“As an important and distinctive

“So the person in question came to

is worthy of private study, nor needs

any evangelical mirth. Christians copy the Apostle Paul, who (in Corinthians) quotes a line of Alexander. But the theatre is surrounded by vicious influences, as any one who has ever passed up the Haymarket on an opera or theatre night knows. By the way, do you go along with Professor Powell, in approving of the ‘Sunday League P’” “No, certainly not; Powellis a very extreme Broad Churchman, no more a representative of us than George Denison (George without the Drag-on, as his episcopal brother called him) is of the #. §. party. Have you seen “Perversion?’ “Not yet. It is scarified in the last ‘Edinburgh, but that Review, which once was original, is now only cultivated . The writer of the review seems to think as one bluntly expressed it, “If there be such a place as Heaven, every one will go to it!” “I could fancy you saying that, Blunt; it is very it. you. One of your occasional hearers told one of my people that she had counted you use the

addition l’” “By the way, Blunt, I hope the Independents are coming round to moderate Broad Churchism. This ‘rivulet" seems to wind our way!” “Possibly some may ; but not all. The old Puritan tradition is too strong with the people of Congregational dissent. Germanism has turned a few preacher's heads, who have read only in certain directions of Teutonic theology." * * How little the German Romanists are known in this country ! The ‘Quarterly ’ occasionally refers to Möhler, and the “Edinburgh' has at length given a word of commendation to Döllinger; but Hefell, and Ritter, and Denzinger, and numbers of others, are quite unknown, except to a very few.” “True.—Yet the ‘Tübinger Quarterly Schrift” is second in value only to the “Studien und Kritiken.” “Any one wishing to see the best forms of German theological scholarship, should take in the chief Protestant and the chief Romanist Reviews. But I have an engagement. Good

THE ark was a type of Christ, and the bringing up of the ark, at the command of King David, is in like manner a type of the endeavours after the advancement of Christ's kingdom. David was commanded and authorized to bring up the ark; he did it not without considering whether it were pleasing to the Lord, and to His people, and it was doubtless a good desire in him. But then such good desires are many times mingled and accompanied with much sin, and we have an example of this here. David himself had apparently ordered all things concerning it; we find him gathering together all Israel, going himself among them, playing before the Lord, while the ark followed, placed in a new cart, driven by oxen under the care of Uzzah and Ahio. All of a sudden the oxen stumbled, Uzzah in eager zeal put forth his hand to keep the ark from falling. He seemed to be doing

righ; the was afraid that some evil would happen to it, and therefore made what would seem to us a harmless movement, or even one worthy of the praise and approval of God; but it was not accepted, and Uzzah was put to death for it. Ah! what may not this teach us concerning the jealousy of the Lord of Hosts when his personal glory is concerned. It is not enough to be anxious for the coming of His kingdom. Uzzah was anxious to save the ark from falling, but then he touched it not after the due order. We may then well tremble at being engaged in the work of the Lord, for zeal, if not according to knowledge, may bring us into rash contact with God's glory, and that will bring us into contact with fearful judgments too, if we work not according to the due order. “The anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and God smote

him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God. And David was afraid of the Lord that day, and said, How shall the ark of the Lord come to me?” From this we learn that there are times when nothing but the severe lighting down of the Lord’s arm will do to cast us down, to chastise and humble us—times when we need to get our accursed pride brought low to the very dust. How wonderful that we should long escape this breaking forth cf his power; if it should come, let us take it meekly at his hand, and learn from it the glorious holiness and jealousy of that God who will not be worshipped but after the due crier. But when the ark was thus carried aside, the Lord allowed not the resting place of his glory to be brought into contempt; he blessed the house of Obed-edom, and all that he had. This seems an emblem of what often happens now ; when we are zealously engaged in his work, and meet therein with some heavy and awful rebuke from God, we are terrified, and stop, and do not dare to touch it with our hands any more. Well, and does the work of God eesse for that ? No, beloved friends, it is not so. Whether we will do it or not, whether we take a personal part in it or holdbaek, or even if we sit down and say that the Lord will not work any more—oh! we hear, all of a sudden, that the ark has appeared elsewhere, and that some other house than ours is blessed because of it. It is a dangerous thing in one sense to be in the work of the Lord—it will lead to many chastisements on account of unholy and carnal zeal; but ah! 'tis equally dangerous to cease from it, for if we do we shall lose the blessing, and perhaps not find out that we have lost it till we see it passing us by and lighting down upon others

