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From,

VIII. THE PARALLEL DURATION OF THE FINAL STATES OF THE RIGHTEOUS AND THE WICKED.

The happiness of the righteous is eternal. "He that believeth on the Son hath eternal life." Self-love induces even ungodly men to receive this part of the final sentence: they are not unwilling to believe that the joy of the righteous is everlasting. Then,

The punishment of the impenitent is equally eternal. These shall go away into "everlasting punishment." This conclusion, that the duration of both states is parallel, is so irresistible, that the whole case may be made to rest upon it. The late Mr. Whiston, Professor of Mathematics in the University of Cambridge, was so convinced of the truth of this parallel, that he was induced to give up both! You may start at the conclusion, but Mr. Whiston was a scholar, and consistent. If, then, you cling to the belief that the joys of the righteous are eternal, avow also that the torments of hell are also eternal.

The doctrine in question appears from,-
IX. ITS EXAMPLE.

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The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is a perpetual fact. The cities of the plain of that land, which was even as a garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt as thou comest into Zoar," became, and remain unto this day, a dreary sulphureous lake.

The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is a perpetual example of the fire of hell. The cities of the plain are set forth “ an example," if not of the reality, yet as an emblem of the existence of "eternal fire.' The example takes its designation from the object it is intended to exemplify.

Can you reverse the sentence of the asphaltian lake? or restore the cities of the plain? When this IS DONE, the man who denies the eternity of hell torments is entitled to be heard; but not until then. From,

X. THE DIVINE EXISTENCE.

For,

God is eternal. Matter was created, the universe is destined to change, man himself dies and rises to life; but God is the same "yesterday, to-day, and for ever." This is the corner-stone of the universe. "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God."

The

So are the fires of hell eternal. terms by which they are expressed are one, αιων, αιώνιος. Abrahamn called upon the name of the "everlasting God," αιώνιο Θεξ, LXX.

I call upon that reason which is the image of eternal Reason, upon that conscience which is the vicegerent of the immutable and righteous Lord, to decide whether he, and consequently the penal fire of hell, be or be not eternal!

Once more the doctrine under consideration is established by,

XI. THE NON-ETERNITY OF HELL TORMENTS MAKING GOD A LIAR. To their perpetuity he is pledged,

By Prophets. Daniel says, "many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to shame and everlasting contempt.'

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By Apostles. "The smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever."

By Jesus Christ. For it was that person in whose lips dwelt the law of charity who declared, “These shall go away into everlasting punishment."

And by the Holy Ghost. Who declared "that the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and obey not the Gospel, who shall be punished with everlasting destruction."

is

By these Jehovah is pledged; and he 66 not a man, that he should lie. Hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?"

The doctrine of the text has been, it may be presumed, amply established; and I would fain hope that it has already obtained not only a candid, but a profitable, hearing. Suffer a few words farther. Are the torments of hell eternal? Is the fire never quenched? Then,

Sceptics, fear. You affect to repudiate revelation, and, on your own account, wish it were a mere myth, a cunningly-devised fable." You presume to philosophize on the fire of the pit, and allege its immateriality. But YOU KNOW that the evidences of revelation are unanswerable; that immaterial fire is absolute nonsense; and that we must either affirm it to be material, or we deny its existence.

Be persuaded. Turn to Him who as yet can quench the fires of hell, in his own atoning and sacrificial blood.

Sensualists, fear. You indulge the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life. Your tastes, habits, prejudices, fellowships, and passions, are

your gods. To them you bow down. But the man clothed in purple and who fared sumptuously, died: so must you. In hell he lifted up his eyes. Must not you do the same? Hear these words: "If ye live after the flesh, ye shall die." Does the thought of hell alarm you? Then how will you "dwell with everlasting burnings?

Rich men, fear. Your wealth is your strong city; but be assured it is difficult for you to obtain true religion or final salvation. Your gold makes it so; for a "rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven." In the pursuit of riches, you may lose your soul; in their possession, you can with the utmost difficulty save it. Beware that in laying your hand upon earth you do not forfeit the city of God. Be persuaded. Seek the true riches; and in doing so, what is needful for life and godliness shall be given you.

