that day. The company of the godly is greatly prized, and all the precepts and promises of the Gospel become more precious than the choicest earthly treasure. How the happy soul can then make a fresh surrender of itself to its best Beloved

"Take my soul and body's powers,

Take my memory, mind, and will;
All my goods and all my hours,
All I know and all I feel;
All I think, or speak, or do ;

Take my heart, but make it new."

Asa sinned in his old age. For thirty-six years Asa seemed to walk humbly with his God, and when he had reached that point. when it might be thought that he was safe from falling, then he fell-first in sending money to the king of Syria, that he might break his league with Baasha, king of Israel, and come to his assistance. How different his conduct now to when he was assailed by the Ethiopians! After this fall he sinned grievously by putting the seer in prison who was sent by God to show him his folly; and, last of all, he displeased the Lord greatly because, when diseased in his feet, he sought not to the Lord, but to physicians. Thus he died, apparently under a cloud of God's displeasure, yet saved, we trust, although as by fire; for the Word declares that "the heart of Asa was perfect all his days." Does not the fall of this good man in his old age show us plainly that none are safe from temptation till quite out of the reach of sin and Satan? In fact, the Word of God abounds with like incidents. Noah's drunkenness, Abraham's slips, Lot's incest, David's adultery, Solomon's strange women, Hezekiah's pride, and Asa's fleshly confidence and oppression of the godly, were not when they were young in the way. No; then their hearts were tender, their weakness was sensibly felt, and their dependence on God was entire. Then it was that the Lord kept them as the apple of His eye, and hid them under the shadow of His wings. But when they had been brought through many battles, supported under heavy trials, preserved from foul temptations, then they became strong in themselves, and lost sight of their best and only Friend. Then was Satan's hour; then it was that he tripped up their feet, caught them in his net, and stripped them of all their strength as completely as Delilah stripped Samson. He soon blinded their eyes, made them to grind in the prison-house, and caused them even to make sport for the enemies of their God. Satan cannot finally prevail over the Lord's chosen ones, any more than the Philistines could finally prevail against Samson; for we are told that, when Samson called on his God and said, "O Lord God, remember me, I pray Thee, and strengthen me only

But

this once, that I may be avenged of the Philistines for my two
eyes," the Lord did as he requested, and Samson slew more of
the Lord's enemies and his own at his death than ever he had
done previously. So does every tempted, sin-besmeared, and devil-
hunted child of God obtain an everlasting victory over all his
foes, through the help of Him who came to bruise the serpent's
head. Thus is every heaven-born and heaven-bound soul com-
pelled even to the end to acknowledge, with Paul the aged, that
they are the greatest of all sinners and the least of all saints-
"Greatest sinners, greatly spared,

Love much and themselves debase;
Mine's a paradox too hard-
Rich of mercy, poor of grace!

"Me Thou hast forgiven much;
This my sins too plainly prove;
Give me what Thou givest such,
Much humility and love."

HOPEFUL.

A FEW THOUGHTS ON SANCTIFICATION.

THIS important Scriptural truth is one which is probably not much thought of, or dwelt upon, by most, yet perhaps would be very seasonable in the Church of God at the present time.

God is a holy God, and heaven a holy place, prepared for a people who are made meet for it (Col. i. 12), called a "holy nation" (1 Peter ii. 9), and our greatest mercy is to possess this

meetness.

To sanctify is to set apart for a holy end and use. Thus the tabernacle, the altar, and all the vessels of the ministry were sanctified. These were "patterns of things in the heavens" (Heb. ix. 23). The tabernacle was sanctified by the glory of the Lord (Exod. xxix. 43), which was there revealed, and also by the sprinkling of oil and blood (Exod. xl. 9; Heb. ix. 21). So now, as the grace and glory of God, revealed in the Gospel, shine into our hearts, we are thereby sanctified, for the faith which perceives this grace purifies the heart (Acts xv. 9). Divine truth, relating as it does to the cross of Christ, is made powerful and effectual in washing and cleansing the sinner; and the mind, being under the illuminating influence of the Holy Spirit, the truth is obeyed (1 Peter i. 22; Rom. vi. 17). This is the anointing of the Spirit (1 John ii. 27), whereby many precious fruits are produced in the soul, and the flesh crucified (Gal. v. 22-24).

In the light of this teaching, sin is seen and felt, and the desire implanted in the heart to forsake it. Now we begin to

learn what opposites sin and grace are, and how naturally unholy we are. Forgiveness of sins, or justification, is what a sinner first desires to realize, and sanctification must be inseparably connected with it; for to know pardon, and the way in which it comes to us, even through the shedding of the blood of Jesus, this must have a sanctifying influence upon the mind. By this blood we are redeemed, not only from the curse of the law, but also from the dominion of sin and Satan, and become the Lord's own inheritance, over which the Lord has a gracious claim to soul, body, and spirit; whilst the desire is, that we should be the Lord's, not in name only, but by doing those things which are agreeable to His mind and will. Here is the renewing of the mind, and conformity to the image of Christ. Nothing but the love and favour of God revealed to the heart could bring forth these things.

The office of the Holy Ghost is to take of the things of Christ, and to show them unto us (John xvi. 14), and communications of this kind have a sanctifying effect.

To this work the carnal mind especially discovers its enmity, because by it its sinful workings are opposed; and where a little experience of sanctification is attained, what sad dealings and painful backslidings we are exposed to, so that we can hardly discover anything of it in ourselves! Besides, it is doubtless the aim of Satan to work by various temptations, to bring us down into a more carnal state, hence the need of watchfulness.

