"In Rev. xviii. 2 we observe human unclean spirits distinguished from those of devils.

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Surely, there must likewise be a real distinction in the spiritual constitutions of men themselves, namely, of those who die happy, and of those who die unhappy. The former seek, and have within them, the grace of God in Christ Jesus; the latter neither seek it nor have it. Not that the seeking of the former is ascribable to themselves: even this was the effect of

divine grace.

"More importance attaches to the death of Christ, than to the obedience paid by all the saints, from the beginning of the world to the end of it.

"It is harsh to talk of a ransom for souls paid to the devil (though several of the Fathers had such a notion). It is no barter of this sort, it is mighty power' alone that redeems them, the power of Him who hath abolished death;' karapynoas. 2 Tim. i. 10.

"I would ask those who scruple at justification by faith alone (which faith is the very life of my spirit that I derive from the word of grace), what then is the proximate means whereby we are made partakers of Christ? Surely, the very nature of the case admits of no other means but faith.

"That both justification and faith are only means to an end, and that sanctification is that end (with wisdom and redemption belonging to it), is agreeable to the sense of St. Paul, in Rom. iii. 31; viii. 1. These, namely the means and end together, we have IN CHRIST JESUS, 1 Cor. i. 30; it is He who helps us to both. Hence Breithaupt considered the great aim of all theology to be, our final recovery into the very image of God.

"Justification and sanctification are regarded by many, not as a simple thread spun out from the same principle, but as a twist of two threads, each of which is (sui generis) of its own kind.

"Two opposite errors are very common: that of persons who give the name of grace to every thing, even to endowments purely natural; and that of others, who studiously avoid acknowledging a single instance of divine grace or displeasure.

"In the parable of the ten virgins, the fire of the lamps represents the gracious light, warmth, and purification which we passively receive of the Spirit of God; but the oil is what must be obtained by diligent prayer, and in faithful obedience, in the way of nourishing and increasing this light, warmth, and purification. The same is expressed without a parable in the second

epistle of Peter, ch. i. Here, in the third and fourth verses, we see what corresponds to the fire of the lamps; and in the fifth and sixth verses, we see what the recipient of that preventing grace is expected to add to it.

“The Thomasians have done much harm in making intellectual error of so little consequence, and in laying all stress upon the will. And yet their own will was not good. When once our natural opposition to the divine will shall be laid aside, then surely a large portion of our religious services will consist in intellectual exercises and intellectual advancement. For do we not most substantially honour an excellent artist, by being able and willing to enter into a thorough examination of his performance? How otherwise would it be in our power to render him due praise and commendation? Hence the supreme felicity of a future state is called the beatific vision.

“How much more precious is the single moment of our first awakening to discern God as a Father, than the greatest number of years spent in ignorance of it! Yet the beginning of such an awakening is generally rough and severe, so as hardly to seem like an indication that the Lord is drawing us to himself. Be it so; nevertheless, what a blessing is it to have the old rotten foundation of self thoroughly discovered and broken up; and all our doings and experiences beginning, in consequence of it, to run on consistently and smoothly, so much more consistently and smoothly than ever heretofore, and resembling a peaceful pellucid stream! The great matter is, so to rest upon Christ, with correct and scriptural views, as to have honest, faithful, and obedient hearts. Thus we become able to build up others also, which if we constantly aim at, and use our own right position of mind, as one necessary means for the purpose, we shall never want work of the kind. The business constantly in our hands will be, either the amendment and improvement of ourselves, or the amendment and improvement of others.

"A thorough change of sentiment in morals and religion is really a rare thing; for we are more easily convinced that we have acted wrong, than that we have thought wrong.

"True Christians are really happy persons, though they owe not their happiness to those things which worldlings feed and live upon. They have many solid pleasures even in this life, but it is the hope of a better life to come that gives such pleasures themselves their principal relish.

"As from every point in the circumference of a circle we can

imagine straight lines converging to the centre, not one of which, of course, is exactly coincident with another of two on either side, however near all the three may be together; so is each individual drawn towards God, into communion with him, by a way more or less peculiar to that individual.

"In what respect is a child of God assured of his finally persevering, through faith, unto salvation? 1. All is of God, from beginning to end; and with him the means and the end are but one connected chain. 2. On man's part, assurance of forgiveness, and assurance of perseverance in grace, are not the same thing; for, 3. that which 'dureth but for a while,' is not perseverance. 4. The truest believers must undergo probationary trials, conducive to their preservation; tribulation worketh experience,' &c. 5. The nearer we approach the mark, the firmer will our assurance become, and the greater will be our triumph in it. 6. Even an apostle says, 'I am persuaded that he is able,' &c. 7. Thus we escape from the dubious position of the Romanists (who say, that a man cannot be assured of his present state of grace ;) and from the opinion of the Calvinists (that it is impossible for real believers to fall away.) 8. It is best not to ponder too much over such future contingency, but to run with patience the race which is set before us, to do it with simplicity and godly sincerity, and leave the rest to God. Faithful to himself is he that calleth me, who hath upholden me thus far, and thus long, and who also will do it.' 9. He is faithful likewise to me, he is faithfulness itself, and therefore will certainly perform what he undertakes and promises; because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee.' 10. True believers are happy the moment they die; but there is a great difference between the degree of their happiness then, and that which shall be manifested hereafter at the last day. We shall appear with him in glory; but, hitherto, the glory of the Son of God himself has not so manifestly appeared, as it shall appear hereafter.

