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assembly in his holy temple. Take then the advice given long ago: "Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear than to give the sacrifice of fools." When there, look through the preacher and his manner up to God, and expect your good, not so much from what is spoken, as from what is brought home to the heart and conscience by the Spirit of truth; and whatever is discovered that ought to be put away, put it away; whatever ought to be pursued, pursue it; and whatever ought to be expected, expect it; thus endeavouring to reduce the knowledge you receive to practice. Guard against a wandering eye and a wandering heart. These are hurtful to the christian, and render his public services not so acceptable to God, nor so beneficial to ourselves. Beg of him to open your understandings, that you may understand his word, and that his blessing may descend on all. When the congregation is dispersed, endeavour

To retain and feed upon what you have heard.-Consider what fresh light you have received upon any subject; what new convictions have been felt in your mind; what discove ries you have had into the mysteries of godliness; what desires have taken place after righteousness; what scriptures have been applied to your case; what temptations have been broken; and what resolutions have been formed. If a due attention is paid to these things, and properly acted upon, the word cannot fail of having a blessed sanctifying effect upon our souls, and will preserve us from the snares laid for our feet from men or devils.

MEDITATION.

As the first sincere dedication of ourselves to God arises from a due consideration of the solemn subjects presented to us in revealed religion, in like manner, the entire sanctifica. tion of our nature is greatly promoted by the same means. A real christian is necessarily more or less a contemplative character, and without it would forfeit all claim to true wis dom. It is this that determines his choice of the most ex

cellent things, and fixes in his mind a rooted aversion to sin of every kind. It is this which guards him against lightness and trifling, and keeps hin from grieving the Holy Spirit of God; from forgetfulness of past mercies, and that keeps him from a variety of mistakes; that makes him willing to take up the daily cross, and to stand always prepared for his removal to another state, or desirous of being thus prepared. Let us throw these subjects into a form of meditation, to assist a soul that is thirsting after holiness in its endeavours to obtain that inestimable favour. Meditate

1. On the best gifts.—Jehovah, God of love, true source of all grace and happiness, how great, undeserved, and numerous are thy gifts to man! What tongue shall express their worth; or what heart conceive their importance? Yet how free, how precious are they all! How calculated to purify, exalt, and call into exercise the best feelings of our nature, and dispose us to the performance of the most worthy actions! How calculated to dismiss our fears, and engage us in thy service; to call forth our ardent desires, and to fortify our minds against the most trying occurrences! And wilt not thou who hast loaded me with so many benefits, add this to all the rest, a clean and holy heart?

'I see thy infinite compassion in the gift of thy beloved Son, whom thou didst send into the world, that he might make known to us thy will; set us a perfect pattern of holiness; and die, to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself— and was he not apprehended, and did he not suffer without the gate of Jerusalem that he might sanctify the people with his own blood; and shall I not look for that blood to sanctify

me?

Nor am I less indebted to thee, gracious Benefactor, for thy blessed Spirit, which thou hast sent to convince the world of sin, and to renew us after thyself in holiness and righteousness. Did he not in the generations that are past, wash and sanctify those that believed in the name of the Lord Jesus and are not his influences, his gifts, and his offices

the same? Cannot my soul be washed by him, and made whiter than snow?

"Thou hast given me thy word, and thy word is pure; and does not thy word teach me that holiness becometh thy house for ever? Does it not present me with the most holy persons for my example, that I may follow them as they followed their Lord? Does it not command me not to touch the unclean thing, and to cleanse myself from all filthiness of flesh and spirit, that I may perfect holiness in thy fear? And does it not abound with precious promises, that by these I may be a partaker of thy nature; and is not thy nature holy?

'Hast thou not appointed thine ordinances with the same design? Thou hast often met me in them, and filled my soul with serenity and joy. Here I have learnt the delightful lessons of thy grace, and been filled with admiration at thy patience and condescension. Here I have beheld thy glories by the eye of faith, and sunk in deep abasement at thy feet; and here I have seen the great propitiatory sacrifice, till my heart has dissolved in gratitude and love. And why hast thou thus comforted, encouraged, and instructed me? Was it not that I might be induced to give up all thy rivals, and love thee with a pure and perfect love?

