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lect of prayer. Be diligent in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; and cultivate a temper and habit which shall form a pleasing counterpart to the character of thy Savior. Attend to what God the Lord shall say unto you, and let it be the language of your heart; Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth: otherwise, if you refuse and rebel, the Holy Spirit will not only withhold his common influences, but absolutely fight against you, and become your enemy.

GROUNDLESS ENVY.

SPIRITUAL gifts are for the common benefit of Christians. It is as unreasonable for a believer to envy, or grieve at the gifts or graces which a brother possesses for his good, as it would be for a working smith, with a weak arm, to fall out with his shopmate who strikes the iron for him.

IMPARTIALITY.

Review of Rev. Mr. T.'s Sermon, occasioned by the death of his wife. MR. T. mentions his deceased partner's faults, as well as her excellences; and we do not here see, as is too often the case in funeral sermons, a spotless angel, but a daughter of fallen Eve, sanctified by the grace of Jesus Christ.

THE COMING OF THE LORD.

I HAVE Sometimes indulged my imagination by suppos. ing I beheld the morning sun arise, and nature appearing in all her glory, animated beings quitting their wonted repose, and every countenance smiling and looking joyful; the laborer returning to his employ, and men of leisure to their various recreations; they marry, they are given in VOL. I. * 4

marriage; and business and pleasure occupy the world. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, the trumpet sounds! The dead arise! The artificer drops his hands! The man of pleasure stands amazed! The whole earth is filled with astonishment! And all the plots and contrivances of men immediately cease! In the midst of the heavens the Judge appears! Ten thousand thunders roll before him! The books are opened! Every heart is searched! All secrets are revealed! An everlasting division is made between the followers of the Lamb, and the objects of eternal vengeance; and both go away to their own place.

Circumstances apart, a very little while will realize the scene, drop the curtain, and hide all things else from our eyes for ever. Then shall immutability be written upon our state; and happiness or misery be our everlasting portion.

PECULIAR SUPPORT TO A FAITHFUL, TRIED

MINISTER.

A PERSON, having been called of God to the important work of preaching to dying men the unsearchable riches of Christ, through extreme diffidence of his abilities, and having preached for several years, seemingly to little purpose, came to a resolution to preach no more. Happening to be much straitened in his sermon on a Lord's day afternoon, and drinking tea afterward with some Christian friends, he hinted his intention to them, and declared that he could not preach even that same evening. They represented the disappointment it must be to a large congregation who were assembling together, as no other minister could possibly be procured then to supply his place, and

therefore they begged he would try once more. He replied, that it was in vain to argue with him, for he was quite determined not to preach any more. Just at that instant, a person knocked at the door, and being admitted, she proved to be a good old experienced Christian, who lived at a considerable distance, and she said, she came on purpose to desire Mr...... to preach that evening from a particular passage of scripture; she said she could not account for it; but she could not be happy without coming from home to desire it might be preached from, that evening. Being asked what the text was, she said she could not tell where

it

was, but the words were these: "Then I said, I will · speak no more in his name, but his word was as a fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay."

This extraordinary circumstance so struck the preacher, that he submitted to preach from these words that evening; and, experiencing much liberty, has continued in the work ever since, with wonderful success and comfort.

N B. The good woman has often protested since, that she knew nothing of the minister's intention, or the debate about his preaching.

IMPROMPTU......BY A LADY.

VIRTUE has a thousand charms,

Which vice can seldom see

Till beckon❜d by the hand of death;
Then vice would virtue be.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT.

AMONG the greatest truths of Christianity, I place those of the divinity of the Holy Spirit, and the necessity of his influences upon the human mind, in order to men's becoming spiritual and Christ like. The apostle Paul declares, 1 Cor. ii. 10, that the Spirit searcheth all things; yea, the deep things of God. Other proofs from scripture need not be added. The Spirit which searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God, must be allowed, I think, to be divine.

In love and tenderness to those who have fallen into error on this important point, I intreat them to reconsider the above passage of scripture, and the many others which speak the same language, and plainly assert the same doctrine. Much and earnestly do I wish, that they may no longer grieve that Holy Spirit, by whom alone they can be sealed to the day of redemption.

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The influences of the Spirit of God are declared, in a variety of passages, to be necessary to our illumination, sanctification, and consolation. Unless a man be born of this Spirit, he cannot see the kingdom of God: John iii. 3. He cannot enter into the world of glory and happiness, because he is not prepared for it. For this reason, it appears to be one of the great duties of a minister of Christ, to take every opportunity to impress on the minds of his hearers, the need they have of the blessed Spirit, to make them wise unto salvation, and to prepare them for the presence of their glorious Lord.

"We must preach the necessity of the Holy Spirit's influences on the heart of man, in order to help him to be. lieve unto salvation, to apply the word to him, to enlighten

him to understand it; and to give him a will to obey it. I fear a departure from the scriptures in this, as well as in many other important points, has done much mischief, and is one cause of the iniquity which so much abounds among us. If ministers would be honored in their la bors, they should honor that heavenly and divine Spirit, from whom grace and goodness proceed.

I wish all who cast an eye upon these lines, may be ena. bled to lift their hearts to God, in earnest, fervent prayer, for the unspeakable gift of his Holy Spirit. It is your welfare, dear readers, that I seek. It is your salvation for which I long. My desire is, that you may be happy when the world and time are no more. Christ himself hath assured us, for our encouragement, that the Father will give his Holy Spirit to them that ask him. O! ask, therefore, that ye may receive; seek, that ye may find; and knock at the door of mercy that it may be opened unto you.

I.

AN ANSWER TO THIS IMPORTANT INQUIRY; How am I to know whether I have the Holy Spirit? Ir you have the Holy Spirit; 1, you have seen the evil of sin; 2, you have repented of sin; 3, you have forsaken sin; 4, you hate sin; 5, you watch and pray against sin; 6, you have received the spirit of love. If you have the Spirit of God, you love God supremely; you love the Father who gave his Son to suffer and die; you love the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, for what he hath done and suffered on your account. You love all the sincere followers of Jesus Christ, and confine not your regards to a party. You love the human race at large, as children of the same

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