infinuation of being blamed for not making earlier application, evidently flowed from compaffion, and an heart filled with concern that, labouring and heavy laden, they had not come to him fooner, that fooner they might have been refreshed and enjoyed reft. Knocking, fome at the fixth, others at the ninth, and fome even at the eleventh hour, they were all admitted without the leaft difference or fhadow of repulfe. Befides, it is impoffible to adduce a fingle inftance of one, who applied in earnest, being rejected or refused. The Lord delights in mercy; giving does not impoverifh him; his fulness is inexhaustible.

"We fhould feek, afk, and knock. Instead of fol lowing, we cannot conceive a better course. Neglecting this, we act the worft poffible part, and treasure up to ourselves wrath against the day of wrath.-Knocking, we discover the door of mercy open, and we now, in the very act of feeking, enter into reft by faith, and walk up and down, and find refreshing. We find reft to our hearts and confciences. We are affured that we fhall hold on our way, and in due time arrive at the place of which the Lord has faid, I will give it you. Then will be fully enjoyed the reft which remains for the people of God, and the fruition fhall be uninterrupted and everlafting. There, there will be no more death, neither farrow nor crying, neither fhall there be any more pain, and God fhall wipe away all tears from every eye. A confummation this devoutly to be wifhed!-Neglecting to knock, the midnight cry will find us afleep and unprepared, and leave us fo; for the door will be fhut. Then every lamp not fed by the oil of grace will go out. Once thut, all cries and endeavours to open the door will be as unavailing then as they are fuccefsful now! Filled with anguifh and defpair, thefe who are ithout go, and must go away into everlafting punishment! Stupenduous thought!

"My dear brother, take time by the handle. Life is fhort, death is certain, and the Jadge is at the door. Eternity is endlefs; future happinefs is fuperlatively glorions. Eye has not feen, nor ear heard, nor has it enVOL. II. No. 5. K

tered into the heart of man to conceive the fum of the beatific vifion. Much the eye has feen, and much more the ear heard; but the heart has conceived, I had aimeít faid, infinitely more than both, and yet the highest conceptions concerning heaven are infinitely below the truth. The pains of hell are alfo inconceivably great; they never abate, nor come to an end; and the longeft ufe and habit never make them in the leaft degree more tolerable. Awful eternity!-But the mind recoils-May a gracious God grant that we may never go to the place where future pains and punishment are known and felt in their utmost extent! Of all cares, let it be your firft and chief to feek the kingdom of God, and the righteousness thereof: of all bargains, let it be the first to buy the pearl of great price and fhould you part even with all you have for this pearl, your advantage will be infinite, and your heart fatisfaction inconceivable. Beware of lofing the foul!--Lofing the foul, fhould you gain the whole world, as indeed you will not, your lofs would be incalculable, and for ever irremediable. Believe and apply. the promises. As far as in his power we may depend on the word of an honest man. Heaven and earth may pass away, but the word of God abideth for ever. On God's part the promises never fail; believed and improved, they will be infallibly fure to us. He who believeth fhall neither make hafte nor be disappointed.

"Methinks I hear you figh, and fay, "Now you are come to faith again; I anxioufly defire to believe, but do not know what faith is." I am come to faith; I would not wish to be long or far from it. We live by faith; we walk by faith; praying in an acceptable manner, we pray in faith. By faith we endure, as feeing him who is invifible. By faith we look not with eager defire and heart-fatisfying complacency at the things which are seen and temporal as a fuitable portion, but at the things which are eternal. You do understand what faith is; you exercise it in a greater or lefs degree every day. Above all comparison you would, and actually do, prefer pardon of fin, and acceptance in the beloved, to all the

riches of the Indies. It is faith only which discovers the infinitely fuperior excellence of the former, and inclines your mind to give an immediate, permanent and decided preference. You do not and cannot understand faith perfectly. It is a myftery, and you know but in part. Probably you could not give an accurate and unexceptionable definition of it, or even a defcription rigidly exact. You do better; you exercife it. While many, poffeffed of great penetration, are stopping to settle the nature, feal, properties, &c. of this moft precious grace, you walk on in the light of the Lord's countenance, and get the ftart of them.-My dear brother, I love you too tenderly to flatter you; far lefs in a matter of fuch vast importance would I fay a fingle word to deceive you; but from what I know of you, I would rather have your 'humble and unafpiring, your believing and prayerful heart, than all the wifdom of the wife, though it should center in myself alone.

