people. If the Christian looks to His death to atone for his sins, he looks to His rising power to give new life to his soul. In receiving the great truth that His death is the sacrifice for his sins, He dies to sin; but in looking to Him as rising and living again, he obtains new life from Him now, and a pledge of eternal life at last. If by His death received by faith we die to sin, by His resurrection we rise to a new and divine life in connexion with Him. We come forth from the death of sin, to rise to the life of righteousness; from a state of gloom and despondency we attain to the life of hope and peace, and purity and joy. The living Saviour becomes our life. With grateful emotions we say, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which, according to His abundant mercy, hath begotten us again to a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." Being risen with Christ we seek the things which are above, and He says, “Because I live, ye shall live also." "Your life is bound up in mine, and shall ever be maintained by me."

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3. This is the joy of His friends, because it shows to them that He is able continually to watch over them and to secure the interests of His church. What would have been the condition of the early disciples of Christ if their Lord had remained under the power of death? They must have given up His cause as hopeless, and have felt that they were exposed to all the power of their foes. How great would have been the triumph of His enemies on earth, and how would Satan and his hosts have exulted. But when their Lord had risen they saw that they had a living immortal friend in Him; and when, before He ascended to His glory, He said, "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world," what joy did it excite in their hearts! So if we are looking to Jesus who was crucified as our Lord and Redeemer, what reason have we for joy that He ever lives to carry on His great designs, to watch over His cause, to secure the interest of His church and people. All

power is given to Him in heaven and on earth. Our all in life and in death is in His hands, and He is the unchanging source of good to His followers.

4. This is the joy of His people, because it is the pledge of their final resurrection and future glory. They must, like their Lord, pass through death and descend to the grave; and there they must ever have lain, if Jesus had not risen. For if Christ be not raised from the dead, neither will His people rise.. By descending to the grave He seemed to sweeten and to sanctify it to His followers, so that we may sing

"The graves of all His saints He blest,
And softened every bed;

Where should the dying members rest
But with their dying Head?"

But we may raise our songs again, and say

"Yet as the Lord our Saviour rose,

So all His followers must."

He rose as the first-fruits of them that slept, and all that are united to Him shall rise in glory, to be with Him for ever. This is their hope and joy. "Our conversation is in heaven, from whence we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall change these vile bodies, that He may fashion them like unto His own glorious body, according to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto himself." "When Christ who is our life shall appear, then shall we also appear with Him in glory." "So shall we be for ever with the Lord." "Wherefore comfort one another with these words." Ashley, near Harborough, T. C. May 11th, 1863.

CAIAPHAS PROPHESIETH.

JOHN xi. 51, &c.

WE ought certainly, without doubt, to be very grateful that good men have lived; they laboured, and we reap in abundance the benefits of their toil; they declared and testified great truths, and maintained heaven-born principles, and we are blessed by having their sayings for our guidance; though they

now rest from their labours their works do follow them, though they are dead they speak, and we possess the inheritance which the good men have left to their children, even the inheritance of wise words, sound counsels, and the examples of holy living and blameless conduct in the world.

But have we not also to bless the Great Source of all good that ever bad men have lived? Not only do they serve us as beacons and warnings to flee all things which made them notorious and abominable, but they have been made use of by God, even in the times of their hottest rebellion against Him, to show forth His praise; "the wrath of man shall praise thee." Many and choice are the sayings of such men, who, when like Balaam, and he is one of them, when they have tried to curse, have actually blessed; they could not speak as they would, and how galling this must have been to them; when they made an effort to speak in contempt, they have contrariwise spoken in terms of loudest praise. We look upon the fact of Balaam's ass finding a tongue and reproving his master with surprise; but it was not one bit more wonderful than Balaam's own conduct. Nor was the raising of Lazarus from the grave a much greater miracle than Caiaphas making such a blunder as to predict such glorious truths as those to which he gave utterance in the council of chief priests and Pharisees. When Christ, not in person, but in His works, was brought before them, he would have said, and indeed did say in effect, "Put Him to death, that His mighty acts may be prevented, that His great influence on the hearts and minds of men may cease to be exercised and felt; if He is allowed to continue His miracles and teaching, all men will believe on Him, and it will be the sure destruction of our nation; it is expedient that He be put to death, that the nation be preserved and perish not." Then, as it were, unintentionally and unconsciously, being governed by God and directed by His Spirit, he added, in

