Spirit and of power. May God, for Christ's sake, give us the Holy Spirit. The subject proposed for our consideration this evening is one, in the arrangement of which great difficulty will exist in condensing a sufficient amount of the essence of the matter into a statement of reasonable limits. But I desire it to be understood, that all I purpose to attempt is to mark those stations on the road of argument by which, under the Divine guidance, the mind may recognise the path to be pursued; and that I consider each of the steps I propose to be but the occasion of suggesting to you much thought and Scriptural research, which must be carried on from the idea pointed out, in order that each may for himself arrive at a fuller result upon the subject. As it is a subject which confessedly has not drawn the attention of the Church, in former generations, with anything like its due proportion of interest, we are especially bound to enter upon it in a spirit of humility; for many treasures of truth be expected to be revealed which had escaped a less attentive search than that made in the present day; and also in a spirit of prayer, that we may be directed aright, both in the discovery of the truth, and in the application of it. may I purpose to bring before you, upon the present occasion, family of Abraham, whose prospects we are endeavouring to trace out; nor to that still more multitudinous crowd of our fellow creatures, the consummation of whose hopes or fears is linked with the crisis of Israel's fate; but I would solemnly pause to realize the spiritual beings who, at this moment, are dwelling with a lively interest upon the progress of that general opening of Divine truth to the Church in the latter days, by which our thoughts are to be familiarized with the anticipations concerning God's ancient people, as part of the process by which those. anticipations are to be fulfilled; and I would call upon you all, my brethren, to remember, that while we are met to search the Scriptures, in order to discover the mind of God relative to his people Israel, we are surrounded by many a gazing group of those angels who have often been the messengers of Jehovah in his open intercourse with that people, and who are now the guard of honour, as it were, of the King of the Jews, of whose presence even here to day, by His Spirit, we have the assured promise. May we each of us have the assured conviction of that divine presence; that in the fulness of faith we may look to Him in the midst of us, to direct the instruction of his minister, so that it may be applied to each of the hearers in the demonstration of the Spirit and of power. The subject proposed for our consideration this evening is one, in the arrangement of which great difficulty will exist in condensing a sufficient amount of the essence of the matter into a statement of reasonable limits. But I desire it to be understood, that all I purpose to attempt is to mark those stations on the road of argument by which, under the Divine guidance, the mind may recognise the path to be pursued ; and that I consider each of the steps I propose to be but the occasion of suggesting to you much thought and Scriptural research, which must be carried on from the idea pointed out, in order that each may for himself arrive at a fuller result upon the subject. As it is a subject which confessedly has not drawn the attention of the Church, in former generations, with anything like its due proportion of interest,we are especially bound to enter upon it in a spirit of humility; for many treasures of truth may be expected to be revealed which had escaped a less attentive search than that made in the present day; and also in a spirit of prayer, that we may be directed aright, both in the discovery of the truth, and in the application of it. I purpose to bring before you, upon the present occasion, John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force."* Sin-convinced souls press into it. The true Israel of God wrestle and prevail-they strive to enter in at the strait gate-they labour to enter into their rest. O what a holy, ardent, cheerful warfare do they wage; emulation do they put what a loving, zealous forth, that they may win the prize, and obtain the crown, and all because Jesus has loved them, and given himself for them. But are these common characters? Do they abound in our towns and cities? Are they the majority in our congregations? My beloved friends, it were a solemn question to ask even here, "Who is on the Lord's side? Who!" This is a great day for profession, and much that passes current for religion has on the obverse the stamp and superscription of Cæsar. But we must be thankful that even this testimony is given to the purity and excellency of the Gospel, that it is counted worthy of imitation.-This is a great day also for atheism, false doctrine, lawlessness; and many there are who would dress up the old man with Heathen ethics and a sort of mechanical discipline, and thus attempt the moral regeneration of the world. Are these evidences of a great * Matt. xi. 12. |