ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, believing, ye shall receive." Are we panting after the Saviour's presence? my name, It is written: "Unto you that fear shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in his wings. If a man love me, he will keep my words, and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” Do we feel our need of spiritual wisdom and divine direction ? It is written: "If any man lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding; in all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." Are we afraid of any temporal calamity? It is written: "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. He shall cover thee with his feathers; and under his wings shalt thou trust his Truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Call upon me in the time of trouble, I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me." Does the world frown upon us, and persecute us for Jesus' sake? It is written: “Hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law fear ye not the reproach of men, neither be ye afraid of their revilings. I, even I, am He B 5 : that comforteth you: who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be as grass, and for But I will fore getteth the Lord thy Maker. warn you, whom ye shall fear. Fear Him, which, when he hath killed, hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, fear him. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you for my sake: rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven.” Do we tremble at the thought of death, and an approaching judgment? It is written : "Forasmuch as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death, he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them, who through fear of death, were all their life-time subject to bondage. The sting of death is sin; but thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Give diligence to make your calling and election sure; for so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." "These are written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name." What a precious book must that be which can thus provide for every trial and need of the Christian. There is no conceivable state of mind which we may be in, no circumstance in which we can be placed, no exercise of faith and patience which we may be called to endure, but in the Word of God we shall find direction, comfort, and support equal to our day. Surely then, we should daily prize this Word of Salvation, which reveals Jesus in all his fulness, the world in all its emptiness, and heaven in all its glory. There, as in a glass, we are taught to know ourselves, and with this lamp, we are enabled to walk in safety, amid the dangers which surround our path. O that we may have grace to receive the truth into our hearts, and to embrace it in the simplicity of faith. The doctrines and precepts, the histories and characters, the promises and threatenings contained in the Bible, are all designed to enlighten and purify the soul. Blessed will that period be, when every human being shall possess the Word of Life, and when every heart shall feel its regenerating power. Lord, hasten on this long-expected day; a day of peace and joy, when all mankind shall love as brethren, and unite to glorify thy name. O send out thy light and thy truth, let thy word have free course and be glorified, by the conversion of the world unto thee. Jesus, who is the Light of the World, shines to us through the pages of Eternal Truth. The Bible is full of Christ; it leads our souls to him as the source of its promises, the subject of its prophecies, and the substance of its revealed glories; for it pleased the Father that in Him should all fulness dwell,-fulness of light, fulness of love, fulness of power, fulness of glory. "Jesu', my Saviour, in thy face All things beside which charm the sight, "Thy beauty Lord, th' enraptur'd eye It has been well remarked, that "there are peculiarities belonging to Sacred History, so remote from every thing seen among men, and such an unearthly character is given even to its relation of ordinary concerns, that the most superficial observer can scarcely fail to distinguish it from every human production. "Its true and faithful portraiture of our own nature, its appeals to the heart of the reader, alone suffice to establish the observation. "There is a knowledge of the human heart, a master key to its subtlest recesses, which not only surpasses human penetration in its origin, but astonishes, while it terrifies the individual, whose bosom is laid open to his own inspection, and who finds himself a stranger, where he had thought himself most at home. Not a lurking passion is suffered to remain undetected in its living pictures. Motives, which we should be ashamed to avow, are dragged before our conscience in the history of another; and while his sentence is passed, we feel a personal condemnation." Thus the Bible speaks to the heart through the understanding; for, these things were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Thrice happy then is the heart in which the word of Christ dwells richly, in all wisdom and spiritual understanding. Such a heart shall be kept in perfect peace, while passing through this vale of tears. Trials may assail, and griefs may pierce its tenderest part, but all shall still be well. Faith and hope will sustain the believer amidst the swelling billows, till Jesus shall place his servant beyond the reach of sorrow. "Does the Lord of glory speak "O with what intense desire, Should we search that sacred book; "Shall not he, that humbly seeks, "Lord, thy teaching grace impart, |