from whom does it come? From one in whose service you were enlisted at your baptism,-to whom you renewed your oath of allegiance at confirmation,-it comes from the King, whose subjects you are, from the great Captain of your Salvation. This consideration, one would think, would be motive enough, when addressed to the mind of a Christian, especially when that Christian is a soldier. But there are still others to which I might call your attention. Suppose, for example, the following case:

If it were the lot of any of you to be present at the death-bed of a comrade and a friend, not of a mere casual acquaintance, but of a real friend, one who had proved himself to be so by many sincere acts of kindness and self-devotion, one, for instance, who had risked his own life to save yours in the field of battle. Suppose that this friend were with his dying breath to charge you with the execution of some commission, to watch over the interests of his wife, or to be the guardian of his children: every one of you would cheerfully comply with his request, and honestly execute it. However difficult and troublesome it might be, there is not a British soldier who would not think himself guilty of ingratitude if he neglected the wish of his dying friend. Jesus Christ was to each of you, not only all that the most faithful and devoted of earthly friends could be, but far, far more. "Greater love hath no man than this, that he should lay down his life for his friend;" but the Son of God submitted to a torturing death even for his enemies. He

has delivered you, if you will repent, not only from death, but from an eternity of misery beyond the grave. He has not only administered to you earthly comforts, but has opened to you the gates of celestial glory. And what was his dying command? was it any thing very difficult and very painful? was it the surrender of any thing that makes this life pass happily? No; it was to comply with a simple ordinance, the object of which is to assist us in doing that which we would suppose every Christian would rejoice to do, namely, to keep up a continual and thankful remembrance of the sacrifice and death of Christ until his coming again, to partake of a feast full of refreshment and comfort, a feast from which no one is excluded, excepting him who obstinately determines to continue a life of sin and wickedness, a feast at which every one is a welcome and invited guest, however great his sins may have been, if he is heartily sorry for his misdoings, stedfastly believes in God's mercy through Christ, and purposes by God's help to forsake a course of life, which must end in everlasting misery. If, then, any one can deliberately say to himself, I am determined to live on in defiance of God's law, I believe neither in God's promises of mercy nor his threatenings of judgment, I care not whether Jesus Christ died or no, I have neither love for my friends, nor forgiveness for my enemies, let not such an one dare to approach the Lord's table, for it would be impious mockery. But whosoever can say, God be merciful to me a sinner:

whosoever earnestly desires to lead a new life, and feels the necessity of God's help to enable him to do so, who is grateful for his Lord's death and sufferings, who in heart is free from malice and hatred, let him humbly, yet fearlessly, partake of these holy mysteries, this seal of the Divine forgiveness of the past, and comfort and support for the future.

To all who faithfully receive this holy Sacrament, Christ is present as their Protector and Defender against the open and secret assaults of their spiritual enemies; and hereafter He will be present, not to them only, but to each and all of us; not as when on earth He appeared clothed in humility, and taking upon Himself the form of a servant, He died upon the cross to save mankind; not as now, when He is invisibly present with his Church as its mystical Head, the strength and support and champion of his faithful ones; but in the clouds of heaven, in power and great glory, arrayed in all the tremendous majesty of the Judge of quick and dead. In that judgment no one in the strength of his own righteousness shall be able to stand. Blessed will they be whose thoughts have been accustomed to dwell upon his presence, and who have already had communion with Him in the ordinances of his Church!

THE END.

GILBERT AND RIVINGTON, PRINTERS, ST. JOHN'S SQUARE, LONDON.

THE

GOOD CENTURION.

BY THE

REV. R. W. BROWNE, M.A.

PREBENDARY OF ST. PAUL'S,

AND CHAPLAIN TO HER MAJESTY'S FORCES IN LONDON.

SOLD AT THE DEPOSITORY,

GREAT QUEEN STREET, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS,

4, ROYAL EXCHANGE, AND 16, HANOVER STREET, HANOVER SQUARE; AND BY ALL BOOKSELLERS.

THE GOOD CENTURION.

AMONG the many interesting narratives which are to be found in that most interesting of all books, the Bible, the story of the good centurion will, I think, especially recommend itself to your notice, my Christian friends, because he was a member of the same profession with yourselves, he was a soldier.

The word "centurion" was the title of an officer commanding a division of the Roman legion, consisting of about one hundred men. This number was not always a fixed one, just in the same way that the numbers of our regiments and battalions have not been at all periods the same. His rank, however, in the Roman army corresponded very nearly with that of a captain in our own. Now this centurion obtained high commendation from our blessed Lord; for the words addressed to those who followed Him were, "Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel1." A consideration therefore of his character, and of the Christian graces displayed in it, will be, by God's blessing, profitable to you;

1 Matt. viii. 10.