Neglecters of the Gospel, fear. Your character is marked by negation. You let the Gospel alone. You see its rich and royal provisions, but are unconcerned about what their neglect involves. Permit me to tell you, NEGLECT IS REJECTION; and if ye reject, how shall ye escape the divine justice? Unhappy men!

With

more than satanic impenitency to trample upon the blood of the covenant of all your mercies; to pass with sullen indifference the incarnate love of a redeeming God! Will you still neglect the calls of grace? will you still heedlessly embrace the worm that never dieth?

Backsliders, fear. You have forsaken the fountain of living waters. What have you gained by giving up closet and family devotion? by quitting the ranks of the faithful? You have shut out the King of glory from his temple. thier lord taken his place?

Has a wor

Apostacy is your next step; and can you think of the "outer darkness" which awaits the man who turns away, and not fear? If not, return to Him who will heal your backslidings.

Saints, persevere. I know you are kept by the "power of God," but that power is exerted in fear, as well as through other forms. Fear moved Noah to prepare an ark to the saving of himself and his house. Jesus your Master, who himself feared, and who was heard in that he feared, thus addresses you: "Fear him, which after he hath killed, hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, FEAR HIM."

I conclude. May He who has the

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keys of hell, preserve the writer and the reader from hell. Amen. Grimsby.

FAITH WITHOUT WORKS IS DEAD.-JAMES II. 20.

THE Author of faith hath said, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." This doctrine is enforced by injunctions; such as, "Give to him that needeth; and from him that would borrow of thee, turn not thou away." "As ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise." "Love ye your enemies, and do" (them) "good, and lend" (to them), "hoping for nothing again, and your reward shall be great; and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil." St. Paul saith, "If thy enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head." Such kindness will soften his heart, and help to overcome evil with good. He exhorteth Timothy to charge the rich, to be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate," (to the needy,) "laying up in store for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that ye may lay hold on eternal life." St. James teacheth that faith is dead, when not shown by liberality to the poor: and St. John shows that they who do not relieve their poor brethren "have not the love of God in them." And as though St. Matthew would remove every doubt on the subject, he saith, "When the Son of man shall come in his glory," (to judge the world,)"he will separate the righteous from the wicked,—and set the one on the right hand, and the other on the left; and will say to those on the right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me." And because those at the left have not observed these things, he will say to them, "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.' Let it be observed that nothing is brought forward why the one

or the other is saved or lost, but kindness or unkindness to their poor brethren. But an objector saith, "Salvation is of faith, not of works, lest any man should boast." I know it is; but it is a faith that brings forth the fruits of the Spirit; the first of which is love, supreme love to God; and those who have this love to God, will strive to love the brethren, not in word only, but in deed and in truth.

They that have the faith that brings salvation observe the two grand commandments, on which hang all the law and the Prophets; these commandments, especially the second, the young man was to keep who came to Christ to inquire what he must do to inherit eternal life. Now since it is the joint testimony of Jesus and his Apostles, that saving faith must produce love to our neighbours, not in word only, but in deed, should not every Minister, when exhorting to faith in Christ, ever remind his hearers that "they which have believed in God must be careful to maintain good works?" especially those of Christian philanthropy. If Ministers everywhere, through the length and breadth of the land, were to preach this faith, and statedly visit the poorest of their flock; to console, and cautiously to learn their wants, and to lay them before the church, no doubt their wants would be relieved; for all would see it their duty and privilege to relieve their poor brethren: their duty, because God hath enjcined it; their privilege, because such are blessed of God, both here and for ever.

If faith that works by love were everywhere observed, there would be no need of laws to compel men to take care of the poor; they would be better attended to, and at a far less expense; because the vast sums expended to pay officers to carry on the Poor-Law system would be saved; for men possessed of this faith would come forward, without fee or reward, to attend to this "work of faith and labour of love."

