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phatic manner in which he said, "I think, sir, nothing could induce me to live such a life again, even if I had the power." He then said that he hoped God would, for Christ's sake, forgive him; adding that he relied on the atonement of the Saviour alone for forgiveness.

At my next visit, which was the last time I saw him, he was only able to grasp my hand, without saying anything; but he seemed to be in a peaceful state of mind, and it was thus he died.

There is great difficulty in forming a satisfactory judgment. as to the eternal safety of those who never repented of their sins, and who never looked with the eye of faith to the “Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world,” until on a death-bed. They have not had the same opportunities of evidencing the sincerity of their repentance and faith as those in health have; and no one should venture to express more than such a hope, as we are permitted to entertain. And in such cases, although there may be much reason to hope, when the dying sinner professes to depend entirely on the work and atonement of Christ for forgiveness, how much more satisfactory it would be to the friends of the departed, if they could point to more decided evidences of an entire change of heart, than can be afforded by a death-bed repentance. Yet when we remember how graciously our Lord received the dying thief upon the cross, and notice the implicit reliance of John D on the mercy of that same gracious Saviour, and the emphatic expression of his abhorrence of his past sins, may we not humbly ask, "Is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?"

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The little tract above mentioned appears to have been the means of arousing this careless sinner. It was written by John Bunyan. His preaching was the means of bringing many to the knowledge of the truth during his life; here we see a sermon by him made useful one hundred and fifty years after his death. By the printing-press, we may say, being dead yet speaketh."

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C. M. S.

A FEW PLAIN WORDS ON COMING TO THE LORD'S

SUPPER.

MOST, if not all, who read this, have heard of the Lord's Supper; but, it may be, a great many do not know rightly what it means. I wish to say a few plain words to you about it, and I hope, as the words will be but few, and those few plain, that you will give a little of your time to read them with care, and pray that God the Holy Spirit will make you understand them, that they may be useful to you.

We are told in God's word that we are all sinners; and again, "The soul that sinneth it shall die." But it also says in the Bible, "The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin;" so that as Christ has shed his blood for us, we may have our sins washed away, and our souls saved. If God had not cared whether our souls should be saved or lost, he would not have given his Son to die for us; but we see in this act the great love of God, and may be sure that he is not willing that any should perish. Now, as Christ died to save sinners, we must go to him and ask his mercy. We must believe that he is able and willing to save, and show that we do so, by putting our whole trust in him, rejoicing that his blood cleanseth from all sins.

It is now more than eighteen hundred years since Christ died. As he wished to leave something which would remind his disciples of him whenever they saw it, on the night before his death, when his disciples were around him, he took some bread, and when he had given thanks and broken it, he gave it to them, saying, "Take, eat, this is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.' And afterwards he took the cup, and told them all to drink of it, saying, "This is my blood which is shed for many for the remission of sins."

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When Jesus said that the bread was his body and the wine his blood, he meant that they represented his body and blood; as you would say if you were to see a picture of a friend, "That is my friend," by which you would only intend that it was a representation of your friend, or was like him, or reminded you of him. In like manner, he said, "I am the door of the sheep," John x. 7. Or, perhaps you have seen written in a book which one friend who was dead or gone away, had left to another for a keepsake, these words, When this you see, remember me." If we had not something of this kind to put us in mind of our departed friends, we might soon forget them; but when we look at the picture or open the book, and see the hand-writing, we think of him who gave it; and if he ever visited us when we were sick, or directed us how to act when we were in doubt, or comforted us when in trouble, all these things are brought to mind, and our hearts are filled with love and gratitude at the thought of his kindness.

The sacrament of the Lord's supper is something of this kind. Jesus left his throne in heaven and visited us miserable sinners upon earth; he came in our nature, and in our stead, to fulfil all righteousness, to bear the contradiction of sinners, and to endure the curse due to sin for us, to live a life of suffering, and die a cruel death, even the death of the cross, to save our souls from hell. He came to heal the sick, to clothe the naked, to make the poor rich, to set free the

prisoner, to give sight to the blind, wisdom to the ignorant; to give the bread of heaven and the water of life to hungry and thirsty souls.

