of some calling that will honor and glorify God, do good to his fellow men, and advance his own welfare. These are the privileges which every Christian gentleman can avail himself of, which will, when properly exercised, fill his probation as his heavenly Father desires. Young man, does your conduct in life embrace this triple privilege? Or are you living its opposite? Ponder well the question. Goodness, in the general acceptation of the term, enters that association of godlike qualities which form the whole character, and like Love, associates itself as a qualifier in the soul of the true Christian, and casts a heavenly halo over his whole being. If Love is the cement which adheres the parts of the Spiritual fabric, goodness is the canopy which o'ershadows it, which calls into general exercise the attributes of the whole temple, and gives a uniform evidence of God's gracious dealing to the whole character. When we speak of a good man, we mean one who has the qualities of a Christian fully developed, possesses a general com- bination of the fruits of the Spirit, and these having a harmonious action in that development. The term goodness, has also a special application. We speak of the goodness of heart oi some persons from their desires 18 CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. U to forward in a special manner, some good work. This is a blessed sense in which the term is applied, and should be well defined in the mind that it be not wrongly applied. The term good-hearted is often ap- plied to persons who follow in the paths of sin and iniquity. God, give us grace that we may be enabled to discern who really deserve our commendations of goodness, " Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen," and it is by it we perform every act of a rational character. We form in mind the plan of action, and by %ith and the use of means, the work is performed. Our daily avocations, our studies, our labors and much of our social enjoyment, require in their practice a degree of faith to be called into exercise, that we may not follow blind impulse, or the leadings of passions. Saving faith in the pro- mises of God, implies a rest of the heart fully upon them, taking Jesus at His word, and receiving the full force and efiect of His atoning merits applied especially to that soul who exercises it. Good works, performed to God's glory, are the evidenco of our faith to those around us, A sense of sins forgiven, the peace that God's grace alone can secure, and that love for God's people which arises from the new birth, are evidences to ourselves of the faith exercised by us. Have you this faith, reader, and are you manifesting it by your works, " Faith without loorks is dead, being alone," and if we would evidence our faith to our fellow men, we will be " instant in season and out of season " striving to " work out our own salvation with fear and trem- bling," "making our calling and election sure" by " persevering unto the end that we may be saved." A lively exercise of faith, keeps the heart in a prayer- ful tone, strengthens watchfulness and enables us to draw from the fountain of God's love sufficient grace for our day and trial that we may be built up and strengthened, successfully " resisting the devil that he may flee from us." The exercise of saving faith MEEKNESS. — TEMPERANCE. 19 our belongs to each individual aloie in the sight of God. As every one must give an account of himself to God, no substitutes can answer for us, Christ having become our substitute, and our own exercise of faith seals his office work to our benefit and salvation. No man-made ordinances can take the place of a lively faith. Assu- med power through Latin notions of descent, may prune human nature into a routine of heart-crushing formality, but can never save the soul. Men may don the ecclesiastical robes and under the banner of non- toleration and persecution, strive to coerce mankind into their peculiar ways, but this is evidence of the deep depravity of the human heart, and shows what it can be brought to commit without saving faith in God through the blood of Christ. Let us now consider meek- ness. " Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth." " The ornament of a meek and quiet spirit is in the sight of God of great price." Meekness is a link in the chain of Spirit, qualities without which a profession of religion becomes a farce and misnomer. Meekness throws a halo around the path oi its possessor, that lights his Christian course with the golden hues of consistency and divine favor. Meekness and humi- lity are closely allied, and their exhibition and practice draw God's blessing upon the head of their possessor. Young people who cultivate this grace, are sure to encourage the growth of other Christian qualities, but we cannot claim the sure possession of any without the converting power of grace to regenerate us. It is our part to humbly ask God's Spirit to dwell with us and turn our hearts of stone to flesh, that we may possess the rich graces of that Spirit. Can you do this, reader ? Would you not possess the mind that was in Christ ? He was meek and lowly, and filled with that divine power which saves the souls of men. Temperance is also a fruit of the Spirit, and admits of an extended definition. It may enter in application into every thought, word and deed of our lives. We should possess this grace in active exercise in our m mmm 20 CURISTIAN LIBERTY. thoughts, that we may enjoy a calm profitable frame of mind, that we become not extravagimt or intemperate in thought. As thought is the source of speech and action, it behooves us to seek the direction of that Spirit which alone can temper our souls into a proper frame, and cause our lives to crop forth in beauty and usefulness. Do you not need some restraining power upon your thoughts daily, reader, to bring them into a proper exercise that may not run to excess in criticism or detraction ? Especially in forming our opinions of others, do we need a well tempered caution to prevent us from mis-judging or wrongly construing their mo- tives and state of heart. Also in speech we need a check to prevent us from making hasty expressions, or indulging in carping criticism. As thoughts, words and actions are indices of character, may we cultivate temperance in their use, praying that the Holy Spirit may be given unto us to teach us what we should utter. The common acceptation of the term tempe- rance, has reference to the regulation of habit. Regard- ing temperance as a fruit of the Holy Spirit which it legitimately is, we find its action, as a check to the indulgence of the appetite, very valuable. As a preventive of intemperance, the doctrine of total ab- stinence is very reasonably held forth. We cannot safely indulge in any habit that dail}^ tends rapidly to destruction, and we find by scanning the lives of men, that the moderate use of ardent spirits does this. Hence what is our duty respecting it ? Shall we indul ^ in the even slight use of one of Satan's most powertul weapons, the intoxicating bowl ? Shall we compromise with him until he has bound us fast in the chains of appetite and passion ? Ah, there are many avenues through which he enters these frames of clay, and that of the indulgence of appetite is one of the most acces- sible. Let us then set the watchman of temperance upon the citadel of our hearts, that in thought, speech and action we may be both reasonable and consistent in a Christian course, not failing to look to the source APPLICATION OV TUB TRUTHS OF THE BIBLE. 21 from whence all blessings flow, for strength and grace to do our Master's will. . .'■1 : -' Ji CHAPTER IV. ON THE APPLICATION OF TUE TRUTHS OF THE BIBLE GENEKALL7-TUEIR RELATION TO THE NATURAL WORLD, AND ITS ANALOGY TO THE SPI- RITUAL—HARMONY BETWEEN THE WORKS OF GRACE AND THOSE OF NATURE-REFLECTIONS AND ILLUSTRATIONS— EXHORTATION. We wish in this effort to set forth truth in a sim- ple comprehensive manner, to " use great plainness of speech," that he " who runs may read," and " the way- faring man, though a fool, need not err therein." Fol- lowing out this pretension, we wish to draw the reader's attention to the application of Bible truth generally, or as a whole. We have in previous chap- ters given, in brief, definitions of some of the most vital and practical fruits of the Spirit, but for a delineation of the whole we refer you to the Booh itself. To make the truths of scripture our own, is emphatically the object of studying them. Whatever we engage in through life, should turn to a good account, and it is hard for us to give an account of anything we do not possess. In the acquisition of wealth we may do much, but if that wealth is squan- dered, or becomes in our hand a curse instead of a blessing, we had better never have possessed it. So in the acquisition of knowledge ! If we study God's word with a simple trusting in the divine Spirit to apply it to our hearts and put us in possession of its treasures, for the salvation of our souls and those of our fellow men, we shall not be disappointed. If on the other hand, we study it for the purpose of cavilling and perverting its meaning, we had better never have opened its lids. We read and construe it to our own destruction. It becomes to us " the savor of death unto death," instead of " life unto life." It is this kind 22 CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. of reading that arms the sceptic and infidel with power- ful weapons against himself, his readers and the cause of God. A Paine, a Voltaire, a Volney and others of infidel notoriety, were nothing in their school, until they began the study of the Scriptures, and from the corruption of their hearts, brought forth the foul matter that now curses the world with its polluted presence. Again, I repeat, let us be careful how we read the Bible. There is nothing between its lids that should not be there, it contains enough for all, and what remains for us to do, is to imbibe its golden teachings, and live them in the world ! We inherit it from God as a choice legacy ; He will call us into account at the judgment day to answer for the loay we make use of it. He tells us how to use it, gives us power to choose or refuse, leaves us free agents and pei^sonally accountable, and it remains for us to acquit ourselves of this account- ability as becomes rational beings. We are placed in a world formed of material matter, and as stewards over this creation, it behooves us to use our privileges as not abusing them, willing to apply them to the best advantage, that we may glorify God and assist our fellow men in the right course. The Bible tells us how to do this. We open its lids for instruction upon any particular subject, and if we seek in the proper spirit, that of an humble desire to be instructed and to learn God's will towards us, we will never lay it down dis- satisfied. We find recorded there an antidote for "every ill that flesh is heir to," a blessed something to cover the demands of our yearning hearts and to guide us in all we ought to pursue. Do we desire wealth to use for a good purpose, it tells us " the hand of the diligent maketli rich," and we must be " not slothful in business, but fervent in spirit, serving the Lord." With respect to the possession of any worldly thing, we are com- manded to " seek first the kingdom of Heaven and all these things shall be added unto us." The obedience of its dictates and commands, establishes in us a pure character in the sight of God and all good men, and ir THEIR RELATION TO THE NATURAL WORLD. 23 gives us boldness and confidence to go forward in the duties and trials of life. Without its aid we could not fill our probation acceptably to God, without it we would not have known that we were probationers, without it we were as dumb brutes filling the wants of a carnal nature, and living without God and hope in the world. This is not for what we were created, and the same All-Wise Being who created us and gave us a comprehension, a knowledge of right and wrong, a will to choose or refuse, has wisely laid out for us a plan upon which to work, and that plan is given us in His word, and it remains for us to profit by it by redeeming the time in the performance of good works and the worship of God in " spirit and in truth." We find in the Bible a complete description of what we see in nature, and the evidence of what we realize by the senses. Thus, were a person con lined in a dun- geon all his life, he would, by reading the Bible, have a knowledge of all creation. Did you ever, reader, realize that the glorious works of God around you are but the fulfilment of His written word ? Read your Bible carefully, take it with you in your walk through forest and field, and as you look out upon them, you may open and read of them in its blessed pages. So with the sea and its inhabitants, the birds of the air, the cattle in the fields, the beasts of the forest, and finally you find man described in all his phases and qualifications. No class of human character existing on the face of the earth but finds description in the word of God. Man in his primitive condition, in his Adamic purity is shown to the mind's eye ; the temp- tations through which he passed to the fall, his pun- ishment for the violation of a divine command, and his way of redemption from sin and death, all have a place in description in that blessed Book. Oh how prone we are to look at ourselves instead of the bright beauties so clearly defined in God's word. In our selfishness and wordly care we fail to live as God designed we should, and the temptations of Satan often 24 CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. ill I ! blind our spiritual vision, and we grovel in the dust of carnality, instead of rising upon the wings of spiritual growth to the appreciation of heavenly qualities and divine attributes. A harmony exists between God's works of grace and His handiwork in Nature more perfect than any work of man can possibly attain to. Before Adam fell from perfection Eden was his legiti- mate dwelling place, but sin, the cause of man's un- happiness, the disturber of God's harmony, the devas- tator of the human soul, entered the happy garden and corrupted its beautiful inhabitants. When the soul of man (in which God's grace finds ad^velling- place), is allowed to ruminate and meditate amid the associations of Nature, its appreciations of God's bless- ings are more vivid and unalloyed, than amid the domes of man-reared edifice. Originality is begotten and establisiied in the heart and actions, amid the leafy solitudes of Nature, and if that originality is the fruit of God's spirit at work in the heart, it never fails to bycome attractive and instructive. If, on the other hand, Satan works in the heart, much more evil is the result than if he works amid the courts of the city. There is no check in Nature, but evil has its bounds in the courts of legal jurisprudence and Gospel teaching. The absence of human inventions of the exhibitions of pride, and the glitter and tinsel of wordly attraction, is favorable to inspiration, and thus we find men of gifted minds often seeking the quiet retreat and the association of Nature, to pour forth their hearts upon tlie unwritten page, that the soul-inspiring work of God's spirit, which works within their own souls, may find a place in those of their fellow-men. We might cite the names of many workers in the Lord's cause, beginning with Jesus himself, who sought the asso- ciations of Nature, to commune with God. The fore- runner of the Savior, John the Baptist, was a child of Nature, and came from her retired haunts, to proclaim the coming of the Messiah. His description proves this, as he ate locusts and wild honey and had a gar- HARMONY. 25 ment made of camel's hair girded about hia loins. Jesus went into the wilderness often to pray and com- mune with His Father in Heaven, and it was in the coun- try, as well as in the city, that much of his mighty work was performed. Let us not despise the country and its associations, if our lot has been cast amid the city's courts and refined society, but remember that God's grace is powerful, and more readily finds a place in the meek and humble heart, than in the proud and haughty soul, elevated by human learning, purse-proud caste, and earthly distinction. Why did Jesus seek the lowly fishermien as his followers and disciples ? Why did he not go to the halls of learning to choose His twelve Apostles and most intimate co-workers? Because He knew what was in man, and that the grace and power which he was about to confer upon those who were to assist Him, would find a more ready reception and action in their unsophisticated hearts and lives. No worldly barriers stood in the way, no pride of ancestry to be humbled before they could " take up the cross and follow Him through evil as well as good report," no notions of caste to break down, no wealth to draw them back and chain their souls to earth, but without thought or hesitation they " left all and fol- lowed him." The action of God's spirit and workings of grace are the same to-day as in those days. He calls through his ministering servants for mankind to follow him. Many heed the call, and that number is often greater in the rural districts than amid the city's temptations and earthly show. Dear reader, are you so bound down in the surrounding influence of worldly association, that you cannot heed the appeals made to your heart through the many avenues of grace in the Church militant ? If so, l':'ave them and go into the leafy shades of Nature, and call upon God in humble prayer to shed abroad in your heart the love divine which is able to save the soul. Many a timid heart has felt the strivings of God's spirit upon it, but has for fear of criticism by worldly associates, been constrained c r il' 26 CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. to bid it " go thy way till a more convenient season," and that time has never come. God tells us in His word that " My Spirit will not always strive with man," and when the sinner grieves away the Holy Spirit until it ceases to strive with him, he commits the unpardon- able sin, as no sin can be forgiven without the presence of the Holy Spirit. This important question of the soul's salvation should be our highest siand point of attainment, and where we can best arrive at it, is the often asked question by the seeker of grace. Although Jesus tells us that the kingdom of heaven is to be enshrined in the heart, we find by his own blessed example that we have greater hopes of successful action in God's work in some localities than in others. The very atmosphere of some places seems to invite the servant of God to labor, while in others there is a for- bidding influence that tells at once of the uselessness of effort. Great skill in judgment is needed by God's servants to know where to labor, and generally His spirit will direct if patiently submitted to by them. The works of nature are perfect, nothing wanting, and susceptible of no improvement. The bird's nest in the apple tree under your window, is the same as that built in the rafters of Noah's ark, and the classes of plants are the same to-day as those which bloomed in Eden. The same spirit that arrested and struck to earth the persecutor Saul, and converted him into an Apostle of our Lord Jesus Christ, is as able to arrest, and turn to God, wayward sons and daughters of Adam as then. Realize this, ye who are going the rounds of sin and folly, and turn before you are left to yourselves. Wo unto you wit^ whom God's Spirit ceases to strive. Sunk beneath the elements of sin and depravity, you are daily pushing your frail bark further away from the haven of salvation, and unless you repent, you continue until you plunge over the dark abyss of eternal perdition. Let me here say that the first step to the enjoyment of Christian Liberty is, to see yourself a sinner. Next is repentance and turning EXHORTATION. 27 to Ood. Continuance in the supplication of Divine favor, until the soul is unburdened of its load of sin and guilt, and rests in a state of justified pardon. To feel the blood of Christ, applied and forgiveness in the sight of God for past sins, to feel restored through His atoning merits to Divine favor, is indeed the all-absorbing object of existence, and the aim of man's highest aspirations. He may seek for the gifts and emoluments of this world, may strive for wealth, political and military distinction, but when he has loaded himself with all this earthly tinsel, he is far below the least of God's saints in the estimation of God himself. Do you realize this, reader ? You may be striving for political notoriety and the empty honors of a perishing world, you may be making mammon your object of life's eftbrt, or seeking to drown the friendly warnings of an uneasy conscience in the rounds of pleasure and folly, yet all will avail you nothing. You are simply laying up in store a greater load of sin from which to cleanse your soul when you do turn to God, While the Gospel tocsin is ringing in your ears, while God's Spirit is striving with you, while an open Bible is calling you to salvation, you are putting off the day of your return, by promising that you will seek Him at some more " convenient season," when you shall have filled your coffers with gold, or possessed yourself of lands and goods, when you can keep up appearances in the church to which you may attach yourself; yet all these fine pleas the evil one puts into your heart to keep you from seeking your soul's salvation. God says '• come now, now is the day of salvation." If you were to see a man building a fire near your house, reason would tell you that if you did not prevent it your house would be burnt over your head. But as the man tells you that it is light combustible and will soon extinguish, and business is urging you, you turn in again, until your enemy has succeeded in his design. Through the avenues of worldly pleasure Satan is building a fire around your 28 Cnw^STIAN LIBERTY. f i I soul, you are listening t(. his declarations of harmlesa- ness, you are ncgleeting to put out the fire of sin, until your souI'h edifice is consumed in the lusts and pas- sions of depravity. Do you not see your error ? Is it not an evidence of your depravity, that you are more inclined to sin than to righteousness ? Sinner, allow me as a lover of your soul to ask you in all conscience, what are you Joitig to fill your prohation acceptably to God ? And how much are you not dmng to build up Satan's kingdom, and people the region of the damned ? Does not the name of God strike a terror to your heart, and ex.ite in you a fearful looking for of judgment which will devour the adversaries ? I think 1 answer the question truly for you when I tell you yes ! If so, why not accept the remedy offered for your redemption ? Would you not enjoy a home among those who have a sweet communion with our heavenly Father ? If so, come and accept the blessed terms. Turn in with the overtures of mercy before it is too late ! Do not fritter away your blessed inheri- tance of salvation bequeathed you through the blood of Jesus. " You have a right to the tree of life" if you will but accept the easy terms of saving grace. I call upon you as a " dying man to dying men," to consider your position in the eye of God as defined in His word. You have no extended lease of life, you may die any moment, and as the tree falleth so it lieth, as there is no repentance in the grave " whither thou goest." There you cannot call upon God to have mercy and pardon your sinful career, but unless you repent in thia life, and when the trump of Gabriel shall call you from the grave on the morning of the resurrection, what kind of a resurrection will you have ? The answer I leave with yourself, AS one who must answer before GOD. DOCTRINES OP THE CliURCU MILITANT, &C. 29 CHAPTER V. DOCTRINES OF TUK CIIUUCII MILITANT AS TIIK LANDMARKS uK CHRISTIAN LIHKIlTY-THKItt NK.< KSSITY AND DEFINITION- COMMKNTS UrON TIIKM AND OlUKCHTONS CTTKD AND ANSWEKKD-KKFLKCTIONS. The Church Militant of Christ on earth in its visihle form and organism, presents many wholesome doc- trines in a comprehensive form, easy of reference and reasonable to the mind of every true believer, as they are taken from the word of God. and so arranged as to meet the wants of every child ot God, if heartily en- dorsed, believed, and adopted. These doctrines may be denominated the hindmarks of Christian Liberty. They establish in the heart a basis of faith as it were, and form centres in the soul around which the thoughts and meditations of the Christian may cluster. They are the monitors and sentinels on the bulwarks of the Christian edifice. They keep at bay the wolves which prowl around the fold, and call the true believer into a proper frame of working, by appealing to his sense of danger, and the importance of coming to the rescue with spiritual weapons, to keep back the enemies of the " faith once delivered to the saints." They turn away temptation by keeping the soul watchful and vigilant, the judgment properly exercised, the mind sober, and prepared io meet all the assaults of Satan. Every pro- fessed follower of the Lord Jesus should be thoroughly schooled in the arranged doctrines of the Church, that he may at all times answer the cavillings of sceptics, and put to silence the votaries of Satan who rise to oppose the truth. As the posts and pillars are neces- sary to support a house, so are the established doctrines of the Church necessary to support its identity, and give that permanency of existence as a visible insti- tution in the world which draws the respect and confi- dence of its followers, and establishes its character as a God ordained work. They are God's own work, taken from His divine word, and cannot be said to be the " commandments of men," as many of the wild theories 80 CHIUSTIAN LIBERTY. are, which are taught in the present day as substitutes for rel* non. The " many inventions " which men have brought into existence to serve as ladders to " climb up some other way " into the favor of God, all begin their career by trying to destroy the doctrines of the Church first," for their authors know that while the Church exists, there is no possible chance of suc- cess for them. While the Gospel has free course, and is embodied in a tangible effective form in the Church Militant in soul-strengthening doctrines, error and sin must flee away before it as the darkness of night before the rising sun, and realizing their importance, let us, as followers of the Lord Jesus, view them as precious gifts from llim. While we give a brief definition of the most important doctrines of the Church or land- marks of Christian Liberty, we ask the reader's prayer- ful attention to them, hoping he may profit by their perusal and adoption, as we can testify of their com- forting excellence and power to itphold the drooping spirit and confirm the faith. OF MAN'S FIRST ESTATE, AND FALL. i Man was first " made after the image of God." The quality of his spirit was in harmony with that of God, he lived and moved in obedience to the will of his Divine Creator. He lived in the Eden of soul in which the Almighty first placed him until Satan entered, and through the weakness of his help-meet, woman, man was led to disobey God, and was thrust from his high estate. This punishment has descended upon every human being brou'j^ht into the world, for " in Adam all die," and are lost in the naturally depraved state into which the sin of Adam has thrown them. As proof of this, we need but view the life of man in all stages from the cradle to the grave, to find him more prone to sin than to do good, and with- out grace from on high " there is none that doeth good, no not ^ .... Any truly good act performed by OF THE TRINITY IF UNITY. 81 man must be the effect of God's Spirit working to con- strain that performance. The human heart is desper- ately wicked, selfish, and as prone to do evil as water is to run down hill. Remember this, my unconverted reader, while seeking to justify yourself through your own good works, that you can never attain to inward peace and happiness, much less salvation, until you see yourself in this fallen, sinful condition and seek for redemption through the atoning merits of Jesus. The price that was paid for your deliverance was the shed blood of the son of God, and no other ransom will suffice. Come then to the mercy seat that you may find deliverance and help in time of need. OF THE TRINITY IN UNITY. . i The doctrine of the Trinity in Unity is a most com- fortable one, as it shows the power of God in the great plan of human redemption. The existence of the God- head as one in spirit, yet acting separate in office, pre- sents the Divine economy in a very interesting light to the true believer. In the Godhead, we contemplate the self-existent, independent Deity in His Majesty and power ere the worlds were formed. In the Tri- nity we view, first the Father as Creator, Maker of the heaven!' and earth and all that they contain ; the great Ordainer of nature and her lows, and the Creator of man after His own image ! Secondly, as the Son be- gotten of the Father, of the same spirit as the Father, yet separate in office as the Savior of mankind, pro- claimer and doer of the word while in the world, and pleader and intercessor before the Father now in heaven. Thirdly, as the Ploly Ghost dwelling in the hearts of true believers, " always even unto the end of the world " to " comfort " and lead them into all truth. The soul must be trub^ converted and view this important relation from a spiritual stand-point, otherwise this union of three in one will seem to be very inconsistent. The carnal mind Icks upon the oneness 32 CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. I ! K of separate objects as impossible, but the grace-renewed soul rises into the boundless realm of love, and sees the consistency of spiritual oneness of existence, and the separate manifestations of the same spirit. A slight comparison will illustrate this important idea of oneness of spirit and separation in office. Three persons agree to the performance of a piece of work, they are united, or one in spirit in their thoughts con- cerning it, yet in their several capacities in the execu- tion of the work, each performs a very different part. Let us comprehend this in its double relation, and we easily realize the consistency of the comparison. Again, the sun is one luminary, yet it emits light and heat, imparts life to the vegetable and animal kingdom, and without his rays we could not exist any considerable length of time on earth. The body is one whole, formed of different parts, yet easily com- prehended as one organization. While the spirit of a man is within his body, it controls each part at the will of its possessor. Hence we conclude that the theory of different offices being performed by the same spirit, is proof to any reasonable mind that the doc- trine of the Trinity is both consistent and necessary to the salvation of mankind. The devil is selfish and does not wish to share his power with any, hence he invents plausable oppositions to the doctrine of tbe Trinity and other attributes of the Deity. He is willing, in order to gain followers from the ranks of Christians, to worship God as one of love, mercy and forgiveness, but not as a God of Justice, of condemnation, or of punishment. Thus we see the plausable doctrines which " come in the name of Christ " to the world, which oppose the Orthodox Church, and say nothing of the terrors of hell or endless death. Tliev fear the truth of God's word and " change it into a lie," by construing Scripture to their own destruction. This is the position occupied by some we could name, who labor to set aside the doctrines of the Trinitv and other wholesome doctrines of the Christian plan POPERY AS AN ENEMY TO CHRISTIANITX. 83 of salvation, that the work of God might be success- fully opposed by them, and wickedness run rampant without restraint. Let us then as professed followers of Jesus Christ, stand by the doctrines of the Church Militant. CHAPTER VI. VA, rOPERY AS AN ENEMY TO CHUISTIANITY.-SOME THOUGHTS ON ITS PAST KiSTOUY.— ITS HEARING ON THE PRESENT STATE OF THE WORLD, AND SURMISINGS ON ITS FUTURE— MODERN SPIRITUALISM. —THE SABHATH DAY.— BRIEF SERMON.— WORLDLY TITLES. In the front rank of the enemies of Christianity, stands Popery. It is pretending and imposing, and Haunts its forms and ceremonies to the gaze of mankind, to catch the vain and thoughtless, to lure them into its corrupt support, that its principal actors may live in luxury and indulgence, and use its poor duped victims to propagate sin and iniquity. While it presents a fair form o^ pretenmo7i, it holds its secret conclaves and dark councils to attain the governing power of the state, and when this is attained, uses tlie arm of that power to persecute the Christian Churcli. This is proved in its history, and as its nature is the same, could we ex- pect ought else from it to-day ? " Semper eadent" (al- ways the same), is its motto, and for a detail of its doings in the past, we have but to note its record upon the received historical authority. '• D'Aubigne's history of the Reformation" we would refer you to, as a valuable text-book of proof to this assertion. "■ As it is even now in the world," possessing the same settled hatred to Christianity, what is our duty respecting it ? Shall we go out with arms in hands to force it from the land ? As manv of its fol- lowers are born and reared in ignorance, and accept its forms and ceremonies as coming from God, and think they are doing God's service in obeying the priests, should we imitate it by turning persecutors also ? Nay, !!! 84 CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. verily ! Let us rather pray for their conversion, for the action of the Spirit of God upon their hearts, and for the circulation of the written word of God in their midst. When the time shall come for its temporal pun- ishment, He who hath said " vengeance is mine, I will repay," will ride forth and " consume with the Spirit of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming," all who will not accept the overtures of mercy. Let us " watch and pray " that we become not iden- tified with it in temporal connexions, that we be not overcome by its flatteries and serpent like influence, and beware how we support its power by our patronage and encouragement. We have a right to exert a continual watchfulness in, especially, political connexions, that we be not imperceptably drawn into the maelstrom of its engulphing power. Someprophetic authors afiirm that it is near its end, that the kingdoms of the earth are to rise up as described in the Book of Revelation and "burn her with fire," &c. In contemplating the history of the past and present, we are led to think that instruments for its dismemberment will arise from its own ranks, and that all God requires of His people in the great day of its punishment, is to " stand still and see the Salvation of the Lord." If we forestall events and assert that such and such things imll come to pass respecting it, (as much as we may be inclined to believe they will), it throws us in a position to possibly be mistaken, and thus our usefulness is injured and our spirits dampened by discouragement. Let us live by faith and prayer, that we may be always ready for the coming of the great day. Amen. ; MODERN SPIRITUALISM. Of the " many inventions " of the present time, which men have devised in the service of Satan to destroy their souls, none stands forth more prolific than Modern Spiritualism. It rises ignifatui like, from the dark swamp of human depravity, and with its de- ceptive reasoning, its false ; hilosophy, and bold ('e- H, K me, to Ufic rom dc- ITS BEARING ON THE PRESENT STATE OP THE WORLD, &C. 35 famations of the Holy Scriptures, presents a huge amount of infidel matter to the youthful reader so poi- soning in its nature, yet with a fair outside, and ap- parently harmless, under the guise of benevolence and love. Like its co-worker Universal ism, it professes to do much for the weary sinner, and as it charms him with its sophistry, it seeks to destroy from his path the only hope and refuge which can save, by denying the di- vinity of Jesus Christ, and the necessity of His atoning merits. According to Andrew Jackson Davis, one of its principal lights, and who is the author of several volumes of infidelity of the Thomas Paine order, we find in substance the following account of the beginning of Creation. It proves by its own declarations that it is from Satan. He says In the beginning, the Universe was one boundless sea or living fire ! By the great divine mind, this huge mass was given a rotary motion in space, and from the centrifugal force to which it was subjected, huge masses were detached, they in turn, be- came the centres of Solar systems and parents of worlds, and thus the mighty host which now illumes the mid- night sky to human vision, were sparks, so to speak, from this great Ocean of flame." As the Sun was one of these, and our earth an emanation from it, he settles dotvn in description to it, and says: "that in a long course of ages, this mass of matter became condensed or crusted over by the action of the elements, mineral substances were formed, vegetable productions grew from mineral, animal from vegetable, and man from animal." Thus God's power of instantaneous creation is denied, and this man, clothed in presumption and Satanic darkness, would curtail the power of Jehovah, and throw the stain of falsehood upon the Bible. Com- pare this mass of description (which reaches over many pages of a large book) with the simple account given in the first chapter of John and what do we have. On the one hand, a huge indigestible mass of falsehood, on the other, the soul-comforting stream of divine truthy. r^mm 36 CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. IP ! h so plain that any child may with ease, understand it. As Davis is a fair index of the whole mass of Spiritu- alism, bulky as it is, we will confine our remarks to him. He goes on to take up the Bible in succession, and every miraculous display of God's power therein recorded, he strives to account for on the principles of his false philosophy, false as the bottomless pit from whence it emanated, and as the Anaconda winds around its prey to crush it, so does he try to crush the soul of the youth with his poisoning effusions. Reader, we know by experience what we state, as we read his *' Nature's divine revelations," five volumes of the " Great Harmonia," and a vast amount of other matter of like ilk, and we sufiered much from it, and now say by way of warning, with Paul, " Beware lest any man sj)oil you with philosophy and vain deceit," brought out of the corruption of a depraved heart, that would debase and lead you " after the rudiments of this world and not after Christ." 