as an accusation, "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews," he placed over the cross a glorious truth, for the despised Nazarene was "King of kings, and Lord of lords;" or as when "The Pharisees and Scribes murmured, saying, 'This man receiveth sinners;'" for, however undesignedly, they enunciated a great and blessed truth; and what they intended as a brand of infamy, we hail as worthy of being displayed on the gospel banner, wherever it is unfurled.

"Live as you like," in the antinomian sense, is from beneath, and proclaims its own parentage. For a godly man must be a god-like man,a christian must be like Christ. He can no more like sin than a burned child can like to play with the fire, or a fish would like to live out of water. True grace and practical godliness are as inseparable as God and holiness. For it is not only true that believers are predestinated, but they are predestinated to be "conformed to the image of Christ." It is not only true that they are effectually called, but they are called unto holiness." What God, therefore, hath joined together, let no man put asunder. The woman who in the presence of Solomon would have consented to have the child divided was not the true mother; nor is he a true christian who would separate justification from sanctification, divorce the work of Christ on Calvary from his reign in the heart, and thus dash the sceptre against the cross. If any such a graceless professor should cast his eye on this page, let him take solemn warning that he turn not "the grace of God into licentiousness;" for such as have knowledge without love, resemble Nebuchadnezzar's image, with its head of gold and feet of clay, and, like it, they also shall be "broken in pieces, and become like the chaff of the summer threshingfloor, which the wind carrieth away."

My design, however, is to show (though not as the speaker intended) that there is truth in the remark, that the christian may live as he likes;" and the whole matter hinges on this one question, What does the true christian like? which now we proceed to show. And,

First, he does not like sin. It is his daily, hourly burden, that he cannot live without it. He is engaged in deadly warfare with it, and he can neither hoist nor regard any flag of truce. Diplomacy, negotiation, compromise, or peace with sin, are words not found in his vocabulary. Nothing short of its utter and everlasting destruction will suffice. It crucified his Lord, and he feels that his sins inflicted sharper pangs in the Redeemer's heart than the nails in his hands and feet, and like Bunyan's pilgrim at the cross, "he looks again and again upon the crucified Jesus, till the springs that are in his head send the waters down his cheeks,' and roused to a holy indignation, he cries,

"Furnish me, Lord, with heavenly arms

From grace's magazine,

And I will wage eternal war

With every darling sin."

But, further, the christian may “live as he likes," because he likes to make the Word of God his rule. He loves his Bible, and he may indulge his liking,

"By day to read its wonders o'er,
And meditate by night."

Others prefer and read the novel, the romance, the tragedy, the comedy, and they do as they like! Surely, then, the child of God may do as he likes, and make the Bible his companion to cheer him, his staff to support him, his comfort to solace him, and his guide to direct him, till, his pilgrimage ended, all its promises will be realised in "the rest which remaineth for the people of God."

Again, the christian delights in communion with God. And if he could live as he liked, he would always walk in the light of his countenance. His Lord has said, "Enter into thy closet," and he likes to be there, to pillow his sorrows on the loving breast of Him "who is touched with the feelings of our infirmities." Christians have much to say to Him who is their bosom friend, that they cannot reveal to any one beside,-secret sorrows of the inner man, with which He alone can be trusted. We all like sometimes to be alone with a dear and faithful earthly friend, how much more so with that "Friend who sticketh closer than a brother." We "live as we like," when in secret prayer the silent dews of grace descend upon our souls; we then go forth from the audience-chamber of the King, all radiant with his smiles; we are as "giants refreshed with new wine," as warriors from their armoury, exclaiming, "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid ?"

The christian likes all the appointed means of grace. He is "glad when they say unto him, Let us go into the house of the Lord." If he could "live as he likes," he would never have a dull and unprofitable Sabbath. In his right mind, that hallowed day is the best of all the seven, the jewel in the ring of the week, the "Elim" of his pilgrimage, where are the "wells of salvation," and the palm trees of divine ordinances, under which he sits and regales himself with delight. It is the day on which the spies return with the fruits of the promised land, and as he tastes, he sings,

"And now I've tasted Canaan's grapes,

My soul desires to go,

Where Jesus does the vintage keep,

And all the clusters grow."

Once more, if we could "live as we like," we would be more like Jesus; for the culminating point of all our hopes will be to "be conformed to his image." It is not less the end of our predestination, than it is the desire of our hearts. We gaze upon Him as the "altogether lovely,” till our souls are all on fire to be like Him.