'Am I not, O Lord, the work of thy hands? Hast thou not fashioned me, and laid thy hand upon me, and was it not that I should resemble, know, and love thee for ever? Oh let me do it, that I may rejoice in thee, and celebrate thy praise! Thou art my kind preserver. Who but thyself could defend me in this world, so full of dangers from day to day? Shouldst thou refuse me thy protection, who could keep me from being consumed? Great is thy mercy in my preservation, and the supply of my wants. How rich, how inexhaustible thy stores, O Lord! Millions of beings are constantly fed by thy bounty, and numerous as they are I am not forgotten-thy kindness extends to me, to unworthy me! Thy goodness surrounds me, it crowns, it follows me,

and knows neither end nor bounds. And shall not I be all that thou requirest me to be? Thou wouldst have me lift up my longing eyes and heart to thee, and expect thy promised fulness. Thou knowest that I have no friend like thee, and that unless thou makest thy benefits eternal, I am undone. And this I may expect from thee; for thou art God, and not like inconstant and feeble man. O, my Lord, may I not expect, where thou art so free to give, that purity which excludes all sin whatever? Have I not taken my lot with thy people? When they are reproached, do I not bear it; and when they are honoured, do I not feel it and rejoice in it? O remember me then with the favour thou bearest them! O visit me with thy complete salvation, and with thine Israel, redeem me from all iniquity.'

2. On the evil of sin.- Holy and righteous God, in whose sight the heavens are not pure, and who hast charged angels with folly, I feel how much I ought to preserve in my mind. a rooted aversion to sin of every kind. I know, O Lord, that the wilful omission of known duty, or the commission of any sin, can neither promote my happiness, nor thy glory. May I not expect that thou wilt take pleasure in fully delivering me from that which is so great an evil in thy sight? That which has filled the creation with groans and sorrow, and spread so much disorder through many of thy works, thou canst not tolerate nor approve of; thou must will its total destruction. I wait then to prove thy will on me in destroying its last remains, and setting my soul at perfect liberty.

"I know, O Lord, that this is the fruitful source of all our disquietude, discord, and afflictions, and if we have found, in yielding to it, a momentary gratification, it has afterwards stung like an adder. It was this which banished us from thee at the beginning; and if we are finally banished from thy presence, we must ascribe it to the same fatal If wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many go in thereat, it is owing to this great evil: and are not thousands upon thousands plunging themselves into this dreadful and remediless state with

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out considering their inexpressibly awful situation? Oh, may I be warned, and look to him who was manifested to take away my sins, till he has finished his work in me!

'It was this which sullied the glory of those angels which kept not their first estate, which destroyed their liberty, blasted all their joys, and filled them with pain and restlessness, till the sentence of their tremendous Judge shall determine the degrees of their intolerable and everlasting torments! O, my Lord, let me never come into their condemnation, but be so fully born of thee as not to commit sin, and be so established by thy grace, that those wicked ones may touch me not!

What, O my soul, shouldst thou be placed in such circumstances as to have all that sin can give, and be detained. here ever so long to enjoy it; what then, if it must end in rùin and despair, what shall I have gained? O let the solemn things of religion, and the great concerns of eternity, ever influence thy choice of the things of God and his kingdom! Let thy cheerfulness be sweetly tempered with seriousness, that it may not degenerate into trifling and levity. Let it be thy care to serve the Lord in fervency of spirit, and in all humility of mind, and guard against that which would diminish thy peace and fill thee with painful reflections. Habituate thyself to the same pious disposition as that which thou preservest in communion with thy God and Father, and thou canst not fail of growing in conformity to his blessed will.

'I acknowledge, O Lord, that I have not so strictly attended to these things as I ought to have done, having often grieved thy Spirit; but, Oh, that it may be so no more! May I be sealed by him to the day of redemption; and the more he does for me, the more studious may I be to please him; observing every command, and attentive to every duty. If I violate the law of love through indifference or neglect, if I reject his grace, or misimprove it, I know it must displease him. Oh may I, therefore, be upon my guard against every improper word or temper, that no darkness may cover my

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