hold it fast, to cleave to it with persevering faith, to yield themselves up fully to its influence.

Men may hold Christianity to be true, and yet never be under its proper influence, never continue in the faith. They may believe Christianity without acting upon it; their practical judgment and their conduct may remain the same as if Christianity were not true. But we must continue in the faith, obey its influence, and place conscience under its direction. Christianity has a Divine power to mould the soul more and more after its own image, the image of the Saviour.

To this end, we must have the same truths stated over and over again. It is not new food, but the constant return of the same simple food, which nourishes and preserves health. Thus, we do not teach you new things, but the same, and endeavour to bring your hearts into unison with them. They are divine, living, efficacious principles. When they are heard in simplicity they produce correspondent effects, though there may be a persuasion in the mind of the hearer that he has heard them before. The efficacy of the ministry consists very much in stirring up the minds of Christians by way of remembrance, recalling them to acknowledged principles. Truth is often a quiescent, inactive principle-a seed, not dead perhaps, but yet not vigorous and vivifying. But by loosening the mould, so to speak, around it, it becomes pregnant again, and shoots forth with new life.

Thus we enforce and renew the impressions which truth has made. Faith admits of all manner of degrees; for everything short of demonstration admits of degrees, and moral subjects do not allow of demonstration. The more we attend to the Christan doctrine, and fix our contemplations upon it, and renew and deepen the impressions of its truth, the more will our persuasion practically become strengthened, and our faith be vigorous and productive.

Truth becomes influential as it is brought into contact with the mind. It thus diffuses its powerful health throughout the soul.

The spiritual mind is in this way nourished; for attention to the acknowledged truths of Christianity feeds the spiritual life. There is an alienation of mind from God and goodness, which grows in us if there be no efforts of attention, no care, no vigilance in the consideration of truth. And, on the other hand, there is a spirituality of mind, which is corroborated and advanced as we bestow pains on religion, and fix our thoughts and contemplations on its doctrines, under the teaching of the Holy Ghost.

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III. The Apostles guarded their disciples from being turned away from the profession and practice of Christianity by tribulation. They told them, "how that through much tribulation," many trials, various worldly discouragements and persecutions, they must enter the kingdom of God." It was a new thing to these converts to suffer for Christ: the Saviour had only just begun to put his cup into their hands. All Christians must suffer, though not in the same degree, or under similar circumstances, with those of the first age: through much tribulation they must enter the kingdom of God. For there is a kingdom before them, and only one way to enter it, and that is by tribulation; and not by tribulation thinly scattered in the midst of flowery paths; but by much tribulation, thickly sown and continually returning.

And St. Paul doubtless confirmed the souls of the disciples by his own conduct and experience. He shewed by his return to them after being stoned, his superiority to the influence of fear. He comforted them that were in any trouble by the comfort wherewith he himself was comforted of God.

We are called to a certain proportion of the same tribulation; or if not, yet to others not less difficult

to bear. There is an opposition between the world and the church, which nothing can compose. The two bodies never can walk in union. He that is born after the flesh persecuteth him that is born after the Spirit. The seed of the serpent and the Seed of the woman are at enmity together, and nothing can destroy this internal hostility but regenerating grace. The Christian must sacrifice his popularity, the esteem of men; must be willing to be despised by many, and accounted weak and extravagant; must forego many advantages, desert many lucrative openings, and choose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. He must stand in a position ready to make any sacrifices for conscience sake.

There are seasons in every man's life when he must make his choice, and shew that he prefers eternity to all the vain advantages of this transient world.

Besides, Christians have to fight with the remains of corruption in their own hearts. They have to endure eclipses of the Sun of Righteousness. Indwelling sin will disturb their peace and joy. They are engaged in a real conflict, not merely with flesh and blood, but with principalities and powers, with the rulers of the darkness of this world, with spiritual wickedness in high places. In this conflict the Christian must struggle and fight. It is Christ, indeed, that supplies all the strength, but the Christian himself must fight: it is he himself that wields the weapons, that makes the effort, that resists and overcomes; whilst Christ strengthens his arm, and gives the internal grace.

Christ, the Captain of our salvation, was made perfect through sufferings; and so must we be. The furnace must be kindled for us, as much as for any of the saints of old. All the church has walked in this way, patiently enduring the will of God." Ye have need of patience," says the Apostle, "that after ye have CHRIST. OBSERV. No. 351.

done the will of God ye may inherit the promise." "Tribulation worketh patience, and patience experience, and experience hope."

There is an arduous struggle in the Christian course. There must be a perpetual effort, a constant resuscitation of the powers of the mind. Who can deny himself and live a life of faith, surrounded as he is with objects full of seduction, but by an effort, a resolution, a courage not to be overcome, with an eye fixed upon the Captain of his salvation?

A man may live a life of worldly morality, and be applauded, and feel no conflict within or without; but if a man is truly spiritually minded, and acts accordingly, he will have fightings and persecutions to endure. And one way of confirming the soul is to remind us that this is necessary; that Jesus Christ did not deceive us, that he bid us from the first to sit down and count the cost.

Are there, then, any before me in danger of being moved from their stedfastness? Let them recollect that these tribulations are the very test of their Christian profession. Grace which is not tried can never be known to be genuine. God designs by these afflictions to humble you, and to prove you, to know what is in your heart.

Do not think that because discouragements arise you must decline the particular duties before you. Just the contrary. The more difficulties arise, the more it is the will of God, supposing the thing be in itself right, that you should go on. "Our light afflictions, which are but for a moment, work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory."

And when we set the kingdom which is before us over against the trials in the way, there appears to be no comparison between them. Soon will the conflict be over: soon will the storms of the voyage give place to an eternal serenity.