We should like to resemble His tender compassion. We want to have more of the mind of Him who sympathised with the poor lone widow at the gate of Nain, who "stood still" at the cry of the blind Bartimeus, who took little children in his arms, who paid such welcome visits to the family at Bethany, and wept at the grave of Lazarus; what christian but must say,

"Such love, and meekness so divine,
I would transcribe and make them mine."

We should like to have more of His zeal, who "went about doing good," who, wearied and toil-worn, must needs go through Samaria to seek the lost sheep that were wandering on the mountains of Gerizim,who from early dawn to evening twilight, exhausted beneath the sultry beams of noon, or bathed in the cold mountain dews of night, never once faltered in his course, never thought of rest or ease till he exclaimed, “It is finished," and gave up the ghost.

If we could "live as we like," we would have a larger measure of His universal benevolence. Then how cheerfully we should visit the abodes of sorrow, and soothe with words of kindness and deeds of heavenly charity the sufferings of the destitute and forlorn. How then should we "devise liberal things" for the spread of the gospel, and seek to supply our sin-stricken world with that precious "balm of gilead," which alone can heal the wounds and bind up the bleeding, broken heart of our fallen humanity.

We should like to bear more of the impress of His holiness. Oh, that, as the wax is faithful to the seal, we exhibited more truly the image of his purity! The consideration of his sovereign, eternal, unchangeable love, so far from relaxing our morality, so far from suggesting the accursed thought of "sinning that grace may abound," will make us loathe our sins, nailing them to his cross; and teach us that, "denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world;" that while Christ is representing us in heaven, we may represent Him on earth; and thus by the sanctifying and maturing influences of the Holy Spirit, we shall be meetening for that sinless world, where as "priests unto God" we shall wear for ever on our mitred heads the inscription, "HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD."

Bury St. Edmunds.

IGNORANCE OF THE FUTURE.

BY THE REV. JAMES SMITH.

"Not knowing the things that shall befall me."-Acts xx. 22.

Though the apostle was inspired by the Holy Spirit, there were some things which he could not do, and some things which he did not know. He could not heal Trophimus, so he left him at Miletus sick, and he was now going up to Jerusalem, but he did not know what would befall him there. He knew in general, that in every city he would suffer persecution, but with the particular results of this journey he was not acquainted. It is just so with us, for we know not what a day may bring forth.

WE ARE IGNORANT OF THE FUTURE. It may be prosperous, or, it may be adverse. We may suffer much from sickness, or we may enjoy good sound health. We may meet with accidents, or we may be graciously preserved from them. We may be losers by fire, or water, or wicked men; or God may set a hedge about us, as he did about Job. We may be bereaved of our children, other near relatives or dear friends; or we may soon be summoned by death to appear before God ourselves. What may be our lot in future we know not. We are profoundly ignorant of it. But all is arranged, and arranged by our good, gracious, and infinitely wise God. Nothing is left to chance. Still, all is hidden from us, and this is in order to prevent security on the one hand, and despair on the other. We should never feel secure, or say with Job, "I shall die in my nest." Nor with David, "My mountain stands strong, I shall never be moved." But rather attend to the admonition of Paul, "Let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed, lest he fall." Neither should we despair, for the darkest night may usher in a bright and beautiful morning. The late and cold spring may introduce an abundant and glorious harvest. The sharp winter may end in a lovely summer. To despair, is to sin; whether it be in reference to providence or grace. The God of providence is abundant in goodness; and the God of grace is rich in mercy unto all that call upon him. To doubt the goodness of God is to question the excellency of his nature and the truth of his promises; to despair of the mercy of God is to reflect upon the merit of Jesus, and the love, the infinite love of the Father's heart. All events are so ordered by our God as to encourage confidence, hope, and prayer. God alone, as revealed in Jesus, should be the object of our confidence. We may trust in him. We ought to trust in him. We must trust in him, or be wretched. We should hope, for our God requires it, encourages it, and rewards it. We never can sink too low to hope. Our circumstances can never be such as to forbid hope. We should pray; pray for all we need, and against all we

fear. Prayer will be found to be a relief in trouble, a solace in sorrow, and a medium of blessing to our souls. Whatever may happen in the future, into whatever circumstances we may be brought, we should exercise confidence in God, hope still in his mercy, and plead earnestly at his throne for grace, believing that he has ordered all things in love, arranged all in infinite wisdom, and will overrule all for our ultimate good.

to us.

