184 LETTERS FROM THE WEST OF ENGLAND. His end of time. There is a sort of holy contrast between what he began to do in his resurrection days in his own Person, and that which he has gone on to do by his Spirit, by his gospel, by his word, and by his grace since he ascended up into the heavens. The Church Seeking and Finding Christ. Plymouth, Friday, April 28, 1854.-After labouring in letter writing all day, I am now waiting for a message from my Lord. Cant. iii. 4 seems to suit. Consider, three uses the Bible is to us, in the hands of the Spirit. 1. It is a revelation of God, of Christ, of the Spirit's work, of the saints, and of their way to glory. 2. It is for instruction; shewing us how the Lord has dealt with his people, and how his people have carried themselves to him. 3. It is for confirmation; as, on such a text as this we may ask, First, Whose language is this? Zion's-it is a true believer's. It is hind his parents: they came on their jour-way of dealing with all his church unto the ney: the hand of God must have been in that, or they could never have been so careless as to leave Jerusalem; and through a whole day's journey, and not be certain that Jesus was with them; but so it was; when they came to look for him, they could not find him -three days were they searching for him. At last they found him in the temple; "sitting in the very midst of the doctors-hearing them, and asking them questions." mother said, "Son, why hast thou dealt thus with us?" Now see his passion-his deep heart-felt consecration to the work-his entire absorbment of mind in this matter which brought him down. He said, "How is it ye sought me? Wist ye not, that I must be about my Father's business ?" What an answer! How early were all the powers of his soul in a flame to do his Father's will! So again, in after days, when Peter took Christ, and began to rebuke him, saying Christ should not suffer, the Saviour, in his zeal, turned round, and said, "Get thee behind me, satan; for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of The word passion is a compound: there are three distinct sentences expressive of the whole course of the dear Redeemer's life and work; from the commencement he seemed to say, PASS-I-ON. When Herod sought to destroy him-he passed on into Egypt. From Galilee he passed on to Jordan to be baptised of John; from Jordan to the wilderness to be tried and tempted of the devil; from thence throughout the coasts and countries he passed on, calling his disciples, preaching the word, and healing all manner of sicknesses; and he passed on from preaching to enduring reproaches; from reproaches to agonies in Gethsemane; from agonies in Gethsemane to death on Calvary; and from the grave to glory. He never stopped until he could say, "It is finished." So in the gospel kingdom; he has been passing on. Persecution, blood-shed, martyrdom, stake; the most cruel and powerful persecutions have come against Christ's gospel kingdom, and against his ministers and people; but the gospel goes on: men. the "Through floods and flames, if Jesus lead, I'll follow where he goes.' In the kingdom of grace in the soul, Christ says, "PASS-I-ON." He gives life, faith, prayer, hope, pardon, fellowship, knowledge, meetness for glory, and an entrance into the heavenly kingdom. "Grace will complete what grace begins, To save from sorrows and from sins." 1. He shewed himself alive. I have thought that the dealings of Christ with his disciples after his resurrection were so many kinds of first-fruits-expressive of his It means Secondly, What does it mean? that living souls sometimes lose God's presence; or, that souls might be alive in grace, and yet be down low, on a bed of affliction, in weakness, or worn out with toil and temptation; it means that presently such souls will seek Christ, be they ever so weak, ever so dark, ever so low; and though they seek and cannot find, yet they may have strength to arise, and go about after him, until they find him. Well, now, then, for confirmation-let us Did I ever ask, Did I ever so seek Christ? so run about after ministers, and among the saints, to find Christ? Yes; I have done so : then, surely I may hope I am one of his; and whether I can say all the rest or not, I shall say, I found Him whom my soul loveth. First, I shall labour to shew that true virgin souls, real quickened vessels of mercy, do love Jesus Christ. laid on beds of soul-sickness, heart-faintings, Secondly, that such souls are sometimes and in dark desertions, and much deep concern. Thirdly, that sooner or later, such souls will seek, they will arise, they will run where Christ is preached, where saints assemble, and where ordinances are