prophetic language, that Jesus should die for that nation, and not for that nation only, but that also He should gather in one the children of God that were scattered abroad. What words from one who was diametrically opposed to the spirit and principles of Christianity! The blessings and the extent of the disposal of the blessings procured by Christ in his sacrificial character, are prefigured and shown; it is a prophecy which at the very time it was spoken was beginning to be fulfilled, which has been fulfilling ever since, and which only will be fully and completely consummated when the whole number of God's people, the whole number of the elect, shall be accomplished and gathered in. The prediction obviously contains the doctrine of the atonement and the divine purpose it embodies and reveals.

Jesus should die that He might gather into one the people of God that were scattered abroad. The fall and estrangement of our race from holiness and God, made it necessary that some one should be found who could and would make free, full, and sufficient reparation for our misdeeds and guilt, ere we could look up with confidence to our Creator and enjoy sweet communion with Him. Such an one could not be found among men-there was no man-there was no intercessor but God, and He in the person of His Son brought salvation. We are fully acquainted with the incar nation of Him "who was rich, yet for our sakes became poor," making himself of no reputation, taking upon self the form of a servant, and being made in the likeness of men, submitting him. self to the vicissitudes, cares, and weak. nesses of humanity, was obedient unto death, even the death of the cross; so fulfilling the law and making it honourable, bearing the heavy burden of His people's guilt, and finally expiring in agony on the cross, that He might them from the curse consequent on sin; so purchasing redemption for all who believe on Him and accept Him. He must die that He might procure eternal life-He must die, or our case was hope

him

save

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less and helpless-He must die, or we must suffer eternal death-He must die, or we must appear before the throne of the great Judge of quick and dead, clad in shame and guilt, and hear the word depart "-He must die and make a way to God; and He has died. Now God is reconciled, and the invitation of the Gospel is, "be ye reconciled to God." Christ hath removed the great barrier that intervened between men and God. He hath opened a new and living way; He hath taken away the sin that barred His people from holding fellowship with God, now both are one. God is continually pouring down upon His people showers of blessings, and they are doing His will and rejoicing in hope of His glory; they are part of Himself, and part of the church above, to whose happy state and glorious abode they all shall eventually come.

I say not with some that Christ died for a few, nor can any say so with truth, since we know that thousands upon thousands of the redeemed are now sat down with Him on His throne, wearing the conqueror's crown; but viewed in another light they are few; they are few when compared with the countless thousands who are now enduring the torments of eternal fire, and the great numbers who are heedlessly wending their way thither. When we say that the atonement made by Christ is a general remedy for the ruin by sin and spiritual death of mankind, and that such remedy is specially applied by God to whomsoever He will, we cannot with any reason suppose that any for whom Christ died are, or ever will be, in hell. If salvation is the gift of God, of the bestowment of His divine grace mercy (which we must acknowledge is a scriptural truth), and not by any procurable by the sinner-if God gave and accepted Christ as a ransom for His people, and a sacrifice for the sin of the world—it is folly to presume He will not effectually bestow and apply the blessings of that death and atonement upon and to every soul of His people, or that He will confer such

means

VOL. XX.