When David saw what a blessed man | Obed-edom had become, he was provoked, it would seem, to jealousy in the good work, and made arrangements for carrying it on anew. And so we shall ever find that when visible, humbling judgments come upon us, they lay us low at the time, and then the Lord's hand again returns to list us up in Christ Jesus. If there is to be much of the Lord's presence among us as a church, we shall see far more of this than is expected by many who think they are longing for God's work to begin. There would in that case be breaches made upon us; visible judgments on the unconverted, visible judgments on believers and on congregations, and these things may be sent for many just causes both on ministers and people; because, alas! there is much building with untempered mortar. And were the Lord indeed thus to begin

to work amongst us, ah! how many would be finding out, that they had come into the ministry, and come into the eldership, and into the deacon's office, and to the communion-table, without a divine call. And those who feel that they have a divine call, would be finding out too that judgments were coming on them because they had been taking liberties with the work of God. All would be discovering that he is not One whose ways or thoughts are as ours; but that he is a jealous God, who will not give his glory to another, nor his praise to graven images. And yet, remember that if we, out of fear, refuse to go along with the ark of the covenant, we shall get no blessing. Beloved Let us follow Him who is the Angel of the covenant, seeking to know well whom it is that we follow; not hastily rushing like Uzzah, of our own choice, to this part or that other part of his work. Let us go where Jehovah leads; let us pray, let us tremble to offend in the least matter, Him with whom all the blessing lies. Let us seek to be continually engaged in his work, in his way, looking up to the holy, jealous, sin-hating God, as becomes a sinful, perverse, self-willed people. Howhow can two walk together, except they be agreed P Let us ever be keeping in mind that we can do nothing, attempt nothing, except as he directs; and even then, must it be with constant holy fear and watchfulness, lest a breach be made upon us. Yet this spirit of holy fear is almost unknown among us. Why so? Because there is so little appearance of the Lord's working. More of this would bring more of holy fear, especially upon us in the ministry. One would think from the way in which God's service is undertaken and performed that it was a thing any man could do whenever he pleased, instead of being a thing high above us, requiring the constant aid and direction of his Holy Spirit. But secondly, we see from this chapter who it was that should carry the ark. A great number of priests were chosen and ap: pointed by God's direction through David to this office, and set apart solemnly for it. And in like manner there is in the church of Christ a race set apart to do service to him, and to carry his Gospel through the world—even a royal priesthood. . It consists of every true minister of the Lord Jesus Christ. Nor is the work confined to ministers and elders. It is delivered by the Lord into the hands of the New Testament priesthood. We are thus taught that it is the bounden duty of all believers to join in this work, and also warned of the danger of admitting any into it who are not God’s people, since they alone will be accepted in it. Alas! this is too often blessing is withheld. Their names are given here and for many reasons, though some may be wearied by such long catalogues. One of these reasons doubtless is to show what a distinction it is in the eyes of the Holy One to be employed

apply to those in the ministry, but to all who are in any way connected with his cause; for they all have this high honour from himself, as well as an awful and heavy responsibility laid upon them.

THE agency of the great enemy is too little thought of, too little preached about. In this his working is to be traced. When we see one of the most influential of our Dissenting brethren in the Metropolis denying Satan's personal existence, we can be at no loss to mark in this grievous heresy the o that the being whom he denies s been working on him. The evil will spread; for how many young men, over whom the eminent preacher in question has great influence, will go a great deal further in heresy and scepticism than their teacher! May God keep our church, from such a delusion in any of her influential men But Satan acts, and acts powerfully on ministers in many other ways than by leading them to deny his existence. #. bears a great grudge at all faithful preachers of Christ. As to legal and non-evangelical preachers, they are doing his work effectually enough as it is. They have only to go on as they have begun, and they will largely contribute to the peopling of hell, and shall themselves obtain some of the foremost places there. But men whose delight it is “to preach Jesus Christ and him crucified,” are, though they too little reflect upon it, in great danger, through the wiles and depths of the enemy, to contribute to his sway. If he cannot lead them into heresy, if he cannot seduce them into open falls, he has many other ways of acting upon them. He leads them, it may be, occasionally to preach sermons less, evangelical than the ordinary strain of their preaching. Such discourses, however they may be approved by their worldly hearers, may do more mischief than years of the most faithful ministrations may be able to counteract. Especially ought ministers (and , more especially if remarkably gifted men) preaching away from home