administered; and yet in all they may not, for a time, find him. Fourthly, such praying, persevering souls will find him; but then what does that mean, I found him? Fifthly, such, having found Christ, will bring him into the church, and labour to hold him fast. I. Virgin souls love Christ. First, because they have heard a good report of him. How good and gracious, how merciful and compassionate, he is! Who can hear of his love to Peter, his compassion to the poor man who fell among thieves-his opening blind eyes, and a thousand other mercies, and not feel a little love to him? They love Christ, secondly, because they have been convinced of their need of him, and he is revealed in the gospel as the Friend of sinners. COMFORTING WORDS TO A CHRISTIAN. ON THE LOSS OF HIS CHILD. 185 They love Christ-thirdly-because they COMFORTING WORDS TO A CHRISTIAN, are made to love holiness, righteousness, peace, and pure happiness; and all this they see is found in Christ. They love Christ-fourthly-because they Remains of Isaac Beeman," we have long FROM those deeply spiritual volumes-" The have seen what mercy he has shewn to poor wished to pluck a few pieces for the edificasinners whom they have known. I remember tion of our readers. The following is a small Samuel Foster, a rebellious sinner; Mrs. Fulforth, a self-righteous sinner; young Master Thorp, an afflicted sinner; his sister, a proud sinner. I saw them all brought to bow down and find mercy. They love Christ-fifthly-because already he has made their hearts glad a little. In his house, in his gospel, in his word, in prayer, in fellowship with his people, they have felt a little of his sweet, holy, and heavenly mercy. But now, consider, II. Such Christ-loving souls sometimes are found on beds of soul-sickness, and in dark desertions. Look at David in Psalm li.; and Heman in Psalm lxxxviii. Look at Jonah in the belly of hell; look at Paul in Romans vii.; look at poor me. Oh, what wretched days and nights have I had in years past and gone. These things arise sometimes from satan's hard temptations; sometimes from inbred corruptions; and sometimes from actual transgression. III. Such will seek, and persevere in seeking. How is that? Because, they cannot have any peace without him. Because, the Spirit will draw them, and stir up their hearts to this seeking. Christ will not lose his own sheep, sink they ever so low. IV. But now, when, and what it is to find him. "It was but a little I passed from them." Sometimes, and most times, perhaps, Christ is found after all means have been tried, and seemed to fail. Jacob found him in Bethel; Saul found him on his way to Damascus; John found him in the Isle of Patmos; I found him (I hope) early one morning reading my Bible. But, say you, how know you you have found him? By the removal of guilt and condemnation from my conscience. By the peace and joy I found. By the nearness with which I was favoured. By the desires I have to be like him and near him. V. Such souls hold him by faith and prayer. Satan, unbelief, and the world, would separate us; but I cannot give up my hold. I brought him into my mother's house-the church-by a confession of my faith in him; by a willing obedience to his commands; by a practical manifestation of my love and attachment to him, and by wearing his Image. In preaching from Solomon's Song, I certainly had a glorious time in my own soul. What the people had I know not; I was constrained to set my dear Master up above everything that is degrading; but I put his bride beside him. Oh, I know God can enable me to preach Christ when he gives me light and power. specimen: Dear Isaac,-I received your afflicting letter of the loss of your dear Rhoda; you are fond of your children, as I always was of mine when they were young; and you have lost seven! When I lost mine of riper years, I remember this came to my mind at the time, "Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, who hath taught him?" and have found, whilst I was suffering the privation, my heart mission under the strongest feelings of nature, would, with great force at times, cry for subthat rebellion might not rise against his sovereign disposal. Your privations in the loss of your children are great; but oh! having some knowledge of God and of future things, under all these present privations of your children, what an infinite consolation it is (to such an one that knows God and his word) to believe, and to be sure, that God has so favoured so many of your offspring as to bring them into the kingdom of God, in which they are happy beyond all human conception. The insensible and ignorant of the world have no such enjoyment. These considerations in