of Judah. And here let it be remarked the superiority of the gos pel over the laws and distinctions put upon the apostles-those who were called and appointed by the Lord in person, with whom he associated and called friends-the apostles of the Lamb. That much we are indebted to the Jews every way, chiefly because unto them were committed the oracles of God; they were selected as a peculiar people to keep up the knowledge of the one only and true God; to be types and shadows of better things; to prophesy of the Messiah, and to have the privilege of his having been born amongst them when he became the Son of Man; their names were written on the gates which were shut up until the promised seed came, then were the heavens open. Open ye the gates that the righteous nations which keepeth the truth may enter in— (Isaiah xxvi. 2.) It is a light thing that thou shouldst be my servant to raise up the tribe of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel. I will also give thee for a light to the gentiles that thou mayest be my salvation to the ends of the earth, Isaiah xlix. 6. Now, therefore, ye are no more strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints and household of God, and are built upon the foundations of the prophets and apostles. We are all in Christ Jesus. Verses 15, 16, 17.-I bow my knees, says our apostle Paul, to the Father of our Lord Jesus, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth are named that ye being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints, what is the breadth and length, depth and height, and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge. Eph. iii. 14. 24. The breadth, length, depth, and height of the city are equal; there is no distinction, and all things are done by measure and rule; all have their designated place, work, trials, the same mercy, love to all, one Lord-faithbaptism one God and Father of all, who is above, through, and in you all. But unto every one is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Eph. iv. 4. 13. The city,. wall, and gates are all measured, they can neither be enlarged nor diminished; every thing is in perfect order that comes from; there "cannot be one stone added nor left out, it is all planned, settled, finished, complete, and as the word of God is true, so shall every member be united to Christ the living head, actually in time, and actually in and for eternity. John xiv. 23, 3. Verses 18-21.-I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and thy foundations with sapphires, says Isaiah in his sublime prophecies. liv. 41, 19. It has been before remarked, and may be worthy of observation, that the names of the apostles were in the foundations, while those of the twelve tribes were on the gates. Paul calls himself an apostle in hope of eternal life, which God promised before the world began. Titus i. 1-3. and in Eph. iii. 4. 5. speaks of the mystery of Christ, which in other ages was not made known as it was revealed to the holy apostles by the Spirit. The gospel was hidden until the time came for its open display, while the law was made manifest until it was done away by that which was before, being written on tables of stone, a ministration of death, the letter which killeth; but the ministration of the New Testament is the Spirit which giveth life, written with the Spirit of the living God in the fleshly tables of the heart. The wall (salvation) encompassing the city, was of jasper; the gates, (praise) through which the righteous enter are each of one pearl, east, west, north and south, have all one appearance, come from whence ye will, from whatever nation, kindred, or tongue, the same wall, the one pearl presents itself to all, by and through which ye can alone enter the city. The height of the wall is far above the power of man to scale; he may try all his art, all his skill, all his wonderful intellectual powers, all his sophistry, every perversion of scripture his futile imagination may invent, and all the devices with which Satan will furnish him-it will not do, the arm of omnipotence keeps him back, and unless he hear the shepherd's voice, and submit to the one narrow way there is no entrance. My sheep hear my voice-I know them, and they follow me. Verses 22, 23, 24.-Were we to call forth all the terms that language can supply, all the similes the universe can furnish, all would but inadequately express the wonders of redemption. Where does the glory of God shine forth most resplendently? Is it not in the salvation of a sinner? When the last sacrifice was offered on Calvary, the law and the scripture was fulfilled, and with the dying groans of the blessed Jesus, the veil of the temple was rent, He knew that all things were accomplished, John xix. 28., and fulfilling the law to the last jot and tittle, he said "It is finished," bowed his head and gave up the ghost. Then all things became new, the gospel day was brought in with the sufferings and death of our beloved Lord, the veil was then taken away, and a light shone in upon the darkened world, such as never had before appeared: from the time the seed was promised to our fallen parents the light was observed, though all who died in faith beheld him who was to come, clearly saw the atoning Lamb slain from the foundation of the world: our father Abraham saw this day afar of and was glad. Yet the light was veiled, and not until the Son of God openly manifested himself upon this earth was the veil taken away; then came the ministration of righteousness, which exceeded in glory that which was before. 2 Cor. ix. chap. A glorious light was beheld in the face of Jesus Christ, for in Him dwelt the fulness of the God-head bodily now, he whom the heaven, and heaven of heavens cannot contain, hath in every deed dwelt upon earth; he hath tabernacled among men in a body prepared for him not in the temple built by king Solomon. The nations that have been in darkness have seen a great light. There is no temple in the New Jerusalem for the Lord God Almighty, and the Lamb is the light thereof. The glory of the church is beautifully described in the Ix. chap. Isaiah. There is no need of the sun nor the moon-these were created to enlighten the natural world. But in this great city is the glory of God! What can more fully express the brilliancy, the value, the splendour of the New Jerusalem? Our glorious Redeemer says "O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self, with the glory I had with thee before the world was and the glory which thou gavest me, I have given them, that they may be one even as we are one," John xvii. 5, 22. The glory of God shines in you believer! then whatsoever ye do, do all to his glory, and his glory will enlighten thee to behold as in a glass the glory of the Lord; and you shall be changed from glory to glory; for there is a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, and when the chief shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away. There is an inheritance incorruptible reserved for you who are kept by the power of God; but your faith must be tried, that ye may be found unto power, and honour, and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ, whom, having not seen, ye love, in whom believing ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. Verses 25, 27.