In confirmation of the above, let me observe that Jesus saith, "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." St. Paul saith, "Let love be without dissimulation. Be kindly affectioned one to another, with brotherly love; distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality. Owe no man anything, but to love one another for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not

But

bear false witness, thou shalt not covet, and if there be any other commandment it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbour; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law." St. James saith, "What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? Can" (such) "faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, and one of you" (that hath faith without works) "say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone." St. John saith, "This is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him? My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth. If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?" If it be asked, How can the recipients of the bounty of others be addressed in the day of judgment as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, &c.? it may be answered, the poorest among the followers of Christ are disposed to attend to every act of kindness in their power to lessen the sufferings of their fellow-men; and where there is no power to act, the will for the deed is accepted by Him who hath said, "A cup of cold water shall not lose its reward." And let it never be forgotten that He who was so poor that he had not where to lay his head, and the disciples who left all to follow him, were in the habit of giving to the poor, though dependent on the charity of others; leaving us an example that we should follow their steps. This remarkable instance of charity leaves all without excuse. The poor would never want, if all who call themselves Christians could say, with good Mr. Baxter: "My rule hath been, to contrive to need as little as I can for myself, and lay out none on need-nots, but to live frugally on a little, and do all the good I could with the rest; and the more I have practised this, the more I have had to do with." Mr. Baxter, though dead, yet speaketh. O that all that have this

world's good, would go and do likewise. An attention to Mr. Baxter's rule, with faith that works by love, would enable them to attend to the admonition: "If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother but thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend" (or give) "him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth." (Deut. xv. 7, 8.) God is not a hard master; for at the tenth verse is declared: "For this thing the Lord shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto."

L.

APPEAL TO THE WANDERERS FROM THE FOLD OF GOD. THE deep interest I feel in your present and eternal happiness, is the only excuse I offer for addressing you: my desire is, that you may enjoy the bliss that an assurance of pardon brings. I pray God that your hearts may be opened to receive Jesus as your Saviour from sin, and its dreadful consequences. Go to your

offended Father's feet, and ask his forgiveness. The agonies of his only begotten Son on Calvary are a proof that he will not withhold pardon from you. He offers you salvation. He offers you, even you, Ŏ wanderer, whoever your are, an eternity of happiness: and will you reject it? Can you endure to dwell with everlasting burnings. O come this moment to your pardoning God! Come and lay your load of sin and guilt at the foot of the cross; and the blood, the precious blood, of the Lamb shall wash them all away. If you knew for certain that in a few days, it might be hours, your dwelling would be the prey of the devouring flame, would you not make some preparation, and endeavour to save all that you possibly could from being consumed? And if intelligence were brought you that a person, hearing of the calamity that was about to befall you, had opened the doors of his splendid mansion to receive you, if you would only come and ask him for it; if you refused to do so, and died from privation, whom could you blame but yourself? This is just the situation of every sinner. This world is hastening to the day when it shall be burned up, and all things that are in it. And its foolish inhabitants are saying, "What shall we eat? or, what shall we drink?

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or, wherewithal shall we be clothed?" and they know not that the day of judgment draws near. There is a portion in heaven for all that seek it. Poor unworthy sinners may obtain it, because Jesus is worthy in the Father's sight. The Son of God came from his throne in heaven, and died for us, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us unto God. O reflect on this! Not an angel or archangel was sent to recover lost man. No other than God's eternal Son was sufficient; for no mortal man could bear the load of guilt. For the Father laid on him the iniquity of us all. He whose goings forth were from everlasting, (Micah v. 2,) and one with the Father, wrapped himself in a mantle of clay, laid all his glory by, came down to earth; here he lived in poverty and want, and died an agonizing death: and all this was endured that you and I might escape the torments of hell. O think, is it not an all-important thought, Where am I going? Each moment that flies is carrying you nearer the eternal world. O haste! for the night draws near when you must leave the busy dwellings of men. Now is the time, and the only time for preparation. Christ is ready; all things are ready; tarry no longer. Farewell! the cold grave will soon contain our mortal bodies, and our spirits must fly to their destination. O prepare for

heaven!

N. S.

A WORD TO BACKSLIDERS.

