I HEARD the voice of Jesus say, Lay down, thou weary one, lay down I came to Jesus as I was Weary, and worn, and sad; I found in Him a resting-place, And He has made me glad. I heard the voice of Jesus say, Behold, I freely give The living water-thirsty one, Stoop down, and drink, and live." I came to Jesus, and I drank Of that life-giving stream; My thirst was quenched, my soul revived, And now I live in Him. I heard the voice of Jesus say, "I am this dark world's Light; Look unto me, thy morn shall rise, And all the day be bright." I looked to Jesus, and I found In Him my star, my sun; H. BONAR. ΟΝ IV. TIS MERCY FREE, what footing do we hold the promises? Are they the return for just claims? Are they granted only for a time? Or are they freely given, never to be recalled; given of favour, not for any merit? The answer waits us in the words of St. Peter, "He hath giren us exceeding great and precious promises." "Given," not lent. They are gifts, not wages; earnests of grace, not payment of debt; words of love, not rewards of services. A king gives, he does not sell. Look at Christ's promises to the Seven Churches. He gives to eat of the tree of life. He gives the crown of life and the hidden manna, and the white stone, and the new name. And, to sum up all, He adds, as Revelation closes, "Whosoever will, let him take the waters of life freely." We are to take, not buy, from the rich stores of our Father's bounty. There was no obligation on Him to grant us any of his favours, and though He has given us many, it would have been no wrong if He had withheld all. They are the gracious fruits of a love as free as it is full. As to any claim on our part, the less we think of that the better. Surely we receive enough in the common blessings of life, and in our life itself, to make us debtors, were there nothing more. Do we think to get heaven for our duties done? Alas, even had we never failed we should have been unprofitable servants, for nature itself demands that we should honour God by constant faithfulness, as creatures of his hand. he has been faithful? But who can boast that Paul, whom all of us esteem a saint, had nothing better to say for himself than that he was the chief of sinners; and if he felt thus, shall we begin to talk of merit? Be honest with yourself; think over your past life; read your day's thoughts, and then try if you can look up and meet the eyes of God, as rightly claiming any portion in the promises? Merit is a word just enough from man to man; but to use it towards God is the best proof that we do not possess it. The publican's prayer is the only one that the heart that knows itself can utter. If we are ever to get, it must be because God is merciful to the unworthy. Everything we receive from Him is unmerited, free, bounty. He "grants repentance." Faith is a "gift." He "gives rest to his people." He "giveth to all men liberally." "He gave his only-begotten Son." The wine and milk of all the promises are ours, without money and without price. God forbid that we should glory. Get this thought into your heart, as the first pre-requisite to an interest in God's special bounties. Never forget that they are his sovereign favours to the undeserving, coming from his gracious will, like the wealth of the dropping clouds, or the light of day, or the soft breathing of summer air. Given, not lent! Their very nature precludes that, for they reach on in their fulness through eternity. He who gives them is without variableness or shadow of turning-the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever. The Father of lights knows no waxing or waning of his purposes; no eclipses, no withdrawal of their shining. His gifts and callings are without repentance. Fixed before the foundation D of the world, they are still the "sure mercies of David" and the "everlasting covenant." Man often promises only to disappoint; often changes in his affections and will, and makes us feel that we have leaned upon a broken reed,— but there is no ebb and flow in the heart or mind of the Eternal. "The mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but his kindness shall not depart from his people, neither shall the covenant of his peace be removed." He still whispers to the soul, as He did to his servant of old, "I have loved thee with an everlasting love," "with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee." Given, with every pledge and binding form, to put the gift beyond a question, and to show that it is for ever. It is amazing how God condescends to human fears and weakness, and helps our trust in Him by multiplied securities. We think a gift is surely ours if settled on us as the acknowledged heirs, and God has met our thoughts and modes, by setting forth the promises as the inheritance of all believers. He has done more, for an inheritance requires a title, and He has deigned to speak of his good-will to us as a "covenant"—or binding |