his mother, remember it all the way from their cottage to my house (a distance of about one hundred yards), he was full of thankfulness. But he always remembered he was a sinner, and needed a Saviour. He was diligent in his attendance on the means of grace; and, believing in Jesus, he had the hope of glory. He loved to listen to the word of God; that word which, applied by the Holy Spirit to the soul, enlightens the mind, and impresses the heart.

But again, I ask you, reader, under what shadow are you resting? Is it in the regular performance of outward duties?-this cannot save you from wrath, or clothe you at the judgment day. You cannot be saved by works, unless you have living faith, the gift of God; wrestle with him in prayer for the precious gift-unless you have living faith. True vital faith does, must, and will work by love, and "no labour of love is in vain in the Lord." There are gracious promises to the diligent "The soul of the diligent shall be made fat." (Prov. xiii. 4) "Whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these my little ones, shall in no wise lose his reward." (Matt. x. 42.) "God is not unrighteous to forget your works and labour of love, which ye have ɛhewed towards his name." (Heb. vi. 10.) "Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours." (Rev. xiv. 13.) They only who are under the shadow of the everlasting vine can do any good thing. "He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing;" (John xv. 5.) and those believers give the glory to God alone, when successful in any good work, knowing that strength and success depend on him; "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me;" (Phil. iv. 13.) and that which they do, can only be accepted for Christ's sake, "not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us." "Unto you therefore, which believe he is precious." (1 Pet. ii. 7, and 1 Pet. i. 1-12. Yet as they feel the burden of indwelling sin, and see that weakness, imperfection, and

often, alas, sin too, still cleaving to their works, they are often heard echoing the lamentations of the prophet Isaiah; (chap. lxii. verses 1 to 6.) and, in their best estate, feel and own the justice of their master's words, recorded in Luke's gospel, chap. xv. verses 2-11. They do not undervalue these ordinances and means of grace-they esteem it a blessed privilege to participate in these and their souls are refreshed thereby; but they rest not in these, they rest in Jesus alone. But, reader, I hope you do not slight the ordinances. There is one too much neglected. Christ has said, "Do this in remembrance of me;" if you truly love him, you cannot refuse to obey his command; but I trust you are like widow F., sitting under his shadow with great delight--that you have washed in his blood, that he has washed you, that you have put on Christ, that you are clothed with his righteousness. "These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb." (Rev. vii. 14.) "This is his name whereby he shall be called, 'The Lord our Righteousness." (Jer. xxiii. 6.) Then reader, from my heart, I wish you God speed, and I know that he will speed you Zionward, I leave you with affectionate wishes. "Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work." (2 Thess. ii. 16.) You have, as a good old writer says, pressed through the crowd of duties, ministers, and ordinances, and asked to speak with Jesus, and to touch him, and, at the touch of faith, virtue has gone out of him, and healed you. "Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases." (Psalm ciii. 3.) Oh! reader! if this be your case, happy indeed are you. Cleave to Him, under whose shadow you are sitting. Remember his words, "Be watchful;" and in Col. i. 15, Christ declares himself to be the image of the invisible, "Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature."

In Heb. i. 3, "The brightness of his glory, the express image of his person," while other passages of Scripture seem to set forth the eternal Son as the shadow of the Father. Compare Psalm xci. 1, "He that dwelleth in the secret place shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty," with Isaiah xxxii. 2, "And a man shall be as an hiding-place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." Believer, reposing beneath that shadow, you have a foretaste of joy, heavenly joy, a joy that no man taketh from you. But oh! how inconceivable to human thought is the bliss that awaits you, when the Bridegroom shall say to you, "Come up hither,"-when no cloud of sin or sorrow shall intervene between the soul and the Saviour, when you shall be like him, for you shall see him as he is. "Beloved, now are we the Sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is ;" and upon your heads shall be the exceeding and eternal weight of glory. "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." (2 Cor. iv. 17.)

THE LORD'S SUPPER.

