* 
 
 {LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. J 
 
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 [SMITHSONIAN DEPOSIT.] 
 
 | UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. { 
 
 

f (J ' Af-v 
 
t 
 
 THE 
 
 COMMUNICANT'S MANUAL 
 
 OR A 
 
 SERIES OF MEDITATIONS 
 
 DESIGNED TO 
 
 ASSIST COMMUNICANTS IN MAKING PREPARATION 
 
 FOR 
 
 THE LORD'S SUPPER/ 
 
 v S 
 
 BY I 
 
 J. J.(JANEWAY,D.D. 
 
 PHILADELPHIA: 
 PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION, 
 
 / 
 / 
 
,J3 ■ 
 
 Entered according to the Act of Congress in the year 
 1848, by A. W. Mitchell, M. D., in the office of 
 the Clerk of the District Court for the Eastern Dis- 
 trict of Pennsylvania. 
 
 Stereotyped by E. C. Allen, No. 51 Commerce Street, 
 Philadelphia. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 MEDITATION I. 
 A Precious Ordinance ------ 9 
 
 MEDITATION II. 
 
 The Cross of Christ 18 
 
 MEDITATION III. 
 
 The Apostasy of the human Race - - - - 26 
 
 MEDITATION IV. 
 The Superiority of the Christian Dispensation - 35 
 
 MEDITATION V. 
 
 The Glory of God in the Cross - ... 45 
 
 MEDITATION VI. 
 The Person of our Redeemer - - - - 53 
 
 MEDITATION VII. 
 His infinite Condescension - - - - - 64 
 
 MEDITATION VIII. 
 
 His profound Humiliation ----- 72 
 
 MEDITATION IX. 
 His holy Life 81 
 
 MEDITATION X. 
 
 His Sufferings and Death ----- 90 
 
 MEDITATION XI. 
 The Evil of Sin 99 
 
 MEDITATION XII. 
 
 The Resurrection of Christ - - - - 107 
 
 MEDITATION XIII. 
 His Ascension into Heaven and Session at God's 
 right Hand 115 
 
 MEDITATION XIV. 
 His Intercession 124 
 
 MEDITATION XV. 
 His Coming to Judgment - - - - - 132 
 
 MEDITATION XVI. 
 The Love of Christ 141 
 
 3 
 
4 CONTENTS. 
 
 MEDITATION XVII. 
 Self-examination - - 149 
 
 MEDITATION XVIII. 
 
 Penitent Recollection of Sins— Self-dedication - 157 
 
 MEDITATION XIX. 
 The Sabbath Morning 167 
 
 MEDITATION XX. 
 At the Table 175 
 
 MEDITATION XXI. 
 After Returning from the Communion - 184 
 
 MEDITATION XXII. 
 Thanksgiving 187 
 
 MEDITATION XXIII. 
 Obligations assumed ------ 196 
 
 MEDITATION XXIV. 
 The Christian's Warfare 204 
 
 MEDITATION XXV. 
 Watchfulness and Dependence on Divine Assist- 
 ance 215 
 
 MEDITATION XXVI. 
 The Christian's Reward 226 
 
 MEDITATION XXVII. 
 The Christian's Joy 236 
 
 MEDITATION XXVIII. 
 Dependence on the Holy Spirit - 247 
 
 MEDITATION XXIX. 
 Growth in Grace - 356 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The Author, in preparing for the Lord's Supper, 
 has, for many years, been in the habit of conducting 
 his private unwritten meditations, in a manner 
 somewhat like the form adopted in these meditations. 
 Recently it occurred, that a series of written Medi- 
 tations on appropriate topics, might assist commu- 
 nicants who are unskilful in the art of private medi- 
 tation. Relying, therefore, upon Divine aid, and 
 humbly hoping for the blessing of the great Head 
 of the Church, on his attempt to edify some of its 
 members, he undertook the work. 
 
 He has written nineteen meditations, to be used 
 before the communion; one, at the Lord's Supper; 
 and nine, after the communion. To all, except one, 
 he has appended short prayers. 
 
 To read devoutly a Meditation will require from 
 eight to ten minutes, and a prayer, from two to three. 
 
 If notice for the Supper be given two weeks before 
 the administration, there will be ample time for 
 reading over these Meditations and Prayers. If only 
 a week should intervene, they might be read by 
 allowing more time for devotional exercises, morn- 
 ing and evening ; or a selection may be made, so as 
 to suit the time. 
 
 1* 5 
 
6 PREFACE. 
 
 After using this little book for awhile, many may 
 find themselves enabled to intersperse new thoughts, 
 in reading over these Meditations ; just as a person 
 may add reflections, when perusing a chapter, or 
 part of a chapter of the Bible. 
 
 It is not the wish of the Author, that any should 
 confine themselves to the prayers appended to these 
 Meditations. He has written them to direct the 
 reader's attention to those parts of the Meditations, 
 which furnish matter for praise, thanksgiving, and 
 prayer ; and which he may incorporate with any 
 address he feels disposed to offer to God, after 
 devoutly reading them. 
 
 Between such a use of these prayers four times 
 a year, and confinement to set forms of prayers 
 every Sabbath, and every day of the year, there is 
 no analogy. 
 
 The writer invites the attention of his brethren 
 in the ministry to the twentieth Meditation, designed 
 to direct the exercises of communicants, when seat- 
 ed at the Lord's table. It will, he presumes, be 
 admitted, that communicants, have a very import- 
 ant duty there to perform, and that their minds 
 ought to be occupied with thoughts like those sug- 
 gested in that Meditation. This being granted, will 
 it not follow, that they should be allowed time suffi- 
 cient for each one to follow the train of thought to 
 which he feels inclined ; to make the confession of 
 sins, to present the petitions, and to offer the thanks- 
 givings, suited to his own case 1 But if, at the ad- 
 ministration of the elements, the minister is con» 
 
PREFACE, 7 
 
 stantly speaking, how can the communicant perform 
 that peculiar duty, which is to be transacted be- 
 tween his own soul and his Redeemer, as he ought] 
 Must not such incessant speaking sadly break in 
 upon his secret devotions ? 
 
 When the writer is seated at the holy table, and 
 the elements are being distributed, he feels a wish 
 to be left alone to his own meditations ; and he en- 
 deavours to shut his ears to any address by the offi- 
 ciating minister ; because it appears to him then so 
 unseasonable. No doubt many communicants feel 
 as he does ; but they may not be able to abstract 
 their minds from the address of the speaker. 
 
 But, it will be said, Do not communicants need 
 thoughts to be thrown out to assist their medita- 
 tions] Granted; they need assistance: and let it 
 be proffered to them at the proper time. Cannot a 
 minister say all that needs be said, before he dis- 
 tributes the bread ] And if afterwards he wish to 
 utter a striking thought, or to give an appropriate 
 direction, can he not do it in few words, when he 
 distributes the cup ] 
 
 That communicants ought to be left to their own 
 meditations and exercises, while the elements are 
 being distributed, the Author has, for many years, 
 been so fully convinced, that to address them, at such 
 a time with continued remarks, he would feel to be 
 an unwarrantable intrusion on their private devo- 
 tions. 
 
 With all due respect to the judgment of his breth- 
 ren in the ministry, he submits these few thoughts 
 
8 PREFACE. 
 
 on this subject to their serious consideration. He 
 will only add, that he thinks the general adoption 
 of such a plan would render communion seasons 
 more profitable to communicants* 
 
 New Brunswick, January, 1848. 
 
SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 MEDITATION I. 
 
 A PRECIOUS ORDINANCE. 
 
 Again the administration of the Lord's sup- 
 per has been announced; and on the ap- 
 pointed day, it will be my privilege and that 
 of other disciples of our Lord, to take our 
 seats at his table. Invaluable ordinance! 
 How powerful its influence in sustaining 
 Christian character and deportment! The 
 announcement of it has often found professing 
 Christians slumbering and declining, if not 
 backsliding. Aroused by it, in attending to 
 the duties and meditations which preparation 
 for it demands, they have discovered their 
 slumbering and declension; and been by grace 
 enabled to awake from sleep, and to recover 
 what they had lost. 
 
 How precious this ordinance on various 
 accounts! The consideration of its origin 
 
 9 
 
10 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 should endear it to our hearts. It did not 
 take its rise from human wisdom. It is no 
 appointment of man. No man, whatever 
 may be his station and authority has a right to 
 ordain a religious rite ; nor has any assembly 
 of men, whether civil or ecclesiastical, such a 
 right. The exercise of such a right would be 
 an invasion of the authority of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, the great Head of the Church. He 
 alone has a right to prescribe her laws, and to 
 ordain her rites. Were the supper a human 
 appointment, it would be mere will-worship ; 
 and, in partaking of it, we might justly appre- 
 hend his rebuke, instead of expecting his ap- 
 probation. 
 
 The great Lawgiver and Head of the 
 Church instituted this ordinance. He made 
 the appointment in circumstances of peculiar 
 endearment. The same night in which he 
 was betrayed, when he had a full view of his 
 approaching sufferings, then his love appoint* 
 ed this supper, designed for the edification 
 and comfort of his disciples, to the end of 
 time. In such circumstances he took bread 
 and wine, as memorials of his broken body 
 and shed blood ; and commanded them to be 
 used as such, in remembrance of his suffer- 
 
A PRECIOUS ORDINANCE. 11 
 
 ings for us, and his love to us. Three Evan- 
 gelists, and the apostle Paul, have certified 
 us of these facts. Matt. xxvi. 26 — 30; Mark 
 xiv. 22— 25; Luke xxii. 19, 20; 1 Cor. xi. 
 23—33. 
 
 This ordinance was first observed by the 
 apostles of our Lord in a large upper room 
 in Jerusalem; Mark xiv. 15, 22 — 24. Then 
 by the Church in that city, after the Re- 
 deemer's resurrection ; and subsequently by 
 the Church, wherever she was found in various 
 parts of the world, in all succeeding ages ; 
 and now it is observed by the Church in these 
 ends of the earth ; and it will be observed by 
 the Church to the end of the world. Let 
 me then remember this great fact, of which 
 not a doubt should exist, that this supper was 
 appointed by the authority of Jesus Christ; 
 and let me partake of it in obedience to his 
 authority, and thus render it an act of accept- 
 able worship. 
 
 How precious this ordinance, when we 
 consider who are the invited guests, and by 
 whose presence the supper will be graced and 
 honoured ! Whom shall I see at the table of 
 my Lord ? The rich, the great, the nobles, 
 the princes, and kings of the earth ? Oh! no, 
 
 
12 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 Seldom have such been found to obey the 
 Saviour's dying command. They prefer sit- 
 ting at tables, which wealth and pomp delight 
 to provide, spread with costly viands, that 
 gratify and pamper their bodily appetites ; 
 and slight a feast designed to meet the wants 
 of an immortal mind, and nourish its spiritual 
 life, and prepare it for heavenly happiness. 
 There shall I meet the poor, the unlearned, 
 the unknown. Yet let me lift the veil that 
 conceals them, and look at them with the eye 
 of faith ; and whom do I see ? How changed ! 
 They are the disciples of Christ, the ransomed 
 of the Lord, the saints of God, his children, 
 the sons and daughters of the Almighty, the 
 heirs of heaven, the expectants of crowns and 
 kingdoms there. What a privilege ! what 
 an honour, to sit with them at the same table 
 with our common Lord ! 
 
 Nor is the Lord absent. He is indeed in 
 heaven. His glorified body is there, far re- 
 moved from mortal sight. But, in his divine 
 nature, Jesus is everywhere; and he will not 
 fail to meet, with his gracious presence, his 
 disciples, when, in obedience to his dying 
 command, they gather around his table, to 
 feed upon the spiritual repast his love has 
 
A PRECIOUS ORDINANCE. 13 
 
 prepared for them. Compared with such a 
 feast, partaken of by such guests, and graced 
 with the presence and enriched with the 
 smiles of the King of kings and Lord of lords; 
 what is the most sumptuous entertainment 
 that was ever prepared by earthly riches, for 
 the display of human grandeur and magnifi- 
 cence! 
 
 How precious too this supper, when its 
 spiritual nature is considered ! Heresy will 
 have it, that the words of the institution are 
 to be understood literally ; that, in the supper, 
 we eat the real body and drink the real 
 blood of our Redeemer ; and that the elements 
 are really changed into his body and blood. 
 What absurdity! When the Saviour said 
 " I am the door ;" " I am the vine ;" are we to 
 understand him as meaning, that he was 
 really a door, and really a vine? Heresy 
 itself is compelled to assign a figurative mean- 
 ing to some words in the institution. She 
 does not contend we are to drink the cup and 
 not the wine, when the cup is given; nor 
 that the cup is really the New Testament, 
 and not a sign and seal of it. "It is the spirit, 
 said Jesus, that quickeneth ; the flesh profiteth 
 nothing: the words that I speak unto you, 
 2 
 
14 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 they are spirit, and they are life." John vi. 
 53—56, 63. 
 
 The feast is not designed to satisfy our 
 bodily appetites. It is a spiritual feast, in- 
 tended to nourish our spiritual life, and 
 strengthen all the faculties and graces of that 
 life. A small portion of bread and wine, 
 used as symbols of the broken body and shed 
 blood of our Lord, is given to us, that we may 
 feed on his body and blood, not carnally and 
 corporally, but spiritually and mystically, by 
 faith. We are to receive, and eat, and drink 
 the elements, to signify that, as we live by 
 eating and drinking appropriate food, so we 
 live perpetually by feeding by faith on the 
 spiritual food, which he furnishes for the life 
 of our souls ; or, in other words, that we are 
 willing to accept that spiritual and eternal life 
 he has purchased by his sufferings and death, 
 and to depend on him for its preservation, 
 increase here, and final expansion in the 
 world to come. Such is the nature of this 
 blessed feast. 
 
 The supper of our Lord is precious also on 
 account of the covenant engagements it seals. 
 " This cup is the New Testament in my 
 blood, which is shed for you." Luke xxii. 
 
A PRECIOUS ORDINANCE. 15 
 
 20. The covenant of grace was ratified and 
 sealed by the blood of the great Mediator, 
 and all its blessings were made sure to all for 
 whom he undertook to satisfy divine justice ; 
 and the cup or wine, the symbol of this blood, 
 seals the New Testament or covenant in this 
 ordinance. Here I am invited to renew my 
 covenant engagements with God. Here I 
 am allowed the great privilege of taking God 
 the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost to 
 be my covenant God ; the Father to be my 
 reconciled father and covenanted portion, 
 through Christ ; the Son to be my Saviour, 
 friend, master and Lord ; and the Holy Ghost 
 to be my guide and teacher, my sanctifier and 
 comforter ; and to give myself up to God as 
 his servant and child ; to Christ as his disciple 
 and follower, and to the Holy Ghost as his 
 temple, for ever. The elements are seals to 
 this covenant, for both parties. I seal my 
 engagements to God; and God seals his 
 promises to me. 
 
 Amazing transaction! What astonishing 
 condescension and grace on the part of God! 
 and how should I admire and adore him for 
 such condescension and grace! 
 
 Is this the feast I am invited to partake of? 
 
16 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 so heavenly in its origin, and instituted in 
 circumstances so interesting; its guests so 
 noble and dignified; its nature so spiritual, 
 so nourishing to my spiritual life, and so 
 strengthening to every grace and virtue ; and 
 the transactions to which it invites so won- 
 derful and sublime'? How joyfully ought I 
 then to embrace every opportunity of supping 
 and communing with my blessed Lord ! 
 
 For such an ordinance doubtless a corres- 
 ponding preparation is required. By solemn 
 meditation on suitable topics, by self-exami- 
 nation, by renewing my covenant engage- 
 ments, by the exercise of repentance and 
 faith, and by earnest and importunate prayer, 
 let me then endeavour to prepare for a be- 
 lieving and profitable communion season. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Blessed Redeemer, I praise thee for the 
 institution of thy holy supper. I thank thee 
 that, in circumstances so distressing, when 
 thou hadst before thee all that thou wast 
 about to suffer in the garden, in the palace of 
 the high-priest, in the hall of Pilate, and on 
 the cross, thou didst not forget thy disciples. 
 
PRAYER. 17 
 
 Then thou didst provide this memorial of thy 
 love, this feast for the welfare, comfort, and 
 edification of thy Church, to the end of time. 
 
 May I highly prize this ordinance, and 
 rightly appreciate the high honour conferred 
 on me, and the precious privilege granted to 
 me, in being permitted to commune with thy 
 people, and with thee, my Lord and Master ! 
 May my heart rejoice at every announce- 
 ment that this precious supper will be again 
 administered in the church of which I am a 
 member! 
 
 Surely it becomes me to make a suitable 
 preparation for taking my seat at a table 
 covered with so rich feast. Grant, Lord, 
 that I may come, having on the wedding gar- 
 ment, that I may meet with thy approbation, 
 my King and my God. Incline my heart to 
 meditate seriously and solemnly on all those 
 interesting topics that will claim my atten- 
 tion; to examine myself; to recollect my sins 
 and renew my repentance; to dedicate my- 
 self again to thee, my Saviour; to exercise 
 my faith in thy atoning blood and justifying 
 righteousness ; and to pour forth my suppli- 
 cations for pardoning mercy and sanctifying 
 
 grace. May it be a sweet and refreshing 
 2# 
 
18 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 season to my soul, and to the souls of all com- 
 municants! May we meet with the Lord 
 our Redeemer at his table, and enjoy commu- 
 nion with him, and with one another ! Grant 
 my prayer, for thy name's sake. Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION II. 
 
 THE CROSS OF CHRIST. 
 
 How wonderful the object presented by the 
 ordinance of the Lord's supper for the con- 
 templation of the invited guests ! Nothing 
 less than the Son of God nailed to the ac- 
 cursed cross; dying in shame and ignominy, 
 bearing our sins and the wrath of the Al- 
 mighty, to satisfy the demands of his justice, 
 and thus make full expiation for them. " Be- 
 hold the Lamb of God, that taketh away the 
 sin of the world!" 
 
 In vain shall we search elsewhere for such 
 a spectacle. Its like is not to be found in any 
 other part of the universe. This earth, cursed 
 as it is by sin, has alone, of all the worlds in 
 the boundless dominions of the Almighty, 
 
THE CROSS OF CHRIST. 19 
 
 been blessed and honoured with the amazing 
 spectacle. 
 
 Taught by the first great promise an- 
 nounced to our first parents, immediately- 
 after their fall, concerning the Seed of the 
 woman, who was to bruise the serpent's 
 head, our apostate race began, from the be- 
 ginning, to expect a deliverer from the ruin 
 that sin had brought on the world. With the 
 revolution of ages, as new light was imparted, 
 by prophecy and promise, to the Church, be- 
 lievers were sustained in their expectations, 
 and enabled to look, through the types and 
 ceremonies, with greater clearness, for the 
 coming of the Messiah. Thus were the eyes 
 of the whole Church, and their longing ex- 
 pectations, directed to him, till his advent in 
 the flesh. 
 
 And since his appearance in the world, and 
 the accomplishment of his mighty work on 
 earth, the eyes of the Church have been 
 turned to his cross, and will be turned to it, 
 to the end of time, as the great object of 
 their faith, and the source of their redemption. 
 To it they look, and will look, for peace, 
 and comfort, and hope, and joy, and eternal 
 life. 
 
20 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 From the first intimation of God's merciful 
 designs towards our fallen world, angels, 
 those holy and exalted creatures that inhabit 
 heaven, and stand around the throne of the 
 Most High, have felt a deep interest in the 
 mystery of redemption. With delight they 
 have, in all ages, ministered unto the heirs of 
 salvation. How joyfully they announced the 
 Saviour's birth to the shepherds on the fields 
 of Bethlehem, and sang the song, " Glory to 
 God in the highest; and on earth, peace, 
 good- will toward men." When Jesus had in 
 the wilderness repelled the tempter, an Evan- 
 gelist says, " Behold, angels came and minis- 
 tered unto him;" and another Evangelist 
 says, after narrating his agony in the garden, 
 " And there appeared an angel from heaven, 
 strengthening him." At his resurrection, the 
 angel of the Lord descended from heaven, 
 and rolling back from the sepulchre the stone, 
 sat upon it, with a countenance like lightning, 
 and raiment white as snow, terrifying the 
 Roman guard, so that they became as dead 
 men. And when our Lord ascended to hea- 
 ven, two angels assured his wondering dis- 
 ciples, that he would hereafter come again, 
 in like manner as they saw him go into hea- 
 
THE CROSS OF CHRIST. 21 
 
 ven. And ever since, these exalted spirits 
 have employed their mighty intellects in 
 studying the great mystery of redemption; 
 for Peter, when speaking of the salvation of 
 Christ, says, "which things the angels desire 
 to look into." 
 
 Still more is the cross of Christ to be mag- 
 nified : for the eye of God himself has, from 
 the ages of eternity, rested upon it, as the 
 development of that great mystery of his 
 will, that is to fill this world, heaven itself, 
 and all other worlds, with the fullest exhibi- 
 tion of his glory. The cross is the centre of 
 Jehovah's moral government. Here peace 
 is made between heaven and earth. " For he 
 is our peace, who hath made both one, and 
 hath broken down the middle wall of parti- 
 tion between us : having abolished in his flesh 
 the enmity, even the law of commandments 
 contained in ordinances ; for to make in him- 
 self of twain one new man, so making peace ; 
 and that he might reconcile both unto God in 
 one body by the cross, having slain the en- 
 mity thereby: and came and preached to you 
 which were afar off, and to them that were 
 nigh. For through him we both have access 
 by one Spirit unto the Father." And " in 
 
22 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 the dispensation of the fulness of time God 
 will gather in one all things in Christ, both 
 which are in heaven, and which are on earth, 
 even in him; of whom the whole family in 
 heaven and earth is named." Ephes. ii. 14- 
 18; i. 10; iii. 15. 
 
 From the cross of Christ an influence has 
 gone forth, that has been felt by the affairs of 
 mankind, both before and since his coming 
 into the world. In reference to it a whole 
 nation was selected by God, as his chosen 
 people, and a place prepared for them among 
 the nations of the earth. They were guarded 
 by a peculiar and miraculous providence, 
 and instructed by a long line of inspired 
 teachers and prophets. The affairs of other 
 nations were controlled by a regard to the 
 cross; and so extensive dominion was given 
 to the Roman empire, that the way might be 
 prepared for the preaching of the cross, and 
 the establishment of the Church in the Gentile 
 world. 
 
 Ever since, the affairs of nations have felt 
 the influence of this wonderful transaction. 
 They have prospered, or declined, as they 
 regarded or disregarded the gospel of Christ 
 crucified. And hereafter the cross will be 
 
THE CROSS OF CHRIST. 23 
 
 lifted up on high ; and to it will all nations 
 flock, as the fountain of peace, of life, of holi- 
 ness, of happiness, and of glory. 
 
 And the cross will be the object of delight- 
 ful contemplation and profound study, and 
 the subject of joyous conversation, to re- 
 deemed saints and to holy angels, throughout 
 the endless ages of eternity; and for ever will 
 be sung in heaven by the ransomed ones the 
 song, "Unto him that loved us and washed 
 us in his own blood, and hath made us kings 
 and priests unto God and his Father; to him 
 be glory and dominion for ever and ever. 
 Amen." 
 
 The cross of Jesus Christ is the centre, 
 which throws its light on the whole circle of 
 divine truth. Here, then, at the foot of the 
 cross of my Lord and Saviour, let me stand, 
 and look around. What a circle of rich and 
 invaluable truths meets my eyes ! I see all 
 the great and leading facts and truths of 
 divine revelation. The apostasy of our race, 
 — the superiority of the Christian dispensa- 
 tion — the glory of God shining in the face of 
 Christ — the divine person of our Redeemer 
 — his infinite condescension and profound 
 humiliation — his holy life, and painful suffer- 
 
24 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 ings and agonizing death — his triumphant re- 
 surrection and glorious ascension into heaven 
 — his session at God's right hand and inter- 
 cession there — his coming again to judge the 
 world, and consummate the salvation of his 
 people — the all-sufficiency of his atonement 
 and righteousness, and rich and invaluable 
 benefits — his free and boundless love — the 
 evil of sin — the duty of self-examination and 
 self-dedication : all these facts and truths are 
 connected with, and illustrated by, the cross 
 of Christ. These are the topics on which it 
 is proper for Christians to meditate in pre- 
 paring their minds and hearts for an accept- 
 able and profitable approach to the Lord's 
 table. 
 
 What attractions in the cross of my Re- 
 deemer ! Gaze, my soul, at it, with wonder 
 and delight. Look at it again and again. 
 Never lose sight of it. Behold the glory of it, 
 that thou mayest be assimilated unto its like- 
 ness. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Most high and holy God, may I love to 
 contemplate the cross of thy Son! How 
 
PRAYER. 25 
 
 amazing the spectacle ! In infinite mercy 
 thou wast pleased to honour our fallen world, 
 by making it the seat of a transaction more 
 wonderful, than any to be found in any other 
 world in thy vast dominions. Before the 
 eyes of our rebellious race, thou hast lifted 
 up thy well-beloved Son, agonizing and dying 
 on the cross, as the appointed sacrifice for sin, 
 that they might look to Him and be healed of 
 their wounds, and live. 
 
 Oh ! grant that my eyes may ever be direct- 
 ed to this wonderful spectacle. May I never 
 forget it, but gaze at it with increasing delight. 
 May I undertand the great design for which 
 my Lord and Saviour was covered with 
 ignominy, and died in pain and agony; and 
 thus, by faith, see a glory beaming forth from 
 the cross of insufferable brightness. May I 
 there behold the most illustrious exhibition of 
 thy glory, and the great salvation provided 
 for our rebellious race. May I see how the 
 cross is connected with, and throws its light 
 upon, the great truths and facts recorded in 
 the Bible. May I contemplate it as the 
 grand centre of all thy dispensations towards 
 the children of men ; as the source of peace 
 and friendship, of holiness and happiness ; as 
 3 
 
26 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 uniting all holy beings in heaven and on 
 earth into one glorious society under Christ 
 as the blessed Head. Beholding the glory of 
 the cross, may I be changed into the same 
 image, from glory to glory, even by the Spirit 
 of our God. May I embrace the cross by 
 faith, and glory in nothing but the cross ; and 
 feel it crucifying the world to me, and lifting 
 my affections above all its allurements, hon- 
 ours and pleasures; and setting them on 
 heavenly objects, where my Saviour reigns 
 in ineffable glory. Hear me, Lord, for 
 Christ's sake. Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION III. 
 
 THE APOSTASY OF THE HUMAN RACE. 
 
 When we look at the cross, and behold the 
 Son of God expiring on it, we are naturally 
 led to inquire after the cause of that wonder- 
 ful event. Why did He suffer and die ? He 
 was perfectly free from sin, and was holy, both 
 in heart and in life. He loved his Father, and 
 always did his will ; and he was beloved of 
 
APOSTASY OF MAN. 27 
 
 his Father, who delighted in him as his only 
 begotten Son. He could not then suffer for 
 his own sins ; for he had none. Yet he suf- 
 fered, and suffered dreadfully. Why ? There 
 was a sufficient cause; so that the Father, 
 while he loved him most endearingly, could, 
 consistently with this love which he never 
 ceased to feel towards him, and consistently 
 with his justice, afflict and bruise him, and 
 put him to grief and shame. What was that 
 cause ? The apostle Peter answers the ques- 
 tion, as the prophet Isaiah had done ages 
 before. When, speaking of the Redeemer, 
 he says : " Who his own self bare our sins in 
 his own body on the tree, that we, being dead 
 to sins, should live unto God, 1 Pet. ii. 24 ; 
 for Christ also hath suffered for sins, the just 
 for the unjust, that he might bring us to God." 
 1 Pet. iii. 18. 
 
 Here is the reason of the amazing spectacle, 
 exhibited on mount Calvary to the view of 
 the world. The sins of mankind were the 
 cause. Had not man apostatized from God, 
 and brought ruin on himself and all his pos- 
 terity, that amazing spectacle would never 
 have been seen by our eyes. It was to 
 redeem us from just, deserved, and helpless 
 
28 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 ruin and misery, that the Saviour bled and 
 died upon the cross. 
 
 That man is a fallen, sinful, guilty creature, 
 we find the most abundant and convincing 
 proof. Of this mournful fact I am surround- 
 ed daily with incontestable evidences. I look 
 at my friends and acquaintances, and what do 
 I see 1 Unfallen, sinless creatures? Not one 
 such can I find. All exhibit marks of de- 
 pravity. What forgetfulness of God, and dis- 
 regard of his favour, and violation of his hoi/ 
 commandments, do I see ! Some indeed are 
 penitent and believing, the disciples of Christ, 
 and friends of God. But they are imperfect- 
 ly sanctified, and most ready to acknowledge 
 the native depravity of their hearts, and to 
 lament their remaining imperfections and 
 failures in duty. The rest, with few excep- 
 tions, are moving on in the journey of life, 
 unprepared for death, and thoughtless of a 
 judgment to come. 
 
 Wherever I go, and however I extend my 
 intercourse with my fellow creatures, I find 
 the same evidence of human depravity. 
 What mean our courts of justice, our prisons 
 and penitentiaries, the bolts and bars by 
 which we secure our houses? What mean 
 
APOSTASY OF MAN. 29 
 
 disease, famine, pestilence, and death? Are 
 they not all proofs of human depravity ? 
 
 What is the history of mankind, but a his- 
 tory of wars, bloodshed and crimes ? Where, 
 in any part of its universal pages can be 
 found the history of any portion of our race, 
 however small, who have lived in the love of 
 God, and in love to one another, free from 
 selfishness and covetousness, envy and ambi- 
 tion, lust and impurity — passions that every 
 where are seen working out crimes and 
 misery in this fallen world? 
 
 If I open the Bible, I see, from the begin- 
 ning to the end of its inspired pages, the 
 plainest proofs of the fall and sinfulness of 
 man. In the first pages, written by Moses, I 
 see that Adam was created upright, in the 
 image and likeness of his Creator. He was 
 a holy, sinless, and happy creature, rejoicing 
 in the favour and love of God. But soon, 
 through the power of temptation, which he 
 had ample power to resist, he fell from his 
 holy and happy condition, by transgressing 
 the commandment of his God. I read the 
 sentence pronounced on him and his guilty 
 companion, by their offended Maker and 
 righteous Judge. I see them expelled in 
 3# 
 
30 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 anger from their delightful garden, and com- 
 pelled to labour and toil, and eat their bread 
 in the sweat of their brow. Oh ! if they had 
 not sinned, this whole earth would have been 
 one extended garden of delight, in which 
 their holy posterity would have been seen 
 living under the smiles of their God ! But, 
 alas! children are born to the guilty pair; 
 and soon it becomes manifest, that they are 
 like their common parents, depraved. " The 
 Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offer- 
 ing ; but unto Cain and to his offering he had 
 not respect." Moved by envy at the prefer- 
 ence which God was pleased to show to his 
 younger brother, Cain wickedly slew him. 
 
 The human race is multiplied; and, with 
 the increase of men, wickedness is so multi- 
 plied, that Moses writes, " And it repented 
 the Lord that he had made man on the earth, 
 and it grieved him at his heart." God deter- 
 mined to bring a flood upon an ungodly 
 world. It comes, and sweeps away, with 
 the besom of destruction, the whole race of 
 sinners, with the exception of Noah and his 
 family. What an awful monument of human 
 depravity and of God's righteous indignation 
 against sin! 
 
APOSTASY OF MAN. 31 
 
 The history of Noah's descendants, written 
 with the pen of inspiration, discovers the 
 same stream of depravity flowing through 
 every generation. That peculiar people, se- 
 parated by God's providence from the rest of 
 mankind, for the maintenance of his worship 
 and religion in the world, forms no exception. 
 Throughout their whole history, written by 
 inspired men, I see the most incontestable 
 evidence of the great wickedness of the 
 human heart. 
 
 I read the epistle of the apostle Paul to the 
 Romans, and what increasing evidence is pre- 
 sented of the apostasy and ruin of our race! 
 How deplorable the description he gives of 
 the great wickedness of Gentile nations, (chap, 
 i.) and how clearly he proves, from their 
 own scriptures, (chap, ii., iii.) that the Jews 
 were no better ! How conclusive his argu- 
 ment, that no flesh can be justified by the 
 works of the law before God ; and that all, 
 without exception, stand in perishing need of 
 the redemption of Jesus Christ; whose right- 
 eousness by faith " is unto all and upon all 
 them that believe ; for there is no difference ; 
 for all have sinned, and come short of the 
 glory of God." Rom. iii. 20—31. 
 
32 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 My soul, what overwhelming evidence is 
 here of the apostasy, depravity, and ruin of 
 the race of creatures to which I belong ! And 
 does not my personal history prove most 
 clearly that I am involved in guilt, sin, and 
 misery? How soon evidence of my depraved 
 heart appeared! What selfishness, envy, 
 evil desires, began early to work within my 
 bosom, and bring forth the deeds of sin ! How 
 forgetful of God and his service ! How wan- 
 dering have been my thoughts and eyes in 
 his sanctuary ! How can I answer for the 
 guilt contracted, in times past, in this man- 
 ner, while professedly hearing his blessed 
 word, and presenting worship to infinite Ma- 
 jesty? How long I lived without God, and 
 without Christ in the world ! How, while 
 thus estranged from my Creator, and follow- 
 ing the wayward inclinations of my heart, 
 did my corruption increase in strength ! and 
 had not the restraints of his providence and 
 grace held me back, to what lengths of ini- 
 quity might I not have gone ! and into what 
 depths of guilt might I not have plunged! 
 Ah ! how much I needed the redemption of 
 Jesus Christ ! What eye but his pitied me in 
 my fallen condition? and what arm but his 
 
PRAYER. 33 
 
 could deliver me from the terrible pit into 
 which I had fallen? What blood but his 
 could wash away my guilt? and what but his 
 spotless righteousness could cover my naked- 
 ness, and render so polluted and vile a sinner 
 acceptable in the sight of infinite purity ! And 
 although I am permitted to entertain the 
 hope of having been renewed and sanctified 
 by divine grace, yet I feel the workings of 
 much evil in my heart, and a proneness to 
 wander from my God. Blessed Jesus, I com- 
 mit myself to thee. Cleanse me daily from 
 my sins by thy blood. Keep around me the 
 glorious robe of thy righteousness. Guide 
 me by thy Spirit. Strengthen me by thy 
 grace. Defend me by thy power. Perfect 
 thy work in me ; and bring me safely to thy 
 heavenly kingdom. Amen. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Most holy God, when I look to the cross 
 of my Redeemer, I see the most convincing 
 evidence of the fall of our race; for had not 
 man been guilty and depraved, that wonder- 
 ful spectacle on Calvary would never have 
 been witnessed on the earth. 
 
34 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 All my friends and acquaintances I find to 
 be corrupt in their nature. All are sinners. 
 No where can I find an individual who is 
 free from sin. The whole frame of civil 
 society attests the mournful fact, that our 
 race is apostate from God, by the provision 
 it makes for restraining the hand of violence, 
 and punishing crimes. And thou, most right- 
 eous Jehovah, hast, in thy providence, by the 
 various diseases and calamities brought upon 
 the world, proclaimed the mournful truth, 
 that thou art angry with us for our rebellious 
 conduct; and in thy word thou hast taught 
 us the origin of our depravity, and exposed 
 to view the polluted fountain that has sent 
 forth its bitter and poisonous streams over all 
 the earth, and through every nation under 
 heaven. 
 
