contemporaries, because he was every-persons?-Why we must say with the

apostle, that "no covetous man hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ or of God!" The mind of a good man who is intended by the Lord for the work of the ministry, will, even before he is publicly called to that work, delight to make known the way of salvation to his fellow sinners. He will preach by day and by night, at home and abroad; and at times be so taken up with this subject, as to forget other things. The word of God, like a

for his glory-indignation at the sins of mankind and compassion for their souls, will suffer him to take no rest in any employ till he becomes a minister of the gospel. We could as soon prevent the man who has a fine ear for music from listening to its sounds, or the man who was born a poet from his poetical effusions, as the man to whom God has given a preaching faculty from trying to compose and preach sermons.

where the painter. Every remarkable feature, or position of a tree, every fine stroke of nature was copied into his pocket book on the spot; and in his next picture appeared with a life, and vivacity, and nature, which no strength of memory or imagination could have supplied." Cecil's Works, vol. iii. p. 345. V. To be a good minister of Jesus Christ, a man should prefer that office to every thing else. It must not be a matter of indifference with him, whether he be a minister or a mechanic-burning fire shut up in his bones-zeal one of the respectable professions or a gentleman; if he be rightly influenced, he will renounce every other pursuit for the sake of serving God in the gospel of his Son. A man must desire the office of a bishop; the word we translate "desire," signifies earnest, eager, passionate desire. See Dr. A. Clarke on 1 Tim. iii. 1. The ministry should be chosen in preference to other things, as a man chooses his wife in preference to other women. A man ought to take a wife for her own sake, and not for the fortune she may happen to have; and enter into the conjugal state with her, though she may have little or nothing, rather than with any other woman, though she may have a considerable property. I am well aware that this is saying a great deal; that it is passing a censure on many marriages, not only on those of men in general, but also on those of too many ministers of the present day. It may be observed, that however it may be with them as to their choice of the ministry, they do not always act thus with regard to their choice of a wife; an ample fortune seems to have attractions for them as well as for other men, and in numerous instances has evidently been the object of their pursuit. This seems to be a growing evil in the present day among our dissenting ministers, and calls for more severe and marked reprehension than has hitherto been bestowed upon it. To see a man assuming the character of a Christian minister, yet demonstrably under the influence of the love of money, which is the root of all evil-pursuing after it as if it were the chief good, the only thing that is needful-and even when Providence has conferred upon him more than he can enjoy, to see him eagerly amassing more-adding house to house, and field to field..... What shall we say of such

VI. We add, that a call in providence seems necessary to justify the man we have described, in going forth into the work of the ministry; yet, as we cannot doubt, when God has given to any of his servants all the preceding qualifications, whether he will open his way into it or not, we need to say but little on this part of the subject. It has, however, sometimes happened, that men have, in their own opinion, possessed all the requisites for preaching, when wiser and better men than themselves have thought very differently; we there fore advise young men, and old ones too, if any of them are thus weak, to exercise patience and caution, and not rush forward into a work of such importance without due deliberation. The ministers and members of Christian churches may, through wrong motives, try to keep a man back whom God calls forward, but it may safely be said, that the man himself will be the last to think so; it will be evident to others before he perceives it. And suppose they should, who are they that they can withstand God? If He call, his voice must be obeyed. If a man imagine he is qualified to preach-that his friends are not willing for him to try, but dis courage him;-if he think he hears the voice of God calling him forth when nobody but himself can hear that voice, although they listen for the very pur pose; it is certain that he is affected

with a disease that has before happened | tance between the present period, and that when they will be called to give up, their account, cannot be great; and when the Chief Shepherd shall appear, he will give them a crown of glory which fadeth not away.*

to some weak-minded good men. The best way in such cases, is to let the disorder work its own cure. If he be violently opposed, he will think the opposition persecution for Christ's sake; may make a party, and so do much evil.

AN AGED MINISTER.

ON MISSIONARY ORDINATIONS.
MR. EDITOR,

NOTWITHSTANDING the number and variety of Magazines which have commenced their existence within the last thirty years, perhaps there is not one, with the exception of your own, in which a person could explicitly state all that is fairly deducible from Scripture example, and all that clearly belongs to dissenting principles. The very convenient doctrine of expediency, or what we are sometimes pleased to denominate propriety, has so interwoven itself with our views of various circumstances intimately connected with religion, that the plain import of Scripture is often disregarded, in order that our favourite maxims and proceedings may not be disturbed. And what Editor, besides yourself, would be daring enough to allow the opinions and practices of leading individuals in his own denomination to be controverted or opposed, when probably it is in them that his work lives, and moves, and has its being? Under these circumstances, it

