21. Such a soul “never opens its mouth any more” in false ekcuses to justify itself.Ezekiel 16. 16. 22. But "accepts of the punishment of his iniquity" from his Heavenly Parent.-Leviticus 26. 41. 23. His "lofty looks are humbled." Isaiah 2, 11. 24. The "countenance" shews its sorrow. Nehemiah 2. 2. 25. "Blessed" by Christ himself is this heart pronounced. Matthew 5. 5. IN WHAT WAY SUCH ARE BLESSED. 1. Christ himself invites them.-Matthew 11, 28. 2. God does "not hide his face from them."-Psalm 22. 24. 3. But "looks at that man."-Isaiah 66. 2. 4. Hears the very language in which he "bemoans himself.". Jeremiah 31. 18. 5. God "sets a mark upon" him. Ezekiel 16. 63. 6. And does "not despise his prayer," but "regards" it.-Psalm 51. 17. 7. And is "pacified towards him."-Ezekiel 16. 63. 8. "Delivers his soul from going into the pit."-Job 33. 28. 9. The "wrath of God turns away from him."2 Chron. 32. 26. 10. His "sins, which are many, are forgiven."-Luke 7. 47. 11. "The Lord is nigh, and saves him."-Psalm 34. 18. 12. "The Lord" dwells in and revives him.-Isaiah 57. 15. 13. "Heals and binds him up."-Psalm 147. 3. 14. " Comforts him.". Matthew 5. 6. 15. "Gives him more grace."James 4. 6. 16. Repentance was his gift.-Acts 5. 31. 17. And he forgives his sins.--Acts 5. 31. 18. He "shall be exalted."-Luke 14. 11. 19. And "lifted up."-James 4. 12. 20. Angels in heaven rejoice over him.-Luke 15. 7. PRACTICAL RELIGION. "What have they seen in thine house?" Two important questions, dear reader. What answer can conscience give? It may be that ungodly relations have been staying under thy roof; have they beheld those holy fruits of spiritu In ality and consistency of conduct that your profession of godliness warranted them to expect? Did the worship of your family prove to them that you acknowledged the Lord as the director of all your concerns, or did you, through fear of man, compromise your duty, and omit it, rather than be thought too particular or strict? Was the Sabbath kept as strictly as if you had been alone; or were your servants' time and Sabbath privileges at all interfered with by extra provisions for the body on that holy day of rest? Did you induce your relatives to go with you to the house of God, or did you break the Sabbath by worldly compliance, and forsaking the sanctuary through their being worldly and gay? and did you, with affection and earnestness, plead with them for their own souls' sakes to seek the Lord, and beseech them to be reconciled to God, and to receive the glad tidings of mercy? Dear reader, do not slight these enquiries; they may appear trifles; but they are not, and religion must influence over everyday conversation and company, if we would adorn the Gospel we profess, and have our light to shine before an ungodly world. our own house, in our own families, it should be seen in its reality and practical influence, or how can we expect it to spread abroad? If the ungodly visit us, and see nothing in our houses, more than in their own-if they hear us, in public, cry against a worldly spirit, and in our dress, furniture, table, and domestic intercourse, shew no difference to themselves, how can they give us credit for not being of the world, even as Christ was not of the world? and will they not be hardened in their indifference, by our glaring inconsistency with our professions at the table of the Lord, and in the church of God? Oh! let us all be awake to the importance of our example and influence with unconverted relatives! If we do indeed desire a revival of religion, let us begin at home; there let us take up the cross, and be faithful, and earnest, and affectionate, in warning them of their danger, and setting forth the willingness and mercy of the Saviour to receive, and save, and bless them. And in addition to all we say, let the holy, consistent fruits of righteousness be added: thus shall we not only with our lips, but our lives, prove that "Christ dwelleth in us, and we in him ;" that we are really "dead to the world, and alive unto God," seeking not our own ease or profit alone, but the glory of the Saviour, and the real, present, and eternal good of others around us. The Lord has greatly honoured, in all ages of his church, the efforts of his people for the salvation of their kindred according to the flesh: thus Andrew brought Peter to the Saviour, and Philip led Nathanael to his feet; and we often hear of similar good arising from similar efforts. Time is short-our friends are dying around us-let us be up and doing, while our own little thread of life and opportunity lasts, that they may have to bless our memory when we have ceased from our labours, and say, "It was by the consistency of their lives, and the holy concern manifested for my salvation, that I was led to feel the reality of religion, and my own need of it, and, blessed be God, then to seek it for myself." Oh! how will you hail such a relative to glory; how will you rejoice together in the heavenly world, and together praise the riches of the Saviour's love! FAREWELL. THE HID TREASURE. Private intelligence having been received that in a certain wild district, inhabited by the poorer class of peasants in Ireland, arms were collected and concealed for unlawful purposes, a party of military were despatched to make a sudden search in the suspected houses. Among others, they visited a poor cabin, inhabited seemingly by a very quiet, inoffensive people; where, after most careful searching, they could find no trace of what they sought. When on the point of departing, one man remarked, that the unequal, rough stone, which served as a sort of hearth, wore the appearance of having recently been moved. The earth about it was loose, and the stone seemed to have been hastily laid down. revived their suspicion, and they promptly lifted the rude flag from its place, and saw under it a parcel carefully wrapped up in some poor, ragged covering. Here was a prize! How many pikeheads, how many pistols, or what quantity of ammunition they had seized, was matter of conjecture, as they carefully unfolded the cover. This was done, and the captors held in their handsan Irish Bible. This The fact needs no explanation; every body knows, that for a poor Irishman to possess the word of God, is high treason