1 plead with you to shun the vile productions of Spiritualism, as you would the deadly Upas tree, as the poisoned breath of a serpent, and mucli more so, as the former Avould destroy your soul, but the latter, if you have accepted Christ, could but hurt the body. Spiritualism would reduce the character of Christ beneath " weak and beggarly elements," by affirming that he was a " good man" an " exalted medium," &c., and associating him in the practice of their elemental j ugglery, by trying to account for the miracles which he performed as evidence of his divine mission, upon the principles of Electricity, Clairvoyance, Magnetism, &c., thus reducing the power of grace to the elements of nature. This is the most condemnatory feature of the whole system, as it strikes at once at the root of all hope and salvation. You will meet this huge will-o- the-wisp, in the libraries of England, Canada and the United States, and my prayer is that this brief warning will put you on your guard against it, if you have not found it condemned in your Bible. Sometimes an evil l\ :!: THE SABBATH DAY. 37 needs a special notice that the young may see it in time to avoid it, as the teacherous pit is pointed out to the weary traveller. THE SABBATH DAY. a Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy," is one of the commands of that law which Christ "came not to destroy but to fulfil," and which all who love Him will obey. To keep the Sabbath day holy, is to engage in that which will advance the " kingdom of Christ." Reading the Word of God, working in the Sabbath School, writing matter that will advance His cause, conversing on Spiritual things, and cautiously avoid- ing every thing of a light and trifling character, are ways in which we can spend the Sabbath profitably while not at divine service. . Sabbath visiting (except in cases of sickness or vital necessity) gathering upon the stroot corners, open shops, running cars, selling at fruit stands, gunning, "sporting in any form^^ are direct violations of the command respecting the Sabbath. The Saviour says " that the Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath," and this passage is often quoted by Sabbath breakers to justify them in their practices of evil, but wo to them who apply it in this sense. Every thing that God created for man, was for man's benefit, and His own glory, and the institution of the Sabbath was by His own example when " God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it ; because that in it He had rested from all his work which He created and made." (Gen. II 3.) How painful then, to see people calling themselves CJiristians, dwellers in a Christian land, where Bible and Bible Sanctuaries have an existence, going forth in opposition to this command, upon some flimsy excuse of Satan's invent- ing. Shall we cite the running of railway trains as the most prominent excuse ? It has its advocates among professors of Christ's Church. Let the law and gospel raise up public opinion against the desecration of the Sabbath. SB CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. BEHOLD A SOWER WENT FORTH TO SOW. Mark iv. 3. We are aU sowers on the great field of life. " As we sow, so shall we reap.'' "If we sow to the spirit, we shall of the spirit, reap life everlasting." Our thoughts,words, and actions, are our seed, and from it will be produced what we are to reap. If we carry a good temper, a light heart, and a useful hand, we will sow a genial atmosphere of love on our path, cause smiles and cheer- ful countenances to beam around us, and see the ma- terial of the world turned to the praise of God. We will "use this world as not abusing it," and feel grateful and thankful that we possess it to use. What is to be the moving power to cause us to do this. " Of ourselves wo can do no good thing." We must go to the spring from whence tiows the power to do good, and get the supply for ourselves. Christ is that foun- tain. It is He that can give us the seed which will bring forth good fruit. We may search the world over, yet we will find nothing that can give us the same power that we can draw from Him. We must com- mence in his service, and grow up into Him, our living head. He will pour down upon us those divine affec- tions which will invest our lives with that power to scatter love, joy, peace and goodness in our journey in life. Reader, will you possess him ? Will you allow your heart to be influenced by his gracious teachings that you may see yourself as you are, accept Him as proffered in His word, and yield your heart to His mild sceptre forever ? You can never be satisfied without Him. You may go after your own devices, and Satan's sug- gestions until death calls you from this world of strife, yet you will die as you have lived, and your soul, like the troubled sea, will be casting up mire and dirt for- ever. Forever! Throughout eternity's never ceasing rounds, you will run on, a wild detached meteor without rest or comfort. But " there remaineth a rest for the people of God ! " Heaven will receive you if you will but cast in your lot with them^ and continue faithful. WORLDLY TITLES. 89 Are you willing so to do ? In your present unconverted state, what hope of salvation have you ? Alas, none ! What kind of seed are you sowing in the world ? That of unbelief, distrust, misery and woe ! This is the legi- timate fruit of every child of nature. Yours is not an exception. Turn to Christ that you may sow to the spirit. WORLDLY TITLES. ' How much men strive to support worldly titles. That, too, in a Christian land (professedly so) directly in opposition to Christ's commands. " Be not lords over God's heritage," is the command of one of God's ser- vants, but " examples to the flock," and how can a man be a good example who is striving to lord over his fel- low-men. Men labor to accumulate wealth, to buy themselves into an earthly station, thus to flutter a while in the gaze of a world and pass away. The most anti-Christian feature about worldly titles is, they create caste. The Gospel regards all men who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as brethren ; on the contrary, caste separates society into sets and circles, each with feudal, jealous suspicions of the other. Christ did not establish any titles and worldly honors, hence they are not necessary to the happiness or salvation of man. On the contrary. He taught humility and Christian condes- cension, and that they who would become useful must serve those among whom they desired to be regarded useful. Let us not place our dependence upon worldly titles and honors, but be meek and lowly in heart, m honor preferring one another. " Worldly position and spiritual enjoyment are not necessarily connected." (So said a good man lately.) How often i^. God's economy of grace do we sefe the above truth verified. Go with me through the streets and lanes of the city ; conteniplate the condition of the rich and poor; judge their condition by the impartial light which the divine spirit infuses into the soul of the child of liiji I i I 40 CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. God, and how shall we record the result of our observa- tions. Do we not often read peace, happiness, and spiri- tual contentment in the face and home of the poor lue- chanic, while unrest, disease, and mental misery is seen upon that of the favourite of fortune. Yea, verily, we see the truth of Christ's declaration, " how hardly shall they that trust in riches, inherit the kingdom of God." Let us not judge our fellow-men from their temporal surroundings. Let us thank God that " there is no respect of persons" with Him, CHAPTER VII. UNIVEE8ALISM AND UNITAEIANI8M. These two systems of (so called) religion, are so near- ly allied in their origin and effects, that we will treat them as one, under the same caption. It originated in the Garden of Eden, when the devil told Eve, in oppo- sition to the commands of God respecting the forbidden fruit, " in the day thou eatest thereof, thou shalt not surely die." It aims to destroy the doctrine of rewards and punishments, and upholds the idea, in an indirect way, that man may lead such a course of life as his carnal f'epravity may dictate, yet Christ died to save him, and he vyill he savec?, let him die even in his sins. Thus man's accountability, and free agency is set aside, the bar of God's justice destroyed, and the necessity of preaching Christ's Gospel contravened, by this false system of Satan's inventing. Its practical effect is to throw stumbling blocks in the way of God's plan of Sal- vation, destroy the soul-sustaining doctrines of the Church militant, and substitute a flimsy excuse instead, coming in the name of Christ, but practically denying His divine authority. It has the " form of godliness, but denies the power thereof," and with its " fair speeches, deceiving the hearts of the simple," turns the Scriptures from their true meaning into instruments to UNIVER8ALISM AND UNITARIANISM. 41 destroy the souls of men. Without substance or vitality, the weary pilgrim on the journey of life grasps it, and finds nought but the dust of infidelity in its fair out- side, as the weary traveller finds the ostrich shell upon the desert, filled with sand. As it places no penalties upon its followers for the violation of God's laws, it zealously preaches a God of Xove, but never one o^ Justice. As the guilty offender of man's laws never loves to con- tf^mplate the penal code of a state, neither does the de- votee of this branch of Satan's kingdom love to talk of, and set forth the severe penalties of God's plan of redemption, to the poor sinner. It urges not the neces- sity of the new birth, in its pretended attempts to make known the Truth. It has its temples of worship in the land in common with other false systems, and the mate- rial in hand for the diffusion of light, but like Popery and Paganism, its " light is darkness," and its futile attempts to diffuse the Gospel, more clearly show forth its deceitful character, and expose its hypocrisy. To fur- ther enlarge upon its injurious tendency, would but tire the reader with the history of a very great eye-sore to the Christian cause, and a legitimate object of public condemnation. We will leave it with a solemn warn- against its delusive allurements. ing to the young Watch and pray, lest ye enter into temptation." SABBATH FEASTING. Much of the sickness which afflicts mankind come» from sabbath feasting, especially among the working' classes. With the ease the day of rest brings, many improve in making calls and feasting upon the richest food they can afford, this with the inactivity they in-^. dulge in, brings on fevers and other diseases. Dr. Wel- come Pray, a successful physician in Waterville, Lucas County, Ohio, once said in my hearing : " More than half of my patients are taken sick on Sunday night or Monday morning. They live upon poultry, fine meats and other rich food on that day, and the reaction of rest after active business through the week, brings on D 48 THE POWKR OF INFLUENCE. I i li disease." The day of sacred rest is thus turned into a source of evil instead of good, by the careless perversions of human depravity. The body in all its parts needs rest. Fasting on the Sabbath is better far than feasting. Let the body be kept in subjection, that the grace of God which the soul needs to cheer and support it, be not hindered in its action by the sensuality of the body. Let the Sabbath be really a day of rest. The calm sa- lutary result of self-denial, will well repay the priva- tion endured by abstaining from eating. Mortify the deeds of the body and live. THE POWER OF INFLUENCE. It is impossible to estimate the power of the various influences that operate upon society. Every human being from the infant in the cradle to the grey- haired sire, exerts some kind of an influence, and that has its eff'ects not only in time but in eternity. The impressions we make upon others, whether by word or deed, is our in/iuence, and the circle we affect in our relations in life, brings forth the fruits of that influence. The heart is the centre of what we are, the " kind of spirit we are of," determines the quality of that centre, from that, our thoughts, words and actions take their character, hence the kind of influence we exert upon so- ciety. We are operated upon by either the spirit of God, or "- of Satan, and we are in the service of one or tb' .. Reader, which are you the servant of? Ir udor, I appeal to you to look at yourself and ji. aright. Do not be persuaded that you are aoing no evil, if you are not serving God actively, for your neglect to serve Him serves to cause a backwardness in others, which is sin hy influence. Rouse then to the ne- cessity of doing good, that at the last day, others may rise up and call you blessed, through your good influence upon them. it\ TUB FORCE OP EXAMPLE. THE FORCE OF EXAMPLE. 48 Equally powerful as that of hahit^ is the force of example. Especially to young people, do the daily patterns before them, serve as prompters to the forma- tion of character. Under the law of depravity too, evil examples aie easiest followed by the young. Your boy will learn and remember that oath and jest he hears in the street more ready than your pious instruc- tions. He will follow the example of the filthy user of tobacco or drinker of rum, quicker than that of the de- voted servant of God in your midst. The reason is simply because the former presents a plea to its depra- vity, but the latter requires the grace of self-denial to follow. Again, in the selection of books, all of which set some kind of example to the inquiring youth, the work of fiction will bo devoured by them more ready than that of truth. This is hard for us to believe of those we love, yet it is true. With this thought comes the earnest injunction to place such patterns before our children, and such reading matter in their hands, as shall cultivate in them a love for good instead of evil. And this can be done when the heart is young and eas- ily impressed, much easier than when sin has calloused it by its searing power. If parents would spend more time in the instruction of their children for God's ser- vice, instead of accumulating wealth for them to spend in pride and idleness, we would have a better world in which to live. The time is not far distant when the force of a good example will be far more felt and appreciated than now, and be prized far above the tinsel of a perishing world, NOVEL READING. At no age of the world's history has the rage for fiction reading so strongly prevailed as at present. A morbid desire for the thrilling and desperate has place in the minds of many of the youth and middle-aged, and this is but the sure index of a corru" tate of the 44 NOVEL READING. heart, a willingness to be " led captive by Satan at hi» will," and serve the god of this world instead of the God of Heaven. Did we see the unlettered heathen as anxious to set forth claims upon mankind, to bow in the worship of his dumb idols, as these modern fiction writers clamor for the public attention to their base productions, we sho'"ld cry out in holy horror at such an innovation of h^.u,thendom upon the Church of God. Yet many professed Christians, wink at the practice of fiction reading to such an extent, as to bring the New York Ledger into their dwellings to read, which they can do with as much piopriety as they can invite their friends and children to attend the theatre and card room. The influence of one upon the heart is about the same as the other, and as fraught with evil consequen- ces. The mind of the novel reader becomes the tho- roughfare of evil passion^;, false ideas of life are formed, and a love for the unreal takes the place of a desire for sober truth and sound doctrine. The novel reader comes under condemnation in the word of God, thus : " and the time shall come, when they cannot endure sound doctrine, but shall heap to themselves teachers having itching ears," and, also, when " they give heed to fables," to " seducing spirits and doctrines of devils,'* and novel writers are as " wells without water, twice dead, plucked up," and for whom, unless they repent, " is reserved the blackness of darkness forever." And yet we find the shelves of many libraries in the land poisoned with them, and the parlor tables of many so called respectable people coutauiiiidteu b^ llieii pre- sence, and worse than all, we often find the children of such people given to lightness and vanity, and prone to despise religion and its blessed ordinances. The preaching of the word should be made to bear espe- cially upon such evils, and when this is done, we will see this arm of Satan demolished in common with others of a corresponding nature. Public opinion must be educated against it, parents of children must see its evil effects upon their care, and the little ones be POPULAR DANCING 45 5» ! schooled to avoid the sickly novel as they would the door of a gambling house. There is no safety in tam- pering with fiction reading in the least. There is enough of the beautiful and true, of the marvellous and interesting, in truthful works, as the Bible and kindred books, which teach us of the kingdom of Hea- ven, which speak of Jesus and what He has done, and is doing for us continually, and what the comforter will do, if we will but receive his fellowship and presence. POPULAR DANCING. " Is dancing a sin," is a question we have often heard asked, and when we apply it to popular ball-room amusement, we reply that it is decidedly sinful. Solo- mon is often quoted as authority for dancing, but when tiie wise man said, " there is a time to dance," he meant, that when the heart was joyful at the receipt of good news, or the spirit exultant and elated in the prospect of good influences prevailing, then the body should manifest the emotions of the soul in the exer- cise of dancing., Bui when you reduce it to an art, and for the sake of making money, entice the young people into brilliant saloons, amid the vanity and leartless glitter of a miscellaneous assembly, whose whole aim is to serve the devil in useless small talk, in flirtation, in imbibing wine and other drinks, in the display of finery and indulgence of the appetites and passions, then it becomes sinful. As " a tree is known by its fruits," and the fruits of this, often called " inno- cent pastime" crop forth in nervousness, headache, bad colds, consumption and general prostration of both soul and body, it condemns itself by its immediate effects. It destroys the soul by rendering it unfit to receive and relish sound doctrine, as no person can attend a care- less heartless amusement, without acquiring a distaste for serious things, and although professors ot religion may indulge in it, their hearts must condemn them while so doing, or their religion is only 'professed but not possessed. ir I - u-.i^ Qf interest for our temporal welfare, but whf • ■ great salvation as that of the immortal suid is passea by, how much greater is the price we pay ibr our lack of zeal. Let us then see to it that we make our '* calling and election sure" by a patient ''contin- uance unto the end that wo may be saved." " They that turn many to righteousness " are to " shine as the stars for ever and ever." Is this not a gracious pro- mise ? 0, what an incelntive is this to labor on. May we see the necessity of going forward in the work of the Lord, that through the merits of Jesus we may rise above the destructive influences which assail our probation, and armed with spiritual weapons, be ena- bled to fight manfully the battles of the Lord, and tri- umph through His holy name. THE FEAR OF THE LORD. " The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." the Bible teaches, and " fear God and keep His com- 80 THE PEAR OF THE LORD. mandments " is a command that, if obeyed, insures to the obedient, not only God's favor of temporal bless- ings and spiritual delights in this world, but salvation, glory and honor in the world to come. We may in- quire, " what kill I of fear is this we are enjoined to feel towards God ? Is it a fear of His judgments and punishments for disobedience ? Not this alone, but a loving fear that cleaves to Him for His dear son's sake; that fear which is stirred in the heart from a desire to love Him more and serve Him better. This kind of fear excites to an accepta' a obedience, and calls forth willing sacrifices, while it constrains to a reasonable service in heart and life by its possessor. " Unto you that fear my nair*^ shall the sun of rifi;hteousness arise with healine: in his wings. Such as fear God, the Saviour delights to descend and bless with His heal- ing power, and bestow upon them such gifts and gra- ces as shall imbue them with power to " stand in the evil day, and having done all to stand." "As heaven is high above the earth, so great is His mercy to them that fear Him." How farjthis comparison car- ries the God-fearing man above them who fear Him not, we may estimate by the happiness and comfort enjoy- ed by the Christian in contrast to the misery and anguish experienced by the disobedient. that we may possess that loving fear which calls forth our ear- nest desires to serve God in spirit and in truth. May we rejoice in a blessed freedom from that carnal ser- vile fear which shrinks from physical punishment and looks upon God as an avenger only. May we live in that atmosphere of holy regard, that lifts the soul above the fear of God's punishmenfSy bids it bask in His smiles of approving favor, and rejoice in His sweet rewarding attributes. May we be constrained by view- ing Him in His works, to "praise him unaware," to meditate upon His goodness and lavishing fulness toward weak worms of the dust. May we be forwarded on and cheered by a daily contemplation of what is in .store for us if we prove faithful in the exercise of that If THE URBAT DAY. 81 loving fear which Tie so earnestly enjoins in His word. Armed with tlds fear, we live in His sight in the digni- ty of God-favored Ciiristians, and not in the servility of abject slaves. may we be often called away from the things of time and sense, to the blessed exercise of this fear which has to do with the salvation of the soul. Amen. THE GREAT DAY. Who of us have our iinnor f nil // on, waiting for the great day of the Lord Jesus ? How many who proftfis to be God's people, can say from the heart, " even so come, Lord Jesus." How many are free from covetous- ness, from a man-fearing spirit, from a love of the world and its vanities, and from many kindred sins that atHict weak Christians, and can look upon the time of their departure, and say with Paul, " I have kept the faith, I have finished my course, henceforth there is laid for me a crown of righteousness." 0, 1 ask again, are we ready for that day when the "mighty trump shall sound ' come, come away." ' Let us examine ourselves on this important point. Let us be sure that we have our calling and election secured by a well- grounded hope of salvation through the blood of Christ. Let us not be merely profemors but possessors of that religion which our Lord Jesus Christ sanctified through his sufierings upon Calvary. And to those who are almost persuaded to live Christian lives, we say, " now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation." Put on the whole armor of God that you may be enabled to withstand all the fiery darts of the adversary of souls. Leave the half-hearted course you are pursuing, and come boldly to a throne of grace, and find grace to help in time of need. To the open sinner we ask, are you prepared for the coming of the Lord Jesus? Where will be your place when the " heavens de- part as a scroll, and the elements melt with a fervent heat " Turn in with the overtures of mercy before it is too late. Fight against your God no more. < f 82 IS IT BEST FOll CUKISTIANS, &C. h IS IT BEST FOR CIIIUSTIANS TO ENGxVGE IN POLITI- CAL CONTESTS? No ! Surely not ! Why ? Because by so doing they " take a dog by the ears." Political contentious pro- duce " discord among brethreh/' harden the heart, stir up the baser passions, and destroy the simplicity that there is in Jesus. Political emoluments excite ambi- tion, le?td into chicanery and corruption, and degrade the soul. Politics in the Church open the door for hypocrites and designing demagogues, poison her coun- sels, bias her conlerences, irritate nnd alarm her aged men, drag her young men into deadly strife, and turn the patiiway of heaven into an open door to hell. Politics " pervert the right wa^^s of the Lord," detract from the word of God, and turn the quiet circles of domestic life into arenas of strife and noisv debate. They corrupt the ministers of the word, and turn them into stump orators, and the pulpit into a stand for vending indlrecthi political favor. But what must be done ? Must Christian men leave the political field entirely ? What says the word of God to his believ- ing children ? " Have no fe-llowship with the unfruit- ful works of darkness, but rather reprove them." " Come out from among them, and be ye separate, touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you, saith the Lord." Are these not sufficient reasons ? Take the examples of the early Christians ; did they enter into political contests, and join issues with Ciesar, or any other worldly potentate ? Nay, verily ! Are we more privileged than they, to take a licence in the political concerns of the world, and contaminate the ordinances of the Church militant by unholy associa- tion ? We are not ! Woe to the Church when she takes up the local issues of party politics. If her mem- bers take this unwarranted course, they deserve to suffer. " As they sow t' ^ shall reap," and we ask the conscientious question. Is it not better by far to " stand still and see the salvation of the Lord," than to enter THOrnilTS ON THE SOUT. 83 1 into the noisy corrupting Htream of tlie world's politics and 1)0 swallowed up in hell? Yea, verily! The wrecks of character that now lie along the ])olitical coast, of Christians who hjive trusted their life harques ui)on the uncertain sea of politics tell a strong tale of warning to God's people. Disaj)pointed and heart- broken, after having been used as duped instruments in the devil's service, they are turned out to die, the butt of remark for the worldly, and a subject of ])ity to the I'aithful. d promises to be with the heart that will receive ^^ Ji, " always, even unto the end of the world." 92 THE INPLUBNOB OP THE HOLY SPIRIT. From this he is called the Comforter. He teaches the earnest worker what to utter or write for the be- nefit of the perishing sinful races of mankind. He prompts to duty and action when the heart is inclined to become weary and lukewarm. He works within the lieart to do the will of the Father and the Son, as he proceedeth from them. He leads the soul " into all truth," that it may bring forth fruit to the honor and glory of God, and serve as an instrument in the redemp- tion of mankind. He watches over the lives of Chris- tians, oversees the concerns of the Church of Christ, and is ready everywhere to sustain and encourage the people of God. Let us as converted and sanctified children of God "continue in the Faith," that our sweet monitor and faithful companion the " Comforter " may remain with us. THE PHILOSOPHY OF INFLUENCE. There are two great channels of influence bearing upon the world, viz : good and evil. One or the other is making its impression upon every individual in ex- istence. God is the author of good, and Satan of evil. The Holy Spirit is prevailing in the soul, if the arch- enemy of mankind has not the ascendancy. The for- mer creates within us holy tempers, gentle actions, and heavenly emotions. The latter, evil thoughts immoral utterances evil actions. The one prompts us to tempe- rance, self-denial, and gracious life, the other engenders indulgence, awakens the passions and begets lust. The life of him over whom grace reigns, is a blessed example of God's care, an ornament to His Church, and a joy- ous being of .future usefulness. The servant of sin is an embodiment of unholy desires, a propagator of iniquity, a lover of evil works, and is best pleased when indulging in things that make food for Satan and his Evil Angels. Reader, what kind of influence do you desire to propagate — is it good or evil ? May I hope that it is the former ? I trust it is. God will bless you if you yield to Him, and will give you grace to overcome the wiles of Satan if you trust in Him. BLAVEKT AS AN BNEMT TO CHRIBTIAN LIBERTT. 98 SLAVERY AS AN ENEMY TO CHRISTIAN LIBERTY. John Wesley, in uttering the sentence denouncing Slavery as the " Sum of all Villainies," would have left an immortal name had he never uttered another sentence in his life. The bodies and souls of men are bartered like brutes for the slaughter ; virtue is vic- timised ; the slaveholder often sells his own flesh and blood ; family ties are torn assunder, hearts are broken, misery entailed, and thousands of untold crimes com- mitted through the medium of this chiefest of crimes. Thousands have been dragged to death hy its propa- gaters, thousands have died in strife caused by it, and thousands more have suffered and died in consequence of that strife. Does it not merit the name of being the mc 3t enormous of all sins. Young men, shun it. Old men, counsel against it. Let it be driven from the face of the earth, by the sword of the Spirit. THE LORD'S PRAYER. There never was a prayer uttered which contains as much in so little space as the Lord's Prayer. We have the several pettions contained when combined, as will fill the sum of men's requirements while on earth. First, acknowledgment of authority : " Oiir Father who art in Heaven.'' The term ^*Our Father " implies a relationship to God as children. None but the conver- ted can truly pray the Lord's Prayer. Sinners may say it over, but they cannot pray it from the heart for they have no right to. What right has a child of the devil to say " Our Father who art in Heaven." Is Sa- tan in Heaven ? Nay, verily ! He that prays must be born of God ere he can utter the Lord's Prayer /ram the hearty simple as it is. Second, the note of praise, — '* Hallowed be Thy name." The term hallow means to reverence, cherish or love. Thus the child of God loves and reveres the name of his Father in Heaven, and does not take that name in vain. Third, longing for the kingdom : " Thy Kingdom come." The anxious 94 THE lord's prater desire to see the gospel prevail in every heart, is breathed forth in this prayer. If the heart is given to God, he will dwell with His creatures. The rule of Christ in the world is acknowledged in this petition. Fourth : Tliy will he done on earth aa it is in Heaven. — Here is the yielding to the will of God, the giving up to be led by the Holy Spirit. None can yield to be led by its gracious influence but those who have first received Christ. It is to the true believer that the Holy Ghost is sent, and with such He will remain and do God's will. Fifth, the plea for n laily supply of grace to meet the trials and temptations of life. " Oive us this day our daily bread/' is typical of a daily yearn- ing for divine love. Sixth : *' And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors." God is merciful to deliver those who truly call upon Him. He is more ready to speak forgiveness to our hearts than we are to ask. SeTenth : " And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil; for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. — Amen. The last petition is much needed to b** uttered by every redeemed child of Adam. Temp- tations are around on every hand, and would lead as- tray all mankind did|not the gracious protection of God prevent. THE JUDGMENTS. When the trials of this earthly probation are over, the first or personal judgment loys its claim upon us. " It is appointed unto men once to die, and after death the judgment." " The body must return to the earth as it was, but the spirit must return to God who gave it." Why this return at death, but to receive the sen- tence or welcome of banishment or acceptance. If of banishment, a place in torment ; if of acceptance, a home in Paradise until the resurrection of the dead. A pro- bation spent without a change of heart will surely ap- point the former, a life in God's service, through Christ, ensures the latter. And, finally, when the last trump shall call up the slumbering dead, " they that have done good shall be resurrected unto life eternal, but REVELATION. 95 tliey that have done evil shall be resurrected unto damnation." Hear this solemn declaration of Holy writ, dear sinner, which you ca7mot set aside : "And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God, and the books were opened ; and another book was opened, which is the book of life : and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." And now, dear reader, let me ask what were those books ? 1st. The Bible. You will be judged by its blessed commands, obeyed or neglected. 2nd. The Book of Conscience, as it condemns or ap- proves your life, awakened as it will be by the spirit of God. 3rd. 'I'he Book of Remembrance, which recalls faith- fully the deeds of the body, and holds them up to bold relief in the sight of conscience. 4th. The Book of Omission, which speaks of things undone, that we might have performed. And, lastly, the Book of Life, in whose pages our names are written, if we are saved, to have a place in the Heavenly Jerusalem, when " she shall come down from God out of Heaven, prepared as a bride for her husband," when " God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. But the fearful and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, &c., shall have their patt in the second death." REVELATION. The authenticity of the Holy Scriptures is based en- tirely upon this one word. They are the fruit of revela- tion. " Holy men of old spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost," As man is a creature belonging to God by virtue of creation, is it not reasonable that God should use man as a medium through whom to ma k known His divine will to the world ? It is an axiom that will stand good to the end of time, that the Creator has power over the things created, " as the potter over th clay." Hence why should we doubt the fact that God .JU ^lL9Ba ^ TTATCHTULNBSS ENJOINED feliould make known to the world, His will as described in the Bible. Can a more reasonable conclusion be ar- rived at than that He should speak to the spirits of in- spired men the things concerning Himself, and prompt them to work to His glory that He may be with all and in all ? To neglect the blessed overtures presented for our instruction, edification and salvation, is to set aside the object of our existence and make shipwreck of faith, or the power to exercise it. Man by nature^ is prone to disobedience. To deny this truth is to deliy the whole Bible in effect. To become savingly ac- quainted with God, is to acknowledge this in His sight and before the world, seeking at the same time a for- giveness of sin, and an application of the shed blood of Christ as an atonement for the same. What, then, is our duty under this view ? Verily to receive the word of God as revealed, and yield to become more teachable to His divine will. We should not cavil at God's deal- ing with us, but in humble obedience seek out those things which are pleasing to Him, and perform them in humility and love. Love is all we need to cement our hearts, and working in this happy frame, we can obey the other attributes of His divine Will, and become willing to " work out our own salvation with fear and trembling." WATCHFUDNESS ENJOINED. BUT THE END OF ALL THINGS IS AT HAND, BE YE THEREFORE SOBER AND WATCH UNTO PRAYER.— 1 P«ter iv. 7. The apostle Peter enjoins soberness as the proper frame of mind in vietv of the end of all things. This is the only acceptable state of heart to God. The end of time may be with us at any moment, as none haV6 a lease of their lives beyond their present breath. Hotv solemn this thought alone should make us. With wh&,t profit we can engage in sobtrness of mind can only be told in eternity. OF THE UNION Or THE (30I>HEAD, &C. 9T OF THE UNION OF ^CHE GOBfiEAD AND UA^t oOi , IN THE PERSON OF CHRIST. According to the very reasonable and plain ere of St. Athanasius, Christ is " God of the substance oi he Father, begotten before the worlds, and man of the substance of his mother, born in the world. Perfect God and perfect man : of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting ; equal to the Father as touching his Godhead, and inferior to the Father as touching his manhood." How simple and comforting this doctrine is ! He could not have become d^ possible Saviour without posses- sing both the attributes of God, and the weakness of man. Thus in His divine teachings and miracles, we view the Godhead, but in the prayer for " this cup to pass from me,'' in the garden of Gethsemane, we see and hear the manhood pleading for deliverance. In the words, " I and my Father are one," the Godhead is plainly declared, but in the expression " the son of mauy^ the manhood is acknowledged. It was meet that he should put on the manhood, that man might come to God through him. Had he remained in the Godhead without possessing the manhood, man could not have come to Him. THE RESURRECTION OF THE BODY. One comfort in the doctrines of the Church to the believer is, that of the resurrection of the body after death. When the last trump shall sound, the dead in Christ shall rise first, " and they that have done good shall rise to eternal life, but they that have done evil, to eternal damnation. Think of this, sinner, and tremble under the thought of that rising ; contemplate the same, earnest Christian, and rejoice in the happy prospect. We will not stop to cavil with you, learned sceptic, upon your supposed impossibility of the parts Of human bodies that lie scattered, as it were, to the four winds, being raised as a whole, but we reply that thiere 98 THE RESURRECTION OP THE BODY. is " nothing impossible with God," and that this is " sown a natural hody^^ but " is raised a spiritual body," " it is sown in corruption and raised in incorruption," which is quite sufficient for him to know who is willing to take God's word as it reads, that he may rejoice in the blessed promises therein set forth. Let us then not stop to question the power of God to raise up one part of His creation from another, and separate it to glorify Him, or another part to condemnation and punishment for disobedience of His commnnds. Sceptics argue that it is not according to the laws of nature that the body be raised, but we believe that God who created the worlds from naught, and put the laws of being into force, can by the samepower suspend those laws, and has done so through the instrumentality of His Son Jesus Christ while in the body, and the servants whom He has sent from time to time to warn his creation to " flee from the wrath to come." Reader, are you inclined to listen to the cavillings of scepticism and infidelity'- ? If so, shut your soul against the temptation at once, and keep yourself pure from the fascinating charms of the ser- pent, as he comes in the form of the learned sceptic and fault-finding philosopher. They would poison your soul with sophisms and heartless insinuations, and when this was done, would boast over you as a victim to their infamous impiety. Especially do they lurk around the fold of God, the Church militant, to lure the young lambs of the flock from their faith. This is the position occupied by all that class of persons who have at some time in their lives been wrought upon by the Spirit of God, but who have grieved it away, have become pas- sive in the hands of Satan, until he makes them active through his power to tempt, to do his foul work of op- posing the truth. May you, dear reader, be enabled to see who jrou have to contend with in your way, and through grace turn from them and live. Some approach so near orthodox faith as to claim a near relation to it, but when tried by the Gospel rule are obliged to take the position of those who come in the 7iame of Ghristj CHARtTT. 