Donations, in aid of the Building Fund, will be thankfully received by Mr. Newell, the minister; and it is hoped that the appeal will meet with a cordial response, as in behalf of a cause much needing and truly deserving christian sympathy. KEIGHLEY-TOKEN OF RESPECT. On Whit-Monday, May 20, the teachers of the Baptist Sabbath school, Keighley, met to hold their annual tea-meeting, and to present their worthy and long-tried friend, John Town, Esq. with a small token of their esteem for his untiring labours during the thirty-three years he has been connected with the above school, seven years as a teacher, and twenty-six years as superintendent. John Smith, Esq. of Morton, presided, and, after opening the meeting with a very appropriate address, he called upon the Rev. J. Harrison, pastor of the church, who presented Mr. Town with a splendid copy of Cobbin's Condensed Commentary, and a copy of Dr. Watts's Psalms and Hymns with Selection, both handsomely bound in roan, gilt edges. On the fly leaf of each book was the following inscription:"Presented to John Town, Esq., by the teachers of the Sabbath school connected with the Baptist chapel, Keighley, as a token of their high esteem for his indefatigable labours and christian-like example during twenty-six years he has been superintendent of the school; praying that the perusal of this token of our esteem may leave him and his beloved partner the more prosperous and useful in the cause of Christ, the more withdrawn from the corrupting influence of this world, and the more prepared for the joys that await the heirs of glory in another and a better world." Addresses were also given by the Revs. Messrs. Astin and Walters, Baptist ministers, the Rev. Mr. Harley, Association minister, and by Mr. Cole and Mr. Rhodes. It may justly be said of Mr. Town as it was said of Alexander the Great, that he gained the affection of his teachers by always being in time. STEPNEY CHAPEL, LYNN. The friends of the above place have just erected a neat and commodious room behind the chapel, and called "Stepney schoolroom." It is intended to devote it to the use of the Sunday school, and also to the purposes of week evening adult classes, and lectures to working men. The opening services were held on Sunday and Monday, April 14th and 15th, in the following order: -Prayer meeting on Sunday morning at 7 o'clock. Addresses in the afternoon by the pastor and G. Ovendon, Esq. of London. And on Monday evening, a public tea-meeting, after which addresses were delivered by several ministers and friends from various places. On this occasion, S. Bignold, Esq. of Norwich, presided; and the whole proceedings were well calculated to leave a good and permanent impression. May the Lord of the vineyard bless his servants, and grant them many proofs of his approving love. MIDDLETON-IN-TEESDALE. On Friday, the 17th of May last, the Rev. Chas. Forth, late of Horton College, Bradford, was publicly recognised as pastor of the Baptist church meeting in Hude chapel, Middleton-in-Teesdale. After the usual questions had been asked, and the ordination prayer offered up, the Rev. J. Acworth, LL.D., President and Theological Tutor of Horton College, delivered an eloquent and most admirable charge to the candidate. In the afternoon, the Rev. Thos. Pottenger, of Newcastle-on-Tyne, preached a very appropriate and impressive sermon to the church from Col. iv. 11, "These only are my fellow-workers unto the kingdom of God which have been a comfort unto me." After the close of the afternoon's service, the friends took tea together in a commodious room near to the chapel; and at halfpast six in the evening, the company again retired to the chapel, when Wm. Ewart, Esq. was called upon to take the chair, and addresses suitable to the occasion were delivered to a happy and attentive audience by the Revs. Dr. Acworth, T. Pottenger, T. Cardwell (Hamsterley), and other friends. PUDSEY, NEAR LEEDS. On the 13th of June, the interesting ceremony was performed of laying the foundation-stone of a Baptist chapel and school-room, in the densely populated town of Pudsey. After singing a few verses, and prayer being offered by Mr. Chislett of Kirkstall, P. Hainsworth, Esq. of Farsley laid the first stone, and delivered an appropriate address. The people assembled on the occasion were then requested to repair to the Primitive Methodist School-room, kindly lent for the occasion. A considerable number did so, and had the privilege of listening to very suitable addresses, delivered by the Revs. J. Foster of Farsley, R. Holmes of Rawden, and J. Chislett of Kirkstall, and by Messrs. T. Morgan of Leeds, and J. Marshall of Farsley. We are glad to know that a number of members, with the pastor, of the Baptist church at Farsley, have taken the management of the intended erection, with the collecting of monies already promised, and that if encouraged and supported as they expect to be by neighbouring churches, the premises will, at the opening services, be entirely free from encumbrance. The chapel will be a plain substantial building, without galleries, measuring outside 45 feet by 30, and the school-room underneath will be about 30 feet by 27. We may add that a considerable sum is still required to defray the amount expected to be necessary, and we hope that the application for help which will be made, to our more wealthy friends especially, will meet with that response which the large population and increasing importance of the neighbourhood in which the chapel is to be erected so eminently demand. Contributions will be thankfully received by P. Ainsworth, Esq., or Mr. Jonathan Marshall, of Farsley, near Leeds. THE CHURCH. 'Built upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner-stone."-Eph. ii. 20. AUGUST, 1850. FRAGMENTARY NOTES OF VILLAGE SERMONS. BY THE REV. JOHN FOSTER. (Taken by one of his hearers.) No. 8. "Behold the day, behold, it is come: the morning is gone forth."-Ezek. vii. 10.