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The pes oft film Ori( beg the sior oth( first sior or il The shal TIN whi Mai diff( enti beg righ rag I met r~T\ Additional comments:/ uZJ Commentaires supplimentaires; Pagination as follows : [61 ] • 72 p. This item is filmed at the reduction ratio checked below/ Ce document est filmi au taux de reduction indiqui ci-dessous. 10X 14X 18X 22X 26X 30X _j 12X 16X 20X 24X 28X 32X The copy filmed here has been reproduced thanks to the generosity of: Douglids Library Queen's University L'exemplaire filmt fut reproduit grice A la ginArositA de: Douglas Library Queen's University The images appearing here are the best quality possible considering the condition and iogPbility of the original copy and in keeping with the filming contract specifications. Original copies in printed paper covers are filmed beginning with the front cover and ending on the last page with a printisd or illustrated impres- sion, or the back cover when appropriate. All other original copies are filmed beginning on the first page with a printed or illustrated impres- sion, and ending on the last page with a printed or illustrated impression. Les images suivantes ont AtA reproduites avec le plus grand soin, compte tenu de la condition et de la nettetA de l'exemplaire film6, et en conformity avec les conditions du contrat de filmage. Les exe,Ad The old Question asked by the first man vo whom our Lord preached regeneration, was asked again by hundreds -^« ^^^^^^^^.^'jf^^"^' what Nicodemus had not : " How can these things be 1 and doubt- less many a good man thought himself very wise when he set it down that of necessity this was wild exaggeration. It now proves that a single denomination in one section of the country-the northern States -alone counts for the year's increase 136,000 members ; thus showing that when all the Churches put their sheaves together, original state- ments were far, very far, short of the truth. But suppose on y halt the n*imber had been obtained, where is the good man who would not shed tears of joy to think of an army of 100,000 new converts glowing with the lov^e of Ood and zealous for His holy cause] Whai nope for the I future familie how mi literati munici rise to of the 1 preachi Kvery a regen Christ ; back b^ cry, " ( But prcj)het was afi speech look ab afraid. ard, or kingdoi can yoi man be you at millionj does no1 wrath r • III. NoC conversi sober ar be distr the cour of a mi] has no i they liv heritanc believe 1 why the more sol tures, t to suppl for a fe: "word, H to be th( MAY WE HOPE rOU A GREAT REVIVAL! 69 prayed, ) hist yfo 18 course it ore wo Hido, and k)uIh too, jrious rtv common- ;jal spirit. I Paul, to nd us are ir than as »e, for the 1 are in a ' blossoms To them labh and those who ;rimage, it he ringing Oomforter, /^ert stirau- new-found ropagating that what When the id that the mounted to 00 is not a 1 Christian lerely with 5 if it could rd preached wn and felt and doubt- set it down roves that a bhern States hus showing [■iginal state- only half the uld not shed flowing with hope for the future hero ? ITow many future tradesmen, and lalwuiing licads of families, tc be a blr< ;ing in their neigh bourliood, or m their trade! how many editors to give a healthy tone to periodical or newspaper literature! how many cit-'zens to impress a Christian character on municipal or national i)olitic8 ! how many youths wlio will assuredly rise to the best and happiest of callings,— preaching the glorious Gospel of the blessed God ; ay, and to the happiest branch of that callinc^,— - preaching Christ where no man hud ever carried His name before them I Every desire for Mn earth renewed iu righteousness, for an ago wherein a regenerated race shall dwell in amity and goodness under the reign of Christ ; every desire, in fact, to see the image of heaven, mirrored back by the surface of this now dark and stormy world, sMrs us up to cry, " O Lord, revive Thy work ! " But the feeling with which that prayer was coupled by the old prcj)hot comes in upon us too. He said, " I heard Thy speech, and was afraid ; " and surely we may well say so. We have hearr' His speech telling us tliat God is angry -ith the wicked every day; ana we look abroad and around us on millions upon millions, and mar ,;ell bo afraid. You have heard his speech, a-iying that no adulterer, or drunk- ard, or covetous man, or liar, or extortioner, shall have any part in tho kingdom of Christ or of God. Count up your acquaintances, and then can you avoid being afraid? You have heard Him say, "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." Look around you at church, think of the circle of your own friends, think of tho millions upon millions of your nation, think of the judgment-day, and does not your very soul within you cry, " O Lord, revive Thy work, in wrath remember mercy." III. Why may we hope for a great revival ? No Christian doubts for a moment that it is right to hope for some conversions; but it has become a popular belief, that it is eminently sober and wise not to expect them in large numbers. Many who would be distressed at the idea of not seeing one conversion in all England in the course Ox next year, would think it fanatical to speak of the possibility of a million. Why? Do they really believe that the great Redeemer , has m) interest in the million ?