99 but are false as hell itself. Of this class of enemies to Christian liberty, we name Unitarianism,Universalism, Popery, Mormonism and modern Spiritualism. Of that class who take an open-stand against the truth, without making any pretensions to religion, we may name Atheism, Materialism, Infidelity in its various forms, and the false philosophy which comes forth so boldly with its assertions that the Bible is inconsistent and false. Follow us, then, dear reader, and although you may find ideas expressed in strong terms, yet we hope you may be enlightened to an extent to be useful to you and others in your day and generation. CHARITY. 4 CHAEITY SUFFERETH LONG AND IS KIND. 1 Cor. xli, 4. How much are we in need of charity ! Hardly a day passes, if we mingle with the world, but we hear the detracting word of criticism, or the severe reproof. Charity is that quality which rises above the faults of :r fellow men, and carries us into an atmosphere of patience and love. We can see their good qualities only through the blessed lens which charity furnishes. We find a friendly allowance for the shortcomings of others, are willing to give them that word of comfort which Jesus gave the poor woman brought before him accused by the Jews and condemned by the law. If we could consider whether we were " without sin" ere we cast the stone of slander and criticism at others, we would find ourselves less inclined to do so. As the Jews left the woman so would we leave the object of our heartless reproof, ere we condemned blindly those who were, perhaps, as free of faults as ourselves. ON REWARD. LOOK TO YOURSELVES THAT WE LOSE NOT THOSE THINGS WHICH WE HAVE WROUGHT, BUT THAT WE* RECEIVE A FULL REWARD. II John, i, 8. At this time, when Zion languishes, the text can be properly uttered as a word of caution by every servant of God to the people under his care. If ever the true ( [ 1 ! i f i 1 1- 1 1 i '■ ; ! ( i 1 too ON REWARD. Christian needed a firm reliance upon God's promises, it is now ! Satan and all his hosts combine to assail the truth ; the world winds its serpentine coils of am- bition to ensnare its followers, and the flesh, with its host of appetites and passions, strives for the mastery and would drag down to corruption the lovers of Jesus, but grace is sufficient for all th^se, and a firm trust in God will carry us through the storms of worldly trial and temptation. Hold ffist then. Christian brother or sister. Leave not your first love, get not discouraged, remember Calvary and Him that sufferod for you, and although God may call you to suffer persecution, if you bear it patiently you will be a proof of that scripture which affirms ** that all who live godly in Christ Jesus must suffer persecution." Bear the cross and you shall wear the crown. " God is faithful that promised," and he will not forsake, you. ON KINDNESS. AND BE TE KIND ONE TO ANOTHER, TENDER-HEARED, FORGIVING ONE ANOTHER, EVEN AS GOD, FOR CHRIST'S SAKE, HATH FORGIVEN YOU. Ephesians iv. 82. "We have in the text an antidote for war and blood_ shed. If kindness could enter into the councils of na_ tjons, into every relation between mankind, the mar shalling of hosts and horrors of war would not be known. What a spectacle does the world now present ! How much in need is it of the precious teachings of Christ's gospel, to calm the hearts of turbulent spirits, and speak " peace be still *' to the raging sea of human depravity on earth, in nations too, in who.:c bounds God's word is professedly read and revered. Oh may the Almighty interpose to prevent the awful conse- quences of mortal strife. May love, tender-heartedness and forgiveness prevail, that war may be averted es- pecially between christian peoples and nations. GROWTH IN GRACE. 101 GROWTH IN GRACE. FOR THE EARTH BRINGEia FORTS FRUIT OF HERSELF; FIRST THE BLADi: THEN THE EAR, AFTER THAT THE FULL CORN IN THE EAR Hark iv, 2R. There is a beautiful analogy between the growth of the Christian after grace Las found a place in the heart, and the blade of corn after it has started from the bosom of mother earth. As the blade grows, it unfolds its leaves one after another; the stalk becomes perfected, the cups form to contain the grain, the flower develops into grain, and the stalk bends to the sickle and is gathered to the granary to feed the king and his sub- jects. As the soul of the babe in Christ grows, it un- folds its powers of understanding and meditation, and fed by grace it attains the full growth necessary to a life of usefulness in God's vineyard. It is thus by degrees, made a perfect ear of gospel corn, and gathered to serve the Master in a work of love. ON LOVE. es- BY THIS SHALL ALL MEN KNOW THAT YE ARE MY DISCIPLES, IF YE LOVE ONE ANOTHER. John xiii, 36. The principal feature of St. John's gospel is love. That disciple that "leaned on Jesu's breast," who was near to him, might be expected to partake more fully of his loving nature. Love fs the fulfilling of the law, love is the gift of the Saviour to earth, love is the great object of his mission to a lost and ruined world. As Christ taught and led on followers, this was the blessed test of their attachment to him, that they should " love one anotJier.'' He knew if they loved each other, they would love him, and prove faithful to him. Union of interest in each others' affairs, begets love, destroys selfishness, and leaves the soul ready to receive the blessed teachings of the Holy Spirit The opposite of love is selfiihness, and the greatest enemy of the human soul in existence. 102 UILLERISM. I ! Love is a gift of God, a grace of the Holy Spirit; hatred is a device of Satan with which to destroy the souL Love teaches the control of our appetites and passions • hatred indulges in intemperance, wantonness and ex- cess. Love is condescending, humiliating and obliging ; hatred is selfish, proud and impudent. Love is bene- volent, charitable and considerate for the wants of others ; hatred is covetous, grasping, and domineering. Love is affable, pleasant and cheerful; hatred, sullen, morose and gloomy. Love is genial and full sunshine ; hatred, dark, and begets darkness. Choose ye which ye will enjoy. ' MILLERISM. . This is the name of a sect that has sprung up within the past 20 years, and takes its name from Miller the found- er. Millerites is the name given to his folio wers,or second Adventists, because of their belief that Christ is coming to earth 8oon to judge the world. The set time for this event failed in Miller's time, and other times have been specified which have since failed, and now the time was to be " not later than 1867," according to a tract, enti- tled " The last warning voice/' now before me, which I have been perusing. In reply to its assumptions I shall only quote its first text to destroy its whole ten- or, viz — " But of that day and that Lwur kno*veth no man, no not the Angels which are in heaven, neither the Son but the Father." This we think sufficient to show that it is not only fanatical to specify the exact time for the Saviour's coming, but impious and sinful. If it is wrong to disprove any one of Christ's teachings, it is another, and the people who profess to com.e in His name and advance such doctrines as do these people, we pity their deluded condition, but condemn their course. We wish to be charitable, but cannot conscien- doitsly have charity for destructive delusions. Delu- sive isms are generally formed of persons dissaffected in the orthodox Churches, and have left through some dis- I m ARGUMENTS FOK TEMPERANCE. 103 appoinlment,or have resisted the overtures of mercy and have fallen into the Devil's service, in a positive sense. This is undoubtedly the position of the followers of Mil- lerism, as it takes the persecutive and argumentative po- sitionj continually striving in opposition to the command that the servant of God must not strive, but full of love compel sinners into the fold of Christ, in earnest anx- iety for their salvation. They deny the existence of paradise, the first or personal judgment at deach, and the personality of the Holy Ghost, thus striving to des- troy the landmarks of the Christian Church, in viola- tion to many commands of holy writ. We therefore condemn it as an enemy to Christian liberty. en- lu- iu lis- ARGUMENTS FOR TEMPERANCE. By Temperance I mean a total abstinence of all intox- icating drinks as a beverage. "Intoxicate'' me&i\spoi- sGUf from the Latin word " toxicum." Hence the neces- sity of abstinence. A drunkard, or eVen a tippler, is a suicide to the extent he imbibes. A liquor seller is doing wrong, to the extent that he goes beyond the sale of intoxicating drinks as necessary medicines. The public purse can better support such, than to allow them to sell as a beverage. Alcohol fills more jails, prisons and alms-houses, than any other agent of Satan in ex- istence. It is one of the greatest instrumental oppos- ers to Christ's Gospel, in existence. It is more danger- ous because of its subtlety and apparent, or pretended innocence. It deserves the condemnation of all hober- minded people, and the abhorrence of all who now use it as a beverage. It is li. r, and one cause of many lies being spoken. It robs more families, and makes more widows and orphans than any other influence on the face of the earth. It is a murderer ! while it kills the body it murders the soul. It takes away the power of breath from the one, and that of faith from the other. Everything of an intoxicating character is foreign 1,04 ARQUMBNTS FOR TBMPBRANOE. OX poison to the system. Vinoup fermentation is de- cayed matter, and, this must be produced in any mix- liure containing alcohol, or intoxicati/ng material, — Everything that intoxicates deadefnal Alcohol is tHe essence of deceyed matter ! In the production of high-wines from which common whiskey is rnckde (by rectifying and adding strychnine and waller), the grain, usually corn or rye, is first ground, mixed in vats with hot water, lefi to rot before steaming, is then steamed or boiled, and the steam or essence is cauffht in vessels and is called high wines. Mark this, liquor drink- er ! The poison you put into your mouth to " raise your spirits," and steal away your brains, is the essence of corruption, as all intoxicating drinks are obtained upon the same principle, from decayed matter, is it a wonder that they poison or deaden the man, soul and body ? Whiskey, to pass inspection, must bear a bead as it is called, when put into a clear-glass bottle and shaken up : if it will bear a globule of air upon the top it will pass. Dealers often fill up partly filled liquor- caBks with water, and put in strychnine to make it bear a bead. While the poor victim of appetite has the natural poison of alcohol to overcome, he has also the added poison of strychnine preying upon his vitals. Alcohol is an invader, a foul foreign foe to the human system and its functions. The excitement of intoxica- tion is the struggles of nature with the poison. If na- ture prevails the mind is restored to consciousness, if alcohol gains the ascendancy, insensiJ^ility ensues. — Alcohol has no positive stimulating properties of its own. It deadens instead. An appetite is created which demands a satisfaction, and the depressed condition of the system, after each attack of the enemy, calls for a continuation of the habit. The poor body of the tip- pler become by degrees exhausted and entirely over- come by the impurity of the alcohol, his nervous system suffers, his blood i? "lied with vile humors, and open to the prevalence ot cholera or other forms of the pes- tilence. The way of the transgressor is hard, as the r w INTEMPERANCE. lOo tippler testifies. Spontaneous coinhudion has been known in many cases wliere even a moderate use of alcohol has been indulged. God will not allow His laws to be trampled upon without inflicting a severe penalty upon their transgressors. As the fruits of intemperance we have the loss, pecuniarly, of purse, property and credit ; physically, of health, comfort and enjoyment ; morally, of reputation, character and soul. All that is worth living for is sacrificed upon i-.is Moloch of appetite.- — Let the public mind be roused against it as a huge in- vader of its rights and privileges ! Save the rising generation by a firm and steady opposition to its use as a beverage. Make it a point of character not to touch, taste, or handle it as a beverage. INTEMPERANCE. This huge evil now at war with the Christian Church, demands the stern opposition of all who labor for the good of mankind. It is especially forbidden in Holy writ, and we have but to stand on the Gospel plan, to find a sure ground upon which to succeed. Ministers, laymen, women and children, all the speaking, writing and active forces of the Church should be brought especially to bear upon this gnawing canker-worm of society. We give you quoted authority from the Old and New Test aents, and pray that you may enlist in the warfare against this evil, and armed with the spiri- tual weapons below presented, and other practical mat- ter which may come to your aid, you will conquer. TESTIMONY OF THE BIBLE ON TEMrERANCB. I Prom the Christian Guardian. This, our son, is stubborn and rebellious ; he will not obey our voice ; he is a glutton and a drunkard. And all the men of the city shall stone him with stones, that he die. So shalt thou put away evil from among you! Deut. xxi. 20, 21. . .,-, k Hi m m ■ '■■ ■,' 111 11 111 'M M\ ! :; 106 INTEMPERANCE. 9 Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations ! Lev. x. 9. To the mother of Sampson. No tv, therefore, beware, I pray thee, and drink not wine nor strong drink ! Judges xiii. 4. He that loveth wine,shall not be rich ! Prov. xxi. 17. It is not for kings to drink wine nor for princes strong drink ! Prov. xxxi. 4. Who hath woe ? Who hath sorrow ? Who hath con- tentions ? Who hath wounds without cause ? Who hath redness of eyes ? They that tarry long at the wine ; they that go to seek mixed wine ! Prov. xxiii. 29, 30. For they eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence ! Prov. iv. 17. Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well. Prov. v. 15. Look not upon the wine when it is red, when it giv- eth the color in the cup, when it raoveth itself aright. At the last, it biteth li' e a serpent, and stingeth like an adder. Prov. xxiii. 61, .32. For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to pov- erty. Prov. xxiii. 21. Wine is a mocker, strong dr'nk is raging ; and who- soever is deceived thereby is not wise. Prov. xx. 1. Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink. Isaiah v. 22. They shall not drink wine with a eong. Strong drink shall be bitter to them that drink it. Isaiah xxiv. 9. Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink that continue until night, till wine inflame them, Isaiah v. 11. But they have erred through wine, and through strong drink are out of the way, the priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine ; they are out of the way through strong drink, they are in vision, they stumble in judg- ment. Igaiah xxviii. 7. I INTEMPERANCB. 107 The drunkards of Epbraim shall be trodden under feet. Isaiah xxviii. 3. Woe to the drunkards of Ephraim. Isaiah xxviii. 1. We will drink no wine, for Gonadab the son of Re- chab, our father,commandcd us, saying, "Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye nor your sons forever. Jeremiah XXXV. 6. Woe unto him that giveth his neighbor drink, that puttcth thy bottle to him, and niakest him drunken also. Hab. ii. 15. Be not among wine bibbers and among riotous eaters offlcish. Prov. xxiii. 20. ' ' For he (John the Baptist) shall neither drink wine or strong drink. Luke i. 15, And take heed lest at any time your hearts be over- charged with surfeiting and drunkenness. Luke xxi. 34. It is good neither to eat flesh nor to drink wine, nor anything whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offend- ed or is made weak. Romans xiv. 21. Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, shall in- herit the kingdom of God. 1 Cor. vi. 10. I have written unto you not to keep company, if a man that is called a brother be a raider or a drunkard — with such a one, no, not to eat. 1 Cor. v. 11. And be not drunk with wine wherein is excess ; but be filled with the spirit. F h. v. 18. Touch not, taste not, handle not. Col. ii. 21. Reader, do you believe the Bible ? Are you willing to be taught by its precepts and obey its commands ? If so, you will leave the intoxicating cup, and be not the victim of sensuality and indulgence. You cannot imbibe moderately without becoming a slave of the worm of the still. ii ^ ' ' GAMING. One of the strong weapons of the evil one is gaming. €ard-playing, billiards, ball-alleys, in short, any game that absorbs the attention of the mind, and yields noth- 108 IIORMONISM. ing in return but amusement, is injurious and destruc- tive. When we engage in these things, let us ask our- selves, if we can do so to the honor and glory of God. If we do this conscienciously, we will be sure to con- demn the practice of gaming in any form. We are placed here on probationy " to work out our salvation with fear and trembling," and when our hearts are full of the exciting, absorbing interest of useless games, we cannot have them on heavenly and divine tnings. How sad it is to see men and boys spending their precious time in soul-destructive amusements. What a fearful account will some have to render for this sin. Young people, do not thus spend your time. God has given a better work to do, and time in which to perform it, and do not, for fiishion' 8 sake or to please any person, destroy your probation by the sin of gaming. Christ never spent His time thus, nor did Paul, and can you give your time to Satan, while you should be preparing for eternity ? MORMONISM. This sect has sprung up in the past half century, and although from apparently small beginnings is likely to prove a great eye sore to the Christian Church. It was founded by Joseph Smith, who wrote " the Book of Mormon," which in its principal features will agree with the Koran of Mahomet. Its followers may with propriety be called modern disciples of the false pro- phet. It adopts the general features of Mahomedanism, and is in its general effects substantially the same. Its leaders take a decided stand against the Christian Church, and in all their practices, play the part of re- bels and traitors to the government of Heaven. Its multiplicity of wives, its pretensions to the working of miracles, and the dark persecuting policy it pursues toward all who do not believe its satanic courses, go to prove that it has a prominent place among the ene- mies of the Bible, Its headquarters are at Salt Lake City in Utah territory, but its missionaries are found I PRIDB. 100 in all landa, luring away to death and condemnation, weak minded men and deluded women. All whopos- sesH a regard for peace of mind and a clear conscience, will Hhun it a.s an enemy to the cause of God and sal- vation of mankind. , . TRIDE. J'KIDE OP UKART.-OK rKRSON AND OK ACCOMI'LI.SIIMENTS.-OF WORLDLY rUOSrERlTY.-OOD'S CONDKMNATION ON rUIDK-HUMiLITT AND LOVE THE BEST ANTIDOTK.-KEFLECTIONS. As all outward action springs from what dwells with- in the heart, it behooves us to search its inner rec( ises and describe its contents by the Light of the Spirit of God, which will reveal its true state to our enquiries. Pride is a child of sin, a fruit of human depravity, and lives but in the children of disobedience, and hence it is to their hearts we must appeal, for its removal from the face of the earth. Pride raised the Arch fiends' spear, ' . . When first id Heaven grim war ocgan ; Pride brings God's vengeance threatening near, Upon the bead of presumplious man. Pride fills the courts of sin and woe, As scorning Heaven's divine decrees, Vain hearts to hell's destruction go, Borne on corruption's flattering breer.o. Cp Lord, and scatter far and wide, The sillj flaunts of earth's vain worms, Let sweet humility preside Whore once puffed Pride displayed his forms. We say ^^rw?e of heart is the foundation of all other pride. Its symptoms are shown in a desire for self-elevatio» . m defiance of all pleas to the con- trary. It \6 prominent in tl life of the political as- pirant, the military despot and the desolater of earth's homes and comforts. It is the spoiler of the sanctuary, the invader of social rights, and " dwelleth in the bosom of fools.'* It exalts itself above all that is called God, ard strives to sit in the temple of God show- ing itself as God. It is Hell's first-born, as it peopled the no PRIDE. lower regions with rebels to the government of Heaven. From pride of heart, springs pride of person and world- ly accomplishments. Look at the butterflies of fashion that line the crowded street. As they float by, borne on the wings of vanity and self conceit, seeming to say by their manner, " how fine I appear," a feeling oi pity is roused for their presumption. " Worship we," is writ- ten in all their movements, and a violation of God's com- mand is the ultimate of their lives. "Pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall." Pride, like gaming, is a consuming fire, that gnaws at the heart like a canker-worm. If indulged, it carries the heart captive into the whirlpools of extravagance and bankruptcy. It despoils virtue, robs the soul of the treasures of grace, and launches the bark of its devotee early upon the ri^^er of death. It is the father of deceit ! It makes plain the road to ruin, and drags its captive thereupon. It is a liar! It tries to make its victim appear more before the world than he really is, by gaudily dressing above his station. Pride of one's accomplishments is another species of this hideous monster, ** that to be hated is but to be seen," and raises its silly dupe to a station in his own estimation, beyond what he can possibly enjoy, only to leave him in future with the "second sober thought" of abase- ment and self disgust. Let us take an example. We often see this pride in the actions of young students and boarding school misses, deader, are you of this cast ? Do you feel lifted up because you have carried the palm at study or labor ? If so you appear ridiculous ! Next on the list is pride of worldly prosperity. Some, because of their success in life, are lifted above their fellows, and place themselves high in the rank of worldly honor. This kind of pride begets caste, and formal distinctions, divides society into sets and circles, and impedes the gospel. It is the opposite of love, generates hatred, and chooses wealth and worldly honors in preference to Christian qualificotions. This kind of pride is the most deeply rooted, and has a wider spread influence than any 1 PRIDE. Ill other. It enters the courts of kings and princes, and works from centre to circumferance of a whole kingdom. It involves national pride, and is often the cause of wars and bloodshed. " The Laodiceans were wretched " because of their pride and presumption, and called forth their Lord's condemnation. Let us fear lest we also be lifted up beyond ourselves, in consequence of our ima- ginary worth. Out of Christ we are nothing^ let our accomplishments be what they may ; in Him we have sufficient, though they are nought. How signally he rebuked pride in the choice of his disciples ! He went tc ohe fisherman's pond, to the publican's stand, and he himself, a poor carpenter, spake, and the " common people heard him gladly." Thus was the Almighty pleased to humble himself into the lowest stages of human life, that he might " raise up the bowed down and set the captive free." View this, ye who raise yourselves in the estimation of your own worthi- ness. Let the example of Jesus while on earth, be your strongest condemnation. Do you not feel your un- worthiness and sinfulness, as you compare your present condition with His blessed humility ? The Almighty while on earth was humble. His word is against pride, when he commands men to submit to the " powers that be." See the rebellious factions that have sprung into being from time to time, through pride. How much bloodshed, rapine and misery has been produced through the proud and heady spirits of rebellion. Let the history of the world tell its story of pride, in the nations that have risen and fell through God's con- demnation for their presumption. From the builders of Babel to the present time, proud, presumptions man has sought to attain Heaven by his own ways, and in each effort God has signally prevented. There is a settled principle of condemnation from God, resting upon those who try to lift themselves to Heaven by their own strength. He claims the glory, and will have it, and man must come to him in the humble way I 112 PRIDE. of the cross or he cannot inherit eternal life. God is jealous, and will have an undivided heart, and where pride rankles and influences the life of man, the Al- mighty has no place. Professed Christians are often so proud that they have much to lavish upon their persons and worldly surroundings, and but little to bestow upon the cause of God. Humility and love are the best curatives for pride. Once break down the barrier pride has placed between you and duty, and God will bless you with the sweet consciousness of obedience and a sense of your own unworthiness. It is then that you can attribute all the good you may possess to His Holy Spirit working within, to will and to do His good pleasure. Reader, do you love pride in others ? If not, why practice it. Remember the line person you dress and nourish was from the dust, and to the dust it must return unless the end of the world should come ere death closes your eyes. Remember that the spirit^ the immortal part, 18 to live for eyer, and that if you indulge in sinful pride all your days, you will have unhappi- ness in the world to come, and condemnatimi in the sight of God. May you see yourself as unworthy, r.s a being on probation, and as poor, miserable, blind and naked, without the sweet graces of humility and love. Amen. • CHAPTER IX. ■' THE USE OF THE BODY. The human body is God's vehicle by which He makes known to the world, through the souls of man- kind, His wishes and the government of His kingdom. It is the vessel in which we possess the treasures of the Holy Spirit, and act toward mankind to do His will. The mind receives the impressions of the spirit, the understanding treasures up the teachings of the writ- ten word, and through the medium of seeing, and hearing, we reap the benefits of the sacred desk, and the various means of grace of the church militant. THE USE OP THE BODY. 113 If our bodies are injured in any way^ the nerves tell the tale to the brain, that, in turn, informs the spirit by its beautiful connection of mind and matter, and the spirit feels the extent of that injury as the responsible agent. If by any act of its own, that injury is effect- ed, this respoimhle agent, or the soul of man, receives punishment. Here arises the accountability of man as a free agent, as a steward over his whole body, to God the creator of that body and governor of his spirit. If men, by evil habits-, entail upon themselves disease and condemnation, God allows it as a just punishment. With intemperance comes sickness as a violation of physical law, and the poor victim of the baser passions carries with him dail}', a load of corruption and shame that in time wears out life, and lays the body in the grave long before its full probation has passed in the service of its Creator. How strong the appeal for its preservation and protection. What a delight is an embodiment of temperance as a fruit of the divine spirit, with grace beaming from the eye, filling every motion, prompting every desire, and going forth 'nlove to the performance of good deeds and the utterance of gracious words. Let us realize the necessity of possessing our earthly vessels in sanctification and honor, and with this in view, advance some practical hints to that end. The study of the human system has produced many volumes, and affords a pleasant and profitable pastime for all who will read, and employment for those who observe the laws of health. The object of this essay is to encourage the prevention of disease, by showing forth very briefly the action of nature's laws, and ex- horting to their obedience. The three great elements, air, water, and earth, enter with their minute offices to compose the human body. Air is inhaled into a pair of natural bellows, called lungs, and imparts its purif)''- ing and strengthening properties to the human body through the medium of the blood, which is exposed to the action of the air through the capillary vessels that form the extremities of the lungs. Water contributes 114 THE USB OP THE BODT. I its support to the body by beir ^ taken into the stomach, neutralized by the gastric juice, and thence thr ugh a series of small vessels called lacteals, to the blood, is distributed throughout the system. Earth enters as a component part through the medium of the food chewed in the mouth, mixed with the saliva of the glands to assist digestion, is swallowed and subjected to a chemi- cal change by the action of the gastric juice of the stomach, preparatory to being received into the blood. The purest and most easily dissolved portion passes readily into blood, while that which is most difficult to digest, remains longest in the stomach, or goes partly digested into the bowels, the natural draught for the refuse matter of the system. Hence three great items should be observed in taking nourishment to the body, viz : pure air, pure water, and good nutritious food, easily digested. Air, if pure, is formed of three gases or invisible substances, which enter into chemical action upon the blood, and are called oxygen, nitrogen, and carbonic acid gas. Pure air is composed of one part carbon, twenty parts oxygen, and seventy-nine parts nitrogen. The oxygen is the purifying gas, and gives tone to the blood in its office through the system. In proportion as the oxygen and nitrogen is exhausted, the carbon increases. In proportion as the air is breath- ed over, it becomes impure and poison from the preva- lence of carbon and the lack of oxygen and nitrogen. Hence the necessity of large well ventilated apartments to the enjoyment of good health. Persons should never sleep or sit long at a time in small close rooms. Much out-door exercise is needed for the promotion of the health of the body and vigor of the mind. As a large proportion of the human blood is water, it should be plentifully used, and of the purest kind. Good water should be tasteless, and if cold, should be drunk iii small quantities during the hot weather. Water or milk should be taken at meals after the solid food of the meal is principally eaten. The food should be icell chewed and mixed with the saliva of the mouth before THE USE OF TUB BODY. 115 swallowing. The practice of washing down a half chew- en meal with three or four cups of hot tea or coffee, is very injurious. We commit suicide by eating and drinking as by other means. To persons in health, and who take plenty of out-door exercise, strong food should be used, such as good bread, meat and potatoes, fish, milk, &c. Persons of weak constitutions, or of sedentary habits, should diet with vegetables, rice, lean fresh meats, buttermilk, oatmeal porridge, &c. The less tobacco or alcohol used in any form the better. They are foreign substances, and poisonous to the body. Anything intoxicating is poisonous. " Intoxi- cate " comes from the Latin term " toxicum," meaning poison. Hence when people deliberately make use of that which slowly but surely takes life, they are accountable for self-destruction. All tipplers are sui- cides, hence their exclusion from the kingdom of God. Water, well soaped, should be applied often to the skin, with much rubbing, after washing, with a rough towel. This will appear apparent when we review the circulation of blood. It is thrown from the heart through the arteries to the skin, and deposits a sediment by insensible perspiration, which, if not removed, forms a clammy covering to the skin, and pre- vents the purification of the blood through this course. It is estimated that three-fifths of the refuse of the human body in health, passes out through the pores of the skin as insensible 'perspiration. Here is a necessity of keeping the skin clean in order to the enjoyment of good health. Especially to persons of in-door plirsuits it is valuable. In the prevalence of cholera, bathing is a marked preventive. For example, at the prevalence of the cholera in Paris in 1849, there were but two cases among those who regularly attended the public baths in that city, and the number thus attending was several thousand. As an aggregate, we may say that the rational use of the mental faculties, a calm spirit sub- dued under the kingdom of grace, and a clear conscience,, are great conducives to health both in soul and body. »„; 116 TREASURES OF TUE HOLY SPIRIT. Mental excitement, ei'cess of any Jcind, debates, quarrels, ill tempers, and hasty passions, are all detrimental to health. Much medicine, as a preventive, should not be taken. It exhausts nature, weakens her forces, and brings on premature death. As contentment and hap- piness are so intimately connected with a sound healthy body, it behooves mankind to use every means to pro- mote it, and as the religion of Jesus Christ is an an- tidote of the " ills that flesh is heir to," let me recom- mend it in connexion with a careful observance of Na- ture's laws. TREASURES OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. The ambition of man craves the possession of some- thing valuable. The standard of this desire is regula- ted by the taste of the individual, and according to his willingness to receive, is his soul satisfied. If he longs for mental food he receives it through the me- dium of the books affording it, or otherwise. If for gold, he hies to the marts of business and possesses him- self of the treasure. Does he desire the love of God, he goes to the gospel, to the preached word, to the prayer closet, and by a belief in Jesus Christ receives the treasures of the Holy Spirit into his soul, as a blessed inheritance from his Heavenly Father. They are love, joy, peace, kindness, goodness, meekness, tem- perance, ^' against such there is no law." These blessed graces are of more value than all the treasures of earth beside,' possessed without these. Let us rejoice that God has mercifully placed them in our reach. They will give us all we need to make us happy. Amen. READING. To be able to read well is one of the most valuable accomplishments we can possess, and one that is often most neglected. There are four general rules which if minutely observed comprehend sufficient to make a good reader. They are, " 1st. Choose a firm and graceful CHARACTER OF ST. PAUL. Ill 57 if position. 2nd. Pronounce every syllable and word correctly and distinctly. 3rd. Understand every thing you read. 4th. Read as though you were talk- ing from the book." A natural, easy method should be cultivated, which makes the reader at home with his subject, and those who are listening. Reading aloud frequently, aids much in the use of language, furnishes a pleasant and profitable pastime, and if good books are read, it becomes a fruitful medium for the transmission of knowledge and divine truth. Read often to those around you, and if possible have evening readings for mutual entertainment and future benefit. Once in the habit, and instead of proving irksome, it will be- come in you a blessed means of usefulness. CHARACTER OF ST. PAUL. Before conversion, a learned servant of the law, a Jew in the strictest sense of the term, "brought up at - the feet of Gamaliel," a Jewish teacher ; " circumcised on the eighth day ; of the stock of Israel ; of the tribe of Benjamin ; an Hebrew of the Hebrews ; as touching the law a Pharisee ; concerning zeal, persecuting the Church ; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless," he possessed every quality which the world could present to make a man happy, and famous. But with all this he was an enemy to God, a persecutor of Jesus Christ, because he persecuted and killed the followers of the ord. He was a helper to< the murder of Stephen, and " haled men and women,, j^yutting them in prison," who were believers in the Lord. He was converted by the Spirit of God while on his way to Damascus, being struck down by it, and made to cry, " Lord, what will thou have me to do." He became the humble Apostle of the Gentiles, preaching ^ the word, acknowledging himself the least of all the apostles, was buffetted, persecuted, in perils by land and sea, afflicted, tormented, in fastings often, in deaths, oft ; andbrought before his enemies and tried, and all Wf 118 DYING KICH. bfecause he was a Christian. How many Pauls are there in these days? Reader, you may be a wicked, per- secuting spirit, despising the sweet consolation of re- ligion, " giving heed to the doctrines of devils," and showing by your words and actions that you do not mean to have the man Christ Jesus to reign in and over you. Are you a persecuting Paul, a back-biter of Christians, a hater of evangelists of every denominor tion, and a lover of hypocrites and revilers, can you hope for a happy life and death while you remain in this state ? Will you be always thus worldly-minded and persecuting, or will you throw off the nigh1>mare of sin that rests upon your soul by coming to Christ ? With St. Paul vou must be convinced of sin, with him feel contrition for sin, be willing also to confess your sins to God, and realit^e conversion from sin. This must be your course ere you can rejoice in the favor of God, ere you can be fully saved from sin and eternal death. Will you continue as the Saul of persecution, or will you become a Paul of righteousness. The two ways are before you, choose ye whom ye will serve, Christ or Belial. DYING RICH. How many slave out their lives, pinch their bodies and destroy "their souls, by living 'poor in faith, to die rich in this world. Hath not God chosen the poor of this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom promised to them that love him" ? that mankind could real- ize this important truth, as they sojourn in this world of probation. How much better prepared they would be to die really rich. '' Eich in faith.'' Blessed trea- sure ! A legacy left to one's friends over which they will not quarrel, but can each store up a full measure in their book of remembrance that they can possess throughout eternity. Reader, what kind of legacy do you v/ish to leave behind ? Is it a temporal one, over which your heirs may quarrel and envy each other, or a spiritual and eternal one, which all mankind may if they will, reap the benefit of. ON DRESS. 