faith bring relief, where human nature can do nothing. It seems that the Lord, by these days of adversity, will call your thoughts to himself; and, though grevious are these trials to the flesh, the godly they are profitable to the spirit, and yet we must conclude, from scripture, that to are sanctified for the good of them that fear God. Let him that walketh in darkness, and hath no light, not that he hath no light of knowledge or light of life, but that hath no light upon the present path into which he is brought, nor can at present see the end of the Lord therein;—let him still trust in the name rest his of the Lord as gracious, and stay whole soul on his God. Jacob, for his Joseph, was brought to this; Job, also, in his long affliction, had no where else to go, but to trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his God. David, in his trials, of which he had many, grace led him to take the same way. The widow, gathering two sticks, to eat and die, had not much light upon her path, till the Lord sent it by Elijah: nor the woman with her pot of oil. Pour out your heart before him, ye people; God is a refuge for us." Where God has given grace, that grace he will try, as may be seen in Abraham, in Jacob, in David, and in many others that are mentioned in scripture. "Bastards may escape the rod, Sunk in earthly, vain delight: Must not, would not, if he might," God will have all his children fear him, believe in him, hope in him, love him above all; and, to exercise patience and submission in trouble, and to encourage such, he hath promised that his grace shall be sufficient, and as their day their strength shall be: but we must acknowledge, as to this, our faith is often weak; but the throne of grace is ordained for us to obtain mercy, and grace to help in time of need, Wonderful have been your trials in a few years, and wonderful has been your strength communicated; and I cannot believe that God will ever leave you or forsake you; but it appears to keep his grace alive in your heart, and for this to be exercised on him, as others have been dealt with that he loves, so he will | deal with us. I was much tried before I spoke from the text in Isaiah 1.; but in His light we see light, and it is He alone that can turn the shadow of death into the morning. Your affectionate father, ISAAC BEEMAN. Cranbrook, October 18, 1836. JOY FOR SORROW. "And the days of our mourning shall be ended." ALMOST all nations have put on mourning apparel at the death of their parents. And since sin, cursed sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and our first father Adam died; all the living family, quickened and made alive by the Spirit, are clothed in dark mourning apparel-this poor mortal flesh dyed black with sin, corruption and death, and we inwardly moan and make a noise, because our poor father Adam could leave us nothing in his corrupt will, but sin, corruption, and this black suit of mourning; which at best must become "filthy rags." "All our own righteousness is filthy rags,"-black rags. "I am black." And the law cannot make us white; for the more it blazes upon us in its justice, the blacker we appear in ourselves, "Black as the Arabian tents burnt with the "Black as the tents of Kedar." Adam sun; our poor father is dead; and the mourning apparel he left us, (the rags of this mortal flesh); have the plague in them. We mourn since his death; well knowing that we must soon die and follow him, into death, worms, and corruption. Thus all his survivors, made alive in their souls by the quickening Spirit, do mourn and "groan being burdened;" knowing that every step we take in this poor mortal flesh is downward to the grave, worms, and corruption. Moreover, as our poor father Adam had no good thing to leave, he left us worse than nothing, for he left us miserably in debt, sold for slaves, "Carnal, sold under sin." But the dead in sin know nothing of this matter; it is the quickened, living soul in "the body of this death," (the house in which is the plague,) that mourns and groans being burdened." But the Lord Jesus, God's first-born in human flesh, the heir of all things, came to read our heavenly Father's will to us, in which all things are left us, both present and to come, on the ground of his performing the conditions of the will; which caused him to moan, as a man of sorrows, all his days till his death, when he cried "It is finished," and he gave up the ghost. And "as a will is of force after men are dead;"--and he has paid all our debts, opened his Father's will, read it to the family, and shewn us that all things are ours, grace, "more grace;" while we are here, sufficient grace, even while we wear these