In that and conveys it into the soul. And is it true, that a regard to the Spirit would have saved those churches from decay and death? And is it true, that this divine Spirit is in the church still, that we can obtain his unmeasured influences, and that his aid, if sought for and obtained, could make this church the largest, purest and most flourishing in the land? Yes, it could raise even those seven churches from their long mouldering ruins, and carry their prosperity to a pitch, which even in their primitive state they never saw. Oh! how long shall our state of comparative barrenness continue? "Until the Spirit be poured out from on high;" then "the wilderness will be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest." Yes; in the scheme of salvation, every instrument and agent has its appropriate place, and its appointed order of success. arrangement the Spirit is the prime mover of the whole. Hence the first prayer of Christ, on his ascension to heaven, was for the effusion of the Spirit; till that was 66 poured out from on high," the work of redemption itself, though he had just pronounced it finished," stood still; but when it came, every thing was put into motion, the world itself vibrated, the very gates of hell shook. The first prayer of the church, then, should be for the same object. Oh! let that Spirit be sought for first as a Spirit of prayer. Our prayers would infallibly draw down fresh supplies of his influence; these fresh supplies of his influence would as certainly lead to increased prayer for still larger effusions of his grace-and thus by action and reaction our prayers would continually enlarge in their progress, and insure increased prosperity to the whole church of Christ. 66 Brethren, an appeal is about to be made to your Christian liberality. Does the interest of Christ press on your heart? We will defy you to withhold your property from it. Do you sympathize with Christ in "the travail of his soul?" Oh! if that sympathy be sincere, it will turn your whole soul into desire, it will convert your very gifts into prayers-they will consti tute a part of your devotion. Like the eastern Magi, the act of falling down to adore him, and of pouring out at his feet" gold, and frankincense and myrrh' will, with you, be one and the same act. And though your gift may be small compared with your enlarged desires, he, who graciously distinguishes between the will and the means, will say, as he said of the church at Smyrna-will say, as you cast your gift into the treasury, "I know thy poverty, but thou art rich." Brethren, in praying for the impartation of the Spirit, you are imploring a spirit of Christian liberality -liberality for yourselves, and for the whole church. You are, in effect, praying that all the powers of nature, all the resources of providence, all the wealth and greatness of the world may be pressed into the service of Christ. For only let "the Spirit be poured out from on high," and you enlist into his cause every species of instrumentality, which men can possess. "The abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee, the multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come; they shall bring," they-the most unlikely men on the face of the earth-" shall bring gold and incense, and they shall show forth the praises of the Lord." Every thing will be brought as an expression of love to Christ, and to adorn his triumph. His ministers will not have to walk the land, as beggars in his cause. Places like this, dedicated to his adoration and worship, will not struggle year after year for existence, with the weight of a millstone of debt around their neck. Nothing-nothing will be deemed too costly for the great occasion. "All majesty shall bow before him-kings shall wait in his train"-the spoils of earthly grandeur be laid at his feet-and Christ "alone be exalted in that day." THE HOUSE OF PRAYER: A SERMON DELIVERED AT TREVOR CHAPEL, BROMPTON, ON THE RE-OPENING OF THE CHAPEL, AFTER ENLARGEMENT AND REPAIRS, LONDON, AUGUST 27, 1837. Mine house shall be called a house of prayer for all people. IN the ordinary course of preaching, it is, perhaps, desirable to limit attention to particular truths, and their personal, practical application. Occasions sometimes arise, however, or subjects present themselves, which seem to invite the mind to a loftier range and a more comprehensive view of truth-occasions, when, almost unbidden, the past yields up its treasures—and ages with the men who have made them memorable, dispensations with the miraculous facts and the sublime disclosures which distinguished them, the futurity of time with its distant horizon clothed in flames, and eternity with all the plans of God fulfilled, pass in succession before our eyes. The dedication of a house to the worship and service of God-or the re-opening of such a place-may be regarded as one of those occasions; for it is an event, which springs out of all the past, and which stands related to all the future. The text, too, comes in aid of the occasion, calling up recollections of ancient times and early revelations, and pointing us onward to a day, when, as the grand result of all that God has planned, and Christ has suffered, and the Spirit has effected, the world shall be seen prostrate before God in prayer. This we regard, if not as the principal, as an important doctrine of the text and this, therefore, we propose, first to illustrate, and, secondly, to apply. May the Lord of the house be graciously present by his Spirit, to aid our endeavour and to bless his word! In order to the realization of the glorious scene glanced at in the text, in which the world shall finally be seen prostrate before God in prayer, the first and earliest step necessary was the revelation of the divine existence. For "he that cometh to God must believe that he is;" and "how shall they call upon him, of whom they have not heard?" This fact takes us back, in thought, to the time when the knowledge of God was lost from the earth—when the Lord, looking down from heaven to see if there were any, that did understand and seek God, beheld the appalling spectacle of an entire race in apostacy from him, and when, breaking the fearful silence which sin had produced, he called to his wondering creatures, and proclaimed, I AM. This was an era in the moral history of man; for it was, in effect, giving to a world of Atheists a GOD. There the great object of prayer stood revealed before them. Had they known him, the world would have flocked at once in adoration to his feet. But, secondly, does he take an interest in the affairs of the world? for, if not, prayer to him is useless. In answer to the inquiry, Sinai rises to view-Sinai burning with fire, covered with "blackness, and darkness, and tempest," and echoing with "the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words." God is there legislating for sinful man. Can you question his deep interest in human affairs? Listen to his law, as he proclaims it, and mark how much of it relates directly to your welfare. Mark how it denounces a curse against all, who shall neglect the duties they owe to you-how tender it is of your life, denouncing the man who shall even be " angry with you without a cause”—how jealously it guards your property, your reputation, every thing dear to you-how it throws its ample shield over you and all you have-constitutes itself a watchful guardian of the whole-accumulates into a wall of fire around you-thunders forth, Cursed is every one that attempts to injure him-and requires all the people to say Amen; requires the universe to give a solemn pledge that it will be tender of your welfare. The essence of the whole law is love; and that essence it seeks to instil into human hearts, binding them all together in one great community of love. Was it possible, that man, after that, could question the kind interest of God in human affairs? Apart from the Gospel, nothing in the universe displays the divine benevolence, so much as the giving of the law.. Had it been published from Sinai to a holy and obedient race, it would have been received and enshrined with acclamations of delight. But it was published for a race in rebellious confederacy against him--a fact which marks his benevolence more strikingly still; published as a proof of the divine presence among them and of his immediate government over them, and published as a standing protest against human sinfulness, with a view of awakening in the heart a sense of guilt and a loud cry for mercy. Here, then, was God furnishing the world with another great occasion for prayer. Man now not only knew of His existence, but saw that he took a deep interest in human welfare; but as it was evident that we requited that interest with disobedience, nothing could have been more natural and proper, than an earnest importunate, united supplication of the whole race for mercy. But thirdly, is the great God accessible? That he takes a benevolent interest in human affairs is evident; if, however, the terrors of Sinai are not laid aside, if that is a specimen of his usual state, who can venture to approach him? "The Lord," said Solomon-" the Lord said that he would dwell in the thick darkness :" will he emerge from that cloud, dissipate that gloom and allow man to approach him? The temple on Zion is an answer to that inquiry. "Let the people build me a sanctuary," said God, "that I may dwell among them." This was another stage-a vast ad |