where they may never be again, be on their guard against delivering discourses in which Christ is little adverted to, and conversion, perhaps, left out of special view. Again, Satan acts on evangelical ministers by leading them to omit opportunities of being useful in private. A minister may be once alone with a person; an occasion of direct spiritual good, such as never again offers, is presented—and lost. “It is not a fit time,” whispers the tempter, and “instant in season, out of season,” is forgotten. Another mode by which the enemy of souls acts on ministers, is to lead them to be too anxious about standing well with worldly people. As they preach Christ in the pulpit, they are tempted to be vague and general, and perhaps given to anecdote and wit, in their every-day intercourse with men. This pleases many. “What a leasant iman Dr. B. or Mr. C. is ; ow agreeably I was disappointed in him,” says some man of the world, or woman of would-be fashion. Poor testimony for an “ambassador for Christ” to win! We find Dr. Chalmers, in his “Scripture Readings on Timothy ii.,” lamenting that he had fallen into this snare. Ford, in his useful “Decapolis,” has some good remarks on this. “What passes,” says Richard Cecil, “on these occasions too often savours of this world. We become one among our hearers. If a minister were what he ought to be, the people would feel it. They would not attempt to introduce this dawdling, silly, dismal chat. We fear we countenance them. It looks as though, on the Sunday, I am ready to do my business, and in the week, you may do yours. This lowers the tone of what I say on the Sabbath. “They were men of deep spirituality of mind. Their lives and lips accorded with each other. No frivolity, no flip

the Melville model; nor is his aught but a violent contrast, both in person andmanner, to the gentle, elegant, yet

earnest Baptist Noel. S eon is not #. o Fears i. e began, ike William Jay, to preach when almost a bow. #. has not been at a tollege. His father is a Baptist minis

ter, and he has a younger brother studying in the Baptist college, at Stepney, who, they say, will be superior to himself. Mr. Spurgeon is of the middle size—thick set in figure, with a deep, capacious chest, and a throat, and tongue, and lip, all formed for vehement oratory. is hair is dark, over a o; wide forehead; his eyes dark and deeply set. His manner, in the pulpit is energy from first to last—physical energy, impelled by a vehement purpose, and a determination to arouse, #. the beginning. He reads the psalm abruptly; he prays with startling rapidity, and you would say sometimes with irreverence. And yet there is a power in it, and a fervour and fulness, too, which command breathless interest. Egotism does come up; and yet you say, he is very young, and he could not speak or pray thus, as an experienced Christian, and with i. for every class, without some ivine teaching. Then comes an exposition of the chapter. What a torrent of words! What striking remarks, quaint and pithy! And how well he knows his Bible . It is not a lecture. | The English people will not stand that. But it is a rapid, running commentary, which, to my mind, when well done, is the perfection of an expository reading before, and as preparatory to the sermon. Next comes the sermon itself—say

|lst, The Place; 2nd. The Victim; 3rd. The Executioners ; 4th. The |Punishment. How natural the divisions! What vivid clearness of illustration and force of application on each head! Some oddities appear. A story half humorous, bearing on religion, is told, and the people smile—almost laugh! Many are shocked; but hear him out, and say, is not the effect of the whole good—ertraordinary 2 Listen, too, to his language. How thoroughly English, vernacular ! scarce a Latinized or Greek borrowed term. Is it any wonder that with this, and the rich, full, old doctrine of the Puritan age—election defended, asserted; sovereign grace vindicated and glorified; Christ set forth as crucified and slain; pictures, anecdotes—that, in spite of extravagances and much of self, the common people hear him gladly? Look at him as he prepares to describe the crucifixion | Hear him lower his voice and say, “If you have tears, prepare to shed them now !” “Ah!” you say, “that is from Shakspeare,” and you are shocked. So was I; but then I said, “Half, three-fourths, of this crowd don't know it, and it is all natural to them ' " That does not