119 ON DRESS. One of the crying sins of the present day, is over- dreafthvg. It is idolatry, pride and vanity combined. It often throws men into debt without the means to pay, and creates in the heart an unwonted desire (which is never satisfied) to compete with others and go to all possible lengths to satisfy the vanity and pride of the heart. It is a fruit of original sin, a branch of Satan's kingdom, an enemy to (Christian lib- erty. It cheats by causing its followers to appear, in the eyes of the world, to be more than they are. It converts the creature of God that is capable of receiv- ing His Holy Spirit and becoming an angel of mercy and love, into a heartless peacock of fashion. It covers the heartless rake and libertine, the flirt and coquette, the fortune hunter and butterfly of fashion. It aids a spirit of caste and heartless distinction, to the exclusion of love and humility. It belongs to the pride of the «ye, and sacrifices home affections, family ties, and temporal credit. Worst of all, it keeps Christ out of the heart, and drives away the Holy Spirit. CASTE. I tie lid ;a- Ire lo lor Another enem^'- to Christian liberty is caste. So- ciety becomes divided into sets and circles which have in themselves an imaginary importance, forbidding, India like, any intercourse with those of grade below, thus obliging each to stand alone in a social point of view. This fancied importance is often based upon riches, worldly talent, or religious preference. In all, pride is the centering motor, and egotism the support. The religion of Jesus Christ is kept out by these soul-crush- ing divisions. Condescension " to men of low estate '* becomes a disgrace in the eyes of the people given to caste, and the sweet counsels of the word of God relat- ing to meekness and humility are lost sight of amid the puffed up notions of caste and pride. 120 MEDITATION ON DEATH. ^ I MEDITATION ON DEATH. It is good to retire from the busy cares of life and dwell in sweet meditation on Death. It is indeed the most certain, yet the most uncertain event of human life." Certain to come some time, yet uncertain as to the time when. And yet it may be difficult to bring our souls down to the sober reality of the solemn change. We may be inclined to go rather after the frivolities of life, and contemplate death with that un- concern which proves a stumbling block to Christian life, and a calm contemplation of death. The true Christian is the only one that can contemplate the solemn change with calmness, and only he can exclaim, " death, where is thy sting, grave, thy victory." ON ELECTION. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure, for if you do these things you shall never fall. — II Peter i. 10. Here we plainly see that election is conditional with reference to ourselves, and depends upon the diligence and per- formance of Christians to prevent them from falling. " Faith without works is dead, being alone," so is ou- " calling and election sure" only through patient watch- fulness, and labors of love in the vineyard of the Lord. Respecting God's decrees, election is uncondition- al. He will not change his plan of salvation to suit the particular case of any individual. He has from the beginning laid the foundation of man's return to him- self, and has elected, or chosen, all who will come to him through the merits of Christ. "All who loill come ma]/ come" to the gospel feast, and free agency is as much a condition of salvation as any part of the gospel plan. " There is no respect of persons with God," and the poor- est sinner who feels the need of Him, is much more cer- tain of salvation than the rich, self-righteous Nabob. The fatalist theory that a specified portion of God's creation is ■predestinated to destruction and a part to salvation, is- APOSTOLIC SUCCESSION. 121 very unreasonable and destructive to the exercise of faith and perversion of the doctrine of election. This fatality has a tendency to discourage effort, encour- age sin, and people the regions of Ihe damned, but if men neglect to fall in witli the overtures of mercy, God's law of salvation " Elects" man to everlasting damnation. Sinner, which will you accept, the elec- tion to salvation by obedience to God's saving ordinan- ces, or that of damnation by rejecting them. The al- ternative is before you. "Choose ye this day whom ye will serve." " Noio is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation." Tarry not ! But accept the overtures of mercy before it is too late. APOSTOLIC SUCCESSION. What is the true Apostolic succession ? Is it atemporal or spiritual work ? We should ask this question can- didly, and in a spirit of charity, as it materially affects the relations between the evangelical branches of the Church of Christ. In reply, we say, the work is a spir- itual one^ The Holy Ghost must first appoint the ser- vant of God as an Apostle, ere he can serve acceptably. Laying on of hands must not be done " suddenly^' without abundant proof that the candidate is thorough- ly prepared to do his duty under the special direction of the Holy Spirit. SERMON ON CONDUCT, WHEREFORE, LAY APART ALL FILTHINESS AND SUPERFLUITY OF NAU3H- TINESS, AND RECEIVE WITH MEEKNESS THE ENliKAlTED WORD WHICH IS ABLE TO SAVE VOUU SOULS.— James i. 21. The Apostle is admonishing Christians to duty. He warns the brethren against some of the most prominent besetments of the Christian, and specifies filthiness as especially to oe put away. We often hear persons call- ing themselves Christiana, indulging in filthy lan- guage, much to the disgrace of their profession. — Mingling with people of the world, the easy Christian thinks to curry favor by indulging in their ways. This 122 SERMON ON CONDUC'i. is a violation of ChriHt's gospel, a departure " from the faith once delivered to the .saints." God will not reeeive us with this sin resting upon us. He demands of us a " laying apart," or putting away of these things, and will call us to an account for every idle word uttered in the spirit of carelessness. Oh how much will be ac- counted for on the day of judgment. What a multitude of verl)iage is uttered in jest and naughtiness. Many poor creatures, who 7ww in their pride and self- sufficiency will then take up the doleful lamentation, " The harvest is passed and the summer is ended, and my soul is not saved." And why ? Because they con- tinued to the bitter end in tl'3 use of such works, and in the performance of such deeds as damned their own souls. What a terrible thought ! IIow sly is Satan in his works to entrap the unconscious sinner, while presenting uncouth and unholy language to his utter- ance, he calms the risings of conscience by plausable assurances that no harm is to coiiie of his waywardness, and the poor victim is drawn into a net-work of sin, from which nothing but the power of divine grace can extri- cate him. Many a young man has been led to the com- mission in speech of what, at first, would have shocked and abashed him. How often do we hear young people abusing the gift of speech which is entrusted to their care, for the most glorious purposes, in the utterance of those things, and the connrdssion of those deeds, which at one time they would have despised and which now they could not tolerate in others. The subtle power that Satan possesses, finds an avenue to the young heart, and its innocence is corrupted, its beauty destroyed, until the grace of God shall, in time, work within, to will and do of His pleasure. There are strong proofs of the depraved condition of the human heart in these reflections. As readily as the rivulets flow from thq mountain to the plain, does the heart of unregenerate man, incline to evil. This natural proneness to evil is the fruit of the fall. Oh how strongly are the proofs of man's inherent corrup- SERMON ON COVDUCT. 123 ople lieir ;e of eds, lich btle the |iaty ork. tioii in the world around us. Thounands upon thou- 8ands are daily rushing; down to death, unable to bear and receive the sulxstatianal truths of God's Word, but grasping instead the shallow, unstable lalhieies of man's inventing. How are the Scriptures verified in these evidences of Satan's work upon the human race. The unbeliever is but proving what he denies ' He is a representative of that depravity of heart, which is the direct result of the disobedience of Adam. The believing Christian is another proof in the sight of the sinner, of God's power to fave Iromsin. '^h man, with these unmistakeable proofs before your eyes, can you remain longer in sin ! Can you deny the Lord that bought you, while you have before you the nuiltiplied evidences of His good dealings with mankind, Our text will admit of the description of the plan of salva- tion, that you may sec from whence arises the authority of wliat we utter, God created the heavens and the earth in six days, or periods of time, and all contained therein. He made man after his own image, and placed him in a beautiful garden called Eden. In it was every sullicient supply to meet his wants, and to establish a pro- per relation between the Creator and the created man, God made a law and affixed a penalty. That law was, that of a tree in the Garden called the tree of life man should not eat. That if he disobeyed this command the penalty was, a deprivation of those privileges he tioio- enjoyed. Here was established /rce-a^e?^^^. or the pow- er to choose or refuse. God also saw that it was not good for man to be alone, and created a being from man's own body and gave it the name of woman. Sa- tan entered, the most subtle of the l)easts of the field, found access to the ear of the woman, denied the com- mand of God, and induced her to partake of the forbid- den fruit, tempting her to offer to her husband. See- ing the woman eat the man Adam partook also, and thus was the depravity of the human race wrought ia disobedience to God and exclusion of Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden, As an evidence of this de- 124 SERMON ON CONDUCT. I pravity, their first-born son, Cain, murdered his bro- ther Ahel in' a fit of jealousy. Sceptic, can you deny this proof of *otal depravity ? In accordance with tlie laws of nature, mankind multiplied upon the face of the earth ; and so great did their sins become in the sight of God, that he destroyed all the people from the face of the earth except Noah and his family. An- other proof of the exceeding sinfulness of the human heart, and of God's judgment and punishment for the same. Why should poor weak man rise in rebellion against the God that made him, unless it is because of the depraved condition brought on by the fall. Yet God left not Adam's descendants without a hope for which to live, for as it had been promised " That the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head," God made good that promise by a preservation of a line of descent from Adam to Noah, and from Noah to Abraham, from Abraham (to whom additional promises were given) to David (who reigned as king as a man after God's ov/n heart), and from David to Christ, who was the seed that should bruise tiie serpent's head, even the devil. How marvellously true are all God's promi- ses fulfilled ! Thousands of years had passed between the promise and its fulfilment in the person of Jesus Christ. Meantime the descendants of Adam had passed through many trials, been subjected to many tempta- tions, were brought under the displeasure of God and suffered dispersion at the building of Babel, gave battle to the heathen and triumphed in the name of the Lord, escaped the ravages of famine by the instrumentality of Joseph being so-^. as a slave into Egypt, and deliver- ance from captivity by the raising up of Moses through the help of the Lord, endured in tho wilderness forty years until the arrival of their children to the prom- ised land, their service under the law and struggles through years of captivity, all show the power of the Almighty to make good His promises to the people of His choice. And the greatest triumph of the Christian when he SERMON ON CONDUCT. 125 of reviews the plan of salvation, is the appearance, life, sufferings, death, resurrection and ascension into heaven of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of mankind. In this short life of thirty -three years, were fulfilled many prophecies of the people of God for many years prece- ding. But the blessed fruit of that brief existence has filled from time to time the cold earth with blessed spiritual life and raised up epistles of glory in the Cliurch, and monuments of God's amazing mercy, to stand as evidence of His gracious dealings with man- kind. The belief in God through the merits of Jesus gives the presence of the Holy Spirit to the true be- liever " always, even unto the end of the world." The fruits of the Spirit are love, ^'oy, peace, long-suffering kindness, and many other Christian graces which occupy the soul and govern the actions of man, to the exclusion of sin and evil practice. What can compare to these treasures of the Spirit? Is there anything on earth that presents a tithe of their value ? In the struggle after wealth, worldly honors, and temporal distinctions, men ignore and despise these simple gifts of their Creator, and plunge on through life after the inventions of their own creating, and fill their proba- tioti in a round of sensuality, instead of the service of the true and living God. What kind of an account are they to render on the day of judgment. Ah ! if men could but live with the judgment day in view, and each address his fellows as a " dying man to dying men," there would be more glorious results from gos- pel effort. Many Christian believers touch upon the: subject of religion in social life as though they were ashamed of their profession. Here is a strong reason why religion dies in the Cliurch and becomes a dead formality. A man-fearing spirit takes possession of the weak, professor, and he is ashamed to speak of Christ in any other place except the class room. We remember that when God set our soul at liberty there- was no subject that delighted us so much as rel'i(jiony. and we used to go and court the society o^ a young; 126 SERMON ON CONDUCT. Moravian minister, for no other reason than to hear the heavenly conversation that flowed spontaneously from his grace-filled spirit. 0, those were happy days, when, warm in our first love, we were buffetted about between our inward love for God and heavenly things and our outward contrary circumstances. We had " foes in our own household ;" those over whom our heart yearned in earnest prayer, but wlio scoffed at our persuasions to turn them from the wrath to come, and by whom we were denominated as " insane on the subject of religion." Many a young heart has been blighted, and kept from the enjoyment of religion, be- cause it feared the heartless " filthiness and foolish talking " which were heifped upon it by its silly for- mer associates. The text says, " receive with meekness the engrafted word which is able to save your souls." Meekness is a fruit of the Spirit, an opposite of pride ; and a twin sister to humility. The proud heart cannot be humbled to the true spirit of Christianity, without a change from nature to grace. There is a rebellious spirit to be subdued in the sinner, a putting away of the filthiness of the flesh, and a spiritual life to be awakened by the power of grace. Nothing will do this while the soul is in a state of resistance to tlie commands and ordinances of God. The first command of the written word to be received hy the sinner is, ** Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Repentance consists of — First. Conviction of sin, a knowledge of the indwell- ing corruption produced by the fall. This can only be realized by the banishment of pride and self-right- eousness nnd an acceptance of tlie declarations of the word of God respecting the sin of unbelief. The sin- ner must see himself as lost, must realize that he needs a Saviour, and resolve to put his sins away. Second. Contrition for sin. Contrition means sorrow for sins committed, for precious time lost in serving Satan, and this the sinner will feel when he begins to turn to iGod. He will realize his position as a rebel to the I : ! ; SERMON ON CONDUCT. 127 government of heaven and an enemy to God. This brings, third. Confession of sin, an acknowledgment to God that sins have been committed, and a review of a sinful past, as so much time passed in rebellion to God and in the service of Satan. Upon this condition of passing our time, hangs much of the favor of God to- wards us ; and if we serve Satan, how can we expect to receive credit from God. When we serve a temporal master in any capacity, we expect, and generally re- ceive, temporal credit. So in the economy of grace. God creates us, and has a right to our service, and if we rob God of our time by serving the devil, God will punish us. When we neglect to serve God, we commit a greater robbery than the highwayman who takes in violence the goods which belong to another. When the repentant is willing to confess this fact, he is in a way to enter. Fourth. A conversion from sin. Con- version means a changing from, or turning from one course to another. True conversion means forsaking all sin. We may pass through the knowledge of, or conviction of sin ; the sorrow for, or contrition for sin ; and the acknowledgment of, or confession of our sins to God, and still be holding on to some darling sin as a sweet morsel ; as it were a reserve for Satan to keep his claim upon us. We must yield wholly to God, for- sake all and follow Jesus ; part with everything that coidd possibly lead us astray. We cannot indulge in gluttony, dram-drinking, lying, cheating, stealing, rioting, swearing. Sabbath-breaking, or any other sin, without drawing upon ourselves the condemnation of God; and punishment for the violation of His commands and laws. Let us not presume to imagine ourselves truly converted while we cling to any besetment as a preference to the work of God. We may attach our names to the Church of Christ, and settle down in the conviction that we need nothing more. Church mem- bershij) alone will not save us in the hour of death. Love to God and man is the sign of true work done. We may Hue in the Church, but death in Christ must ; 1 I 128 IDLE WORDS, save us. Have you Christ, my friend ? Is the Word a part of your life, a balm to your soul ? Can you give up all for Him, and say : Here am I, Lord. Speak, that I may hear Thee. Young friends, can you love Christ as your first love ? Seek Him 7ioio, that you may not die in sin. You may die at am/ time. You have no lease of your life. Full of life now, Death may lay his hand upon you soon. Take Christ at His word, and God will bless you, and life will wear new charms for you. Joy will be yours, and love will warm your heart to praise God. 0, that there was more hi^e in the world. God is Love ! The Word is Love! It is this that the text calls you to have. It is for love that you were made. Not hate and ill will. Give your heart to God, and serve sin no more. God is your friend, but sin is not. You must serve one of the two. If you are for God you are not for hell. Watch and pray ! Keep a firm trust in the Word which will save your soul. Did you ever think of this Word that can save your soul ? Turn to Him in Faith, and He will save you. Give Him your heart, and he will bless you. Amen. IDLE WORDS. But I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. Matt. xii. 36. How often do we see this solemn declaration of our Saviour set at naught among mankind. Go where you will, among members of all classes of society, and often the words vou hear, tell the same tale of condemnation. There are three distinct propositions to attract special attention in the text. First, consider what ai^e idle words ; Secondly, the account rendered ; ' Thirdly, the punishment inflicted. First, consider what are idle words. Words without substantial meaning, tending to produce lightness and vanity, to excite the ridiculous and frivolous ; words 1^ I IDLE WOB,DS. 129 that call out the approbation of the base passions of human depravity, that have for their object the degra- dation of man, that often come clothed in the garments of innocent pastime, catching the seeking deathless spirits of the youth, and polluting the temples of God's erecting, that should become the habitation of the Holy Spirit. how oft'en do we hear the empty joke, the ribald jest, and still worse, the dark sin freighted words of obscenity and profanity, coming from young hearts already grown old in sin, who put at defiance, by their vile manners, every approach to work a reform within their souls. Yea, more, there are words freighted with romance, fiction and a long array of serpentine in- fiuence that dissipate and destroys instead of elevat- ing and purifying. Again there are v/ords laden with infidelity that would destroy the influence of the Word of God from among men, were their poison not subdued by the watchful influence of God's spirit prevailing in the hearts of His servants. These often come in the name of Christ, under the garb of religion, and assume the forms and office of angels of light, while they sow in their train the seed of of unbelief and despair. By pro- fessing to be true, they disseminate a false glare that would lure the deathless enquiring soul into the swamps and quagmires of sin and destruction. Go through the libraries of the infidel and sceptic, view the ponderous volumes of worse than idle words there displayed, freighted with their loud preten- sions, their sly insinuations against the word of God, their open opposition to every thing sacred and elevat- ing, and substituting instead, a false philosophy, a long array of empty verbiage and poison of a deathless character, as through the never dying cycles of influence, they stand as perpetual monuments of Satan's work upon the souls of men ; and well may you tremble at the destiny of their authors. The Infidel Paine, upon his death bed, was pointed to the Saviour by a Chris- tian friend, but in his agony exclaimed, " I may indeed look to Jesus now, but the influence of my books will 130 IDLE WORDS. run on when I am gone." Too truly did he speak, as thousands of dark-souled infidels stand up rebels to the government of Heaven to-day, as epistles of his idle words. Latterly we have a variety of isms, who " by their good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple" and " make merchandize" of all who listen to their sophistry and deception. They prey upon the souls of the careless and unawakened, as the vampire saps the life blood of his sleeping victim. Their manner of approach to their intended victim is an index of their real character ; first, fox-like and ser- pentine, and if resisted they become detracting and persecuting. Lacking the holy boldness of truthful effort, they dare not speak with that authority with which Jesus spake, but with the covered approach of condemnation, first lure and then destroy. " By their fruits ye shall know them," and the fruits of their idle words are seen in the would-be respectable sceptic, rationalist, materialist, and all that long array of op- posing sentiment that withstands the truth and seeks to crush from the hearts of men the generous principles of Christian liberty. Let us beware of this class of idle words especially, lest we make shipwreck of faith and a good conscience, and are turned upon the world as opposers to the weal of mankind, shunned by the good, and a bye word to the careless and unthinking. How many young men, useful in promise, have gone to their graves in infamy and disgrace, by listening to the idle words tliat have been poured into their seeking spirits from time to time. The young mind is an absorbent, continually imbibing instruction of some kind, and if not furnished with sound doctrine and healthy spiritual food, will readily grasp the idle and dissipating, and what greater proof do we need of the naturally deprav- ed state of the human heart, or the original sin of Adam's race, than this readiness to receive the idle and perishing. Young friends, however prone you may be to indulge in light frivolous speaking, ujider the garb of fun and so-called innocent i)astime, remember the J IDLE WOBDS. 131 admonition of the text, and shun the transient and fleeting. Better to have a sober cheerfulness, that keeps up a perpetual sunshine in the heart, and serves as an avenue for substantial communication, than to dissipate the soul in unmeaning nonsense that not only destroys yourself, but depraves the hearts ot those with whom vou come in contact. Parents and friends of the young, much depends upon you as to the aggregate of idle words you throw into their waiting souls. The conversation you engage in in the family circle, the books you put into their hands, the influence exerted in the general relations of life, all call forth your watchfulness and restraint, and make an imperative demand upon your responsibility and standing as guar- dians of the rising generation. The best inheritance you leave a child is a steady perseverance on your part Oi sobriety and sincerity. When the cold clods of the valley have closed over your breast, the dear ones you leave behind will seek your quiet home, and remember with a sweet consolation the good words of restraint and love you may now administer. Much do we all need to practice that wholesome command, " Be sober, be vigilant, for your adversary the devil goeth about seek- ing whom he may devour. Let us next consider, se- condly, the account rendered. The sense in which the word account is used here, is that of an answer to the enquiry, " how have you filled your probation !" How have you passed the valuable time given you, in which you might " work out your salvation with fear and trembling." This account will be rendered at the bar of conscience when death calls you away from your present state of existence, next at the gate of paradise to determine the condition and resting place of your immortal soul until the resurrection, and lastly, on the resurrection morn, when the dead, " both small and great shall stand before the Son of God." How forcibly would your words then come thronging upon the book of remembrance," as it portrays " All tills thinking soul hath thought, All this mortal part bath wrought Of glory and of shame" — 132 IDLE WORDS. ■'I and there upon the table of memory will stand en- graven as indelible and lasting as eternity itself, the imrepented of idle words which you have uttered in your brief career upon earth. Is it a useless caution to urge upon you to " beware what you utter or communi- cate to your fellow men ?" Think of it old and young, and especially you who are apt to make light of others, because of their soberness and earnestness. You may soon all be called to meet the pale horse, and his fearful rider, and with no time to ask forgiveness, find yourselves upon the portals of eternity, with your sins of idle utterance crushing you under their weight of condemnation in the sight of an offended God. It may seem all well now to bask in the smiles of a heartless applauding world, with the prospect of death in the far distance, but you have no lease of your life ; and the dark account which now perchance you would be oblig- ed to render, will become still more hideous and fearful when brought to the light of that eternal day, when all shall stand in their true and unveiled character in the sight of High Heaven. Make haste then to check the rising word of lightness and vanity, of destruction and scandal, or of obscenity and profanity, which may ring out upon the air with tell-tale evidence of the corrupt state of 'our heart. Jesus says, " Out of the heart' ^ comes the streams of uttered polution which contami- nate the sin loving sons and daughters of a lallen race, and bear this in mind, it is easier to give utterance to idle words than to check them. With the account to be rendered, in v'.ew, the awful consequences of the judgment day rif i .ig uppermost in the eye of the mind, and a sweet reliance upon grace given for your day and trial, check the empty vehicles of thought which may crave utterance at the door of your lips. The un- ruly member, the tongue, " can no man tame," the Apostle says, and how truly is this verified every day of contact with the world of mankind, I leave to j^our honest acknowledgment of what you and those around you utter in social intercoiu^e alone. Let us now view HOLY TEMPERS. 133 ' thirdly, the punishment inflicted as the result of our condemnation for the utterance of " idle words." " The wicked shall be turned into hell with all the nations that forget God." On the resurrection morn, all shall be raised, and '^ they that have done good, to the re- surrection of eternal life, but they that have done evil, to the resurrection of damnation." Damnation is banishment from the favor and presence of God. how terrible will sound that sentence to many, " depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels." And must " I bear this punishment" asks the fearful soul, " because I have uttered a few idle words each day for a good part of my life ?" Yea verily, unless ye repent " ye shall all likewise perish," is the terrible sentence that falls upon the sinning ones of earth. Let repentance then be the open door of your deliverance from the death " that never dies," this just punishment of a just and angry God. Do not delay until to-morrow, for you may be in the cold embrace of death, ere another sun rises upon the sin-laden earth. " Now is the accepted time, noio is the day of salvation," and you " may make your calling and election sure" by a hearty return to God, and a trust in His mercy to protect you from a future disobedience of His commands. CHA.PTER XI. HOLY TEMPERS. How much of the real happiness of our lives depends upon our tempers. We come in contact with each other, and if there is sharpness in our tempers we breed it in each other, and unhappiness is the result. It is not the amount of our possessions or the worldly honors that are heaped upon us that are to be sources of our real happiness, but the sweet inner life of love that feeds upon the hidden manna of grace. In every 134 JOY. II •■■ duty of life this exhibition of genuine holy temper is the secret of true enjoyment. The Prince cannot en- joy his realm without it, and the poor hovel is turned to a palace by its presence. It is found in Christ. JOY. A rich christian treasure is joy. It laughs from the handiwork of God both in man and nature. It glad- dens the heart, and lifts the soul in ecstasies at the contemplation of God's dealings with His creatures. Heaven's best gifts are unrelished without it, as it opens the heart to a proper appreciation of what God bestows upon man. Joy is manifested at the comple- tion of any great and good deed. There is joy in Heaven over one sinner that repenteth more than of ninety and nine just persons who need no repentance. Reader are you converted to God ? If not, repent now and make glad many hearts with joy. EVERY DAY LIFE. What a fearful tiling it is to live, maybe said without extravagance when we contemplate the incidents and accidents of life, the many influences that work upon society, the thoughts that excite and the emotions which move the soul from its depths. How much of Christ do we not need to help us to live aright, to buoy up the heait and give an earnest of heavenly favor. If we are true believers the spirit will help our infirmi- ties, and cause us to forget many things that may be said about us and done towards us. lieligion, how blessed thou art ! REPENTANCE. Be not very sore, Lord, neither remember iniqui- ty ^orever ; jjehold, see, we beseech thee, we are all t'uy people. Is. LXiv. 9. The prophet is calling for the mercy of God to rest upon his people, that they be not destroyed in their sins. Have we not reason to cry in the same anguish CUBERFULNESS. 185 of spirit to-day ? Many who profess to be God's people have need to implore God's merey to rest upon them. Return to God, 0, back-sliding Israel ; give your hearts to God afresh, seek His forgiveness for past short-com- ings, and prove your love for Him by a continuance in his ways. CHEERFULNESS. Cheerfulness is a fruit of grace. Nothing can give the heart of man a steady ray of sunshine but the love of God through the merits of Christ. God will have the glory of making men happy and cheerful, and al- though there may be many inventions wrought out to amuse, none can bestow the glad sun-lit images of true cheerfulness. Love to God begets love to man, and the Saviour was the blessed representative and propa- gator of this precious treasure. Where love prevails in the heart, cheerfulness is sure to have a place. The consciousness of doing good and evidencing a Christian spirit towards others, begets a cheerfulness of an endur- ing character. THE CHARACTER OF JESUS CHRIST. There is a blessed comfort to the believing heart in the contemplation of the character of tmi' Lord. We cannot review His life as a man without realizing His character as a God. We must see the Divine beaming through the human as the sparkling gem shines amid the surroundings of the casket. We must realize His glorious oneness with the Father as we listen to the spirit-freighted words which fall from His lips, and see in His acts those divine proofs of his mission which cannot but be received by every rational mind as un- deniable, and as evidences of that character which we must take pleasure in meditating upon. We see the laws of nature giving place in his conception, the power of God exhibited in the operations of the Holy Spirit upon the favored daughter of Adam's race, and by this proof of his divine character, we are promised a life , 136 TUB CHARACTER OF JESUS CHRIST. of uBcfulness and comfort to fallen man, such as could only answer to tlie fulfilment of the promise, " that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head." We find Him born in a manger, His lot cast among the poor of this world, his childhood passed amid the asso- ciations least favorable to the growth of pride and passion, and prolific with influences to favor the development of that responsibility which His mission demanded, hence at the age of twelve years, He is anx- ious to " be about His father's business," so early had the importance of His heavenly calling impressed itself upon His spirit. But when convinced of the necessity of years to fully prepare Him under His parents' tutelage for the more perfect fulfilment of His mission, He readily yields to their authority, and sub- mits Himself to the temporal training requisite to the upbuilding of a body in which His spirit could work for the salvation of sinners and the glory of the Father. We may profitably enter upon the supposed incidents of His early life, may see Him assisting His father in the pursuit of the means to supply the wants of His family, and thus bring from His daily life val- uable lessons from which practical comfort can be daily drawn by the sons of toil and the tried in the race of life. Let us not suppose that because men are reared in an humble statior in life that they cannot become among the most r ally useful and eminent in their day and c ja, for the history of our Lord Himself warra j comforting thought that no sta- tion, however x. oible and obscure, may not yield its valuable aids to the spread of divine truth and those blessed influences which " maketh glad the city of the heart." We hear nothing of our Lord from the age of twelve to the time of His baptism by John at the age of thirty years. What a glorious page of unwritten domestic history filled His life of eighteen years. We can only occupy this space by a lively supposition that His life flowed on through a channel of preparation for His mission as a Saviour, in the exercise of those blessed i • TUB CHARACTfiR UF JESUS CHRIST. 