* We do not mean to examine what day the prophet had reference to; we shall not apply it to any one exclusively, but merely observe, that there are yet to come several times or days to which, when they arrive, this expression will be appropriate. Times and days anticipated will certainly come. If we take a survey of past ages, we might look on past events, to some particular day when things came to pass which had been predicted long before, and the thought of which made men wonder whether they should live to see those days. And we can imagine the wonder experienced by those who did witness the arrival of these events, which seemed infinitely more striking than the predictions had conveyed to their understandings. For example, the Deluge; that was an event which Noah was constantly predicting; but the Time went on, and nothing changed except as Time changes by going on like a river. half century came and another followed; another and another ended, and the clouds let drop their rain as usual; the streams and the rivers were the same; and the unbelievers did not believe a day would_come when all this would change, as predicted by the man of God. But at last the time came when Noah might say to them, "Behold the day, behold, it is come: the morning is gone forth." One And thus as to the death of the Messiah. How long was it prefigured and foreshewn, but Messiah did not come. There was a long expectation of the appearance of some extraordinary person, but still this prediction was not fulfilled; still the types and shadows remained; till in the fulness of time He came who was to come; a vision such as earth never before beheld a person who was to do a work unlike every other work, the only work of the kind probably in the universe, certainly in this world; and, whatever unbelievers or believers might expect, there did come a time when those who understood the signs of the times could say, "Behold the day!" that morning which followed his birth, or death, or ascension, might be said with the greatest emphasis to be "the day." • Life and Correspondence. Sheppard's Notices, p. 483, vol. ii. First Edition. VOL. IV. I When the last fires that consumed Jerusalem appeared, how emphatically, amidst that solitary ruin and desolation, might God say, "Behold the day, behold, it is come!" No doubt the events of each day are foreseen by one Being as to take place on that day; they cannot take place on any other. God, when each morning goes forth, sees what will come to pass. But consider what such a mind must be! How little do we know as certain, except a few things, such as the sun's rising in the East, and declining in the West. But, then, think of Him that perfectly foresees all that will come to pass. At this morning are the images in his mind of all the events of the day. He never says with surprise, "Behold the day!" We have the prospect of many common events, and of many extraordinary ones, in our prophetic view of this world, and there is more certainty of the extraordinary than of the ordinary ones. To live is an ordinary thing, and to live from one day to the next is common. But, then, with regard to any one person there is no such certainty of any one of these common things: there is no such certainty that he shall live till to-morrow as that he shall die one day. it will be to him a most extraordinary event. that he will die, than that he will live a day. ordinary events there is nothing so certain as an end. For a man that has to die, It is infinitely more certain And with regard to extrathat the world will come to I may live ten or twenty years; yes, I may; such and such an event may come to pass; there may be a meeting of friends; these things may happen; but there are other things of which I do not say, they may be. It is infinitely more certain that I shall die, that I shall see angels and disembodied spirits, than that I shall see any absent friend in this world. It is infinitely more certain that I shall see God, "the Judge of all," than that I shall see any distant friend in the flesh. The whole economy of the universe must be changed, if I fail to meet God in judgment. Common events often make us forget extraordinary ones. Their great likeness to one another beguiles our senses. Monday is like Saturday, and all the other days alike, except small circumstances, and thus they beguile us into the feeling that Time is like Eternity. This time is so like the past, and yet so utterly not the same. Each sun that lights us on our journey, lights us far on in it. The usual interests of life have much sameness; usual employments and conversations give a feeling of commonness, and make us prone to forget extraordinary ones. We expect the same things, and so it is. This indisposes the soul to enter a condition totally different from the present; it precludes the sight of future things; it forms a sort of wrought veil with diversified scenery upon it. Common things make our minds common. The days that bring common things make us less expect extraordinary ones. Now this is very absurd. a man know that a thing is in one of a hundred places; he looks into ten or twenty places, and finds it is not there; he has a greater probability to find it in the next than in any former one, because the number is less of those in which it can be found. If any event will certainly take place in one hundred days, as one day after another passes away and it does not take place, there is the greater probability that it will take place in the next. If a person expecting such an event has passed through ninety days, he will be deeply impressed that the next will be the one. apply this to Life. We know an extraordinary event must happen soon. It may happen any day; then the more time that has passed away without its happening, the more probably the next day or hour will be the time. The time will come when we shall meet our God. And in the Let Now present life we shall meet with afflictions. Now, in proportion as we pass a number of months and years escaping affliction, there is the greater probability that the next month or year shall be one of affliction. But then the effect on our minds is quite the contrary. The more free from affliction men have passed their lives the less they expect it. Why so? Does a man expect a perfect exemption from the general lot of mortality? Unless he is singularly favoured of all mortals not to experience the ills of mortality, the longer the time passed without them the nearer are these evils. The loss of health for instance. I am now strong and healthy. The time will most likely come when there will be a sad reversal of this happy lot. A serious man will