"We may be quite assured that it is impossible, while we live out of the order of God, and in an impenitent state, to have any correct knowledge of our election to life eternal. We must first be converted to the living God. On the other hand, all who are now living in the exercise of repentance and faith, cannot be assured absolutely and equally of their election; because many of them have not yet gone through the trials of the cross, in order to be found approved.

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Many never discover the general amount of their sins till they

are upon a death-bed. They may have received remission in full; but they must come sooner or later to know what the amount remitted is. To this effect we read, Rev. ii. 4, ‘I have somewhat against thee.'

"Sin, as plaintiff, is defeated by the advocacy of Christ; but this hinders not its continuing to act against us as defendant. We sometimes meet with high-notioned persons, who think they have so got the better of it, that they may regard it as a slain enemy. We must suffer them to have their humour; only let us not overlook what experience teaches. We should be very humble and sober, lest we dogmatize either way; for it is possible to contrive a set of neatly arranged theological truisms on opposite sides, and which may strike the mind at first hearing; but such things edify not.

“The adage, that Satan flees before a holy man,' is true only in so far as a holy man continues watchful; for if he grow secure and careless, Satan will find him empty, swept, and garnished.

“While we are in this tabernacle, we have always something in ourselves to subdue and get rid of. But work of this sort does the Christian no harm; nay, our very conflicts with sin are preferable to the cheerful carnal security of those who dream that they have overcome all; especially as such conflicts need not shake our confidence in the grace of God.

“What is it that best bespeaks us in earnest, as men of real faith? When we secretly, spontaneously, and unprompted by others, are seeking the Lord, and bringing our sincere desires before him; especially when we do this with all natural readiness of mind, that is, without purposing in a cold formal manner about it. This is a way of acting, which no hypocrite can enter upon; though he may do every thing else as well as ourselves. They who thus far are seeking the truth, who are thus sincere and straightforward, will yield themselves up more and more to the guidance and government of the Spirit of God; and the inward cry of their souls to do so, becomes the key-note of all harmony and consistency in outward matters. Without this, no one can upon every occasion be a guileless character; but one is liable to slip at some time or other into dissimulation or hypocrisy. It is the sincerely praying man, and no one else, who will (entirely depart from evil, and) make thorough work of doing good amongst his fellow-men.

“Are there not many persons who, though willing enough to

perform a variety of services to God in public, neither open their hearts to him in the closet, nor come to a decided accordance with him there? The all-important matter, that on which every other matter depends, is the harmony of our will with the will of God. This will insure a holy quietness of spirit upon every thing else. Consequently advancement in the spiritual life is to be looked for, not so much in what are called sensible experiences, as far rather in a regular orderly activity, which is, in other words, letting our light shine by faithfulness in our calling; by a careful and circumspect walk and conversation; by liberality and charity upon every occasion, &c. Good works are such as a believer practises in the order of God. It is not absolutely necessary that they should always be immediately connected with sacred things, properly so called; it is enough if our cordial aim be always to coincide with the will of God, and to promote his honour and glory.

"Our endeavours to honour God are never more pure and sincere than when we learn to forget self. But what a comprehensive little word is this! Even those who have forsaken all to follow Christ, who wish for no offices of distinction, who hold no appointment, nor receive any pay for what they do, and yet are really doing much for the kingdom of God, even they may be under the influence of strong selfish motives; yes, they may be absorbed in them. It is true they have made, and are making, great exertions; still some self-complacency, some small return of human approbation, some kind of food for self-love, they cannot easily forego.

"The more any one blindly suffers his character to be formed merely by his own way of thinking, so that he gropes on, in this way, exclusively and obstinately, the more unlike he becomes to the real image of God in man, which is characterized by a noble placid openness to the light of truth. Surely it becomes us to present ourselves continually before Him who is truth itself; to come to Him as empty vessels, that require to be continually replenished, and put to use by the indwelling power of Christ; otherwise how can we be adapted to any thing essentially good? We should therefore be yielding our every thought to his influence, as constantly as if we were molten mirrors, cast on purpose to reflect his image, or as wax purposely softened in order to bear its impress. A soul possessed of true faith in Him, is docile, tender, impressible, compliant; it learns to care so supremely and entirely for him, as to be ever secretly longing