Can we, then, for a moment hesitate as to our choice? Shall we not, like the Apostles, rejoice that

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we are counted worthy to suffer shame for his name? Shall we not consider it, as they did, a gift vouchsafed by Divine goodness, to suffer for the sake of Christ? "To you," says the great Apostle, "it is given, on the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake."

Let us aim, then, at that rooted piety, which takes stronger hold and becomes more deeply fixed in consequence of our trials. The true Christian who has passed through much tribulation is ripened thereby for the glory and bliss of heaven. God has sufficient cordials for his suffering servants to make them rejoice in tribulations. And the same God can embitter all worldly prosperity to those who refuse to suffer for him; and make it either awfully destructive in its consequences, or send his frown with it, which shall make them loathe their earthly comforts and pleasures. He has promised to give his afflicted servants all things that pertain unto life and godliness; yea, that he will withhold no good thing from them that walk uprightly.

(To be continued.)

ON THE MESSAGE OF JOHN THE
BAPTIST TO JESUS.

To the Editor of the Christian Observer. THE reason why John the Baptist sent his disciples to Jesus, to know whether or not he was the Messiah, has been thought by the commentators to require explanation: "Art thou he that should come, or look we for another ?" (Matt. xi. 2.)

It appears from the earlier part of John's ministry that he himself pointed out Jesus as the Messiah, and therefore, it is contended, could require no additional satisfaction on that head; and that his motive for sending the message to Jesus was, not to convince himself, but to convince his disciples.

There are some objections to this explanation.

1st. It is not the most obvious interpretation; and that interpretation should not be abandoned, except it be necessary to preserve consistency in different passages of Scripture.

2d. There seems no reason why he should intimate doubts himself which he did not entertain, when he might just as reasonably and as easily have professed his object in the message to have been to satisfy the doubts of his disciples: much less why our Saviour should seem, as it were, to countenance a deception, by telling the messengers to "go and shew John again" the things which they heard and saw; when he must have known, from his Divine intuition, that John himself wanted no satisfaction upon the subject, but only his disciples, if such had been the fact.

3d. It appears that not only John himself, but also his disciples, at one time believed Jesus to be the Messiah; for Andrew, and another of John's disciples, left John upon his pointing out Jesus as the Lamb of God, and followed the latter. And the next day Andrew told his brother Peter, "We have found the Messiah, which is, being interpreted, the Christ."

At one time, therefore, it should seem to have been the persuasion of the disciples of John, as well as of John himself, that Jesus was the Messiah; and there seems no reason why they should require further satis. faction, if he did not.

Perhaps the most obvious and natural explanation of the matter is, that, though John at first believed Jesus to be the Messiah, he had afterwards some doubts about it, and that to remove these doubts was the object of the message. If these doubts can be rationally accounted for, the only difficulty upon the subject is at an end.

We are told that certain facts and circumstances respecting Jesus were miraculously revealed to John, which

prominent to human apprehension, and striking characteristic of the Messiah, by putting himself at the head of the government, investing himself with temporal power and authority, and restoring the independence and glory of the Jewish nation. He might probably hope also, under such a dispensation, for an amelioration of his own condition, and protection and relief from his oppressors.

But being disappointed in this expectation; finding that Jesus took no steps towards investing himself with temporal power; that this supposed feature of the character of the Messiah was still wanting in him; and that, so far from Jesus being in a condition to afford him protection or support, he was more than ever exposed to the power of his persecutors, who had recently consigned him to prison; he might naturally begin to entertain some doubts, not indeed that Jesus was a person of extraordinary character and attributes, and highly favoured and commissioned of God, but that he was the very Messiah predicted in the prophecies. The object, therefore, of the message in question may well have been to satisfy these doubts.

The mode which our blessed Saviour took to satisfy the doubts of John, is very remarkable. He does not suddenly strike conviction on his mind; he does not pronounce himself with authority to be the Messiah: be merely desires the messengers to tell John what they saw and heard; and thus supplies him, by the natural means of human testimony, with all the information which he wanted to enable him, with the knowledge of the prophecies which he possessed, to deter mine whether Jesus was the promised Messiah or not. So that the evidence on which the faith of John rested was, as to the facts of the case, that same solid foundation of unimpeachable human testimony open to all other persons.

Upon the whole, the only knowledge John could have had of the

Messiah (setting aside any special inspiration) must have been from prophecy. The only means of knowing whether any particular person was the Messiah, must have been by comparing the actions and circumstances of such person with the actions and circumstances attributed to the Messiah in the prophecy. The belief, therefore, that such particular person was the Messiah, must have been stronger or weaker, according as the circumstances of his life, as they arose one after another, corresponded more or less with the prophecy, or with the expectations founded upon the prophecy. The few circumstances of the early life of Jesus, with which John was personally acquainted, literally corresponded, or were exactly consistent, with the prophecies of the Messiah; and upon these was founded his first belief that Jesus was the Messiah. His faith afterwards wavered, upon finding that Jesus did not fulfil the further expectations which he, as well as others, had erroneously (in respect, at least, to the time of their fulfilment) formed of the Messiah. And he reasonably sought to be satisfied, whether, notwithstanding one main circumstance was yet wanting to complete in his idea the character of the Messiah, Jesus was the person who it was prophesied should come, or whether they were to expect another person : « Art thou he that should come, or look we for another ?" The answer Jesus returns is not an authoritative declaration upon the subject, but a simple reference to his own actions; which were of a nature so peculiar, so extraordinary, so plainly miraculous, and so exactly conformable to the representations contained in the prophecy of the Messiah, as to leave no doubt on the mind of the Baptist that Jesus, and no other, was the Messiah pointed out by the Scriptures as "He that should come."

If this be a true account of the message sent by John to our Saviour, it gives occasion to the following observations.