13^ qualities which must have cropped forth in the sight of those around Iliin, and which no doubt, were unappre- ciated, as the treatment he received at the hands of his own townsmen verified when that mission began. Young people can lenrn a valuable lesson from His sub- mission to His parents in childhood, the patient exercise of His duties as a member of their household in youth, and a comforting thought may come home to the bosom of every son and daughter of Adam's race that He was subject to the temptations of the flesh to which all are more or less subject, yet through all these, the spirit of God, of whom Ho was begotten, was pre- serving Him without sin, and preparing Him for the great work before Him. Tlie converted believer can especially reap a blessed comf )rt from this reflection. He makes common cause with the " Friend of Sin- ners," he enters into lively sympathy with Him who " spake as never man spake," and by this comforting fellowship through the medium of the Holy Ghost, is enabled to bear up against the carping cares of life, and rejoice in the progress of every good word and work. Let us not therefore regard our position in life as beneath the notice and care of our Heavenly Father. If His dear Son condescended to take upon Himself the nature and occupation of common men, will not God the Father, for the sake of the Son, condescend to notice us for whom He stooped to suffer ? Let us take courage and comfort from this thought, that He who ^'suffers not a sparrow to fall without His notice," who " clothes the lillies of the field," and " tempers the winds to the shorn lamb," will graciously call us into a profitable and pleasant field of labor if we but yield our hearts to Him " in spirit and in truth." We find our Lord proving his Divine character in the sub- mission to baptism by John. He is willing to *^ fulfil all righteousness" in this and in every other ordi- nance, and this blessed characteristic of humility stands forth to our admiration in every stage of His briei history. As He is driven from His native village, He K :| I i 138 THE CHARATER OF JESUS CHRIST. testifies " that a prophet is not without honour but in his own country," a truism which is not less observable in this age of the world than in those days. He goes about doing good, without a home, having no particu- lar place of attachment, and from this thought we may learn a valuable lesson, that to become attached to any spot of earth above another as possessing any peculiar virtue, is to doubt the power of God to make us useful in any locality. We also realize by His example that '" here we have no continuing city," no resting pla^.e from which, in the order of God's pro- vidence, we may not at any time be called, and teaches the sinfulness of placing our affections upon earthly things in lieu of the heavenly and divine. He labor- ed, too, " without money and without price," a living example of benevolence, willing to reap His reward at the throne of His Father in Heaven, thus teaching us a valuable lesson : that " it is better to give than to receive." He was ready to heal the sick, feed the poor, cast out devils, and forgive sins, yet all He de- sired in return was a yielding of the heart to the sceptre of His Heavenly Father. To save the bodies and souls of men, to provide a way for them to escape from the guilt and power of sin, was the object of His mission, and to accomplish this. He was willing to perform all offices for the benefit of mankind which called for His s}' Jipathy. Thus we see the divine attributes of humility, resistance to temptation, obedience, performance of known duty, benevolence, love, forbearance, temper- ance, meekness, confidence in the Father, suffering for the sake of the truth, forgiveness of enemies, yearnings for their salvation, mercy, patience, faith, all cropping forth in rich profusion in His blessed life for our com- fort; and example, and for whi<5h we should rejoice that the world was ever graced by such an exalted Being, and whose life and merits we can make our own, and reap in its comtemplationa comforting encouragment. Let us then prize the blessed privilege we enjoy. Let t \ I ' VALUABLE TEXTS FROM OLD TESTAMENT READINGS 139 US take courage in our raoo of life, "and work out our own salvation with fear and trembling," trusting confidently in the promises of the Living Word, and yielding to the influence of that Comforter who is with the true believer " always, even unto the end of the world." _ ... ,j . , , < VALUABLE TEXTS FROM OLD TESTAMENT READINGS. The Lord a refuge Psalms IX, 9 10 The Lord ruleth " " 20 The Lord judgeth '< VII 8 The Lord defendeth " " lo The Lord trieth the hearts and reins " " 9 The Lord is angry with the wicked ... " '" il Turn us again, Lord " LXXX, 3, 7, la Return to us, Lord " " 14 We will not go back from Thee " " 18 Sing to the Lord " 81 1 SELECTIONS FROM PAUL'S EPISTLES. Boldness in the Gospel. Romans. I, 16 God's wrath revealed " " 18 The signs of the Godhead " " 20 No respect of persons with God " If, n The true circumcision " " 29 None righteous by nature " III, 10 Christ offered to all " " 22 Ftoith establishes the law " " 31 Justification by faith «' IV, 16, & V, 1 Lt^c of God shed abroad " V, 5 Continue not in sin, " VI, 1 The wages of sin " <' 23 Paul's dilemma " VII, 15 His delirerunce " " 25 A PRAYER. 0, Lord come into my heart and dwell forever. Rule within me to the expulsion of every sin and the subjection of every passion. Increase my desires and means for usefulness. Continue to prompt me to duty while life lasts, and when done with me on earth, receive me to Thyself in Heaven for Christ's sake. Amen. THE LIGHT FROM ABOVE. There is a blessed light which shines into the heart that has received Christ. It is the light of the Holy f^ 140 THE FEAR OF MAX. Ghost, cheering to the soul, comforting the heart in its life pilgrimage, while it mercifully directs in all the concerns, spiritual and temporal, of those who yield to be saved by grace. Reader, have you this light, are you under its co^nforting rays ? If not, come to that fountain open in the house of David, that you may bask in the precious consoling streams of glory which the Lord casts upon those who believe unto salvation. . THE FEAR OF MAN. a The fear of man which bringeth a snare." Bible. Of the weapons wielded by the enemy of souls, to prevent sinners from turning to Christ, a man-fearing spirit roused in the heart, is one of the most subtle and powerful. Especially among young people, is it pre- valent in an alarming degree. The heart of the sinner may be convinced of his need of saving grace, the will may be moulded into a ready obedience to the gospel call, yet the fear of what others may say, the criticism of ungodly companions, comes in like a thief to banish the impressions produced by the preached word. The seeker may have in his past experience, either spoken or heard much against the followers of the Lord, and now the enemy of souls urges that if he continues to seek and serve God, the same things will be said about him. This snare has been the means of many souls being lost, and when a movement of God's means of grace, awakens the sluggish souls of men to a sense of their lost condition, a multitude of busy tongues at once are at work to draw back to perdition, the poor awakened heart. Grace is required to resist this weapon of Satan. Decision of character, firmness of purpose, deafness to the alluring cries of the world, and other fortifying fruits of the spirit aic much needed to sustain the fluttering heart as it is about to set forth on the Christian course. Bunyan's Pilgrim put his hands over his ears and cried " Eternal life," when he started from the city of destruction, for Mount : I FALSB TEACHING. 141 < \ Zion. So must every Christ-bound soul shut his ears against the detracting sallies of his sinful associates, and press forward in the way, fully determined to overcome every difficulty. May God give you grace youthful reader, to go forward in the /ear of the Lord. Amen. FALSE TEACHING. The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means, and my people love to have it so, and what will ye do in the end thereof. Jeremiah, v, 31. The worldly state of the Church described in the text, will be lamented by every true child of God. When the spirit of God is grieved from the Church by the iniquity that prevails in her border, her *' prophets (or teachers) prophecy (or teach) falsely," out of the sinfulness of their hearts, they covet the perishing things of earth for their own sake, and bear rule by their means, trusting in the influence of wealth as their arm of power, not realising that it is in the power of the Lord to raise up some influence to overturn their strongest earthly hopes. The spirit of the world is enmity against God, and when worldly consequence gains the ascendency, spiritual experimental religion is undervalued, the wholesome doctrines of the written word are turned from in disgust, human inventions and " doctrines of men" are taught, and take precedence, while the Lord Jesus Christ is persecuted in the persons of His believ- ing children, by api'oudf imperious, man-made hierarchy. Do not these charges apply to some so-called Christians at the present day. Are there not many " who have a name to live and are dead" spiritually? Do not the people "love to have it so ?" Is it not flattering to their carnal nature to pamper to their appetites and passions with easy-going doctrines that can be gone through without the self-denying obedience enjoined in the written Word. Look around you, friendly reader, and make the application to those who deserve it. There are many to whom it may be applied. if\ / / w^ 142 EVERY DAY ACNOWLEDGMENTS. EVERY DAY ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. "\ ; ' * 1 " Acknowledge the Lord in all thy ways and He will direct thy paths." If we would truly serve God in Spirit and in truth, we should stay our hearts continually upon Him. We cannot put on our religion as a cloak and take it off at pleasure, serving sanctimoniously one day with eye- service, and playing the sinner's part the next. We must be continually looking for favor from on High, and we will not be disappointed, for He is faithful who hath promised, if we come to Him He will in no wise cast us out. God will reward us in propcyrtion as we live for His favor. The true life is in the soul, and if we yield to be influenced by the Holy Spirit, we will find it an easy matter to acknowledge God in all things. If we grieve away the Holy Spirit, and yield to "Satanic influence, we may expect that Satan will send some fiend from the pit of hell to ride us into misery. We can live in the enjoyment of gracious influences if we will but go out in prayer to God for His divine favor, and that too amid the busy concerns of life, a prayerful spirit may be exercised continually, and God acknowledged in the everyday things of life. Many Christians allow the world to cheat them of their spiritual enjoyments, by becoming wholly absorbed in its concerns and through the everyday ca,res of life Satan enters, and finds opportunity to dampen their religious fervor and take up their probation in his service. One care after another rises upon the mind, this worldly duty must be performed, and that one muse have attention, until the time is all consumed. If the time on earth in which we are to " work out our Salva- tion with feo.r and trembling" be intruded upon and occupied by Satan that the heart may grow hard and the spirit of God grieved away, a triumph is achieved by the enemy, and Christ loses a part of His blood- bought purchase. 0, that the children of men might fully realise the necessity of serving God in the short FRUITS. 143 ' time in which they have to live. May God be acknow- ledged in all things, that His creation may praise Him, and " all know Him from the least unto the greatest." Amen. FRUITS. ' '■'■'" '■' Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. — Matt, vii, 20. " A tree is known by its fruits." The character of a man is indexed by his expressed thoughts and actions. We see mankind by the fruits of their lives. ** The kind of spirit they are of" is the prompter of the thought that speaks forth in a word or fir^s exhibition in an outward act. When a child, in Ou. hearing, utters an oath or evil word of an^' kind, we see the fruit of evil association, and lack of parental care. If we discover a good disposition through pleasant words and gentle manners, we see fruit of proper training. In men and women, we read, either the nature and admonitions of good principles, find them living epistles of God's saving mercy, or the representatives in some form of Satanic influence. In households the same fruits appear of good or evil prevailing, which characterise individ- uals. Households form communities, and the fruits exhibited in a. neighborhood are a sure index of the Jcind of character possessed by each. A rum drinking, wicked, gospel-opposing neighborhood, will send out its representatives of Satan to poison the world with its corrupt /rwife, while a gospel loving, righteous and God- obedient community shines in the world with blessed fruits of saving grace. A good tree will bring forth good fruit, while an evil tree will produce evil fruit. Let us not condemn a tree until we see its fruit, nor a man until we read through an impartial judgment, the fruit of his life. Let us not judge from a prejudice or spleen, but endeavour to look upon the bright side of every character, that we condemn not without reason. Amen. .... ..... »/l \-i ,«. '!••-' li v 144 god's order op working in tee dispensations of grace. GOD'S ORDER OF WORKING IN THE DISPENSATIONS OF GRACE. " God's ways are not man's ways." His order can- not be conHned to the routine of man-made ordinances. The Holy Spirit in His offices upon the heart of man, and in the watch-care of the Church, steps aside from the formulas and order which man would dic- tate, and is not restrained by rituals or external per- formances. He exalts whom He will, and deposes whom He will. He ele^^ates the poor und humble, and depresses the rich and haughty. No temporal favorit- ism can influence His counsels, nor titles and honors win His special favors, and He hath " chosen the poor of this world rich in faith,'' and heirs of the kingdom pro- mised to those that love him. Let us not confine our service of God, to the notions, modes and names of any particular branch of the Christian Church, lest we find our hearts sinking into the narrow lines of bigotry and superstition which characterize the unconverted heathen. " He alone is free whom the truth makes free," and " where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty." If we attempt to seek the favor of God through the works of men, we surely will fail, but if we trust in the order observed by the Spirit of Truth, we may go confidently forward, however peculiar and eccentric our lives may appear in the sight of our fel- low men. We are in danger of running into the sin of formality as soon as we look upon any special ordi- nance or church as only the favored of the Lord. This or- der of God's working dissolves the pretensions of Latin Apostolic succession, demolishes at once the time en- tailed ceremonies of ritualistic religion, and gives free course to the operations of grace upon the hearts of the children of men, while it preserves the order of Church assemblies and other means of grace. V , I , > THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. . „ We see much of interest in the " signs of the times" at present. The time generally agreed upon, for the TUE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. 145 downfall of Popery, has arrived, and every shrewd observer of the political sky, will see in the late efforts to strengthen the Holy See by the power of the sword, a desperate struggle to preserve existence of a huge system of iniquity. Twelve hur.ured and sixty years, the world has struggled under the night-mare influ- ence of Popery; but the fiat has gone forth for its down- fall and a comparatively short period will see the world " breathing free " from the " Great Apostacy. " The Prussian campaign gave Popery a blow from which it will never recover, and the stirring events of the pa?' year are but the opening acts of the great drama, wht the kingdoms who have so long been deceived by her sorceries, shall " burn her with fire," and obey that God who will " put it into their hearts to fulfill his will " in the overthrow of the modern Babylon. The " Man of Sin " is fortifying himself that he may exalt himself above all that is called God, and " set himself in temple of God showing himself as God." The poli- tical " earthquakes in divers places " indicates the ap- proach of that time when the Son of mnn shall rule in the hearts of all men, that the kingdoms of this world may be brought to his feet, and when all shall know the Lord " from the least to the greatest," When we rise above the carping routine of worldly life, and look from a spiritual stand-point into the con- cerns of the world, we need but the wisdom of grace to apply the passing history of the world from time to time, to the fulfillment of prophecy and the great plan of the Almighty. " God is in History," riding forth to accomplish his great designs, and with the help of the Holy Spirit in answer to prayer we may " discern the signs of the times," and bring forth many comparisons and allusions to passing events that will prove in- structive and valuable in drawing the heart away from the perishing things of time and sense, to centre it upon the eternal and abiding. In this we claim, that the meditations of the heart upon the passing events of the times is both profitable and necessary, if we /'i Y / ; 146 SHAKSPEARB AND THEATRE GOING. would live up to our privileges i«s children of God's care. Christ himself exclaims, " ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky but can ye not discern this time?" And are we not coming under the same con- demnation if we neglect to ask grace to " discern the signs of the times ?" The uneasiness in the Ottoman Empire, the threating attitude Ox Russia and Prussia, the Fenian troubles, and the wholesale movements of Louis Napoleon in his efforts to convene an European Congress to recognise him as dictator, all evidence a general consummation of those events which precede the early advent of the Saviour of mankind. Can this be doubted ? Are we willing to shut our eyes against this truth ? . . .,.,,.,. . SHAKSPEARE AND THEATRE GOING. We often hear Shakspeare lauded as a poet, and sometimes placed in the hands of young people to read. As the reading of the young has much to do in the formation of character, we ask if it is right for us to place anything in their hands that tends to the for- mation of a loose character. Surely you say not. Again, does not the reading of Shakspeare create a looseness of habit and a thirst for theatre-going, and is not the theatre an open door to the pit of hell ? If it is wrong to place Shakspeare, Byron, and other poets of like ilk, in the hands of children and youth, is it not absolutely out of the way for its to read them ? Children are imitative creatures, you know, and it is hard to cause them to desist from what is practised by us. Then what is our duty in the matter ? Positively to place good, religious books in their hands instead of the exciting pages of worldly-minded poets and novel- writers. WHAT IS TRUE INDEPENDENCE ? , . " , . ' , We hear much of independence^ liberty, freedom, &c., but let us ask what is true independence ? Is it the commonly received notions of disobedience to religious LOOK UNTO JESUS. 147 I restraint, a disregard to the commands and ordinances of God, and a contempt for the wholesome regulations of law and order ? Shall we cast aside the principles which control society, and run wild in our extravagant notions oi false independence? The fanatical cry of Liberty, equality, and fraternity in evil, was the passion- rousing watchword of anarchy during the French Revo- lution. False independence caused blood to flow in the streets of Paris. Principles are the same to-day. It behoves us to realise that true independence arises from obedience to the commands and ordinances of God as exhibited through religious and social regula- tions, in respect and obedience to all lawfully-consti- tuted authority, a regard for reasonable social restraint, and for the opinions of others, that we may be all subject one to another. 1 Peter v. 5. ' LOOK UNTO JESUS. '<«' v ""-^ ' LOOK UNTO MB AND BE YB 8AVBD, ALL YB ENDS OF THE BARTH— XLV. 2S. Fellow -mortals ! what are you living for ? is it hap- piness ? Look to Christ ! Is it for fame ? Nt) thrills of fame equal the joy arising from a knowledge of being in His blessed service. Do you desire wealth ? Come to Him and lay up treasure in Heaven. Do you wish delightful company ? Join the saints in light. All that heart can wish is found in Him. He will be all in all. His service is delightful service, but the service of sin and Satan ends in spiritual death. Look unto Jesus, all ye ends of the earth. He is able to save all who put their trust implicitly in Him. " Come, all the world, come sinner thou, Ml things in Chriat are ready now," Give your hearts to God, ye poor deluded, sin-sick wanderers on life's highway. Come to Him while you have life and power. Look unto Him and by faith receive a balm for all your griefs. Put not off your return, but come nmv. Cast your care and burden upon the Lord, and He will receive you. Come to Jesus before it is too late. i: IT: /' / 148 THE REWARD OF SIN. ;; THE REWARD OF SIN. The reward of sin is truly an undesirable one. Yesterday, in our travels, we passed the re ^idence of a man who had long been addicted to drink. He had in possession a fine farm ; his aged parents were re- siding with him ; a payment remained to be made on the farm of X200 ; money was placed in his hands by his parents to meet it, with expense money in addi- tion, and he starts for the city, fifty miles distant, to clear off the mortgage. Arriving at the nearest vil- lage he is constrained to drink, indulges to intoxica- tion ; his money is filched from him ; he becomes sober after a time, returns home, but allows his people to think that he has paid off the mortgage. They know nothing to the contrary until the time expired for the land to be redeemed, when the bailiff came forward to seize upon and expel them from the land. The poor aged people were thus thrown out of a home by the sin of their son. 0, " the way of the transgressor is hard," and God's judgments sooner or later descend upon the- sinner. View this case, you who advocate the use of intoxicating drinks, and keep silent. ,/,'[ ' ; LETTER TO A FRIEND. ■ Dear B., — It may seem like presumption in me to address you again so soon, but there are thoughts in my mind which I cannot refrain from giving utter- ance to. I wish to look upon the bright side of things as much as possible, yet not with a false view. Merged in the world's concerns, it is hard to view from the true standpoint of spiritual attainment ; and when all is going well with ourselves, we are apt to sink into the syren solace that it is all well with others. What is the true state of the case respecting the condition of Zion ? As individual Christians should we not ask the ques- tion in earnest? I do not refer to temporalities, but her spiritual status. Oh, that we might ask this question ofteuer — Why POPULAR UUlfBUOS. 149 are we not in a revived state ? Why does not the day- spring from on high visit us ? Prayers have arisen to the throne of grace without number, and why are they not answered ? Ah, backsliding, unfaithful Zion is driving the Spirit from her borders. Where is the re aedy ? Return, O wanderer, return. Return from resting upon formal service, from pride, from worldly dependence. Oh, that we might be faithful in stirring each other up to a more diligent service, to a greater dependence upon God, and a closer walk with Him. Be warned against the fascinations of political intrigue, the pomp and circumstance of worldly wealth, and the flatteries of those who court your favour through selfish motives. " Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord," 1 Cor. XV. 58. • ' r • . • • i^Y ' The necessity of exercising firmness and persever- ance is strongly set forth in the text. Paul was writing to converted men, and urges them to dili- gence and watchfulness in view of the danger of getting weary in their Christian journey. Would this and kindred admonitions have been given in the gospel had there not been a possibility and even a probability that Christians would fall from grace unless they gave diligence to make their " call- ing and election sure" by persevering unto the end, that they might be saved. This thought will bear a reasonable contemplation. POPULAR HUMBUGS. One of the most injurious features of the times, and an active enemy to spiritual growth, is popular humbugs. Men conceive and inaugurate a full-grown hobby, and when it is well fed by lively imaginations and brains thirsting for not 'sty^ it is leaped upon and rode to death by its fanatical masters, often at the expense of the public weal and their own ruin. The South Sea bubble, the ultra-abolition humbug in the ,./ TT 150 THE GRAVE. ii United States, the " many inventions,*' patent medi- cines, gimcracks, and fashionable notions of the present time, may all be classed as enemies to Christian liberty, under the name of popular humbugs. ' ' '"' , \ THE GRAVE. <^ "Another week nearer the grave-" This sentence was a few minutes since uttered by a young man, half in jest Oh, that it might be /ulh/ realized by him. Nearer the grave ! Young reader, do you realize that each returning Sabbath speaks a weekly warning to be prepared for the grave. The grave ! How do you view it ? It is the ond of life's gauntlet for this fine body you dress and nourish. It is the ultimate of your probation. Your accountable spirit cannot possess its poor companion the body beyond the grave. The sands of time are run in your hour-glass, and what then ! Did you ever contemplate the grave ? Do you rea- lize, when you follow departed friends to their long homes, that you must soon, at best, be in their condi- tion ? I present this thought over and again, that you may grasp it fully. Are you prepared for the grave ? " It is appointed unto men once to die, and after death the judgment." " As the tree falleth, so it lieth." " As death leaves us, so judgment finds us." Ah ! these are unerring truths. How will you evade them ? Come to Jesus, and deprive the grave of its victory. Christ alone can take from your soul the horrors of the grave. Jesus Himself has been there. But He rose again to glory, aud so may you through His atoning blood. ,,..... EXTREMES IN RELIGION. We sometimes hear the terms " extremists," " fana- tics," " madmen," &c., applied to zealous Christians by a certain class of people, more known by their oppo- sition to Christ than by their love for His cause. There are two great extremes in every man's probation ; -X THE STATUS OF THE TIMES. 151 la- ns lo- re one is heavenward, the other toward hell. If we start in the Christian course and persevere, we run in an opposite course from the man who is in the service of Satan, and to him, seem to be " extremists," " fan- atics," &c. The natural man knows not the blessings and comforts of the ** extreme" which he denounces The things of God are " foolishness unto him," and Satan uses him as an instrument to oppose the truth, by causing him to denounce what he does not un- derstand. Let him once " acquaint himself with God and be at peace," and how soon would his objec- tions vanish, and the fancied " insanity," " fanati- cism," and other nameless qualities which he applies to the Christian would be found oftener to apply to the devotees of sin than anv other. Persona have often been charged with insanity on the subject of religion by the ungodly when they have turned to God, and suffered much odium and inconvenience in consequence. • .,. THE STATUS OF THE TIMES. How should we view the state of the world's affairs at the present time. As believers in the redeeming power of God through Christ, we ought to have his mark upon our foreheads and thus forearmed we can be forewarned against the evils of the times. The contending political elements are of the earth, earthy, and represent earthly policy in which the devoted meditative Christian has no part. His duty is to trust in the Lord and await the issue, that he may not be confounded in the great day of the Lord's vis- itation. 0, may we hide in the rock cleft for us that we may pass the time of our sojourning here in the fear of the Lord. Amen. • A SIGN OF THE TIMES. ~ ' ' The following dialogue actually passed between a member of the Church of England and a Methodist tract distributor, lately. It is a fair exponent of the h 152 A SIGN OF THE TIMES. \ existing state of opinion in the English High Church, and the Dissenting bodies. Distributor. 1 have made bold to call upon you with some tracts, books &c., supposing you as a Protest- ant, would be likely to encourage such efforts. Member. (After a careful examination in which no special evidence is found of a Church Authority;) Woll I believe we need no more books of this kind circulated in the land. We have already too much matter of this kind afloat. D. Do you not believe in this kind of means to do good ? M. If it comes through the proper authority, sanc- tioned by the Church it may do, but not unless. D. What Church authority do you consider has the right to distribute the word of God. M. Th.Q Apostolic Church to. be sure. D. That sanctioned by the Latin Apostolic succes- sion I suppose ? M. Yes, and none other has a legitimate right. D. Are you not willing to admit that the dissenting Churches are doing some good ? M. I have no right to admit they are. D. Are not the labors of Wesley, Whitfield and others, who have not received their authority through the Tegular line, acceptable to God, think you ? M. Wesley ivas a heretic, and what right have I to admit his authority to preach the gospel, or any who come in his wake ? They are false spirits ! D. Well Sir ! Since you have taken such ultra ground, you shall have your own with interest ! (Po- sitively and with earnestness,) Who were the early reformers as viewed in the eye of the Romish See but heretics. How far are you from the scarlet woman with your high claims of Apostolic succession ? Sir the words you utter as an index of your principles, ifalloioed to take effect, would march the arm of the state to the persecution of the Christian Church. Luther, Calvin, Melancthon, Knox, Wesley, and the host of martyrs \ A SIGN OF THE TIMES. 153 Ivm, :tyrs which now wear white robes in glory, were voted heretics, by the same diabolic spirit which you now etand an exponent of. M. Beg pardon, three years ago I had a view that admitted there might he some good done by the dis- senters, but I have lately been reading the claims of the Church to compel them to come in if they will not come loillingly ! "'''• /^ D. Worse and worse ! The more you attempt to justify your position, the more hellish and non-tolerant it appears. Your own confession admits that you are sinking into the poison of ritualism and High Church- ism. You will soon be ready to throw off the gown and take the pike. Such theories as you advance need the sturdy ban of Christian condemnation to des- cend heartily upon them and drive them to the bot- tomless pit where they belong. It is a good thing we live under a constitutional government which allows the liberty of worship according to the dictates of con- science. Such ideas as you advocate would soon de- stroy its force if they ivere allowed to prevail. M. I have thought we lived under a allowing too much privileges in worship. D. Thank God the majority of people, are not of your mind. We would soon be passing through the fiery ordeal of religious persecution. Your ideas would soon crop forth in the faggot and bayonet. With re- ference to Methodism, I defy you or any other man, to find anything in its catechism or working polity that conflicts with the word of God. With your sweeping non-tolerant assertions, a spirit is manifested that will not only drive true Christians from the pale of the Church, but will draw the condemnation of God and Christendom upon your h "d. I would advise you to consider your position, and see where you are drifting. Your position is not only ridiculous, but absolutely one to be condemned by every lover of Christian Liberty. You are trying to put on the robes and notjonsofthe Romish See, and at the same time claiming to be fol- governmert 154 THE PHILOSOPHY OF HUMBUGS. lowers of the reformers. Do you not see how incon- sistent you are ? Where is the British constitution un- der your non-tolerant sceptre ? How soon would you not do all you to could trammel the right of worship accord- ing to the dictates of conscience. ' ''■'.' • THE PHILOSOPHY 0? HUMBUGS. One of the most serious obstacles to the spread of the gospel is, the tendency to run after humbugs. Fortune telling, black art, phrenological parade, and all that array of false philosophy which seeks to place the marvellous and mysterious in lieu of the stern truths of the gospel, are but so many straws at which poor human nature grasps to satisfy an immortal soul, and which consume the time of those who yield to their allurements. We may profitably consider some of the reasons why they succeed as well as they do. In the first place the ground is prepared in the heart of the victim by a void of the truth, and where there is a vacuum in the heart, Satan soon supplies a seed for its fertility to bring forth the noxious weeds of infidel- ity and scepticism. The power of Satanic influence is exhibited in fortune-telling by the fortune-teller entering into the thoughts and desires of the victim, thus being able to read what has passed, in a review of his former life in his own mind, and the anticipation of his own wishes in future. The same sympa- thetic entering into the thoughts of another, is prac- ticed by spiritualists, jugglers, and other emissaries of Satan. This truth has been tested by men of shrewd- ness and understanding, by thinking over a chain of circumstances in their own minds, contrary to the facts, and allowing their pretended life-reader to fol- low the train of their own thoughts, and thus bring forth a false record. As a test of this soul-reading, a gentleman entered a spiritualist edium room in New York City, and asked if he could converse with ' ■-; BRIEF THOUGHTS ON BUNYANTS PILGRIM. 155 ; the spirit of his wife, whom lie claimed had passed into the eternal world. He immediately fixed his thoughts upon a dear friend that had died a short time before. The medium immediately followed the thoughts of his supposed victim, describing the person of the deceased lady, and even telling the cause of her death as reviewed in mind by the other. When all was over, and Satan was about claiming the victory, the cunning applicant turned upon his in- formant with the declaration that the lady was not his wife, that she was a departed friend, and that he had imagined the matrimonial relation between them, at the same time charging him with gross im- position. In the same way the fortune teller reads out the past and foretells the future through the thoughts of his victim. The phrenologist is enabled in this way to describe the character of others. When Satan fully prepares his agents with powers of sympathy, he gives them a crafty exposition of the state of their victims, that their time may be consumed amid the vague suggestions of fancy and the harrowing temptations of the enemy of souls. They who yield to the serpentine influences of for- tune-telling, phrenology, spiritualism, and the like, are without common sense, or are opposed to the ad- vance of truth, hence are either knaves or fools, and should be regarded as such. Beware then, youthful reader, of the catch-penny humbugs which float about the country to make dupes of people who are silly enough to follow in their train. You will find them agents of Satan, caring only for money, and willing to deceive all who will yield to their influence. * BRIEF THOUGHTS ON BUNYAN'S PILGRIM. The typical allusions of Pilgrim's Progress must find an echo in the heart of every Christian. His first awakening, his start for the celestial city, the deaf ear to the cries of wife and children, the resistance to t e persuasions of Obstinate, are typical of the 1*1 \i 156 BRIEF THOUGHTS ON BUNYANTS PILGRIM. h : I :ii i I '■ \ ' necessary perseverance of the Christian upon first setting out iu the service of God. Satan will throw many obstacles in the way when first we set forth, but we must go forward. The slough of Despond is an emblem of the sinking of heart that the new-born soul experiences when first he is attacked by doubts and fears on his journey. But desponding doubts will give place to courage and hope, if the youthful pil- grim, but look for help from the written word and the spirit of God. The meeting with Worldly Wise- man from the town of Carnal Policy, presents a type of a class of men who are ready to rest upon their moral practice for salvation. Beware of such, young Christian. The young convert is often led to rest in the law, as was Christian at Mount Sinai, until arous- ed by the warnings of Evangelist. The wicket gate to which Christian was directed, is typical of the open door of pardon to all who will seek it. Chris- tian found it a blessed door of comfort to him. The dusty parlour is like the heart of man filled with the dirt of original sin. The two lads, Passion and Pa- tience, are types of the men, the former of those who will take their portion in this world, the latter in the world to come. Choose,- dear readers, the portion of Patience. The fire burning against the wall, is the enkindled grace in the heart, fed by the love of Christ for the souls of those who truly persevere in his ser- vice " unto the end." The evil one may throw the water of sin upon this flame, but it will still burn higher, while Christ pours in the oil of his love. The Lord Jesus will " never forsake those who put their trust in Him," and will continue to feed the flame of grace in the heart of the trusting believer. The man of stout countenance is emblematic of the persevering Christian, the man in the cage of one who has sin- ned away his day of grace, who, from a lack of watch- fulness, fell from his profession in Christ into des- pair. Let us make our " calling and election sure " by "watching unto prayer." The man in bed is |M BRIEF TIIOUaHTS ON BUN Y ANTS PILGRIM. 167 i '« typical of a guilty conscience. 0, the misery of a conscience awakened to its own sinful condemnation by the light of the spirit and the progress of Chris- tians on their heavenward course. Which will you enjoy reader, a " conscience void of offence," or one full of guilt and condemnation. Trust in the aton- ing merits of Christ, press to the cross and God will bless you with freedom from sin. Christian toils up the highway of repent^ce until he reaches the cross, when his burden of sin rolls into the sepulchre of forgetfulness. Reader, if out of Christ, are you wil- ling to come to Jesus that you may find in Him, freedom from your sins ? 