 And when I look into my own heart, I see 
 how vile it is — what lusts and wicked pas- 
 sions have defiled it, and prompted those sin- 
 ful acts that have disgraced my life. How 
 much it becomes me to lie in the dust at thy 
 feet, O my offended Creator, and to implore 
 thy forgiving mercy! Deeply impress my 
 mind, I beseech thee, with an abiding con- 
 viction of my native depravity and contracted 
 
CHRISTIAN DISPENSATION. 35 
 
 guilt ; that I may always feel my need of the 
 atoning blood and cleansing grace of Jesus 
 Christ. Forgive my sins, and sanctify my 
 nature, for his sake. Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION IV. 
 
 THE SUPERIORITY OF THE CHRISTIAN DISPEN- 
 SATION. 
 
 Before the wonderful scene on Calvary had 
 been exhibited to the view of the Church, and 
 while Jesus yet lived on the earth, he said to 
 his apostles, " Blessed are your eyes, for they 
 see: and your ears, for they hear. For 
 verily I say unto you, that many prophets 
 and righteous men have desired to see those 
 things which ye see, and have not seen them ; 
 and to hear those things which ye hear, and 
 have not heard them." And yet, at that 
 time, the apostles were so imperfectly en- 
 lightened in regard to the great facts of the 
 gospel, that, when Jesus spake of his ap- 
 proaching death and resurrection, they could 
 not understand his meaning. See Matt. xvi. 
 
36 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 21-23. Mark ix. 31, 32. Luke xviii. 31-34. 
 Subsequently to the Saviour's death, when 
 the apostles had been fully enlightened in the 
 mysteries of the gospel, Peter writes (1 Pet. 
 i. 10-12): "Of which salvation the prophets 
 have inquired and searched diligently, who 
 prophesied of the grace that should come 
 unto you : searching what, or what manner 
 of time, the Spirit of Christ which was in 
 them did signify, when it testified before- 
 hand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory 
 that should follow. Unto whom it was re- 
 vealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us 
 they did minister the things, which are now 
 reported unto you by them which have 
 preached the gospel unto you with the Holy 
 Ghost sent down from heaven; which things 
 the angels desire to look into." 
 
 The Jews looked through types, sacrifices 
 and ceremonies, predictions and promises, 
 and saw dimly and obscurely, the great 
 events that have been set before us in the 
 clearest light. And even the prophets who 
 were inspired to foretell these great events, 
 studied their own prophecies, that they might 
 understand the import of the words they 
 uttered, under the dictation of the Holy 
 
CHRISTIAN DISPENSATION. 37 
 
 Spirit; but they were unable to discover it; 
 and were instructed by the Spirit, that the 
 favour sought by them was reserved for the 
 Church, when their predictions should be ful- 
 filled. The Jews had the types; we have 
 the realization of the types: they had the 
 sacrifices ; we, the end, the great sacrifice, to 
 which they pointed: they studied the pro- 
 phecies ; we, their fulfilment. The Jews had 
 the sign; we, the thing signified: they enjoyed 
 the shadow; we, the substance. On them the 
 day dawned dimly ; on us it sheds its meri- 
 dian light. 
 
 The Jews looked for a Saviour, who was 
 to come, whose character, offices and work 
 they imperfectly understood. We look to a 
 Saviour, who has come, assumed his several 
 offices and accomplished his glorious work. 
 We have seen him come into the world, ap- 
 pear in our nature, live, and suffer, and die; 
 and then rise from the dead, ascend into 
 heaven, take his seat at the right hand of 
 God, and reign Head over all things for his 
 Church. The plan of salvation has been 
 completely unfolded to our view; the way to 
 heaven plainly marked out before our eyes. 
 We are told, in the plainest words, what we 
 4 
 
38 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 are to believe and do to be saved; that for 
 salvation we are to rely, not on our own 
 works, but on the atonement and righteous- 
 ness of Christ. 
 
 So superior is the Christian dispensation in 
 light; and equally distinguished is it by the 
 measure of the Spirit granted to us who live 
 under it. " This spake he of the Spirit, which 
 they that believe on him should receive : for 
 the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because 
 that Jesus was not yet glorified." John vii. 
 39. This passage is not to be understood, as 
 if it meant that the Spirit had not been here- 
 tofore imparted to the children of men. In 
 every age he has wrought by his common 
 and special grace. He was the life of the 
 Church in all periods, and under every dis- 
 pensation. This awful warning is early found 
 on the records of inspiration; — "My Spirit 
 shall not always strive with man." Gen. vi. 3. 
 It only means that a much larger measure 
 of the Spirit, was to be imparted under the 
 approaching economy, that was to bless the 
 Church, after the exaltation of her glorious 
 Head. This was the coronation gift of her 
 ascended King, most munificently bestowed 
 on the apostles and other disciples, that 
 
CHRISTIAN DISPENSATION. 39 
 
 qualified them for the work of founding and 
 edifying the Christian Church, — a gift still 
 bestowed on the Church since that blessed 
 day, in every successive age, in a greater or 
 less degree. 
 
 The present dispensation is characterized 
 too by superior privileges bestowed on the 
 Church. The ancient Church was, indeed, 
 compared with other nations, near unto God, 
 who had taken her into covenant relation, 
 and denominated Israel his " chosen ;" yet she 
 was kept at a distance, and subject to carnal 
 ordinances, and a yoke hard to bear. But 
 once a year the high-priest alone of all the 
 chosen tribes, was permitted to enter into the 
 most holy place, with blood, which he offered 
 for himself and for the errors of the people, — 
 a restriction by which the Holy Ghost signi- 
 fied "that the way into the holiest of all was 
 not yet made manifest." Heb. ix. 7, 8. But 
 since the one offering of our great High- 
 priest, " by which he hath perfected for ever 
 them that are sanctified," (Heb. x. 14,) the 
 way into the holiest is made manifest ; and 
 every believing Christian has liberty to enter 
 into that most sacred place, not once in a 
 
40 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 year, but daily; and by prayer and supplica- 
 tion converse with infinite Majesty, seated on 
 the mercy-seat. What a privilege ! Come, 
 then, my soul, relying on thy great High- 
 priest, " boldly unto the throne of grace, to 
 obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time 
 of need." Heb. x. 19—22; iv. 14—16. 
 
 Corresponding with this precious privilege 
 of prayer, is the filial temper that distinguishes 
 the present dispensation. The worship of 
 ancient saints, owing to the imperfection of 
 the economy under which they lived, was 
 marred by servile fear. Not such is Chris- 
 tian worship. That, by the aid of the Holy 
 Spirit, is offered with a filial temper. " For," 
 says Paul, " ye have not received the spirit 
 of bondage again to fear; but ye have re- 
 ceived the Spirit of adoption, whereby we 
 cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth 
 witness with our spirits, that w r e are the chil- 
 dren of God." Rom. viii. 15, 16. Jesus 
 Christ redeems his people from the law, that 
 they may receive the adoption of sons : " And 
 because ye are sons," says Paul, " God hath 
 sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your 
 hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore 
 
CHRISTIAN DISPENSATION. 41 
 
 thou art no more a servant, but a son ; and if 
 a son, then an heir of God through Christ." 
 Gal. iv. 4—7. 
 
 Finally, the Christian dispensation is dis- 
 tinguished by brighter hopes in reference to 
 the future world. Ancient believers were 
 acquainted with the great facts, the resurrec- 
 tion of the body, and a life to come. But an 
 inspired writer, speaking of Jesus Christ, 
 writes, " Who hath abolished death, and hath 
 brought life and immortality to light through 
 the gospel." 2 Tim. i. 10. How plain the 
 instructions of the great Teacher ! " Marvel 
 not at this : for the hour is coming, in the 
 which all that are in the graves shall hear his 
 voice, and shall come forth : they that have 
 done good, unto the resurrection of life ; and 
 they that have done evil, unto the resurrec- 
 tion of damnation." John v. 28, 29. " My 
 sheep hear my voice and they follow me ; and 
 I give unto them eternal life; and they shall 
 never perish, neither shall any pluck them out 
 of my hands." John x. 27, 28. " Let not 
 your hearts be troubled : ye believe in God, 
 believe also in me. In my Father's house 
 are many mansions : if it were not so, I 
 would have told you. I go to prepare a place 
 4# 
 
42 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 for you. And if I go and prepare a place 
 for you, I will come again, and receive you 
 to myself; that where I am, there ye may be 
 also." John xiv. 1 — 3. How many pas- 
 sages of Scripture might be here repeated ! 
 See 2 Tim. iv. 6—8. 1 Cor. xv. 42—58. 2 
 Cor. v. 1—8. 
 
 So superior in light — in the gift of the 
 Spirit — in privileges — in free and filial inter- 
 course with God — and in hope of future 
 blessedness, is the Christian dispensation! 
 Comparing the ministration of the law with 
 the ministration of the Spirit, the apostle says, 
 in conclusion : " For if the ministration of 
 condemnation be glory, much more doth the 
 ministration of righteousness exceed in glory. 
 For even that which was made glorious had 
 no glory in this respect, by reason of the 
 glory that excelleth. For if that which was 
 done away was glorious, much more that 
 which remaineth is glorious." 2 Cor. iii. 
 6—11. 
 
 Thus highly favoured, living under such a 
 dispensation of light and privileges, of the 
 Spirit, and of immortal hopes, how should 
 Christians be distinguished by a conduct pure 
 and heavenly ! Awake, my soul, shake off 
 
PRAYER. 43 
 
 thy slumbers and sluggishness, and strive to 
 act up to thy privileges. Show thy gratitude 
 to God for what he has done for thee. Live 
 by faith. Aspire after a better world. Be 
 humble and holy, watchful and heavenly. 
 Endeavour to shine as a light in this dark 
 world. Prepare to meet thy coming Saviour 
 and Lord. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Merciful God, I bless thee that thou wast 
 pleased to give me birth under the new and 
 better dispensation of grace. Thou hast great- 
 ly distinguished the Christian above thine 
 ancient Church. I praise thee for that supe- 
 rior light and those richer spiritual influences, 
 which thou hast bestowed on thy people 
 under the present economy. I bless thee for 
 those superior privileges, and the adoption of 
 sons which thou hast vouchsafed to us ; that 
 we are no longer kept at a distance from 
 thee, but are permitted to come into the 
 holiest of all, through the rent veil, that is, 
 the flesh of Christ, and make the nearest ap- 
 proach to thy Majesty on the mercy-seat, and 
 converse with thee by prayer, thanksgivings 
 
44 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 and praise, with confidence of a gracious 
 audience, and the assurance of a merciful 
 answer. I thank thee for the Spirit of adop- 
 tion, to form our hearts to a filial temper, and 
 to enable us to call thee " Abba, Father." 
 I bless thee for those brighter hopes which 
 thou dost inspire in our hearts, by the clearer 
 revelation which thou hast afforded in regard 
 to a future world, and by the better promises 
 of the gospel of our Redeemer. 
 
 Grant me grace, I beseech thee, my hea- 
 venly Father, duly to appreciate the state in 
 which thou hast been pleased to place me, 
 and carefully to improve these superior and 
 distinguishing privileges. Let me live near 
 to my God, and enjoy that sweet and delight- 
 ful intercourse, which I am invited to cherish 
 and cultivate. Give me, I entreat thee, a 
 spiritual and heavenly mind. Call off my 
 affections from things below, and set them on 
 things above. Let the same mind be in me 
 that was in Christ Jesus. Hear me, for his 
 sake. Amen. 
 
THE GLORY OF GOD IN THE CROSS. 45 
 
 MEDITATION V. 
 
 THE GLORY OF GOD IN THE CROSS. 
 
 In the cross of Christ, how does the glory of 
 God shine ! " God, who commanded the light 
 to shine out of darkness, hath shined into our 
 hearts to give the light of the knowledge of 
 the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." 
 2 Cor. iv. 6. 
 
 The glory of God is his perfections ; where 
 these are seen, his glory is seen. He loves 
 his own glory; and the great end of all his 
 works, is the exhibition of his glory, or the 
 display of his infinite perfections. His per- 
 fections accordingly are exhibited in creation 
 and providence ; but more clearly and fully 
 (and especially his moral attributes) in re- 
 demption. 
 
 His wisdom, for example, is exhibited in 
 creation. In the arrangement of land and 
 water; in the structure of the earth, as a 
 habitation for man, and the various orders of 
 inferior creatures ; in the senses and organs 
 of human bodies; in the admirable adapta- 
 tion of light to the eye, and of sounds to 
 
46 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 the ear ; in the formation of the tongue and 
 lips for articulate enunciation of the voice ; in 
 the constitution and position of the sun in our 
 system, for imparting light and heat to this 
 earth and her sister planets ; and in ten thou- 
 sand other particulars that might be men- 
 tioned, the wisdom of God is manifested. So, 
 in the provision made by divine Providence 
 for the sustentation and nourishment of men 
 and other creatures, and in controlling and 
 superintending their actions, the same attri- 
 bute is displayed. 
 
 But in the work of redemption God has 
 made a brighter exhibition of his wisdom. 
 In the person of the Redeemer, in his media- 
 tion, in his substitution in the sinner's place, 
 and in the result of his sufferings and death, 
 there is a wonderful display of infinite wis- 
 dom. The plan of salvation was far beyond 
 the conception of created intelligence. None 
 could tell whether the salvation of fallen man 
 was possible. To heavenly beings he ap- 
 peared for ever ruined by his apostasy. But, 
 behold, the infinite Mind brings forth the 
 wonderous scheme, by which every obstacle 
 in the way of his restoration to the divine 
 favour, and the recovery of his lost holiness, 
 
THE GLORY OF GOD IN THE CROSS. 47 
 
 is removed. Justice is satisfied, and the sin- 
 ner saved. Sin is pardoned, and yet sin is 
 punished. The rebel is released, and yet 
 government is maintained. God is glorified, 
 while he exercises his boundless mercy in 
 forgiving and saving guilty and rebellious 
 creatures, who had ungratefully broken his 
 laws, and daringly insulted his infinite Ma- 
 jesty. 
 
 The justice of God has been signally dis- 
 played in his dealings with our race. In the 
 expulsion of our first parents from paradise ; 
 in the curse pronounced that caused the earth 
 to bring forth thorns and thistles, and to de- 
 mand from man laborious culture, in order 
 to obtain its fruits ; in the general and over- 
 whelming deluge ; in the fires of Sodom and 
 Gomorrah ; in wars, famine, and pestilence ; 
 in diseases and death, justice is fearfully dis- 
 played. And it may be seen in all its fearful 
 terrors, in the fires kindled up for tormenting 
 devils and lost men. 
 
 But in the cross, in the sufferings and death 
 of Jesus Christ, God has given the strongest 
 and the most convincing demonstration of his 
 strict and inflexible justice. There we see, 
 that sin cannot escape punishment ; that the 
 
48 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 claims of justice must be satisfied, or the 
 sinner cannot be pardoned. God "spared 
 not his own Son, but delivered him up for us 
 all." Rom. viii. 32. The cup of suffering 
 could not pass from his lips. He drank up 
 its very dregs. Nothing was abated in his 
 favour. A full equivalent of sufferings was 
 exacted from him. How awful is divine 
 justice when we look at the cross ! Let 
 sinners tremble. And thou, my soul, stand 
 in awe of this frowning attribute of thy God ! 
 How delightfully shines forth in the cross 
 of our Redeemer the love of God ! That God 
 is a benevolent being we have ample proof 
 in creation and in providence. The produc- 
 tion of innumerable sensitive creatures, en- 
 dowed with various capacities for enjoyment; 
 the provision made for satisfying their diver- 
 sified appetites and desires ; the senses of the 
 human body, which are so many sources of 
 pleasure ; the endearing relations constituted, 
 by divine wisdom, in domestic life, between 
 husbands and wives, parents and children, 
 brothers and sisters; the structure and in- 
 tercourse of social life; and the numerous 
 sources of enjoyment opened in creation and 
 
THE GLORY OF GOD IN THE CROSS. 49 
 
 providence — all proclaim the benevolence of 
 the Almighty. 
 
 But in redemption we see his amazing 
 goodness and mercy. He is seen to be not 
 only benevolent, but to be love. " God so 
 loved the world, that he gave his only be- 
 gotten Son, that w r hosoever believeth in him, 
 should not perish, but have everlasting life." 
 "In this was manifested the love of God to- 
 ward us, because that God sent his only be- 
 gotten Son into the world, that we might live 
 through him. Herein is love, not that we 
 loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his 
 Son to be the propitiation for our sins." 
 "Behold, what manner of love the Father 
 hath bestowed upon us, that we should be 
 called the sons of God." " But God com- 
 mendeth his love towards us, in that, while 
 we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." 
 John iii. 16. 1 John iv. 9, 10; iii. 1. Rom. 
 v. 8. In such warm language the sacred 
 writers speak on this animating subject. 
 
 Benevolence to unoffending creatures is 
 not surprising. The goodness of the Creator 
 toward our first parents, while in a state of 
 innocence, and his signal favours bestowed 
 on holy angels, call for the warmest grati- 
 
50 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 tude and praise. But his pardoning mercy 
 and distinguishing love shown to our fallen 
 race, how wonderful! When we consider 
 the condition of sinful man, that he had 
 apostatized from his Creator, and rendered 
 himself guilty and vile by his pollution; that 
 he was in a state of enmity to God, and felt 
 no disposition to return, but was w r andering 
 more and more from his God, an object, not 
 of mercy, but of incensed justice, how won- 
 derful that his offended Sovereign should 
 not only pity, but set his love upon him ; 
 when there was no way for his redemption, 
 but by the humiliation, and sufferings, and 
 death of his own beloved Son ! How amazing 
 is it, that the ever blessed Jehovah, who 
 stood in no need of the services of our 
 miserable race, but could, with a word, have 
 called another world into existence, filled 
 with nobler creatures, and established in holi- 
 ness, to rejoice in his favours, and to delight 
 in offering the homage of grateful and loving 
 hearts, and continual and lofty praise, to him 
 from whom they received their being, and all 
 their endowments and blessedness ; how amaz- 
 ing that the all-sufficient Jehovah, whose 
 name would have been unblemished, if he had 
 
THE GLORY OF GOD IN THE CROSS. 51 
 
 left us to perish in our sins, should freely love 
 us, and determine, in a way so extraordinary, 
 to save us, and raise us to happiness and 
 glory, greater than we should have attained 
 if we had never sinned ! 
 
 In this illustrious manner, the glory of 
 God, his wisdom, justice, and love, shine 
 forth in the cross of Jesus Christ, his own 
 Son. Dwell, my soul, upon this glorious 
 subject. Meditate upon it again and again ? 
 that thou mayest feel its transforming in- 
 fluence, by inflaming thy love, awakening 
 thy penitence, increasing thy zeal, and ex- 
 citing thy desires for holiness in heart and 
 life. " But we all, with open face, beholding 
 as in a glass, the glory of the Lord, are 
 changed into the same image from glory to 
 glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." 
 2 Cor. iii. 18. The glory of God assimilates 
 into his own likeness those who contemplate 
 it. Let me love the glory of God, and con- 
 template it, with the eye of faith, that I may 
 participate in its assimilating influence, and 
 by the light and grace of the Holy Spirit, be 
 changed into the glorious image of my God. 
 
52 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Great and Almighty God, I praise thee for 
 the display of thy glory in thy works, and 
 especially for that brighter exhibition of it in 
 the cross of Jesus Christ. I see thy wisdom 
 in the arrangements of creation, and in the 
 order of thy providence ; but I see thy wis- 
 dom more illustriously displayed in the salva- 
 tion of fallen man, by the sufferings and death 
 of thine own Son. 
 
 Thy justice has been terribly manifested by 
 the judgments inflicted on our apostate race; 
 but how much more fearfully manifested 
 was it in the punishment inflicted on thy well 
 beloved Son, for the sins of his people ! 
 Thou hast shown thy benevolence in the pro- 
 duction of so many sensitive creatures of 
 various capacities for enjoyment, and in the 
 provision made for supplying them with ap- 
 propriate pleasures; but in the plan of re- 
 demption, and in the gift of thy Son for our 
 salvation, thou hast unfolded thy heart, and 
 shown thyself to be love. 
 
 Oh ! may I love to trace thy perfections in 
 thy works and ways, but especially as they 
 shine in the work of redemption. May I love 
 
THE PERSON OF OUR REDEEMER. 53 
 
 the glory of my God ; and, by contemplating 
 it, may I find myself changed into thy blessed 
 image ; inspired with hatred of sin, and with 
 love to holiness. May I long for that bright 
 display of thy glory, which beams around 
 the spirits of just men made perfect, and fills 
 them with unutterable blessedness, and calls 
 forth rapturous songs of praise to God and 
 the Lamb. Grant my prayer, for Jesus' sake. 
 Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION VI. 
 
 THE PERSON OF OUR REDEEMER. 
 
 How important is it for me and others, to 
 know the true character of our Redeemer ! 
 We ought to understand well the foundation 
 on which we rest our hopes for eternity ; and 
 to be assured, that he to whom we commit 
 our immortal interests, is fully able to secure 
 them against all dangers. 
 
 Who, my soul, is He to whom thou hast 
 committed thyself? Is he able to sustain the 
 high office of Mediator between offended 
 5* 
 
54 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 Majesty and his offending and rebellious crea- 
 tures ? Can he atone for thy sins, and the 
 sins of the world ? Can he furnish thee and 
 all who confide in him, with that perfect 
 righteousness which the law demands, and 
 without which no sinner can be admitted into 
 heaven? Is he able to deliver thee out of the 
 hands of all those malignant enemies, who 
 seek thy ruin, and bring thee safely to his 
 eternal kingdom? Is there sufficient reason 
 to warrant thee to place the most unlimited 
 confidence in him for every thing that thou 
 canst need or desire ? Blessed be God, there 
 are ample grounds for such confidence ! Re- 
 joice, my soul; thou mayest safely trust in 
 thy Redeemer. He has all power to save 
 thee, and all who trust in him. 
 
 But let me review the grounds of my hope, 
 and thus strengthen my faith. Who is my 
 Redeemer ? He is just what the exigencies 
 of my condition require. He is God and man 
 in one Divine Person. 
 
 I look to the cross, and there I behold one 
 in human form, nailed to the accursed tree, 
 bleeding and dying in shame and ignominy. 
 Can I doubt that he was a man, when he 
 was seen as such by every eye that saw him 
 
THE PERSON OF OUR REDEEMER. 55 
 
 suspended on the cross? His body was 
 scourged by Pilate's orders; his temples torn 
 by a crown of thorns; his hands and feet 
 were nailed to the cross; his body was then 
 lifted up on the cross which was thrust violently 
 into the place prepared, that he might die a 
 lingering and agonizing death; and his side 
 was afterwards pierced with a spear. From 
 the wound came forth blood and water; sure 
 proofs of his death. " Behold my hands and 
 my fee t, v said he to his terrified disciples, who 
 imagined him to be a spirit, " that it is I my- 
 self: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not 
 flesh and bones, as ye see me have." 
 
 I read the gospels, and there I learn, that 
 my Redeemer was conceived by the Holy 
 Ghost in the womb of a virgin, born in the 
 appointed time, and wrapped, like other human 
 infants, in swaddling bands. Like other men 
 he ate and drank, hungered and thirsted, 
 became weary and needed rest. He slept 
 and awoke, walked and conversed with his 
 disciples. In a word, he had all the proper- 
 ties and sinless infirmities of human nature. 
 I learn that he had also a rational soul, en- 
 dowed with faculties of understanding, will, 
 and affections. Of him it is written: "And 
 
56 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and 
 in favour with God and man." Of himself 
 he said in the garden of Gethsemane, " My 
 soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto 
 death." 
 
 But, while my Redeemer possessed a per- 
 fect human nature, a reasonable soul, as well 
 as an organized body like other men, and 
 denominated himself by the title, " Son of 
 man," he was perfectly holy, and free from all 
 sin. 
 
 Jesus was indeed a man; for, if he had not 
 possessed our nature, he could not have been 
 subject to the law that was given to our race, 
 nor have been our substitute. 
 
 But he was infinitely more than a mere 
 man. He was "God over all blessed for 
 ever." Of this great truth, — the Godhead of 
 my Redeemer, — I find in scripture the most 
 abundant proof. In this character he w r as 
 revealed to God's ancient church. He w r as 
 the angel who went before the chosen tribes, 
 and led them through the wilderness; of 
 whom Jehovah said, " Beware of him, and 
 obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will 
 not pardon your transgressions; for my name 
 is in him." Ex. xxiii. 20, 21. Speaking of 
 
THE PERSON OF OUR REDEEMER. 
 
 57 
 
 him, David, uttering the address of Jehovah 
 to him, says, "I will declare the decree: the 
 Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son: 
 This day have I begotten thee" Ps. ii 7. 
 Thus, before Jesus was born, he was styled 
 the Son of God. The Jews understood the 
 import of this lofty title; for when our 
 Saviour assumed it, by calling God his 
 Father, in a peculiar sense, they sought to 
 kill him; because, by asserting his filial rela- 
 tion to God, he made himself equal to God. 
 John v. 17-23. What lofty titles does Isaiah 
 apply to the Redeemer! "For unto us a 
 child is born, unto us a son is given: and the 
 government shall be upon his shoulder: and 
 his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsel- 
 lor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, 
 The Prince of Peace." Isa. ix. 6. 
 , In many passages that incommunicable 
 name Jehovah, which cannot be applied to 
 any creature, however exalted, is by this 
 prophet and others given to the Redeemer. 
 See Isa. xlv. 20-25; xlviii. 17; li. 9-11; liv. 
 5. Hos.i.7. Zech. ii. 10, 11. 
 
 Such is a specimen of the testimonies of 
 the Old Testament to the Divinity of the 
 Messiah. But when I read the pages of the 
 
58 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 New Testament, how full, and plain, and ex- 
 plicit, the testimonies of the inspired writers 
 to this great truth ! John begins his gospel 
 thus: "In the beginning was the Word, and 
 the Word was with God, and the Word was 
 God. The same was in the beginning with 
 God. All things were made by him; and 
 without him was not any thing made that 
 was made. In him was life; and the life was 
 the light of men." John i. 1-4. "And the 
 Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, 
 (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the 
 only begotten of the Father,) full of grace 
 and truth." Verse 14. Paul, in his epistle 
 to the Colossians, speaks of the Redeemer in 
 this lofty manner: "Who is the image of the 
 invisible God, the first-born of every creature. 
 For by him were all things created that are 
 in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and 
 invisible, whether they be thrones or do- 
 minions, or principalities, or powers: all 
 things were created by him, and for him: and 
 he is before all things, and by him all things 
 consist." Col. i. 15-17. Again, in his epistle 
 to the Philippians: "Who, being in the form 
 of God, thought it not robbery to be equal 
 with God." "That at the name of Jesus 
 
THE PERSON OP OUR REDEEMER. 59 
 
 every knee should bow, of things in heaven 
 and things in earth, and things under the 
 earth; and that every tongue should confess 
 that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God 
 the Father." Phil. ii. 6, 10, 11. In similar 
 terms he speaks, in his epistle to the Hebrews: 
 "God, who at sundry times and in divers 
 manners, spake in time past, unto the fathers 
 by the prophets, hath in these last days 
 spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath 
 appointed heir of all things, by whom also he 
 made the worlds ; who being the brightness 
 of his glory and the express image of his 
 person, and upholding all things by the word 
 of his power, when he had by himself purged 
 our sins, sat down on the right hand of the 
 Majesty on high." Heb. i. 1-3. And in the 
 book of Revelation the whole creation are 
 represented as worshipping Jesus Christ, the 
 Lamb. Rev. v. 11-14. 
 
 How full, how strong, how abundant the 
 testimonies, both of the Old and of the New 
 Testament, to the Godhead of our Redeemer ! 
 Not a doubt should remain on the mind, that 
 he is " God over all, blessed for ever." 
 
 But it is not to be forgotten, that he is God 
 and man in one person. His human nature 
 
60 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 had no personality of its own; because it 
 never existed by itself, apart from the divine 
 nature. From the first moment of its exist- 
 ence it was taken into union with the divine 
 nature; and, of course, was absorbed by a 
 divine person, and became a complex portion 
 of a divine person. The prophet Isaiah says, 
 (chap. vii. 14,) " Behold, a virgin shall con- 
 ceive, and bear a son, and his name shall be 
 called Immanuel;" that is, God with us. The 
 apostle Paul exclaims, "And without contro- 
 versy, great is the mystery of godliness: 
 God was manifest in the flesh." 1 Tim. iii. 
 16. This hypostatic union of the two na- 
 tures, justifies the language used by our 
 Lord to Nicodemus: — "And no man hath 
 ascended up to heaven, but he that came 
 down from heaven, even the Son of man 
 which is in heaven, (John iii. 13;) and 
 that of Paul:—" The church of God which 
 he purchased with his own blood." Acts 
 xx. 28. 
 
 How perfectly was the character of our 
 Saviour adapted to the office of Mediator, 
 which he assumed, and the work of redemp- 
 tion which he undertook ! As man he could 
 be subject to law, obey and suffer; and as 
 
THE PERSON OF OUR REDEEMER. 61 
 
 God he could sustain his human nature 
 under any amount of sufferings; while the 
 infinite dignity of his person imparted an in- 
 finite value to his sufferings and obedience, 
 and rendered them a full equivalent for the 
 sufferings due to all who shall be saved, and 
 furnished a perfect righteousness sufficient to 
 justify all who believe, and entitle them to 
 everlasting life. 
 
 With what unlimited confidence may I 
 commit my eternal interests into his hands ! 
 And what abundant reason have I to adopt 
 the apostle's language: — "I know in whom I 
 have believed, and am persuaded that he is 
 able to keep that which I have committed 
 unto him against that day." 2 Tim. i. 12, 
 In coming to him, I am chargeable with 
 neither impiety nor folly; for I come home, 
 by committing myself to my God ; and in de- 
 voting myself to him, I only perform what 
 duty and gratitude prompt and constrain me 
 to do: "for to this end Christ both died, and 
 revived, and rose again, that he might be 
 Lord both of the dead and living." Rom. 
 xiv. 9. " For the Father judgeth no man, but 
 hath committed all judgment unto the Son; 
 that all men might honour the Son, even as 
 6 
 
62 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 they honour the Father. He that honoureth 
 not the Son, honoureth not the Father which 
 hath sent him." John v. 22, 23. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Great and merciful God, I adore thee for 
 providing for our fallen race a glorious Me- 
 diator, who could interpose between us and 
 our offended Sovereign, and avert from us 
 his terrible wrath. I extol thy infinite wis- 
 dom, displayed in the wonderful constitution 
 of his person. I bless thee for the abundant 
 proof of the reality of his human nature; that 
 he possessed both an organized body and a 
 reasonable soul; so that he could be made 
 subject to the law of our race, and both obey 
 its precepts, and endure its penalty. I rejoice 
 to know, that, being perfectly holy, and free 
 from sin, he did obey the law, in the most 
 faultless manner ; and that he did endure its 
 penalty in its utmost extent; so as to make 
 an ample atonement for sin, and to work out 
 a complete righteousness, for the full justifi- 
 cation of every true believer. 
 
 I bless thee, O God, for the ample testi- 
 mony of thy word to assure us, that our Re- 
 
PRAYER. 
 
 63 
 
 deemer was infinitely more than man, — being 
 the second person in the adorable Trinity, 
 God over all, blessed for ever; Immanuel, 
 God with us, God manifest in the flesh, God 
 and man in one divine person: and thus able 
 to sustain his human nature under the im- 
 mense load of sufferings he endured, and to 
 impart an infinite value to his sufferings and 
 obedience; and thus render them amply suf- 
 ficient to atone for the sins, and to justify the 
 persons, of all who shall believe in him to the 
 end of time. 
 
 Blessed be God, I feel confident that he is 
 able and willing to save unto the uttermost 
 all that will come unto God by him. I there- 
 fore come to him, and commit my immortal 
 soul into his hands, and intrust to him the 
 management of my eternal interests ; assured 
 that he can keep what I have committed to 
 him till the great and final day. Blessed be 
 God for such a glorious and all-sufficient 
 Saviour, and for such assured confidence in 
 his power and grace. Amen. 
 
64 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 MEDITATION VII. 
 
 THE INFINITE CONDESCENSION OF THE REDEEMER. 
 
 In the counsels of eternity the plan of salva- 
 tion was laid. Then was it seen that no one 
 in the universe could redeem our fallen race 
 but the Son of God. Will he condescend to 
 become mediator between God and his sin- 
 ful creatures 1 He did thus condescend. He 
 most willingly engaged to assume the office; 
 and that we might know his feelings in regard 
 to it, he, ages ago, uttered this cheering lan- 
 guage : " Sacrifice and offering thou didst 
 not require ; mine ears hast thou opened : 
 burnt-offering and sin-offering hast thou not 
 required. Then said I, Lo, I come : in the 
 volume of the book it is written of me ; I 
 delight to do thy will, O my God." Ps. xl. 
 6—8. Heb. x. 5—7. 
 
 How condescending was our Redeemer in 
 giving to our race such early intimation of his 
 coming to redeem the world, by bruising the 
 serpent's head, or destroying the works of the 
 devil, and in suffering himself to be exhibited 
 to the Church as her Saviour, by such a 
 
CONDESCENSION OF CHRIST. 65 
 
 variety of types and ceremonies, and so long 
 a train of prophecies and promises, to sustain 
 her faith! 
 
 How condescending was it in the Son of 
 God to assume the fashion of a man, when 
 he appeared to Abraham, and permitted that 
 patriarch to plead with him for the preserva- 
 tion of Sodom, that guilty and polluted city ! 
 Gen. xviii. As the angel in whom was Je- 
 hovah's name, he condescended to conduct 
 the tribes of Israel through the wilderness to 
 the land of promise ; he too watched over the 
 interests of his Church, while dwelling in that 
 chosen land ; and then in the appointed time, 
 he appeared on this earth in human form, to 
 accomplish his glorious and gracious work 
 of saving our race ! 
 
 i\.nd while engaged in his work, in what 
 various forms was his condescension dis- 
 played ! 
 
 When Nicodemus, ashamed or afraid to 
 let it be known that he entertained any fa- 
 vourable sentiments towards our Redeemer, 
 came by night to converse with him, he did 
 not sternly rebuke him for his timidity or 
 cowardice, but graciously condescended to 
 enter into conversation with him, to answer 
 6* 
 
66 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 his questions, and to impart the most impor- 
 tant instructions. 
 
 How did his condescension shine in his 
 conversation with the woman of Samaria! 
 Wearied with his journey he sat down on 
 Jacob's well, w T hile his disciples had gone to 
 buy meat in a neighbouring city. A woman 
 of Samaria came to the well to draw water ; 
 and, to lead her into conversation designed 
 for her spiritual benefit, he asked her to give 
 him drink. As the Jews had no dealings 
 with the Samaritans, she expressed her sur- 
 prise that he being a Jew, should make such 
 a request. In the prejudices of the Jews, our 
 blessed Lord did not participate. He imme- 
 diately, by his heavenly conversation, turned 
 her attention to that living water that imparts 
 life to the soul, and pursued his conversation 
 with her, so that she and many of the Sama- 
 ritans were led to believe him to be the 
 promised Messiah. John iv. 
 
