them, they also reply, "Lord, when saw we thee hungry, and fed thee? When saw we thee thirsty, and gave thee drink?" When did we either do or suffer any thing what soever, that should move thee to deal thus graciously with us? Ono, Lord, we have done nothing; our salvation will we ascribe unto thee, and to the riches of thy grace. But he shall answer: "Forasmuch as ye have done it to one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." As if he had said: The love that you have shewn to, and the kindness with which ye have treared my people, I esteem as done unto myself. I well know that ye most cordially and sincerely loved my disciples. Ye esteemed them as the excellent ones of the earth. They were your bosom friends; ye delighted in their company; their conversation was highly agreeable to you. You joined heart and hand in holy fellowship with them; and sacredly and solemnly vowed with them to live and die. This fully proves that you have embraced my offers of mercy, and that you experi enced the renewing power of my grace in your minds. It was this which saved you from your own carnal mind, and all its enmity against me and my people. It was this grace which gave you that holy, spiritual, disposition of mind, which hath rendered you capable of enjoying heaven; there fore enter now into the joy of your Lord.

We may now suppose that our Lord will arise from his Throne of Judgment; and attended with all his saints as well as angels, he will ascend through the upper regions, to the gates of the heavenly Jerusalem; when perhaps that song may be sung by the whole glorified company: Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lifted upye everlasting doors, that the King of Glory may come in." When in a moment, the celestial gates shall be opened, and he and all his redeemed shall enter, in holy triumph. He shall now take his seat upon his Throne of immortal glory; and in an instant he is surrounded by the whole heavenly host. He will clothe them all in new' white robes, and put a palm of victory into every one's right hand, and a golden harp into the other. He shall put the new song of Moses and of the Lamb into every mouth, and set a crown of immortal glory upon every head and with one heart, and with one voice, they shall begin to sing that song which shall know no end, no not to the day of eternity. But let us pursue this delightfol subject a little farther. Here they drink of that pure river of the water of life, which flows through the midst of the Paradise of God, or they drink of those rivers of plea

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sure which flow from the Throne of God. Here they eat of the fruit of the tree of life, which grows upon the brink of that river, which maketh glad this holy city of God. They are united to the blest society of angels; and who can tell what fresh discoveries of the wisdom, mercy, and love of God, these holy ministering spirits may make unto them! May not these open the book of divine providence unto them, and make them fully understand their own history. Will they not open to them all the providential and the gracious dispensations of God towards them? And will not the consideration of these things fill them with wonder, love, and praise, for ever and ever! Here they shall be intimately one with all the ancient Patriarchs, and with the holy Prophets, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: Moses, Samuel, and David, shall be their familiar friends. And how will they be transported to hear these holy and eminent servants of God declare the wonders of redeeming mercy and love, which for so many ages, they have been acquainted with, and have so long and so largely experienced, both on earth and in heaven. Here also they are favoured with the society of the holy Apostles: these highly illuminated servants of God are their daily companions; and how highly delighted will they be to sit at their feet, and hear them more fully declare the mercy and loving-kindness of the Lord! Here they will meet with those faithful Ministers of Christ who were the happy, and honoured instruments, in the hand of the Lord, in bringing them to these peaceful regions. And as the people will be the Ministers' crown of rejoicing, są will the people rejoice in, and praise God, for those Ministers, for ever and ever. Here also they shall meet with their Christian friends, with whom they were the most intimate while here below; with whom they so frequently took sweet counsel: and with whom they walked hand in hand to the kingdom of God: and these dear friends shall be more abundantly endeared to each other; and no doubt shall mutually increase each other's happiness, through the countless ages of eternity. And more especially; here they shall meet with their dearest friends, and nearest relations; those who were bone of their bone and flesh of their flesh; and whose souls were well nigh as near to them as their own. Here the husband shall meet with his beloved wife and the wife shall meet with her head, and husband; and, although in heaven they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, yet, I am persuaded, that this sacred relation shall for ever continue, and that those who were so closely united to each

other upon earth, shall be much more abundantly so in heaven; and their happiness being mutual shall, for that reason, be the greater; and they shall rejoice in, and on each other's account, through everlasting ages. Here also the Parents meet with their beloved Children, and the Children with their honoured and dear Parents: and what heart can conceive how these will everlastingly rejoice over each other. O happy and highly favoured Parents, who shall meet with all their Children in these peaceful regions! Surely these may stand forth and cheerfully say, to the glory of God: Lo, through thy infinite mercy and boundless love, we are here, and all the Children which thou hast graciously given us. Add to all the rest, they shall live in the full enjoyment of God himself; and all this happiness and infinitely more than any human heart can conceive, shall endure without intermission, and without diminution, through one eternal day.

