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legality. Spiritual purification is not to be obtained in either of these regions. In the nature of things it cannot be, and the attempt to realize it is very vanity.

The utterances of Scripture on this subject, whether few or many, are sure to harmonize with each other; not merely because Scripture does not contradict itself, but because the essential law of the subject is found, as we have seen, in the remarkable words of the beloved disciple. Nevertheless, for practical purposes, we may look at a few other passages. "Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as he is, so are we in this world." What is the key to this? A truth which no human being will deny, which does not depend upon its place in the Bible for its veracity, but which the Holy Ghost has graciously adapted from the experience of humanity, and consecrated to the holiest of all services. What is it? "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear." Of course it does. How implicit and absolute the confidence between the husband and the wife where perfect love reigns! He has no fear of her entire and perfect fidelity; she, none of his manly and undivided attachment. He sees no human being to compare with her; she, none that equals him. They are one! This is "perfect love;" and there is neither room for, nor possibility of, fear where that reigns. Well; apply this law of "perfect love" to the saint and his Lord, and you will have no difficulty in perceiving how the former will have boldness-calm, joyous confidence-when the latter comes to judge the world in righteousness. Their mutual love is "perfect;" there is, therefore, not the shadow of fear. Is it possible that a man can be in this state in relation to his Redeemer, and not feel that purity is essential to his happiness? He loves the Holy One of God, can he avoid loving holiness? He hopes shortly to see the glorious Being whom he loves; can he avoid purifying himself even as his Divine Head- his life, his all-is pure. Clearly there is nothing of what the world calls theological mystery about all this. It is just heart answering to heart, the great law of affinity working out its proper results in this highest and holiest region of moral activity.

But whilst the beautiful law itself remains the same, the mode of presenting it to believers varies. Sometimes it takes the form of a precept, but a precept recognising, be it carefully noted, the state of mind of those to whom it is addressed. Example: "Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless." The word is to those who have "obtained precious faith through the righteousness of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ." In apostolic days every believer

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looked for the return of the Lord from heaven before the promises of "restitution of all things" could possibly be fulfilled: and the fact that they thus looked is recognised and approved by the Holy Ghost, whilst he founds upon it an encouraging precept, which the saints would welcome with joy-"Be diligent, that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot and blameless." (2 Pet. iii. 14.)

"But they died before his coming." They did. Is that an objection to the doctrine? It is so employed frequently, but without either relevancy or force. For (1), it is not said that He would come before their death. The counsel is that they would so live as to be "found of him" in peace without spot, and blameless. His coming was the object of their hope. With this hope strong in them, they fell asleep in Jesus. That shaped and fashioned their saintly character whilst they lived. And (2), when He comes to raise them, He will find them exactly what they were when they fell asleep; that is to say, they "will be found of him without spot, and blameless." No change has either passed over their character, or affected their relation to Him since He put them to sleep. They will be awakened in the morning of the resurrection with boundless joy, to find that their hope of his coming was a divine inspiration, and that they were not deceived in cherishing it.

Thus, also, to the Corinthians the Spirit speaks: "Ye come behind in no gift, waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Cor. i. 7, 8.) It was the coming of the Lord they waited for-confirmation unto the end, in that hope, was the thing promised—“ blamelessness in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ" is the assured result. He will raise them up, when He comes, with the holy character they possessed when He put them to sleep, when they shall find that the Lord they looked for has come!

To the Philippians, accordingly, this word is sent: "Being confident of this very thing, that he who hath begun a good work in you, will perform it until the day of Christ. And this I pray that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; that ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ." (Phil. i. 6, 9, 10.) Here, as before, the day of Christ was the goal upon which the eye was fixed -the return of the Lord Jesus, "the blessed hope" of the saints. Death might intervene, but that is always ignored as of no consequence. They fell asleep, "looking for the Lord;" they will arise when He comes, and see Him! They believed that everything was bound up in his return. They were right, and their faith will be amply justified. They did not look for the conversion of the world; the

establishment of the kingdom; the universal reign of righteousness; the resurrection of the saints; or the deliverance of creation from its groanings, until the return of their Lord. That return, therefore, was the ennobling, animating, purifying hope of their hearts. What had falling asleep before the unrevealed hour when this hope should be realized, to do with it? Absolutely nothing! Neither their characters nor God's purposes would be changed whilst they slept. In the morning it will be as they believed-be as God designed it should. The hope of seeing the Lord was theirs, and it "purified" them. If that hope be ours, it will have the same effect. Holding the faith once delivered to the saints, we shall, by the operation of the Spirit, possess the saintly character, and, sleeping or waking, we shall be the Lord's, and shall not be ashamed before Him at his coming. When He comes, a period which every hour brings nearer, there will be some of his people alive in the flesh. These shall not die, or be put to sleep; for death to any of the saints when He who is their life has come, is clearly impossible; but they shall be changed in a moment after their sleeping brethren have been raised, and together the Church of the first-born ones shall ascend to the "presence" of Him they all loved and looked for. Let the practical holiness, which vouches for the power of our faith in the Lord's coming, be seen in our lives. For "every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He is pure."

WE

A TERRIBLE CHARGE.