rags of mourning apparal, (this mortal flesh,) and all the riches of glory to come. And soon we shall put off our mourning apparel; "put off this tabernacle," put off this mortal flesh, and put on immortality, in eternal life; and then "the days of our mourning will be ended. And we shall put off our sackcloth, dust, and ashes, and put on our beautiful wedding garments in reality; and “ 'go down in the dance with them that make merry" at the supper of the Lamb. And then in robes of light and immortality, feast on love, and walk in heavenly fields by fountains of living water, with fair sister spirits in immortal glory; and then all tears shall be wiped from all faces; "The days of our mourning shall be ended, and their shall be no more death." W. GARRARD. Leicester, June 14, 1854. THE GARMENTS OF SALVATION. "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall be joyful in my God, for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation." Isaiah lxi. 10. [blood. UP! oh my soul, up! and joy in the Lord; Proves me a debtor to sovereign love. Fill the fond heart with love's heavenly fire: [By the Author of "Closet Companion for the Daughters of Zion" Part 1 and 2; published by Houlston & Stoneman; & the Complete Edition 3s.] A POOR SINNER CRYING OUT OF THE BELLY OF HELL. A Poor Sinner Crying Out of the Belly of Hell. 187 I'M Thus he lay, with"Pray, (he said), I His minister and His cry hear him cry out of the low dungeon, DEAR MR. EDITOR.-How vaarious are the expe- As I became acquainted with him by occasion- Last summer he appeared to be in a very low desponding state of mind, and often used to exclaim, "I shall be lost after all, I am afraid;" and often used to say to my son, "Oh, Freddy, I wish I could see your Father! Tell him I want to see him." Thus he continued some weeks in the dark; and this darkness he severely felt in his soul; so that those who attended him felt it to be awful to He got up, as usual, by the assistance of his wife; and after he got down stairs he said to her, "I will go in the yard." After he had been out some time, she went out to look after him, and found him suspended by his clothes to a nail in the wall. The next morning I saw him; and I never shall forget his looks :-the very picture of despair! He exclaimed, "O, I'm lost! I'm lost!" I begged of him to be quiet, whilst I spoke; which he complied with. I endeavoured to bring before his mind the past experience he had mentioned at times, and the sweet love visits of his Saviour he had often experienced; but he cried out, "I have forgotten him; I have neg→ lected him; I have forsook him; and now he has forsook me. I'm lost! I'm lost!" I begged him to be composed, whilst I spoke of his dear Redeemer's faithfulness and unchangeableness, and of his promise wherein he said, "I go away, but I will come again." And I seemed to have my tongue set at liberty, and my inind enlarged, in speaking from “I will come again." After a long conversation, I read to him, and spent some time in prayer, and felt a solemn wrestling time with the Lord, and the dear old man cried out a hearty amen, and begged of me to continue praying for him, as he could not pray for himself; and asked, "Do you think he will come again ?" I said, "As sure as the sun shines, he will: if I had a thousand souls, I could risk them all on his word of promise." He exclaimed, "O, I hope he will come again !" which I proved to him was prayer. When the time came to part, I thought he would not have left go my hand; and he cried out, "O, pray for me often!" I then left him. I afterwards wrote to him, to know how he was. He told his granddaughter (he could not write himself) to say he had found his resting-place in his dear Saviour; and I think, in the beginning of February, he fell asleep. His last words were, "Come, dear Lord! come !" His age was about 76. J. STACE. A HAPPY PAIR AT GOSPEL OAK, To the Editor of the EARTHEN VESSEL. DEAR SIR. From hearing read the dealings of the dear Lord towards his people through the EARTHEN VESSEL, I am led to believe it will prove a great blessing to the spiritual and temporal welfare of many. In hearing the experiences of some of the Lord's children, I feel encouraged to say a little respecting the 188 A HAPPY PAIR AT GOSPEL OAK. dealings of the dear Lord towards me, though it may be in a feeble way. I was born of poor parents in the year 1810, at Prittlewell, Essex. Having had but little learning, and no trade, I was given to a roving disposition (whilst young) to see fresh countries, which I did both by sea and by land. On one occasion I made up my mind to go to Liverpool; my money being spent before I got half through my journey, I was