0, turn to him now and be freed from sin and death. But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength ; they shall mount up on wings as eagles ; tJiey shall run and not bo weary ; and they shall walk and not taint. —Isaiah, xl, 31. There is a precious promise offered in the text, as a reward for those who wait upon the Lord. " They shall run and not get weary." When men run their bodies tire, but in this spiritual race they do not weary. Thank God, the Spirit buoys them up, and gives them a power of endurance free from weariness. Let us take God at His word and look to Him for strength to run the race patiently. " They shall walk and not faint." A man on his journey often faints by the way. He feels a weariness of the flesh, but the spiritual aid drawn from God by those who wait upon Him through prayer and supplication, the reading of the Word and means of grace, gives the fainting spirit rest and com- fort. Amen. THE HAPPY LAND. I i::!i 0, happy land, 0, happy land, When shall I reach that blissful shore ; When shall I join the happy band. And from my Jesus part no more. When will the beads that bind me here Be severed, and my spirit freed From earth's dark shackles to appear, With those who for the faith did bleed. 158 ADVICE TO A YOUNG MAN GOING TO CALIFORNIA. May I uatu the end pursue The way which Thou hast bid me go, Lord, and since in Thee I view My hope, my joy, my all below, f ,y, ; 't f ^ Let me the mark still keep in sight, And press toward it in the skies ; That, by Thy spirit's guiding light, I with my Saviour may arise. ADVICE TO A YOUNG MAN GOING TO CALIFORNIA. Dear Young Friend, '' You are leaving for the first time, a home-circle, cherished by the memory of many happy scenes and loving associations. You part with a kind and careful father, a loving and indulgent mother, warm-hearted brothers and sisters, and a circle of social influence amid which you have passed many pleasing seasons ; to go forth, never to return it may he, except as an occa- sional visitor. You leave home treasures, domestic comforts, and a sanctified family prayer circle, to meet the cold, calculating, heartless world. May you fully realise your i^sitioji now ! Instead of the pleasing softening associations of home, you will come in con- tact with dark-minded, heart-hearted men, before whom you will find it a hard cross to own that Saviour who has been so often held up to you around the home altar. Instead of the song of praise, and word of prayer, you will hear the empty joke and ribald jest, even the obscene oath and corrupting phrase which sickens the soul to dwell upon. Y^ou will be tempted to utter words and do deeds, which now at heart you loathe and despise. To meet these weapons of the evil one, you require a ten- fold greater degree of grace than now you call into exercise. Arm yourself with spiritual weapons " with which you may withstand all the fiery darts of the wicked." Remember the home-circle, the associations of the past, the prayers of parents and friends. Neglect not to often fortify yourself in the perusal of the Bible, be often found in prayer, watch well the tone of your conversation, and be careful _ LIP-SERVICE. 159 of your associates. Ash grace to resist evil in every form ; own your Lord in all places, hy a strong aversion to sin, and forget not that they who " wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength ; they shall mount up witli wings as eagles ; they shall run and not be weary ; they shall walk and not faint." Do not be " ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation." You may be ins umental by your exam- ple, in the salvation of souls, one of whicli would be of more value than many worlds. In your ai Kiety to get wealth, ask yourself the question, " wixat does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul." May this solemn question cause you to prize more highly the " pearl of great price," that you may guard it in your own soul at all hazards, whether you gain temporal wealth or not. Seek out Christian associations, be instrumental in forwarding the Gospel in every way in your power, and|seek grace to " preserve your vessel in sanctification and honor," that when you again seek the home circle, you may not be ashamed to step within its hallowed influence. Shun the rocks on which many young men split, namely, the brothel, the gaming table, the liquor saloon, and other lurking places of vice too numerous to mention. Remember your God and your character for Christ's sake. Amen. LIP-SERVICE. "•/ ^ Wherefore the Lord said: Forasmuch as this people draw near rac with tlieir moutli, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me Is taught by the precept of men.— Is. 29, 13. Woe unto that people who trust in lip-service in their efforts to worship God. They may dissemble before men, may try to palm themselves off as Christians, but there Avill, nevertheless, be a visible evidence of a lack of the one thing needful, a certain willingness to please men, a desire to conform to the maxims of the world and follow the precepts of men. It is far easier for human nature to follow the dictates of worldly mindh, than the soul regenerating offerings of the 160 THE SPIRITS INFLUENCE. Written Word. Like loves like, and " the carnal mind is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." The fear of God being taught by the commandments and precepts of men, the child of sin easily grasps them and finds a partial solace for his grace void soul, but the true heart spurns these empty offerings to God as mockery and hypocrisy. Ritualism, formalism, and other make shift forms of worship, are but sad evidences of men endeavoring to palm off upon Almighty God a base cheat, and seek to curry favor with a world of sin and sensuality. 0, where is the simplicity that was in Jesus Christ? May we return to our Father's House in child-like dependence upon His Divine promises, and never,, never more depart. Amen. ' ' '■»'■ • ?" ■ .''.,'■. -' -■ 'i ■ <■ ' ■ '. ■■'■■,■■ ■.,■,.■ • THE SPIRITS INFLUENCE. ^^^ \ For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. — Rom. viii, 14. The operations of the spirit of God, upon the heart of the true believer, are more potent to produce workers for God, than any other influence that can be brought to bear. No apos- tolic claims, no educational privileges or worldly authority of any kind, can supercede the authority of God's spirit. No man has a claim to the name of a son of God, until the heart has felt the regenerating power of the spirit of God, and is led by it into the light and liberty of the children of God. There are four distinct steps to be taken by the sinner ere he can enjoy the privilege of a child of God. Firstly, conviction of sin. This implies a knowledge of the lost state of the human race by nature, under the sin and curse of Adam. Men in a state of nature are " all gone out of the way," '^ there is none that doeth good, no not one." This we see \ ^rifled if we consider the condition of every unconverted man from the cradle to the grave. There is no natural goodness in man. If he withholds from the commission of sin it is through fear of the legal TEMPERANCE SERMON. 161 penalty. Lost and damned is the state of that soul unsaved by a personal application of tlie blood of Christ. Have you this, Reader ? Secondly : He must experience contrition for sin. This is sorrow for past disobe- dience. As he views his past life, lie will lament the time lost in the service of Satan, which should have been spent in serving God. The memory of this will bring out a godly sorrow " that needeth not to be repented of." He will be ready to exercise. Thirdly : Repentance, or a turning from sin, a looking unto God for pardon, a willingness to become " anything or nothing for the sake of Christ," to " follow Him through evil as well as good report," and to submit to be led by the spirit of God. As a reward of this yielding, comes that state oi justified pardon called " conversion to God'' He is thenceforth saved from condemnation and pre- pared for a growth of grace unto sanctification, and made a willing instrument under the influence of the Holy Spirit to walk as a son of God and an heir of Heaven. Amen. TEMPERAx^CE SERMON. * Tkit.— It Is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine nor any thing whereby thy brother gtumbletn or is made weak.— Komane, xvi, 21. The Apostle Paul, in the chapter from which our text is taken, is addressing the Roman brethren on the practical duties of life. He has plainly described the lost state of mankind by the Adamic fall, strongly urged the necessity of a change of heart through the saving merits of Christ, and has drawn a striking comparison between the fruits of the Holy Spirit in the heart and life of man, and those of sin and wickedness. He urges upon them a dedication of their bodies, " a living sacri- fice, holy and acceptable unto God, which is their reasonable service," sets forth their duties as ministers, teachers, exhorters, private 'members of the visible Church, as subjects to the legal authority of the land, exhorts obedience to magistrates, describes a Christian deportment in social and domestic life, and in the text il t ' i it I ' i \ll 162 TEMPERANCE SERMON. presentH the responsibility of example before others. There are two prominent thoughts presented in the text. ' Ist. The necessity of self-denial. 2nd. The fruit of its neglect. Self-denial is the opposite of indulgence, and requires special grace to practice it successfully. It is evidence of God's converting power, if ex'^vr^.d in obedience to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. If in accordance with the usages or commands of men, it ceases to exhibit a grace-like character, but becomes the fruit of a desire to please others, or of servile fear. The Pharisee of old prided himself upon his fasting, and claimed merit in consequence, taking the glory to himself instead of attributing the power of self-denial to the oJ0&ce work of the comforter. He watches over all true Christians, and will prompt them to acts of self-denial if the}'' will but yield to His gracious teach- ings. The text says, " it is good neither to eat flesh, drink wine," or to practice any tiling which will cause another to stumble. Here is brought forcibly to notice the strength and influence of example. Every influ- ence must be tried upon the doctrine of tendences. Men are the exponents of influences of some kind either good or evil. Every man, w^oman and child living, exerts influence to a greater or lesser degree. From the infant in the arms of the nurse, to the gray -haired sire, in every stage or condition in life, character is manifested through influence, " By their toorks ye shall know them," and the kind of influence we exert in the < world is the test by which we are known. Words and actions are the signs of our influence, and the medium of its transmission to the world, and the man who shed.-i the fruits of the spirit which possesses his soul, abroad in the hearts of the young imitative minds around him, is like the oak of the forest that drops his acorns upon the prolific soil over which he spreads his bran- ches. " As we sow, we shall reap," and our accountabil- ity must stand before God as forcibly in the influence TEMPERANCE SERMON. 163 we exert upon otherH, as upon any act of our lives. It does not stop at the grave. The eftects run on to live in the hearts and practice of those who come after. The youtk who now take up our words and imitate our actions, will transmit them as an inheritance to others, who will in turn continue their practice, and thus on and on will our influence run while a world of probation exists. How sublime it is to live ! Should we not often ask ourselves, what are we living for V In what does our life result ? What are we leaving behind as an inheritance for those who are to come after us ? Is the world better for our life in it, or worse ? These are questions that can profitably be asked by every human being. These may be fol- lowed by such as, am I " working out my salvation with fear and trembling?" Does my life "glorify God.'" Am I in the " good way, persevering unto the end that I may be saved ?" Do I " know that I have sprung from death unto life ?" " Have I the witness of my spirit with the spirit of God that I am a child of His ?" These and like questions will bring us before God in a self-searching light, and allow the force of the Apostle's injunction to bear upon the heart and practice. Our great lack is to see ourselves in the light of the Holy Spirit. We cannot see the true clia- rActer of our inliuence until we have Him within to mirror back to us its true coloring. If we attempt to do so through our carnal nature^ we are sure to judge ourselves impartially. In oiii habits, modes of living, manner of performing any duty, in our thoughts, productions and eftbrts, self enters and becomes the centre of all. To practice self-denial we must, through grace divine, go out of self into the loving favor and gracious will of God, that we may be enabled to trample under foot our fond desires and inordinate affections. These frames of clay have many avenues through which the enemy of souls may enter if we give him liberty, or if we are not on our watch tower armed with spiritual weapons against his devices. 164 TEMPERANCE SERMON. No more potent appeal does he make to us than throujrh the appetites. He arms himself with the tempting viands of man's creating, and rushes in upon the soul like a flood to possess himself of the whole man, that ho may bring him down beneath his sceptre of carnality and indul- gence. When once the weak-minded are overcome by his wiles, temptation presented, finds a ready accept- ance in the practice of the victim. As we have shown that example is powerful to prevent temptation, we readily admit the force of the Apostle's injunction, that it is good, is approved of, if we refrain from nn\j- thing that would influence another to do wrong. Here let the force of the lesson presented rest in its strength, our duty to our fellow man. We have a duty to perform in this, and our failure of its discharge be- comes a positive commission of sin which may result in crime. 0, that this sense of duty may become more apparent to us. May we realize more fully the impor- tance of continually discharging our duty in the exer- cise of self-denial. If we indulge in the use of ardent spirits when we know that they may possibly lead astray another (and we cannot indulge in the least without knowing it), are we not committing a great wrong ? Yea, verily ! When we consider the conse- ([uences of our omission to practice self-denial, this brings us to — Second : The fruit of its neglect. If we neglect the practice of positive good, we are at once open to occupation by the enemy of souls. " Satan al- ways finds some work for idle hands to do." He goes about " seeking .whom he may devour," and any soul who is not on the watch tower of self-denial, becomes a mark for his arrows of temptation. Satan knows who he can effectually attack, and the easy-going soul who, yielding to the flattering offers of personal ease and carnal indulgence, is soon lost amid the rounds of folly and dissipation. Many a youth or maiden has left the home circle of innocence and domestic peace in the country, buoyant with hope, to try their fortune TEMPERANCE SERMON. 165 in the city, but lacking grace to practice Helf-denial, has become a victim to the nediictive power of drink, of gaming. oi*'*her evil habits, and sent back to their peaceful home a record of shame and prostitution. Could I map to your view all the misery resulting from a lack of self-denial, in this city alone, a picture of spiritual death would be presented that would chill with horror the verv soul. Go with me, and as we through street and lane thread our way, see the lurk- ing places of inicjuity supported ))y indulgence, holding out their tempting viands to lure victims to destruc- tion, from the glittering bar of the lordly hotel to the filthy stand of the lowest groggery comes the same luring influence leading to the grave, and to the soul's etenuil ruin. The}' call upon you to sacrifice purse, health and soul upon the altar of indulgence, and stand in their place to resist the oilers of salvation presented by the gospel of Jesus Christ. Young men, will you jeopardize your probationary privileges to satisfy the demands of these lurking places of the Evil One ? Look the matter in its true light ! When you carelessly enter the dens of vice and drink in their spirit, you open the door of hdl. Let me give you an account of a young man who left his home in the country in Up- per Canada, to seek his fortune in the " States." The person relating this account fell in company with the young man on the steamboat, and saw by his manner that he knew but little of the world. As they were walking from the wdiarf to the hotel, they passed a house in the door of which stood three girls. One of them accosted the youth, but the gentleman urged him to the hotel. At evening he must go, as he said, to " see the girls." The next morning the gentleman walked out to the quay, and saw two men hooking a dead body from the water. Upon examination, he found it the body of his young companion. He had gone to the house of ill-fame, was murdered, and thrown into the water. What a sad fate. Away from home ii .i 1C6 TEMPERANCE SERMON. and friends, meeting death in a strange land in this horrible manner, his parents and friends never to hear from liim again (as the gentleman had not learned his name and residence), buried by the Ininds of strangers, this case presents a sad conse- ([uence of the neglect of self-denial. As many of the youth in the country may read these pages, I would soy to them, if you seek the city's mart to gain a livelihood beware of the tempting power of indulgence in any form. vSet your face, flint-like, against it. Shun every approach to evil. A host of Hends lurk around your way to lure you astray, and you have reason to be doubly watchful. The drink- ing saloon, the bowling alley, the billiard and card room all present their avenues to the bottomless pit, and will you become their victim ? To country girls who go to service in the city, we warn you. The wiles of som^ fiend in human shape, Avho may pre- sent himself to your attei tion, may ensnare you, and lead to the door of the brothel. 0, watch well your own steps, lest you fall a victim. Give your heart to God before you leave your own fireside, that, leaning upon His protecting arm, you may meet the snares of evil around you. If wine is of- fered as a compliment, pity the donor, but firmly refuse the temptation. The records of intemp-.ance ,>liow many lamentable cases of ruined souls, who first stepped the downward road by drinking wine to please others at a social gathering. Here is where the tempter finds the weakest point in his victim. It re- quires much grace to say no, when the temptation comes in such a form. But self-denial faithfully prac- ticed will save from fearful consequences. Read Holy Writ again on the consequence of using wine. " But ^liey have also erred through wine, and throe «rh strong drink are out of the way ; the priest and € . prophet have erred through strong drink ; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment." — Is., 27, 7. Here are repre- sented fearful cjnsequences resultiiig from the use of TEMPERANCE SERMON. 167 wine. Judgment is affected, the man is debased, in- tellect darkened, and the soul prostrated. Often do we see the most brilliant talents utterly destroyed by strong drink. A.lcohol is a thief to the soul, a poison to the heart. - ^ both debases and destroys. " Who hath woe, who hath sorrow, who hath redness of eyes, who hath wounds without cause ? They that tarr}' long at the wine ; they that go to seek mixed wine."^ Thousands of bushels of the breadstuffs of the land are yearly destroyed in the manufacture of strong drink turned from a channel of usefulness to one of destruc- tion. A far greater amount is yearly expended in the use of intoxicating drinks than is approprieted to the spread of the Gospel, even within the bounds of the British and American possessions, the two missionary nations of the earth. What can we expect but that God will visit the land with judgments. Does He not promise it in His Word ? Can we doubt its declara- tions ? How fearful is tlie doom pronounced upon the drunkard. Exclusion from the kimrdom of God ! Can we expect a better portion for those who make drunkards ? We believe a terrible woe is pro- nounced upon those who " place the bottle to their neighbors lips." Let us look this matter fairly " in the face, cry aloud and spare not " until the evils of intemp'^rance are swept from the land. "The crown of pride au'^l the drunkards of Ei>hraim shall be swept from the land," and Avhat is true in the past is true to-day with reference to evil doing. Let us be active to warn the youth against the temptations of the poison bowl, exhort the moder- ate tippler to refrain, and earnestly urge the poor inebriate to a reform, tliat the influence of the Holy Spirit may reach and constrain him to accept the overtures of mercy ere it is too late, that Christ may reign within him the hope of glory. Amen. T- 1 > III 168 THE CHRISTIAN IN CHRIST. THE CHRISTIAN IN CHRIST. The soul converted and wedded to its Maker through the atoning blood of Christ, breathes the native air of prayer, the calm sunshine of peace fills its portals, and a watching grace is around about it to protect against the assaults of the enemy of souls. Buried with Him by baptism in the Holy Ghost, it rises into that strength and stature which enables it to lay aside the tinsel and show of the world, and " grow up into Christ the living Head," and as a member of His mystical body is enabled to go forth to call sinners to repentance. Who would not possess the prize of conversion from sin ? Naught on earth can present one so valuable. Earth's richest mines hath not such gems. The tocsin of fame can furnish no sound so sweet as a single note of praise to Almighty God. The thrills of Avorldly applause are naught in the balance aga* 'tone baptism of the Holy Spirit w^hicli may be drawn from Heaven by prayer. Christian, prize your privileges of the new birth, leap with joy at every expressed evidence of it in another. Give God tlie glory of your life in a disposition to wit- ness for Him in all times and places. " Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven." Be not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to all them that believeth, to the Jew first and also to the Gentile. Sinner, would you enjoy the benefits of a new birth ? Turn to the Lord without delay! Give Him your life service from this moment. Turn now before it is too late. And they did all eat and were filled, Mark vi 42. Hunger is the oldest passion. The child from the breast draws its earliest nutriment, and without it faints and dies. An All-Wise Creator has given the pleasures attending the satisfaction of hunger and thirst as a reward for their continuance, that the tabernacle of the body may be built up, and a temple erected for the reception of the Holy Spirit. What a glorious object is i ^ DO GOOD. 169 here presented as a reason for the creation of the body, that it might become a dwelling place of the living God. Reader think of this ! Remember that as your body needs daily food to sustain it, your soul must have the manna of the spirit to build it up to a perfect tem- ple of grace. Then pray that your soul may be filled with the bread of life, while your body receives the temporal food necessary foi its sustenance. DO GOOD. "To do good and communicate forget not," is one ot the duties of the Christian. "Trust in the Lord and do good" is the surety of a comfortable promise, and when the heart of man is renewed by converting grace, good acts are the legitimate result. The life of the Christian is in doing good,while that of the unconverted is to do evil continually. In a state of nature, " there is none that doeth good, no not one." " They are all gone out of the way" who fail to attribute all good to the work of the Lord. Men may rest in their good works without doing in the name of Christ, or acknowledging His power in the preparation of the heart to perform good deeds. This exalts the creature instead of the Creator, and robs God of the glory due to Him. This turns the best intentions into a source of sin and destruction. But when, through the merits ot Christ, in the exercise of lively faith, the soul beams forth the influence of the Holy Spirit, in the uplifting of the banner of the Saviour, by shedding around its pathway the qualities of a Christian heart, then is the service acceptable to God. May we seek the true source of doing good, that we may give God the glory of our efforts. Amen. THE PLAN OF SALVATION. When we trace the working of the plan of salvation from the promise to Adam and Eve at their expul- sion from Eden, *' that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head," to the time when that 170 THE POWER OF THE LOED. promise was fulfilled at the coming of Christ, we find a chain of promises and providences more strange than any finally wrought fiction, more wonderful than the history of any people can present beside the chosen people of God, and which affords a detail of living in- terest sufficient to fill the demands of the most cravins: • • • . ^ Jtieart for the thrilling and scenic. The working plan stands forth displaying the overhanging directing Deity, in His Wisdom, Power and Goodness, as the scenes of the world's history fill its innate workings, and exhibit majesty, order and glory on the part of the Creator, and obedience and fulfilment on the part of the creature. Young reader, if you desire a truly interesting pastime, study the plan of salvation, drink in the glorious spirit that pervades the detail, and from the arrangement in whole or in part, j'^ou will draw forth a comfort and satisfaction not to be found in any history or compilation outside of the Bible. Read carefully, prayerfully and enquiringly, and God will bless you. CHAPTER XII. p THE POWER OF THE LORD. The Lord reigneth, let the people tremble. Psalm xcix. 1. How few realize that the Lord reigns con- tinually, and will sooner or later call all mankind to account for their time spent in the flesh. Ah ! reader, this tabernacle is the assize of God respecting you. You cannot evade this awful truth as much as you may wish to. The Lord reigneth. Do you realize this ? Do you feel that He noio is looking in upon you in TTont lessness and thoughtlessness, and is noting your every thought. If you could fully see yourself as you are, and know who is looking down upon you from heav i, what an all-seeing .md all-reaching eye is taking note of your existence, you would bestir yourself and begin to tremble. The people should t remble, as a whole, as THE CHRISTIAN WARRIORS HYMN. 171 they realize how little is done for God and how much for Satan. Oh ! how lamentable it is that the great mass of mankind are going the downward road to hell, and so few comparatively are going heavenward. May the convincing power of the Holy Spirit awaken the sluggish hearts of men to a true sense of their condi- tion, that they may be led to tremble in the view of God's impending judgments. Amen. I'll 'J \ y u c n I THE CHRISTIAN WARRIOR'S HYMN. Air — " Tramp, tramp, &c." We've enlisted in the army of the Lord Jesua Clirist, Our hearts are upholden by His love ; We f ,'e bound for tlie kingdom prepared for the blest, Our many mansioned bouse up above. CuoRUS. — Then march, march, march on, Christian soldiers, Through Jesus' blood we'll prevail ; Our spirit-weapons jvield, we'll drive Satan from the field. And the hordes of sin successfully assail. W. th the Christian arraoup on, and the Spirit needle gun, We'll go boldly forth to the fight ; Wc will load our cannon full of Evangelistic rule, And strive till all sin is out of sight. Then march, &c. With our chasse-pot charged with tracts, bibles, books and Gospel facts, The battle day we surely will win, And fear nought beneath the sun, but with our Armstrong gun Of grace, we will go rout the hosts of sin. Then march, &c. And when the war is over, the victories all won. With Jesus we'll be able to sit down. At God, the Father's right, and repose from the fight, And on our heads we'll wear the promised crown. Then march, &c. PRAYER FOR RENEWAL OF GRACE. God, upon our weary heads, Pour out Thy healing power ; Give us that grace which e'er imparts. Strength in each trying hour. Revive the work Thou hast begun Within these frames of clay; May we unto perfection run. To the eternal day. May we aside throw every weight. By grace each sin cast down ; Till we shall enter Heaven's gate. To wear the gulden crown. 172 THE NECESSITY OP CAUTION AGAINST jSVIL. THE NECESSITY OF CAUTION AGAINST EVIL. Young people often tire of the caution they receive against evil practices. Ah ! little do they realize the value of the admonitions enjoined upon them. They cleave to the pleasing indulgences which Satanic in- fluence throws around them, instead of to the self-deny- ing, wholesome admonition of those who are appointed to watch over their souls. The sickly novel, the empty song, the soul destroying game, is often more enticing than the word of God read in their hearing, or the prayer circle. Ah ! remember, joung friends, the former are instruments in the hand o? Satan to destroy your immortal souls ; the latter, with God's blessing, to save and preserve you in His favor. may you realize the ■value of the cautions and admonitions you from time to time receive. They are more to be prized than tine gold, houses, lands, or aught that earth can bestow, as they will remain, if you receive them, when the tinsel of earth shall have passed away. May you have g .'ace to apply, and profit by good counsel. Amen. LETTER TO A FRIEND. t 1. Quebec, O^m^was, '66. Friend W — , - * I cannot refrain from again addressing you, and do justice to my own feelings toward you. I cannot retaliate in the tone of your last note to me. I feel that our friendship should not be thrown away upon so slight objections as are therein set forth. Let us put away these false imaginings which are insinuated into our minds by the evil one to destroy our love for each other. How merciful the Lord is in guiding our ways. Had I received your letter before seeing you, and having an understanding of a kindly character, we might have been always cold and formal as ice- bergs. Let us forget the past, put away these notions LETTER TO A FRIEND. 17^ of caste which the world would place between us, and when we meet let it be in a Christian spirit. How much more happiness we enjoy while acting natural and friendly, than if distant, mechanical and formal. God forbid that I should ever lose the love for a free untrammelled spirit which is bestowed by His grace in the hearts of true believers. The time was when the paraphernalia of the world had a charm for me, and I looked upon finery as indispensable to enjoyment ; but that time is past, thank God ! I afterward looked upon the exceeding sinfulness of living to please the eyes of others, and the command to " be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your minds," came to my aid in its full strength, and now I enjoy more real happiness in plain attire in one day, than in a year of former extravagance. Then I was continually striving to make an appearance in the world. From mo. n till night it was one of the engross- ing topics of m-^ *^'"'^"3;hts, but now I feel that I have a higher object i _e. I trust you will overlook plain ways, and think none the less of me on this account, I am striving, by God's help, to live up to my profession as a Christian, and trust that I shall be prevented from failing, through grace Divine. Let us live, my friend, as though we expected death at any time, for it may come upon us when we expect it not. If we so live, we will not be conformed to the fastidious notions of a world of pride and show, but with the man " Whose passions not his masters are, Whose soul is still prepared for death, Unmoved alike by every care Of public fame, or private breath," We can glide quietly down the stream of time, scat- tering spiritual joys as we go, leaving upon its sands, " Footsteps that perhaps another, Travelling o'er life's stormy main ; Some poor, forlorn and shipwrecked brother, Seeing, may take heart again." This is our sweet privilege under the watch-care of I ft 174 THE NECESSITY OF PREACHING. [Hi u. I ;! I i gospel influences, and let us not lightly value them. Let us then indulge in meditation, have our moments of private heart prayer, when we can say, " Away, away, vain world begone. Let my religious hours alone." a spirit of friend- Let my religious hours alone." I trust you will reply to this in a spir ship and good-will. I will pray for you. THE NECESSITY Ot PREACHING. "For though I pronoh tho Gospel, I have nothing to glory of, for necegeity is laid upoi. iue; yea, woe is me if I proaoli not tlio 'iospel."— 1 Cokinthians x. 16. He that can feel as the Apostle when he uttered the text, is fitted to preach the Gospel. Mark the self-denial in the first clause of the text, as expressed by hira. " For though I preach the Gospel, I have nothing to glory of." Why ? Was he not permitted to glory in the thought of well-doing ? No ! lest he should take a part of the glory which belonged to God. Self-elevation is prominent in the mind of man in an unconverted state ; and are not many of God's ministers guilty of this sin to a certain extent ? When we trust in God we rely on Him for strength, and honor Him ; but if we trust in ourselves, we do not honor God, but take the glory to ourselves. This should not be so. God is not pleased with our sacrifices if we glorify self. He is a jealous God, and will not admit of any species of idolatry in our worship ; and to think of ourselves above what we should is self-idolatry. The Apostle had a necessity laid upon him to preach the Gospel ; yea, woe was him if he preached not the Gospel; and this Gospel was not his own, but the Lord's. Can we wonder that he endured much to proclaim the Gospel ? ON THE OBJECT OF PREACHING. '• For we preach not oir8elve3, but Christ Jesua the Lord, and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. "— Paul- The duty of the jDreacher is to preach Christ and Him crucified, and not for self-elevation. Human am- . A COMMON HABIT KEPROVED. 175 bition preaches itself, but self-denying Christianity preaches Jesus. When the soul is lost in God — when it considers the day of judgment — when it realizes its probationary existence, and the necessity of " working out its salvation with fear and trembling," it is then prepared to preach Christ ; but not before. Men may be schooled into the routine of Church worship — may be loaded with honorary titles from colleges, yet, if their hearts are not converted, they are un- fitted to preach Christ, but are inclined to preach themselves, on the strength of their worldly acquire- nients. This preaching is not acceptable to God ; and although it may draw followers, and the applause of men, it will not be blessed of God, or with fruit to His honor and glo^y. Ever since man fell, through sin and disobedience, he has been forward to preach self instead of God. The desire to be first in the human breast gives mankind that spirit of self-eleva- tion and proneness to wander from God which Christ rebuked in the Apostles. Let us, as preachers of the Word, preach Christ and Him crucified. I lor I A COMMON HABIT REPROVED. " Neither fllthiness nor foolixli talking, nor josting, whicb are not convenient, but rather giving of thanks. "— Epuesians T. 4. The Apostle condemns many who at the present time prostrate their gifts of thought and speech in the practices named in the text. Any person having pre- tensions to decency will surely abstain fvom filthiness ; yet, foolish talking and jesting [are much indulged in by many as pastime. Do you believe any part of the Bible, reader ? If so, why not the whole ? And if you believe, why not ask grace to ohey? Habits are strong, you plead; yet God will not excuse you; and if you indulge in jesting, remember His frown is upon you while you commit this sin. I care not if you have attained the highest pinnacle of fame in any sphere of usefulness, if you begin to slight the commands of the Bible you mar that usefulness. A steady Christian ■ 17G SERMON ON TRUTH. '-11 Iff cheerfulness is not only a blessed state of mind to eiijoy, but it is acceptable in the sight of God, and we can loltli confidence substitute it in preference to that condemned in the text. Jesting strengthens carnality in the heart, cramps religion, aud banishes true de- votion. To the unconverted, we say, leave it, as a step in the right direction toward the admission of grace in the heart : to the professor of religion, indulge not, at the peril of your enjoyments. SERMON ON TRUTH. " For tho truth's sake, which dwoUeth in us, and shall be with \xi for ever.— 2 John i. 2 John was desirous of being regarded on account of the truth that dwelt within him. Not for his ovm merits, not for his person or temporal surroundings would he be loved, but for the sake of Him who loved and died for sinners. John saw that he had nothing by which to recommend himself — no worth except what had been implanted in him by his faith in the Son of God. Here was manifested that degree of humility which characterizes the true Christian, and which should be seen in every one who utters the name of God in sincerity. For the truth's sake let human nature stand abashed, let egotism flee away, pride depart, self-consequence be known only in those who know not the truth. Again, when we shall '' know the truth, it will make us free" indeed. Nothing else can give weak human nature true free- dom. Men may cri/ liberty, but can never possess it out of Christ — may look for it from other sources, but yet are subject to bondage. Of whom a man is overcome, the same is he brought into slavery and service. The sinner by nature is in bondage under the elements until set free by the redeeming grace of God. At the fall all were Co.. a^mned as a natural re- sult of violated law. If mankind fail to see or to acknowledge this, it is but evidence that Satan has a strong hold upon them, and that they prove that I' SALVATION FOR ALL WHO WILL RECEIVE IT. 177 ** uoiic are so blind as tlicy that will not sec.'