Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings. Psa. xvii. 8. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust. His truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Psa. xci. 4.

N°

O one, O Lord, has more need continually to keep close to thee in prayer and faith, and at the same time no one is more unable to do it than I, the least of all thy flock. O that thou wouldest be graciously pleased to incline and enable me to pursue this blessed work; and grant that thy good Spirit, according to his own pleasure, may never suffer me to be faint and backward in the same. While I truly rest my faith under the wings of thy grace, I am sure of defence, power, and comfort; but as soon as I wander from thee, I am in danger of losing the comfortable sense of these privileges, and falling into various errors and perplexities. Guide me, O Lord, by thy counsel, in this world, and at last receive me into glory. Amen.

He that has made his refuge God
Shall find a most secure abode,
Shall walk all day beneath his shade,
And there at night shall rest his head.

Thrice happy man! thy Maker's care
Shall keep thee from the fowler's snare,
Satan, the fowler, who betrays
Unguarded souls a thousand ways.

What, though a thousand at thy side,
At thy right hand ten thousand died,
Thy God his chosen people saves
Among the dead, amidst the graves

From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Matt. iv. 17.

THE kingdom of heaven appertains to those

who repent. The first mark of repentance is poverty of spirit; whence Jesus saith, (chap v. 3), "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for their's is the kingdom of heaven." John preached repentance; Jesus preaches it here; and so did his apostles afterward. Thus true repentance is necessary for all; and the beginning of it is, to acknowledge ourselves poor miserable sinners, depraved by nature, and totally void of any righteousness and worth of our own; to confess our nakedness; to drop all the fig-leaves of vain excuses and false comforts; to lay open our poverty and wants before God; to accuse ourselves, and plead guilty of all our sins, but seek mercy from Christ. If we do this, we are blessed, and the kingdom of heaven is our's. This poverty of spirit is both the first and the last foundation laid in the heart; for the faithful are more and more abounded in poverty of spirit, the nearer they approach to their consummation.

Pure are the joys above the sky,
And all the region's peace;
No wanton lips, nor envious eye,
Can see or taste the bliss.

Those holy gates for ever bar
Pollution, sin, and shame;

None shall obtain admittance there
But followers of the Lamb.

IF

it.

Pray without ceasing, 1 Thess. v. 17.

we have not got grace enough, it is because we do not pray enough. For, most true it is, we need not strive to move God to compassion, and extort, as it were, by our prayers, the blessings which he has promised. Very far from He is every minute communicating himself to us; in every word he holds forth Christ and every good thing to us. But we must always have a soul hungering after Christ, and by incessant prayer stretch out the hand of faith to receive him. This is chiefly to be understood of the inward desires and groanings of our spirit; but we must not omit to pour out our supplications daily, as often as we can, by words; else our secret mental prayers, at last, may become so secret as to cease entirely. Prayer is the food of the soul, the vital evidence whereby we know of its health and life, and without which it must quickly die.

Holy Father, lend an ear,

While I sue in Jesus' name;

Surely thou wilt kindly hear,
Since I bring no human claim:

Let me for adoption stay,
Only give me power to pray.

Grant me comfort, or deny;

Visit, or from me depart;
Only let thy Spirit cry,

Abba, Father, in my heart:
Abba, Father, would I say,
Only give me power to pray.

Abide in me. John xv. 4. Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life. John vi. 68. It is good for me to draw near to God. I have put my trust in the Lord God. Psalm lxxiii. 28.

O abide in Christ, who is our Righteousness

To

him, is the very life and power of Christianity.
We are in this happy state, when our thoughts
are going out after him, our hearts cleaving to
him, and our minds staying upon him.
know Christ, and thus to abide in him, as our
Righteousness, brings peace and joy; this joy
in the Lord is certainly followed with strength
to overcome sin and the world, which believers
renounce the more readily, as they have found
something better in Christ. May the Lord give
me grace, likewise, immoveably to abide in him.
O draw me, Saviour, after Thee,
So shall I run and never tire;
With gracious words still comfort me,
Be thou my hope, my sole desire;
Free me from every weight; nor fear
Nor sin can come, if Thou art here.
What in thy love possess I not?
My star by night, my sun by day,

My spring of life, when parched by drought,
My wine to cheer, my bread to stay,
My strength, my shield, my safe abode,

My robe before the throne of God.

In suffering be thy love my peace,

In weakness be thy love my power;
And when the storms of life shall cease,
Jesus, in that important hour,

In death as life be thou my guide,
And save me, who for me hast died

Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree. That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Gal. iii. 13, 14.

THE Spirit of sanctification is the gift of Christ. Consequently, there is a great difference between moral actions done by our own strength, and true sanctification of the Spirit. The latter cannot take place before the soul truly receives Christ, and abides in him as its only Propitiation, Righteousness, and Peace; for he, being first made to us, of God, our Righteousness, will then be made our Sanctification likewise (1 Cor. i. 30.) And the kingdom, work, and image of God will go on best when we trust least to our own strength. The yoke of Christ becomes easy, and his burden light, when He lives and works in us, and we, in a childlike temper, live henceforth to Him who died for us.

The law commands, and makes us know
What duty to our God we owe;

But 'tis the gospel must reveal

Where lies the strength to do his will.

The law discovers guilt and sin,

And shows how vile our hearts have been,

Only the gospel can express

Forgiving love, and cleansing grace.

My soul, no more attempt to draw
Thy life and comfort from the law;
Fly to the hope the gospel gives,
The man that trusts the promise, lives.