compelled to beg my bread, which proved a painful task. Coming through the county of Stafford in the year 1831, I endeavoured to get employment, which I did; and I continued for many years in a solitary state, having lost all my old companions, and having no desire to associate with new ones, I could take no delight in worldly amusements; my mind was seriously impressed on things respecting my future state, remembering many things that I had heard my father and Mr. Warren talk about. I have heard them many times speaking about that precious Jesus and that everlasting covenant which he hath made for his people. This filled me with deep anxiety to know what would become of my poor soul; which often used to cause me to wish that I had been like some poor dumb animal that had no soul to be saved or lost. In this state I continued for a length of time; till one day sitting at my dinner, talking to my fellow workman a little of my experience, he told me he knew a man that would please me well. He directed me to the Baptist chapel, Wood Street, Bilston. On the following Sabbath, I went, and was directed into a seat; and whilst hearing the preacher speak of the goodness of God, my soul rejoiced within me; but I had no one in the world that I could open my mind to. I still kept going and coming. My employer perceived a change in me: he asked me what was the matter with me? I, being lost for language to express my feeling, he concluded that I must be beside myself; and I often questioned in my own mind whether it were so or not: but I found after, he being a Deist, was not able to judge my case. Some little time after, at my dinner one day, I fell in company with a Methodist local preacher; falling into conversation with him, he understood that I attended the Baptist chapel, and began to ask me respecting the doctrines and creed the Baptists professed. This I was quite unprepared to answer; but on telling him a little of my experience, he told me their creed or profession. After leaving him, I could not see how those things could be; for I felt myself a poor, guilty, helpless sinner. This set my mind on a fresh study to know which was the right way for a poor sinner to fly for refuge. I made up my mind to go once more to chapel to get a little more information. The preacher spoke so sweetly upon the love of Christ, which caused me to rejoice and cry till my heart seemed almost too large for my body: and I could scarcely forbear crying out, "It's enough!" I had a long distance to go home to my lodgings; and going along meditating on the things I had heard, I went into some old building to pour out my gratitude to the dear Lord for the good things had heard: I can truly say was to me the beginning of good days. For some time after I could go to bed rejoicing, and get up rejoicing; and my labour seemed sweet whilst meditating on the goodness of the Lord to me a poor sinner in a strange land. About a year after, I was added to the church through the ordinance of baptism. As I found it necessary in my experience that man should not dwell alone, I prayed to the Lord that he would bless me with a suitable partner in life-one that loved and feared his holy name; and I trust I can say to the glory of his great name, he answered my request: and I think it would be well for all young people who wish for happiness in their future days to observe the same rule. I have cause to praise the Lord for all the comforts he has bestowed upon me: he has given us three sons, who have been a source of great comfort up to the present time. Our greatest anxiety at the present time is that the Lord would provide us a faithful minister, as we are destitute of such a man. But amidst all these scenes, I know not how to express my gratitude to the dear Lord any other way than by showing sympathy to the poor, as I find several cases amongst our own people, and in the EARTHEN VESSEL; therefore I feel encouraged to do a little for them, as my ability will allow. I herewith send you a sovereign to divide amongst the four cases that in my view seem necessitous:-5s. for poor brother Panter; and 5s. for brother Chamberlain, of Stepney; and 5s. for the Faithful Gospel Minister's Relief Society; and 5s. towards the repairing of Unicorn Yard Baptist Chapel. Respecting the money matters you can say, "A Friend to the EARTHEN VESSEL." If you think my feeble experience would be of any service, you are at liberty to publish it. Your well-wisher, Near Tipton, Staffordshire. T. JOHNSON. "Thou shalt never Want a Friend." CHEER up, brother, short 's the number "I have trod the path before thee, ""Tis not all a desert dreary, And let this thought ever cheer thee, W. LINE. |