But perhaps some will say, Shall we know each other in heaven? I would ask, Do we know each other upon earth? Surely we do. Heaven then will not, cannot, lessen our knowledge: we shall know each other much better than ever we either did, or could do, while in this world. But as a proof of this, Did not the Disciples know both Moses and Elias, whom they had never seen, when they saw them with our Lord upon the mount? The rich man is represented by our Lord as knowing both Abraham and Lazarus, although he was in hell, and they were in heaven. Lazarus he had known while in the body, but Abraham he had never known: yet he is here considered as knowing them both. There is then no reasonable ground or foundation for doubt, or fear, but that we shall not only know each other, but also that we shall know all the inhabitants of heaven. But after all we can say of the happiness of the blest society of heaven, we must say with the Apostle." Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive, what good things the Lord hath prepared for them that love him." How then should a lively hope of enjoying all this exceeding great and eternal weight of glory animate our souls, and stir us up to make sure work for eternity. Who, that believes this, but would make it his constant endeavour to live near to God; in the full enjoyment of his favour, in a clear sense of his love, and in the experience of that grace which purifies the soul and makes it meet for the enjoyment of heaven. If these things are so, must it not be our highest wisdom to gain, and constantly to keep a full and clear assurance of our adoption into the family

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of God; so that we may always know our right and title to eternal life? And as this is the will of God concerning us, we may both attain, and also live in the enjoyment of this unspeakable blessing. This is life eternal, saith our blessed Redeemer, that they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. He that is blest with an experimental knowledge of God, as his reconciled Father through Christ; and that is savingly acquainted with Christ as his Redeemer; he shall enjoy a lively hope, yea a full assurance of enjoying this eternal blessedness. Let those who fear the Lord, but do not enjoy a sense of his love, never rest till they obtain this blessing: and let those who have attained it hold it fast, and never let it go. For O how truly happy must it be to live in the enjoyment of à conti nual sense of our acceptance with God, and consequently of our being heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ, of that kingdom of immortal glory and blessedness which shall know no end for ever.

Let the ungodly part of mankind seriously consider the extreme danger to which they are exposing their own souls. Are they not, while living in sin and rebellion against God, heaping up wrath against the day of wrath? Are they not rushing upon the thick bosses of God's buckler, and provoking him to pour out his vengeance upon them? But are they a match for Omnipotence! Can they thunder with a voice like God! O how will these, most wretched of mankind stand in the presence of God, at that day when he shall judge the world in righteousness! Then, O then, they shall see, to their everlasting confusion, that it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of a sin-avenging God. How well would it be for every one to know the day of his merciful visitation, and make sure of those things which will tend to pronote their present and everlasting peace. The Lord spares them for this gracious purpose, that they may hearken to his oftrepeated warnings, and that, by a true and timely repentance, they may turn unto him and live. He being unwil ling that any should perish; still waiteth to be gracious; and would they only be willing to know their own highest interest, they would speedily seek unto him for mercy and grace; and never rest till he shall communicate to them this heavenly treasure, the peace of God, which passeth all understanding; then, and only then, would they be enabled to serve him acceptably while sojourning in this vain world; and to look forward with joy unto that happy place, where glorified spirits sing everlasting praises to God and the Lamb.

Would it not be the height of folly to leave a matter of such importance as this certainly is, in a state of doubtful uncertainty, not knowing when that awful moment will arrive, when we must bid this world an everlasting farewell, and launch into a world of spirits, whether we shall land in the heavenly Jerusalem, or in the dark and dismal regions of eternal night? Who, that seriously considers this, but would embrace the Apostle's excellent advice: Give all diligence to make your calling and election sure. Yea, give all diligence that you may be found of God in peace, without spot and blameless. Does it not clearly appear, even from such scriptures, as these, that it must be the gracious design of God that we should enjoy a full assurance of our everlasting happiness? Who can doubt of this for one moment, who will only attend to the Apostle's words: Why should he exhort us to make our election sure, if this cannot be done? He well knew that this is the will of the Lord concerning us; and well knowing how extremely dangerous it is, for any one to stop short of so great a blessing, he constantly, in all his excellent Epistles, makes use of every argument that he was master of, to persuade the people to lay fast hold upon the hope set before them in the gospel; and, like himself, to press towards the mark for the prize of their high calling of God in Christ Jesus; that as he did, so they may, when standing upon the brink of eternity, joyfully say, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me in that day

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FINIS.

Edward Baines, Printer, Leeds,