that God sits on his throne. These people Christ came to redeem, he laid down his life for them, and for no others. His blood was shed exclusively for his sheep. O how greatly he loved them! His love is as great as the Father's: 66 I am the good Shepherd. I lay down my life for the sheep." There will not be one of them wanting when he comes at the last day. "When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory; and before him shall be gathered all nations; and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats. And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the king say unto them on the right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.' The Holy Ghost, according to the purpose of God, calls all these people from among the wicked, he quickens their dead souls, humbles them for sin, nor will he omit to quicken them, nor will he fail to keep them. He never makes a mistake to call a goat and pass by a sheep. But you may say, "What will you do with all the rest ?" Why, I can do nothing. God leaves them to perish in their sins. There is no unrighteousness with God; he gathers his own. As it is written: "The election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded." Now, as those who hear these things preached, see the blessed state of the righteous, God working in their hearts, desires and longings of soul come upon them, crying and prayer rise within them; they are convinced of the truth, and can find no rest in their souls until God assures them that they have a part and lot in the matter. This is how God sometimes works with his people. May it be so in some of your hearts this morning. If so, you will have to say, "This people shall be my people, and their God my God," as Ruth did when she saw that her mother-in-law was one of this holy and blessed people. The desire to know this will bring out many cries from your inmost souls. Whilst preaching at B. I was once led to speak of this way of God, how all his own people were called into Christ, and all the others left to perish. Soon afterwards I was desired to visit a person. As soon as she saw me, she said, "Sir, you are the man." Seeing her in trouble, I said, "What is the matter?" The reply was, "O, Sir, I am lost! My soul is lost!" I said, "How do you know you are lost?" "I am not one of the people you spoke of the other Sunday. When you spoke of the people of God being gathered into Christ, and all others left out, it came into my soul with such force, and I had no hope." I said, "You cannot tell you will be lost." She said, "Sir, I am not one of the people. If I was but one of that people; but I am not. O my soul, my soul, my soul!" "Do you 'No, Sir; I cannot pray. I am wicked, and God will not hear the prayers of the wicked.' "Have you felt any hope in God?" "No, Sir. There is no hope for me. I am not one of that people you spoke of. O my sins, my sins!" "Did you pray?" ever feel any trouble before?" "No; I was brought up to hear the truth. I used sometimes to hear Mr. Grace and Mr. Vinall; then I left it. I never felt in trouble. Now my sins are come upon me, and I am cut off." I visited her again and found her still in trouble; and, though a little quieter in mind, she stuck hard and fast to her conviction that she was not one of the people; nor could I move her from it. I saw her again and found her still in trouble. I said, "Now tell me what you in this trouble are most wanting." "0 Sir, to know that I am one of that people you spoke of. If I was sure of that, I would not mind what I went through in body." Now this poor woman was just in the right place to be saved; and God graciously blessed her soul and melted it with his everlasting love and goodness. The soul that has a case for Christ and a true discernment will be led to Christ, as the Samaritans did, when that base woman left her outer waterpot and went back to the city with an inward waterpot and a little living water in it, crying, "Come, see a man that told me all that ever I did." Her whole heart was in it, "Is not this the Christ? Come and see him." She was not ashamed of him, who not only told her her sins but at the same time had won her very heart. So now, souls that know Christ go to him for themselves; they go to him as God; they pray to him as God; he is precious in their sight. In this their election shines, "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." But O how these poor souls are tried with unbelief. But even in this there is something in their favour; for no man is tried and plagued with unbelief until faith enters his breast. What reasonings there are in the mind whether for some sins committed he will not cast out, but "nowise" takes in and goes beyond all sins and objections; so that it contains something infinite for encouragement and comfort, "Thus saith the Lord, If heaven above can be measured and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all (not one or two of them) the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the Lord." But those people who receive the Word into a good and honest heart will never be cast out nor cast off. [The preacher spoke of the fruits brought forth; but this we are compelled to defer for a future No.] A TASTE of personal interest reconciles a man to the sovereignty of the grace that saves him.-Hardy. THE persons who feel no malady of sin see not their want of a Saviour.-Romaine. THE pretended desires of many to behold the glory of Christ in heaven, who have no view of it by faith whilst they are here in this world, are nothing but self-deceiving imaginations.-Dr. Owen. A CHURCH full of love is a church well built up. All parts, gifts, attainments, graces will not edify and establish without it... The enemies of Christ know this; therefore it has been their settled maxim: First divide, then destroy.