and

that

blessings upon one soul over and above the number of the elect. We do acknowledge that salvation by Christ is a divine and precious gift, flowing from the boundless mercy of our all-merciful God; a gift which all the sinner's gold could never purchase, nor wealth ever buy. Christ has redeemed His people by the shedding of His own precious blood. Now the guilty may be forgiven and rebels hope to enter heaven. God gives to whom He will; not to the good, the great, the mighty, the noble, or the wise; not to these does He vouchsafe the benefits, and choose them to be partakers of this atonement, but God hath chosen and still doth choose the foolish, the base, the veriest sinners, making them subjects of His grace, and by repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ making them inheritors of the kingdom of heaven. Had God's purpose and design been to save every soul, we should then, knowing that many perish, be in a position to laugh at Him, because in letting sinners go down to hell, He either shows that He never intended to save them, or else that He is utterly unable and powerless to do so; the latter cannot be. Then the conclusion of the whole matter is safely and easily arrived at; God, from all eternity, formed a people for His praise, who should by His own power be rescued from the deep pit and miry clay of depravity and brought into His marvellous light; enjoying the liberty wherewith Christ makes His children free, and yielding themselves to His service and performing His will while they live, they are at length permitted more fully to enjoy Him where all sorrow is for ever banished, nor wave of trouble nor night ever enter. The unrighteous are, after a life spent in the service of sin, consigned to their inevitable portion of endless misery and woe, which, but for the mercy of God, is the common lot of us all.

The prediction is yet unfulfilled in part; many of God's jewels are in the gall of bitterness, in the bonds of iniquity, in the dirt and mire of sin,

D D

slaves of Satan and bound fast in his chains; and many who shall be His are yet unborn. But Christ came to gather them into one, he came to seek and to save the lost, to reclaim and bring back the wanderers. Many are the institutions of His own appointment, and many are the means His own people employ for the accomplishment of His will and purpose in the salvation of souls-all which means He will own and bless; they who are professedly His people are constrained by the most endearing and sacred ties to labour and pray that His kingdom may come, that soon Christ may have full and entire satisfaction in seeing all for whom He endured the pangs of death, walking in the narrow path that leadeth to eternal life. By the example of those who have laboured zealously in the cause of Christ, by the precepts of God's word, and chiefly by the love of Christ within us, we are constrained to hold not our peace day or night, nor to give God any rest, till He establish and till He make Jerusalem a praise in the earth. The Great Head over all to His church shall have every member of His body added to Him. Israel's powerful Shepherd shall have every one of His peculiar, chosen people gathered into His fold, and He shall lead and protect them. O then for the fulfilment of the prophecy, when every heart shall be renewed and offer praise to God, when the indwelling of the Spirit shall be enjoyed by all who see the light or feel the sun; not until then shall the unspeakable and extensive grace of our God and Saviour have its purpose attained. Let us work in faith, and comfort ourselves with the thought that we know not whether this or that shall prosper, or whether both shall be alike good. Let us be actuated and inspired with holy zeal and stimulated to greater and more selfdenying labour by God's promise to His servants, "Lo, I am always with you." Ministers of the Gospel, ye know not how many of your congregations shall adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour, and be your crown of rejoicing at the

last day; therefore preach to them boldly and faithfully the great theme of salvation. Let missionaries in their arduous toil be encouraged, for they shall come from the east and west, and north and south, and sit down with Christ in His kingdom; the North shall be commanded to give up, and the South to keep not back: heathendom shall yield a rich harvest of precious souls to be gathered into the heavenly garner. Let Sabbathschool teachers and those who have the training of youth be encouraged and incited to increased piety and labour. Jesus came to bless such souls as are given in their charge; He will hear us when we pray for them, He will bless them when they are taught, and we kuow not how many, nor which of them, are His; but He came to gather them into one, and He will bless the labours of His servants to their conversion. And let all God's people begin to manifest a deeper and more hearty sympathy with their perishing fellowmen, be more mindful of their great responsibility, and strive earnestly and prayerfully to discharge every Christian duty, not living to themselves but to God's glory, and seeking it in the conversion of sinners. May God hasten the time when that salvation shall be possessed by all the chosen race, and when the multitude which no man can number, out of every nation, and people, and language, and tongue, shall be complete in righteousness.

