66 time for sleep, too often time for the pleasures of this life, but no time for God's word. You find time for reading the news of the day, or the novel, or other empty works of fiction, but the Bible is with you a neglected book. Alas! "thine heart is not right in the sight of God;" repent of this thy wickedness." Ask of the Lord a new heart and a new spirit, that you may love His Truth, then "these words which He commands thee shall be in that heart, and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them, when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up," (Deut. vi. 6, 7.) You will take His testimonies for your "heritage for ever, because they are the rejoicing of your heart." Shall I not say 3. One word to those who read the Bible, but obey it not?-Heaven is not prepared for these you ask the way to Zion, but your faces are not thitherward; you study the map, look at the direction post, and turn another way. Woe! woe! to such; truly they enter not in themselves, and those that are entering in they hinder. That word itself might well arrest you in your course, it tells you that they who know their Lord's will and do it not, "shall be beaten with many stripes;" "If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them." Lastly 66 4. Ye who love God's word, and follow it! let me urge you onward in your blessed course; "as new-born babes you desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby ;" and you shall grow; you shall be "like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season." Acquainting yourselves with God" in His word, you shall "be at peace;" when trials and afflictions threaten, you shall be able to say, "be of good cheer," my soul, "for I believe God that it shall be even as it was told me." The same One who now "guides you by His counsel" will soon "receive you to glory;"prophecy shall then have become history, promises fulfilment, and precepts be perfected in love. "Beloved! now are we the sons of God, but it doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when He shall appear, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is," 1 John iii. 2. Blessed privilege! Blessed Word of God that reveals it! Brethren! walk worthy of your vocation. Remember! "Every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure," 1 John iii. 3. XIV. "THE POWER OF PRAYER." 2 KINGS Xix. 14. "And Hezekiah received the letter of the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up into the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord." HEZEKIAH was a man of God, and consequently he was a man of prayer. The present was indeed a season when even the ungodly "cometh to his sanctuary to pray," Isa. xvi. 12; for such "pour out a prayer when God's chastening is upon them," but not thus immediately, thus instinctively do they as Hezekiah did, "spread their case before the Lord." He appears to have had no other thought; as the child to its mother's arms, as the fowl to the covert of its parent's wings, as the pursued to the stronghold, so this one betakes himself to his God: threatening was the message, great the danger, but the descendant of David knew the truth of that Psalmist's words, "Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before Him: God is a Refuge for us," Psa. lxii. 8. "He received the letter," he read it, he carried it to Him who would Himself answer it," Hezekiah went up into the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord." Oh! that the Holy Spirit may so impress the subject on our minds, that we "may go do likewise." Let us first notice, I. Hezekiah's Difficulties. II. Hezekiah's Resource. I. Hezekiah's Difficulties.-These and were many and great; the forces of the mighty kingdom of Assyria were opposed to him, his own people were few in number, and already had they been invited by promises of plenty and of safety, to deliver up the city, and now the imperious summons is sent calling on the king at once to yield. There are points here, in which Hezekiah's temporal difficulties will bear comparison with our own spiritual necessities; we would mention some of these points. 1. Life-Safety-Kingdom, all were at stake. A powerful enemy, irritated by the resistance offered, was now once more advancing, and destruction is threatened unless the terms proposed are complied with such was Hezekiah's case; and is there not with us a contest going on in which life or death, salvation or destruction, are involved? not temporal indeed, but eternal; not concerning the life of the body, but the destiny of the soul. What though the many are careless when they should be diligent, what though the many are feasting, when they should be "fighting the good fight of faith," this alters not the solemn fact that, "the Devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about seeking whom he may devour," that the battle is raging though we be sleeping, and that "the end of all things is at hand;" blessed are they who know Hezekiah's resource and are seeking wisdom and counsel of the Lord! We observe further, 1 2. The interest of many were concerned.-His subjects looked up to Hezekiah for decision, and, perhaps, only waited his permission to open the gates and yield themselves to the foe; on him, then, depended the lives of others as well as his own life, and his responsibility was thus increased. Do we not mark herein a likeness between Hezekiah's circumstances and our own? The interests of others are linked in with us, "One sinner destroyeth much good," Eccles. ix. 18; evil words, evil actions |