 With what condescension did our Lord 
 treat Martha, the sister of Lazarus and Mary! 
 Being of an anxious and fretful disposition, 
 while cumbered with much serving, and de- 
 sirous of preparing a suitable supper for her 
 guests, she came in a pettish manner to Jesus, 
 
CONDESCENSION OF CHRIST. 67 
 
 and complaining of the conduct of her wise 
 and prudent sister, she, without becoming 
 reverence, gave utterance to her improper 
 feelings : " Lord, dost thou not care that my 
 sister hath left me to serve alone ? bid her 
 therefore that she help me." To this imper- 
 tinent application, our Lord meekly replied : 
 " Martha, Martha, thou art careful and trou- 
 bled about many things ; but one thing is 
 needful: and Mary hath chosen that good 
 part, which shall not be taken from her." 
 Luke x. 40—42. 
 
 Such was our Redeemer's attachment to 
 this family, that although the Jews had sought 
 to stone him, yet, to raise Lazarus from the 
 dead, he, to the surprise of his disciples, 
 went to that part of the land ; and, with what 
 affectionate condescension toward them, did 
 he act ! Seeing Mary weeping, and the Jews 
 also weeping who came with her, " he groan- 
 ed in spirit, and was troubled." " Jesus 
 wept." Well might the Jews exclaim, " Be- 
 hold, how he loved him !" Approaching the 
 grave, he said to Martha, whose faith waver- 
 ed, " Said I not unto thee, that, if thou 
 wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory 
 of God?' Then, lifting up his eyes to heaven, 
 
68 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 he said for the benefit of all present, " Father, 
 I thank thee that thou hast heard me;" and, 
 with a loud voice, he commanded Lazarus 
 to come forth. Lazarus obeyed, came forth, 
 and lived. John xi. 
 
 How frequently the Redeemer manifested 
 his condescnsion toward his disciples in bear- 
 ing with their infirmities, dulness, and want 
 of faith ! What a surprising exhibition of 
 unequalled condescension we see, when, to 
 set them an example of humility and brother- 
 ly love, he, knowing that the Father had 
 given all things into his hands, and that he 
 was come from God, and went to God, arose 
 from supper, and laid aside his garments, and 
 took a towel and girded himself; and having 
 poured water into a basin, began to wash the 
 the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the 
 towel wherewith he was girded! Behold, 
 the Lord of glory, while conscious of his 
 exalted standing in the universe, stoops to 
 perform such menial acts for the instruction 
 of his disciples! 
 
 Peter, when the Redeemer had said to his 
 disciples, "all ye shall be offended because 
 of me this night," made solemn protestations 
 of his unwavering attachment ; and yet slept, 
 
CONDESCENSION OF CHRIST. 69 
 
 with James and John, while their Master 
 was agonizing in the garden ! How was he 
 treated ? Jesus, when he found them sleep- 
 ing, said unto Peter, " Simon, sleepest thou 1 
 couldst thou not watch one hour ? Watch 
 ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation;" 
 and then kindly adds this apology, " The 
 spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak." 
 Mark xiv. 37-42. Peter shamefully denied 
 his Lord; and when he had repeated his 
 great offence three times, " the Lord turned, 
 and looked upon Peter." How piercing this 
 look of his suffering Master! Peter's heart 
 felt it. "He went out and wept bitterly." 
 Luke xxii. 61, 62. All his disciples had 
 failed in duty more or less, yet their merciful 
 Saviour, after he had arisen from the dead, 
 received them into favour again, and renewed 
 their commission to the apostleship. What 
 kindness and condescension are seen in all 
 these occurrences ! How worthy of all ad- 
 miration ! 
 
 Such was the condescension of the Re- 
 deemer, both before, and after, his incarna- 
 tion. And now, while ascended to his Me- 
 diatorial throne, and reigning in inconceivable 
 glory as Lord of heaven and earth, is he not 
 
70 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 as condescending as ever? Does he not 
 love, watch over, and defend his Church] 
 Does he not bear her on his heart, interced- 
 ing for her before the throne of the Most 
 High? 
 
 And hast not thou, my soul, shared in his 
 great condescension and loving-kindness ? 
 Whose eye watched over thee, whilst thou 
 wast wandering far from righteousness, for- 
 getful and unconcerned about thy eternal 
 interests ? Who laid the restraints of provi- 
 dence and grace upon thee ; so as to keep 
 thee from the great sins to which thou wast 
 tempted? Was it not thy condescending 
 Saviour, who loved thee, while wandering 
 away from him, heedless of his kind invita- 
 tions to return and receive his salvation? 
 Who, in the appointed time, sent his Spirit to 
 awaken, to arouse, to convict, and convert 
 thee? Who washed away thy sins, and 
 brought thee into a state of reconciliation and 
 favour with God ? Who has kept and guarded 
 thee, healed thy backslidings and quickened 
 thee in the service of God, and brightened 
 thy hopes ? Hast thou not received all these 
 signal favours from the loving-kindness of thy 
 condescending Saviour? Imitate the con- 
 
PRAYER. 71 
 
 descension of thy exalted Master. Banish 
 from thy heart pride and ambition. Con- 
 descend to men of low estate. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 I bless thee, O my Redeemer, for thine in- 
 finite condescension in assuming the office of 
 Mediator between God and man. I praise 
 thee for the early intimation of thy merciful 
 purpose, given in the first promise, concern- 
 ing the Seed of the woman who was to bruise 
 the serpent's head, and for the subsequent 
 clearer discoveries afforded by various pre- 
 dictions and promises concerning the Messiah 
 and his work. I bless thee for the proofs of 
 thy willingness to execute the office of Medi- 
 ator, manifested by appearing to the patri- 
 archs in human form, and thus anticipating 
 the assumption of our nature in the appointed 
 time. I praise thee for condescending to 
 lead, as the Angel of the covenant, the chosen 
 tribes through the wilderness to the land of 
 promise; and for condescending to superin- 
 tend and manage the affairs of thy church, 
 till thy advent in the world. I bless thee for 
 the condescension displayed in thy public 
 
72 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 ministry, and in thy treatment of thy dis- 
 ciples, and of all who applied to thee for in- 
 structions; and for the condescension sc 
 signally shown to thy disciples, after thy 
 resurrection from the dead, by repeated ap- 
 pearances to them, in order to afford to 
 them infallible proofs that thou wast alive 
 again, and about to ascend in glory to 
 heaven. 
 
 Infinite condescension ! May I be enabled 
 to imbibe thy spirit, and always in my inter- 
 course with my fellow disciples, and with my 
 fellow men, show this lovely trait of charac- 
 ter. May I ever be as my Saviour was, 
 "meek and lowly in heart;" that thus I may 
 prove myself a true disciple of my blessed 
 Redeemer. Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION VIII. 
 
 THE PROFOUND HUMILIATION OF CHRIST. 
 
 Our blessed Lord has not only displayed 
 infinite condescension, but submitted to the 
 most profound humiliation. 
 
HUMILIATION OF CHRIST. 73 
 
 Of his humiliation we find a summary and 
 comprehensive view given by the apostle 
 Paul, in his epistle to the Philippians: chap, 
 ii. "Who, being in the form of God, thought 
 it not robbery to be equal with God: but 
 made himself of no reputation, and took upon 
 him the form of a servant, and was made in 
 the likeness of men: and being found in 
 fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and 
 became obedient unto death, even the death 
 of the cross." Here is exhibited the humilia- 
 tion of our blessed Lord from its commence- 
 ment to its termination. It demands an 
 attentive consideration in all its parts. Let 
 me devoutly look at them. 
 
 1. He, being in the form of God, was 
 equal with God. As such he was seen by 
 angels ; seated on the throne of heaven in all 
 his infinite majesty, demanding and receiving 
 the worship of every order of celestial beings. 
 Before him angels and archangels cast their 
 crowns, and prostrated themselves at his feet, 
 in acknowledgment of his supreme excel- 
 lence, and of their entire dependence on him 
 for existence and every endowment. " But 
 he made himself of no reputation;" (in the 
 original, he emptied himself;) laid aside his 
 7 
 
74 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 glory; did not make such manifestations of 
 his august majesty as he did to angels, and 
 had done to the patriarchs ; when he appeared 
 to them, as to Abraham, and to Moses, and 
 to the children of Israel at Mount Sinai, when 
 he published the law in such terrific displays 
 of grandeur and majesty. 
 
 2. This emptying himself was done by 
 taking upon himself the form of a servant. 
 To this act of humiliation the Son of God 
 consented, by agreeing to become a Media- 
 tor; for it involved the assumption of the 
 nature of that order of creatures for whom he 
 became mediator; and rendered him, who 
 was above all law and authority, and subject 
 to no being whatever, servant to his eternal 
 Father, and subjected him in his assumed 
 nature, to the law that had been given to 
 that nature. Had the Son of God assumed 
 into personal union with himself the highest 
 created nature in the universe, it would have 
 been unspeakable condescension, and would 
 have placed him in the condition of a servant 
 to his eternal Father. 
 
 3. He made a lower stoop than this. " He 
 was made in the likeness of men." He did 
 not assume the nature of angels ; he did not 
 
HUMILIATION OF CHRIST. 75 
 
 appear in the likeness of Michael or Gabriel: 
 but he assumed the nature of man, who, 
 although made in the image and likeness of 
 his Creator, yet was inferior to angels. And 
 he assumed this nature not as it was in a 
 state of innocence, free from all the conse- 
 quences of sin, and all the seeds of disease 
 and death ; but as it had become by trans- 
 gression, subject to many ills, and finally to 
 death. "He was made like unto us in all 
 things, sin only excepted." In this inferior 
 nature, degraded as it was by sin, our blessed 
 Redeemer appeared as a servant to his 
 Father. 
 
 4. There is another step in his humiliation; 
 for the apostle says, that, "being found in 
 fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and 
 became obedient." He was pleased to place 
 himself under obligation to obey the law, not 
 only as it governed man in a state of inno- 
 cence, but as it was presented to him in his 
 fallen state. In token of this obligation, he 
 was, on the eighth day, circumcised; and 
 became subject to the whole Mosaic law, 
 moral, ceremonial, and civil. He observed 
 the Jewish feasts, the temple service, and 
 paid tribute money. His obedience was per- 
 
76 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 feet; free from every defect in regard to prin- 
 ciple, action, and continuance; and rendered, 
 in circumstances of peculiar difficulty, in 
 opposition to prevailing customs, and the pre- 
 scriptions of the scribes and rulers ; and the 
 most violent assaults of temptations, urged by 
 Satan, in every form, and with the greatest 
 violence. 
 
 5. The Saviour rendered himself subject 
 to the law, not only in its preceptive, but in 
 its penal demands. " He became obedient 
 unto death." He was the substitute of man, 
 and engaged to satisfy all the demands of the 
 divine law on fallen man. In his innocent 
 state, the law required from man nothing but 
 obedience to its holy precepts. Had he ren- 
 dered this, by retaining the purity of his heart 
 and life, the law would have demanded 
 nothing more. He would have been right- 
 eous, and entitled to the promised reward. 
 He failed in his obedience; he sinned; and 
 the law obtained a new demand; it required 
 a full satisfaction for the dishonour done to it 
 by disobedience. 
 
 To this demand the Saviour submitted, 
 and engaged, as man's Redeemer, to pay all 
 his debts, by subjecting himself to all the 
 
HUMILIATION OF CHRIST. 77 
 
 sufferings which a full satisfaction for sin re- 
 quired. 
 
 This part of the Saviour's humiliation, 
 comprehends all the sufferings which he 
 endured, from the beginning to the close of 
 his life; and will come under review in a 
 subsequent meditation. Let me at present 
 look at that part named by the apostle in the 
 terms " death, even the death of the cross." 
 " As it is appointed unto men once to die," 
 he stooped so low as to endure this evil. 
 His soul was separated from his body ; his 
 blessed body became lifeless, and was laid in 
 the grave. 
 
 His death was produced, not by disease, 
 nor by the mere hand of violence ; but by a 
 judicial act, which condemned him to a death 
 of the most shameful kind ; a death inflicted 
 on slaves, thieves, and murderers. It was 
 the death of the cross. And his death on the 
 cross, was attended with every circumstance 
 of pain and shame, and violence, that could 
 be combined together by the malice and in- 
 genuity of his malignant enemies. 
 
 So profound was the humiliation of the Son 
 of God ! The Sovereign of the universe be- 
 came a servant ; the great Creator, a de- 
 7 # 
 
78 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 pendent creature ; the supreme Lawgiver, a 
 subject to his own law ! He, whose palace 
 is the highest heaven, had no dwelling place 
 of his own; he, who issues his orders to the* 
 armies of heaven, and is worshipped by 
 angels and archangels, was attended by a few 
 fishermen and publicans ; he, who is infinite- 
 ly rich, became poor and dependent on chari- 
 ty for subsistence ! He, of whom it is writ- 
 ten, " none can stay his hand, or say unto 
 him, What doest thou?' was opposed by 
 Jewish rulers and priests ! He, who spake, 
 and soldiers who came to arrest him, fell to 
 the ground, and would have died had he 
 willed it, suffered himself to be bound by 
 them, and led to the High-priest. The Judge 
 of all, was judged by the Jewish council ; 
 mocked by Herod; scourged, condemned, 
 and crucified by the Roman governor ! The 
 Author of life in every form, died by the 
 hands of wicked men! The weil-beloved 
 Son of God agonized under the hidings of his 
 Father's face, and the infliction of the curse 
 of his holy and violated law ! 
 
 To all this humiliation our blessed Lord 
 submitted for the salvation of his people. 
 How amazing! How frequently should I 
 
PRAYER. 79 
 
 contemplate it by faith, and endeavour to 
 imbibe the spirit that prompted him to set 
 such an example to his people ! True, it was 
 designed for a more important purpose, to 
 make a real expiation for sin ; still I may see 
 in it a bright and glorious example, worthy 
 of my devout and affectionate imitation. Im- 
 mediately before, and in connexion with this 
 exhibition of the Saviour's humiliation, the 
 apostle says, " Let this mind be in you, which 
 was also in Christ Jesus ;" and then proceeds 
 to describe this mind of Christ, by showing 
 how it appeared in his profound humiliation. 
 Dwell then, my soul, on this amazing scene 
 of humiliation and sufferings of thy Lord and 
 Redeemer, to imbibe his spirit of humility and 
 love. Be willing to humble thyself, and suffer 
 too, when necessary for the glory of God, 
 and the good of thy fellow Christians and 
 fellow men. Pray for the grace of the Holy 
 Spirit, to mould thee into the blessed likeness 
 of thy Saviour God. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 How profound thy humiliation, O my Re- 
 deemer God ! Hadst thou been pleased to 
 assume the nature of an archangel, it would 
 
80 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 have claimed the admiration and praise of all 
 holy beings. But, by assuming the nature of 
 'fallen man, and appearing in the form of a 
 servant, for our salvation, thou didst submit 
 to humiliation still more profound ! I bless 
 thee that thou wast willing to lay aside the 
 robes of Godhead, to take human nature from 
 a humble virgin, to be born in a stable, and 
 laid in a manger. I praise thee for every 
 step in thy humiliation ; that thou didst wil- 
 lingly subject thyself to the law of man — to 
 live in poverty — to incur the opposition of the 
 Jewish priests and rulers — to endure reproach 
 and reviling — to stand in judgment at the 
 bar of thy creatures — to submit to condemna- 
 tion, as if guilty of blasphemy and sedition — 
 and to bear all the agonies and tortures con- 
 nected with the shameful death of crucifixion, 
 as well as the more overwhelming suffer- 
 ings inflicted on thy soul by divine justice in 
 expiation of the sins of thy people ! 
 
 May I ever remember, with gratitude and 
 praise, this astonishing humiliation ; and, im- 
 bibing thy spirit, manifest, on all suitable oc- 
 casions, the same mind that prompted thee, O 
 Saviour, to submit to humiliation so profound 
 and wonderful ! Amen. 
 
THE HOLY LIFE OF CHRIST. 81 
 
 MEDITATION IX. 
 
 THE HOLY LIFE OF CHRIST. 
 
 The spotless purity of the Saviour was essen- 
 tial to his office and work as Mediator. Had 
 his human nature been defiled by sin, he 
 could not have yielded that perfect obedience 
 which the law demanded ; nor would it have 
 received the high honour of being hypostati- 
 cally united to his divine nature. That his 
 human nature was perfectly pure from every 
 moral stain, the sacred Scriptures bear ample 
 testimony. " Therefore, also," said the angel 
 Gabriel to Mary, " that holy thing which 
 shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son 
 of God." Luke i. 35. At his baptism a 
 voice came from heaven, which said, " Thou 
 art my beloved Son; in thee I am well 
 pleased." Luke iii. 22. And again, at his 
 transfiguration, the Father testified his appro- 
 bation of him : " This is my beloved Son : 
 hear him." Luke ix. 35. Appealing to his 
 enemies, Jesus said, "Which of you con- 
 vinced me of sin?' John viii. 46. And 
 the apostle, " For such an High-priest be- 
 
82 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 came us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, 
 and separated from sinners, and made higher 
 than the heavens ; who needed not, as those 
 high-priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his 
 own sins." 
 
 Jesus was indeed a descendant of Adam; 
 for he was born of the virgin Mary, but not 
 in the ordinary way. He was conceived in 
 the virgin's womb, by the power of the Holy 
 Ghost, and came by a special promise, given 
 after the apostasy of man ; and not being 
 represented by Adam in the covenant of 
 works, he was not at all affected by the vio- 
 lation of that covenant, and could not be in- 
 volved in its consequences. 
 
 What matter of gratitude and praise, to be 
 thus divinely assured that Christ was per- 
 fectly qualified for the work he undertook ! 
 Rejoice, my soul, in this assurance, and let it 
 inspire thee with unshaken confidence in 
 him. 
 
 Being perfectly pure in his nature at his 
 birth, our blessed Redeemer remained so 
 through the whole of his course on earth. In 
 heart and life he was perfectly conformed to 
 the divine law. Holiness was in him per- 
 sonified. It beamed from his eyes, breathed 
 
THE HOLY LIFE OF CHRIST. 83 
 
 from his lips, and moved in all his actions. 
 The grand comprehensive principles of the 
 law were deeply seated in his holy soul. 
 He loved God with all his powers, and 
 his neighbour as himself; and his whole 
 life was one continued, unbroken stream of 
 love. 
 
 His love to his Father was displayed by 
 his steady, uniform, unwavering and perfect 
 obedience to his commandments. "I came 
 down from heaven, not to do mine own will, 
 but the will of him that sent me." John vi. 
 38. " But that the world may know that I 
 love the Father; and as the Father gave me 
 commandment, even so I do. Arise, let us 
 go hence." John xiv. 31. "I have glori- 
 fied thee on the earth; I have finished the 
 work which thou gavest me to do." John 
 xvii. 4. 
 
 His obedience to his Father's will was 
 ever characterized by those qualities that 
 render obedience truly acceptable. 
 
 Delight was one characteristic. In view 
 of all the difficulties and sufferings to be en- 
 countered and endured, he could truly say, 
 "Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is 
 
84 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 written of me ; I delight to do thy will, O my 
 God." Ps. xl. 7, 8. 
 
 The obedience of Christ was marked by a 
 devotional spirit He felt his dependence on 
 God; and, therefore, conversed much with 
 him by prayer. Before choosing his apos- 
 tles, "he went into a mountain to pray, 
 and continued all night in prayer to God." 
 Luke vi. 12, 13. And, on another occasion, 
 " rising up a great while before day, he went 
 out, and departed into a solitary place, and 
 there prayed." Mark i. 35. How earnest 
 were his prayers in the garden of Gethse- 
 mane! "Who in the days of his flesh," says 
 the apostle, " when he had offered up prayers 
 and supplications, with strong cries and tears, 
 unto Him that was able to save him from 
 death, and was heard in that he feared." 
 Heb. v. 7. His heart was continually ascend- 
 ing to God in holy aspirations, and held high 
 communion with him. 
 
 How fervent was the Redeemer's zeal for 
 his Father's honour! When but twelve 
 years old, he manifested his zeal by remain- 
 ing at Jerusalem after the departure of his 
 parents, " sitting in the midst of the doctors, 
 
THE HOLY LIFE OF CHRIST. 85 
 
 both hearing them and asking them ques- 
 tions." And to his mother's language, " Son, 
 why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, 
 thy father and I have sought thee sorrow- 
 ing :" he replied, " How is it that ye sought 
 me? wist ye not that I must be about my 
 Father's business?" His zeal was displayed 
 in refuting the corrupt glosses put on the law 
 of God by the Scribes and Pharisees; in con- 
 demning the unsound traditions of the elders; 
 and in the heavy denunciations of divine 
 judgments against the false teachers in the 
 Jewish church. And how conspicuous was 
 it, when he purified the temple, by expelling 
 from it all that sold and bought in it ! Matt. 
 xxi. 12, 13. "The zeal of thine house hath 
 eaten me up." 
 
 His submission to the divine will was pre- 
 eminent. How cheerfully did he lead a life 
 of obscurity and poverty! Thrice in the 
 garden, where he agonized, he said, "O my 
 Father, if this cup may not pass away from 
 me, except I drink it, thy will be done." 
 Matt. xxvi. 39-44. 
 
 Trust in God never forsook him. Even 
 in that tremendous hour of overwhelming 
 suffering, when preternatual darkness cover- 
 8 
 
86 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 ed the earth, when all the powers of hell as- 
 sailed him on the cross, and his Father left 
 him to feel all the horrors of the curse of a 
 broken law, he could still say " My God, my 
 God, why hast thou forsaken me ?" Matt, 
 xxvii. 46 ; and he closed the awful scene, by 
 crying with a loud voice, " Father, into thy 
 hands I commend my spirit." Luke xxiii. 46. 
 As the love of Christ to God, so his benevo- 
 lence to man was displayed through his whole 
 life. With what diligence did he prosecute 
 his work of teaching. Pressed by the multi- 
 tudes attending his ministry, he at times 
 could hardly find leisure to eat. When the 
 people w T ere ii% danger of fainting for want of 
 food, he fed them in a miraculous manner. 
 He bore with the dullness, infirmities, and un- 
 belief of his apostles. " He went about doing 
 good." He healed all manner of diseases ; 
 rejected none that sought his aid ; and wel- 
 comed all that applied to him for salvation. 
 He wept at the grave of Lazarus. He pitied 
 his enemies. In view of the miseries that 
 were coming upon the wicked city that had 
 rejected him, how melting the strains of pity 
 he uttered ! " O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou 
 that killest the prophets, and stonest them 
 
THE HOLY LIFE OF CHRIST. 
 
 87 
 
 which are sent unto thee, how often would I 
 have gathered thy children together, even as 
 a hen gathereth her chickens under her 
 wings, and ye would not !" For his enemies 
 who crucified him, he prayed, "Father, for- 
 give them ; for they know not what they do." 
 Luke xxiii. 34. And to the penitent thief on 
 the cross, who had reviled him, he gave the 
 assurance, "Verily I say unto thee, to-day 
 shalt thou be with me in paradise." Luke 
 xxiii. 43. 
 
 May the benevolence of Christ fill my soul, 
 and prompt me to every good deed and act 
 of kindness ! 
 
 So signal, finished, and sinless was the 
 Saviour's obedience to the divine law ! The 
 development of his love to God and man so 
 complete and attractive! And in rendering 
 his obedience he rose above every difficulty, 
 triumphed over all opposition, and contemned 
 every adverse allurement. The devil as- 
 sailed him at the commencement of his public 
 life, with all his cunning and power; but in 
 vain. In vain he spread before him all the 
 kingdoms of the world, and their glory, 
 promising to give them all to him, if he 
 
88 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 would worship him. "Get thee behind me, 
 Satan," replied the indignant Redeemer: "for 
 it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord 
 thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." 
 Luke iv. 5-8. The world had no power 
 over him. He was alike superior to its 
 smiles and frowns, to its rewards and terrors. 
 When he saw that the people were disposed 
 to take him by force, and make him a king, 
 he retired from them and concealed himself. 
 The world could crucify, but it could not 
 subdue him. There was a joy set before 
 him, a joy springing from the glory of God, 
 in the redemption of a fallen world, and his 
 own future exaltation, that enabled him to 
 endure the cross and despise its shame. Heb. 
 xii. 2. 
 
 What a perfect example I behold in the 
 holy and sinless life of my Redeemer ! The 
 lives of patriarchs and pious kings, of holy 
 prophets and apostles, are set before me, that 
 I may copy their examples. They are worthy 
 of my assiduous imitation. Let it, however, 
 be remembered that not one was faultless. 
 But, in the life of my blessed Redeemer, I see 
 an example perfect and faultless. To this, 
 
PRAYER. 89 
 
 then, my soul, look; and by a reference to it, 
 avoid whatever was wrong in the lives of 
 ancient saints and apostles. *> 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Most holy and merciful Saviour, when I 
 contemplate the spotless purity of thy nature, 
 and thy perfect and illustrious example, how 
 much reason I find for deep abasement before 
 God, and penitence, on account of the de- 
 pravity of my nature, and the sins of my life ! 
 Oh! may thy example be ever before my 
 eyes ! Afford me grace, that I may copy 
 after it. May I imbibe thy spirit and tread 
 in thy steps, and become daily more and 
 more conformed to thy image! O! when 
 shall love to God and man, like thine, possess 
 my whole soul, and control all its feelings, 
 desires, and emotions! and my obedience, 
 flowing from a spring so pure, become what 
 it ought to be, — blameless ! While passing 
 through this vain and sinful world, may it be 
 my constant prayer and endeavour, to w r alk 
 in that bright path of purity, love, benevo- 
 lence, and obedience, w 7 hich thou didst tread, 
 till, at the end of life, being freed from all sin 
 8# 
 
90 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 and every stain, I shall become entirely like 
 to thee, my Saviour; and see thee as thou 
 art, in all thy purity and infinite glory. 
 Grant this, I beseech thee, for thy name's 
 sake. Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION X. 
 
 THE SUFFERINGS AND DEATH OF CHRIST 
 
 In preparing for the holy supper, I must 
 especially remember the sufferings and the 
 death of my blessed Lord. It is his broken 
 body and his shed blood he puts into my 
 hands at the sacred feast, and bids me eat the 
 one and drink the other. And can I take the 
 symbols, and thus eat and drink, without re- 
 membering what they significantly shadow 
 forth, — his amazing sufferings, and bitter and 
 shameful death? No; I must dwell upon 
 this astonishing scene, the sufferings of an in- 
 carnate God. 
 
 And what were the sufferings of my Re- 
 deemer! Ah! what tongue can tell, what 
 mind conceive, what he endured in expi- 
 
SUFFERINGS AND DEATH OF CHRIST. 91 
 
 ating our sins, and working out our re- 
 demption? Divine justice alone can mea- 
 sure them. But let me endeavour to form 
 some conception of their greatness and 
 variety. 
 
 They began with his life, and continued 
 till its close. Heaven, earth, and hell com- 
 bined to afflict him. It pleased his Father to 
 bruise and put him to grief, and to make his 
 soul an offering for sin. Devils assailed him 
 with their infernal temptations, especially in 
 the wilderness, and on the cross, to shake his 
 firmness, and to defeat his glorious purpose. 
 Jews and Gentiles united to insult, degrade, 
 and torment him. 
 
 He suffered from poverty. He was so 
 poor that he was dependent for subsistence 
 on the charity of others; and to mark the 
 depth of his poverty, he once said, " the foxes 
 have holes, and the birds of the air have 
 nests ; but the Son of man hath not where to 
 lay his head." 
 
 He suffered from intercourse with sinful 
 men. Loving God supremely, devoted to his 
 glory, and perfectly free from sin, how pain- 
 ful to his holy soul must it have been, to see 
 the abounding wickedness of men around 
 
92 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 him; all going astray, all neglecting God, 
 breaking his commandments, and dishonour- 
 ing, instead of glorifying, his great name! 
 If the soul of righteous Lot was daily vexed 
 with the unlawful deeds of the inhabitants of 
 Sodom, how painful must have been the feel- 
 ings of the Redeemer, in witnessing the wick- 
 edness of the inhabitants of Jerusalem and of 
 Judea ! 
 
 He suffered from being rejected by the 
 Jews. " He came unto his own ; and his 
 own received him not." By his holy life, by 
 his heavenly doctrines, and by his astonishing 
 miracles, he proved himself to be the long 
 promised Messiah ; but his claims were denied 
 by the chief priests, by the Scribes, Pharisees 
 and rulers. They stigmatized him as an im- 
 postor, instead of hailing him as their Lord 
 and Redeemer. 
 
 He suffered in his reputation. Because he 
 conformed in his living to prevailing custom, 
 he was called a wine bibber and a glutton. 
 Mixing with all classes of men for their in- 
 struction, benefit, reformation, and salvation, 
 he was reproached as the friend of publicans 
 and sinners. 
 
 He was sold for thirty pieces of silver, and 
 
 
SUFFERINGS AND DEATH OF CHRIST. 93 
 
 betrayed into the hands of the chief priests, by 
 a kiss from Judas, the traitorous disciple. 
 
 And now, my soul, behold thy Lord and 
 Saviour, rudely seized and bound by ruffian 
 soldiers, and led by them to the palace of the 
 High-priest. There, with what cruel indig- 
 nity is he treated! He is mocked, smitten 
 on the face, and spit upon. He is blind-fold- 
 ed and then asked to tell who smote him. 
 False witnesses testify against him. Adjured 
 by the High-priest, he affirms himself to be 
 the Son of God ; and immediately the council 
 condemn him as deserving death. 
 
 Deprived of the power of executing the 
 sentence of death, they hurry him to Pilate 
 the Roman governor; and before his tribunal, 
 accusing him as a blasphemer, and as a sedi- 
 tious person, demand his death. Pilate sends 
 him to Herod the king. He and his soldiers 
 mock and insult him, and then send him back 
 again to Pilate. Convinced of his innocence, 
 the Roman governor seeks to deliver him. 
 Persuaded by the priests, a fickle people, who 
 had a little before admired Jesus, prefer to 
 him for release Barabbas, a robber and mur- 
 derer. Pilate overcome by the importunity 
 of the chief priests and the clamorous de- 
 
94 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 mands of the multitude, cowardly yields to 
 their wishes. 
 
 What a scene now ensues ! The blessed 
 Jesus is scourged, and then led by the sol- 
 diers into the common hall, and the whole 
 band collected around him to participate in 
 tormenting him. They strip off his own rai- 
 ment, and put on him a scarlet robe. Having 
 put on his head a plaited crown of thorns, 
 and a reed in his right hand, they bow the 
 knee before him, and mock him, saying, Hail, 
 king of the Jews ! They spit upon him ; and 
 taking the reed out of his hand, they smite 
 him on the head. Tired with their mockery 
 and insults, they take off the scarlet robe, and 
 put on him his own raiment, and lead him 
 away to crucify him. 
 
 Behold him, my soul, walking, with pain- 
 ful steps, to mount Calvary, to be crucified. 
 See him nailed to the cross, and then lifted 
 up on it, that it may be thrust violently into 
 the hole prepared for it; by which shock 
 every joint of his sacred body is dislocated. 
 Behold the innocent Lamb of God between 
 two crucified malefactors, as if the most 
 deserving of death. They that pass by, 
 revile him, wagging their heads, and saying, 
 
SUFFERINGS AND DEATH! OF CHRIST. 95 
 
 " Thou that destroyest the temple, and build- 
 est it in three days, save thyself. If thou be 
 the Son of God, come down from the cross." 
 Hear the malignant mocking of the chief 
 priests, the scribes and elders : " He saved 
 others, himself, he cannot save. If he be the 
 King of Israel, let him now come down from 
 the cross, and we will believe him. He 
 trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if 
 he will have him : for he said, I am the Son 
 of God." 
 
 These outward insults, these torments in- 
 flicted on his body, I am to consider and re- 
 member ; but especially am I to contemplate 
 what was far more overwhelming, the sor- 
 rows of his soul. The former he bore in 
 silence; but the latter drew from him the 
 complaint in the garden, and the bitter cry 
 on the cross. 
 
 But, how shall I form a conception of the 
 agonies of my Saviour's soul, while bearing 
 our sins! In Gethsemane, there was no 
 external cause of pain, no enemy seizing him, 
 no injury done to his body. Yet I see him 
 sore amazed and very heavy, prostrate on 
 the ground, and earnestly pouring out his 
 supplications to his Father, saying " If it be 
 
96 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 possible, let this cup pass from me ;" and 
 saying to his disciples, " My soul is exceed- 
 ingly sorrowful, even unto death : tarry ye 
 here, and watch with me." What produced 
 this mental agony, which was so great as to 
 force the blood through the pores of his skin, 
 falling on the ground ? Not the fear of the 
 Jews, not the terror of the Roman sword. 
 At these he did not tremble. He met them 
 with undisturbed self-possession. 
 
 What then, my soul, were the causes of 
 this mysterious agony? Ah ! it was a sense 
 of the infinite evil of sin, which he was to 
 bear — an apprehension of the wrath of God 
 which he was to feel in his soul — a sight of 
 the fearful curse of the law which w T as to be 
 poured out upon him. These, and not the 
 fear of what man could inflict on his body, 
 were the causes of his mysterious and over- 
 whelming mental agonies, in the garden of 
 Gethsemane. 
 
 This may help me to form some conception 
 of what my Saviour endured, during the three 
 hours of preternatural darkness that con- 
 cealed him from mortal view, while hanging 
 on the cross, and when God emphatically 
 made his soul an offering for sin, by hiding 
 
PRAYER. 97 
 
 his face from him, withdrawing from him a 
 comforting sense of his approbation and love, 
 and pouring out upon his soul unmingled 
 wrath. It was this that extorted from him 
 the doleful cry, "My God, my God, why 
 hast thou forsaken me?" 
 
 And now recollecting, that my blessed Re- 
 deemer, in making expiation for the sins of 
 the world, was enduring in a few hours, suffer- 
 ings which, measured by divine justice, were 
 to be a full equivalent for the everlasting tor- 
 ments of all who shall be saved, by believing 
 on him, I may form some feeble conception 
 of the immensity of his sufferings ; and see 
 that he endured what none but God could in- 
 flict, and none but God could sustain. 
 
 Having borne all these overwhelming 
 agonies, my Saviour said, " It is finished," 
 and yielded up his spirit into the hands of his 
 Father. 
 
 He died, was taken down from the cross, 
 was buried, and remained in the grave part 
 of three days. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 O my dear Redeemer, didst thou endure 
 all these great and overwhelming sufferings 
 9 
 
98 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 for me ! How wonderful thy love ! What 
 gratitude ! what returns of love are due to 
 thee ! How should I be constrained to live 
 for thee, who didst die, and revive, and rise 
 again that thou mightest be Lord both of the 
 dead and the living ! How joyfully should I 
 do any service appointed, and patiently bear 
 any suffering to which thou mayest call me ! 
 O for grace thus to act, and thus to suffer! 
 
 In the light of thy cross may I see the hor- 
 rible nature of sin, and hate it with a perfect 
 hatred. Give me to feel the virtue of thy 
 death, that I may die daily unto sin, and live 
 unto righteousness. Thou gavest thyself for 
 us, to redeem us from all iniquity, and purify 
 unto thyself a peculiar people, zealous of 
 good works. Oh! let thy benevolent and 
 holy design be accomplished in me. Let me 
 be redeemed from all iniquity; and, by thy 
 renewing grace, may I be so quickened as to 
 become zealous of good works. Crucify all 
 my sinful passions and evil propensities; and 
 animate and strengthen every grace and 
 virtue imparted to me by thy Holy Spirit, 
 Hear and grant, O my Saviour, these re- 
 quests, for thy name's sake. Amen. 
 
THE EVIL OF SIN. 99 
 
 MEDITATION XL 
 
 THE EVIL OF SIN. 
 
 Nowhere is the infinite evil of sin seen so 
 clearly and impressively, as in the light of the 
 Redeemer's cross. There its hateful nature 
 and ill-desert are displayed by the most con- 
 vincing evidence. 
 