-The gates shall not be shut-the gospel day is ushered in, and there shall be no more night! the gates are open for all the redeemed to enter: man, until enlightened by the Spirit, gropes about and cannot find the way, and then attempts to clamber over the inaccessible walls. But let not any fancy they may gain access in what way they please that they can get admittance according to their own minds, many shall seek to enter in and shall not be able. Some wrap themselves up entirely in their human polluted garments and call them holy, condescending to take the man Jesus Christ as a prophet, rejecting him as priest and king. Others accept him in all his offices, but cannot degrade themselves by submitting to take him unconditionally, they must assist the Saviour in his perfect work. But all are blind-gross darkness covers the people, and nothing but the Almighty power of God can open the blind eyes; it is the Spirit alone that can enlighten the soul, that can reveal the exceeding sinfulness of sin, that can take the things of Jesus and shew them unto us. Nothing that defileth, nor whatever lieth or maketh a lie shall enter therein. As there is but one narrow way, so only by the truth, can ye have eternal life; and they only who are written in the Lamb's book of life can enter in through the gates into the NEW JERUSALEM. Believers, how great, infinite, wonderful, and glorious are your privileges; how far surpassing in this life the power of words to define. The soul drawn out to contemplate the work of redemption, diving into these holy, heavenly mysteries, appears lost in the vast abyss shrinking within itself in silent amazement, it seems to be unable to do more than lie at the feet of Jesus, and to glory in giving Him all the praise. Your hearts, your voices, O ye chosen raise ! A love began ere time-O praise! adore! -000 CONSOLATION FOR BELIEVERS, DESTITUTE OF A PREACHED GOSPEL. And he came thither unto a cave and lodged there: and behold the word of the Lord came to him, and he said unto him, what doest thou here, Elijah? And he said, I have been very jealous for the Lord God of Hosts, because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine Altars, and slain thy Prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, are left, and they seek my life to take it away." 1 Kings xix. 9. 10. DOUBTLESS, many a believer (particularly such as are without the blessing of hearing a free grace gospel preached) takes this portion of scripture to himself, when he cannot find such company to join him on his pilgrimage as his soul would desire. Thus, as Elijah went into a cave to lodge, so the troubled Christian retires, in a manner, from the world; from his former associates, to mourn like the Prophet over his sad estate, and thinks himself, as it were alone; but in so doing, he loses sight of the promises made to him by our blessed Lord himself, and which Elijah could only believe in perspective, viz. :-" Blessed are ye when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you and cast out your name as evil for the Son of Man's sake. Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy, for great is your reward in heaven, for in like manner did their fathers unto the prophets." Luke vi. 22. 23. And when he finds the doctrines of a free grace gospel so universally condemned (especially by those whose sworn duty it is to proclaim them) he then mourns because the people (by their ministers) have forsaken the covenant and thrown down the altar, (in other words, perverted the gospel, by making the moral law the only passport to heaven, and offering the incense of their own free will, instead of the justifying righteous of Christ on the altar of thanksgiving) and slain the prophets with the sword-that is, they vilify and rebut all those ministers who boldly preach the free grace truths of the gospel; and that he, even he only is left, and they seek his life to take it away-that is (though thanks to the AImighty our bodies are not now subject to such fears as in the days of Mary) they persecute him and endeavour to destroy his peace, by raising the hue and cry of Antinomians, Calvinists, &c., against him. But let not this trouble him; for his peace is that which the world can neither give nor take away; and as the Lord assured the prophet he had reserved to himself seven thousand in Israel, so he has his chosen ones still: "a remnant, according to the election of grace," though for the wisest reasons, sometimes kept a part from each other. We do not read of Elijah doubting the Lord's word, although it does not appear that they were immediately made known to him; even so now, we must wait the Lord's time, if it is his will to favor us in that way. The Lord commanded him, verse 11, 66 to go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus." So, O believer, go thou unto thy occupation unto which it may have pleased God to call thee, and thou wilt there find enough in the various mercies of providence, to still all doubts and unbelieving fears, if the Holy Spirit coudescends to visit thee with the blessed assurance that thou art a child of God; and that such will be the case, we have his own blessed promise, that he will never leave nor forsake his chosen elect people. The last words our dear Redeemer spoke on this earth were to the same effect-" Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world."-Math. chap. xxviii. ver. 20. Think not that because you do not sit under the sound of the gospel trumpet from the pulpit where you usually attend, that your Lord has forgotten you. No, bless his dear name, his promise his, "Remember these, O Jacob and Israel, for thou art my servant. I have formed thee; thou art my servant. O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten by me. I have blotted out as a thick cloud, thy transgression, and as a cloud, thy sins return unto me, for I have redeemed thee."-Isaiah chap. xlv. v. 21 and 22. I have found great pleasure in the distribution of Hale's Gospel Tracts (and which I am happy to find have gone through a second edition), among those who seem desirous of the truth, and have reason to believe they have been blessed with the Holy Spirit's influence and comfort, to the drooping hearts of many! and as they are but one penny each (containing twelve pages) they are within the reach of the poorer classes. But what I would call the attention of the believer whom the Lord has blessed with this world's good, is to distribute such works among the poor of Christ's flock, especially among those who are living under the sound of a perverted gospel. I was lately much encouraged in such a work myself, by meeting with a sound gospel tract, among a parcel of others, that had been given by a charitable lady to à travelling beggar, instead of money, and who, in his wanderings, called on me to purchase one, but who knew no more of the worth of the one from the rest, than a blind man would judge of colours. So no one can tell the good that may ensue from such a distribution of gospel fare, as these tracts afford; several of them appeared in the Gospel Magazine under the signature of "Elah," (transposed Hale). The Church of God at Harewood are highly blessed in having such a pastor, who shuns not to declare from the pulpit |