WHAT SHOULD OUR IGNORANCE OF THE FUTURE PRODUCE? It very frequently produces what it ought not. As for instance, it produces anxiety. Because we do not know exactly what is appointed for us, or for our families, we are full of anxiety respecting them. This is wrong, decidedly wrong. If God were not infinitely good, or if he were not a father to us, or if he had not made so many great and precious promises, or if he had not bidden us cast all our cares upon him, we might have been anxious. But to be anxious now is to sin. The holy apostle says, "I would have you without carefulness." Because we are ignorant of the future, we sometimes become depressed, and give way to gloom or despondency. Nothing can be more dishonourable to God, or injurious To despond, when perhaps the future may be bright and beauti. ful. To give way to gloom, when we are assured that the grace of Jesus is sufficient for us, and that his strength shall be made perfect in our weakness. It should produce simple dependence upon God. Realizing the fact, that I know not what is before me, or even what would be best for me, I should lean on the Lord's arm, trust in the Lord's word, depend on the Lord's faithfulness, and leave all to the Lord's love. I may well depend on him, after he has led so many through the roughest paths and the greatest difficulties, safely to the city of habitations. I may well depend on him when I know that he has never failed or forsaken them that trust in him, and has pledged his word that he never will. Yes, I should exercise a simple, child-like dependence on God every step of my journey through this desert land. It should check presumption. We are prone to speculate and presume. We are often misled by appearances. We sometimes lose sight of our own weakness. We forget that our adversary the devil goeth about as a roaring lion, or that we are ignorant of his devices. Like Israel we go up the hill without a divine warrant, we go against the foe in our own strength, or we fancy we can manage our concerns by our own wisdom; here is presumption, and such presumption as our ignorance of the future is calculated to check. should prevent foreboding. I know not God's purposes, but I should judge of them from his perfections; if I know not his pre-appointments I do know his promises; and therefore I should never give way to foreboding. My Saviour forbids it, and the prohibition flows from the tender love of his heart. He says to all who believe on his name, "I say nnto you, take no thought for your life what ye shall eat or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on; for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things; but seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." It should fix our attention on present duties. Every day brings its own duties with it; and our concern should be, to perform the duties of each day in the day. Many persons, while endeavouring to pry into the future, neglect the present. The happy man lives by the day. Whatever appears to be a present duty should have present attention. Could you visit any sick person to-day? do not put it off until to-morrow. Could you relieve any poor person to-day? delay not to do it. Could you speak or write for Jesus to-day? let it be

It

done to-day. Beware of delay. Never postpone if you have an opportu nity to do, for you know not what will be on the morrow. You know not what things may befall you. This should lead you to prepare for the

worst.

If you are prepared for the worst you may calmly and quietly meet all the rest. See to it, that you are cleansed from all guilt, that you have your wedding garment on, that your lamp is bright and burning, and then let what will befal you by the way, all will be right at the end.

Now observe, first, if we know not what may befall us, God does; and he is our Friend, our Father, and our God. As our Friend he will watch over us; as our Father he will care for us; and as our God he will supply all our need. Whatever may happen we shall never be friendless, fatherless, or godless; and, therefore, we can have no reason to be dejected or cast down. Secondly, though we know not what may befall us, we do know that it shall be well with us. This should satisfy us; more, it should fill us with gratitude, and excite in us the strongest confidence. Thirdly, if we know not how it will be with us in time, we know it will be well with us in eternity. All will be well, and well for ever, then. However rough the road, however trying the journey, the rest, the peace, the pleasures of home will more than make up for all. There are no long, dark nights in that better land. There are no sighs or sorrows in our Father's house. There are no trials or troubles in our Saviour's glorious kingdom. There are no wants or woes before the throne. "I beheld," said John, "and lo, a great multitude whom no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes and palms in their hands; and cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes, and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said unto me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more, neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of water, and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes." It is well with them now, and so it will be well with us when we have done and suffered the will of God below. Fourthly, nothing shall happen but what God has appointed, and will overrule. He fulfilleth the thing that is appointed for us. There may be accidents with us; there are none with God. Our plans may be frustrated; his never can be. Our purposes may be broken off; but his counsel standeth for ever, and the thoughts of his heart to all generations. Everything happens under his eye, and is ruled and overruled by his wisdom and power. Finally, let the worst that can happen, we are still in union with Christ, and beloved of our God. Suppose the worst, the very worst. Enemies, trials, troubles, crosses, sickness, death itself, we may yet ask with Paul, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Glorious persuasion this! Blessed, thrice blessed confidence, thus forcibly expressed! Beloved, let us then go forward into the future,