* Such will not repent until they do see. Hence, if we would have the truth dwelling in us, we must first see our condition under the fall. Let us then pray for grace to see ourselves as we are, and with the first sight of ourselves we can, by the aid of the divine Spirit, rea- lize our necessity of salvation. With this sense of our own un worthiness comes repentance, and with true repentance comes pardon and a sense of acceptance in the sight of God, QnWaii justification. We are now, as it were, implanted in God's vineyard of love, to grow into fruitful vines under the watchful care of the Holy Spirit. We realize that greater heights are to be obtained in our new relations, and we seek and obtain the blessing oi aanctificaiion hy faith. This carries us into a nearness to our Heavenly Father that calls forth our consecration to His service, and we give up all for Christ, resolved with Him to live, for Him to die. What a blessed consolation to the renewed heart that it can come to a Saviour. Without it what is man ? What are his highest aims and loftiest flights of effort ? Nothing ! How blessed for him that this is so! ' ■ .■ i r . ■ ' SALVATION FOR ALL WHO WILL RECEIVE IT. '' After tliis I bcbeld, and lo, a great multitude which no man can number, of all nations and kindreds and people and tongues, stood before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palms in their hands."— ilEv. vii. 9. Here we see that there are to be a great multitude of the heavenly host, redeemed ones, who are to be clothed in white, with palms in their hands — people out of every nation, and those who have been in s'" and degradation for many years — it may be, their ancestors for generations — yet redeemed by the blood of Jesus, and assembled round the throne. They are " nearest the Eternal Throne," because God's power has been shewn forth in tliem, uecause Jesus died for them, BECAUSE THEY TRUSTED IN GOD FOR SALVATION TiiRcUGii THE MERITS OF Christ." Dear reader, are you ^, IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) /. ^4 '^ V] <^ /> "%/ '> (9 A / -«^ 1.0 I.I 1.25 Hi 12.8 |2.5 "■"IS 2.0 lit 140 1-4 IIIIII.6 V 4^ ^ fd o i\> v* o^ ^ '^ ^ ;\ ' 178 THE COMFORTER. performing the last of these blessed reasons why you should stand among that blessed throng ? Tliink of this ! You wish to stand there, do you not ? Can you strive while in life for a higher and nobler object? Can you devote your life's efforts in a more exalted cause ? Ponder this fact well, that you must answer for the precious time you spend while in the flesh, and the verdict of that answer will be, either a place amid that blood-washed throng, or a home among the howl- ing fiends of hell. The result lies icith yourself. The path is open before you, hoiv will you travel it ? THE COMFORTER. " But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name. he ehall teacli you all thincs, aud bring all thiugs to your romombrauce, whatsoever 1 tiavi- aaid unto you."— J^iH^ xjv. 28. The Saviour was anxious for the welfare of the Apostles, and to secure their confidence and cheer their hearts, he promises them ^^ another Comforter" even the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him." This is the Holy Ghost, who could not come except Jesus went away, as he was to proceed from the Father and the Son. He was not to come in a bodily form, but as a Spirit that would influence and " lead them into all truth." He would teach them the deep things of God, the hidden mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, and draw them up to the source of all good, and cause them to pray for such things as they should need. He would make intercessions for them with groanings that could not be uttered." He would rejoice their hearts when cast down, and give them a sweet comfort when tried and tempted. He would bless them with his presence " always, even unto the end of the world." This is the office of the Comforter, whom the Father would send in the name of Christ. He was to perform this blessed work in their hearts if they remained faithful ; but if they proved reprobate to the faith they were to be regarded as castaways. V MAN. — TUE OBJECT OF HIS CREATION. 179 The same privilege is granted to true believers now. They have the same promise vouchsafed to them that the Apostles had. They may feel the same sweet comfort that they felt, and rejoice in the same comfort that they rejoiced in. God is still as merciful as ever ; praise His holy name ! Amen ! . MAN.— THE OBJECT OF HIS CREATION. Mankind is the only portion of God's creation that can bear the image of the Creator, or in other words, that can become the temple of the Holy Spirit. Man is the only immortal part, that portion of God's handi- work that thinks, feels, sympathises, rejoices and pos- sesses the emotions of intelligence, that has accounta- bility, that suffers under condemnation or rejoices in reward. Man can only profit by the written word, he only can accept its offers of mercy, he alone can suffer condemnation in consequence of disobedience. He alone of all creation can measure creation, can compute its value, and he will be the only one to render account for a proper use of it. How important man be early taught his position in the scale of being, his duty to his fellow man, and his responsibility to God. A.s the youth come upon the stage of action, how necessary that they should know the position they occupy. Truly should they early realize that they owe their existence to an all-wise Being, who will call them to an account at the day of judgment for the many blessings they enjoy, and for the high position they occupy in the order of nature. If they can be led to see themselves as undone and condemned through transgression, as unworthy the least favor from God, as full of wounds and bruises and putrifying sores, as needing a Saviour, indeed then will their true position appear. That, for all the high and holy privileges they possess, they are prone to err as the sparks fly upwards, that rebellion, resistance to the will of Heaven, and perversity of all that is good, is the natural inheritance of man through disobedience, then indeed will his true position appear. :r= 180 CHRISTIAN EQUALITY. 0, may the love of God and the light of the Holy Ghost so find a way into the hearts of God's noblest and highest work, that it may be brought to Himself, that it may glorify Him in prayer and praise, that it may rejoice in His goodness from generation to gene- ration. This is the object of man's creation, to glorify God and to people Heaven^ to supply the place of the lost spirits whom Satan drew from their happy- man- sions in glory. Reader, are you a child of God ? Are you living out the object of your creation ? Are you glorifying God in your body and spirit which are His ? Are you showing by your good works that you have been with Jesus ? If not, turn and live. Give your heart to God without delay ! Show yourself willing to be instructed in His divine word, willing to accept His ofter of mercy, willing to take him as the man of your counsel. Come to Jesus just now ! Just as you are, " Staying not to rid your soul of one dark blot." Come with all your impurities, your depravity, your shortcomings, your fears, your doubts, your all. Come now and be saved. CHRISTIAN EQUALITY. But by an oquality, that now at this tlmo may bo a supply for their want, that their abua dauc3 may bo a Hupply tor your want : that thero may be equality.— 2 Cor. viii. It. The Apostle labors for the welfare of his Christian brethren, in a temporal, as well as spiritual point of view. His mission is to both body and soul. The gos- pel which he preaches implants in the heart graces that shall govern the whole man. Knowing that some of his fellow Christians possessed abundance, and others were in want, he labors to set forth the doctrine of Christian equality, that they may be constrained to assist each other in worldly concerns, and thus ease the burdens of each. The same advice is needed to-day in the Church. A spirit of caste and worldly distinction prevails among Christians to an alarming extent. May the spirit of God be poured out THE USE OF THE WORD. 181 upon His believing people, that they may possess a spirit of equality, of " bearing one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." Lord, let the gracious truths of Thy word find practical lodgment in the hearts of Thy children. May they not increase in coldness and indifference toward each other, but be willing to assist each to bear the trials of their proba- tion ^ Amen. '•^ THE USE OF THE WORLD. And they that urn thU world m not abasing It; for the fubiou ot this world poueth away.— 1 Cor. vll. 31. How few properly use the privileges they possess. Many who do not squander their substance, receive it in a cold, matter of course way, which indicates un- thankfulness and ingratitude. To thus use the gifts of God's hand is to abuse them. A gracious feeling of gratitude and love should reign in the heart of him who would truly possess the gifts of God's hand. True pos- session consists in a proper appreciation of the thing possessed. True appreciation realises the source from which blessings flow, and the spirit receives from God a lively sense of its obligation to Him, when it looks to Him as the author of its happiness. God imparts a comforting sense of reliance upon that soul, and hence the sweetness of implicit trust in God. The most fla- grant abuse of our privileges is in the giving up to in- temperance and debauchery, and thus abusing soul and body to the use of that which should go to become a blessing to the persons possessing. For instance, a young man comes into possession of a fortune. He gives him- self to inebriation and excess, spends his time and money in drunken associations, and the company of harlots. Is he not abusing his privileges as he injures body and soul in return for the expenditure of his pat- rimony? If, instead of thus abusing his portion of this world, he applied his means to a benevolent purpose, in which the poor might be benefitted, how much more blessed he would find his existence, and nearer to the 182 PERSONAL APPLICATION OP CHRIST's SAVING MERITS. purpose for which he was created. Let us think, young friends, if while we possess this world, whether we are abusing it. Give the subject a thought, and profit by it. PERSONAL APPLICATION OF CHRIST'S SAVING MERITS. We may have as many (jenei'al ideas of Christ as a Saviour, as books can furnish or our heads can contain, but unless we feel Him a 'personal Saviour, His death will avail us nothing. John Wesley preached seven years before he felt Christ to be his Saviour. He preached Christ as a general Saviour, as many unconverted min- isters do noWy without conversion of heart. Men may grow up with an educated head religion, but the heart may be in an unconverted state, and far from God. We may submit ourselves to a round of ceremony without a change from nature to grace, and call it religion, yet our souls be unsaved. Let us examine and prove ourselves, " whether we be in the faith," that we may not rest in a deceitful estimation that we are in a state of grace when we are laboring under a delusion of Satan. • . RULERS. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not bo afraid of the po'^rer ? do that which is good and thou shalt hare praise of the same.— Rooians, xiii. 8. It is the Devil that tempts man to resist the ruling power of the land. Satan was the first rebel, and is since the father of all rebellion. He has raised the false cry of "Liberty" as a pretence to lure astray thousands from their homes of submission, to oppose the " powers that be," and bring ruin and death upon their fellows. Good works have nothing to fear from good rulers, and if men sit wickedly in high places, God will, sooner or later, destroy them, or put them to disgrace as an example for the future. But rebellious spirits have no- part in the condemnation of any. They are under con- IL-. WATCHFULNESS ENJOINED. 183 demnation themselves, hence unfitted to judge even the worst of criminals. Hence all armed cabals against a government, within its own borders, may be looked upon as the production of Satan's servants, striving to destroy the ordinances of God. On the other hand, let a man exert his powers to strengthen the rulers of his country, and praise will be his portion. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power ? Would you prefer to live as one not under condemnation and fear ? " If >>o, cease to do evil and learn to do well'' God's spirit goes forth into the hearts of his ordained children who wield the governing power of the land, and causes tliem to love, commend and reward good deeds, that those who do well need not be afraid, but encouraged to continue in the good way. There is safety in well- doing, as, if you are bufieted for it, you have greater credit than if you have praise for so doing, especially if yon take it patiently. If men could but realize this blessed injunction of the gospel, they would be far from rebellion and anarchy. There is everything to be gained, and nothing lost, by submission to God's servants; and everything to be lost, and nothing gained, by resistance. WATCHFULNESS ENJOINED. Watch thoreforo, for yo know not what hour your Lord doth come.— Matthew xxiv. 42. Thcreforo be yo also ready, for in auch an hour aa ye think not, the Son of Man comet h. — Slatthew xxlv. 44. Here we see the earnest and doubly repeated injunc- tion to " watch" and be " ready," given by the Lord himself, and have we not as much need of this warn- ing as had the disciples ? Yea, verily, and more need have we, as we are nearer the final consummation of all things than they. The true Christian is always ready. His armor is on, and kept bright by continual effort in the cause of God. Let us work, Christian brethren, wliik it is called to-day, for the night cometh when no man can work. I I 184 CHRISTIAN AGREEMENT. > I 1 1 CHRISTIAN AGREEMENT. In one of his published works, Dr. Archibald Alex- ander makes this remark : " The author, in a long life, has found that real Christians agree much more perfectly in experimental religion than they do upon speculative points." Here we find good testimony to the reasonableness of Christian union in spirit. May God convert the heart's of His people by grace divine, and keep them united in love in the body of Christ, that they may " grow up into him their living head." GOSPEL OBEDIENCE. Were we as careful to obey the commands of the gospel as we are to satisfy our own convenience in a worldly sense^ we would not only live happier lives, but be enabled to see the glorious gospel of our Lord having free course and being glorified in the hearts and lives of mankind. In the main matter of regene- ration or the new birth, rests the secret of being able to obey the gospel in all things. By an observance of its commands '"ithout conversion, we try, without suc- cess, to lop oflf the branches of sin from our tree of daily practice ; but if we come to Christ, we find an in-dwel- ling fountain springing up within us, to the salvation of our souls, and furnishing us an easy way of obedi- ence and access to a throne of grace. In the little things of life, such as making sport of others, keeping up a fun-loving spirit and indulging in frivolous non- sense, we disobey God's commands as fully as if we practised stealing or other sins. There is the command, aere is the disobedience, and what else can we make of it: " Be sober, be vigilant!" What does that mean? How many are willing to come to Christ that they may fulfill the commands of the word. Come now ere it is TOO LATE. ( (JP 11- A CIIEEREUL DISPOS^XION. A CHEERFUL DISPOSITION. 185 What is the source of true cheerfulness ? It can only spring from a love to Christ. The genial rays of his comforting love, sheds a cheerful light upon the heart and life of him who receives it. Men may invent many ways to pass time cheerfully, but in no way will they succeed except through the Cross of Christ. Every attempt to attain a steady sunshine of cheerfulness without Christ will but prove useless. No finely drawn device can answer that end, and we need never expect to be able to accomplish it. Many think a religious frame of mind is necessarily gloomy and sad. This is not so. A sensitive soul is truly sorrowful at the pros- pect of others going doAvn to death without a saving influence in Christ. may we feel the necessity of coming to Christ at all times, that we may have that cheerfulness which raises us above the beggarly ele- ments of strife and social discord. The Christian rises to a standpoint of watchful- ness which gives him a careful estimation of the com- pany with which he associates with in mind, and causes him to exhibit a cheerful temper from the light of his knowledge in Christ, that he may be the means of manifesting that kind of spirit which illumes his own soul. Come then, dear sinner, to the footstool of bleed- ing mercy, if you would have cheerfulness. Amen. BE ENGAGED. It is well to be always engaged f some good work, that, when Satan presents his tempiui/^ons, we may be- armed to meet him. For instance, I have just returned from church to-day (Sabbath). T pass the door of a room in which are a number of ... ^ ooarders, who are engaged to no good r'^rpose. I am in my room but a few minutes when t of them knocks and wishes to know if I am engage^ Although about sitting down to report the sermon that I had just heard, I allowed myself to say I was not engaged. At his request I N 186 SPECIAL PROVlDaKCBS; 1 ; 1! followed him into the room, as he said " he had some- 'thing to offer me." As I entered and took a seat, he [presented a bottle of spirits for me to taste, which I promptly refused, and, after a few admonitory remarks against the use of ardent spirits, I retreat to ray room. In a few minutes two of them call to apologize for the intrufflon, that their intention was good. Ah ! thought I, " the way to hell is paved with good intentions." " Well, gentlemen," said I, " it has not insulted me, as I have but one course in treating these i>eculiar temp- tations." ^* It was not intended as a temptation." '" I presume not on your part, but it is one of a pecu" liar nature that I am on the watch against. No feel- ings hurt, or harm done." At this they beat a retreat. Had I been engaged, this opportunity would not have been given them of presenting the temptation. Let us be engaged not only in an exercise of the gifta of grace, but in thoughts, words and habits, that we may put to fault the fiery darts of the wicked, through grace assisting. SPIICIAL PROVIDENCES. We are the subjects of special providences contin- ually, and we would reap their value more frequently and fully if we would but acknowledge them oftener, " Acknowledge the Lord in all thy ways, and he will direct thy paths." This opens the windows of heav- enly favor, and calls down a blessing upon the head of him wboia willing to acknowledge the Lord as a God of special providence. He that notices the fall of a sparrow, and numbers the hairs of your head, will espe- cially care for you : and is it too much for you to openly recognize this regard for you ? May we not speak of this often with comfort and profit ? You would think that man very ungrateful, to whom you had done valuable service, if he should return your fa- vors with ill treatment. Yet when we fail to daily acknowledge the Lord's protection and solicitude for SUBJECTS FOR SKRMONS. 187 018 in some way, we are not only failing in our duty, but proving ourselves very unworthy his continued regard. O let us not be ashamed to own our Lord or to defend His cause. Let us rejoice that we are not left to our- selves, but that God is still mindful of us, and willing to pour upon us daily blessings, and extend His comfort- ing arms around as. May we feel our littleness in his sight, and seek Him and serve Him in all we do. SUBJECTS FOR SERMONS. ON THE JIlSTORy OF CHRIST. The Genealogy of Christ. Matt. i. 1 to 16 inclusive. Luke iii. 23 to 38 inclusive. The Birth of Christ. Matt. i. 18 to 25 inclusive. Luke i. 27 to 31 inclusive. The Visit of the Wise Men. Matt. ii. 1 to 11 inclusive. Luke ii. 11 to 16 inclusive. The Flight into Egypt. * ' Matt. ii. 14 to 15 inclusive. Murder of the Innocents. ... Matt. ii. 16 to 18 inclusive. Return from Egypt, and settlement in Nazareth. Matt. ii. 21 to 23 inclusive. The Preaching of John. Matt. iii. 1 to 12 inclusive. Jesus Baptized. Matt. iii. 13 to 15 inclusive. The Descent of the Spirit. Matt. iii. 6 to 17 inclusive. Temptation of our Lord. Matt. iv. 1 to 10 inclusive. Jesus beginneth to Preach. Matt. iv. 17. €alleth Peter and Andrew. Matt. iv. 18 to 20 inclusive. 1 1 188 OUGHT CHRISTIANS TO ENGAOB ACTIVELY IN POLITICS . JamcH and John called. Matt. iv. 21 to 22 inclusive Heals the Sick. Matt. iv. 23 to 24 inclusive. Who are blessed. Matt. v. 1 to 11 inclusive. The Christian a Light. Matt. v. 13 to IG inclusive. All must be Fulfilled. Matt. V. 18. Reconciliation. Matt. V. 25. Banishment of Sin. Matt. V. 29 to 30 inclusive. OUGHT CHRISTIANS TO ENGAGE ACTIVELY IN POLITICS ? " Come, let us reason together" on this point. It is a practical subject, and one upon which we should rea- son calmly and prayerfully. We are commanded to ** watch and pray, lest we enter into temptation," and to be " sober and vigilant, for our adversary the devil goeth about seeking whom he may devour ;" also con- cerning tile corruptions of the world, we are to " come out from among them and be separate" : and other pas- sages of the word might be quoted to serve as beacon lights to warn against the shoals and quicksands of po- litical life. Political party contention is one of the most fruitful causes of estrangement which the enemy of souls makes use of. Satan seeks first to " divide and then destroy" the flock of Christ. If he can accomplish this, no matter what means he employs, and do not party politics afford a fruitful source of " discord among brethren ?" We know that it does, and that not one Christian out of ten can enter fully into a political can- vass without his heart becoming estranged from God, without losing his enjoyments to a great degree, and becoming a willing instrument in the hands of design- WATCHMAN, WHAT OF THE NIGHT ? 180 iiig politicians, to carry out their plans and .schemes of aggrandisement. The proof of thin may be seen in every political contest; and whether we are willing to admit the fact or no, it is nevertheless stubborn to the affirmative, and will show itself in the lives of those who entet actively in the contests of the times. The safe course is to be upon the watch-tower against the allurements of the world in every form, and by so doing we keep the enemy at bay, ami look to Christ for help in every time of need. The world will cheat us unless we keep it under our feet ; aiul, if we give it a partial hold upon us through the fascinating machinations of politics, we may expect to ])ay the ])enaUy. Our duty to ourselves, to our care, and the Church of God with which we are connected, denumds our sturdy opposition to the temptations of political life. This may be con- sidered extravagant ground l)y many, but it is the safest for the Christian. The example of the primitive Chris- tians proves it. Amen. ■^ AVATCIIMAN, WHAT OF THE NIGHT ? lie n- Under the above heading we would, by the aid of the Spirit, take a view of the leading events of the times, that we nuiy be able to make a few applications to the fulfilment of prophecy. Thisis our reasonable pri- vilege, and no discouragements should prevent us from enjoying what must be to every tltinking mind a beau- tiful retrospect. The profane history of the world is but the fulfilment of the revelation, and our lack of ap- preciation or discernment prevents as from entering into a proper arrangement of passing events to their real meaning and proper application. Portentous and im- portant events are yearly crowding fast upon each other, and many pages of meaning-fraught history are crowded into the space of a day. Review theevents of the past year, and what is the aggregate ? Attempt a synopsis of the past five years, and the task is herculean. The throes of nations under the office of fulfilling prophecy l^:^ WATCHMAN WHAT OF THE NIGHT? I I ii i t I I are the sure indications of God's mighty power in his- tory, and the tell-tale forestallings of coming events. The destiny of a nation hangs upon the events of a day, and the mighty march of truth sends many " run- ning to and fro that knowledge may be increased." What does this portend ? In a review of the immediate past, are we not instinctively called forth in prophetic meditation of the near approaching future ? That we are on the eve of even greater events than have lately transpired, needs but to be proven in a survey of tae state of the world. We see the temporal powers of the world shaken from centre to circumference by the internal convulsions of political corruption and lust for power. On the other hand, the spirit of truth is " marching on" in the recla- mation of many from the bondage of sin to the light and liberty of the children of God. Let history's page parti- cularize while we continue in review. In the heart of Europe are throbbings which are stirring her millions from their lethargy, to w\atch with anxious waiting the coming future. The little kingdom of Prussia springs at once into amighty chastening nation, while the boast- ing power of the Man of Sin is checked. Thus does God raise up whom He will, to punish whom He will. The power of man is circumscribed. The Sultan of Turkev hastens home from the great exhibition, to attend to pressing demands upon his notice, while the Czar of Russia prepares his diplo- matic agents to maRe bold demands at the Turkish court. The result of these demands we find to be an increased grant of power to God's people in the land of Palestine. Thus does God use the kings of the earth to serve His glorious purposes. While the nations are massing strength for i universal war, God is quietly gathering His elect to His own protection, that H& may preserve His witnesses in the world. may those who trust in God and call u^on His name, be able to discern the true condition of the world, that they enter not into its meshes of wickedness, to the destruction WATCHMAN WHAT OF THE NIGHT? 191 of their souls. Looking at England we see mt who are determined to be upon the Lord's side ; tin^' Jscarn when we turn to the United States a glorioiA repre- sentation of the faithful. While the political phases of both nations are unfavorable, God is mercifully saving His people in their midst, and giving them an awakened spirit of watchfulness and prayer. The Jews are flocking home to the goodly land of Palestine, and preparations aiji going forth for a return of many of the Gentile world. The fulness of the suflering Jews is seen in the reclamation of the Gentiles. What is the meaning of these mighty steppings of God in his- tory ? They are the signs of the times, replete with interest to the watchful Christian. The long prepar- ing mighty designs of God are approaching develop- ment, and the time of His judgment marching on. The following special signs are proofs of the near approach of the second coming of the Lord. While we would not specify the day, the year, not even the cen- tury, which, we believe, cannot but expose the folly of those who attempt it, we would warn all those who believe unto salvation to have their lamps constantly burning, that they may be " always ready, for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh." I. " The world-wide preaching of the gospel, from A.D. 1798, to the present time, in over 200 languages. Previous to that time, in only 50. The history of the church proves this, as it delineates the doings of the Bible Societies, the Missionary efforts of the several branches of the church militant, and the publication of many books upon religious subjects, all serving as instrumentalities for the spread of the gospel. The sound of the Gospel is rapidly going into the ends of the earth." II. " The * Midnight Cry,' fulfilled in numerous publications of prophecy. Fully raised at the return of the Jews." This is verified by the many publications that have been issued in the past few years on prophecy, the predictions of which, as referring to the present. i Si '■a. — i I I 1 1 i!|i 192 WATCHMAN WHAT OP THE NIGHT? have been fulfilled in the main points to a great extent, since their first publication. III. " Revivals of Religion." The great revivals that have taken place in the past few years, which many have been brought from Nature's darkness to the marvellous light of the gospel, is another sign of the approaching judgments of God." IV. " The facilities fo^- the general diffusion of knowledge." These are a strong proof of that sign which is embodied in the words " many shall run to .and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.'' The rail- road, telegraph, printing press, the great circu- lation of books and tracts, and other means for the diffusion of knowledge, are proofs of this sign. * V. " The approaching covenant between Napoleon tvnd the Jews." Some think that this has already taken place. The building of tlir Suez railroad, and the facilities for transportation to the Holy Land that have been encouraged by Napoleon, prove that the Avays are opening for the return of the Jews, and that he is identified with that return. VI. " The dissolution of the Turkish empire from 1828 to 1868, that the return of the Jewish ki.igsfrom the east may be prepared." We see that the Turkish power in the east is decaying rapidly. " Turkey is dying rapidly for want of Turks." The demands lately made upon the Sultan by the Czar of Russia, are proofs of coming humiliation for the Turks. The Christians are to have a sway in the land of Palestine, that they have never had since the days of the apostles. Their dominion in lieu of the Turks will prepare the land of Juda3a for the reception of the " kings of the east," or the members of the lost tribes that have long been pre- served in the north east of Asia. Thus is God bringing the wanderers home from their places of refuge, that they may dwell again in their own land, that the believing Gentile world may, with them, inherit the promised heritage of those who would accept the favor of God the Father, thvough the atoning merits of WATCHMAN WHAT OF THE NIQHT ? 193 • Christ the Son, and have the Holy Ghoat to load them into all truth, and comfort them " always, even unto the end of the world." VII. " The going forth of the imclean spirits, three in number, viz., Anti-Christian infidelity, revolution- ary lawlessness, and Jesuitical intrigue, thus to gather the nations to the battle of Armageddon. We ask if this is not fulfilled in the existence of Spirit- ualism, Universalism, Unitarianism and the various ious branches of infidelity now rampant in the world. Yea, verily ! The rebellion of the Southern States, the Fenian rising, and the general spirit of opposition to the powers that be, that has a place in the land, to- gether with the secret conclaves of the Jesuits, are sure proofs of this sign. VIII. " Preparations for this universal war by in- ventions of warlike instruments." To verify this we point you to the minnie rifle, the needle gun, the chasse pot, the huge Armstrong gun, and other wholesale destructive implements of warfare. IX. " The division of the Roman area into ten king- doms." This has been going on for the past half century, and is now rapidly approaching completion. The organ- ization of the European Congress by Napoleon, in which the ten kingdoms will '* give their power to the beast," will be the consummation of this ten horned power. X. " Growing development of Louis Napoleon into a universal king character." This is proven in his efforts (which no doubt will succeed) to call a general con- gress of the European nations, recognising him as their head. It was the aim of Napoleon I. to subdue the whole world under his dominant power, and what else can we expect from this branch of the Napoleonic dynasty ? You may ask, reader, " what is the practical use of these observations ?" We believe it profitable that we may be excited to watchfulness and prayer, that we may not be taken unawares, but be able to " lift up our heads in faith, and meet the Lord when he comes with ten thousand of his I I 1 ! i 'il> 1 1 , 194 SERMON. sainte." Let us view this matter calmly, and if we cannot do so, let this be evidence that our peace is not made with God, and may it incite us to wrestli with God in prayer for a full acceptance, and a measure of grace for our day and trial. As " one day is with the Lord as a thousand years," and much of the known world has yet to hear the gospel sound, we would simply endorse a fanatic de- lusion if we attempted to specify any particular time for Christ's second coming. There is too much to be done to indulge in the lengthy speculations upon pos- sibilities, then, as duty calls, we can but buckle on the spiritual armor and go forth in faith to the work to be accomplished. Amen. . , CHAPTER XIII. SERMON. ■A ' " A light to lighten the Gcutilos, and the glory of thy people Israel." The scheme of man's redemption was originated in Heaven. Angels " desired to look into " its mysteri- ous plan, but were not permitted. When the first parents were expelled from Eden at the fall, an angel was despatched to earth from heaven's high courts with the comforting promise that the " seed of the wo- man should bruise the serpent's iiead," or, in meaning, that as the posterity of Adam had been cast down in sin through the devices of Satan, so should, in time, a child be born of woman, who would rise in the power of His Heavenly Father's strength, and break the power of Satan from all who would receive him. This gracious promise was renewed from time to time, to comfort and cheer the hearts of the chosen people of God, and fulfilled after more than four thousand years had passed, bringing their trials and vicissitudes to the SERMON. 19.V children of Adam. During this time a world was deluged, and all but eight persons perished. Babel was built, and the confusion of tongues ensued. The patriarchs flourished, and the line of descent was pre- served through them in their wanderings and changes in the course of years. At length the time came for the appearance of the Messiah on earth. The autliori- iy of the moral law, as received by Moses, had schooled a small portion of mankind from depths of depravity, and prepared them to receive the promised seed. Mighty were the preparations, and Heaven was mov- ed from centre to circumference. The swift-winged angel host swept through Heaven's shining dome to carry the messages of love to a waiting world. A fore-runner mustbe prepared, and nature was called to step aside from her usual course when the Angel of the Lord declared to the aged pair that a son was to be born to them whose name was to be called John, and whose office was to herald the coming of Messiah to the perisl 'ng world. Another message comes from the Heavenly courts to a virgin named Mary, who was to fill the important mission that many of her kinswomen had desired to fill before her, that of Mo- ther to the Messiah. Again is nature required to obey the mandates of her Creator, and turn aside from her usual course, as the angel declared to the chosen Mary, " The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee, therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the son of God." How mighty is the will of God dis- played in the conception of Jesus Christ. Why not, and should not, some extraordinary sign or manner characterise the birth of him who was himself to set aside at ^i\\ the laws of nature in the performance of those miracles which were to be evidences of his divine mission in the sight of a doubting world ? Yea, this fact more fully establishes His power as a God, and proves His exaltation above all mankind. However sceptics may cavil and plead the impossibility of turn- f n I 196 LETTER TO A FRIEXD. ing aside the laws of nature, and thus try to destroy the Saviour's miracles, the mighty truth cannot he set aside, but that he did perform them, and they stand on record as eternal as God himself. Our text declares that Jesus was to be " a light to lighten the Gentiles." The Gentile world composed that mass of mankind who had not been brought under the influence of the moral law. " They were a law unto themselves," liv- ing without the knowledge of God, and without hope in the world. They had their idols of wood and stone, their teachers and soothsayers, and were active oppo- nents to God's chosen people as they journeyed to the land of promise. It was to these Jesus was to be a light. " To them who sat in the valley and shadow of death, light is sprung up." God was to redeem his people and restore the lost heritage. The callous sin- seared hearts of thousands were to awake in songs of praise to the God of heaven. View the temporal world a few short years before the coming of the Saviour. Subdued 'neath the iron hand of a military power, which enforced idolatry and heathen mythology upon the people, the world groaned in suspense, awaiting the coming of the power which should shake, from cen+e to circumference, the long p nt up mass of ig- norance which rested upon the minda of mankind like a pall. That power came, and tottering from base to apex, the Babel-like towers of human invention are falling to the dust. Miss A- LETTER TO A FRIEND. — , I am anxious to communicate with you upon a subject that should be dear to us all — that of Religion. Let me ask you a question, " are you prepared for Heaven ?" I know you receive valuable instruction from your parents, but is it not possible that if you were to die to-day that you would miss salvation ? Excuse plain speaking, but I have been lately much exeiyjised in mind respecting your spiritual welfare, and believe that God's providences have been LETTER TO A FRIEND. 