ask, "Can my sun be so bright each day? Will not a darker morning come?" How many have had to say, "Behold the day! behold, it is come!" It is so with many persons this morning. There will be, with regard to all extraordinary events, a night when all will have passed away. There will be a time when the being who witnesses them will be gone out of this world. Every day does this to some of our race. All the days standing between us and the Great Day are removing out of the way; as in a journey, the hill once before the traveller is, after a while, behind him. The time comes when, if he would see it, he must look backwards. Most men never seem snitten with insupportable alarm. They do not anticipate any remarkable difference between their present and their future state; they endeavour to avoid seeing the day of Death; they wish to encircle themselves with common events. They never anticipate the time when they shall see disembodied spirits. They never think of what they shall feel in the presence of God, surrounded by infinite splendour and majesty. But, my friends, how differently are we destined to feel on some future day! We may say, "I feel myself in an easy state of mind at this hour; but then-what shall I feel at another time ?" We may be very calm now-feel little force of excitement-little alarm. But think how certainly we shall be in a different state of mind at a period fast approaching! "I do not feel much fear or hope at present," you say; but think, how long will this be the case? "The morning will come when I shall be smitten by the hand of God; I shall go to see other scenes.' It is the province of faith to look forward,-to realize such things,-to feel somewhat now as we shall feel then. There should not be that quiet, indifferent state of mind. The feelings of that time will depend upon how we feel now. If a man is excited to prayer, to seek direction of God, the feeling then produced will be very different from what will be produced in a person not anticipating the event, who will, consequently, feel the terror of surprise, huge and horrible wonder, produced by a total want of thinking beforehand. A man may entertain at present a total disregard of God, and Christ, and his own soul; now if he could be persuaded to think, he would be found to acknowledge-"The time is coming when I shall feel inexpressible despair and horror: now I can be very easy; but if I think what will be felt by persons like myself on a future day, and say, I am the man that shall feel all this-I that can let my soul take its hazard, I am the very person !" How very striking if a man could be brought to acknowledge this! "In consequence of my present indifference I shall feel a terror beyond the measure of Humanity." Why should not thoughtless men be made to think of this? When the day of Death comes, there will be no Joshua to say, "Sun! stand thou still!" or if Death happens at night, to stop the course of the moon; there will be no voice to arrest the day for the culprit. Each great day of our future being will be actually the present day. This, if we had words, might be made a very striking thought. That very day, it is now here. So to a person passing the middle state between mortality and immortality. "I am now passing into another world." How unlike his situation to ours! how much more feeling has he than all of us! But yet, that will be our situation; while we have spoken, it has ceased to be so to many persons. The morning has gone forth, and the evening too, in the sense of the present life. They are placed under a new economy, in a new state of thought and feeling. Why have we not faith to realize all this? We are not worthy to be called rational, if strangers to the exercise of Faith. What we have to pray for is, that we may have more faith. "Lord, increase our faith!" We need to realize infinitely more than we do, what we know shall certainly take place. Now, shall we realize it more, or shall we not? Do you enough place yourself in that condition of mind in which you should appear before God in judgment, surrounded by the scenes of Eternity? The conduct of your life will force you to say, "No! I have too little of the feeling adapted to the state I thus foresee; I do not feel prepared to plunge into Eternity!" Does it not become your duty to have more of it? It should be part of every day's work to consider the great days that are to come. Should not these have a greater influence on our spirits? Is it not our business to realize these things? to carry ourselves forward to them? Faith would effect this, would prevent our feeling alarm. We should then rise up like angels, aspiring like fire to the skies. Let us endeavour to feel as in the actual moment of appearing before God. Let us implore the grace of God to put our minds in a fit state. Fishponds, April 12th, 1818. ANGELIC JOY. BY THE REV. A. M. STALKER. "There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.”Luke xv. 10. Comparatively little is told us respecting angels. Thus much, how. ever, we know as to their character they are spiritual, holy, happy beings. Thus much as to their exalted position-they "stand in the presence of God, and do always behold the face of the Father who is in heaven." Thus much as to their multitude-they are "an innumerable company." Thus much as to their ranks "angels and the archangel, cherubim and seraphim, principalities and powers." Thus much as to their service "ministering spirits sent forth to minister to them who shall be the heirs of salvation." And thus much as to their sympathetic joy-"there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth." We propose to muse for a little on WHAT IS IMPLIED IN THIS ANGELIC JOY. It is implied, in the First place, That angels are made acquainted when a sinner repents and believes the gospel. We do not venture to affirm what is the mode in which they gather the gladdening intelligence. They are commissioned by Him who sitteth on the throne to visit our world. The news may meet them when pursuing their glorious errands. One may be the first to catch the tidings, and as he wends his way to the celestial seats, he may, as he mingles with his compeers in the same upward flight, communicate to them the joyful fact he has learned, and, on reaching the throne, announce the event to the |