 By reflecting on the infinite Majesty of the 
 Lawgiver, who is insulted by sin, and con- 
 sidering the excellence of the law, which it 
 violates, its evil clearly appears. The law is 
 good; it corresponds with the relations we 
 sustain; it was designed to promote our hap- 
 piness; and obedience to its requirements is 
 enforced by infinite authority, and by awful 
 sanctions : so that the violation of it involves 
 the most daring presumption and basest in- 
 gratitude, as well as the most foolish disre- 
 gard to our own happiness. 
 
 Its ruinous nature soon became apparent. 
 No sooner had our first parents eaten of the 
 forbidden fruit, than the degrading passion of 
 shame began to work in their bosoms. They 
 
100 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 saw their nakedness, and made aprons of fig 
 leaves sewed together, to hide it from their 
 eyes. The voice of God had before been 
 music to their ears, and they rejoiced to meet 
 Him ; but now, feeling the guilt of sin, they 
 trembled at the sound of that voice, and 
 vainly tried "to hide themselves from the 
 presence of the Lord God among the trees of 
 the garden." 
 
 Arraigned before the bar of their offended 
 Creator, sentence of death is pronounced on 
 the guilty pair. The sorrows of the woman 
 are multiplied; the ground is cursed; man 
 must eat its fruits in sorrow, and in the sweat 
 of his brow, till he return to his native dust. 
 They are expelled from the garden of Eden; 
 and man is doomed to till the ground, now 
 rendered sterile by the curse. Such were the 
 immediate consequences of sin ! 
 
 How soon the destructive nature of sin 
 appeared ! Cain, prompted by this malignant 
 evil, rose up against his righteous brother, 
 who loved him, and had done him no harm, 
 and slew him ; because God was pleased to 
 show him tokens of his favour, which were 
 withheld from Cain, on account of his diso- 
 bedience in not complying with the prescribed 
 
THE EVIL OF SIN. 101 
 
 worsihp. As men multiplied on the face of 
 the earth, wickedness increased, and the evil 
 nature of sin became more sadly apparent in 
 divisions, contentions, strife, war, and blood- 
 shed; so that God was provoked to express 
 his abhorrence of it, by sweeping away the 
 whole human race from the face of the earth, 
 by a universal deluge; sparing only one 
 family to reproduce the species, and repeople 
 the earth with inhabitants. 
 
 The great folly of sin may be seen in the 
 conduct of Noah's descendants, who, to pre- 
 vent their dispersion over the earth, resolved 
 to build a city and a tower whose top was to 
 reach unto heaven. How vain the design ! 
 God had purposed their dispersion; and, to 
 counteract their design, he confounded their 
 language, so that they only who spake the 
 same language could understand each other. 
 Thus were they compelled to desist from 
 their enterprise, and to separate into distinct 
 bodies, and dwell in different regions. 
 
 How degrading and polluting sin is seen 
 to be in the beastly and unnatural practices 
 of the people of Sodom; and God's abhor- 
 rence of it in the fire that was sent down from 
 heaven upon that guilty city, and its neigh- 
 9* 
 
102 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 bour city, Gomorrah, to consume them on 
 account of their great wickedness ! 
 
 The history of innumerable wars that have 
 occurred between different tribes and nations 
 of men; the desolation of fruitful fields, the 
 burning of towns and cities, the murdering of 
 their inhabitants ; prevailing famines and pes- 
 tilences; and the torrents of human blood 
 that have been shed; all proclaim the destruc- 
 tive nature of sin, and the wrath of God 
 against it. The vast variety of diseases, and 
 the torturing nature of some, to which hu- 
 manity is subject, attest too the evil of sin, 
 which has given them birth. 
 
 The reign of death, that king of terrors, 
 who has swept away from the earth all past 
 generations of men, is sweeping away this 
 generation, and will sweep away all succeed- 
 ing generations, till the end of the world, is a 
 standing evidence of the exceeding evil and 
 ill-desert of sin; for his sceptre was received 
 from sin, and his destructive empire founded 
 on man's apostasy from his God. 
 
 I stand at the mouth of the tomb. I think 
 of the innumerable millions of the human 
 race who lie down in the mansions of the 
 dead; all reduced to dust and ashes — to one 
 
THE EVIL OF SIN. 103 
 
 common ruin. I anticipate the day of judg- 
 ment. I see all who forgat God arraigned be- 
 fore his awful tribunal, trembling at his frowns 
 and the expected sentence of condemna- 
 tion. I hear the terrible words, " Depart from 
 me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared 
 for the devil and his angels." I see them 
 sinking down to the prison of hell, and plung- 
 ing into the lake that burneth with fire and 
 brimstone, to be tormented for ever and ever. 
 What a frightful evil is sin, which has caused 
 all this ruin and misery ! 
 
 But, when I turn to the cross, and behold 
 an incarnate God, bleeding, suffering, ago- 
 nizing, and dying for the sins of his rebellious 
 creatures, I gain a more impressive view of 
 the horrible evil of sin. Elsewhere I see the 
 creature suffering ; but here I see the Crea- 
 tor, in human nature, suffering. There God 
 pours out his wrath upon rebellious men, 
 upon his enemies; here he pours out his 
 wrath upon his innocent and well beloved 
 Son. What impenitent sinner, who looks at 
 this amazing spectacle, can hope to escape 
 merited punishment 1 How detestable is sin ! 
 How should it be shunned as the greatest of 
 all evils ! 
 
104 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 But, my soul, when I consider that my 
 Saviour suffered for me — that his sacred 
 head was crowned with thorns, his body 
 scourged — his hands and feet torn with rug- 
 ged nails— his side pierced with the soldier's 
 spear — and his holy soul consumed in the 
 fires of divine justice for my sins — how 
 should I hate these murderers of my Lord ! 
 how should my heart break and melt into 
 penitence and love ! 
 
 Let me keep near to the cross that I may 
 feel its purifying influence. There I find 
 that fountain opened for sin and all unclean- 
 ness. There may I wash my soul in the 
 Saviour's blood, to cleanse me both from the 
 guilt and pollution of sin. " He gave himself 
 for us, that he might redeem us from all 
 iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar 
 people, zealous of good works." Tit. ii. 14. 
 With the apostle I may say, " I am crucified 
 with Christ." Gal. ii. 20. United to him I 
 have an interest in his death and in all its 
 benefits. He died for me, that I might die 
 unto sin, and live unto God. Let me then 
 seek to feel both the moral and spiritual in- 
 fluence that issues from my Redeemer's cross. 
 From that sacred source may I derive the 
 
THE EVIL OF SIN. 105 
 
 strongest motives to hate sin, and seek holi- 
 ness. Did he suffer so much on account of 
 my sins ? Then must I hate them and crucify 
 them. Has he bought salvation for me? 
 Then what gratitude do I owe to him, and 
 how should it constrain me to live to him 
 who died for me 1 Did he love me, so as to 
 give himself to the death of the cross ? How 
 then should I love him, and give myself to 
 him ; by yielding my body a living sacrifice, 
 holy, and acceptable unto God, which is my 
 reasonable service ; and my soul, by being 
 transformed by the renewing of my mind, 
 that I may prove what is that good, and ac- 
 ceptable and perfect will of God! Rom. 
 xii. 1, 2. 
 
 And from the cross let me derive a spin* 
 tual influence to impart vitality, vigour and 
 efficiency to all my motives. The Holy Spirit 
 corned to man in consequences of the death of 
 Christ ; and to honour his death, when glori- 
 fied, he was shed down in so large a measure 
 on the day of Pentecost. Let me, then, seek 
 from my crucified Lord and Saviour the gift 
 of the Holy Spirit to carry on that gracious 
 work, which, I trust, he has begun in my 
 heart. Let me pray for him, as my teacher, 
 
106 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 my sanctifier, my comforter; and as the 
 Spirit of adoption, to hear witness with my 
 spirit, that I am a child of God, and to seal 
 me unto the day of redemption. Under his 
 blessed influence I shall grow in grace, in 
 piety, and in meetness for heaven. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Gracious God, grant thy blessing to this 
 meditation on the evil of sin. Fill my soul 
 with a growing hatred of it, and grant that I 
 may feel more and more the influence of the 
 Redeemer's cross, in crucifying my sins, and 
 delivering me from their power. Make me 
 holy, as thou art holy, that I may see thee in 
 thy kingdom above. I beseech thee to hear 
 me, for Christ's sake. Amen. 
 
THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST. 107 
 
 MEDITATION XII. 
 
 THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST. 
 
 The Resurrection of our Lord and Saviour 
 is an essential article of the Christian faith. 
 It was as necessary to our justification, as 
 his death was to atone for our sins. Speak- 
 ing of him the apostle says, " who was de- 
 livered for our offences, and was raised 
 again for our justification." Rom. iv. 25. 
 Had he not risen, it would have proved his 
 work to be incomplete ; and our salvation 
 would have failed. 
 
 The truth of his claims to be the Son of 
 God he himself placed upon his rising from 
 the dead. "What sign showest thou unto 
 us," said the Jews, " seeing that thou doest 
 these things ? Jesus answered and said unto 
 them, Destroy this temple, and in three days 
 I will raise it up. But he spake of the temple 
 of his body." John ii. 18 — 21. His resur- 
 rection then was conclusive proof that he 
 was, what he claimed to be, the Son of God, 
 the promised Messiah, and the Saviour of 
 the world. Had he been an impostor he 
 
108 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 certainly could not have raised himself from 
 the dead ; nor would God have raised him to 
 life again, and lent the seal of heaven to con- 
 firm an imposition on the world. By his 
 resurrection from the dead he was declared 
 to be the Son of God with power. Rom. i. 4. 
 The importance of this article of our faith, 
 the apostle Paul has clearly set forth. " Now 
 if Christ be preached that he rose from the 
 dead, how say some among you that there is 
 no resurrection from the dead 1 But if there 
 be no resurrection of the dead, then is not 
 Christ risen : and if Christ be not risen, then 
 is our preaching vain, and your faith is also 
 vain. Yea, and we are found false witnesses 
 of God ; because we have testified of God that 
 he raised up Christ, whom he raised not up, 
 if so be that the dead rise not. For if the 
 dead rise not, then is not Christ raised : and 
 if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain ; ye 
 are yet in your sins. Then they also which 
 are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If 
 in this life only we have hope in Christ, we 
 are of all men most miserable. But now is 
 Christ risen from the dead, and become the 
 first fruits of them that slept. For since by 
 man came death, by man came also the 
 
THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST. 109 
 
 resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam 
 ail die, even so in Christ shall all be made 
 alive. But every man in his own order: 
 Christ the first fruits ; afterward they that are 
 Christ's at his coming." 1 Cor. xv. 12 — 23. 
 
 How thankful should we be, that such 
 abundant evidence is afforded to establish 
 our faith in this fundamental article of our 
 holy religion ! This great fact, the resurrec- 
 tion of Jesus Christ, was every where pro- 
 claimed by the apostles. It was so inter- 
 woven with the gospel, and lay so at the 
 foundation of our hopes, that it was impossi- 
 ble to preach the gospel, without affirming 
 the Saviour's resurrection from the dead. 
 And had we no other evidence of the fact, 
 than the uniform and constant testimony of 
 twelve apostles, it would be sufficient to 
 establish our faith in this great and funda- 
 mental truth ; for they were commissioned 
 by God to preach, and they proved their 
 commission, by numerous and indubitable 
 miracles, which they wrought in the name of 
 Jesus Christ. 
 
 But, in addition to their testimony, we are 
 told how they became convinced that their 
 Lord and Master was alive from the dead. 
 
110 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 The evidence of the fact presented to them 
 was perfect and infallible. The Redeemer 
 appeared to them, after his resurrection, at 
 sundry times, and in different ways ; so that 
 they had afforded to them every method for 
 identifying his risen body with the body in 
 which he had lived, and had been crucified, 
 while on the earth. They saw him ; they 
 heard him speak ; they conversed with him ; 
 they ate with him; they saw the prints of 
 the nails in his hands and feet, and beheld in 
 his side where he had been pierced with the 
 soldier's spear. The evidence presented was 
 irresistible. They all became convinced that 
 their Lord and Master was indeed risen from 
 the dead. Every doubt was expelled from 
 their minds. And of the sincerity of their 
 conviction and belief of this great fact, they 
 gave to the world indubitable evidence, by 
 testifying to the fact in the face of all oppo- 
 sition, reproach, threatenings, persecution, 
 imprisonment, and sufferings; and, finally, by 
 sealing their testimony with their blood. 
 
 What testimony can equal this? The wit- 
 nesses were competent, credible, and numer- 
 ous. The matter of their testimony was the 
 truth of a fact, presented to their senses; 
 
THE EVIL OF SIN. Ill 
 
 which they had repeated opportunities for 
 examining in the most deliberate manner. 
 They could not be deceived or mistaken in 
 their own belief; and they have given the 
 most ample proof that, in delivering their 
 testimony to the world, they aimed at the 
 glory of God, and the salvation of men. 
 
 What an evidence of his resurrection was 
 presented by our Lord on the day of Pente- 
 cost! Behold, the Spirit descends from 
 heaven, and fiery cloven tongues are seen 
 upon the heads of his disciples. They are 
 filled with the Holy Ghost, and begin to 
 speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gives 
 them utterance. What a sudden change is 
 wrought in the apostles ! With what bold- 
 ness are they inspired ! They had concealed 
 themselves before, but now they speak pub- 
 licly with the utmost boldness; testifying the 
 resurrection of Jesus Christ, and charging 
 upon the Jews the crime of having crucified 
 and slain him ! How powerful their preach- 
 ing! Three thousand are converted, and 
 added by baptism to the church, on that 
 memorable day! 
 
 And what a conclusive proof of this great 
 fact is seen in the conversion of Saul of Tar- 
 
112 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 sus ! He was a bitter persecutor of the 
 church, and a most determined enemy of 
 Jesus Christ. Not satisfied with the evils he 
 had brought on the saints at Jerusalem, he 
 determines to extend his ravages to strange 
 cities. Commissioned by the high-priest, he 
 goes to Damascus to persecute them there; 
 and while on the road, "breathing outthreat- 
 enings and slaughter against the disciples of 
 the Lord," he is prostrated to the ground, by 
 a light from heaven thrown around him, 
 brighter than the noon-day sun. Such over- 
 powering evidence is impressed on his mind, 
 that he becomes convinced at once that he 
 who speaks to him from heaven, is Jesus 
 Christ, whom he was persecuting. He is in 
 a few days converted and baptized. He 
 begins to preach Jesus Christ as the Saviour 
 of the world, and the Lord of glory. And 
 ever after he labours in his service with 
 ardent love, untiring zeal, and unshaken con- 
 stancy; and then offers himself as a sacrifice 
 to his Lord, who loved him, and gave himself 
 for him. 
 
 With what confidence may I rest in the 
 assured faith, that my Lord and Redeemer, 
 who was crucified for my sins, arose from 
 
PRAYER. 
 
 113 
 
 the dead on the third day; seeing the 
 seal of heaven thus set to the perfection of 
 his great work, as Mediator between God 
 and man! If I am crucified with him, let 
 me rise with him ; let me die to sin, as he 
 died for sin; and rise to newness of life, as he 
 arose from death to life. Let me live under 
 the influence both of his death and of his life. 
 And as he arose and triumphed over death, 
 as the Head of his church, and as the first 
 fruits of his people, let me rejoice in the 
 pledge thus given, that my body and the 
 bodies of all his people shall be raised in 
 glory hereafter, fashioned like to his most 
 glorious body. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 My blessed Redeemer, I rejoice that, on 
 the third day after thy crucifixion, thou didst 
 arise from the dead. I bless thee for appear- 
 ing so frequently to thy disciples, that they 
 might know thee to be the same person, with 
 whom they had lived and conversed, and 
 from whom they had received so many acts 
 of kindness; and thus be assured, by infallible 
 proofs, that thou wast alive from the dead. I 
 10* 
 
114 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 bless thee for the wonders of the day of Pen- 
 tecost, by which thine apostles were pre- 
 pared to bear testimony to thy glorious resur- 
 rection from the dead, both by their preaching, 
 and by the innumerable miracles which they 
 wrought in thy name. I praise thee, that, by 
 establishing and preserving thy church on 
 the earth, in the midst of the fires of persecu- 
 tion and the rage of devils, thou hast, in 
 every age, given proof of thy resurrection 
 and glorious exaltation to God's right hand. 
 
 My Lord and my God, I believe that thou 
 didst arise from the dead, and art alive for 
 evermore. By this wonderful event, by 
 taking up thy life which thou wast pleased to 
 lay down, thou hast firmly established thy 
 claims to Messiahship, and proved thyself to 
 be the Son of God. And God, by raising 
 thee from the dead, has published to the world 
 that thou hast accomplished the mighty work 
 of redemption, and that he is well pleased 
 with it. 
 
 And hast thou not, by the work of grace 
 wrought in my heart, given me personal 
 proofs of thy resurrection from the dead ? I 
 live because thou livest. Thou art the living 
 vine, from which I derive all my vitality and 
 
ASCENSION OF CHRIST. 115 
 
 fruitfulness. Thou livest in me; and "the 
 life that I live, I live by the faith of the Son 
 of God, who loved me and gave himself for 
 me." 
 
 I rejoice that thou didst arise as the first 
 fruits of them that sleep, and that hereafter 
 thou wilt raise from the dead my dead body, 
 and the dead bodies of all thy saints; and 
 that thou wilt change our vile bodies, and 
 fashion them like to thy most glorious body, 
 and that we shall live and reign with thee 
 for ever in glory. 
 
 May I ever feel the power of thy resurrec- 
 tion, and live by faith on this glorious truth 
 of our divine religion. Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION XIII. 
 
 Christ's ascension into heaven, and interces- 
 sion AT GOD'S RIGHT HAND. 
 
 Forty days elapsed after his resurrection, 
 before our Redeemer ascended to heaven. 
 During that time he frequently appeared to 
 his disciples to convince them that he was 
 
116 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 indeed alive again, conversing with them, 
 and instructing them in things pertaining to 
 the kingdom he was about to set up in the 
 world. 
 
 On the fortieth day, the Redeemer, being 
 with his disciples at Jerusalem, commanded 
 them to remain there, till they received the 
 fulfilment of his promise to give them the 
 Holy Ghost, to qualify them for their apos- 
 tolical ministry. Then leading them out to 
 mount Olivet, "while they beheld, he was 
 taken up." As they gazed at their ascend- 
 ing Lord, with wonder and delight, a cloud 
 intervening concealed him from their view ; 
 and two angels appeared, who assured them, 
 that Jesus their Lord, who had left them by 
 ascending to heaven, would hereafter be seen 
 again coming from heaven to judge the 
 world, and complete the salvation of his 
 church. The apostles returned to Jerusalem; 
 and waited there, in obedience to their Mas- 
 ter's direction, for the promised gift of the 
 Spirit. 
 
 What followed after the cloud had inter- 
 cepted the apostles' view of their ascending 
 Lord, we are not told. With what speed he 
 moved — by what worlds he passed in going 
 
ASCENSION OF CHRIST. 117 
 
 to the highest heavens, we are wholly ig- 
 norant. But, from the language of prophe- 
 cy — Psal. lxviii. 17, 18 — we may conclude, 
 that angels, who have always taken so deep 
 an interest in the work of redemption, and 
 who were commanded to worship the Son of 
 God, when he was brought into the world, 
 (Heb. i. 6,) assembled in great multitudes to 
 form a splendid retinue, and grace the tri- 
 umphant course of the great Conqueror of 
 sin and the world, of death and hell; who 
 was now displaying to worlds his triumph, 
 especially over those principalities and powers, 
 who were so eager for his death. Col. ii. 15. 
 And when the Redeemer, as a conqueror, 
 who had achieved such signal victories, 
 brought such glory to God, and effected sal- 
 vation for vast numbers of fallen and intelli- 
 gent creatures, returning to heaven, to re- 
 ceive his promised reward, was approaching 
 the gates of the highest heavens; what a 
 movement must have occurred among all 
 orders of celestial- beings! and with what 
 eager delight did they hasten to welcome him 
 to his native home, and pay him the greatest 
 possible honours! See Psal. xxiv. 7-10. 
 "Worship him, all ye gods." Psal. xcvii. 7. 
 
118 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 " And let all the angels of God worship him." 
 Heb. i. 6. 
 
 Having entered into heaven, the Redeemer 
 took his seat at the right hand of God. This 
 we are taught to believe. " So then, after 
 the Lord had spoken unto them, he was re- 
 ceived up into heaven, and sat on the right 
 hand of God." Mark xvi. 19. "Who being 
 the brightness of his glory, and the express 
 image of his person, and upholding all things 
 by the word of his power, when he had by 
 himself purged our sins, sat down on the 
 right hand of the Majesty on high." Heb. 
 i. 3. 
 
 The import of this phrase may be learned 
 from the following passages of holy Scripture, 
 which speak of the exaltation of Jesus Christ. 
 Paul says, (Ephes. i. 20-23,) "which he 
 wrought in Christ, when he raised him from 
 the dead, and set him at his own right hand 
 in the heavenly places, far above all princi- 
 pality, and power, and might, and dominion, 
 and every name that is named, not only in 
 this world, but also in that which is to come : 
 and hath put all things under his feet, and 
 gave him to be head over all things to the 
 church; which is his body, the fulness of him 
 
ASCENSION OF CHRIST. 119 
 
 that filleth all in all." And again he says, 
 (Phil. ii. 7-11,) "Wherefore God also hath 
 highly exalted him, and given him a name 
 which is above every name: that at the name 
 of Jesus every knee should bow, of things 
 in heaven, and things in earth, and things 
 under the earth; and that every tongue should 
 confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory 
 of God the Father." 
 
 The Redeemer, then, is exalted to the 
 highest honour and glory, invested with un- 
 limited dominion over all worlds, and all 
 their inhabitants* Every thing, throughout 
 the universe of God, is subjected to his 
 authority and control; and all intelligent 
 creatures of every order are required to wor- 
 ship and obey him. He rules over all ; and 
 he will judge all, in the last day; distributing 
 rewards to the righteous, and punishments to 
 the wicked. All this glory and dominion 
 have been conferred upon him, let it be re- 
 membered, not as God ; for as such he could 
 receive nothing, because he, by his nature, 
 of necessity possessed all things by right of 
 creation: but as man and mediator ; in which 
 respect, as he was humbled, so he could be 
 exalted; and being a divine person, he was 
 
120 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 capable of holding the reins of universal do- 
 minion, and conducting the government of 
 the universe with consummate skill and infi- 
 nite wisdom. 
 
 The ascension and exaltation of Jesus 
 Christ our Redeemer, is matter of praise and 
 joy for different reasons. He has received 
 the reward that was promised him when he 
 undertook the mighty work he so nobly 
 accomplished. "For the joy that was set 
 before him, (the joy of glorifying God in the 
 salvation of a lost world,) he endured the 
 cross, despising the shame, and is set down 
 on the right hand of the throne of God." 
 Heb. xii. 2. Who that loves the Saviour 
 will not rejoice, that he has received his pro- 
 mised reward, and that this world and all 
 other worlds are governed by him, who loved 
 sinners and gave himself for them 1 " The 
 Lord," the Saviour, "reigneth: let the earth 
 rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad 
 thereof." Psal. xcvii. 1. 
 
 Another reason for joy, thanksgiving, and 
 praise, is this. The Redeemer has entered 
 heaven as our forerunner; Heb. vi. 19, 20; 
 and gone to prepare for his people mansions 
 in his Father's house ; to which, in due time. 
 
ASCENSION OF CHRIST. 121 
 
 he will receive them, that where he is, there 
 they may be also. John xiv. 1-3. Being 
 united to Christ by faith, believers have vir- 
 tually risen and ascended with him, and now 
 sit with him in heavenly places. Ephes. ii. 
 6, 7. And does not this demand our praise 
 and thanksgiving to God 1 and should we not 
 rejoice that our exalted Redeemer holds in 
 his hands our future and eternal inheritance, 
 which he purchased with his precious blood? 
 
 Behold, my soul, on the throne of the uni- 
 verse, thy Saviour, thy Forerunner, thy elder 
 Brother, and thy dearest Friend. Let this 
 furnish thee with a song of thanksgiving, joy, 
 and praise, in the house of thy pilgrimage. 
 "Seek those things that are above, where 
 Christ sitteth at the right hand of God. Set 
 thy affections on things above, not on things 
 on the earth." Thy "life," remember, "is 
 hid with Christ in God." Col. iii. 1-3. Abide, 
 therefore, in him, and he in thee; and thus 
 thou wilt bring forth much fruit to the glory 
 of God. John xv. 5. 
 
 The church is safe in the hands of her ex- 
 alted Head. She is indeed environed with 
 numerous and powerful enemies. But her 
 glorious Redeemer, who loves her, is mighty 
 11 
 
122 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 to save. He triumphed over them on his 
 cross; for by dying he destroyed death and 
 him that had the power of death, that is, the 
 devil. By his death he subverted the empire 
 of Satan, and laid the foundation of his own 
 kingdom that will last for ever. His church 
 has been protected and delivered by him in 
 past ages; and he will protect and deliver 
 her in all time to come. Her enemies con- 
 quered are held by him in chains as captives. 
 No assault can be made by them without his 
 knowledge and permission; and he will as- 
 suredly watch all their designs, and overrule 
 them for the benefit of his people, and finally 
 secure to them a complete victory over them, 
 and cause them to share in his triumph over 
 all his and their enemies. 
 
 Rejoice, my soul, that thou art in the hands 
 of One who is mighty to save, and who has 
 said, " My sheep hear my voice, and I know 
 them, and they follow me : and I give unto 
 them eternal life ; and they shall never perish, 
 neither shall any pluck them out of my hand. 
 My Father, which gave them me, is greater 
 than all; and no man (no one) is able to 
 pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and 
 my Father are one." John x. 27-30. 
 
PRAYER. 123 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Thou, O my Redeemer, hast "ascended up 
 on high," thou hast "led captivity captive;" 
 thou art seated on the right hand of God ; 
 thou art invested with universal dominion. 
 I believe the truth, and rejoice in it. I re- 
 joice that thou hast received the promised 
 reward, and that thou hast gone into heaven 
 as the forerunner of thy people to prepare 
 mansions of rest for them. Thou hast re- 
 ceived gifts for men, and thou art bestowing 
 them on thy church. She is safe in thy 
 hand, and no weapon formed against her 
 shall prosper. 
 
 And being united to thee by faith, do I not 
 participate with thee in thy ascension and ex- 
 altation? Do I not sit with thee in heavenly 
 places'? What an influence, then, should this 
 blessed truth have upon me ! How should I 
 seek the things that are above, where thou 
 sittest at the right hand of God! O for a 
 heavenly mind ! O for a heart to rise above 
 the world, and dwell in heavenly places! 
 Draw me, O my exalted Redeemer, and help 
 me to live in a manner correspondent to my 
 
124 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 glorious destiny. Prepare me to sit with thee, 
 on thy throne, and to enjoy and praise thee 
 for ever and ever. Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION XIV. 
 
 THE INTERCESSION OF CHRIST. 
 
 An eminent type of the intercession of our 
 great High-priest, was exhibited to the Jew- 
 ish church on the annual day of atonement. 
 On that day their high-priest, having offered 
 the prescribed sacrifice, first, for himself, and 
 then for the sins of the people, went into the 
 most holy place, to burn incense, and make 
 intercession for the people. So our great 
 High-priest, having offered his prescribed 
 sacrifice, went into heaven, typified by the 
 most holy place in the temple, and made in- 
 tercession for his church. 
 
 But let me mark the difference between the 
 type and the antitype. The Jewish high- 
 priest offered sacrifice for his own sins ; but 
 our High-priest, being perfectly free from all 
 personal sins, offered no sacrifice for himself. 
 
THE INTERCESSION OF CHRIST. 125 
 
 The former offered animal sacrifices ; but the 
 latter offered up himself as a sacrifice for his 
 people. The sacrifices which the former 
 offered could not take away sin; but the 
 great sacrifice which the latter offered effec- 
 tually cleanseth from all sin. Heb. ix. 12- 
 14. The former had to offer annually his 
 appointed sacrifices; Heb. ix. 25; but the 
 latter completed his work, by offering his 
 one great sacrifice. Heb. ix. 25-28. The 
 former had to yield his office to his succes- 
 sor; Heb. vii. 28; but the latter, having an 
 unchangeable priesthood, ever liveth to make 
 intercession for his church. Heb. vii. 24, 25. 
 The Redeemer's sacrifice was, in its intrin- 
 sic value, sufficient for the salvation of all 
 men; and his ministers are authorized to 
 preach the gospel to all men, and to say to 
 every one who hears them, " Believe on the 
 Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." 
 But he intercedes in heaven only for his 
 chosen people. So he tells us in that solemn 
 intercessory prayer, which he offered to his 
 Father, just before his crucifixion. " I pray 
 for them: I pray not for the world, but for 
 them which thou hast given me; for they are 
 thine. And all mine are thine, and thine are 
 
126 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 mine ; and I am glorified in them. Neither 
 pray I for these alone, but for them also 
 which shall believe on me through their 
 word." John xvii. 9, 10, 20. 
 
 Every believer may rest assured, that his 
 name is written on the heart of our great 
 High-priest, and that he intercedes for him 
 before the throne. 
 
 How invaluable the blessings for which 
 our glorious Intercessor prays ! He does 
 not ask that we should be taken out of the 
 world, but that we should be kept from the 
 evil. He is willing that we should be left in 
 the world, evil and ensnaring as it is, to ac- 
 complish our assigned work, in the allotted 
 time; but he prays to his Father, that we 
 may be kept from the Evil One, and not per- 
 mitted to be overcome by his subtle and 
 wicked devices, and may be sanctified more 
 and more, by the purifying influence of the 
 word of God. 
 
 Another blessing for which he prays, is one 
 that claims the serious consideration of all 
 professing Christians. It is their unity: — 
 "That they may be one, even as we are one; 
 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be 
 made perfect in one; that the world may 
 
THE INTERCESSION OF CHRIST. 127 
 
 know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved 
 them, as thou hast loved me." John xvii. 22, 
 23. Does our blessed Redeemer pray to his 
 Father that his disciples may love one 
 another, and exhibit such unity, as will con- 
 vince the world, that they are animated by 
 principles which the world does not possess, 
 and bring honour to their heavenly source? 
 and shall we not endeavour to cultivate the 
 kindest feelings of brotherly love; avoiding 
 all strife and contentions, that would mar 
 and obscure our unity of spirit and heart ? 
 
 Nor is this all : our blessed Lord prays for 
 the consummation of the happiness of his dis- 
 ciples in the kingdom of his glory. He leaves 
 them, for an appointed time, in the world, to 
 endure afflictions and trials, and to serve God 
 in their day and generation; but he designs 
 them for a higher and a heavenly state of ex- 
 istence, near to himself, the Lord of glory. 
 Of this we are assured in his solemn interces- 
 sory prayer: "Father, I will that they also, 
 whom thou hast given me, be with me where 
 I am ; that they may behold my glory, which 
 thou hast given me; for thou lovedst me be* 
 fore the foundation of the world." John 
 xvii. 24. 
 
128 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 How prevailing the intercession of our 
 great High-priest! He pleads for us, not 
 like one supplicating for blessings, which he 
 knows he does not deserve; but, as a Son 
 with his Father, who knows he prays for 
 promised blessings, which were purchased 
 with his blood. His intercession, founded on 
 his all-meritorious sacrifice, must be ever- 
 prevailing. At the grave of Lazarus, he 
 said, "Father, I thank thee, that thou hast 
 heard me. And I knew that thou hearest 
 me always : but because of the people that 
 stand by I said it, that they may believe that 
 thou hast sent me." John xi. 41, 42. Not 
 one for whom he intercedes shall fail of sal- 
 vation ; not one petition he presents can fail 
 to be heard and granted. 
 
 Is a doubt excited in the mind, by the 
 want of unity in the church ? Will any one 
 inquire, how the discordant state of Christen- 
 dom accords with the prayer of our Saviour 
 for the unity of his disciples? They are 
 united in the strictest manner; living in union 
 to one Lord — under the same government — 
 inhabited by one Spirit — rejoicing in the 
 same blessed hope — children of the same 
 heavenly family — meeting daily at the same 
 
THE INTERCESSION OF CHRIST. 129 
 
 throne of grace — heirs of the same kingdom, 
 and animated by the same love for Christ, 
 for his cause, and people. In primitive times 
 their love for each other was so conspicuous, 
 as to attract and command the admiration of 
 the heathen; and hereafter Christian love 
 will so burn as to consume all obstructions 
 to its heavenly course, and make the church 
 visibly, as she always has been spiritually, 
 one blessed society. The apparent want of 
 union arises from the great number of mere 
 professors, who have attached themselves to 
 the visible church, and the corrupting and 
 disorganizing influence of civil governments 
 in her affairs. 
 
 Welcome that happy period, when all these 
 obstructions to the visible unity of the church 
 shall be removed; when political men shall 
 keep within their appropriate sphere, and 
 leave her government to those to whose 
 hands her glorious Head has committed it : 
 and when all her members shall be what they 
 profess to be ! Then shall the world be in- 
 deed convinced of the divine mission of Jesus 
 Christ; and the church on earth be a beauti- 
 ful and glorious type of the church in heaven ; 
 where the prevailing influence of our great 
 
130 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 Intercessor will be seen, in all its glorious 
 power, without an intervening cloud to ob- 
 scure the most perfect unity of all his re- 
 deemed people. Love to Christ and love to 
 one another, will bind them together in the 
 closest and most intimate unity, free from 
 every discordant feeling, for ever, to the 
 glory of God and of the Lamb. O ! blessed 
 consummation of grace, and love, and glory, 
 come quickly, and let the Redeemer see of 
 the travail of his soul, and be satisfied ! 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Most High and Holy God, by the interces- 
 sion of our great High-priest, I am reminded 
 of my fallen and sinful condition. Man, 
 while innocent and holy, stood in no need of 
 a mediator. He had immediate access, like 
 the holy angels, to thy throne, and could offer 
 up his prayers, thanksgivings, and praises 
 acceptably to his Creator and Benefactor. 
 But this great privilege he has forfeited by 
 sin. Guilty and depraved, it does not be- 
 come infinite purity to allow him to approach 
 for worship, but through a Mediator. Bless- 
 ed be thy great name, we have a glorious 
 
PRAYER. 131 
 
 Mediator, who has opened up for us a new 
 and living way of access to the mercy-seat, 
 through the rent veil, that is, his flesh. In 
 infinite mercy thine own Son has been ap- 
 pointed to this high office; who, having 
 offered up himself as a sacrifice for sin, has 
 gone as our High-priest into heaven, the 
 most holy place, to intercede for his people. 
 And blessed be thy name, we have now the 
 privilege of drawing nigh by him into thy 
 presence, with boldness, and of asking of thee, 
 with believing confidence, every needed 
 blessing. 
 
 Gracious God, grant me faith in this great 
 High-priest and Intercessor. O! may my 
 worthless name be graven on his heart, and 
 I be an object of his prevailing intercession. 
 Let all the blessings for which he prays be 
 bestowed on me. May I be preserved from 
 the evil one, kept, and guarded and preserved 
 by thy power and grace, while I remain in 
 this world ! Sanctify me by thy truth ; and 
 grant, I beseech thee, that I may be enabled 
 to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of 
 peace. May I cherish and cultivate the 
 kindest feelings of brotherly love towards my 
 fellow disciples, and, at last, be taken to 
 
132 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 Christ, to dwell with him, and behold his 
 glory. Hear my prayer, and grant all these 
 blessings, I beseech thee, O Lord, my God, 
 for the sake of my great High-priest and Ad- 
 vocate, Jesus Christ. Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION XV. 
 
