magnanimity, and grace, His acts and spirit appear! Truly "He hath done all things well." 4. The more right, and refined, and good we become the more righteous, and good, and beautiful all the Divine procedure appears to our view. We catch a glimpse of unclouded perfectness in God. Sometimes we can say, even through tears,-" He hath done," He must do," all things well." II. THE WORDS THUS UTTERED CONFIDENTLY, What do they imply? 1. The kind of things that He does. "All things."-How many; how varied! 2. The way in which He does them. "Well" means “gracefully," "beautifully." E. g. The healing of this deaf man. First: Let us reflect what must be the moral consciousness of God? What was the consciousness of Jesus Christ ?-"I have done all things well." Second God does not ride rough-shod over the convictions or the feelings of men. He loves to have their judgment on His side;" Which of you convinceth me of sin?" This will be the universal verdict by-and-bye-"He hath done all things well." Men may err, and change, and fail of what is right and lovely; not He; and we are in His hands. ILFRACOMBE. JOSEPH MORRIS. Hindrances to Following Christ. "PETER SAID UNTO HIM, LORD, WHY CANNOT I FOLLOW THEE NOW?"-John xiii. 37. THOUGH Christ ordained twelve that they might be with Him, yet there were some experiences in His life in which the disciples could not take part. This especially obvious at close of Christ's life. When the hour came that the Son of Man was to be glorified He stood forth in sublime and solitary grandeur, and said to Simon Peter, "Whither I go, thou canst not follow Me now." Peter was struck with amazement and said, "Lord, why cannot I follow Thee now?" The reply given by the Master showed there were hidden depths of depravity in the heart of Peter that he knew not of, which in a dawning hour would rise and sweep him into thrice repeated denial of Jesus. How frequently in the Christian life hindrances present themselves in the way of complete consecration to the service of Christ. The soul seems willing to sacrifice itself upon the altar of service, the heart pants to follow closely in the footprints of the Redeemer; but the voice comes, "Thou canst not follow Me now." bewilderment the soul asks, "Why?" There may be various reasons. In The height we I. IT MAY BE ESSENTIALLY UNATTAINABLE. aspire to scale may be inaccessible; the deep we desire to sound, unfathomable. It was so in case of Peter; we cannot suffer and die as Christ did. Sickness, poverty, ignorance, old age, &c., may render impossible the immediate fulfilment of the heart's desire. II-IT MAY BE UNNECESSARY. The fervour of love, or fires of passion, may prompt to extravagant enterprizes, Utopian schemes. III. IT MAY BE UNTIMELY. Human nature prone to rashness and precipitancy. God teaches us to labour and wait. Undisciplined youth must be trained; those who are to teach must first learn. Our great Master waited for thirty years before fully entering upon His ministry. The disciples were not fully equipped for their work till the day of Pentecost came and the baptism of fire. Divine discipline is gradual, divine progress is steady and sure. Many Hotspurs and Greathearts in the kingdom of grace have desired to accelerate the movements of the Redeemer, and to keep close by His side in His victorious marches, but the salutary reply has come, "thou canst not follow Me now, but thou shalt follow Me afterwards." Those who are checked from close fellowship with Christ in His mysterious achievements here and now, shall-if they are faithful-follow Him closely hereafter, on earth or in heaven. There are causes why IV. IT MAY BE GUILTILY IMPOSSIBLE. men cannot follow Jesus now, springing from the human, and not divine side. (a) Worldly cares may hinder. Especially in an age of mad competitiveness like this. Alas, how many allow the crowds of daily cares to keep them from touching and following Christ. (b) Religious doubts may hinder. Doubt creates clouds, which not only obscure spiritual vision, but impede Christian progress. Mistrust stagnates love, paralyses power. (c) Besetting sins may hinder. Temptation is not sin, but it may keep the soul from complete surrender to Christ, may stand in the way of following Jesus. Proneness to some sin peculiar to our circumstances, or temperament, may prove a very serious and, if not conquered, fatal barrier to consistent discipleship. "Wherefore let us lay aside every weight," &c. (d) Halfheartedness may hinder. Christ demanded, and