In the communion of the body and blood of Christ we have a means of grace that stands on the highest ground. It is a divine appointment—a positive command; and yet, who has not passed the doors of a church, at the moment when the congregation are pouring out, hundreds after hundreds, on the crowded pavement! The old, the sick-they do not look as if they would live to come again: the young, the gay-a long and perilous journey is before them: the rich-how hardly shall a rich man enter the kingdom of heaven: the poor-at least the poor have need of consolation! But they are all gone: it is too common a sight to wonder at; the service is ended. No, indeed it is not. The doors have been closed upon a few score of suppliants. What are they about? Nothing new-it happens every month-they are staying for the Sacrament! Eternal Being, is thine eye intent upon this place? Are these the

only ones of all that crowd, for whom thy blood was shed, the body broken, thy feast provided, and thy welcome given? These all the sinners in danger of forgetting thee, or sufferers that stand in need of comfort, or dying ones exposed to condemnation? It is not yet the time when thou wilt command that they shut to the door, and exclude for ever those that are not ready: it is not thy doing that these hundreds, these Christian hundreds, turn their backs upon thy table! Suppose for a moment we could come with authority to the church door-human authority-all would listen then-and require that no one should pass out till they had inscribed upon a tablet their reason for not staying to receive the holy communion at the appointed time. How would it read? Of the greater number, the reply would be, "We have no particular reason we never thought of staying-we never stay at the Sacrament." Without reason, and without a thought, they neglect a divine command: refuse to partake of an ordinance ordained by Christ himself, and pronounced by their own church necessary to salvation. We might well enquire why they call themselves Christians, and come to worship in this place? They of old who would not eat of the Paschal Lamb at the appointed times, were to be cut off from the congregation of the people. Another number, a considerable number, would put it thus-" We stay three times a-year-we never neglect to stay at Christmas and other particular seasons." This is indeed better, but so small an appetite is scarcely a sign of health: we are not thought to thrive when our food produces satiety it is not the hungry guest, nor yet the loving one, that seldomest returns to eat and drink with us. We might ask of these, why at those particular seasons they accept the benefits they now refuse? "We are engaged-we are in haste this morning.” But surely they forget: this is not working day, they will break other laws presently to be relieved of the wearisome hours that remain. "We are not prepared, we are not fit to stay." Poor sinners! Jesus has tenderest pity for the tears that should have blotted that sentence while you wrote it-a Saviour's eye has watched your trembling hand while you inscribed that sentence against yourself-He has thought upon the anguish of his soul when he too felt the weight of unforgiven sin—when Satan and the powers of darkness had their hour with him, as they have now with you. It is most likely true!-you are not prepared, you are not fit to stay! But do you indeed know it? Do you feel that you

are not his-that you have no faith to feed upon his flesh, or penitence to seek remission from his blood-that you do not know if he has died for you, or if there is any virtue in his death to save that you have not examined yourselves whether you repent you of your former sin, steadfastly purposing to lead a new life?—nay, it was not necessary to examine-a thought is sufficient; you know you do not. It is most likely so-and you must go away: we cannot tell you otherwise-for this time you must go away; and may the Spirit write upon your heart the sentence you have given.

Jesus is long-suffering and of great goodness-he willeth not the death of a ginner, but rather that he should turn to him and live: this may not, through his mercy, be the last time you will be invited to his table: that door which has been closed behind you may not be the one which the unready will knock at, eternally in vain. But lest you abide contented with the condition in which you know yourselves to be, bear with a word of truth concerning it. It is here, under your own hand, that you are unfit for heaven-unprepared to die-unrepentant, unbelieving, unforgiven--and, of course, condemned to everlasting death. There is a remedy, but you refuse it an invitation, but you will not accept it—a command, but you will not obey it. "Look unto me and be ye saved." "All things are ready-come unto the marriage: but they made light of it, and went their ways; one to his farm, another to his merchandise."

The crowd is dispersed the street is silent-they have gone their ways. We have not kept the register, but the Great Searcher of hearts has; and such is the fact, as it lies exposed before him, with respect to the greater number of the dispersing congregation. If the eyes of those indifferent ones could be opened, not a soul but would shrink with terror from the sight which they fear not to exhibit before the face of Him who is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity. "But the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them that believe not, lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them." "Their eyes are closed that they cannot see, and their ears are heavy that they cannot hear;" but whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, whoever they be that wilfully refuse to come to the Lord's Supper, this is the truth of their condition. They are dying creatures: some will die to-night, and more to-morrow-many before another sacrament, and all within four-score years. They are sin