To conclude; if, to the qualifications already mentioned, a liberal education can be added, it will be of great service; it gives a minister advantages which he could not otherwise enjoy. But if he be so circumstanced that it cannot be obtained, let him not be discouraged: the divine blessing will enable him to surmount great difficulties; he may notwithstanding preach both with pleasure and success. By diligent attention to reading, and applying himself to those things which are within his reach, he will gradually make acquisitions that will be greatly useful to him. Some of our home made ministers have become the ablest divines and the most useful labourers in the Lord's vineyard. They have, as to human learning, been self taught, but always well taught. No reflection is here intended on academics; the blessing of heaven be with them: let them remember their obligations, and pray for grace to discharge them in the fear and love of God. And let all the ministers of Christ consider well the saying of their Master;" Work while it is day; for the night cometh when no man can work." The dis* Although we concur with this respectable correspondent in the general tenor of his remarks, and hope they will be useful to his readers, we cannot help lamenting that he was not led to adopt a somewhat different method of treating his subject from that which he has chosen. We will endeavour to explain ourselves as concisely as possible. The qualifications" for the pastoral office, or the work of the ministry, are expressly laid down by the Holy Spirit, in several parts of the New Testament, particularly in 1 Tim. iii. 1-7, Titus i. 6-9; and directions are given to such respecting the manner of discharging the duties of their office, in Acts xx. 28-35, 1 Peter v. 1-4. Now we do think, that had our correspondent kept his attention steadily fixed upon these divine directions, he would have been led into a somewhat different method of handling his subject from that to which he has had recourse. For instance; he finds his Christian minister-where? Certainly not among "the (wiss areρwrоis) faithful, or tried men," 2 Tim. ii. 2, whose characters had been unfolded in the churches to which they respectively belonged-men who had given proofs of their competency to teach others, and to rule the church of God;-qualifications on which, in connection with personal piety, the main stress is laid in the apostolic writings;-but he finds him in the schools or seminaries of education, or at any rate prepared to enter them for the purpose of being qualified-not, as we suppose, to “rule the church of God;" for who would think of sending a person, old or young, into an academy to obtain experience in conducting the affairs of the house of God?-but to learn the art of speaking, or the composition of a sermon! Now, is it not manifest at first sight, that the system, or order of things which our correspondent has in view, and which he is solicitous to promote, is something quite aside from the plan which the wisdom of God has devised for the churches? In short; his Christian minister appears to us to be almost altogether another sort of person than the scriptural “Elder,” or" Bishop," whose character is drawn by the apostle Paul; as much, indeed, as the present order of churches differs from those planted by the apostles! Edit.

as a mere gratuitous assumption, necessary, indeed, to the support of his principle, but highly derogatory to the apostolic character.

duced, we may be allowed to regard it | ple and the times; though it was of great utility, and answered the purpose of Jehovah as a shadowy dispensation; yet, the New Testament informs us, that its numerous rites were the mere elements of spiritual knowledge, and of holy worship; and, compared with the appointments and services of the Christian church, they were beggarly elements, and carnal ordinances. The respect paid to God, under the Old Testament dispensation," says Dr. Erskine, in his Theological Dissertations, p. 69, corresponded to his character as a temporal monarch; and, in a great measure consisted in external pomp and gaiety, dancing, and instrumental music, and other expressions of joy, usual at coronations or triumphs. But, the hour is now come, in which the true worshippers must worship the Father in spirit and in truth, not with external show and pageantry."

J. D. affects to resent it as an insult, that "persons wishing thus to exercise and defend their right of discretion, should be charged with indirectly countenancing the farrago of Popish ceremonies." But, begging his pardon, the consequence is unavoidable from his discretionary principle! For, what is the foundation of all the idle will worship, the trumpery ceremonies, and the superstitious practices of the churches of Rome and England, but this discretionary principle, viz. "that the church hath power to decree rights or ceremonies," &c. He, as a Protestant Dissenter, accuses the Church of England of error and will-worship, in contending for this power, while the latter affirms, that "the church of Rome But methinks I hear J. D. expostuhath erred in the manner of their cere- lating, and saying, "You are not doing monies," (see her 19th Article) though, justice to my argument: I am not in truth, they have neither of them done pleading either for the lawfulness or the any more than exercise their own discre- propriety of having a band of music in tion in those matters. "Give me," said every dissenting congregation; all I Archimedes, "a place to stand upon, demand is the right of exercising my and I can raise the earth." Allow me own discretion in availing myself of the the lawfulness of exercising my own use of an organ, merely for the purpose discretion in what regards the public of keeping the singers in tune," &c. &c. worship of God, and I pledge myself to And pray what more does the Papist vindicate every invention of the man of ask, when he pleads for the privilege of sin! The principle of J. D. is utterly decorating the walls of his chapel with untenable; he must either produce an the images of the saints, to "aid his express command or approved example, grovelling conceptions, and animate his for the use of instrumental music in the languid devotions?" It is the "exercise apostolic churches, or he gives up the of his discretion" that is the very point point. He calls for a proof from any in dispute. What I contend for is, that passage of the New Testament, that, Christians have no discretionary power even by implication, goes to annul" the in this matter. The authority which express command of God for the use of Christ claims as King in Zion, applies instrumental music in the Jewish to every part of his instituted worship; temple. The following is at his service and unless we can produce his own "For the priesthood being changed, authority, or that of his apostles, or an there is made, of necessity, a change approved example from the the first also of the law," Heb. vii. 12. We rea-churches, we are not acting as his dily admit, that instrumental music dutiful subjects in adopting an organ as formed a part of the numerous rites and an appendage to public worship. pompous ceremonies which were apI am, &c. pointed by Jehovah in the first establishment of the Jewish church; to which various additions were made by divine direction in the time of David. These things were undoubtedly suited to the nature of that dispensation, and to the church of God, while in a state of minority, Gal. iv. 1-7. But, though that system was fitted to both the peo

MR. EDITOR,

IOTA.

As you have occasionally, and very judiciously, noticed the Queries of Correspondents in your able and useful publication, I take the liberty to offer for your consideration the following,

arising out of existing circumstances, excluded from the fellowship of the and for the information and direction church.

THE MOURNER.

Diseas'd-revil'd-of all but life bereft,

Stretch'd on the cold damp earth the mourner lay;
No friendly hand, no child's endearment left,
To soothe his grief, or wipe his tears away.
Fall'n, like the forest oak beneath the blast,
A mighty victim to the ruthless storm;
'Its beauties wither'd, and its grandeur past,

Stripp'd of its every leaf, and scath'd its form,
Still, still he own'd the arm whose dreadful sweep,
Whose oft repeated strokes had pierc'd his soul;
And in that night of woe, so long, so deep,

No word reproachful from the suff'rer stole.-
Hear him-Though death itself these eyes may dim,
Dealt by his hand;-yet will I trust in him.