— that it is indifferent to Him whether I they live in sin or holiness; whether they become prepared for the in- heritance above, or daily grow riper for everlasting woe ? Do they believe that He has pleasure in sin, and the death of sinners ? If not, Why then should a feeling linger in their breast, that it is wiser and .more sober to look to Him for the conversion of very few of His crea- ftures, that for that of great numbers? They believe that if Ho wills |to supply a 1 with food, He will make the fields bring forth, not a harvest lor a tew, but enough to save all from want of bread. His solemn vord, His special and peculiar oath, declare Hisi)urpose and desire not ^to be the death of any sinner : and the tears of His Snn. fnlliim ^nnn 7C MAY WE HOPE FOB A GREAT REVIVAL? the path of the impenitent, roll back upon us the blame of the iniquities that aro abounding. , , n , .. ^ . • Nothing can be more incorrect than the prevalent habit ot conceiving of Christians as desigred always to be a small and secluded portion of the race, leaving the great tide of humanity to roll on unchanged. The Spirit is to be poured out, not only upon so'-.e, but upon all flesh. Nations are to serve the Lord, and the Gospel is expressly sent to every creature. The little leaven is not always to be hidden, but to leaven the whole lump. The grain of mustard seed is not always to be small, but to become the greatest of all trees. The world is not to be a field of tares, with here and there a hidden stalk of true wheat, but a field of wheat mixed with tares, which you could not pluck up without dan- ger to the all-pervading crop. The Lord has fixed one limit, and one onlv, to the conquering force and influence of His Church ; and that is the limit of her faith.' Christianity never did and never will prosper in the hands of unbelieving Christians. As we dare not aoubt the extent of God's willingness, let us open our minds to a sense of His infinite power. If you or I desired to-morrow morning to awaken London at a certain hour, our utmost eflfbrt could reach only to a few chambers, call up only a tew slumberers ; but when the appointed time of Providence comes for bidding sleepers rise, He will pour a light into every casement throughout all this city, which will touch the eye of each individual sleeper as well as if he alone were thought of. When the Lord wills to send a pestilence, he can spread a power through the air which affects whole multitudes in a day. When He would water our land, over field and garden, mountain and valley, north, south, ea^, and west, He sends shower after shower, until not one grass blade in the whole country has its root un watered. And, O ! when we think of a national revival, as if it was something too grand to be hoped for, which surely it is so long as we look to any power below the sky,— to men, books, or Churches ; let us turn our eyes away from all these, up, right up, and say, " But if Thou shouldest will it!" Surely we may ask of Christians in a spiritual sense, what Paul asked of Agrippa in a material sense, " Why should it be thought a thing in- credible with you that God should raise the dead T that He should raise them in the twinkling of an eye, and in multitudes 1 Has He not given each man in the multitude a conscience ? Does He not hold each man bound to stand in judgment before His throne ? Does He pot feed nations, and overrule the ways of the multitude 1 Did He ap- point His Apostles and messengers to preach to the multitudes without the design of saving t^em \ j r u* Assured that it is the pleasure of the Lord to save, and that his power can reach "every creature," we may look for secondary en- cQura^ement to symptoms appearing in the Church and in the world. Among the most 'hopeful of these is a {general longing felt by Christiana for a gi plaints The Ch forward tury wc satisfy \ of savii often CO found t] of refre Let this grace, tl Ha ent brai been m£ owners, heathen people 1 by the C not signs circles,— tion ago sentimen in power considere times see "Whati All these for a ne>^ Ameri.ai awakenin wait for abundant But is ites to leg were led ; when nat I converted into half isword of 1 ind that ^raying, :nowledg( efforts of ( iCt evp.rv iniquities onceiving )ortion of tichan^ed. all flesh. t to every to leaven be small, be a field 3ut a field bout dan- b, and one ; and that ill prosper )t us open to-morrow Bfort could but when 3 rise, He ity, which done were a spread a y. When nd valley, until not An^, O ! too grand any power eyes away DEST WILL ?aul asked a thing in- Ee should f Has He [e not hold Does He Did He ap- [es without id that his ondary en- the world. Christians KAY WE HOPE FOR A GREAT REVIVAL? * 71 for a great work of God. We have all heard for years frequent com- plaints that conversions were few, and real i-eligi„us progress slow. The Church indeed, ha^ not been dead; but, on the contrary, pressing forward works of chanty and faith to an extent which in the last cen- tury would have been incredible. Yet this activity did not, does not, satisfy those who really live to God ; they want also striking displays of saving power. For these, multitudes have been looking, and have often complamed that it seemed as if " none of the men of might have found their hands." At this moment thousands are longing for " times of refreshing,; praying, hoping, yea, w^wiU say, believing for them. Let this continue, and, by the unchangeable laws of the kingdom of grace, the Spirit will be poured out from on high. Has there not also been an increased efibrt for uiiion in the differ- ent branches of the Church t Have not Christians, though slowly been makmg observable progress