demands still, that men shall unreservedly follow Him. He must be loved supremely. We must "love Him because He first loved us,” and with a love similar to that with which He loved us. The condition of discipleship was, leaving all and following Christ. The conditions are not changed. We cannot follow Him now except we relinquish Satan, self, and every evil way; except with faith, hope, love, we come to Him, with holy resignation and complete consecration cling to Him. Thus our lives may become beautiful here and blessed for evermore. CLIFTON. FREDERICK W. BROWN. Paul at Miletus. WHEREFORE I TAKE YOU TO RECORD THIS DAY, THAT I AM PURE FROM THE BLOOD OF ALL MEN. FOR I HAVE NOT SHUNNED TO DECLARE UNTO YOU ALL THE COUNSEL OF GOD."-Acts xx. 26, 27. A FAREWELL on the shore of the Aegean [c. f., Calvin's farewell on the banks of Lake Leman]. A fine specimen of a parting address! The exquisite touches, the deep pathos, the affectionate counsels, the solemn warnings (and how much besides?) all compressed into the narrow space of eighteen verses. I.-" ALL THE COUNSEL OF GOD." A subject so vast and yet so simple! One which "angels desire to look into." How immeasurable its depths and heights! the believer ever learning-the glorified saint ever adoring and ever "lost in wonder, love, and praise." Yet the Gospel can be uttered in a single breath, and one short sentence which a child might speak would express the Divine counsel. [Set forth the Sacrifice of the Cross, for the sake of which, and by which, it is God's pleasure to save man; then the other doctrines which cluster round this mighty centre.] II.-" NOT SHUNNED TO DECLARE." How declared ? 1. By the unreserved, full, faithful exposition of it in the public preaching of God's Word. No trimming-no suppression of any portion of it-no yielding to the tempting "Prophesy unto us smooth things "—but anxious and determined to declare the TRUTH whether men would "hear or forbear." 2. By seeking personal contact, and speaking to individual men and women "from house to house.” [Can you not help with the sick and others who are longing to be spoken to?] 3. By setting it forth with the pen. What multitudes Paul has reached in this way! So did Luther and Calvin. More than twenty years ago wrote a letter myself to a young man by means of which he was saved. An "old disciple" whose funeral sermon I preached a few years since was saved by a letter. 4. By showing it forth in the life. I have good faith in this method; sometimes it is the sole one at our command. A man may neglect public warnings, private entreaties, written appeals-who may yet fall beneath this last, and ofttimes mightiest, shaft of all. Therefore let us look to our influence ! III.-" PURE FROM THE BLOOD OF ALL MEN." The Apostle had in mind perhaps that thirty-third chapter of Ezekiel, and those words so terrible which seem almost to chill the very marrow as we read them, or hear them read :-" So thou, O son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shall hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand." O, the blood of souls! "Out, damn'd spot! out, I say. What will these hands ne'er be clean? Here's the smell of blood still all the perfumes of Lady Macbeth. "The four rivers would not cleanse my soul."-Cain. But the blood of souls! What can cleanse such guilt? "Can the blood of bulls," &c.? Nay? "not all the blood of beasts," &c. Rivers of waters, yea, the fulness of ocean would not avail. May the all-efficacious cleansing of Christ be yours and mine! ST. CLEMENT'S, BRISTOL. FAIRFAX GOODALL, B.A. Divine Recuperation of Humanity. "EVEN THE YOUTHS SHALL FAINT AND BE WEARY, AND THE YOUNG MEN SHALL UTTERLY FALL: BUT THEY THAT WAIT UPON THE LORD SHALL RENEW THEIR STRENGTH; THEY SHALL MOUNT UP WITH WINGS AS EAGLES; THEY SHALL RUN, AND NOT BE WEARY; AND THEY SHALL WALK, AND NOT FAINT."-Isaiah xl. 30, 31. THIS is one of the most magnificent chapters in the grand old book we call The Bible. It is most grand in conception and sublime in devotion. In these verses there is a threefold aspect of man that stands out before us. "Even I. HUMANITY TERRIBLY EXHAUSTED IN STRENGTH. the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall." Youths and young men are ever amongst the most vigorous of the race: the full tide of life runs through their veins; they abound in energy, they are vigorous in muscle and in limb; albeit even these get exhausted in energy. Everywhere in society are men met with jaded, wearied, and all but prostrate, |