"You with me to write fomething concerning faith. I can fay little more, and nothing elfe, than what I faid when we were together. You have not forgot how we walked and converfed; and fuch was our enjoyment in these conversations, that, instead of standing still, the fun actually feemed to us to quicken his pace, and run his race with unusual expedition. I remember all our walks, and every corner where we fat down, to canvass any fubject more fully, as well as when what is recollected with forrow was enjoyed with rapture. Every fpot in your extenfive farm prefents itself in as lively colours this moment as the room where I write. Above all, I recollect the place where, fhaded by the hedge fouth of your house, and regaled by the odoriferous and fragrant fcent wafted from the adjacent trees and herbs, with tears in our eyes, and hearts enough big for utterance, we talked concerning faith and falvation. Our attention was fixed, our affections enlarged, and our converfation protracted. Our fubject and fituation, our exercife and enjoyment then did, and ftill do, recall to my mind the words of Chrift, Hofea xiv. 8. "I am like a green fir-tree, from

me is thy fruit found:" and of his fpoufe, Song ii. 3.
"As the apple-tree among the trees of the wood, fo is my
beloved among the fons: I fat down under his fhadow
with great delight, and his fruit was fweet to my tafte."
I truft we were not alone. The Author of faith, I am
perfuaded, was more than a witnefs of that conversation.
It favoured of fomething fuperior to nature, and more
exalted than even brotherly affection. After many appo-
fite remarks, conftrained to retire, you cried out with a fer-
vency which pierced my heart, "Oh, for faith!" Had it
been in my power, from that moment you should have
been strong in faith, and if not eradicáted, unbelief should
have given you little trouble. But why fhould I fay fo!
One who loves you infinitely better than I could have
done it; but he is wife as well as loving, and will give
what is good. Melted with tender affection, feelingly
touched with your deep concern, I was only able to re-
ply, "He will hear the defire of the humble, the prayer
of the deftitute he furely will regard, he will accomplish
the defire of them who fear him.'

"In your last you exprefs yourself thus: "I greatly defire to believe, but really I cannot." You mistake. Your great concern has made you forget your usual accuracy. If you defire to believe, you can and do believe. He who works in us to will, works alfo to do, and both of his good pleafure. Once willing, the poor finner works out his own falvation encouraged by the allpowerful motive that it is God who works in us, not to will only but both to will and to do. Thus falvation is as much God's work as if we did nothing, for he works in us both to will and to do; and it is as much our work as if God did nothing, for we are both willing and active, We will and do, and work out our own falvation. We are workers together with God. Glorious myftery, replete with confolation! An unfeigned defire for faith, is either faith itself, or flows from it; and both are alike from Him who is the author and finisher of faith.

Paffing this, why should you or I complain of inabi lity to believe? As much as moft men you do to others as

you would they should do to you. God has enjoined this, and you revere his authority. Enjoined by the moral law, faith is a duty equally binding as any part of morality. When God fpeaks we are under the highest obligation to believe him. We should fummon religion and reason, and refolve to aim at believing, applying the truths which God reveals. Unbelief is a fin of peculiar magnitude, and of all other fins God has expreffed his indignation and hatred of it in the most marked manner, and unequivocal terms. It is not a light matter to call the God of truth a liar! I know you will now, as often before, reply, that you have attempted to believe, but always find yourself unable. The duty is neither more plain nor important than the encouragement is quickening and animating. In the fcriptures the Holy Spirit is promised to work all our works in and for us. He is eminently promised as a spirit of faith. With infinite facility and expedition can he call things which are not into exiftence and action. Do you recollect, among the laft times I had the pleasure of being at G, that the day was as calm as perhaps any we ever faw; the air was ferene in the highest degree. There was not a fingle breath of wind. But what a change a few minutes produced! The clouds were collected. The lightning flashed; tremendous were the peals of thunder; the wind roared. With equal expedition can the God of grace caufe the wind of his Spirit to blow upon our fouls, even when they are like dry bones. What an inftantaneous change was produced in the heart of Paul, the jailor, and many others! But though in a more gradual and leifurely manner, if the Spirit of the Lord fhould blow equally irrefiftibly, it is enough. Befides, faith is God's gift, and he is a liberal giver. Inftead of being a condition of falvation, faith is an important part of it, and infallibly connected with the whole. It is a bleffing in the Covenant of grace, as freely promifed and beftowed as any other.-Say to a God of grace, Lord, I believe, help me against my unbelief; and never forget that he addreffes you in these encouraging words, Fear not, only believe.