 CHRIST COMING TO JUDGMENT. 
 
 Of this sublime event we are reminded by 
 the words of our Lord in his precious institu- 
 tion — " for as often as ye eat this bread, and 
 drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death 
 till he come." 
 
 Like the passover, the Lord's supper has a 
 double aspect. As the former looked back 
 to the deliverance of Israel from Egyptian 
 bondage, and forward to that greater deliver- 
 ance of the true Israel from bondage to sin, 
 the world and Satan, which it typified; so 
 the Lord's supper looks back to the accom- 
 plishment of our redemption by his great 
 sacrifice, and forward to his second coming 
 to complete our salvation. 
 
CHRIST COMING TO JUDGMENT. 133 
 
 That God will, at some future day, judge 
 the world, human reason can infer from the 
 disorder prevailing in the present state of 
 things. It cannot be that under the govern- 
 ment of righteousness, the wicked should 
 oppress the good, without being called to an 
 account for their evil deeds. Vice may tri- 
 umph for a time over virtue; but its triumph 
 will be short. The honour of God's right- 
 eousness requires that the prevalent disorder 
 in human affairs, should be corrected, and 
 that the world should learn that he will 
 appear as the friend of righteousness, and as 
 the enemy of unrighteousness. 
 
 But we are not left to our reason to es- 
 tablish this great truth, so important to be 
 known. In every age, God has, by his in- 
 spired prophets, assured mankind, that he will 
 summon them before his awful and righteous 
 tribunal, to render up to him an account of 
 their conduct in the present state, and 
 to receive their rewards and punishments. 
 "Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied 
 of these things, saying, Behold, the Lord 
 cometh with ten thousand of his saints, to 
 execute judgment upon all, and to convince 
 all that are ungodly among them of all their 
 12 
 
134 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 ungodly deeds, which they have ungodly 
 committed, and of all their hard speeches 
 which ungodly sinners have spoken against 
 him." Jude 14, 15. David proclaims this 
 great truth : " Our God shall come, and shall 
 not keep silence: a fire goeth before him, and 
 it shall be very tempestuous round about 
 him. He shall call to the heavens from 
 above, and to the earth that he may judge his 
 people. Gather my saints together unto me ; 
 those that have made a covenant with me by 
 sacrifice. And the heavens shall declare his 
 righteousness; for God is judge himself." 
 Psal. 1. 3-6. Paul reasoned of " righteous- 
 ness, temperance, and judgment to come, 
 and Felix trembled." Acts xxiv. 25. And 
 in his epistle to the Hebrews, (Heb. ix. 27,) 
 he affirms, " It is appointed unto men once to 
 die, but after this the judgment." John says, 
 " I saw a great white throne, and him that 
 sat on it, from whose face the earth and the 
 heaven fled away: and there was found no 
 place for them. And I saw the dead, small 
 and great, stand before God ; and the books 
 were opened: and another book was opened, 
 which is the book of life : and the dead were 
 judged out of those things which were written 
 
CHRIST COMING TO JUDGMENT. 135 
 
 in the books, according to their works. And 
 the sea gave up the dead which were in it; 
 and death and hell delivered up the dead 
 which were in them: and they were judged 
 every man, according to their works." Rev. 
 xx. 11-13. 
 
 The day of judgment is fixed; "but of that 
 day and that hour knoweth no man, no not 
 the angels which are in heaven, but my 
 Father only." Matt. xxiv. 36. Hence it is 
 written, " The day of the Lord so cometh as 
 a thief in the night." 2 Pet. iii. 10. 
 
 Awful day! "But the heavens and the 
 earth, which are now, by the same word, are 
 kept in store, reserved unto fire against the 
 day of judgment and perdition of ungodly 
 men; — in the which the heavens shall pass 
 away with a great noise, and the elements 
 shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also 
 and the works that are therein shall be burned 
 up." 2 Pet. iii. 7, 10. 
 
 But let me rejoice, the Judge, before whose 
 bar I shall be arraigned, and from whose 
 lips I shall hear the sentence that will deter- 
 mine my everlasting condition, is the Lord 
 Jesus. So he assures me. " The Father 
 judgeth no man, but hath committed all judg- 
 
136 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 ment unto the Son, that all men should honour 
 the Son, even as they honour the Father. 
 He that honoureth not the Son, honoureth 
 not the Father which hath sent him. Verily, 
 verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my 
 word, and believeth on him that sent me, 
 hath everlasting life, and shall not come into 
 condemnation ; but is passed from death unto 
 Kfe. Verily, verily, I say unto you, the 
 hour is coming, and now is, when the dead 
 shall hear the voice of the Son of God : and 
 they that hear shall live. For as the Father 
 hath life in himself, so hath he given to the 
 Son to have life in himself; and hath given 
 him authority to execute judgment also, be- 
 cause he is the Son of man. Marvel not at 
 this : for the hour is coming, in the which all 
 that are in the graves shall hear his voice, 
 and shall come forth: they that have done 
 good unto the resurrection of life; and they 
 that have done evil, unto the resurrection of 
 damnation." John v. 22-29. 
 
 How exalted and glorious will my Saviour 
 then appear to an assembled universe ! " 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 
 
CHRIST COMING TO JUDGMENT. 137 
 
 him shall be gathered all nations : and he shall 
 separate them one from another, as a shep- 
 herd 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 his right hand, Come, ye 
 blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom 
 prepared for you from the foundation of the 
 world; for I was an hungered, and ye gave 
 me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me 
 drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in; 
 naked, and ye clothed me; I was sick, and 
 ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came 
 unto me." Oh! the infinite condescension 
 and mercy of the Redeemer, thus to notice 
 and reward the good deeds done by his 
 disciples to their fellow disciples, as if done 
 to himself! "And then shall he say unto 
 them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye 
 cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the 
 devil and his angels: for I was an hungered, 
 and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, 
 and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, 
 and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed 
 me not: sick and in prison, and ye visited me 
 not." Matt. xxv. 31-43. 
 How terrible will be that day of glory to 
 12* 
 
138 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 his enemies; "when the Lord Jesus shall 
 be revealed from heaven, with his mighty 
 angels, in flaming fire, taking vengeance on 
 them that know not God, and obey not the 
 gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: w r ho shall 
 be punished with everlasting destruction from 
 the presence of the Lord and from the glory 
 of his power !" 2 Thess. i. 7-9. But how 
 joyful will it be to his friends, "when he shall 
 come to be glorified in his saints, and ad- 
 mired in all them that believe!" (Verse 10.) 
 "For the Lord himself shall descend from 
 heaven with a shout, with the voice of the 
 archangel, and with the trump of God : and 
 the dead in Christ shall rise first." 1 Thess. 
 iv. 16. "Behold, I show you a mystery. 
 We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be 
 changed. In a moment, in the twinkling of 
 an eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet 
 shall sound, and the dead shall be raised in- 
 corruptible, and we shall be changed. For 
 this corruptible must put on incorruption, and 
 this mortal must put on immortality. So 
 then when this corruptible shall have put on 
 incorruption, and this mortal shall have put 
 on immortality, then shall be brought to pass 
 the saying that is written, Death is swallowed 
 
PRAYER. 139 
 
 up in victory. death, where is thy sting ? 
 
 grave, where is thy victory? The sting 
 of death is sin ; and the strength of sin is the 
 law. But thanks be to God, which giveth 
 us the victory through our Lord Jesus 
 Christ." 1 Cor. xv. 51-57. " Then cometh 
 the end, when he shall have delivered up the 
 kingdom to God, even the Father; when he 
 shall have put down all rule, and all authori- 
 ty and power. For he must reign, till he 
 hath put all enemies under his feet. The last 
 enemy that shall be destroyed is death." 
 
 1 Cor. xv. 24-27. 
 
 Rejoice, my soul, in view of that glorious 
 day, when thy salvation will be consum- 
 mated! Never lose sight of it; but steadily 
 look for the coming of thy Lord, that thou 
 mayest receive from him a crown of right- 
 eousness. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Almighty God, Sovereign of the universe, 
 thou reignest over this world, with infinite 
 wisdom and justice. Darkness, disorder, and 
 confusion surrround me; but I am sustained 
 by thy word. Light will be brought out of 
 
140 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 this darkness, and order out of this confusion. 
 Thou hast appointed a day in which thou 
 wilt judge the world in righteousness, by thy 
 Son Jesus Christ, whom thou hast appointed 
 universal Judge; of which thou hast given 
 assurance unto all men, by his resurrection 
 from the dead. I believe and rejoice in the 
 truth. I rejoice that my Redeemer is thus 
 exalted, and that he will arraign both his 
 friends and his enemies before his judgment- 
 seat, from which he will pronounce the sen- 
 tence of life on the one, and the sentence of 
 death on the other. I rejoice in the belief of 
 thy word ; and pray that my faith in it may 
 become stronger and stronger. Afford me 
 grace, I beseech thee, to live daily under the 
 influence of this great and interesting truth. 
 May I constantly act in reference to the 
 coming judgment. Grant that the future ap- 
 pearing of the Lord may be the joy of my 
 heart ; and that when I shall see him in that 
 day, I may triumph in his grace, and receive 
 from his hands a crown of life. All this, I 
 ask in his name. Amen. 
 
LOVE OF CHRIST. 141 
 
 MEDITATION XVI. 
 
 THE LOVE OF CHRIST. 
 
 The love of Christ, how peerless and won- 
 derful ! How it beams in amazing splendour 
 from his cross, and sheds a glorious light on 
 all that preceded, and on all that followed it ! 
 Love was the spring of all that he did and 
 suffered for us ! 
 
 Did he undertake the redemption of our 
 fallen race? Love prompted the infinite 
 condescension. Did he empty himself of his 
 glory, take the form of a servant, and appear 
 in the fashion and likeness of a man I Love 
 disposed him to submit to the profound 
 humiliation. Why did he subject himself to 
 the law, and obey all its requisitions ? Why 
 did he live in obscurity and poverty? Why 
 did he encounter opposition, slander, and 
 reviling from wicked men? Because he 
 loved us. It was love for us that led him to 
 the garden, where he agonized, and sweat, as 
 it were, great drops of blood, and offered up 
 that mysterious prayer — " my Father, if it 
 
142 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 be possible, let this cup pass from me. Never- 
 theless, not as I will, but as thou wilt." Matt, 
 xxvi. 39. 
 
 He is betrayed with the kiss of a disciple; 
 he is bound by the soldiers, and rudely led to 
 the palace of the high-priest. There he is 
 treated with the utmost indignity, and con- 
 demned to death. Then he is hurried to 
 Pilate's bar, and accused of treason and blas- 
 phemy, and his crucifixion demanded. Pilate 
 cowardly yields to the clamorous demands 
 of the Jews, against his own convictions. 
 He is condemned, scourged, crowned with 
 thorns, and cruelly mocked. He bears it all 
 with the utmost patience; and suffers his 
 blessed body to be nailed to the cross, and 
 put to death. Ah ! had he not loved us, he 
 would have hurled Pilate from his judgment 
 seat, and laid all his enemies prostrate and 
 lifeless on the ground; and the scene that oc- 
 curred on Calvary, would never have been 
 witnessed, nor would that doleful cry have 
 been heard, "My God, my God, why hast 
 thou forsaken me?' 
 
 The love of Christ was perfectly free. He 
 was under no obligations to interpose in be- 
 half of our fallen race. He might have left 
 
LOVE OF CHRIST. 143 
 
 us to sink for ever under condemnation and 
 in deserved misery, without tarnishing his 
 glory. Nor did he stand in any need of our 
 services; for, with a word, he could have 
 called into existence a thousand worlds, and 
 peopled them with superior intelligent crea- 
 tures, who would have rendered cheerful 
 obedience to his high commands. His love, 
 then, was perfectly free. 
 
 It was as sovereign as it was free. The 
 fallen angels belonged to an order of beings 
 superior to our race. But the Son of God 
 did not love them. He did not undertake to 
 save them from ruin and misery. He left 
 them to suffer the bitter consequences of their 
 unprovoked and ungrateful rebellion, in chains 
 of darkness unto the judgment of the great 
 day. This superior order of creatures he 
 passed by, without visiting them with the 
 overflowings of his mercy; and, in the exer- 
 cise of his adorable sovereignty, he was 
 pleased to set his love on our inferior race, 
 and deliver us from richly merited misery ! 
 
 And how costly to himself was the Re- 
 deemer's love! Our redemption could not 
 be effected by a mere proclamation of divine 
 amnesty, by merely blotting out our sins. 
 
144 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 Nor could an incarnate angel, acting and 
 suffering as our substitute, have achieved the 
 mighty work. Infinitely more than this was 
 demanded. The redemption of our fallen 
 race required the interposition and sufferings 
 of an incarnate God. Blood divine, offended 
 justice called for. And so infinite was the 
 love of the Son of God to us, that he willing- 
 ly consented to meet and satisfy all the de- 
 mands of law and justice; to yield the obe- 
 dience which we were unable to yield, and to 
 suffer the punishment which we could not 
 endure. 
 
 To form some conception how costly was 
 thy Saviour's love, think, my soul, of his 
 lowly birth, of his sorrowful life, of his num- 
 berless enemies, of Pilate's judgment seat, of 
 Herod and his soldiers, of the malignant 
 Jewish priests and rulers; and especially of 
 his wonderful agony in the garden, and of 
 what he endured during the three hours of 
 darkness, when, hanging on the cross, his 
 Father forsook him, bruised him, and made 
 his soul an offering for sin. 
 
 Having considered how free, and sovereign, 
 and costly, the love of Christ was, let me 
 now contemplate the rich benefits it confers 
 
LOVE OF CHRIST. 145 
 
 on its objects. How inestimable, how sur- 
 passing all comprehension! Guilty, their 
 guilt is taken away, and all their sins are 
 freely and fully forgiven. Dead in sin, they 
 are quickened to a new, spiritual, holy, and 
 divine life. At enmity with God, they are 
 reconciled to God, and brought into a state of 
 favour. Condemned, they are justified and 
 made righteous, through the imputed right- 
 eousness of Christ. From the family of Sa- 
 tan, they are taken, and adopted into the 
 family of the Most High, and enrolled among 
 his children. Heirs of wrath, they are con- 
 stituted heirs of heaven. The Spirit is sent 
 down from above to dwell for ever in their 
 hearts, as their teacher and guide, as their 
 sanctifier and comforter, as a pledge of joys 
 to come, and to seal them unto the day of 
 redemption. They are partially sanctified 
 here, and they will be perfectly sanctified 
 hereafter. 
 
 They open the book of God, and what do 
 they read ? That God has made with them 
 an everlasting covenant, confirmed by the 
 blood of his Son, and sealed to them, at the 
 table of their Lord, with the symbols of his 
 broken body and shed blood; a covenant 
 13 
 
146 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 comprehending time and eternity, and bless- 
 ings that transcend their highest conceptions , 
 a covenant including exceeding great and 
 precious promises; in which it is written, 
 " For the Lord God is a sun and shield ; the 
 Lord will give grace and glory: no good 
 thing will he withhold from them that walk 
 uprightly." Psal. lxxxiv. 11. "He that 
 spared not his own Son, but delivered him 
 up for us all, how shall he not with him also 
 freely give us all things?' Rom. viii. 32. 
 " Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give 
 thee a crown of life." Rev. ii. 10. " To him 
 that overcometh will I grant to sit with me 
 on my throne, even as I also overcame, and 
 am set down with my Father on his throne." 
 Rev. iii. 21. What amazing promises 
 these ! 
 
 Contemplating the love of Christ, so rich 
 in its benefits to them, well may the redeemed 
 exclaim with John ; " Behold, what manner 
 of love the Father hath bestowed on us, that 
 we should be called the sons of God : there- 
 fore the world knoweth us not, because it 
 knew him not. Beloved, now are we the 
 sons of God, and it doth not yet appear, 
 what we shall be: but we know that, when 
 
LOVE OF CHRIST. 147 
 
 he shall appear, we shall be like him ; for we 
 shall see him as.he is." 1 John iii. 1, 2. 
 
 For love so free and sovereign — so costly 
 and rich — what shall I render to my Lord 
 and Master? I have nothing to give him, 
 but my worthless heart. Will he accept this 
 poor return? He will; for this is all he 
 seeks. O ! then, let me love him with all my 
 heart, and soul, and might, and strength. Let 
 my heart overflow with gratitude, for his 
 amazing grace and blessings. Let me for 
 ever speak his praise; and, as "to this end 
 Christ died, and rose, and revived, that he 
 might be Lord both of the dead and living ;" 
 (Rom. xiv. 9 ;) let me acknowledge him to be 
 my Lord, and yield to him a cheerful, unre- 
 served, and growing obedience to all his 
 commandments. This is the only way to 
 prove my love to him, who loved me, and 
 gave himself for me ; for he has said, " If ye 
 love me, keep my commandments:" and 
 again, " He that hath my commandments, 
 and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: 
 and he that loveth me shall be loved of my 
 Father, and I will love him, and will manifest 
 myself to him." John xiv. 15, 21. 
 
148 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Blessed Redeemer, I bless thee for love so 
 free, so sovereign, so costly to thyself, but so 
 rich in benefits to men. May I love to con- 
 template thy love that shines so brightly in 
 all that thou wast pleased to undertake to 
 accomplish for us, and in all that thou didst 
 do and suffer. And blessed be thy name, 
 that we are sure that the same love still 
 dwells in thy heart, and that in the last day 
 it will appear in all its overflowing fulness. 
 May I make a suitable return of gratitude 
 and love. Take entire possession of my 
 heart, and reign over all my affections and 
 powers, and draw them forth to thyself 
 by the constraining influence of thy Holy 
 Spirit. 
 
 God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
 of whom the whole family in heaven and 
 earth is named, grant me, according to the 
 riches of thy glory, to be strengthened with 
 might by thy Spirit in the inner man ; that 
 Christ may dwell in my heart by faith ; that 
 I, being rooted and grounded in love, may be 
 able to comprehend with all saints, what is 
 
SELF-EXAMINATION. 1 49 
 
 the breadth, and depth, and length, and 
 height ; and to know the love of Christ, which 
 passeth knowledge, that I may be filled with 
 all the fulness of God. " Now unto him who 
 is able to do exceeding abundantly above all 
 that I ask or think, according to the power 
 that worketh in us; unto him be glory in 
 the Church, by Christ. Jesus, throughout all 
 ages, world without end. Amen." Ephes. 
 iii. 14-21. 
 
 MEDITATION XVII. 
 
 SELF-EXAMINATION. 
 
 I have contemplated the cross of my Re- 
 deemer, and meditated on the great truths 
 connected with it; and by so doing I have 
 remembered him, in accordance with the end 
 of that ordinance, for which I am endeavour- 
 ing to make preparation. It now behoves 
 me to attend to a particular duty prescribed 
 in the institution : " But let a man examine 
 himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and 
 drink of that cup." The duty doubtless 
 13* 
 
150 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 means that he should, by the due perform- 
 ance of it, ascertain his right to a seat at the 
 sacred table. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 O thou omniscient and heart- searching God, 
 I am about entering on a most important 
 duty; to inquire into, and determine my real 
 character and condition in thy sight. I need 
 thine aid; and I beseech thee to compose and 
 to enlighten my mind. Graciously grant the 
 aids of thy Holy Spirit to bear witness with 
 my spirit, that I am thy child, renewed and 
 sanctified by thy grace. Let me not deceive 
 myself with a name to live, if I be dead. Un- 
 deceive me, if I be deceived. But, if I am a 
 renewed creature, help me to ascertain and 
 determine the fact, that I may rejoice in my 
 filial relation to thee, my God. Hear me, for 
 Christ's sake. Amen. 
 
 The first question, then, which I have to 
 propose to myself is this: "Am I a Chris- 
 tian?' True, I was descended from Chris- 
 tian parents, born in the visible church, and 
 baptized when an infant, in the name of the 
 
SELF-EXAMINATION. 151 
 
 sacred Three. But, while I should be grate- 
 ful for the privilege connected with my birth, 
 and duly appreciate my infant dedication to 
 God, in the rite of baptism, I must remember 
 that neither my birth nor my baptism will 
 entitle me to a seat at the Lord's table. The 
 question proposed, imports much more than 
 these outward privileges. To be a Christian 
 is to be born again, regenerated by the Holy 
 Spirit, and united to Jesus Christ by a true 
 and living faith. Am I a Christian in this 
 sense of the name ? Certainly I was not born 
 such. I came into the world with the same 
 depraved nature which others inherited; a 
 child of wrath even as they. 
 
 Was I ever convinced of this lamentable 
 fact? Were my eyes opened by the Spirit, 
 to see my sinful and lost condition, as dead 
 in sin, and condemned by the divine law to 
 everlasting misery? Trembling under the 
 painful conviction, did I strive, by sorrow 
 and reformation, to flee from the wrath to 
 come ! Have I seen the futility of my own 
 endeavours and works to recommend me to 
 God, and save my soul ? Do I understand 
 the provision made in the gospel for the gra- 
 tuitous justification of sinners 1 Has my mind 
 
152 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 been enlightened to see the fulness, the suit- 
 ableness, and all-sufficiency of Jesus Christ as 
 a Saviour ? Do I believe that he is both able 
 and willing to save all that will come to him ? 
 And, under this belief, did I apply to him 
 for his salvation ? Do I rely on his merits 
 for acceptance with God? Have I taken 
 him to be my Redeemer, and committed my 
 soul, and my eternal interests, into his hands, 
 and devoted myself to his service ? 
 
 Have I experienced a change in my nature, 
 and been quickened into a new spiritual life ? 
 Have old things passed away, and all things 
 become new? Are my views, feelings, and 
 affections changed ? Have I new views of 
 God, of his law, of myself, of sin, of duty, 
 and of Christ? Do I see the comparative 
 emptiness of worldly things, and the infinite 
 value of heavenly and eternal things? Has 
 the current of my affections been changed ? 
 Have they been turned from earth to heaven? 
 from the creature to the Creator ? Do I love 
 things which I formerly hated, and hate 
 things which I formerly loved ? Is sin hate- 
 ful to me, not only on account of its injurious 
 consequences, but on account of its vile and 
 odious nature, as a breach of the divine law, 
 
SELF-EXAMINATION. 1 53 
 
 and as being offensive to God ? Is holioess 
 truly lovely in my sight, and do I hunger and 
 thirst after righteousness 1 Do I love the in- 
 spired volume, and make it the man of my 
 counsel and my delight ? Do I always pray 
 for the teachings of the Holy Spirit whenever 
 I read it, saying, with David, "open thou 
 mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous 
 things out of thy law?' Has God conde- 
 scended to hear my prayers? and do I, at 
 times, enjoy communion with him in that 
 exercise ? Do I love to pray, and find that I 
 cannot live without prayer ? 
 
 Has my conduct undergone a great change? 
 Have I a new and a different end in life? 
 Is it the glory of God ? Am I watchful over 
 my actions, guarding against temptation and 
 sin ? Am I, in a good degree, successful in 
 my endeavours to do the will of God ? Do I 
 indulge myself in no sin, and allow myself 
 to live in the omission of no known duty? 
 Is it my sincere desire and prayer to God to 
 be sanctified in my whole nature ? Do I take 
 pleasure in the expectation, that hereafter I 
 shall be freed from all sin, and made per- 
 fectly holy in the Divine image ? Do I de- 
 sire heaven, not merely as a refuge from evil, 
 
154 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 and as a place of happiness, but as a place 
 where holiness reigns, and from which all sin 
 is for ever banished ? 
 
 If I can answer these questions affirma- 
 tively, I may regard myself as a Chris- 
 tian. 
 
 An advanced believer finds but little diffi- 
 culty in deciding his claim to the Christian 
 character. He has become so familiar with 
 the nature of the Spirit's gracious operations 
 on the human soul, and with the marks of 
 regeneration ; and, by frequent self-examina- 
 tion, become so well acquainted with himself, 
 that the first question is soon settled. But 
 there is another question that claims his in- 
 quiry, which he finds not to be so easy to 
 determine. It is this: — Am I a growing 
 Christian ? 
 
 Some believers advance so sensibly in the 
 divine life, that this too is a question easily 
 determined. But how is it with me ? Am I 
 making progress in the Christian life ? Let 
 me inquire. A comparison of my attain- 
 ments at different periods of time, may fur- 
 nish evidence. When I look back upon the 
 secret workings of my heart, do I find that I 
 have gained victories over certain sins; for 
 
SELF-EXAMINATION. 1 55 
 
 example, over pride, vanity, worldly-minded- 
 ness, unbelief, self-righteousness ? Do I see 
 more clearly my entire dependence on Jesus 
 Christ for righteousness and strength? and do 
 I depend more simply and entirely on him for 
 every thing, willing to give him all the glory 
 of my salvation 1 Am I more humble ? Do 
 I grow in heavenly-mindedness, and in spirit- 
 uality of mind ? What other corruptions of 
 heart are mortified and subdued? Am I 
 more devoted to God % Do I love his glory 
 more ? Do I take a more lively interest in 
 the prosperity of the Redeemer's cause; pray 
 more for it, and do more for its advancement 
 in the world 1 
 
 By attending to such inquiries, and others 
 of a similar kind, I may determine the second 
 question. 
 
 But there is another inquiry that ought to 
 be instituted, in making preparation for a 
 profitable communion season. It is my pri- 
 vilege to approach my Lord and Saviour at 
 his table, with humble and believing prayer 
 for every thing I need. Let me, then, in- 
 quire what sins too much prevail, and in 
 what graces I am most deficient; that I may 
 beseech him to mortify and subdue the one, 
 
156 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 and increase and strengthen the other. What 
 are those sins? Does pride, or vanity, or 
 ambition, or carnality, or lust, or worldliness, 
 or unbelief, afflict my soul ? Let me lament 
 them, whatever they may be, before my Re- 
 deemer, and beseech him to crucify them on 
 his cross. In what graces am I deficient? 
 Is it humility, or faith, or heavenly-minded- 
 ness, or freedom in speaking on religious 
 subjects, or spirituality of mind, or qualifica- 
 tions for my particular work ? 
 
 What is my situation in life? What rela- 
 tions claim an interest in my prayers ? My 
 wife, my husband, my parents, my children, 
 my brothers, my sisters — what do they 
 need ? Let me inquire, that I may remem- 
 ber them, at the table, and present their cases 
 before my gracious Redeemer. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Accept, my God, my thanks for any as- 
 sistance afforded to me in conducting the ex- 
 amination of myself. May the result to which 
 I have come meet with thy approbation. I 
 pray that the evidences of my being in a 
 gracious state may increase in strength, and 
 
RECOLLECTION OF SIN. 157 
 
 the evidence of my growth in grace become 
 clearer and more satisfying. Graciously 
 grant that I may be led to a more intimate 
 acquaintance with myself; that, knowing my 
 wants and necessities, I may present to thee 
 suitable prayers. I ask in the name of Christ. 
 Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION XVIII. 
 
 PENITENT RECOLLECTION OF SIN SELF-DEDI- 
 CATION. 
 
 "And you hath he quickened, who were 
 dead in trespasses and sins; and were by 
 nature children of wrath, even as others." 
 Ephes. ii. 1, 3. Such is the language of an 
 inspired apostle. Believing it to be inspired, 
 I cannot avoid the belief that I was born in a 
 state of sin and guilt; that my nature was 
 depraved ; and that, coming into existence in 
 such a state, and with such a nature, I was, 
 from the commencement of my being, under 
 condemnation. 
 
 The truth of this apostolic statement, has 
 been confirmed by my whole life. How 
 14 
 
158 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 early did the sinful bias of my nature begin 
 to appear ! Surely, if my nature had been 
 pure and inclined to good, impatience, self- 
 will, and selfishness, would not have so soon 
 marred the innocence of my childhood. The 
 impure fountain could not but discover its 
 impurity. The root of bitterness within of 
 course brought forth corresponding and evil 
 fruit. 
 
 Youth succeeded childhood, and gave 
 clearer evidences of my sinful nature. Pride, 
 ambition, hatred, and revenge, presented 
 mournful proofs, that I was a fallen creature. 
 As I advanced in years, sin grew with my 
 growth, and strengthened with my strength. 
 Evil habits became confirmed, and the do- 
 minion of wicked passion established. In- 
 stead of following the pious in the strait 
 and narrow path of duty and life, I preferred 
 going with the multitude in the broad road 
 of sin and destruction. God was not in all 
 my thoughts. His all-searching eye was 
 disregarded; and, if I could only hide myself 
 from my fellow creatures, I imagined I might 
 practice evil without detection. Thus I lived 
 without God. I could lie down at night, 
 without committing myself to the care and 
 
RECOLLECTION OF SIN. 159 
 
 protection of his gracious providence, during 
 the silent watches of the night; and rise up 
 from my bed in the morning, without thank- 
 ing him for my preservation from harm and 
 evil, during the defenceless state of sleep, and 
 without invoking his blessing on the business 
 of the day. What ingratitude, and thought- 
 lessness, and folly! 
 
 How sadly did I neglect and abuse the 
 privileges vouchsafed to me ! The Bible 
 was put into my hands, but I laid it aside ; 
 and, instead of reading and studying it, to 
 form an acquaintance with its wonderful con- 
 tents, I preferred other books, and sometimes 
 books productive of evil impressions. The 
 Sabbath came; but I heeded not its sacred 
 import and design, and suffered its precious 
 hours to pass away without improving them, 
 by performing their appropriate duties. And 
 how many of them were desecrated, by doing 
 what was unlawful to be done on God's holy 
 day ! I went to his house, but my heart was 
 not prepared for its solemn worship. How 
 inattentive to the word preached! Where 
 were my eyes and my thoughts'? How 
 wandering and irreverent ! How often did I 
 dare to indulge a sleepy humour in the sane- 
 
160 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS* 
 
 tuary! And when I rose up to pray, how 
 did I insult infinite Majesty, by turning as it 
 were my back to Him, and worshipping 
 some creature ; or even presenting myself as 
 an object of worship ! Why was I not con- 
 sumed for my impiety, as were the sons of 
 Aaron, when they offered strange fire before 
 the Lord! Lev. x. 1, 2. Amazing forbear- 
 ance of my God ! 
 
 How innumerable have been my sins! 
 Every day, and hour, and minute have I 
 offended. The want of love to God was one 
 continued sin, staining with guilt every mo- 
 ment of my life. A creature in a state of 
 enmity with his Creator, how horrible! 
 
 In the review of my life I can call to mind 
 particular and great sins, for which I ought 
 especially to humble myself before God. 
 There, at that early day, I committed an act 
 which I knew to be wrong, and which I 
 was careful to conceal from human eyes. 
 
 Then , and then . [This may be 
 
 filled up by the reader for himself.] At such 
 a time I was bent on the commission of a 
 great sin; and although held back by a dis- 
 tinct warning of conscience not to persist in 
 my purpose, yet I did persist, and should 
 
 v. 
 
RECOLLECTION OF SIN. 161 
 
 have accomplished it, had not God interposed 
 by his providence, and mercifully saved me 
 from contracting such aggravated guilt. O ! 
 how often have I sinned against the strivings 
 of the Holy Spirit ! 
 
 How criminal has been my life! How 
 many years did I live without God, without 
 a saving interest in Christ, and without hope 
 in the world ! And all the time I was be- 
 coming more and more depraved, more en- 
 slaved to the world and Satan, and more 
 averse to God and holiness. Had not God 
 restrained me by his providence and grace; 
 had he left me to the impulse of my native 
 and contracted depravity; to what lengths of 
 iniquity might I not have gone ! Impelled 
 by evil desires and wicked passions, I might, 
 in the frenzy of sin, have perpetrated an of- 
 fence, that would have clouded my reputation, 
 and embittered all my days ! Thanks to God 
 for laying restraints on my evil desires and 
 wicked passions. 
 
 Now, for all the sins I have committed, 
 attended with such aggravating circum- 
 stances, and the great guilt I have contracted, 
 I acknowledge that I deserve to die; and if, 
 at any time before the exercise of repentance 
 14* 
 
162 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 and faith, I had been removed from the 
 world, with my sins unpardoned, I must have 
 gone down to eternal perdition. 
 
 "But thanks be to God, who, for his great 
 love wherewith he loved me, even when I 
 was dead in sins, hath quickened me to- 
 gether with Christ, and saved me by his 
 grace." Ephes. ii. 4, 5. And now, pardoned 
 by the blood of my Saviour, and justified by 
 his righteousness, I feel that I am accepted of 
 God, and blessed with hope ; as really and 
 fully as if, in my own person, I had satisfied 
 his justice for my sins, and fulfilled all the 
 righteous demands of his holy law. 
 
 Alas! this is not all that I have to confess. 
 True, since my conversion, by divine grace, 
 sin has not reigned over me, as it did for- 
 merly. Its dominion has been broken, so 
 that I am enabled to serve my gracious Lord 
 and Redeemer, with a sincere obedience. 
 Yet how feeble my exertions and imperfect 
 my obedience ! How imperfectly is my na- 
 ture sanctified, and how strong still are the 
 remains of sin within me ! Well may I ex- 
 claim with the holy apostle, "O wretched 
 man that I am, who shall deliver me from 
 the body of this death !" Rom. vii. 24. How 
 
RECOLLECTION OF SIN. 263 
 
 languid has been my love, how feeble my 
 zeal, how sluggish my exertions in the service 
 of my divine Master ! Ah! had I been more 
 sanctified, how much more should I have 
 done to honour him ! what opportunities for 
 doing good that passed away, would have 
 been improved! how would my light have 
 shined forth to God's glory! and what ad- 
 vances in the divine life should I have made! 
 I blush in the review of my Christian life. It 
 becomes me to fall down before God in the 
 dust, and beseech him to forgive my short- 
 comings in duty; the coldness of my love, the 
 languor of my zeal, the feebleness of my ex- 
 ertions, and my many sins; and to quicken 
 me by his Spirit, to cause me to grow rapidly 
 in grace, to inspire me with warmer love and 
 zeal, and to enable me to bring forth more 
 fruit to his glory. 
 
 To these penitent recollections of past sins, 
 is to be added the renewal of my covenant 
 engagements. By the sacred elements in the 
 Lord's supper a covenant is to be sealed; 
 and, therefore, as I have already entered into 
 covenant with my God, the Father, Son, and 
 Holy Ghost, it will be proper to recollect 
 this solemn transaction, and to renew it, be- 
 
164 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 fore I approach the sacred table, that I may- 
 be prepared to renew it there, and ratify it 
 with the appointed seals. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 thou holy God, in the review of my life 
 I feel ashamed before thee. Behold, I was 
 conceived in sin, and brought forth in ini- 
 quity. Psal. li. 5. Depraved by nature, I 
 was born a child of wrath. Ephes. ii. 3. 
 How early was this depravity indicated in 
 my childhood, and what clearer evidence of 
 the mournful truth appeared in my youth! 
 All the workings of sin in my heart, during 
 those early periods of life, were distinctly 
 seen by thy omniscient eye. And, alas ! how 
 did I wander from thee and the path of duty, 
 as I advanced in age ! Instead of loving thee 
 with all my heart, and delighting in doing 
 thy will, my heart was in a state of enmity 
 with thee, my Creator, Preserver, and Bene- 
 factor ; and, under the promptings of a heart 
 so wicked, I was living in rebellion against 
 thy sovereign authority, and openly violating 
 thy holy and reasonable commandments. 
 How innumerable have been my transgres- 
 
PRAYER. 165 
 
 sions ! How many years I lived in this un- 
 natural and wicked way! How my guilt 
 was accumulating, and to what awful danger 
 I was exposing myself! 
 