Is it possible that persons who were led by the Spirit of God to see their lost state by nature and practice, and to fly for refuge to the sinner's Friend, Jesus, the propitiation for the sins of mankind, having found him precious, and experienced the happiness of true religion; is it possible that they who once walked in the paths of piety and peace should leave them and return again to the world? So after trying both ways, of sin and piety, by their return to the former they say to others, by their conduct, Satan is the best master. The following account is strictly true. Compassion for the memory of one who is now in the world of spirits prompts me to withhold her name; for while the names of those who were faithful unto death are dear to us, and we delight to tell of their acts and labours of love, we pity those who were kept in bonds by Satan until the eleventh hour. And while we take warning ourselves, and warn others of the net in which their feet were taken, we place not

on record the ensnared ones' names. Mrs. C. was, in early life, brought to God by the instrumentality of Methodism. For some time she was attentive to the means of grace; but she was drawn aside from the ways of God. His house, and the assembling of His people for spiritual edification, were abandoned. She was married, but not " in the Lord." As might be expected, her path was one of thorns and briers. At length she was abandoned by her husband, and reduced to poverty. When I first saw her, the hand of disease had grasped her body. I used to visit her occasionally, read the Bible, and pray with her. Many fears were entertained respecting her. She said that she enjoyed peace of mind; but we heard nothing from her of repentance or sorrow for the past. I beheld her feeble frame fast sinking under the pressure of disease. I saw a fellow-mortal, that must soon exchange time for eternity, hurrying to that awful brink unprepared. Many and earnest were the petitions that ascended up to God in her behalf; and I trust they were heard and answered for His sake through whom they were presented. In company with a dear young friend, I visited her on the last Sabbath she was permitted to spend on earth. When about to leave, having read and prayed with her for the last time, I said to her, "If we meet no more below, may we cherish the hope of meeting you above?" She said, "I trust you can.' This was a feeble assurance; but a ray of hope hovered round it. We left her to meet no more till the last trumpet shall arouse the slumbering dust of saint and sinner. A Minister, who was with her the evening before she died, expressed himself hopefully as to her latter end. She died in peace, as far as mortals could judge.

Thus her sun went down. O how differently she might have left the world if she had followed Christ! On the following Sabbath morn, unconscious of her change, I bent my steps to her dwelling, and was informed, on entering, that she was no more. I gazed on her cold, lifeless form with emotions to which I had been before a stranger. She was the first grown person I had ever seen lie in silent death. It was the Sabbath morn. Another Sabbath was lent to me; but with poor Mrs. C. time had ceased to be. I could not feel sure that she was quite happy, while it rent my soul with anguish to think that she was lost.

Has any one looked on this simple account who has wandered from the path of peace? O fly, my dear wandering brother or sister, to the waiting Saviour, before this hour has told its tale to God. He waits to be gracious. Think of life. What is it? A bubble on the ocean's bosom. Think of eternity; think of its endless joys, prepared for those who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Bear in mind that God is holy, and will not admit sinners into his presence; and ask yourself, Am I prepared to die?

N. S.

BASKET OF FRAGMENTS. HE is a poor Minister, he is good for nothing, who never makes you feel that you need Christ: and think what you will of him, he is a good Minister, and a faithful one, who disturbs your consciences, and forces you to feel that you must find Christ, or perish.—Rev. Charles Bradley.

We know not a text of more urgent and alarming import in the whole Bible, than that, The righteous scarcely shall be saved. They will make out the prize of eternal life; but, like the victorious coursers in the race, they will make it as by the distance of a hair-breadth. Compare the task to be done with the time that there is for doing it; and how it should speed us on to the business of eternity! and what an occupying of all our hours, and a plying of all our expedients, ought there to be, lest, when the night cometh, in which no man can work, we shall be found short of the kingdom of God!-Chalmers.

There are no seasons when the Christian more heartily enjoys the luxury of communion with God than during those hours which begin with melancholy. They are indeed the soul's night-seasons; but they are like those glorious nights in our northern sky, when the bright bow of God spans the firmament and floats among the stars, and the lambent fires from the horizon shoot up to meet it, and the whole heavens are telling of the glory of the Most High.-Christian Consolations.

Any man who is not prepared to recognise the claims of God to his body, soul, and spirit, to his time, influence, and talents, and to his money also, cannot be his disciple.-Dr. Thomas Smith.