We often hear that there is much of the spirit of the world in the Church, and we feel, as forming a part of it, that this is only too true, so that the evils of the age sadly leaven the Church.

For some years past, it is to be feared that several things have combined together calculated to encourage the spirit of infidelity. The large amount of false profession of religion has unquestionably increased the growth of this evil, which we firmly believe has also greatly injured many who hold the truth. In some cases, it is the consequence of other sins having gained an ascendancy over the mind and defiled the conscience. It is an evil dreadfully injurious to our spiritual vitality. In other cases, it may be the result of having held the faith for a time, but not in a pure conscience; and here it proves an awfully destructive evil, whether a person continues or discontinues their profession. But, where any are the subjects of the sanctification of the Holy Spirit, repentance and deliverance will be granted.

Sanctification is ascribed to each Person in the holy Trinity. "Sanctified by God the Father" (Jude 1) may specially refer to the saints being set apart to obtain salvation (1 Thess. v. 9)— the enjoyment of the heavenly inheritance (Acts xx. 32; xxvi. 18; 1 Pet. i. 4) which is reserved for them. They are set apart to

have an interest in redeeming blood, which cleanseth from all sin. And here we may trace the love of God the Father in our sanctification, for whatever Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit have done to make us holy, both are the gift of the Father to this end (1 Cor. i. 30; 2 Thess ii. 13).

Jesus Christ is said to be sanctified by the Father (John x. 36), and also by His own blood (Heb. x. 29). Aaron, the high priest, was sanctified for his office by the sprinkling of oil and blood (Exod. xxix. 21); so Christ, the great High Priest of our profession, was anointed without measure with the Spirit of the Lord (John iii. 34; Isa. lxi. 1). The body He took was prepared by the Father (Heb. x. 5); and in this body He was to do the will of Him who sent Him, which He said was His "meat" (John iv. 34), and was "obedient unto death" (Phil. ii. 8), being "an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour" (Eph. v. 2). Blood must be shed for the remission of sins (Heb. ix. 22). This was the "blood of the New Testament" (Matt. xxvi. 28), and of the "everlasting covenant" (Heb. xiii. 20), which our dear Redeemer must give, to be a perfect and suitable Mediator between God and sinners; and, having made an atonement for sin, He enters into heaven with all the eternally-abiding freshness, efficacy, and savour of His blood and merits, there to appear in the presence of God for us (Heb. ix. 24). This is the only ground of boldness or liberty we have to enter into the "holiest " (Heb. x. 19), i.e., "the blood of Jesus."

The sanctification of those who come to God in this way appears described in the twenty-second verse: "Having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water," which may signify the effect of the application of these sweet and pure truths of the precious Gospel to the heart (John xv. 3; Eph. v. 26). This is specially confirmed by Christ's own words, "Sanctify them through Thy truth" (John xvii. 17). Hence it is evident that the Gospel, which is the power of God to salvation, is the same to sanctification.

Enoch doubtlessly proved much of the excellency of the grace of sanctification, for he walked with God (Gen. v. 24), and had this testimony-that he pleased God (Heb. xi. 5); and we see that his faith, like Noah's and Abraham's, led to obedience to the will of God. And herein lies a great part of the holiness of the saints. There is a practical acknowledgment of God, according to the apprehension we have of His grace and glory manifested in Christ, inwardly feeling that He is to be feared, loved, and served, according to His Word.

Knowing our own insufficiency to do anything, we wait upon the Lord with desire for the fulfilment of His gracious promise that He will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask (Luke

xi. 13), under whose influence tenderness is produced, shame and sorrow for our past sinfulness and wanderings, a desire to love the brethren, to forgive all, and to walk humbly, carefully, and prayerfully before the Lord; for only in obedience to the leadings of the Holy Spirit can sanctification be produced in us.

Now, however small our attainments may be in this grace (and small indeed they are), yet it may be for the health of our souls, for the good of the Church, and especially for the glory of God, that these things should be set before our minds (John xv. 8). Hitchin, October, 1882.

THE DAY OF JUDGMENT.

THE day of judgment will be an awful day. A man may write of it and talk of it; sceptics may sneer at it, and infidels may deny it; the day will come. The man who blindfolds himself, as he stands upon the brink of the precipice, does not escape the deadly fall because he has blindfolded his eyes. The judgment of man follows from his responsibility. In every action, and every word, and every thought, for which he stands before God as responsible, there is a sort of day of judgment while he does it and when he does it; and that day, that awful day, will be but the winding up of the awful drama-the fearful day of execution. In the solemn day of judgment, what will become of the atheist and of the deist? What will become of the half-infidel and of the formal worshipper? And what will become of that man that has a clear creed in his head, and the love of sin and the world in his heart? Lost, lost for ever! Ah! what a day that will be, when the tears of mothers over their children, the prayers of fathers for their children, the admonitions of friends, and the rebukes of conscience in consequence of them, shall all stand up as a league against a man, so that he shall be his own condemner!

In that great day the wisdom of God shall be revealed. Why was the book of providence so dark? Why was that cumberer of the ground kept alive, while he who was fraught with vitality and influence was swept away? All shall be revealed. The depths shall be fathomed, and God's wisdom shall then be declared. We shall then see why there were evil men full of riches, and good men sinking in poverty. We shall then understand why God permitted these things.

Then, too, shall the justice of God be clearly discerned, and there shall never be found a hair's weight of judgment upon one sinner that he does not deserve-there shall not be the slightest breach of equity in the condemning of one soul.

And then shall be seen what God's grace was.

We see it now