"Pity the nations, O our God,
Constrain the world to come;
Send Thy victorious word abroad,
And bring the strangers home."
Knutsford.
W. CLAYTON.

"TRUST IN GOD."

TRUST in God is warranted by the Scriptures, is needful unto our comfort, and will be followed by a recompence which only He can give.

Whatever may be our circumstances in life, however tried our faith or dark our way, trust in God is our first Christian duty, our best measure, our safest resource. That we shall have difficulties, and experience trials in this life, all

are prepared to acknowledge. God appoints changes in nature, and He sees it best for His creatures to have change in their earthly experiences; and of all men, the followers of the Lord Jesus are mostly to expect trials in this lifetrials to wean them from the world, trials to elicit their heavenly graces, trials to stir them up to prayer, and urge their longings after the rest to come. As the poet writes

"Trials make the promise sweet;
Trials give new life to prayer;
Trials bring us to His feet,

Lay us low, and keep us there." There are seasons when absolute trust in God is the believer's only refuge. Job once said, "When I looked for good, then evil came unto me; and when I waited for light, there came darkness" (Job xxx. 26). And how did he then act? What was his resource ? Humble, child-like resignation; holy, ardent reliance of soul on the unchangeable and eternal God. "Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him” (Job xiii. 15). Oh! it is a great conquest over nature, over our striving unbelief, over the potent adversary, this TRUST IN GOD. How fears combat it; how anxiety forbids it; how unbelief repulses it. 'What!" said Job's wife, "trust in God when He is slaying thee?"

It may seem to the view of human nature that God's providence is militating against us, when stroke after stroke falls

upon our lot and ourselves. "All these things are against me," exclaimed poor trembling Jacob (Gen. xlii. 36). And as it was in his day, so trials often, trials heavy, will press us down, and trials sharp will hedge us around. What shall be done? There is no way of escape-there is no shaking off the trial. The ponderous weight brings tears from the eyes and groans from the bosom, and the tempter says, "Curse God and die" (Job ii. 9). What does Patience reply? Patience says, "Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?" (Job ii. 10.) What does Faith say? Faith says, "Clouds and darkness are round about Him; rightand judgment are the habitation

eousness

of His throne" (Ps. xcvii. 2). · "I will trust and not be afraid." What does Love say? Love looks up out of her deep trial, and says, "God is my Father, my loving Father, and I am His child. He will not forsake me in this hour of adversity; and though I cannot trace Him, and He does permit these trials to befal me, still I will cling to Him." And Hope says, "Why art thou cast down, O my soul! and why art thou disquieted within me? Hope thou in God, for I shall yet praise Him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God" (Ps. xlii. 11).

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Child of God, what is your present estate? Are you tried? "Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass. And He shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday" (Ps. xxxvii. 5, 6). Call to mind His past mercies-how often, how opportune-and remember His promise, that 'They that trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth for ever (Ps. cxxv. 1). Hear the advice of His sacred word, “Trust in Him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us" (Ps. lxii. 8). Hearken unto the testimony of the saints in all ages, "It is better to trust in the Lord, than to put confidence in man; it is better to trust in the Lord, than to put confidence in princes" (Ps. cxviii. 8, 9). And this must be your resource in the day of your trial-simple, undivided trust in His grace, goodness, love. Let nothing weaken your confidence in Him; let nothing drive you from the mercy-seat; let nothing take in your bosom the place of a holy confiding reliance on His power and promise. And whilst "some trust in chariots, and some in horses," but in vain, you shall be able to sing, in the lively tones of the royal psalmist, because of support and deliverance vouchsafed and received, "The Lord redeemeth the soul of His servants, and none of them that trust in Him shall be desolate" (Ps. xxxiv. 22). Heavitree. E. B.