-J. Hill. THE LATE MR. BELL, OF FRAMLINGHAM. My dear Sir,-The accompanying copy of a letter, written by Mr. Bell, was addressed to Mr. Freeman; but it was not sent; and I have been requested by friends to send it for insertion in the "Standard;" but I felt afraid to comply, knowing that letters written by a dear friend would have more weight to his immediate friends than to the general reader. But going a short time since, during the noon-time on a Sunday, to see one who I hope is a child of God, who is passing under heavy affliction, she spoke of how the Lord had blessed the few letters of Mr. Bell's which appeared in the "Standard; and this encouraged me to hope he might condescend to own and bless this, if it meet your approval. All I can say is, if it be for the honour of God and the good of his people, I shall be glad to see it. I pray that the "Standard" may long continue what it has been, a blessing to thousands. I can say in truth and sincerity I love the work; and although I have it ever since 1838 I watch for the first of the month to see if there is anything for me. The day seems at hand spoken of by the prophet when there shall be a famine, not of bread, but of hearing the word of God. That the Lord may grant you all that wisdom and strength that you need, that you may ever find him better to you than all your fears, and that while you are labouring for the good of others he may shine into your own soul, is the desire and prayer of Brooke, Oct. 8th, 1872. L. GOLDSMITH. My dear and much-beloved and oft-remembered Brother in the strong and lasting Ties of the ever-blessed Gospel and Kingdom of Him who is beyond all Praise, Jesus the Christ of the everlasting Father, I have written many letters to you in the thoughts of my mind; some in the dead of the night, when sleep has departed from my eyes, and pains and sorrow have filled my heart, and when my soul has tried to raise herself to the throne of grace to beg for help and comfort; but no power has come, nor one word has been spoken to relieve my burdened heart. I have thought the Lord had forsaken me, and would never more regard such a sinner. It is a solemn spot to come to, for a poor soul in distress to feel that the Lord shutteth out our prayer, and has no ears to hear us. I have no doubt my dear brother has often been there. Such feelings are past telling, too deep to describe, and painful to those who in days gone by have been favoured to see his face, taste his love, and kiss his feet, and wash them with tears of love and thankfulness. Dear friend, it hath pleased the Lord to lay his afflicting hand on my house of clay, and to bring my soul to that spot David was in when he walked through this stormy wilderness. I have read the 42nd psalm with a melting feeling of a broken heart. Like him, I look back to past times, favoured seasons; but now sorrowful ones. I can go every step with him when he describes his soul's joy in verse 4; and I can go with him in a part of the verse 5. I can go as far as this word: "Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me?" But I cannot go further. Hope is the gift of God, and to plant it and water it is the work of the Holy Spirit. I have no power to raise hope in my soul against the day of trouble, nor yet when trouble comes. I look back to the little hill of love where God in Christ revealed his blessed face, and filled my soul with peace and joy; but the wine that I drank yesterday will not do for me to-day. Past enjoyments will yield no present comfort. They must come to-day as they came yesterday, by the hand and arm of the Lord. I can read hymn 923 (Kent's), and say "Amen " to the truth of it; but I cannot sing it to-day. ""Twas in the night, when trouble came, I sought, my God, for thee; But found no refuge in that name I sought thee, but I found thee not, For all was dark within." Solemn truth; my soul, seal it. I have tried to sing the 3rd verse of 911, by the same dear man; but I break down before I can begin: "O bless'd devotion! thus to meet And spread our woes at his dear feet, And hold sweet fellowship with God." Truly, my dear brother, there is a real and sweet reality in the religion of Jesus Christ; and if I am deceived I am deceived indeed! With all solemnity I speak it, with all my darkness and all my unbelief, and all the vile workings of my corrupt heart, my soul often cries with Peter, "To whom, yes, to whom, shall we go? Thou only, yes, only thou, hast the words of eternal life." Without him my soul would soon be shipwrecked. This day is a day often remembered by me; for on the first morning of July, 1850, I saw that morning the end of a dear child of God, a man in the prime of his life, a husband and the father of five children, brought down to his grave after some months of painful sufferings. I had seen him amongst my hearers when I had been at Brooke some time, and when he could not get out to hear I used to go and see him and sit and talk with him. The Lord had begun a work in his soul,-a real law-work. He felt himself a lost and ruined soul. No one could persuade him into a hope of pardon by Jesus Christ; not one promise could he dare to lay his hand upon, until the blessed Spirit wrought a hope, and blessed him with faith and power to lay hold of Jesus as the Saviour of his soul. Many long days and nights have I and the friends sat by his bedside watching to see when the Lord should condescend to pass by and drop pardon and peace into his poor distressed soul. Many parts of the Scripture and pieces out of the "Standard" were read to him, and many strong desires went up to the Lord for him. He would thank us for all kindnesses; but they were not for him. "No one can do me good," he would say, "only the Lord. It is he that must speak the word with power, and save by his own arm." It pleased the Lord to keep him in this state between, I would say, hope and despair, but he could not believe he had any hope, until the last moments came. Life was fast ebbing out, death was seen in his dear face; when his mother put her mouth to his ear, and said, "James, is it well ?" And then, with a feeble smile and in a whisper he said, "Yes," and then, turning his eyes to the spot where I was standing, and gently raising his hand, he softly breathed out his soul. To describe my joy and sorrow, the tender feelings of my heart, I shall never be able; for the more I knew of him the stronger my feelings grew towards him; I might say, and say the truth, the more I loved him. If power was given, and the Lord was to bring to my remembrance all the solemn things I heard from his lips, it would fill this paper, and another and another. When his happy soul was gone I cast one look at the calm peaceful clay, and went and looked out of the window. The sun was rising, the birds were singing their morning hymn to their Creator, when the first verses of a hymn out of Rippon's old Selection came with sweetness to my soul: 66 'Happy soul, thy days are ended, Lo, thy Saviour stands above, I could look and believe he was enjoying the whole of it. May the Lord abide with you, and make you a blessing to his poor hungry needy sheep. May the blessing of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob rest upon you, and their God be your God for ever and ever. So prays Your Brother, W. BELL. Framlingham, July 1st, 1871. [For some particulars respecting Mr. Bell, see "G. S.," p. 307, 1872.] |