E have had occasion-reluctantly, but in the faithful discharge of a duty which we durst not omit-to speak of the slumbering state of the Church; but our complaints have been few and gentle compared with those of Mr. Cornwall in his little book now on our table.* It is, moreover, very suggestive that whilst he produces much evidence in support of the allegation that the Church is "asleep," he says nothing about the pre-millennial coming of the Lord, so that his evidence, which was obviously never intended to sustain the "millenarian theory" as it is flippantly called by those who are ignorant of its meaning-is that of a gentleman who has no sympathy with our convictions. At least we are entitled to conclude that he has not, partly from the remedies he

"The Present Crisis of the Church of God; and the Momentous Inquiry why her spiritual Triumphs and Extension are being so very much arrested in the Nineteenth Century." By E. CORNWALL. London: Partridge.

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suggests, and partly from the fact that the "blessed hope" of the Lord's coming is never mentioned. It is true that this small book is only a "section of a larger work, about to be published," in which "the bright and glorious future of the universal Church will be comprehensively set forth, in the clear light of Scripture, with, it is hoped, prayerful direction, without the exaggeration of excited imagination, or the delusive colourings of any false prophetic theory." But we fear that this promise, cheering as it is, does not include that which we consider the divinely appointed succour in the darkest hour of the rapidly developing apostasy. It is, of course, very gratifying to find Mr. Cornwall bracing himself nobly against "the delusive colourings of any false prophetic theory." This is the very thing against which we ourselves contend: for we are quite sure that false prophetic theories are causing desolation in the Church.

Our author promises much, and we wait, with as much patience as we can command, to see the splendid fulfilment. "Then it will be proved," says he, "from the only standard of truth, and the extraordinary events which have been long transpiring both in the political and ecclesiastical worlds, that the present dark and most foreboding aspect of the Christian Church will, in a comparatively limited period, be as effectually changed to glory and loveliness, as the earth appears changed, when from comparative darkness and gloom, the sun ascends above the horizon and gilds every object." And he adds, thereby exciting our expectation to the highest degree: "The special aim in drawing forth, in the remaining parts of this treatise, a panoramic vista of the future, has been to concentrate, as clearly and convincingly as possible, all the lights of Scripture, to illustrate on the one hand the Divine meaning of these richly emphatic words, Glorious things are spoken of thee, O City of God'; and on the other, to present, with the marvellous signs of the present era-the exact revealed arrangement, or true symmetry of prophetic Scripture; so that without any confusion or perplexity, the Christian reader may be enabled to step forward in spirit, from one age to another, till he arrives at the confines of eternity and beholds with joy the consummation of all things; exclaiming with saints and angels before the throne, Alleluia; for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth !'"

We are thus promised a view of prophecy without any confusion or perplexity; but alas! our anticipations are somewhat damped when we find "the Christian Church," and the "city of God" confounded in the writer's thoughts as if they were the same thing. We fear he is about to rob the Jew for the benefit of the Christian, as many have done before him.

April 1, 1868.

Again and again in a variety of forms, Mr. Cornwall asks, "How shall we account for the palpable fact that the Gospel, in our day, appears, generally speaking, so paralysed?.... Who or what is the cause of the manifest arrest of Divine power in saving souls over the world? of the present desolate state of the Church of God? and of the multitudes who are dying all around our doors, in almost perfect ignorance of salvation? not to speak of the hundreds of millions who have been suffered from age to age, and are now being suffered to perish, without an audible voice being ever heard by them, warning them of their danger, and pointing them to the Lamb of God who taketh away the sins of the world? Who, or what is the cause?" At last we come to an answer: "But it will now be shown, that one great desolating cause of these innumerable, tremendous, and eternal losses of immortal souls, and injuries to the Redeemer, is to be traced to the slumbering and sleeping state of the Church of God; in whose skirts is to be found in no small degree the blood of myriads of souls during many ages.

Now we at least are not likely either to deny or palliate the sleep thus reprobated with all the vigour of capital letters; for this magazine would not have existed but for the sad fact that the Church is "asleep" in relation to the truth, the glory and the nearness of the second coming of her Lord. Our cry to the slumberers, as far as our voice can reach, is, "Behold! the Bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him." But in the name of truth, of the Gospel, and of the loving Saviour Himself, we must protest against the wild sensationalism which charges the Church of God with "the blood of myriads of souls." It is not merely an exaggeration, which should never have seen the light, but a daring assertion so shamelessly impudent that, because it cannot blush, we blush for it. "The Church of God" a wholesale murderer of myriads of souls! "Innumerable, tremendous, and eternal losses of immortal souls, and injuries to the Redeemer!" What can such appalling language mean? If it really represents corresponding ideas in the writer's mind, he must of necessity, as a benevolent man, look upon the existence of the Church he speaks of as the greatest calamity that ever befell our poor, distracted, sinning, groaning world! It had sorrow enough before without the addition of this new infliction-a body which professes to be its salt and light, but which actually has been pouring out its blood in a horrible stream "during many ages!" Such a frightful charge as this makes one stand aghast; human language cannot describe the picture of iniquity which it brings before the mind; all the annals of crime in our blood-stained world ever since the night of the first murder are as nothing to it! Mr. Cornwall