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the amethyst, the sardonyx, and topaz of all Christian truth." I do not mean that your sermons shall be learned, elaborate essays. No! I simply mean this, put your best into your pulpit productions. You are speakers for God; it is due to Him that you speak well. Make sure of your ground, and then be not afraid to deliver your message. You may be conscious of your own weakness; but if to the mountain apart you go to pray, and tarry there long enough in communion with your God, the "glory shall linger on your brow," and you shall receive power from on high. Cherish a firm soul-absorbing confidence in the power and truth of the message you have to deliver. I know that attacks are made on the Bible, and clever books are written with a view of unsettling the minds of men with regard to the verities of our holy religion; but be it yours to stand by that most precious and glorious fact, that "God is in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself." Some advanced men may call you narrow," "old-fashioned," “antiquated," and in antagonism to the spirit of the age. Brethren, by mental and moral discipline, by prayerful meditation, find this firm ground, and then amid the strife of tongues and conflicting opinions, let your voice be heard-open your mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the Gospel. You are not sent to prove, but to preach the Gospel; therefore lift up your voice with strength-lift it up, be not afraid. A faltering whisper will not suffice, but a voice that compels audience-the loud ringing voice of conviction. Witness for God-witness truly, and your testimony shall be felt. "If you have the prophet's lips of flame, the spellbound listeners shall linger on Carmel still." Oh brethren, preach a living, loving Christ; by manifestation of truth, commend yourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. If one thing has been proved more conclusively than another, it is, that the Gospel of our Lord has been shorn of none of its power. We know of no theme under heaven, if only lovingly, sympathetically, and truthfully presented, so attractive as the grand old Gospel. While human nature is what it is, we cannot afford to dispense with it. There are too many aching hearts, wounded, bleeding consciences, mournful farewells and death-beds, too many gaping graves, to allow men deliberately to surrender the hope the Gospel gives.

Your mission, is to speak of the strength of Christ's love, the tenderness of His sympathy, the greatness of His forbearance, the riches of His mercy, and the fulness of His grace. You have to tell the wondrous story of His birth, suffering, life, vicarious death, victorious resurrection, and glorious ascension; Bethlehem, Nazareth, Gethsemane, Calvary, Tabor, Olivet, with their

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thrilling associations and hallowed memories, and spiritual meaning, are themes that will never lose their power while tongues can speak and hearts can feel. The power of Christ's words, the grandeur of His deeds, the greatness of His sorrow, the light of His teaching, the merit of His sacrifice, the efficacy of His intercession, the work of His Spirit, and the glory of His kingdom, are as exhaustless as His fulness, and fresh as the wants and woes of every needy, burdened soul." Preach, my dear brethren, a personal, living Christ, as the hope, the life, the salvation of men. So long as human nature rises against itself in angry accusation on account of its own sin; so long as avenging justice follows and smites the vices of the human heart; so long as disappointment stings, and sorrow opens the fountain of tears; so long as little children die, and fond associations are rudely rent; till the last prodigal is home, the last battle is fought, and the last prayer is answered, so long will the Cross be the mystery and hope of life. Jesus Christ, and Him crucified, is a theme which will continue, with unabated interest and increasing wonder, to be the subject of devout contemplation by the redeemed for ever and ever. Now, to proclaim these truths effectively, successfully, there must be work-preparatory work-mind-work-heart-work; whoever may lack employment, you will not. "A good minister of Jesus Christ" is a workman. There is your own circuit work, which will require very careful and diligent attention. You are Bible Christian ministers. I am not so foolish as to claim any exclusive excellence for the church of your choice. We wish all churches "God-speed." But you are to minister in the ministry of the Bible Christian Church; a Church that has a "heritage of sound doctrine, and a clean history." I want you ever to remember what you are. Keep your vow. Dr. Parker said the other day, that "no half-hearted Nonconformist should do himself and others the injustice of entering the Congregational ministry." And I am quite sure that no half-hearted Bible Christian is a fit person for our ministry. What he said of Congregationalism, I will say most emphatically respecting our own Church polity. Bible Christianism is not "semi-Episcopalianism." When it assumes that form our days as a Denomination will be numbered. Therefore do not vainly try to make yourselves "a bridge between the two;" a man can never be happy in our ministry who is not content to comply with our regulations and work in harmony with his brethren. Keep to the simplicity of our worship; do not be tempted away from it by what some may consider necessary to gain more respect, and secure greater popularity, which by the way is the most fickle thing of this most fickle age. You will be respected, my brethren, by all right-hearted men in proportion as

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you manifest a desire to bear the burdens, guard the honour, and seek to carry out the rules and regulations of the church to which you have accorded your intelligent preference.

I hope you have formed a right conception of the relations between yourselves and the people. Some ministers seem to think that churches are founded in order to provide salaries for men who wish to master certain speculations, or to cultivate and display their own remarkable genius. Such men are often betraying their egotism and intellectual conceit in the most grotesque forms. I will not be so discourteous as to suppose it necessary for me to warn you against the grosser kinds of ministerial selfishness, but I hope you will always remember that ministers exist for churches and circuits, and not churches and circuits for ministers. Respect is certainly due from the people to the minister,-which you are likely to secure, provided you do not claim it. Respect is also due from the minister to the people, which you should be ever ready to show them. One of your first objects in going into a circuit should be to secure the confidence of your people. They will derive little or no good from you unless they trust you. You and they have to work together; mutual trust is therefore indispensable if you are to work together happily, and if you are manly enough and Christian enough to care less about winning a hasty and transient popularity, than about doing real service for the Master, there is no circuit in the Connexion but will receive you with the greatest cordiality, and continue to respect and "esteem you highly for your works' sake."