 Merciful God, I thank thee for thy patience 
 and forbearance. I bless thee for the re- 
 straints of thy providence and grace, that 
 kept me back from the commission of those 
 great sins, to which my depraved nature 
 prompted me. And I magnify the riches of 
 thy mercy, by which, notwithstanding all my 
 guilt and increasing depravity — notwithstand- 
 ing my neglect of thy word and of prayer, 
 and my inattention to thy preached gospel* 
 and shameful behaviour in thy house, thou 
 wast pleased to lead me to repentance and 
 faith, by the gracious influences of thy Spirit, 
 to forgive all my sins, to justify me freely 
 through the righteousness of thy Son, and to 
 adopt me, once a wandering prodigal, into 
 thy family, as a child and heir of a heavenly 
 kingdom. O ! amazing riches of grace ! How 
 can I praise thee, O my God, enough for all 
 that thou hast done for me, a worthless sin- 
 ner? Here, take my heart, and make it 
 wholly thine. Reign in and over me for 
 ever; and bind my heart to thyself in the 
 
166 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 most fervent love. All this I ask in the name 
 of Christ. Amen. 
 
 SELF-DEDICATION. 
 
 And now, blessed God, admiring thine in- 
 finite condescension, and sensible of my great 
 unworthiness, I come, invited by thee, to 
 renew that covenant, in which I have taken 
 the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, to be my 
 God and portion for ever; and in which I 
 have given myself to thee, as thy rightful 
 property, to be thy obedient servant and 
 loving child, for ever and ever. I engage in 
 this wonderful transaction, relying on thy 
 grace to help me to fulfil my engagements. 
 Grant me, O my God and Father, the aids of 
 thy Spirit, that I may be faithful to my 
 covenant engagements, until death. And to 
 the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, be eternal 
 praise and glory. Amen. 
 
THE SABBATH MORNING. 167 
 
 MEDITATION XIX. 
 
 THE SABBATH MORNING. 
 
 The morning of the Sabbath has come ; the 
 blessed day on which, in addition to the 
 usual religious services, I am to take my seat 
 at the table of my Lord and Saviour; to hold 
 communion with him, and his chosen people, 
 by feeding on that spiritual and heavenly 
 repast, which he has provided at so great a 
 price. What a privilege ! what an honour ! 
 
 Am I prepared for the feast 1 It has been 
 my endeavour to make the required prepara- 
 tion, by attending to the prescribed duties. 
 Regarding the supper as an institution of the 
 Lord, I design to partake of it in obedience 
 to his will. 
 
 In conformity to its end, I have remem- 
 bered my Redeemer. Standing at the foot of 
 his cross, I have contemplated the amazing 
 sacrifice offered on it, for the sins of a lost 
 world; and, in its light, beheld the truths 
 that radiate from this great centre of the 
 divine system, and of the divine dispensa- 
 tions. The lamentable cause of this astonish- 
 
168 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 ing spectacle, exhibited to the universe, has 
 passed in review; the apostasy, ruin, and 
 helplessness of our race. I have contem- 
 plated the bright display of God's perfections, 
 his justice, his wisdom, and his love, beaming 
 from the cross. 
 
 The infinite and complex person of the 
 Redeemer, embracing both his human and 
 divine nature ; so wonderfully adapted to the 
 great work, which no man, nor angel could 
 accomplish, but which he achieved, I have 
 devoutly considered. I have thought of his 
 infinite condescension, in accepting the office 
 of Mediator between God, the offended Sove- 
 reign, and man, his rebellious creature, and 
 in anticipating so joyfully the accomplish- 
 ment of it in the appointed time. I have 
 thought too, of his profound humiliation, in 
 making himself of no reputation, by taking 
 upon him the form of a servant, and being 
 made in the likeness, not of an archangel, 
 but of men: and, in the fashion of a man, 
 humbling himself, so as to become obedient 
 to the law, not only in its preceptive, but 
 penal claims, and suffering even unto death, 
 and, that the most agonizing and disgraceful, 
 the death of the cross. 
 
THE SABBATH MORNING. 169 
 
 The purity and perfection of his human 
 nature ; his holy and spotless life, beaming 
 with love to God and love to man; accord- 
 ant with all the requirements of the divine 
 law, and presenting a finished and faultless 
 example to all believers, have been reviewed. 
 
 I have dwelt on the sufferings of my Lord, 
 beginning with his birth and terminating only 
 with his life ; — on their variety, arising from 
 the opposition and malice of so many bitter 
 enemies; — on their severity, in the manner of 
 his death; — and on their unutterable and over- 
 whelming nature, produced by God's wrath 
 against sin; in the garden of Gethsemane, 
 where no human hand was seen to afflict 
 him; and on the cross, during the three hours 
 of preternatural darkness. 
 
 I have considered the dreadful, degrading, 
 and destructive evil of sin; manifested in the 
 insult it offers to the infinite Majesty of God, 
 in the violation of his most excellent law; so 
 sadly apparent in the history of man, for- 
 saking the worship of God, giving himself up 
 to the vilest idolatry, and debasing himself 
 by unnatural and beastly crimes ; and espe- 
 cially manifested in the sufferings and death 
 of God's own and well beloved Son. 
 15 
 
170 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 The reality and certainty of the resurrec- 
 tion of my blessed Lord, I have contemplated 
 with joy, as demonstrating his divine charac- 
 ter, and proving, with the broad seal of 
 heaven, the perfection of his work: and, with 
 his wondering apostles, I have gazed at him, 
 ascending into heaven; attended with a 
 bright retinue of angels, passing by worlds 
 and systems, with amazing speed, to the 
 highest heavens, and there welcomed to his 
 reward, as the conqueror of sin, and death, 
 and hell. 
 
 I have beheld him taking his seat at the 
 right hand of God; invested with universal 
 dominion over all worlds; appointed Head 
 over all things to his church; and worship- 
 ped by all the hosts of heaven as their Su- 
 preme Lord. I rejoice in his reign. 
 
 I have contemplated him as the great High- 
 priest of the church, as our forerunner and 
 advocate; as ever living to intercede with the 
 Father for his people ; that all the blessings 
 of this life, and of the life to come, purchased 
 by his death, may be secured to them. 
 
 Regarding my Redeemer as the appointed 
 judge both of quick and dead, I have antici- 
 pated his second coming to judge the world 
 
THE SABBATH MORNING. 171 
 
 in righteousness, and to consummate the 
 salvation of his redeemed people. 
 
 On the wonderful love of Christ, so free 
 and sovereign, so costly and rich, I have 
 meditated, and seen how it was the spring of 
 all that he did and suffered for his people. 
 It was love that moved him to become our 
 Redeemer; love brought him down from 
 heaven to earth; love carried him through 
 a life of poverty and sorrow, affliction and 
 suffering; and love sustained him in the 
 agony of the garden, and under the over- 
 whelming horrors of the three last hours on 
 the cross. And when he arose from the 
 dead, the same flame of love was burning in 
 his heart. It ascended with him to heaven; 
 and there it burns in his bosom, and will 
 burn for ever. 
 
 To prepare for a profitable communion 
 season, I have inquired into my right to a 
 seat at the sacred table, by examining my 
 claims to the Christian character, my progress 
 in the divine life, and what sins I have to 
 lament before my Lord, and what blessings I 
 ought to seek from his bounty. 
 
 I have also endeavoured penitently to re- 
 collect and confess the sins of my life, to 
 
172 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 humble myself before God, and to implore his 
 forgiveness. And, moreover, I have renewed 
 that covenant with the Sacred Three, w r hich 
 is to be sealed at the Lord's table. 
 
 Thus having endeavoured to make due 
 preparation for the table of my Lord, I may, 
 I trust, approach to it, with holy boldness 
 and believing confidence. In obedience to 
 his command, I am going to a feast prepared 
 by his love; where he is to feast me with his 
 broken body and shed blood. There he will 
 put symbollically into rny hands the price he 
 paid for my eternal redemption. With this 
 price in my hands, while feeding on his body 
 broken for me, and his blood shed for me, 
 with what confidence may I implore God to 
 forgive all my sins, and to bestow on me 
 whatever blessings I need ! Away, unbelief! 
 Let me approach to the sacred table with 
 confident faith; and beseech my Lord to in- 
 crease my faith, to inflame my love, to enkin- 
 dle my zeal, to augment my strength; to 
 make me more heavenly and spiritually- 
 minded, and in all respects a more exemplary 
 disciple. He has infinite fulness to impart. 
 We are not straitened in him, but in our- 
 selves. O ! for a warmer heart, for more ex- 
 
PRAYER. 173 
 
 panded desires, for greater hungering and 
 thirsting after righteousness, that I may be 
 filled. His inviting language is, "Eat, O 
 friends ; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O be- 
 loved." Song v. 1. " Open thy mouth wide, 
 and I will fill it." Psal. lxxxi. 10. John 
 xv. 7. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 My God, and Father of our Lord Jesus 
 Christ, I have, by meditation and prayer, 
 endeavoured to make preparation for a seat 
 at the table of my Redeemer. I have re- 
 membered him, by contemplating his original 
 dignity, by considering his infinite condescen- 
 sion and profound humiliation, his holy life, 
 his bitter and overwhelming sufferings, and 
 his shameful death. I have beheld him 
 rising from the dead, ascending into heaven, 
 seating himself at thy right hand, and coming 
 to judge the world, and finish the salvation 
 of his people. I have dwelt on his amazing 
 love, and its wonderful results. O ! pardon, 
 gracious God, the coldness of my heart in 
 meditating on these great and interesting 
 truths. Let them ever dwell in my memory, 
 15* 
 
174 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 so as to warm my heart, enkindle my love, 
 and bind me to my Maker's service. 
 
 I have endeavoured, Lord, to examine 
 myself agreeably to the direction of the in- 
 stitution, and to renew my covenant with my 
 God; and I humbly hope, that the result of 
 my inquiries is in accordance with truth, that 
 I am in a gracious state, and entitled, through 
 mercy, to a seat at the holy table. O ! that 
 my evidences were brighter, so that I might 
 rejoice in assured hope. 
 
 But, with all my defects, may I not, blessed 
 God, come with boldness to the holy supper, 
 and expect to meet my Saviour, and hold 
 communion with him? Assist me, by thy 
 grace; strengthen my faith; compose my 
 mind; and enable me to perform the appro- 
 priate duties, when I shall occupy my seat, 
 and partake of the heavenly banquet. Mer- 
 ciful God, I beseech thee to hear my prayer, 
 forgive my sins, give enlargement to my de- 
 sires and expectations, and vouchsafe to me 
 and to my fellow communicants, a profitable 
 and delightful communion season. Hear 
 me, O God, I entreat thee, for Jesus' sake. 
 Amen. 
 
AT THE TABLE. 175 
 
 MEDITATION XX. 
 
 AT THE TABLE. 
 
 Here I am, seated at this sacred table, to 
 hold communion with my fellow disciples, 
 and with my Lord and Saviour! What a 
 privilege ! What an honour ! How thankful 
 should I be for the grace I have received ! 
 
 I am indeed unworthy of the place I oc- 
 cupy. But my Redeemer bade me come, 
 and take my seat at this heavenly banquet; 
 and, in obedience to his command, I have 
 come to feed upon the bread, and receive the 
 water of life. May he grant to me and my 
 fellow communicants his gracious presence ! 
 May he unveil to us his fulness and glory ! 
 May we sit under his shadow with great 
 delight, and find his fruit pleasant to our 
 taste ! May our views be enlightened, and 
 our exercises sweet, affectionate and heaven- 
 ly ! May we be assisted by the Holy Spirit, 
 in the great duty of remembering our blessed 
 Redeemer, and of renewing our covenant 
 engagements. 
 
176 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 THE BREAD GIVEN. 
 
 I take this bread, O my Saviour, as thy 
 .body broken for me; I eat it, as thou hast 
 commanded, in expectation that, by feeding 
 upon it, my soul shall be nourished to eternal 
 life ; just as my body is sustained and nour- 
 ished by the common bread on which I daily 
 feed. Thy blessing makes common bread 
 effectual, in imparting life and strength to my 
 body ; and thy blessing can cause this heavenly 
 bread to impart spiritual life to my soul. 
 Grant, then, thy gracious blessing; and make 
 this a communion season indeed. Awaken 
 my desires, increase my faith, and enlarge 
 my expectations. 
 
 " Do this in remembrance of me," is thy 
 injunction. I will remember thee, my Re- 
 deemer. Thy original dignity, as the Son of 
 God, the great I am, the true and living God, 
 the second person in the glorious Trinity, I 
 call to mind; and how, in infinite condescen- 
 sion, thou wast pleased from all eternity to 
 assume the office of Mediator, between of- 
 fended Majesty and his rebellious creatures : 
 and with what delight thou didst anticipate, 
 in the revolution of ages, to undertake and 
 
THE BREAD GIVEN. 177 
 
 accomplish the mighty work of our redemp- 
 tion. I behold thee emptying thyself, and 
 laying aside the robes of majesty, assuming 
 the form of a servant, and taking upon 
 thyself the likeness of man; and, being 
 found in the fashion of a man, humbling thy- 
 self, and becoming obedient unto death, even 
 the death of the cross. 
 
 I look at thy pure, and holy, and heavenly 
 life. I see thee imparting instruction to thy 
 disciples and the people; refuting the false 
 interpretations of the Scribes and Pharisees, 
 and rebuking those unfaithful teachers, who 
 were causing the people to err. I behold 
 thee going about doing good, working most 
 beneficent miracles, healing all manner of 
 diseases; giving eyes to the blind, ears to the 
 deaf, feet to the lame, tongues to the dumb, 
 and raising the dead; and refusing aid to 
 none who sought it in faith. I see that holy, 
 perfect, and finished example of love to God 
 and benevolence to man, which thou didst 
 set, and leave for the imitation of thy fol- 
 lowers, till the end of the world. 
 
 And, O my Saviour, I think of thy suffer- 
 ings, commencing with thy birth, and ending 
 only with thy life; of thy poverty and humi- 
 
178 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 lity, of the opposition to thy ministry by per- 
 verse men, and thy rejection by the priests 
 and rulers; how thou wast • slandered and 
 reviled, stigmatized as a deceiver, as a wine- 
 bibber and a glutton, a friend of publicans 
 and sinners, as a deceiver, a blasphemer, and 
 as stirring up sedition. I see thee betrayed 
 with the kiss of a traitorous disciple, seized, 
 bound, and rudely led by soldiers to the 
 palace of the high-priest, and there arraigned 
 before the council, insulted, derided, con- 
 demned to death, smitten with the palms of 
 their hands, and spit upon, and buffeted; and 
 denied by Peter, who a little before had pro- 
 fessed inviolable attachment and fidelity ! I 
 behold thee at Pilate's bar, accused by the 
 chief priests and elders, the multitude stirred 
 up to demand thy death, and to prefer to 
 thee a robber and a murderer! I hear the 
 sentence of condemnation passed upon thee 
 by the Roman governor, who had previously 
 attested thy innocence. Thou art scourged, 
 and then delivered to be crucified. The 
 whole band of soldiers are gathered together 
 in the common hall to afflict, deride, and 
 torment thee ! Thou art stripped of thy gar- 
 ments, and covered with a scarlet robe ; and, 
 
THE BREAD GIVEN. 179 
 
 being crowned with thorns, with a reed put 
 in thy hand, thou art mocked as the king of 
 the Jews ! They spit upon thee, and with the 
 reed taken from thy hand, they smite thee on 
 the head ! 
 
 Having gratified so far their cruel and 
 malignant desires, and put on thy own rai- 
 ment, they lead thee to Mount Calvary for 
 crucifixion. 
 
 There what do I see? My Lord and 
 Master, the King of kings, and Lord of lords, 
 nailed to the accursed wood, and then lifted 
 up on the cross, and crucified between two 
 thieves, with the utmost ignominy. They 
 that pass by revile thee, wagging their heads; 
 the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, 
 mock thee ! Thy companions in suffering 
 join in deriding thee ! 
 
 Painful and agonizing as were these suf- 
 ferings, what were they, O my Redeemer, 
 compared with what thou didst endure in the 
 garden, when thou didst sweat great drops of 
 blood, falling to the ground; and during the 
 three hours of preternatural darkness on the 
 cross, when thy heart was poured out like 
 water, under the hidings of thy Father's face, 
 and the consuming fires of divine justice, ex- 
 
180 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 acting from thee the punishment due to the 
 sins of the world ! My soul is overwhelmed 
 with the amazing scene ; I am lost in the im- 
 mensity of thy sufferings ! 
 
 Thus, I remember thee, my Lord and 
 Saviour; suffering for my sins, dying that I 
 might live, put to shame that I might be glori- 
 fied ! O ! amazing love ! How hateful now 
 my sins, when seen in the light of the cross ! 
 I mourn, I grieve, I beg forgiveness. I re- 
 nounce my sins. Here, my Lord, I would 
 crucify them on thy cross. Slay them, I 
 beseech thee; purify me from all iniquity, 
 and make me holy, like thyself. 
 
 THE CUP GIVEN. 
 
 Of the cup, which has now been given to 
 me, thou, my Saviour, hast said, " This cup 
 is the new testament in my blood." I 
 receive it as such; sealing to me the new 
 testament or covenant, which was sealed, 
 confirmed by the shedding of thy blood on 
 the cross. Here, therefore, at thy table, I 
 renew my covenant with my God. I take 
 God, the Father, to be my father and recon- 
 ciled friend ; God, the Son, to be my Lord 
 
THE CUP GIVEN. 181 
 
 and Saviour, my prophet, priest, and king ; 
 God, the Holy Ghost, to dwell in my heart, 
 as a fountain of spiritual light and sanctifica- 
 tion: this Triune God to be my God and 
 portion, for ever. And I surrender myself 
 up to God to be his servant, his disciple and 
 follower, and his affectionate child ; always 
 obedient to his will, yielding to the intima- 
 tions of his will, and the influences of his 
 Spirit. And by these symbols, appointed 
 for the purpose, I seal my engagements to be 
 the Lord's. 
 
 Of the bread, thou, my Lord, hast said : — 
 " This is my body which is broken for you ;" 
 (1 Cor. xi. 24;) and of the cup, " This is my 
 blood, of the new testament, which is shed 
 for many for the remission of sins." Matt. 
 xxvi. 28. By faith I take the bread as thy 
 body broken for me; and the cup as thy 
 blood shed for the remission of my sins. By 
 these consecrated symbols thou art assuring 
 me, that I have an interest in all thy suffer- 
 ings, and in thy precious blood of atonement. 
 I accept the all gracious offer, the great sal- 
 vation which thou hast purchased for me ; 
 and I regard these elements as outward signs 
 and seals to me, that I shall, in due time, be 
 16 
 
182 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 put in full possession of all its inestimable 
 and eternal blessings. 
 
 And now, blessed God, having renewed the 
 covenant, and having received the price of 
 eternal redemption, I feel emboldened to con- 
 fess my sins, to implore forgiveness, and all 
 the blessings I need. 
 
 I confess my original guilt and depravity, 
 the numberless sins of my life, and my re- 
 maining imperfections, and humble myself 
 before thee, my God, on account of them. I 
 lament my pride, ambition, and worldly- 
 mindedness. [Here let each one fill up the 
 
 list for himself.! 
 
 _» 
 
 Forgive, I beseech thee, for Christ's sake, 
 who shed his blood for me, all these sins. 
 Blot them all out from the book of thy re- 
 membrance, and let them not rise up in judg- 
 ment against me. 
 
 And I beseech thee to grant me more 
 grace, and to sanctify my whole nature. 
 Clothe me with humility; make me heavenly- 
 minded; inflame my love; enkindle my zeal; 
 impart to me that wisdom which is profitable 
 to direct; render me more exemplary in the 
 discharge of every duty; keep me near to 
 thyself, and let me live in sweet and holy 
 
THE CUP GIVEN. 183 
 
 communion with thee. [Here let each offer 
 the petitions suited to his own case.] 
 
 Blessed God, I embrace this precious op- 
 portunity for praying for my dear companion, 
 my parents, my children, my relatives. [Here 
 each may particularize so as to suit his own 
 case.] 
 
 Nor would I forget the church of which I 
 am a member. Bless our pastor, furnish 
 him to his work. Quicken and animate all 
 its members. Render them more devout, 
 more active, and zealous in thy cause. Oh! 
 for a time of revival, — an effusion of thy 
 Spirit upon us, that all may share in the 
 heavenly influence, and that sinners may be 
 converted in numbers, and thy great name 
 may be glorified. 
 
 Bless the whole church with new life and 
 love, with increasing zeal, activity, and use- 
 fulness. Revive religion every where. Let 
 thy kingdom come, thy will be done on 
 earth, and the world be filled with thy glory. 
 Reign, blessed Jesus, over all nations; and 
 let Jew and Gentile be gathered into thy 
 church, and thy millennian glory be seen in 
 all the earth. Amen and Amen. 
 
 Thou, my Lord and Saviour, art risen 
 
184 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 from the dead; thou hast ascended into 
 heaven; thou art seated on the throne of 
 God; thou hast universal power; thou ever 
 livest to make intercession for thy people; 
 thou wilt come to judge the world in right- 
 eousness, and to complete the salvation of thy 
 church. These glorious truths I rejoice to 
 remember; and by calling them to mind, I 
 am assured that thou canst do for me ex- 
 ceeding abundantly above all that I can ask, 
 desire, or conceive. Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION XXI. 
 
 AFTER RETURNING FROM THE COMMUNION. 
 
 I have returned from the supper of my Lord 
 and Saviour; I have again been at the ban-^ 
 quet he prepares for his disciples. What 
 has been the result ? Were my views clear 
 and satisfactory? my exercises pleasant! 
 Was I enabled to receive the sacred symbols 
 in faith, and to use them for their appropriate 
 purposes? 
 
RETURNING FROM THE COMMUNION. 185 
 
 Did I remember my Redeemer with affec- 
 tionate feelings ; calling to mind his original 
 dignity, his infinite condescension, his pro- 
 found humiliation, his holy life, his bitter 
 sufferings, and shameful death? Especially 
 did I think of the unutterable agonies he en- 
 dured in Gethsemane, and on the cross, when 
 his Father hid his face from him, while a 
 preternatural darkness covered the earth? 
 Did my sins then, in the light of the cross, 
 appear great and hateful ? and did I wish to 
 crucify them, that they might die ? Did the 
 Saviour's love appear great and attractive? 
 
 And, when I received the cup, did I renew 
 my covenant, and seal it with the sacred 
 symbols ? 
 
 Had I freedom in confessing my sins, and 
 in presenting supplications for myself and 
 others ? 
 
 Was the communion sweet and pleasant 
 to my soul? and have I reason to hope, 
 that my attendance on the ordinance was 
 acceptable to my Lord ? May I look for a 
 blessing from my participation of the heavenly 
 feast ? 
 
 If I can render an affirmative answer to 
 these questions, I may well bless and mag- 
 16* 
 
186 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 nify the Lord for his distinguishing grace and 
 love. 
 
 But if my views and exercises were not as 
 I could wish they had been; if I did not en- 
 joy the presence of my Redeemer, as I wish- 
 ed : yet, if my preparation for the ordinance 
 was carefully and duly made, I may console 
 myself with the reflection, that my Saviour is 
 not confined in his favours to any particular 
 hour; and that he may yet manifest himself 
 to my soul, and cause me to experience the 
 profit of waiting on him in his appointed 
 ordinance. Let me, then, look for his bless- 
 ing, and the gracious and consoling influence 
 of his Holy Spirit. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 The Lord be pleased to accept of my 
 desires and endeavours. Pardon whatever 
 was faulty, and graciously add thy blessing 
 to my attempts to serve and honour thee in 
 thy appointed ordinance, before my fellow- 
 men. And to thy name be all the glory. 
 Amen. 
 
THANKSGIVING. 187 
 
 MEDITATION XXII. 
 
 THANKSGIVING. 
 
 This evening it becomes me gratefully to 
 remember the favours and mercies I have re- 
 ceived from the hands of my God. This day 
 I have been distinguished, by the great privi- 
 lege of occupying a seat, with the children 
 of the Most High, at the table of our Lord 
 and Redeemer; and the enjoyment of so sig- 
 nal a blessing, may well lead me to review 
 the numberless favours that have been con- 
 ferred on me. 
 
 So many years ago, I had no existence. 
 The sun was rising and setting; the affairs of 
 men were moving on, and living creatures 
 were rejoicing in the goodness of God; but I 
 had no being, no senses, no capacity, either 
 to behold the light of day, or to participate in 
 the movements of men, or to enjoy the bless- 
 ings of a kind providence. The time fixed 
 in the purpose of the Creator came, and I 
 received an existence that made me a rational 
 and immortal being, raised in the scale of 
 
188 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 creation far above all the classes of inferior 
 creatures that inhabit the earth. Guarded 
 by a kind and watchful Providence, I have 
 been carried safely through the periods of 
 infancy and childhood, of youth and mature 
 age, and continue to enjoy my existence to 
 the present time. I have been sick, but the 
 Lord healed me. I was often exposed to 
 danger, but he delivered me. "From the 
 pestilence that walketh in darkness, and the 
 destruction that wasteth at noon-day," I have 
 been shielded. A thousand have fallen on 
 my right hand, and ten thousands around 
 me; but I have been protected against the 
 strokes of death. Such favours demand my 
 gratitude. 
 
 The care, the affection, and watchfulness 
 of my parents, the means of education, in- 
 structors provided for assisting me, and a 
 disposition to avail myself of these favourable 
 circumstances for the culture of my mind, 
 and the acquisition of useful knowledge, claim 
 a grateful remembrance. 
 
 In due time, it pleased the wise and bene- 
 volent Founder of human families, who, at 
 the beginning, said, * It is not good that the 
 man should be alone; I will make him an 
 

 THANKSGIVING. 189 
 
 help-meet for him," to furnish me with a com- 
 panion, to share in my sorrows and trials, 
 and to partake of my pleasures and enjoy- 
 ments. To this hour we have been kindly 
 preserved in the marriage relation; and 
 having lived together for a number of years, 
 we behold ourselves surrounded, in the good 
 providence of our God, by a flock of children, 
 on whom to bestow our affection and care, 
 and to train up in the nurture and admonition 
 of the Lord. They # and we have been con- 
 tinued in the enjoyment of life; and have been 
 constantly supplied with a sufficiency to meet 
 our daily wants; with food and raiment, a 
 habitation in which to dwell day and night, 
 and fuel to protect us against the severity of 
 wintry cold. What causes of gratitude are 
 here, and how often and thankfully should I 
 call them to mind, that I may not forget the 
 loving-kindness of the Lord. 
 
 But there are richer blessings than these, 
 that call for grateful recollection. The re- 
 straints of Divine providence and grace, that 
 held me back from those depths of iniquity, 
 to which my native depravity impelled me ; 
 the patience and forbearance exercised to- 
 wards me, while I was living in thoughtless 
 
190 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 forgetfulness of my Creator and Benefactor, 
 and indulging my perverse inclinations and 
 sinful propensities, and thus swelling the 
 awful amount of my guilt, and urging on my 
 course in the broad way that leadeth to de- 
 struction, should never be forgotten. Ah! 
 had it pleased God to cut me off at any time 
 in my mad career, how hopeless had been my 
 case, and how multiplied my sorrows ! Hell 
 would have been my wretched abode ! Bless- 
 ed be his sparing mercy that prolonged my 
 sinful life, that I might share in his great sal- 
 vation ! 
 
 The appointed hour came, and my guilty 
 soul was visited with renewing and saving 
 grace. The light of the Holy Spirit was let 
 into my darkened mind. I became awakened 
 to a sense of the importance of religion. My 
 numerous and aggravated sins were brought 
 to view. I saw my guilt, and trembled. 
 
 "What shall I do to be saved?' was my 
 earnest inquiry. How shall I escape deserved 
 punishment ? Like other sinners in their ig- 
 norance, I had recourse to my prayers, to my 
 resolutions and reformation. But they were 
 unavailing; the disease was too deep and ra- 
 dical to be removed by such inefficient pre- 
 
THANKSGIVING. 191 
 
 scriptions. I found no relief; my disease 
 became more aggravated, and my danger 
 greater and more alarming. Hope fled ; de- 
 spair approached. But, in this extremity, 
 when experience had taught me my own 
 weakness and helplessness, and how vain it 
 was to depend upon my own exertions and 
 resolutions, my Deliverer appeared. The 
 Holy Spirit shined on the word, and in my 
 mind. I discovered the plan of free salvation ; 
 I saw my Saviour, his atoning blood, and 
 justifying righteousness; and receiving re- 
 newing grace, I was enabled to believe in 
 him, and to rely on his merits and interces- 
 sion for acceptance with God and for eternal 
 life. Justified freely by grace, my sins were 
 all forgiven, and I could rejoice in God. 
 
 What a change ! I was an enemy to God, 
 but now I am his friend; condemned, but 
 now pardoned ; a child of the devil, but now 
 a child of God; an heir of hell, but now an 
 heir of heaven; posting on in the road to 
 ruin, but now walking in the path that leads 
 to everlasting happiness. Amazing change, 
 produced by the quickening and renewing 
 grace of the Holy Spirit ! To God be all the 
 glory. I deserve no part of the praise. Had 
 
192 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 I been left to myself, I should have remained 
 in all the guilt and misery of my natural 
 state, and gone on from bad to worse, and, 
 from day to day, treasured up to myself 
 wrath against the day of wrath, and revela- 
 tion of the righteous judgment of God. Oh! 
 what gratitude I owe to the Father, to the 
 Son, and to the Holy Ghost, for what has 
 been done for me by his free and sovereign 
 grace; and for making me to differ so much 
 from those of my fellow-creatures who are 
 left to themselves, and do not participate in 
 these inestimable blessings! All glory to 
 God! 
 
 Nor is this all that I have to recall to mind 
 of the distinguishing grace and loving-kind- 
 ness of God to me, unworthy sinner that I 
 am. By his grace I have been preserved in 
 that blessed state of acceptance and friend- 
 ship with him, into which I have been in- 
 troduced, by faith in his Son, our Mediator. 
 Hitherto he has kept me from falling into a 
 state of condemnation; as it is written, 
 " There is therefore now no condemnation to 
 them that are in Christ Jesus, who walk not 
 after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Rom. 
 viii. 1. If at any time, I have declined, or 
 
THANKSGIVING. 193 
 
 backslidden in religion, he has graciously 
 brought me back to his service, and revived 
 me. 
 
 And this day, I have been indulged with 
 the privilege of partaking of that rich banquet, 
 which the love of his Son has provided for 
 his disciples, and of renewing with him "an 
 everlasting covenant, ordered in all things 
 and sure ; which is all my salvation and de- 
 sire." 2 Sam. xxiii. 5. 
 
 Such are the blessings, temporal and 
 spiritual — so great — so various — so mani- 
 fold- — so inestimable— which I have to record 
 and remember this day, to the praise of my 
 God. Oh ! for a grateful heart and tongue to 
 praise the Lord ! 
 
 THANKSGIVING. 
 
 Great and Almighty God, how infinite thy 
 goodness, and boundless thy mercy! When 
 I review my life, and call to mind what thou 
 hast done for me, what abundant reason do 
 I see for adopting the language of David ! 
 " Bless the Lord, O my soul ; and all that is 
 within me, bless his holy name. Bless the 
 17 
 
194 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 Lord, my soul, and forget not all his 
 benefits." They commenced with my exist- 
 ence; they have followed me through life, 
 and have continued to visit me, until the 
 present hour. They are innumerable and 
 very great; fresh every morning and renewed 
 every evening. 
 
 For my existence, as a rational and im- 
 mortal creature, and for my preservation 
 through the dangers of infancy and child- 
 hood, I praise thee, O my Creator and Pre- 
 server. I bless thee for the restraints of thy 
 providence and grace, by which I was kept 
 from acting out the impulses of my depraved 
 desires and wicked passions. For the exer- 
 cise of thy patience and forbearance, by 
 which the stroke of offended justice was held 
 back, and my guilty soul was saved from de- 
 served punishment, I magnify thy name. 
 Daily have I been fed and clothed, while I 
 was daily forgetful of that bountiful hand, 
 which supplied all my recurring wants, spread 
 my table with plenty, furnished me with rai- 
 ment, and provided for me a comfortable 
 dwelling. O bless the Lord, my soul. 
 
 For my companion, and for my children, 
 
THANKSGIVING. 195 
 
 and their preservation, I thank thee, O thou 
 wise and beneficent Founder of families, and 
 kind Benefactor of our race. 
 
 O ! how kind thou hast been in regard to 
 my spiritual interest! Thou didst put into 
 my hand thy inspired word, supplied me 
 with other means of grace, with the worship 
 of thy house and the preaching of the gospel. 
 And what shall I render unto thee, O thou 
 gracious God, that notwithstanding my un- 
 grateful and sinful neglect of these precious 
 favours, thou wast pleased to call me out of 
 darkness into marvelous light. I magnify 
 thy name for the great and wonderful change 
 thou hast wrought in my character and state. 
 Hast thou not, O merciful God, renewed and 
 sanctified my nature, and united me to the 
 Saviour by a living faith? Hast thou not 
 forgiven all my sins and justified me by faith 
 in Christ? Have I not peace with thee! 
 Hast thou not adopted me into thy family? 
 Am I not thy child and an heir of heaven ? 
 and may I not rejoice in hope of the glory of 
 God? For these unutterable blessings, I 
 praise and extol thy great name, O my cove- 
 nant God, and Fountain of all good. For 
 ever be thou glorified by me and all thy 
 
196 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 creatures. And now to the Father, Son, and 
 Holy Ghost, be all praise, for ever and evei. 
 Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION XXIII. 
 
 OBLIGATIONS ASSUMED. 
 
 The Lord's supper is fitly called the Eu- 
 charist, that is, thanksgiving. Well may 
 we render thanks and praise, for the great 
 privilege of commemorating the death of our 
 Redeemer, and of accepting his purchased 
 blessings, whenever we partake of this ordi- 
 nance. But another duty of a different kind, 
 though not at all inconsistent with the plea- 
 sant one of thanksgiving and praise, is de 
 manded. We are called upon to assume 
 covenant obligations, by recognizing God's 
 right over us, entering into covenant with 
 him, and engaging to keep his command- 
 ments, and to live to his glory. And is not 
 this a privilege 1 Does it not claim my gra- 
 titude and praise, that I am permitted to re- 
 turn from my wanderings unto the Fountain 
 
OBLIGATIONS ASSUMED, 197 
 
 of light, of holiness, and of happiness; to 
 bind myself by solemn vows of obedience to 
 my God, with the encouraging hope that he 
 will, for the sake of his own Son, graciously 
 accept of my covenant engagements, and 
 afford me grace to enable me to fulfil them ? 
 
 I have made, in the ordinance on which I 
 have attended, a solemn recognition, that I 
 am not my own, but belong to Jesus Christ, my 
 Lord, and I have devoted myself to his service 
 and glory. And what could be more reason- 
 able and proper? Am I not his in every 
 sense? Has he not in me the most unlimited 
 property ? 
 
