plain, palpable meaning of the words of our Lord, The hour is coming in which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice and shall come forth; they that have done good unto the resurrection of life, and they that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation; or the statements of the Apostle in the 15th of the 1st Corinthians. time of the resurrection is connected with the return of our Lord. The Lord himself shall descend

The

written by an American divine, of whom, from other writings, better things might have been expected, "Anastasis, or the Doctrine of the Resurrection of the Body Rationally and Scripturally Considered, by George Bush, Professor of Hebrew, New York City University." It is a learned and argumentative treatise to set aside wholly the doctrines of the future literal resurrection of the body and of a day of general judgment. His course of reasoning is very instructive as to the danger of rationalistic theology. His leading argument is from reason, and then his labour is to make Scripture bend to it; and the issue is the denial of fundamental doctrines, with many vain efforts at the same time to preserve their moral and spiritual power. I would earnestly warn Christian readers against these views. They are the more dangerous from the learning and pious sentiments, and candour of mind with which they are stated. But I doubt not God will soon furnish his Church with sufficient replies by men competent to the task, and will, by the very controversy, give a fuller development to his own truth, as we see was the case in the Apostolic age. (2 Tim. ii. 16—19; 1 Cor. xv.)

-and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Thus the hope of the Redeemer's return is rich with immortality and glory. It is a hope over which corruption and the grave have no power. It is a hope of full acceptance in the day of judgment, and unspeakable rewards of grace in everlasting blessedness. The Saviour, for whom we wait, has sounded all the depths of human sorrow: he for us has been in agony inconceivable, sweating great drops of blood; he for us was forsaken on the cross; he for us poured out his soul unto death; he for us was buried in the grave, descended into hell, and at length rose again for our justification. And shall we not long to see him in his glory, and be altogether like him and with him there for ever? It was love to us that carried him through all these sorrows. And, oh, what depths and heights, and lengths and breadths of love are there in store for those who wait for him and attain unto the resurrection of the dead. Of all the longings of the human heart this may well be accounted the most reasonable, the most sublime, the most holy, and the most scriptural.

3. THE PLACE FROM WHICH HE RETURNS, EVEN HEAVEN ITSELF, is another truth which the Apostle mentions to quicken our waiting for him. Christ, at his ascension, entered into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us. Jesus,

the Son of God, therefore comes from Heaven itself for us, to gather all his people into one mass. He went thither on purpose to prepare a place for us, and assured us before he went, If I go to prepare a place for you I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am there ye may be also. (John xiv. 3.) It is perfectly clear then that the saints shall be translated and ascend to be with Christ in heavenly mansions, in the city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. (Heb. xi. 10.) However they may reign over and bless the earth, their proper home is heaven.

in heaven itself.

They have a portion and a place As the Apostle speaks, we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. (2 Cor. v. 1.) We may well be lost in admiration when we contemplate that height of glory to which our Lord shall bring his people. It is his own declaration, in solemn prayer to his Father in Heaven, The glory which thou gavest me I have given them, that they may be one, even as we are one. Father, I will that they whom thou hast given me be with me where I am, that they may behold thy glory, which thou hast given me, for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world. (John xvii. 22-24.) What mysteries of eternal goodness will then open

to our view! O my brethren, what will it be, what must it be, to see God as he is, to behold him face to face, to know as we are known: to be equal with the angels and their companions; to have all the powers of glorious resurrection bodies and perfected spirits, and all the spiritual beauty of our Divine Immanuel, in being like him and sharing his glory, and all the blessedness of communicating heavenly blessings to others, as kings and priests unto God and his Father! All our thoughts are overwhelmed in these unutterably glorious, and splendid hopes! We can only exclaim, in the words of inspiration, In thy presence is fulness of joy, and at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house, and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures, for with thee is the fountain of life, and in thy light shall we see light. With such glowing hopes to be fulfilled at the return of our Lord Jesus Christ, how can we but wait with intense eagerness and outstretched neck, and panting desires for his coming, purifying ourselves as he is pure, and giving thanks unto the Father which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light; who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son. (Col.i. 12, 13.)

We will now proceed to consider,

III. THE PRACTICE OF THIS BLESSED DUTY OF WAITING FOR CHRIST AT THIS TIME.

We see from our text and many similar passages of Scripture, that it has from the beginning of the Gospel, been the privilege and duty of Christians, and that of the highest character, to wait for the Lord's coming.

But as century after century has rolled away, and the Lord has not yet appeared, as hope is deferred, and the spirit is ready to fail, we have special need of watchfulness and prayer, My soul panteth for thy salvation, but I hope in thy word. In that word there is ample encouragement and a sure light. We see one Christian prophecy after another has been accomplishing, in a larger fulness of meaning than could previously have been imagined. We see all the signs that indicate the nearness of his return appearing, and but little indeed remains yet to be accomplished before his return. Hence the privilege and duty of waiting, instead of becoming enfeebled and weakened by the lengthened interval, become of more urgent importance, and of deeper and fuller and more intense and stirring interest, as time rolls on and the great event draws nigh.

Let me, then, now endeavour to lay it practi

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