I have told you that Jesus, before his death, gave the bread and wine to his disciples, with a command to eat and drink, and told them, that as often as they should do so, it was to be in remembrance of him, even until his coming again. Now if you had been in the room when Jesus said this, would you have refused to obey his command? No, I am sure you would not if you loved him; but you would have been glad to be able, in a way so easy and simple, to keep in mind what he had done and suffered for your sakes; and for ever after when you met for that purpose, and saw the bread broken and the wine poured out, some such thoughts as these would enter your mind; "The bread and wine which I now see, remind me of Jesus my Saviour, who gave his body to be nailed to the cross, and who shed his blood to save my soul; they put me in remembrance of that great love which brought him down from heaven to suffer and to die for me; they remind me of all my sins and of all his sorrows. How can I sin any more when I know how much it cost to buy my pardon. I will, by God's grace, sin no more. I will show my love to him by giving up myself to his service and keeping his commandments. In eating this bread and drinking this wine, I confess that I receive Jesus as my only Saviour, and I hope to be united to and made one with him by faith, as this bread and wine, when received, will become a part of my body. I hope that as my body is kept alive by bread, so my soul may live by feeding on Jesus as the Bread of life; and as those who are faint and sick are refreshed by wine, that so my soul will receive strength and refreshment by the blood of Christ."

Thoughts of this kind will arise in the minds of those who come in a proper spirit to the Lord's table; but, after reading the plainest words upon the subject, you may feel many doubts and difficulties. Let me then beg of you to go to God, in the name of his Son Jesus Christ, in earnest prayer, and ask him to give you his Holy Spirit to teach you, and he will make it plain.

I think I hear some of you say, I would go to the Lord's supper, but I am not fit to go. When you say this, what do you mean? Do you mean that you are not sinful enough, or that you are not good enough? If you suppose you are not sinful enough to need the Saviour, lose not a moment, but come at once to God, and pray that he would teach you what is in your heart, and show you your need of the blood of Christ to cleanse you from all sin. If, on the other hand,

you think you are not good enough, I can only tell you, in the words of the hymn

"If you wait till you are better,

You will never come at all."

How can any of us be good enough to deserve any favour from God? We must come to Him to be made good and not because we are good.

Then let me ask you, do you feel that you are a sinner and need a Saviour? Do you see that Christ is just the Saviour you need? Do you desire to leave off sin and to be made holy? Do you long to overcome the world, the flesh, and the devil, and to obtain heaven? Do you desire evermore to live unto Christ who died for you? If such is the state of your mind, delay not to come to the Lord's supper; for in him you will find all that you want, pardon for the past, and grace for the future. Here the poor may be made rich, the blind receive their sight, the sick be made whole, the miserable, happy, the weak receive strength, and the sinner be made righteous. Come then, for all things are ready. Christ invites you; he does more than this, he commands you. Come then, that you may obtain pardon, and peace, and life eternal.

GOOD FRUITS.

AS a tree that beareth a store of good fruits, though it have but a ragged leaf, is much better than another that is rough and full of green and fair leaves, with little or no fruit: so a Christian full of good works, though not of pleasant speech, is greatly to be preferred to one who hath a fair tongue and a close hand. W. GEARING.

TO THE MAN WITH A MUCK RAKE

(IN PILGRIM'S PROGRESS.)

LOOK up! look up! why stand you there
With face of woe and brow of care?
Explain to me the needless cause
Of raking up those sticks and straws?
See you not there, in that bright sky
That lifts its glorious arch so high,
See you not there a crown of gold,
That wears not dim and grows not old?
Beset with many a sparkling gem,
A never-fading diadem!

For pilgrims poor its glories shine;
Look up, and claim it then as thine!
Fling, fling away that needless rake
And seize the crown, the kingdom take.

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HEZEKIAH SICK, RECOVERED, VISITED.

IT was no slight distemper that seized on Hezekiah, but a disease both painful and fierce, and in nature deadly. The prophet is sent to him with a heavy message of his death;

Set thine house in order, for thou shalt die and not live.' It is no small mercy of God, that he gives us warning of our end we shall make an ill use of so gracious a premonition, if we make not a meet preparation for our passage. Even those that have not a house, yet have a soul. No soul can be without important affairs to be set in order for a final dissolution: the neglect of this best thrift is desperate. "Set thy soul in order, O man, for thou shalt die and not live.'

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Never was the prophet Isaiah unwelcome to this good king, until now. Even sad tidings must be carried, by those messengers which would be faithful: neither may we regard so much how they will be taken, as by whom they

are sent.

Howsoever, the patient soul of good Hezekiah turns itself to that holy God, from whom he smarts and bleeds, and pours out itself into a fervent prayer. Far, far were presumptuous conceits from that humble and mortified soul. Thou hadst hated thine own breast, if it could once have harboured so proud a thought. This perfection of thine was no other than an honest soundness of heart and life, which thou knewest God had promised to reward. It was TRACT MAGAZINE, NO. 65. MAY, 1839.

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