 Whence did I derive my existence? Not 
 from myself; nor from my parents, who were 
 only the instruments of bringing me into the 
 world. I owe my existence to Jesus Christ ; 
 " for by him were all things created, that are 
 in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and 
 invisible, whether they be thrones, or do- 
 minions, or principalities, or powers; all 
 things were created by him, and for him." 
 Col. i. 16. He gave me existence. He 
 formed my body, curiously and wonderfully 
 constructed, with its various senses, organs, 
 and limbs. He gave me eyes to see, ears to 
 17* 
 
198 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 hear, legs and feet to walk, arms and hands 
 for their appropriate uses, a mouth to receive 
 necessary food and drink, and a tongue to 
 converse with my fellow creatures, and to 
 speak his praise. He created my soul, and 
 endowed it with all its intellectual and moral 
 faculties. I am his, then, by right of crea- 
 tion. 
 
 By whom has my existence been pre- 
 served? My parents watched carefully over 
 me, during my infancy, childhood, and youth; 
 and I have daily eaten the food necessary for 
 the sustentation of my mortal frame, and put 
 on raiment to protect my body against the 
 cold. But vain had been my own care and 
 that of my parents, had it not been for the 
 preserving and protecting guardianship of my 
 Redeemer. Had he willed it, food would 
 have become nauseous, sickness seized my 
 frame, medicine proved unavailing; the pul- 
 sations of my heart, and the circulation of 
 blood through my veins, would have ceased; 
 my eyes would have been closed, and my ac- 
 tive limbs become motionless, by the cold 
 hand of death. Had he willed it, my exist- 
 ence would have been lost, and my being re- 
 turned to its original nothingness. " In Him 
 
OBLIGATIONS ASSUMED. 199 
 
 we live, and move, and have our being." 
 Acts xvii. 28. I am his by right of preserva- 
 tion. 
 
 And am I not his by innumerable blessings 
 conferred on me? From infancy to the pre- 
 sent hour, he has opened his hand, and sup- 
 plied, by his rich bounty, my daily and re- 
 turning wants. He has watched over me by 
 day and by night, and saved me from dangers 
 seen and unseen. He commanded the sun 
 to rise and shine, that my eyes might see the 
 light, and behold the beauties of nature; and 
 to set, that I might gaze at the glories of the 
 firmament above, and praise the Almighty 
 Creator. He, by his wisdom, mingled to- 
 gether, in due proportion, the elements that 
 compose the atmosphere, to render it fit for 
 human respiration, that I might inhale health, 
 and not death. At his command the rain 
 descends to fertilize the earth; the grass 
 grows; the wheat, and the rye, and the 
 various vegetables, on which we subsist; the 
 trees bring forth their various and delightful 
 fruits; and animals are multiplied to furnish 
 men with food, and supply them with raiment 
 to protect and adorn their bodies. In all 
 these diversified operations of his wonder- 
 
200 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 working providence, I have largely par- 
 taken; and my heart has been made glad by 
 his rich and long continued bounties. And 
 must I not feel constrained by gratitude, to 
 acknowledge that I am his? 
 
 To these common blessings of providence 
 he has added more special blessings. He 
 gave me birth in a Christian country, in a 
 land of civil and religious liberty. He has 
 put into my hand the Bible, containing a 
 revelation from heaven, that I may read and 
 study it, and understand the wonderful plan 
 of salvation, devised by infinite wisdom. He 
 has instituted the Sabbath, that I may enjoy 
 the rest of one day in seven, and attend, 
 without interruption by the ordinary cares 
 and business of life, to the greater interests of 
 religion. He has thrown open to me the 
 doors of the sanctuary, that I may enter in, 
 and worship with the great congregation. 
 He has given me access to the throne of 
 grace, and bidden me come boldly in his 
 name, that I may obtain every needed bless- 
 ing. He has opened the way into the holiest 
 of all, and permitted me to approach and con- 
 verse with infinite Majesty. He has imparted 
 to me the Holy Spirit, as a teacher, advo- 
 
OBLIGATIONS ASSUMED. 201 
 
 cate, comforter, and witness, to regenerate 
 and sanctify my soul, and to perfect holiness 
 in me. He has bought me with his blood, 
 and wrought out for me a perfect righteous- 
 ness, that I may appear with acceptance in 
 the eyes of infinite purity. 
 
 And am I not his, who has done all this 
 for me; bestowed on me such numberless 
 and rich blessings; who has purchased me as 
 his property, and delivered me from captivity 
 to sin, and death, and hell ; and has prepared 
 mansions in his Father's house, that I may 
 dwell with him there, in eternal happiness, 
 and in endless glory? Certainly I am his, 
 who has bestowed on me such unutterable 
 benefits. 
 
 By right of creation — by right of preser- 
 vation — by right of numberless benefactions, 
 — by right of redemption — by the quicken- 
 ing and sanctifying influences of his Holy 
 Spirit, and by repeated self-dedications to his 
 service, solemnly acknowledged, and ratified, 
 at the table of my Lord, I belong to Him, 
 who "died, and rose, and revived, that he 
 might be Lord both of the dead and living." 
 Rom. xiv. 10. 
 
 Yes, I have solemnly recognized the right 
 
202 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 of Jesus Christ; and, in the presence of men, 
 of angels, and of God, I have devoted myself, 
 soul and body, to his service and glory. O ! 
 may I never forget the solemn truth, and 
 solemn transaction! May I be enabled to 
 fulfil my covenant engagements ! I do not 
 belong to the world. Let me then come out 
 from it, and be separate; and manifest by 
 my life, that I am not governed by the sinful 
 views, and maxims, and principles, that 
 govern unrenewed men, but by those that are 
 set forth in the sacred Scriptures. The ser- 
 vitude of Satan I renounce; therefore I must 
 resist all his temptations, and oppose the 
 interests of his usurped dominion over the 
 world. I am not my own ; therefore I may 
 not follow my own sinful inclinations, nor 
 gratify my evil passions, and carnal desires. 
 My flesh and sinful lusts must all be mortified 
 and crucified. My body is to be presented 
 as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto 
 God, a reasonable service; and I am to be 
 transformed by the renewing of my mind, 
 that I may prove what is that good, and ac- 
 ceptable, and perfect will of God. Rom. xii. 
 1, 2. In a word, I must follow Christ, and 
 be holy as God is holy; and endeavour to 
 
PRAYER. 203 
 
 shine forth in all the heavenly graces and 
 virtues that pertain to a perfect man in Christ 
 Jesus. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 My Lord and my God, I acknowledge thy 
 right to me and over me. I am thine, in 
 every sense of the word. Thine by creation, 
 thine by preservation, thine by thy benefac- 
 tions, thine by redemption, thine by regene- 
 ration, thine by self-dedication. I am not my 
 own, but wholly thine, for time and for eter- 
 nity. In this I rejoice. O! for grace to 
 remember the glorious truth, and to live ac- 
 cording to its controlling influence. Let me 
 never forget it. O! engrave it on my memo- 
 ry, and in my heart. May I, at all times, 
 and in all circumstances, acknowledge that 
 I am not mine own, but belong to my faith- 
 ful Lord and Saviour, who has bought me 
 with his precious blood, and sanctified me 
 by his Holy Spirit, and constrained me to 
 devote myself soul and body to his service 
 and honour, for ever. May I be faithful to 
 my engagements, and always live in such a 
 way as to prove to the world, that I am the 
 
204 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 servant and friend of my Redeemer. Reign 
 in me, blessed Jesus. Take entire possession 
 of my soul and body; and control all the 
 faculties of the one, and all the members of 
 the other, so as to do thy holy will, and bring 
 glory to thy great name, both here and here- 
 after. Amen and Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION XXIV, 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S WARFARE. 
 
 The Christian's life is not one of ease and 
 unmingled pleasure. It is exhibited in scrip- 
 ture, by metaphors that imply self-denial, 
 exertion, and danger. It is compared to a 
 race, to wrestling, to a warfare. The Chris- 
 tian has numerous, powerful, vigilant, and 
 deceitful enemies, w r ith whom he must con- 
 tend. Let me look at them, and contemplate 
 the warfare in which I have engaged, by be- 
 coming a follower of Jesus Christ. 
 
 The world in which I live lieth in wicked- 
 ness. Being in rebellion against God, it is 
 opposed to his cause, and his religion among 
 
THE CHRISTIAN'S WARFARE. 205 
 
 men. It is of course an enemy to all his 
 friends, and will not fail to attempt to defile 
 the purity of their heart, and to turn them 
 aside from the path of duty. It has various 
 enticing objects to seduce them from the way 
 of God's commandments ; riches, honour, and 
 pleasure, by which it controls and holds in 
 bondage all unrenewed men. Let me watch 
 against their seductive influence. 
 
 If in the prosecution of regular business, it 
 please God, by his propitious Providence, to 
 grant success to my enterprises and exertions, 
 so as to advance me to the possession of 
 wealth; or if he bestow upon me a large in- 
 heritance; I am not to refuse his gifts, but 
 thankfully to enjoy them. But, then, let me 
 beware, lest I indulge inordinate desire and 
 anxious care, either in the pursuit, or in the 
 possession of wealth. " Take heed, and be- 
 ware of covetousness," is the injunction of 
 my Saviour; "for a man's life consisteth not 
 in the abundance of the things which he pos- 
 sessed." Luke xii. 15. "Godliness with 
 contentment is great gain," says Paul ; " for 
 we brought nothing into this world; and it 
 is certain we can carry nothing out. And 
 having food and raiment, let us be therewith 
 18 
 
206 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 content. But they that will be rich fall into 
 temptation and a snare, and into many foolish 
 and hurtful lusts, which drown men in de- 
 struction and perdition. For the love of 
 money is the root of all evil : which while 
 some coveted after, they have erred from the 
 faith, and pierced themselves through with 
 many sorrows." 1 Tim. vi. 6-10. These 
 instructive lessons, let me never forget. Im- 
 printed on my heart, they will save me from 
 every inordinate desire for wealth, and keep 
 me back from all unjust means in the acqui- 
 sition of gain ; and prompt me to the exercise 
 of that liberality which will lead to such a 
 use of wealth, in the support of the gospel 
 and in the relief of the poor, as becomes the 
 character of a Christian, and will secure the 
 approbation of God. 
 
 A good reputation is certainly an object 
 worthy of my desire; for without it I cannot 
 adorn the gospel I profess. But then it must 
 be acquired by a pious life and the practice 
 of Christian virtues. But the honours that 
 the world presents as objects of ambition, and 
 that are to be gained by engaging in party 
 intrigue and party practices, I should refuse 
 and abhor. And yet, if, in the regular dis- 
 
THE CHRISTIAN'S WARFARE. 207 
 
 charge of duty, I should be elevated to a post 
 of honour, or a station of trust, power, and 
 influence, let me regard it as a gift of divine 
 Providence, to increase my means of doing 
 good, and promoting religion. 
 
 " Wisdom's ways are ways of pleasantness, 
 and all her paths are paths of peace." Prov. 
 iii. 17. The pleasures of domestic and social 
 life, are not denied to a Christian. I may 
 freely participate in them, under the guidance 
 and restraints of that wisdom that cometh 
 down from above. But there are pleasures 
 in which worldlings delight, which pollute 
 the soul, and excite and increase the power of 
 evil passions. Of these let me beware. The 
 theatre is to be shunned as a school of vice; 
 and the midnight ball regarded as an exercise 
 unbecoming one professing godliness, and 
 corrupting in its influence. I am not to fre- 
 quent those large and crowded parties that 
 assemble and break up at such unseasonable 
 hours, and so often interrupt the regular wor- 
 ship of families. Nor am I to imitate those 
 inconsiderate persons, who, by luxurious and 
 expensive entertainments, go beyond their 
 means, and tempt themselves to embezzle 
 the property of others, to enable them to per- 
 
208 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 sist in their folly. Over all my amusements, 
 recreations, enjoyments and pleasures, let 
 heavenly wisdom preside, and save me from 
 abusing the gifts of a kind Providence. 
 
 But there are greater and more powerful 
 enemies with whom I have to contend. 
 "We," says the apostle, "wrestle not against 
 ilesh and blood, but against principalities, 
 against powers, against the rulers of the 
 darkness of this world, against spiritual 
 wickedness in high places." Ephes. vi. 12. 
 What a fearful array ! From this passage it 
 appears that fallen angels are so numerous as 
 to be distributed into certain orders of 
 government. At their head stands Satan, 
 once a mighty archangel, but now the great 
 enemy of God's kingdom in this world. He 
 attempted and succeeded in the enterprise of 
 seducing our first parents into sin: and ever 
 since that fatal day, he and his rebellious 
 associates have prosecuted, with untiring 
 diligence and malignant pleasure, the dread- 
 ful work of tempting men to sin against God. 
 He reigns over this fallen world, and leads 
 our sinful race captives, according to his 
 pleasure. They willingly yield to his seduc- 
 tive temptations, which accord with their 
 
THE CHRISTIAN'S WARFARE. 209 
 
 sinful lusts and wicked passions. Satan and 
 his associates have studied human nature for 
 many ages; and know, by long experience, 
 how to adapt their temptations to each man's 
 temper and circumstances. Ever watchful, 
 they are ready to apply their influence at the 
 proper juncture, and the most favourable 
 moment, to insure success. 
 
 With such enemies, so numerous, so ma- 
 lignant, so artful and cunning, and so watch- 
 ful and untiring in their work of beguiling 
 and ruining men, thou, O my soul, hast to 
 contend. They are invisible to the eye, but 
 they are real, and the more dangerous on 
 account of their invisibility. Against their 
 devices and snares how carefully oughtest 
 thou to watch and pray! 
 
 Alas ! they find within me an enemy ever 
 ready to unite in their wicked designs, and 
 deliver me up to their seductive influence. 
 My heart, though quickened into spiritual 
 life, and sanctified by the Holy Spirit, is but 
 imperfectly purified. There is still remaining 
 within me " the old man," sin, to oppose " the 
 new man," a principle of holiness, in all his 
 efforts of obedience; so that I cannot do 
 the good I would. Ah! were I free from all 
 18* 
 
210 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 remains of sins, were I perfectly holy, resist- 
 ance to the devil's temptations would not be 
 so difficult. How much reason have I to 
 exclaim, with the apostle, "O wretched 
 man that I am! who shall deliver me from 
 the body of this death'? I thank God through 
 Jesus Christ our Lord." Rom. vii. 24, 25. 
 
 But in this great fight with enemies so 
 mighty, so numerous, and so dangerous, let 
 me not be discouraged. God has provided 
 me with a complete armour for the battle. 
 There is the girdle of truth to keep the 
 armour in its place, and the breastplate of 
 righteousness to protect the breast. My feet 
 may be shod with the preparation of the gos- 
 pel of peace. There is the shield of faith to 
 quench all the fiery darts of the wicked; the 
 helmet, or hope, of salvation to guard the 
 head against deadly strokes ; and the sword 
 of the Spirit, which is the word of God, to be 
 wielded in assailing my enemies. Ephes. vi. 
 13—17. 
 
 Here is complete armour for my warfare. 
 Let me put it on ; and thus armed, let me go 
 forth under the conduct of the great Captain 
 of salvation, to the warfare to which I am 
 called; and, with earnest prayer to Almighty 
 
THE CHRISTIAN'S WARFARE. 211 
 
 God for grace and strength, let me endeavour 
 to be " strong in the Lord and in the power 
 of his might ;" that I may be enabled " to 
 withstand in the evil day, and having done 
 all, to stand." Ephes. vi. 10, 13. 
 
 I have looked at my enemies ; now let me 
 look at my allies and friends. Here on earth 
 I see the host of God's elect ; all engaged in 
 the same warfare, and continually offering 
 up to the glorious Head of the church, the 
 prayer, " Thy kingdom come." In heaven 
 I behold the mighty angels prepared for her 
 and my aid ; for " are they not all minister- 
 ing spirits, sent forth to minister for them who 
 shall be heirs of salvation 1 Heb. i. 14. They 
 are more numerous and more powerful than 
 fallen spirits, and render to the children of 
 God signal aid. " The angel of the Lord 
 encampeth round about them that fear him, 
 and delivereth them." Psal. xxxiv. 7. Ter- 
 rified by a sight of the Syrian host that com- 
 passed the city, both with horses and chariots, 
 " the young man who waited on Elisha ex- 
 claimed, " Alas, my master ! how shall we 
 do? And he answered, " Fear not : for they 
 that be with us, are more than they that be 
 with them. And Elisha prayed and said, 
 
212 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he 
 may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of 
 the young man, and he saw; and behold, the 
 mountain was full of horses and chariots of 
 fire, round about Elisha." 2 Kings vi. 15 — 17. 
 And were my eyes, and the eyes of other 
 Christians opened, as were the eyes of this 
 young man, what discoveries should we make, 
 and how should we rejoice in the heavenly 
 guards God has stationed around us! 
 
 And when we consider, that Jehovah him- 
 self is on our side, surely we are authoriz- 
 ed to dismiss every dispiriting fear! The 
 triumphant interrogatories of the apostle Paul, 
 become our lips : " If God be for us who can 
 be against us ? He that spared not his own 
 Son, but delivered him up for us all, how 
 shall he not with him also freely give us all 
 things ? Who shall lay any thing to the charge 
 of God's elect ? God that justifieth ? Will he 
 do it 1 Who is he that condemneth ? Christ 
 that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who 
 is even at the right hand of God, who also 
 maketh intercession for us? Will he con- 
 demn? Who shall separate us from the love 
 of Christ 1 Shall tribulation, or distress, or 
 persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, 
 
PRAYER. 213 
 
 or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we 
 are killed all the day long ; we are accounted 
 as sheep for the slaughter. 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 prin- 
 cipalities, 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." Rom. viii. 31—39. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Almighty God, in what a warfare have I 
 engaged, by entering into the service of Jesus 
 Christ thy Son ! With what enemies I have 
 to contend ! The world meets me, to entice 
 me back from his blessed control. It urges 
 its sinful maxims, customs, practices, and 
 amusements, to turn my feet from his com- 
 mandments. By its wealth, its honours, and 
 its pleasures, it allures me from duty. By 
 innumerable, cunning, and malignant fallen 
 spirits, I am surrounded; who are constantly 
 watching for opportunities to press upon me 
 their temptations. And alas ! my depraved 
 
214 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 heart is ready to seize the temptation, and to 
 side with my spiritual enemies, that I may be 
 led astray from thy holy precepts. 
 
 When I consider my own weakness, and 
 compare myself with the number, power, 
 subtilty, and influence of my enemies, how 
 discouraging the warfare ! But blessed be 
 thy name, I am not called to war in my own 
 strength. I may rely on thy almighty aid. 
 Thou hast provided for me a complete armour. 
 O ! help me to put it on ; and lead me on to 
 fight under the conduct of the great Captain 
 of salvation. I am not alone in this warfare. 
 I have for my fellow soldiers, all the chosen 
 and redeemed of God on earth, who are send- 
 ing up prayer to God for themselves and 
 each other. And I am taught by thy word 
 to believe, that the holy angels are minister- 
 ing to my welfare and safety. More are on my 
 side than they that be against me. With such 
 friends and allies, I may, relying on the grace 
 of my God, go on cheerfully in the warfare, and 
 entertain a confident hope of a final and tri- 
 umphant victory over all my spiritual enemies. 
 
 I shall at last tread them all under my 
 feet, and exult for ever in the finished salva- 
 tion of my glorious Redeemer. Into thy 
 
WATCHFULNESS. 215 
 
 hands, O my God, I commit my soul. Pre- 
 serve me, blameless, unto thy heavenly king- 
 dom, and bestow upon me a crown of life, 
 for Jesus' sake. Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION XXV. 
 
 WATCHFULNESS AND DEPENDENCE ON DIVINE AS- 
 SISTANCE. 
 
 When I compare my enemies with my 
 friends and allies, I see the latter exceed in 
 number, and far transcend in power the for- 
 mer ; so that I may, in this view of my case, 
 well cheer myself, by repeating the triumphant 
 language of the apostle, recited in the preced- 
 ing meditation. But guarded as I am by the 
 ministry of holy angels, and protected by the 
 Almighty, I must not forget, that I am here 
 in a state of warfare, and on the field of bat- 
 tle, and that, while in such a state, I am ex- 
 posed to dangers, which demand unceasing 
 watchfulness, and the vigorous exertion of 
 every power I possess. The commander of 
 a well appointed army, confiding in its valour, 
 may, when he sees the inferiority of his 
 
216 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 enemy, feel assured of gaining victory in the 
 day of conflict. But were he to suffer him- 
 self to be deceived by his confidence, so as 
 to be betrayed into security, and to neglect 
 to post his sentinels around his encampment 
 at night, he would act a most unwise part, 
 and expose his army to surprise, by a mid- 
 night assault, and a shameful overthrow. 
 
 This duty is forcibly recommended by the 
 consideration of certain cases on record. 
 Several of the ancient saints failed in the 
 exercise of particular graces for which they 
 were eminent. Abraham was distinguished 
 by the strength of his faith; yet he failed in 
 the exercise of faith, in more than one 
 instance, by the story he invented to secure 
 himself from danger, to which he feared he 
 would be exposed, by the beauty of his wife. 
 Moses is pronounced the meekest man on 
 earth; yet he was so provoked, by the rebel- 
 lion of the Israelites, that, at Horeb, when he 
 smote the rock, and brought forth a plentiful 
 stream of water, to allay their thirst, he spake 
 unadvisedly with his lips, and failed to honour 
 God; and was, on account of this sin, for- 
 bidden to enter the land of promise. See 
 Psal. cvi. 32, 33. Numb. xx. 10, 11. The 
 
WATCHFULNESS. 217 
 
 failures in duty, of these eminent saints, may 
 teach me a salutary lesson, to be always on 
 the watch. 
 
 The cases of Lot and David are awaken- 
 ing and alarming. Lot was certainly a 
 righteous man; he is so styled by Peter; 
 (2 Pet. ii. 7, 8;) yet shortly after his memo- 
 rable deliverance from the conflagration of 
 Sodom, into what shameful sins was he 
 betrayed by his two daughters ? Gen. xix. 
 30-38. David passed through many great 
 and severe trials, with honour to himself. 
 But after the Lord had delivered him out of 
 them all, and had firmly established him on 
 the throne of Israel, into what shameful sins 
 did he fall that brought upon him severe 
 punishment from the hand of God, and 
 called for deep abasement and anguish of 
 soul! 
 
 Look at these cases, O my soul, and trem- 
 ble. See to what depths of iniquity thou 
 mightest fall, if thou were not sustained, by 
 the upholding grace of God. How necessary 
 and worthy of thy consideration, the admo- 
 nitions of the apostle ! " Let him that think- 
 eth he standeth, take heed lest he fall :" 1 Cor. 
 x. 12 ; and again, " Be not high-minded, but 
 19 
 
218 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 fear." Rom. xi. 20. Peter, after having led 
 us to the contemplation of the end of the 
 world, adds this caution: "Ye therefore, be- 
 loved, seeing ye know these things, beware 
 lest ye also being led away with the error of 
 the wicked, fall from your own steadfastness." 
 2 Pet. iii. 17. 
 
 The Lord is true to his promises, and I 
 may, with confidence, rely on his faithful- 
 ness ; but let me remember I am not author- 
 ized to expect their fulfilment to me, unless I 
 use the means appointed for the purpose. 
 The great apostle, who well understood the 
 nature of the promises, and their connexion 
 with human exertion, says of himself, "I 
 therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, 
 not as one that beateth the air : but I keep 
 under my body, and bring it into subjection, 
 lest that by any means, when I have preach- 
 ed to others, I myself should be a castaway." 
 1 Cor. ix. 26, 27. And this important direc- 
 tion he has left on record, " Wherefore seeing 
 we also are compassed about with so great a 
 cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every 
 weight, and the sin which doth so easily be- 
 set us, and let us run with patience the race 
 that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the 
 
WATCHFULNESS. 219 
 
 author and finisher of our faith ; who for the 
 joy that was set before him, endured the 
 cross, despising the shame, and is set down 
 at the right hand of God. For consider him 
 that endured such contradiction of sinners 
 against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint 
 in your minds." Heb. xii. 1 — 3. 
 
 Watchfulness, in a state of warfare, is a 
 most reasonable duty. How frequent the ex- 
 hortations to it in the Scriptures ! " Watch, 
 therefore : for ye know not what hour your 
 Lord doth come." " Watch and pray, that 
 ye enter not into temptation." " Watch ye, 
 stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be 
 strong." " Therefore let us not sleep, as do 
 others : but let us watch, and be sober." 
 " But the end of all things is at hand ; be ye 
 therefore sober, and w T atch unto prayer." 
 Matt. xxiv. 42; xxvi. 41. 1 Cor. xvi. 13. 
 1 Thess. v. 6. 1 Pet. iv. 7. 
 
 My soul, remember this important injunc- 
 tion of thy Lord, so often repeated by his in- 
 spired apostles. Watch against thy enemies, 
 at all times, and in all places: watch and 
 pray. 
 
 Another duty that demands my special at- 
 tention in this warfare, is, to bear in con- 
 
220 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 stant remembrance my own weakness and 
 insufficiency, for this spiritual and dangerous 
 conflict. The Spirit of God, I trust, has 
 quickened me to a new and divine life. But 
 the grace already communicated, is not 
 enough for the preservation, and demands of 
 this life. It is not with me, as it was with 
 Adam. He had received his spiritual life in 
 perfection, and was amply furnished for all 
 his duties and temptations ; and nothing was 
 required but watchfulness, and the exercise of 
 his inherent power, to preserve himself in 
 a state of holiness. Not so with me. I can- 
 not live on grace received. My life is hid 
 with Christ in God, (Col. iii. 3,) and must be 
 sustained by daily supplies of grace from my 
 covenant Head. With what beauty does the 
 Redeemer illustrate the truth, and with what 
 kindness, enforce the corresponding duty ! 
 " I am the true vine, and my Father is the 
 husbandman. Every branch in me that bear- 
 eth not fruit he taketh away: and every 
 branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that 
 it may bring forth more fruit. Abide in me, 
 and I in you. As the branch cannot bear 
 fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine, no 
 more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am 
 
WATCHFULNESS. 221 
 
 the vine, ye are the branches : he that abideth 
 in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth 
 much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. 
 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as 
 a branch, and is withered : and men gather 
 them, and cast them into the fire, and they 
 are burned." John xv. 1 — 6. 
 
 On this mystery of the divine life, it be- 
 comes me to meditate frequently and serious- 
 ly ; that, by bearing in mind my own weak- 
 ness, I may seek and derive strength from 
 my Redeemer. Then will my experience 
 accord with that of Paul, and I may adopt 
 his language, and say, " When I am weak, 
 then am I strong." 2 Cor. xii. 10. The more 
 I feel my weakness, the more shall I feel the 
 need of help from above ; and applying the 
 more frequently by faith and prayer to my 
 Redeemer for supplies of his grace, he will not 
 fail to grant them, and render me strong in 
 the Lord, and in the power of his might. 
 
 After the extraordinary visions afforded to 
 this great and highly favoured man, there 
 was given to him a thorn in the flesh, the 
 messenger of Satan to buffet him, lest he 
 should be exalted above measure. Thrice he 
 besought the Lord to remove from him this 
 19* 
 
222 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 evil, which he feared would be a serious im- 
 pediment to his usefulness in preaching the 
 gospel. It was not removed ; yet his prayer 
 was heard and answered to his entire satis- 
 faction. " My grace," said his Master, " is 
 sufficient for thee : for my strength is made 
 perfect in weakness." This divine assurance 
 was sufficient for the apostle, who imme- 
 diately exclaimed, "most gladly, therefore, 
 will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the 
 power of Christ may rest upon me. There- 
 fore, I take pleasure in infirmities, in re- 
 proaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in 
 distresses, for Christ's sake : for when I am 
 weak, then am I strong." 2 Cor. xii. 7 — 10. 
 This gracious assurance, let it be remem- 
 bered, has been left on record, for my benefit, 
 and that of all believing Christians. What 
 the Redeemer said to Paul, he says to us ; 
 " My grace is sufficient for thee : for my 
 strength is made perfect in weakness." His 
 divine power can be illustrated in my weak- 
 ness, as well as it was in that of Paul. Had 
 I the faith of this holy man, I might, as he 
 did, take pleasure in my infirmities, that my 
 Redeemer might be honoured, by the sustain- 
 ing influence of his grace. 
 

 WATCHFULNESS. 223 
 
 Meditation, then, on my own weakness, 
 that I may keep it in constant remembrance, 
 will have no tendency to discourage me; 
 provided I consider it in connexion with the 
 all-sufficiency of my Redeemer. He can 
 strengthen me in my weakness, so as to pre- 
 pare me for every trial and duty. " For it 
 pleased the Father, that in him should all 
 fulness dwell; and in him dwelleth all the 
 fulness of the Godhead bodily." Col. i. 19; 
 ii. 9. "And of his fulness," says John, "have 
 all we received, and grace for grace." John 
 i. 16. Here is a fountain of grace ever full 
 and overflowing. At this fountain drank 
 all the pious who lived before the Saviour's 
 advent, and all who have lived since that 
 period ; and to this inexhaustible fountain 
 may I apply, from day to day, as long as I 
 live, and draw all needful supplies of grace- 
 strength and consolation. Here, then, is 
 ample encouragement to go on my way re- 
 joicing; confiding in the promise, "God is 
 faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted 
 above that ye are able to bear; but will with 
 the temptation also make a way to escape, 
 that ye may be able to bear it." 1 Cor. x. 13. 
 
224 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Almighty and merciful God, grant me 
 grace, that I may ever attend to the great 
 duty of Christian watchfulness. May I 
 always bear in mind my own weakness, and 
 insufficiency for the conflict in which I am 
 called to engage, by following my Lord and 
 Master. Never suffer me, I beseech thee, by 
 forgetting my weakness, to become secure, 
 and lay myself open to surprise. May I 
 always be awake to a sense of danger ; re- 
 membering that it is only while I watch, and 
 pray, and exert myself, I am authorized to 
 expect promised aid. 
 
 Let me profit by the recorded instances of 
 failure in duty, by eminent saints ; and take 
 a salutary alarm, when I reflect on the sad 
 and disgraceful falls of David, and Peter, and 
 others. I cannot live on grace received. I 
 need a daily and constant supply from my 
 covenant Head, Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. 
 
 But, O Lord, I know that while I cherish 
 a due sense of my own weakness and depend- 
 ence, I have no ground for despondency or 
 discouragement. Thou art Almighty, and 
 able to strengthen me with all might, by thy 
 
PKAYER. 225 
 
 Spirit, in the inner man. Thou hast pro- 
 mised, that we shall not be tempted ' above 
 that we are able to bear ; and that, with the 
 temptation, a way to escape shall be made, 
 that we may be able to bear it. On thy 
 gracious promise, I desire to rely, and to 
 place myself under the shadow of thy pro- 
 tecting wings. 
 
 May the assurance of the Saviour, " My 
 grace is sufficient for thee; for my strength 
 is made perfect in weakness," be engraven 
 on my memory and heart, that I may con- 
 tinually rely upon his promised grace and 
 assistance. 0! for the faith of the apostle, 
 to be enabled, like him, to glory in my infir- 
 mities, that the power of Christ may rest 
 upon me ; and find, in my happy experience, 
 "when I am weak, then am I strong." 
 
 Preserve me, my God, safe unto the end. 
 Give me the victory over all my spiritual 
 foes, that I may, at last, enter into thy hea- 
 venly kingdom, and rest from all my toils 
 and conflicts. Hear me, Lord, for Christ's 
 sake. Amen. 
 
226 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 MEDITATION XXVI. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S REWARD. 
 
 Reward! What reward do I deserve, for 
 any service I have rendered to my Lord 
 and Master? Ah ! had I received my deserts, 
 I should, at this moment, have been a cast- 
 away; shut up in the prison of despair, and 
 groaning under the weight of a punishment 
 just, severe and endless. But God had mercy 
 on me, and was pleased to make me partaker 
 of an interest in the righteousness of Jesus 
 Christ. Jesus is the author of my salvation. 
 He has purchased, by his death and obe- 
 dience, all the blessings I have received, and 
 shall receive. How explicit the language of 
 sacred Scripture on this subject ! " The gift 
 of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ 
 our Lord." Rom. vi. 23. " He that heareth 
 my words, and believeth on him that sent me, 
 hath everlasting life, and shall not come into 
 condemnation; but is passed from death unto 
 life." John v. 24. There is, therefore, now 
 no condemnation to them that are in Christ 
 
THE CHRISTIAN'S REWARD. 227 
 
 Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after 
 the spirit," Rom. viii. 1; "who was delivered 
 for our offences, and was raised again for 
 our justification." Rom. iv. 25. "I give 
 unto them eternal life ; and they shall never 
 perish, neither shall any pluck them out of 
 my hand." John x. 17. "But after that 
 the kindness and love of God our Saviour 
 toward man appeared, not by works of right- 
 eousness which we have done, but according 
 to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of 
 regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy 
 Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly 
 through Jesus Christ our Saviour; that being 
 justified by his grace, we should be made 
 heirs, according to the hope of eternal life." 
 Tit. iii. 4-7. "But where sin abounded, 
 grace did much more abound, that as sin 
 hath reigned unto death, even so might grace 
 reign through righteousness unto eternal life, 
 by Jesus Christ our Lord." Rom. v. 20, 21. 
 So plainly am I taught, that I am indebted 
 to the merits of my Redeemer for eternal 
 life, and every other blessing of salvation. 
 All the glory, then, belongs to him ; and hence 
 it is, I have access to the throne of grace 
 
228 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 through him, and am directed to offer all my 
 prayers in his name. 
 
 And yet the infinite wisdom of God has 
 established a connexion between my obedi- 
 ence to his law, and my salvation. Good 
 works are necessary to salvation, though 
 destitute of any merit; and for the encourage- 
 ment of Christians, and to quicken and ani- 
 mate their zeal, God has been pleased to 
 present their future happiness in the light of 
 a reward. It is written, " who will render 
 to every man according to his deeds; to 
 them who by patient continuance in well 
 doing seek for glory and honour, and immor- 
 tality, eternal life." Rom. ii. 6, 7. "For 
 God is not unrighteous to forget your work 
 and labour of love, which ye have showed to- 
 ward his name, in that ye have ministered to 
 the saints, and do minister. And we desire 
 that every one of you do show the same dili- 
 gence to the full assurance of hope unto the 
 end : that ye be not slothful, but followers of 
 them who through faith and patience inherit 
 the promises." — Heb. vi. 10, 11. "He that 
 soweth sparingly, shall reap also sparingly ; 
 and he that soweth bountifully, shall reap also 
 
THE CHRISTIAN'S REWARD. 229 
 
 bountifully." 2 Cor. ix. 6. " And they that 
 be wise shall shine as the brightness of the 
 firmament ; and they that turn many to right- 
 eousness, as the stars for ever and ever." 
 Dan. xii. 3. 
 
 While, therefore, I am permitted to eon- 
 template my future happiness as a reward of 
 my obedience, let me never forget the true 
 connexion between them; that the reward 
 for which I may look, is a reward of grace, 
 bestowed for the sake of Jesus Christ ; to 
 whom I owe all my present privileges and 
 hopes ; and to whose merits I shall hereafter 
 owe my admission into heaven, my acquittal 
 in the day of judgment, and the bestowment 
 of eternal life. 
 
 Thus instructed, contemplate, my soul, the 
 glorious reward of Christians. How bright, 
 how brilliant, how transcendent ! Gaze at 
 it ; and let it awaken thy ambition, and cap- 
 tivate all thy desires, and throw into the 
 shade all those inferior objects of this world, 
 that would dispute for the supremacy of thy 
 heart. 
 