against the Church of Rome; and that any offence given to the priesthood of that church, in a popish district, is speedily punished with the loss of the little all of the helpless victim. The Bible, if discovered, would be burned, drowned, buried, or thrust into some inaccessible corner, while a terrible penance would await the possessor of it; and any resistance thereto would incur the curse of excommunication, with all its subsequent terrors of ceaseless persecution and temporal ruin. This must be avoided, if possible, by the poor creature who has no earthly refuge to flee to, and, as yet, too feeble an apprehension of divine realities to endure as seeing Him who is invisible. Still, the Bible, The Story of Peace," as the simple Irish rightly call it, which has told him, in his own loved tongue, such things as never before entered his thoughts, to cheer him in his sad, laborious pilgrimage on earth-the Irish Bible once received, is hard, very hard, to give up. And so the trembling possessors looked around their poverty-stricken abode, and finding no place where it might be secure from the prying gaze of bigoted enmity, they took up the single stone that varied the damp surface of their cabin-floor-generally the earth on which it stands and there deposited the treasure. When night arrived, the door was secured, the opening called a window blocked up, and the precious Bible, taken from its resting-place, was read by such imperfect light as they could manage to afford; and this within the actual circuit of the British Isles; this in the heart of Protestant Britain -the very throne of freedom! I cannot tell whether the simple incident of the Bible under the stone affected me most on the point of my own comparative indifference for the rich possession, or of my lukewarmness in the work of distributing it to others. What a plea is here for increased zeal in circulating this blessed book! A few pence in the purchase, a little thought and exertion in the giving of a Bible, may bring life to the dead in a whole family a whole district. How, then, can we suffer one poor fellow, sinner to lack the treasure which would enrich us in the giving, as well as him in the receiving it?-Passing Thoughts. A CHRISTIAN'S DUTY TO THE HEATHEN. Thanks be to God, a few-the Lord increase the number a hundred fold-a few have begun to taste the luxury of "doing good." Would you hear the story of a plain man of this stamp? All along his reputation for Christian piety had been good and fair,-all along, he had given what he could conveniently spare, to promote the interests of Zion. It was a pleasant morning in the month of May, when his wife and children were gathered round him to hear him read a chapter in the Bible. It was the 28th of Matthew. When he had read the chapter, the sacred volume still lying on his knee, his family saw in his countenance the workings of a soul waked up to some new and most interesting object. At length the husband and the father-the priest of the domestic circle spoke out the feelings of his heart the new emotions which were agitating his bosom-the stedfast resolutions with which his soul was struggling. "I am," he said, "no preacher; I claim no skill in sacred criticism; yet I plainly see that this last injunction of the Saviour extends its obligations to me. I am bound to do what I can, to bring all nations acquainted with the Gospel to extend to the going down of the sun, the limits of the church. Hitherto, I have neither understood nor done my duty. Henceforth, the great object for which I will exert my powers and expend my strength, shall be bear witness, ye who hear me speak the extension and upbuilding of my Saviour's kingdom. Know, my sons and daugh. ters, that henceforth when you see your father labour and deny himself, it is not that he may add field to field-that he may augment an estate to afford you the means of sensual gratification when he is dead-to be a bait to lure your souls into a fatal snare. The improvement of your minds-the cultivation of your hearts is a thing he may not neglect. He is bound to train you up for extensive usefulness in this world, and for happiness in heaven-to exert your own powers, to act well your part on the stage of life. Beyond this my obligations do not extend beyond this I cannot go. Henceforth, my time, my influence, my substance are devoted to the cause of Christ, to the interest of the church.' This declaration made, he cast himself down at the mercy seat, and with his household sought in prayer the universal diffusion of Christian light. And when the petition, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth, as it is done in heaven," fell from his lips, they fell as words of weighty import. As he went forth to his accustomed labours, he thought his fields were clothed with a richer green than he had ever witnessed; that never before had they sent forth so sweet a fragrance. When he wiped the sweat from his brow, he felt it to be a privilege to toil for Jesus Christ. And when he He filled his bosom with the golden sheaves, his harvest joys were unspeakable. Now he exulted in the smiles of a gracious Providence, because he had learned to make those smiles subservient to the glory of his Master-to the upbuilding of the church-to the advancement of his own eternal interests. No longer did he make his benefactions a mere matter of custom or convenience. acted on principle. His exertions were the result of deliberate design of a well arranged system. To do good was his leading object an object to which other things were made subservient. And with him, it was as much a matter of calculation and provi. sion, how much he should attempt to do for the Saviour's cause, as how much he should expend to support his family. This man held on his way. The pages of his history were one continued illustration of the Saviour's memorable words, it is more blessed to give than to receive. When he died, it was an easy thing to settle his estate. It had been sent on to heaven, and turned to eternal gold. IN MEMORY OF MARY TIPLADY, Formerly a Teacher of Grimshaw Park Sunday School, Blackburn, who died February 27th, 1838, aged 27 years. When will the long, long night be gone? Life that still feebly lingers on Oh! let me now "depart in peace." |