in using their earthly goods, not a^ owners, but as stewards of the great Giver? Have not man;, many heathen been receiving the knowledge of the truth from Chiist's K n • ""^ ^«,«i>t as a nation been humbled, afflicted, and proved by the Crimean and Indian wars, and by the commercial panic? Have not signs of progress appeared in the highest ecclesiastical and literary circles,-things bemg Jone by tlie foremost prelates which one genera- tion ago were left to poor itinerants, and laughed at in them: and sentiments finding expression in letters, and even in leading articles, m powerful journals which, within our own memory, would have been considered fit only for evangelical periodicals? Have we not sev7iS times seen daily papers containing such matter, that one enquiring "What must I do to be saved ?" might have found an answer in them^ All these things arc indications that God is preparing the public mind jfor a new and a great advance of true religion. Let us look on the Ameri.an revival as but the beginning of a new era of national awaJ^enings, and pray, and believe, and patiently but importunately wait for such a shower of grace as will make all Britain bear fruit abundantly, as will reach our neighboring Continent, and revive it also. But IS it not surer to advance slowly ? Was it surer for the Israel- ites to leave masses of heathen in their borders for ages ? By this they were led aside and overthrown. Was it surer for the early Church^ conTertelTnYtf ""^ *^^* ^^^^ individuals were trul^ into h«^?'y. .V • 'P'"'*^^^ ""'"^^ ^^^* ^^ «^«^ly^ % *l^i« «Iie fell swoiAJ ;t'M'''''?' ^^^ T'^ "^ ^'' ^^'"^^^^^ P^«^d under the KinAh!f^^ Mussulman. Are we on a surer path in making up our .rlvt. f n?r ''\"i T ^^ig^bours must die in sin, than in longing, n?S f?l ^^f t^'^ '^^^ ^^ ^" «^^«d and brought to the SorT o/our! ^" '?^' r^ ^'^!T^ ^^™^^ '^^' these desires and L7ttl'r/!!C^^^^^^^ «.^ ^-f r '"-; .b^^^ the effect of it ? banc^ «7'r< Ji i: " • i'""^ ^yficmg slowly, consider how much the pause ot God has gained upon the wodd since his own conversion ; and w MAY WE HOPE FOB A GREAT REVIVAL? then sit down and think how long it will take to convert the nation, not to think of the world, at the same rate of progress. Is it not time for God to lay to His hand 1 But if a great revival came, might not fanaticism and extravagances arise 1 They might, and not improbably would. They have attended most great revivals. They may be expected in all cases where human agency is employed under powerful feeling, unless special control be exercised by the Spirit of all wisdom. But of what account at this day are the extravagances which attended the revival of the last century, while its benefits remain 1 liwe kre to be used as instruments, errors in abundance may be counted* upon ; but O, let souls be saved, the Church quickened, the nations roused with a mighty awakening, even though human infirmity display itself once more. At the same time each of us ought to pray that the Lord may save us from mingling folly with His operation. Let us form no plans, set our eye on no particular Preacher, and shun everything like an efibrt to get up a revival. Let those who have been known as revivalists take care that they do not thrust themselves into view, that they show their fai*:h by quiet and humble waiting upon God ; and let those who have feared revivals open their hearts, and cry aloud, " Work as Thou wilt, Lord, but work !" Let o ir whole plan be Union, Prayer, and Faith,— Union in which our sects shall scarcely be named. Prayer that rests not night or day. Faith that says, " It is to be," that will take no denial, and will count delay only as a call to renewed prayer. The sovereignty of God is never shown in setting aside an organic law of the Mediatorial Kingdom ; our Father, " will give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him." Heaven never cancelled, and will never disregard, this charter of praying Churches. But all promises imply, and our lord expressly teaches, that prayer must be importunate ; must not faint with delay, or even positive discourage- ment. Day and night let us look with longing heart and hopeful eye for the Great Revival of the nineteenth century. It may be to-day, it may be to-morrow, it may be a year hence ; it may come simultaneously on many points, or arise in one and slowly spread ; its first manifesta- tion may be in a grand cathedral with a mighty multitude, or in some room or barn ; it may be at first chiefly in Calvinistic or in Arminian Churches ; but let its time, form, and course be all left to Him, who alone can work. Let us only believe, saying, « It will be, it is to be." Let us only pray, " pray always, and not faint j" then, when, where, how he pleaseth, He will pour a vial in the air, a vial not of judgment, but of repentance ; men will find themselves, they know not how, breathing a religious atmosphere, their consciences will awake with a cry, and they will tuni to the people, to the messengers of Chiist, ask- ing' «' What must I do to be saved V ihe nation, t not time ravagances e attended Bre human control be at this day it century, nts, errors saved, the ling, even same time mingling icher, and ) who have themselves iting upon ts, and cry whole plan ill scarcely ys, "It is IS a call to in setting hei', " will : cancelled, 1. But all 3r must be discourage- lopeful eye 3 to-day, it iltaneously manifesta- or in some . Arniinian Him, who t is to be." en, where, ■ judgment, '■ not how, ake with a ;!hiist, ask-