In pastoral work, your labours must be abundant. You will need to be as gentle as a nurse among children, and very wise in the giving of counsel, and thus seek to become administrators of discipline. Seek to become acquainted with the experiences of your people. Keep your heart tender; bring it into contact with theirs, that they may feel the throb of a living interest with them in all their troubles; this will give an influence to your ministry that can scarcely be estimated. Think of your people: make their troubles and their gladness yours. You will find them struggling with cares, and in their perplexity they want the best advice you can give them. Think, too, of the children, and manifest an interest in their welfare. The young men and maidens, with their ardour and ambition, their dreams of joy, their generous impulses, and the doubts that assault their faith, think of them also, and seek to guide them aright; try to inspire them with a noble conception of Christian character and a Christian life The aged, whose strength is gradually decaying, and who are often uncheered by the presence of living affection and saddened by the memories of the dead,

think of them, and try to cheer them as they go down to the valley. Let them all have your sympathies and your prayers, so will you be made blessings, and ye yourselves shall be greatly blessed.

Let them live in yours.

Live in the affections of your brethren. Hold them in high esteem and honour. As you would have your own reputation unsullied, be careful to guard theirs. It is of great importance that, as ministers of the same denomination, we should cultivate a strong and holy affection one for another. We enter into one another's labours; we differ in tastes, and in the characteristics of our ministry, and in modes of action, but let me urge upon you the duty of being frank and generous in your admiration of the excellences of your brethren. Do not carp and shrug the shoulders, and damage by hint of speech, or hint of silence. Let nothing but absolute wrong-doing destroy your faith in your brethren.

And now, my dear brethren, I commend you to the watchful care, the loving guidance, and perpetual blessing of the Great Head of the Church. The conversion of sinners to Christ; the feeding of the flock of God; the building up the waste places of Zion, is your work. Let the whole force of your intellect, the whole energy of of your will, the whole wealth of your sensibilities, and the whole love of your heart, be consecrated to and concentrated on this great work, so will you prove yourselves to be "good ministers of Jesus Christ." My last word to each of you is, "Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them, for in thus doing thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee." P. LABDON.

THE BIBLE.

Y DEAR L—, It is to me a very sorry thing that at this time of day one should be asked to discuss the question of the truthfulness of the Bible,-not that I would shrink for one moment from facing the question. I feel far too sure of my ground, if I may be allowed to say so, to do anything of the sort. At the same time, I am painfully conscious of my inability to say, within the limits of a letter, more than a fragment of what may and ought to be said on this all-important question.

You will admit, I think, that it is a very wonderful phenomenon which we have before us in this book, there is nothing like it in the whole realm of literature; it is perfectly unique. What other book has had such a history? What other book has occupied such a position? What other book has wielded such an influence? What other book has called into existence such a literature? Is it

any wonder that it has come to be called THE BOOK? The book which is above all other books! Now, here the book is, and it has to be accounted for; its position and influence are facts which have to be explained. Sceptics of Mr. F-'s class may sneer and insinuate that all the world beside are fools. Of course, it is necessary for him to insinuate as much as that in order to save his own credit, for either the Christian world must be a collection of idiots or he himself is somewhat "touched."

It does not require much intelligence to sneer, my friend, and from what I know of Mr. F-'s productions, he can hardly be considered capable of anything more intelligent than a sneer. He is not the first who has used such intelligent weapons, and he will meet with no more success than have his predecessors in the idiotic art. He can hardly hope to succeed where that prince of sneerers, Voltaire, of whom, by the way, Mr. F— is but a very poor imitation, I say, he can hardly hope to succeed where Voltaire so signally failed. It was Voltaire, I remember, who said on one occasion, "It took twelve men to set up Christianity, but I will show the world that one man is enough to overthrow it," Poor Voltaire ! How much did he overthrow? Is there a single stone in the whole structure which he succeeded in displacing? While he underrated the work of the Apostles, he sadly overrated his own powers. Surely, his silly boast should be a warning to others.

I have said that this book has come to be called "The Book," and yet, bear in mind, it is a collection of books, sixty-six in number. And now just think for a moment of the time over which its composition extended. The books which make up "The Book," were not written in a year, nor in a generation; their composition extended over sixteen centuries,-sixteen hundred years intervened between the writing of the first page of the Bible and the writing of its last page. And further, these sixty-six books were written by all sorts of persons, persons of all grades and in all positions of life: kings, princes, fishermen, agriculturists, taxgatherers, priests, prophets, judges, warriors, statesmen, students. While as to the contents of the book, it is a marvellous Mosaic, composed of matchless poetry, historical essays, biographical sketches, philosophical disquisitions, prophecy and allegory, theological tracts and friendly letters. And now, let me ask, What of the literature which has grown up around this book? You know, as well as I that it is not possible to form anything like an estimate of it, and never has biblical literature grown at so rapid a rate as now; the vast proportion of books published from year to year are biblical. Think further, how the Bible has influenced Art, and Poetry, and Literature. The greatest art treasures which the world

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