197 mercifully thrown around you for the purpose of being- instrumental in your spiritual con v^ersion. God works by means, and as creatures of His special providence let us recognise His gracious dealings with us, and in a spirit of child-like obedience, sink into His will, and allow the moulding power of the Holy Spirit to fashion us as God would have us. Like many young people, you have your doubts and fears ; the evil one will tell you that those who seek to ad\'ise and urge you to the cross of Christ, are hypocrites, that they have some design upon you to lead you astray, that if you listen to so much religious advice, you will soon be out of your mind, and other nameless lions he raises in the way to keep you from being awakened to a sense of your danger as a sinner. You must not listen to these sly insinuations of Satan. Many young persons have been kept back from seeking the Lord on this ground, and you may be sure when you really make up your mind to start for Heaven, the wicked one will try to prevent it. Resist him with a calm determination to go steadily onward. Do not yield to discouragment ! Do not fear what your young companions may say about your long-faced religion ! Rest not upon your own righteousness, your home training, your desires to live a Christian, but put the good resolution into practical effect by going forward earnestly and steadily in the good way. Shun, as much as possible, light " foolish talking and jesting which are not conve- nient." You cannot indulge in these without suffering injury. You would be horrified, no doubt, if some person should come into your company and use profane language or filth-freighted words, yet you will find the idle words you daily utter will stand in condemna- tion against you on the last day. Does your Bible not condemn the use of light trifling conversation ? Why not obey it as much in this particular as in its com- mands against the use of profane language. When once you give your heart unreservedly to Christ, you will have the light of the Holy Spirit to show you % iA 198 THOUFHTS ON THR USB OP ARDENT SPIRITS. how sinful it is to be passing your precious time in fun- making and nonsenso. I farcy I hear you say, (as is oftfin urged) you cannot put an ''^old head on young shoulders." 0, how many make this expression a weapon of Satan to resist the truth. Religion makes the heart young. The Bible communds you to " re- member your Creator in the days of your youth," and this means give Him your heart fully and unreserved- ly. Again, *' they that seek me early shall find me." What more precious assurance do you ask than this ?' 0, then, forsake sin in every form. Be sober and vigi- lant. Keep out of the association of persons who would draw you down into a low grovelling state of mind. Seek the society of those who can impart that instruction you so much need. You are afraid you will, perhaps, lose tbe company of some you now prize. Never mind, if they shun your company because you love and serve God, so much the better for you. "Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them." This is the command of the word of God. Read your Bible and some good book every day, and your mind will soon begin to appre- ciate the good and beautiful, and you will seek the socie- ty of those who can comfort and strengthen you in the good way. Think over your reading and scripture les- sons. Let them take up your mind when about your daily duties. Witli deep regard for your spiritual con- version, these lines are respectfully submitted. TIIODGHTS ON THE USE OF ARDENT SPIRITS. "Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, &c., shall inherit the kingdom of God.*' Friends of the liquor traffic, do you hear this sentence ? Do you wish to encourage a business in your midst that destroys mankind, p)irse body and soul ? The intoxicating bowl is a three ibid curse, as it gives the evil one power over your temporal interests, undermines the physical health, and poisons the soul. that men who only seek the accumulation of wealth through TIIII EVILS OF SEDITION AND THE REBELLION. 199 this means, would realise, to some extent, the depth of their depravity, and open their eyes to the heinous- ness of the evil of the liquor trafhc, Men^ too, who wish to he called respectable, who would stand hefore the world as teachers, as law-givers, and examples for youth, going deliberately to hell in the use and sale of ardent spirits. Do ->ve wonder that God's judg- ment descend upon the and in various forms ? The greatest wonder is that they have been wo long with- held, and that they now are so lenient. Why have we not war, pestilence, and famine, when their in- direct causes of drunkenness and its attendant sins, so much prevail. What is a greater temporal hin- drance to the spread of the Gospel than the sale and use of ardent spirits. We must educate the public mind against this awful sin. We must pray for and admonish the poor devotees of covetousuess and ap- petite, that through love they may be constrained to forsake their destructive courses and accept the gospel of Christ, that through grace divine they may over- come their besetments and escape the death that never dies. This course will accomplish more than physical force, as the former is of God, while the latter is of man. - THE VILS OF SEDITION AND REBELLION. And tlicy said : " Hath the Lord indeed Hpoken only by Moaea T Ilath he not spoken also by ua !^ Aud tho I^ord Itcard it Numbers xi. 12." The spirit of rebellion which rises to resist the powers that be, is evidence of the depraved heart of mankind, impatient of restraint, thirsting for power, without qualification to govern, and instrumental in the hands of the evil one, to spread his kingdom and resist the spread of the gospel. Anything, no mat- ter how plausible its pretensions, that tends to counter- act gospel teaching, is injurious and sinful. Men raise the hue and cry of liberty, equal rights, popular government, &c., to ride into power, and while they " promise liberty to others, are themselves servants 1 I j I I 200 FORBEARANCE. 1 of corruption," leading others into anarchy and confu- sion, ending in tyranny and oppression. The history of the world presents lamentable evidence of this as in the false promises of the French and American re- volutionists, the legitimate ending of both is in the elevation of Satanic rule. If in God's providence, kings and queens are appointed to rule over ub, it is our duty to obey those powers, and do good " that we may have praise of the same " instead of raising up a spirit of sedition and rebellion. If wrongs are committed by spiritual wickedness in high places, it is our business to await God's good time to punish it, instead of fermenting discord and confusion in the land. He that said " vengeance is mine, I will re- pay," is able to do his own work without the aid of feeble men. Amen. FORBEARANCE. ' ^ "Forbearing ono another and forgivinft one another, if any man liave a quarrel again^^ any : even as Clirist forgave you, so also do ye.— Col. iii. 13. We need muc.^ forbearance with one another, and with io forgiveness, that we may live in peace, one with another, that we may be enabled to spiritually bear one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. that our hearts were more under the influ- ence of grace, and less under the elements. 0, that we could often rise upon the wings of faith and prayer out of the influences which the world throws around us, and while in this precious frame of mind which grace instills, we will have the disposition to forbear with each other, and forgive the faults of each. May the Lord so influence us by His divine spirit, that we may be moulded into the gracious fashionings of His divine will, that we may possess the heavenly tempers which it is our privilege to enjoy. Let us watch and pray lest we enter into temptation. HARD TIMES. 201 HARD TIMES. What is the general cause of hard times ? The reply is sin. Men get hardened and selfish, and God leaves them to themselves by withdrawing his holy spirit from them, and withholds many blessings from them which they might otherwise enjoy. God will not fiuflfer His divine commands to be continually trans- gressed without punishing those who disobey. On the other hand, He hath said, no good will he withhold from those who put their trust in Him. Let us then, dear friends, turn to God in our trials, and He will draw near to us, and bestow upon us His loving kind- ness, and with all needful blessings, give us an earnest of His gracious regard for His creatures. God goes forth in the person of His Holy spirit, striving in the hearts of men, to bring them to himself, and, as He hath said in His word, He ** will not always strive with man," after a season of striving He withdraws the Holy Spirit, and leaves man to himself, and sad, indeed, is the condition of that heart with whom God doth not strive. The contempt shown in resistance is the unpardonable sin committed against the Holy Ghost. When man is left to himself, when the Holy Ghost ceases to strive, he is in a state of utter condem- nation. Naturally pront ^o evil, the heart of man will not turn to God unless God's spirit does strive, and woe to the obdurate heart in which this office work ceases. We often hear sinners confess that there ivas a time when they felt strongly inclined to seek God. 0, what a precious time was it to them ! God's spirit was striving with them, and through His gracious wonder-working power, would have brought them to Himself had they not stoutly resisted the Heavenly offers. Sinner, does the thought ever cross your mind of seeking God ? Ah, yes, no doubt ! But what do you do ? Do you yield to the Spirit's influence, and turn to God in earnest prayer? If so, you are on the right path, with your face Zion-ward. But if you say, Felix- ' 202 ADVICE TO rOUNQ CnRISTIANS. like, " Go thy way till a more convenient season," raay God have mercy upon yon. It will, indeed, be hard times with you. You may posscds abundance of wealth, yet time will drag heavily on your hands, and the machinery of temporal existence will move sluggish and dreary. May God, in Ilis infinite mercy, con- tinue to work mightily among His created people that they may he stirred up to a sense of their condition in His sight. May there not be '' a famine of the word in the land." May the gracious prompting power of grace divine, work in the hearts of men, to will and to do the good pleasure of our Heavenly Father. ADVICE TO YOUNG CHRISTIANS. Dear young friends, I would have you read from the second to the ninth verse inclusive of the second chapter of Paul's Epistle to the Colossians. In these you will find much consolation and strength, and much to confirm jou in your new life. We will read care- fully and prayerfully the second verse of the above- named chapter : " That their hearts (all believing Christians) might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgment of the mystery of God and of the Father and of Christ." You find in the first clause of this verse comfort derived. This is one great privilege of the Christian that none other can possess. The Saviour sends the Comforter, the Holy Ghost, into the hearts of all who believe unto salvation. None can possess him as a comforter but the believing heart. If the Holy Spirit strives with the wicked and unbelieving. He shows them their sin, and hence becomes to them a source of disquiet until they are saved by grace. Again, we are to be knit toge- ther in love. 0, what a power there is in love to cement the hearts of Christians ! Do you love your fellow-Christians, dear young reader ? Remember Our Lord's commandment, to love one another. 0, can you do this in the pure simplicity of heart which charac- ADVICE TO TOUNa CHniSTIANS. 203 he td ^y Ito lur lur )U IC- terized tlio Saviour and the Apostles ? " And unto uU riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgment of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ." There is indeed a rich treasure in having the under- standing enlightened by the Holy Spirit, and the blessed assi'.rance enjoyed thereby of the good dealings of God -Nvitii us, is far more valuable than the gems of any earthly monarch's crown. And this treasure is more valuable, as it is often acknowledged and con- ferred in the world, 0, let us not fear to acknowledge the Lord in all times and places arid under all circum- stances, and this we can do in many ways to the glory of Him " in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge," verse 3. 0, that we might realize that it is in God alone that all the treasures abide that are worth possessing. Could we more fully realize this, we would seek to " lay up treasure in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth c )rrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal." " And this I say, lest any man should beguile you with enticing words," verse -1. May you be spared from the beguil- ing, flattering words of the men of the world, that the poison they pour out may not find a lodgment in your young hearts, to the grief of the measure of grace given unto you for your day and trial ! You have many spiritual enemies to watch against, men who come to you as angels of light, clothed in th^. garb of Christians — " having the form of godliness, but denying the power thereof." Of such beware. " For though I b" absent in the flesh, yet am I witli you in the spirit, joying and be' ^ding your order, and the stedfastiiess of your faith in Christ Jesus," verse 5. It is the privilege of Christians to be present with each other in spirit, although they may be absent in the flesh. And they can also joy with each other, and behold the order in which they walk. It it their pri- vilege to also pray for one another, and strengthen each in their several duties. O that Christians might 204 ADVICE TO TOUNQ CHRISTIANS. M do this more. "As ye have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him," verse 6th. 0, how important is this passage ! " Walk in the faith ; conti- nue stedfast. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand the fiery darts of the wicked." " Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving," verse 6th. This verse is a very strengthening one. You see that rock rising out of the sea ? That rock is deeply rooted, and defies the angry waves that dash against it. So must you stand in the world, firmly rooted and grounded in love, and in the service of the Master. May God give you grace to " stand in the evil day, and having done all to stand." " Beware, lest any man should spoil you with philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ," verse 8. You may find, in your life's pilgrimage^ much to contend with in the form of *'vain deceit, false philosophy," and wicked devices to lead you astray. 0, beware of them. " Have no fellow- ship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them," This is your privilege. " Touch not, taste not, handle not" the unclean works o f designing men. Sceptical writings, " harmonial philosophy," cor- rupt light literature, false doctrines, fiction Avorks, all tend to destroy the simplicity that is in Jesus. 0, forsake them, and cling tO Him " in whom dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily," verse 9. He who left the courts of Heaven to suffer and die in the flesh that we might be saved j cling to Him as your only friend. Be earnest and zealous in His cause, for His name's sake. Amen ! :rl >_. THE PLAN OP SALVATION. 205 THE PLAN OF SALVATION. When we contemplate the sublime and glorious truths connected with the plan of salvation, we are lost in admiration at the unbounded goodness, wisdom and love of our Heavenly Father. Goodness in that His Divine attributes should in any way be manifest that angels and men should know and comprehend His will toward them, as exhibited in His decrees and mandates. Wisdom in the manner and order of those manifestations, and l&oe, in the willingness to condescend to worthless worms of the dust to bring them into a sacred nearness with Himself as fellow heirs with his dearly beloved and only begotten Son. The inspired poet Milton carries us up in the contem- plation of that cycle of God's existence (we cannot call it time), when the angelic hosts were summoned by the Father to pay homage and obedience to the Son. A fiat was established, an order given, and the accountability of angels declared in their delegated power to choose or refuse to obey the order of the Almighty. Here we contemplate the origin of free agency. It was established, ivhen a law requiring obedience first sounded its authoritative mandates through the courts of Heaven ! The force and tenor of that law has never been revoked. Obedience to God is yet the fully enforced decree in Heaven. Satan rebelled in the pride of his heart, and refused to yield obe- dience to the commands of the Almighty Father. Through the subtlety and craft that yet lives in the hearts of rebellious men, he drewj into his vile coun- cil one third of Heaven's hosts, and corrupted them with the vile spirit of rebellion which actuated himself. After a mighty struggle between Satan and the hosts of Heaven, the only begotten Son rides forth in the chariot of eternal justice, and drives the rebellious hosts into the lake of fire. A council is called in Heaven. A loss has been sustained that must be supplied. A decree goes forth that man 206 TUE PLAN OP SALVATION. 1 must be created to be placed on probation, that lie may be tried ere he be received into the compa- nionship of obedient angels, and the presence of God. Law and obedience are the motors that moved to the creation of man. It was through the violation of law that a vacancy was found in Heaven, it is through obedience that it is to be supplied. The power to choose or refuse to obey the Divine command, was vested in the creature commanded, hence his accounta- bility to the Creator and law-giver. U;po7i the doc- trines of personal accountability and free agency^ rest all the principles of justice and equity. Without a power to obey or disobey, why is the creat .re commanded ? Without a recognition of this truth, mankind become the sport of Satanic device. If angels fell from their high estate in consequence of disobedience, is it unrea- sonable to suppose that God should punish mankind for the same? Are we to be more favored than angels ? Can we, creatures of trial, hope to escape that punishment which fell upon them. God fore-ordained through the force and effect of His decrees, " whatso- ever should come to pass," but does nothing inconsis- tent with Himself, and will not set aside personal ac- countability in His requirements of man. The worlds were created as a footstool upon which mankind were to be tried. The fiat of the Almighty went forth. "He spake and it was done. He commanded and it stood fast. The spirit of God moved upon the face of the water, and the worlds were framed by the word of God." "See through this air, this ocean and this earth, All nature quick and bursting into birth." When the creation was finished, , > •' The morning stars sang together And all the Sons of God shouted for joy." - When the Almighty had finished his work, " He pronounced it good." Sin had not left its blight upon THE PLAN OF SALVATION. 207 the works of Deity. He created man " after His own image," in spirit, " breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul." The soul, that part of the man which acts, thinks, feels, and is accountable, was connected with a body made from the dust of the earth. Man is thus formed, with a perfect soul in a perfect body, walking in obedience to the will of his Creator. How wise that Being who gave the worlds a birth, brought from chaos that bright array which now meets the eye, who prepar- ed a footstool upon which to try His creatures ere He should call them to ilicir heavenly reward. He prepared a garden in which He placed the man Adam, and called it Eden. He planted it with every variety of tree and shrub; placed in it animals and birds necessary for the comfort and happiness of man, and from his side the Lord took a rib of which he made a being and called her luoman. The order was now completed ; man and woman walked forth in sweet converse upon the glorious beauties of their home in Eden, praising their Hea- venly Father and rejoicing in His favor as obedient children. Reader, do you realize this picture ? It is for your contemplation and serious, earnest consi(^ra- tion. This was mankind before the fall, ere sin en- tered to destroy their happiness. A bound was set which man could not pass. " Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat, but of the tree of know- ledge of good and evil thou shalt not eat." This was the command given our first parents in Eden. Upon the obedience by man of its requirements, depended his future happiness, and of the human race, without redemption. Here was Divine law established upon earth. Here began the free agency and personal accountability of man. Upon this rested the doctrine of rewards and punishments. To Adam and Eve it came : obey and live, disobey and die. How can men, having a knowledge of the Bible, deny the doctrines of free agency, personal accountability, reward for obe- li- ''1 rrr !!!! 208 THE PLAN OF SALVATION. dience and punishment fo^ disobedience, unless they are " led captive by Satan at his will." Satai was per- mitted to comprehend from his throne in the internal regions the work that was going on under the coun- cils of heaven to repair the deficiency caused by his rebellion. He flies through chaos to earth upon which our first parents are placed in the beautiful garden of Eden. He enters the serpent to lays his vile plot for man's overthrow. He begins with a lie to the woman, an^ preaches his sermon of destruction to the human race, when he declares that " on the day thou eatest thereof, thou shall not surely die," a con- tradiction to the commands of the Almighty. The women yields to his flattering overtures, and partakes of the forbidden fruit. The crafty enemy of God and man rests not satisfied until he has prevailed upon her to tempt the man Adam to partake. She presents to him the forbidden fruit, and he yields to the tempta- tion. The work is done, and Satan laughs while the hosts of heaven weep at the triumph of the enemy. Adam in his shame sewed fig leaves as a covering to hide his nakedness, using the temporal covering under which erring huinan nature ever seeks to hide its sins. Go# calls Adam to account, who strives to throw his own guilt upon the act of the wonian, seeking in this unreasonable way to screen himself from blame. The human heart is the same to day, under its fig leaves of fond invention, anxious to hide its sinful deformity from the stern declarations of the living Word, and the searching condemnation of the Holy Spirit. Striv- ing to climb up to Heaven through the serpentine rea- sonings of false philosophy, the heart of man in a state of nature becomes a nest of unclean birds, rebellious to the wholesome restaint of gospel teaching, and under the influence of the evil one ready at all times to rouse in open array against the truth. The sentence of man for disobedience was expulsion from Eden. As the angel of expulsion banished the condemned pair, he assures them that the *^ seed of 1 THE PLAN OF SALVATI03I. 209 the womaii should bruise the serpent's head," imply- ing that a child should be born from the posterity of the woman, who should be able to bruise the ser- pent or spiritual foe of mankind from the soul of man. The state of man in Eden may be compared to the soul in full favor of God without sin, but when dis- obedience has expelled it from that Eden-like favor, nothing but the merits of Christ can restore it again. The history of the world from the expulsion from Eden to the fulfilment of the promise, extends over a period of 4000 years. During this time God raised up a chosen people through whom He propagated the pro- mise made to the first parents. The law of accounta- bility was rigidly observed in the dealing of the Almighty with His creatures. Laws were given, ensuring reward for obedience and punishment for d i sober] i en ce The world was so wicked as tc call down God's judgments in its punishment by drowning all except Noah and his family. God confused the builders of Babel and scattered them throughout the then known world, as a punishment for their attempt to build a tower to reach into Heaven. How many are now trying to rise into God's favor through their own works and merits without coming through the open door of Christ's atoning merits. Vain Babel builders, the confusion of their wicked efforts will scatter them to the winds of God's punishing wrath. The promise of the chosen people was given to Abra- ham, and descended through his posterity until the time of its fulfilment. It followed Jacob and his sons to Egypt, the protecting care of God was with them to preserve them through, and lead them out of their bondage. His love for a fallen race gave them the law, and led them through the wilderness and verified the promise to them in the advent of the Son of man. Prophets had foretold it, minstrels had sung of it, and the time at last came. The good news of a Saviour came to the shepherds in the east, and a star directed them to the manger of His birth. A heavenly king born '. i ': i,, 210 THE PLAN OF SALVATIOX. in a manger ! " Low lies His head with the beasts of the stall." How different from the birth pomp of an heir to an earthly throne. Coming in a plebeian garb, he is rejected by the proud and rich of earth. They looked for the " pomp and circumstance" which charac- terize a temporal court, hence rejected the humble Saviour. He lives in a retired occupation until the time to begin his mission arrived. He goes forth upon that mission, " despised and rejected of men," " a man of sorrows and acquainted griefs," and willing to endure the contradiction and abuse of sinners in the world, that He may be instrumental in saving the souls of men. He is preceded by John the Baptist, as a fore-runner who preaches repentance " for the king- dom of heaven is at hand." How momentous the season ! The world is about to have that salvation proclaimed that was promised 4000 years before. All the World is a I peace 1 . Auspicious time ! The glo- rious tidings are heralded and the Son of man " goes about doing good" to the bodies and souls of men. He preaches the necessity of mankind realizing their lost and undone condition by the fall, and of seeking salva- tion through His oflfered gospel. He calls out and em- powers apostles to carry His will to the world, and when His work has become established on earth, and the divine plan fully developed. He lays himself down in a cursed death upon the cross, a martyr to the cause of the salvation of mankind. How can we compre- hend this without feeling a thrill of delight permeat- ing through these poor frames of ours. the mercy of that God who sent His only begotten Son to earth to die for me. Sinner, do you realize that he died for you ? If so, are you willing to receive the benefits of this great salvation ? Are you willing to consider your own righteousness as filthy rags, and realize the lost and undone condition your are in by the fall ? If so, come to Jesus " without money and without price." You will find in Him a full and free salvation. He says, " take my yoke upon you and learn of me, SUBJECTS FOR SERMONS. 211 for my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Be ready to acknowledge Him in all things, and you will be found in His favor a child of His, for he has de- clared that if we *'^ acknowledge him in all our ways He will direct our paths." Have we presented this plan in a series of brief allusions to the Biblical account sufficiently for your comprehension, dear reader ? We hope you will profit by it. Amen. sr e ? it SUBJECTS FOR SERMONS. The Prophet without Honor, Matt, xiii, 67. {i t( li a is « XIV , 4. a 27. -. li 33. XV. 3 to 5. ii a 9. a 11. a 14. Sin Reproved, Be of Good Cheer, The Son of God Acknowledged, Transgression Reproved, Lip-Service Reproverl^ Men Doctrines Condemned, Speech Defileth, - Blind Leaders, The heart qualities define the Man, Matt. xv. 18. The Canaanitish Womans Faith, " " 28. The lame, blind, dumb and maimed, healed. Matt. XV. 30. .v:..r The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes^ Matt. xv. 36. Discern the Signs of the Times, Beware of false Leaven, ; The Rock Christ Jesus, ..'<;' i -^ Peter Rebuked, -'.''■^■'■ What shall it profit, &c., '- '- •' Whosoever confesseth Me before men, A Man's foes of his own household. He that loveth father and mother more than me, &c.. Matt. X. 37. He that receiveth vou receiveth Me, Matt. x. 40. All things are of the Father, " xi. 27. Come to Jesus, ' " « 28. Take the Yoke of Christ, " " 29. His Yoke is easy, « " 30. ii xvi. 3. ii " 12. ti " 18. ^n^- •" 23. M •t" 26. ii X— 32. iC " 36. 212 SUBJECTS FOR SERMONS. Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath, Matt. xii. 8. It is lawful to do well on the Sabbath, " " 12. Every kingdom divided cannot stand " " 25. Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost not forgiven. Matt. xii. 81. The Tree is known by its Fruit, Matt. xii. 33. Idle words must be accounted for, " " 36. The Parable of the Sower, Matt. xiii. 3 to 8. Its explanation, « " 19 to 23. Let both Evil and Good grow together. Matt. xiii. 30. The Parable of the Mustard Seed, Matt. xiii. 31 to 32. The Parable of the Leaven, Matt. xiii. 33. The Parable of Tares explained, " '' 38 to 41. The instructed Scribe, " " 52.^ The neighbors of our Lord astonished, Matt. xiii. 54. The Wise iiiaii. The foolish man, The authority of Christ, Healing the Leper, Centurion's servant healed, Healeth Peter's mother-in-law. The Son of Man hath not where to lay His head. Matt. viii. 20. Rebuketh the winds. Matt. viii. 26. Casteth out Devils, " " 32. . . Curing the Palsy, " ix. 2. Matthew called, " " 9. ' Jesus eats with Publicans and Sinners, Matt. ix. 10. Mercy and not Sacrifice, Christ healeth the bloody issue, Christ raiseth the Ruler's daughter, He causeth the Blind to see. The Dumb Devil cast out, Prayer for laborers, The Apostles sent out, The Spirit speaketh, The Disciple not above his master. t( • • Vll. 24. it (( 26. <( (( 29. iC • « • VUl. 3. i( a 13. (C i( 15. u iC it t( a u (C i( li t( 13. il 20. i( 25. i( 29. i( 33. (i 38. x 6. (( 20. (( 24. J LETTER TO A FRIEND. 213 Fear not them which kill the body, Matt. Resist not evil, Matt. V. 39. Love your Enemies, (( i< 44. Exhortation to perfection a ii 48. Alms in Secret, (C vi. 1 to 4. Secret Prayer, it t< 5 to 6. Use not vain repetions, (( tc 7. Our Lord's Prayer, tc « 9 to 13. Forgive Trespasses, (C u 14. Cheerful fasting, (( CI 17. Lay up treas*ure in heaven, t< CI 20. A single eye, (( cc 22. I. <• God and Mammon, a (C 24. Trust in God, (( cc 26. Seek first the Kingdom of God, Matt. vi. 33." Judge not, u vu. 1. Cast not pearls to svrinc, cc " 6. Ask, Seek, Knock, it " 8. Do as ye would be done by, it " 12. Go in at the straight gate. it *^ 13. Beware of false prophets, it " 15. By their fruits they are known. cc " 20. Do the will of God. cc " 21. 28. , LETTER TO A FRIEND. Dear Friend, I trust you will pardon the familiarity you may discover in this poor effort, when I tell you that a sense of duty to yourself and little ones prompts it, and although you may think these lines uncalled for, and offered through a selfish motive, yet the fear that you may think so will not deter me. Had my circumstances been diflferently disposed when with you, I should have talked what I now write, but that sad difference which the world often makes be- tween GhrisiianSj and which never should step between them, barred the familiarity as a brother in Christ, with which I longed to address you. I hope the time is not dis- 214 LETTER TO A FRIEND. tant when social position, worldly caste, and that posi- tion which wealth now throws in, to first divide and then destroy the fold of Christ and the comfort of Christians, will vanish away. God knows how much my heart has been pained when upon introduction to members (so-called) of Christ's Church on earth, I have detected their hasty glance at the outward man, and marked the cold look and evasive manner by which they evinced their " judgment from appearance!* How often the first few verses of the second chapter James has come to mind ! may the hearts* of Christians, whether in city or country, be purged from the noxious weeds of pride, social distinction and heartless caste. Until this is done we can never fully enjoy true religion, no matter how much of the outside we may put on. If my connexion with any class of persons be based upon the condition of outside appearance, the sooner that con- nexion is severed the better. Pride is to-day one of the crying sins of the Christian Church ! What I refer to is with reference to moving into the country in some direction. Your example would no doubt be followed by others, and you would be the means of doing much good to them as well as yourself. Your little ones need the pure air and pleasant scenes of country life to develop their bodies as well as their dispositions. Reared in the city, children generally grow up proud and heartless ; in the country they are artless and loving. how little parents think of these heart considerations in the early influences thrown around their children ; Love, gentle- ness and affection are supplanted by egotism, caste, and social distinction ; and those subtle weapons of Satan, wealth and love of display, are the means by which they are often destroyed — body and soul. Your position throws open the door to many temptations, both for yourself and family, against which you need much grace to prevent you from failing. Many will seek your society now while you possess wealth, that would, were you in adverse circumstances, turn from you in 1 I. MARIAN B — , OR THE REWARD OP COQUETRY. 215 scorn. May God guide, direct, and save you and yours is my humble prayer. Amen. JNIARIAN B , OR THE REWARD OF COQUETRY. i t: I !t\ ■" •^ '. , t A TRUE STORY.. ' V' Not far from the city of M , resides a hard-work- ing Scotch farmer, by the name of B . He has rich connexions in the city, and often prides himself there upon, speaking of them with as much importance as if lie was the architect of the fortunes they possess. He has no family worship, scarcely ever opens his Bible, uses profane language, and is addicted to drink. Under this kind of life he has reared a family of one son and two daughters. The eldest daughter, Marian, the sub- ject of our brief sketch, was good-looking, (when we last saw her, two years ago,) gay, and giving to courting the notice of young men, and with her fine face and pretty figure had entrapped several youths in her train. A dashing young engineer from the city, with his fancy way of dressing and gay manners, had borne off the palm, and now had the heart of poor Marian within his power. We passed a few days at her father's house, and became acquainted with the state of her mind — she was given to fun and foolish talking, to a great de- gree. Everything of a serious character was reviled and scoffed at by her, and she was particularly persecuting towards the earnest Christians. She seemed entirely given up to dress and show, only desirous of making a display in the world as far as her means would allow. We spoke to her upon the interests of her soul, but with a toss of the head she threw back into our face the faults of a poor profession of religion. She would seize upon the slightest circumstance to throw blame upon those who desired to love and serve the Lord, and would listen to no words of caution about conduct. A few days ago we heard agai i about Marian, she had become a prey to the wiles of the seducer, her fine dashing 216 MARIAN B, — OR TUB REWARD OF COQUETRY. young beau having lured her away under a pretence of marrying her, and had accomplished her ruin, which was, no doubt, the object of seeking her society. Ah ! how fascinating are the charms of the tempter. He begins the ruin of young females by presenting line forms and dashing manners, until in a careless spirit of flippantry he lures them on to ruin. Young girls, note Marian's case. She was once as light hearted and careless as you. She flirted and prided herself upon her beaux and fine appearance, until now her character is ruined, her happiness in association destroyed, and the good name she once pos- sessed is cast out by respectable people. True, Jesus can save her soul, if she receives him, but she will always live a poor outcast monument of unbridled sin. You may profit by her downfall if you will. Let it open your eyes to the danger of despising serious things. Let your heart become early influenced by the love of God, and you may rely upon a safiB retreat from the tempting wiles of Satan ? You are not out of danger while trusting to your own strength. You can never be free from temptation while the unregenerate heart lies serpent-like in your own bosom. You may pass away your time in a light trifling way, may sin away your precious time which should be spent in making your calling and election sure with God, may think you are doing a fine thing in being able to catch the attention of a few silly young men who care nothing for you but to flirt with you — but this will bring you under the judgment of that God who commands you in His word to be " sober and vigilant, for your adver- sary the devil goeth about seeking whom he may devour." You may think you are privileged to trifle with the hearts of others, and delight in secret glee over the conquests you make, but there will be a time when God will convince you of your sinfulness, and cast you down in self-abasement at the recollection of your evil courses. It will be a great mercy if you are preserved from the fate of poor Marian. May God ^ COMB WITH U8. 217 in mg ink the -send His Spirit into your heart, and convince you of the exceeding sinfulness of such a life, and bring you to a proper sense of your condition as a wayward crea- ture. We give you this brief warning, hoping you may profit by it to the salvation of your aoul. May God grant you protection in an hour of trial. Amen. COME WITH US. " And Moses said unto Hobab, theson ofRaguel, the Midianite, Moses' father-in-law, we .^re journeying unto the place of which the Lord said, I will give it you : come thou with us and we will do thee good ; for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel." Num- bers X. 29. What Moses said to Hobab, the Christian Church says to the sinner, *' Come with us and we will do thee good." Who does not wish to have good done unto them ? AH who are not completely under the power of Satan, desire not only to receive good, but to do good. All who are not given over to hardness of heart and blindness of mind, they with whom the spirit of God still strives, or who have not sinned away their day of grace, are relatively in the position of Hobab, still on yielding ground to be saved. He was brother- in-law to Mosee, and Moses wished his company to the land of promise. All mankind by the law of creatioriy are related to the Church of Christ, but aliens through original sin. But God's people call upon the weary wandering ones, " come with us and we will do thee good." Why ? " For the Lord hath spoken good con- cerning Israel." He has vouchsafed many promises unto them, and given them many evidences of His gracious care, and why should they not seek to call others in the right way. Come then, sinner. First see yourself as undone and lost while unconverted ; realize your need of a Saviour,