 What will be thy reward ? " Be thou 
 faithful unto death, and I will give thee a 
 crown of life" is the promise of thy Redeemer, 
 20 
 
230 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 Rev. ii. 10. Not a crown of gold, studded 
 with jewels, and brilliant with diamonds; 
 such as adorn the heads of earthly monarchs. 
 These are not crowns of life. They pass 
 from head to head, and will at last be lost in 
 the final conflagration of the world. A crown 
 of life is conceivably more valuable than the 
 richest crown that ever decked a mortal's 
 brow. It will never fade ; it will increase in 
 brilliancy with the lapse of ages. No cares, 
 no anxiety will it produce in my breast. Se- 
 cured to me by the immutable promise of God, 
 it will fill my soul with unutterable peace and 
 joy. It can never be lost ; it will through 
 eternal ages adorn my brow. 
 
 Again, I read another promise of my Re- 
 deemer : " He that overcometh the same shall 
 be clothed in white raiment ; and I will not 
 blot out his name out of the book of life, but 
 I will confess his name before my Father, 
 and before his angels." Rev. iii. 5. What a 
 delightful promise ! Here my garments are 
 soiled and blackened by sin; but hereafter 
 they will be washed in the blood of the Lamb, 
 made white, and kept white, and free from 
 every stain. I shall be perfectly freed from 
 sin, and shine for ever in the beauties of holi- 
 

 THE CHRISTIAN'S REWARD. 231 
 
 ness. My name, now recorded in the book 
 of life, will never be erased, but remain writ- 
 ten there for ever. And in the day of judg- 
 ment, when the universe shall be assembled, 
 my worthless name will be confessed before 
 the eternal Father, and before his holy angels. 
 The Lord of glory will acknowledge me as 
 an elect one, redeemed by his blood, sanctified 
 by his Spirit, adopted into his family, and 
 constituted an heir to an eternal inheritance ! 
 What honour ! what blessedness ! 
 
 To raise my hopes still higher the Redeemer 
 utters another promise : " To him that over- 
 cometh will I grant to sit with me on my 
 throne, even as I also overcame, and am set 
 down with my Father on his throne." Rev. 
 iii. 21. What a promise! What human 
 mind can comprehend its import? Well 
 might the apostle say, "Beloved, now are 
 we the sons of God, and it doth not yet ap- 
 pear what we shall be," 1 John iii. 2: and 
 another, " For we know that the whole crea- 
 tion groaneth and travaileth in pain together 
 until now. And not only they, but ourselves 
 also, which have the first fruits of the Spirit, 
 even we ourselves, groan within ourselves, 
 
232 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 waiting for the adoption, to wit the redemp- 
 tion of our body." Rom. viii. 22, 23. 
 
 Compared with the rich, and glorious, and 
 infinite reward that my Redeemer will be- 
 stow on my fidelity, what are the objects 
 which the world holds out to tempt my am- 
 bition, and entice my heart ? Its treasures, 
 compared with eternal treasures in heaven ; 
 its honours, compared with the honours which 
 the Judge of the universe will bestow on his 
 faithful followers ; its pleasures, polluted and 
 fading, compared with the pure, refined, 
 transporting and enduring pleasures of im- 
 mortal beings — what are they? The small 
 dust of the balance! a drop to the ocean! 
 
 Rise then, my soul, and let a heavenly 
 ambition animate thy desires, and redouble 
 thy exertions, in the service of thy gracious 
 Lord and Master. Seek those things which 
 are above, where Christ Jesus sitteth on the 
 right hand of God. Set thy affections on 
 things above, not on things on the earth. 
 Col. iii. 1,2. In imitation of the holy apostle, 
 " forgetting the things which are behind, and 
 reaching forth unto those things that are be- 
 fore, press toward the mark for the prize of 
 
THE CHRISTIAN'S REWARD. 233 
 
 the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." 
 Phil iii. 13, 14. 
 
 What, my soul, are all thy exertions, 
 and labours, and sorrows, and afflictions, and 
 sufferings, to the eternal joy set before thee ? 
 Canst thou not say with Paul, " for our light 
 affliction, which is but for a moment, work- 
 eth for us a far more exceeding and eternal 
 weight of glory; while we look not at the 
 things which are seen, but at the things 
 which are not seen: for the things which are 
 seen are temporal; but the things w r hich are 
 not seen are eternal." 2 Cor. iv. 17, 18. 
 
 Welcome, death, to put me in possession 
 of a crown of life! Welcome, death, to 
 clothe me with white raiment, and secure 
 such glory to my humble name, as will be 
 attached to it by a gracious acknowledgment 
 of it by my Redeemer! Welcome, death, 
 that I may gain a seat on my Saviour's 
 throne, and be like him ; living and reigning 
 with him in immortal blessedness and endless 
 glory. 
 
 20* 
 
234 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Blessed Redeemer, how infinite thy con- 
 descension and mercy ! I am a poor mise- 
 rable sinner, destitute of all merit, and de- 
 serving eternal banishment from heaven, and 
 eternal confinement in hell. But thou, in 
 infinite love, wast pleased to undertake to 
 deliver me and other sinners of the human 
 race, to atone for our sins, to purchase for us 
 pardon, sanctification, and eternal life. And 
 yet, for our encouragement, and to animate 
 our exertions in doing thy will, thou art 
 pleased to permit us to look at heavenly 
 blessings, in the light of a reward. Thou 
 hast promised to him who is faithful unto 
 death, a crown of life; to clothe him with 
 white raiment, and to confess his name before 
 thy Father, and his holy angels; and that 
 thou wilt grant that he shall sit with thee in 
 thy throne, even as thou didst overcome, and 
 art set down with thy Father in his throne. 
 Amazing promises ! Inconceivable happiness 
 and glory! 
 
 My gracious Saviour, I would look at 
 these promises, and gaze at the wonderful 
 rewards they hold forth, in the light in which 
 
PRAYER. 235 
 
 thou hast been pleased to present them ; to 
 encourage and animate my heart in follow- 
 ing and serving thee. But I desire to bear 
 in mind the true connexion between my obe- 
 dience and fidelity, and the promised reward. 
 It is a connexion of grace, and not of merit. 
 Never may I forget that all the blessings of 
 the heavenly state, were purchased by thy 
 precious blood, and that eternal life will be 
 the gift of God, through thy meritorious 
 obedience. 
 
 Grant, O my Redeemer, that I may never 
 lose sight of the truth; and that, while I look 
 for eternal life as a promised reward of my 
 poor services and adherence to thy glorious 
 cause in this sinful world, I may always 
 cherish an affectionate remembrance, that I 
 shall be indebted for a seat in thy kingdom 
 in heaven to thy infinite merits. 
 
 To God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, 
 be all glory, both now and for ever. Amen. 
 
236 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 MEDITATION XXVII. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S JOY. 
 
 Joy is a delightful passion or affection of the 
 soul. It belongs to human nature; and is 
 excited by the possession or expectation of 
 some good. The wicked rejoice, when their 
 corn and their wine abound. The bride- 
 groom rejoices over his bride. The merchant 
 rejoices at the arrival of his richly freighted 
 ship; and at the prospect of the success of a 
 gainful enterprise in which he has embarked. 
 By "giving them rain from heaven, and 
 fruitful seasons, God fills the hearts of men 
 with food and gladness." Acts xiv. 17. 
 
 And have Christians no peculiar reasons 
 for rejoicing? What is the language of 
 sacred Scripture on this subject 1 " Rejoice 
 in the Lord, ye righteous; for praise is 
 comely for the upright." Psal. xxxiii. 1. 
 "Rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous; and give 
 thanks at the remembrance of his holiness." 
 Psal. xcvii. 12. " Finally, my brethren," says 
 Paul, "rejoice in the Lord." Phil. iii. 1. 
 
the christian's JOY. 237 
 
 "Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I 
 say, Rejoice.'' Phil. iv. 4. From these pas- 
 sages and many more that might be quoted, 
 it evidently appears to be both the privilege 
 and the duty of Christians to rejoice, at all 
 times, in all places, and in all circumstances. 
 "My brethren," is the language of James, 
 "count it all joy, when ye fall into divers 
 temptations ; knowing this, that the trying of 
 your faith worketh patience." James i. 1,2. 
 Similar is the language of Paul: "By whom 
 also we have access by faith into this grace 
 wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the 
 glory of God. And not only so, but we 
 glory in tribulation also; knowing that tribu- 
 lation worketh patience ; and patience expe- 
 rience; and experience hope; and hope 
 jnaketh not ashamed; because the love of 
 God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy 
 Ghost which is given unto us." Rom. v. 2-5. 
 Peter accords with both apostles; "Wherein 
 ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, 
 if need be, ye are in heaviness through mani- 
 fold temptations : that the trial of your faith, 
 being much more precious than of gold that 
 perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might 
 be found unto praise and honour and glory 
 
238 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 at the appearing of Jesus Christ: whom 
 having not seen, ye love ; in whom, though 
 now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice 
 with joy unspeakable and full of glory." 
 1 Pet. i. 6-8. 
 
 And does not thy experience, O my soul, 
 accord with these testimonies of inspired 
 writers ? Hast thou not tasted the sweet and 
 delightful nature of Christian joy? When 
 thy mind was first enlightened to see the ful- 
 ness and glory of Jesus Christ, and thou 
 wast enabled to believe in and to embrace 
 him, as thy Saviour, was not thy joy unspeak- 
 able and full of glory ? And in thy afflictions 
 and trials has thou not been supported by the 
 joy of faith and hope ? Has not religion 
 spread over thee a sweet and blessed serenity 
 of mind ? Be thankful for what grace has 
 done for thee. Yet thou hast failed in the 
 exercise of thy privilege, and in the discharge 
 of thy duty in reference to Christian joy. 
 Thou hast not rejoiced in the Lord, as thou 
 oughtest. 
 
 Let me review my sources of joy, and see 
 how abundant they are. 
 
 1. The change of my relative state, is one. 
 Born in sin, I came into the world under 
 
the christian's JOY. 239 
 
 sentence of condemnation. It was a fearful 
 state, to live under the wrath of God, hasten- 
 ing on in the broad road to everlasting de- 
 struction ! Mercy came to my relief. God 
 was pleased to awaken and alarm me, at a 
 sight of my danger. He presented to my 
 eyes the great Redeemer, and wrought faith 
 in my heart. And now I am pardoned, re- 
 conciled to God, accepted and adopted into 
 his family, and blest with hope. What a 
 change ! How great and joyful ! 
 
 2. The change which grace has wrought in 
 my nature is another source of joy. Denied 
 by original sin, and destitute of holiness, I 
 was, by nature, at enmity with God. As I 
 grew up, I became more and more depraved, 
 and alienated from my Creator ; and had I 
 been left to myself, I should have for ever 
 remained the slave of sin, and utterly unfit 
 for heaven. But thanks to God, he saw me 
 in my woful condition, and bade me live. 
 He sent his Holy Spirit who quickened me, 
 when I was dead in trespasses and sins. He 
 imparted to me a new and divine life, to love 
 and serve God. The purifying work is be- 
 gun, by which I am delivered from the bon- 
 dage and dominion of sin ; and it will be 
 
240 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 carried on, till I shall be entirely free from 
 all sin, and fitted for a residence in heaven. And 
 is not this great change in my moral nature 
 a spring of great joy ; one for which I should 
 be exceedingly grateful to the Divine Author \ 
 3. Another source of joy, is the portion my 
 soul has chosen. Like that of other men, the 
 world was my portion. In my blindness I 
 pursued after its enticing objects ; as if riches, 
 honours, and pleasures, could render me 
 happy. I was destitute of loftier views; I 
 knew of no better portion; till God was 
 pleased to show me my folly, and expose the 
 vanity of earthly things as a portion for an 
 immortal creature. He graciously addressed 
 to me these wonderful words : " Wherefore 
 come out from among them, and be ye sepa- 
 rate, saith the Lord, and touch not the un- 
 clean thing; and I will receive you, and will 
 be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my 
 sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty." 
 2 Cor. vi. 17, 18. Accepting this all gracious 
 offer, I have through grace, taken God the 
 Father, God the Son, and God the Holy 
 Ghost, three Persons in one Godhead, to be 
 my God and portion, for ever; ratified by a 
 covenant transaction. What a portion ! How 
 
THE CHRISTIAN'S JOY. 241 
 
 infinitely more valuable than the world! 
 " Whom have I in heaven but thee ? and there 
 is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. 
 My flesh and my heart faileth : but God is 
 the strength of my heart, and my portion for 
 ever." Psal. lxxiii. 25, 26. 
 
 4. The Providence of God constitutes a 
 source of much joy. The world is not under 
 the government of blind chance. " The Lord 
 reigneth ; let the earth rejoice ; let the multi- 
 tude of the isles be glad thereof." Psal. 
 xcvii. 1. How delightful this truth! My 
 affairs are all in the hands of an infinitely 
 wise Being, my covenant God. He knows 
 how to choose for me, far better than I do; 
 when to afflict, and when to comfort ; when 
 to favour me with prosperity, and when to 
 visit me with adversity. I am cheered with 
 the blessed assurance, "And we know that all 
 things work together for good to them that 
 love God, to them who are called according 
 to his purpose." Rom. viii. 28. " Many are 
 the afflictions of the righteous : but the Lord 
 delivereth him out of them all." Psal. xxxiv. 
 19. How consoling the direction ! " Trust 
 in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou 
 dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be 
 21 
 
242 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 fed. Delight thyself also in the Lord ; and 
 he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. 
 Commit thy way unto the Lord ; trust also 
 in him; and he shall bring it to pass. And 
 he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the 
 light, and thy judgment as the noon-day. 
 Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him; 
 fret not thyself because of him who prosper- 
 eth in his way, because of the man who 
 bringeth wicked devices to pass. Cease from 
 anger, and forsake wrath; fret not thyself in 
 any wise to do evil. For evil doers shall be 
 cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, 
 they shall inherit the earth." Psal. xxxvii. 
 3-9. 
 
 5. The promises of God furnish another 
 plentiful spring of joy. They are, as Peter 
 says, " exceeding great and precious." 2 Pet. 
 i. 4. They meet and cover every circum- 
 stance that can occur, make provision for 
 every want, and comprehend every blessing 
 of this life, and of the life to come. How 
 rich and full these promises ! " For the Lord 
 God is a sun and shield : the Lord will give 
 grace and glory: no good thing will he with- 
 hold from them that walk uprightly." Psal. 
 lxxxiv. 11. "Be content with such things 
 
the christian's JOY. 243 
 
 as ye have : for he hath said, I will never 
 leave thee, nor forsake thee." Heb. xiii. 5. 
 " But my God shall supply all your need 
 according to his riches in glory by Christ 
 Jesus." Phil. iv. 19. "Be careful for no- 
 thing; but, in every thing by prayer and 
 supplication with thanksgiving, let your re- 
 quests be made known unto God. And the 
 peace of God, which passeth all understand- 
 ing, shall keep your hearts and minds through 
 Christ Jesus." Phil. iv. 6, 7. The Bible is 
 full of promises ; and should they not sustain 
 my faith, and awaken my joy? They were 
 given and confirmed, that we who have fled 
 for refuge to lay hold on the hope set before 
 us, might have strong consolation. Heb. vi. 
 17, 18. 
 
 6. To all these sources of joy, I must add 
 my prospects in regard to a future world. How 
 sublime and glorious ! My Saviour has gone 
 into heaven, where he reigns in infinite glory; 
 and has promised to come and receive me to 
 himself, that where he is, there I shall be also; 
 rejoicing with the spirits of just men made 
 perfect in his presence, and waiting in joyful 
 expectation for the resurrection of my body, 
 to be fashioned like to his most glorious 
 
244 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 body; and then, after judgment, to dwell and 
 reign with him, in the highest heaven, in 
 perfect happiness and endless glory. Invalu- 
 able hope! 
 
 What abundant and fruitful sources of joy, 
 are here set before me ! A wonderful change 
 has been produced by grace in my relative 
 state; a blessed change has been wrought in 
 my nature by the Holy Spirit; God the 
 Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, has become 
 my reconciled God and covenanted portion; 
 on the care of his providece, I may cast all 
 my burdens, and look to him for wisdom and 
 guidance, support and protection; his pro- 
 mises, on which I depend, are exceedingly 
 great and precious ; and my hope beyond the 
 grave, is indescribably glorious. 
 
 With such sources of joy opened, and to 
 which I may constantly apply, why do I not 
 rejoice more? Let me take a lesson from the 
 man of the world. His heart is set on the 
 object of his pursuit, and he pursues after it 
 with unquenchable desire. He loses it by 
 some misfortune; he is deprived of his wealth, 
 or of his honour. How is he troubled and 
 distressed ! He cannot withdraw his thoughts 
 from the dear object which he has lost. He 
 

 PRAYER. 245 
 
 thinks of it by day and by night; and refuses 
 to be comforted. 
 
 Now, my soul, if thy thoughts were more 
 turned to the rich sources of joy set before 
 thee, and thy heart were more devoted to 
 heavenly objects, wouldst thou not rejoice 
 more? Endeavour to love more the spiritual 
 blessings bestowed on thee, to give thy heart 
 mere unreservedly to thy covenant God, and 
 to prize more highly thy hope of future bless- 
 edness; and then thou wilt think more of the 
 wonders which divine grace has wrought for 
 thee, and be enabled to live more in the en- 
 joyment of thy privileges. Thou wilt go on 
 thy way rejoicing, and find the joy of the 
 Lord thy strength. Neh. viii. 10. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 my God, what abundant reasons hast 
 thou furnished me, for unceasing joy! Thou 
 hast produced a glorious change in my rela- 
 tive state. Chargeable with innumerable sins, 
 thou hast pardoned me; condemned, thou 
 hast justified me; in a state of enmity, thou 
 hast reconciled me to thyself; and expelled 
 from thy family, thou hast adopted me ; my 
 21* 
 
246 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 nature, vile and corrupted by sin, thou hast 
 sanctified, and art fitting for heaven, by the 
 purifying operations of thy Holy Spirit. Thou 
 hast condescended to become the portion of 
 my soul. On the care of thy ever watchful 
 providence, I am permitted to cast myself, 
 and to intrust all my affairs to the disposal 
 of infinite wisdom and mercy. Thy promises 
 are exceedingly rich and precious. And 
 thou hast lighted up in my soul the hope of 
 immortal blessedness. Who should rejoice, 
 if I do not, who have access to such inex- 
 haustible springs of joy? It is my duty to 
 rejoice daily in the Lord. Nothing should 
 extinguish my joy. I should rejoice in ad- 
 versity, as well as in prosperity; in afflictions, 
 as well as when exempt from them. But I 
 have failed in this delightful duty. Oh ! for 
 grace to adopt the prophet's language: "Al- 
 though the fig tree shall not blossom, neither 
 shall fruit be found in the vine; the labour of 
 the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield 
 no meat; the flocks shall be cut off from the 
 fold, and there shall be no herd in the stall ; 
 yet I will rejoice in the Lord ; I will joy in 
 the God of my salvation." Hab. iii. 17, 18. 
 Grant me grace, I beseech thee, O God, to 
 
THE HOLY SPIRIT. 247 
 
 enable me to perform this cheering duty. Let 
 joy beam continually in my eyes, that those 
 who behold me, may see the blessed and 
 lovely nature of religion; and be induced to 
 come, and taste, and see, that the Lord is 
 good and gracious, and kind to them who 
 hope in his mercy. Let me rejoice always 
 in hope of the glory of God. In the name 
 of Christ, thy Son, I pray. Amen. 
 
 MEDITATION XXVIII. 
 
 DEPENDENCE ON THE HOLY SPIRIT. 
 
 In the economy of man's redemption, the 
 Holy Spirit has been pleased to assume the 
 office of applying the benefits purchased by 
 the Son, to the souls of men, and putting 
 them in possession of his complete salvation. 
 It is his work to enlighten the sinner's dark- 
 ened mind ; for the Redeemer says, " When 
 he is come he will reprove the world of sin, 
 and of righteousness and of judgment." " He 
 shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, 
 and shall show it unto you." John xvi. 8, 14. 
 
248 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 " The natural man receiveth not the things of 
 the Spirit of God ; for they are foolishness 
 unto him : neither can he know them, be- 
 cause they are spiritually discerned." 1 Cor. 
 ii. 14. 
 
 It is the work of the Spirit to sanctify the 
 soul. We are born of the Spirit. John iii. 5. 
 We are saved by the washing of regenera- 
 tion, the renewing of the Holy Ghost. Tit. 
 iii. 5. " God hath from the beginning chosen 
 you to salvation, through sanctification of the 
 Spirit and belief of the truth." 2 Thes. ii. 13. 
 
 The Holy Spirit teaches us how to pray : 
 " Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infir- 
 mities: for we know not what we should 
 pray for as we ought : but the Spirit itself 
 maketh intercession for us, with groanings 
 which cannot be uttered." Rom. viii. 26. 
 
 He is the Spirit of adoption, who forms 
 believers to a filial temper, and bears witness 
 with their Spirit that they are the children of 
 God. Rom. viii. 14—16. Gal. iv. 5, 6. 
 
 He is their strength. The prayer of Paul 
 is, " that he would grant you, according to 
 the riches of his glory, to be strengthened 
 with might by his Spirit in the inner man." 
 Ephes. iii. 16. 
 
THE HOLY SPIRIT. 249 
 
 In fine, he is the author of every grace. 
 " The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, 
 long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 
 meekness, temperance." Gal. v. 22, 23. 
 
 So we are taught in the Holy Scriptures 
 to believe concerning the office and work of 
 the Holy Spirit. And have I not found the 
 truth verified in my own experience ? Is it 
 not owing to his gracious operations on my 
 soul, that I have become a partaker of the 
 great salvation of Jesus Christ? 
 
 How dark and ignorant was my mind in 
 regard to spiritual things ! I read the word 
 of God, and heard the voice of the living 
 ministry, but all in vain, till the Spirit shed 
 his light upon my mind. Darkness still covered 
 my soul ; and I slumbered on, secure and un- 
 concerned about my immortal interests. But 
 when he who commanded the light at first to 
 shine out of darkness, was pleased to shine into 
 my heart, what discoveries were made ! I saw 
 r my guilt, depravity, and danger. I trembled; 
 fearfulness took hold on me; I found no rest, 
 till the blessed Spirit was pleased to reveal 
 the Saviour in his fulness to me, and let me 
 see how able and willing he was to save 
 every one that came to him. And ever 
 
250 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 since I have felt my dependence on the Holy 
 Spirit for his illuminating influence. How 
 darkness veils my mind, whenever he with- 
 draws his light ! But when he throws his 
 light upon the sacred page, and illuminates 
 my soul, how changed the scene ! What 
 wonderful things are seen in the word ! With 
 what pleasure do I think of God, and Christ, 
 and heavenly things ! How is the mystery 
 of redeeming love unfolded ! How plainly is 
 the path to heaven marked out before me ! 
 Never forget, my soul, thy need of the illumi- 
 nating influence of the Holy Spirit, and daily 
 pray for it. 
 
 Not less dependent am I on the grace of 
 the Spirit for sanctification. I was dead in 
 sin, destitute of holiness, averse from God, 
 indisposed to holy action, and indeed unable 
 to perform any acts of the kind, till the Holy 
 Spirit entered into my soul and imparted to it 
 spiritual life. At his command, my soul arose 
 from the death of sin. I received from his 
 gracious power ability for holy action. Faith 
 and penitence, love, hope and joy, w T ere 
 wrought in my soul. I could love God and 
 man. My affections were turned from earth 
 to heaven. I delighted in spiritual things, 
 
THE HOLY SPIRIT. 251 
 
 and felt my heart drawn out especially to the 
 household of faith. The yoke of Christ was 
 easy and his burden light. It was a pleasure 
 to yield obedience to the divine command- 
 ments. But were the Spirit of life to with- 
 draw his gracious influence, my soul would 
 relapse into the arms of spiritual death. 
 Blessed be God for the assurance, that the 
 Comforter shall abide in us for ever. John 
 xiv. 16. Grieved by our unchristian conduct 
 he may depart, in a measure and for a sea- 
 son. Then the soul languishes, just as the 
 branch begins to fade and wither, when the 
 regular circulation of the vital sap from the 
 vine is obstructed. Under the suspension of 
 the Spirit's gracious influence, how do all the 
 graces of faith, and love, and hope, decline ! 
 Before the blessed Spirit taught me how to 
 pray, and helped my infirmities, I could say 
 my prayers ; but I could not worship God in 
 spirit and in truth. Under his heavenly in- 
 fluence how sweet is this exercise of the soul ! 
 How freely can I approach the throne of 
 grace ! How am I emboldened to enter into 
 the holiest of all, and, appearing in the pre- 
 sence of infinite Majesty, pour out the fulness 
 of my heart before him, in the language of 
 
252 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 praise and thanksgiving, of prayer and sup- 
 plication ! But, when not thus favoured, my 
 intercourse with God becomes formal ; and I 
 have to complain of coldness, and languor, 
 and dulness of my want of faith and fervency 
 of desire. Oh ! for the spirit and the grace 
 of prayer ! 
 
 How desirable the witness of the Spirit ! 
 He does bear witness with the spirits of be- 
 lievers, that they are the children of God, 
 both in an ordinary and in an extraordinary 
 manner. When he imparts his extraordinary 
 witness, the soul can no more doubt it, than 
 the prophets could doubt that they were in- 
 spired. The Spirit is then seen in his own 
 light, just as the sun is in his light. If, my 
 soul, this special favour has been vouchsafed 
 to thee, thou knowest the meaning of this 
 extraordinary witness of the Holy Spirit; 
 thou hast had experience of the love, and 
 joy, and hope, lighted up by the heavenly 
 vision ; thou didst rejoice in the assurance of 
 thy adoption into the family of God, and 
 couldst cry with unfaltering tongue, " Abba, 
 Father." 
 
 It is not, however, from this extraordinary 
 witness of the Spirit, that a settled, abiding 
 
THE HOLY SPIRIT. 253 
 
 conviction of being in a gracious state of 
 divine acceptance, is to be obtained. The 
 heavenly vision is soon withdrawn ; and may- 
 after a while be succeeded by doubts and 
 fears. Such, my soul, thou hast experienced ; 
 and thou hast been stirred to diligence in 
 endeavours to make thy calling and election 
 sure. Hast thou, by studying the nature of 
 the Spirit's gracious work, by repeated self- 
 examination, and earnest prayer for his wit- 
 ness, arrived at a settled belief of having 
 enjoyed his renewing grace, and of being in 
 a state of friendship with God through Jesus 
 Christ ? Be thankful for the blessing, and 
 walk with humility and watchfulness, depend- 
 ing on the light, and teaching, and assistance 
 of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 And is he not the strength of my soul? 
 When the Spirit imparts his grace, my faith 
 is strong, my hope bright, and my purpose 
 firm ; and, trusting in God, I can go on cheer- 
 fully in the path of duty, boldly meet my 
 enemies, and patiently endure trials and 
 afflictions. But how different my experience, 
 when he is pleased in any measure to with- 
 draw his strengthening influence ! 
 
 Thus, in these various ways, I am taught 
 22 
 
254 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 my entire and constant dependence on the 
 grace of the Holy Spirit. But how slow am 
 I in learning this great truth, so essential to 
 my security and progress in the divine life ! 
 Forget it not, my soul; let it be imprinted 
 deeply on thy memory, and keep thee watch- 
 ful and prayerful. So shall the Comforter 
 dwell in thee for ever, and be a fountain of 
 light, of grace, of strength, and of joy; till 
 having finished thy course on earth, thou 
 shalt have arrived at that perfect state of 
 holiness and blessedness, where variations in 
 feelings, depressions of spirits, and doubts 
 and fears, shall be unknown ; and where thou 
 shalt exult for ever in fulness of light, and joy, 
 and glory. 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 Holy Spirit, one with the Father and the 
 Son, I acknowledge thee to be the author of 
 all spiritual light, and grace, and strength, to 
 my soul. Thou hast assumed the office 
 of applying the purchased salvation of Christ 
 to the children of men, and of preparing them 
 for an eternal residence in heaven. Hast 
 thou not quickened my soul to a divine life ? 
 
PRAYER. 255 
 
 Hast thou not enlightened my dark mind 
 with heavenly light ? Hast thou not renewed 
 and sanctified my depraved nature? Hast 
 thou not taught me how to pray l Hast thou 
 not borne witness with my spirit, that I am a 
 child of God? And hast thou not sealed me 
 unto the day of redemption 1 I thank thee, 
 O gracious Spirit, for these great and signal 
 favours. Dwell in my heart for ever. Work 
 there with greater power. Subdue and ex- 
 pel from my soul every depraved lust and 
 sinful desire. Carry on and perfect in me 
 thy blessed work. Cherish within me every 
 Christian grace and virtue. Impress oh me 
 the image of my divine Redeemer. Strengthen 
 me with all might in the inner man. Impart 
 to me thy divine consolations. Shed abroad 
 upon my heart the love of God. Let me 
 never grieve thee, but always lay open my 
 soul to thy holy influence, and yield cheer- 
 fully and promptly to every suggestion from 
 thee. Perfect thy work in me, and fit me 
 for the enjoyment of that eternal inheritance 
 of the saints in light, for which I long. 
 Grant me all this, O holy Spirit, for Christ's 
 sake. Amen. 
 
256 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 MEDITATION XXIX. 
 
 GROWTH IN GRACE. 
 
 The law of increase and progress prevails in 
 all the works of the Almighty. He could, if 
 it had been his pleasure, have spoken this 
 world into existence, disposed, arranged, and 
 adorned, just as it was, when the light of the 
 seventh day revealed it to the eyes of our 
 first parents, in all its beauty and glory. But 
 it pleased God to put forth his creating power 
 in a different way. First, he brought the 
 chaotic mass into existence; and then dis- 
 posed the elements into their various forms, 
 arranged the land and water, formed the 
 lights of heaven, and perfected his plan, by 
 the labours of six days. 
 
 The same law rules in Providence. The 
 acorn is planted ; from which springs the sap- 
 ling, which, in the course of years, grows into 
 the majestic oak. Man is at first an infant ; 
 then passes through childhood and youth, and 
 at length reaches the full stature of manhood. 
 His mind is gradually developed from its first 
 
GROWTH IN GRACE. 257 
 
 conception, till it is so expanded as to contain 
 stores of learning and science. 
 
 In redemption, the same law is found in 
 operation. Ages rolled away before the Son 
 of God came into the world to achieve his 
 great work of making an atonement for sin, 
 and furnishing us with a righteousness for 
 our justification. Fifteen hundred years 
 were occupied in completing the canon of 
 sacred Scripture. 
 
 By the same law is the application of sal- 
 vation to believing sinners governed. God 
 might, if it had pleased him, have finished 
 the work in a moment, and presented every 
 believer at once perfect in Christ Jesus, in all 
 the beauties of holiness, and in the enjoyment 
 of complete happiness. But infinite wisdom 
 has adopted a different plan. Spiritual life 
 is at first communicated to the soul in an in- 
 cipient state; and then cherished, and pre-, 
 served, and increased, till it reaches perfec- 
 tion in glory. 
 
 By the grace of God, I have been brought 
 into a state of reconciliation and friendship 
 with him. My sins have all been pardoned, 
 and my person justified, through the imputed 
 righteousness of my blessed Redeemer. My 
 22* 
 
258 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 nature has been sanctified by his Holy Spirit, 
 so that a transforming moral change has 
 passed over all the faculties of my soul. 
 
 For what grace has wrought for me, I 
 have abundant reason for thanksgiving and 
 praise to God. But great as is the change 
 effected in my nature, and protected as I am 
 against condemnation, through my union to 
 Christ, and participation in his merits by faith, 
 I am by no means to be satisfied with my 
 present attainments in grace. There is room 
 for great improvement. None of my facul- 
 ties have been perfected. My mind is not 
 freed from darkness, nor is my heart purified 
 from all sin. My love, and faith, and joy, 
 and hope, and holiness, are all imperfect. 
 The old man still remains to struggle with 
 the new man; sin in my members still wars 
 with the law of my mind. In such a state 
 of imperfection, when so much remains to be 
 effected, before I can reach the perfection to 
 which I am destined ; it would betray much 
 ignorance of duty, and much ingratitude for 
 what God has wrought for me, were I to 
 rest contented with present attainments, and 
 not labour to reach a more advanced stage in 
 the work of divine grace. While so much 
 
GROWTH IN GRACE. 259 
 
 sin remains to be mortified within me, and 
 all my graces are so imperfect, how can I 
 rest satisfied? Surely I ought to labour after 
 increased holiness, and growing conformity 
 to the image of Christ. 
 
 The strongest motives urge me to endea- 
 vour to grow in grace. 
 
 Duty calls for it. "Grow in grace," is an 
 apostolic injunction; 2 Pet. iii. 18; "Be ye 
 therefore perfect, even as your Father which 
 is in heaven is perfect." Matt. v. 48. " But 
 as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye 
 holy in all manner of conversation." 1 Pet. 
 i. 15. So plainly is the duty enjoined. 
 
 The design of Christ's death demands it 
 "Looking for that blessed hope, and the 
 glorious appearing of the great God and our 
 Saviour, Jesus Christ; who gave himself for 
 us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, 
 and purify unto himself a peculiar people, 
 zealous of good works." Tit. ii. 13, 14. 
 Was this the design of my Redeemer ? Did 
 he die, that I might be holy, and finally 
 delivered from all sin ? And shall I dare to 
 oppose his blessed design, by indulging in 
 any sin, or bj being remiss in my exertions 
 to overcome it in every form? Forbid it.. 
 
260 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 gracious God. Inspire my soul with in- 
 creasing hatred of all sin, and quicken my 
 efforts to crucify my lusts, and to become 
 daily more and more conformable to thy 
 likeness. May I long for that perfection of 
 nature, to which I am destined; and to put me 
 in possession of which, my Saviour died. 
 
 Ample encouragement is given to animate 
 my exertions, in making greater attainments 
 in the divine life. " And the very God of 
 peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God 
 your whole spirit, and soul, and body, be 
 preserved blameless unto the coming of our 
 Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calleth 
 you, who also will do it." 1 Thess. v. 23, 
 24. God is faithful to his engagements with 
 his Son; and therefore he will perfect the 
 work of sanctification in all who have been 
 redeemed by his blood, and are united to him 
 by faith. Embrace, then, my soul, this 
 gracious encouragement, that thy exertions 
 will not be in vain, but crowned with com- 
 plete success. Hunger and thirst after right- 
 eousness, and thou shalt be filled. 
 
 Consider too the influence which growth in 
 grace will have upon thy future blessedness. 
 Hear the exhortation of the apostle Peter: 
 
GROWTH IN GRACE. 261 
 
 *' Giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue ; 
 and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge 
 temperance; and to temperance patience; 
 and to patience godliness; and to godliness 
 brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness 
 charity. For if these things be in you, and 
 abound, they make you that ye shall be 
 neither barren nor unfruitful in the know- 
 ledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that 
 lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see 
 afar off, and hath forgotten that he was 
 purged from his old sins. Wherefore the 
 rather, brethren, give diligence to make 
 your calling and election sure: for if ye do 
 these things ye shall never fall: for so an 
 entrance shall be ministered unto you abun- 
 dantly into the everlasting kingdom of our 
 Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." 2 Pet. i. 
 5-11. 
 
 How important, O my soul, is growth in 
 grace to thy present peace, and enjoyment, 
 and usefulness! How plainly and forcibly 
 is it enjoined on thee as a duty! How 
 touchingly is it enforced by a consideration 
 of the design of thy Redeemer's death, who 
 has purchased thee with his precious blood ! 
 What encouragement is presented to urge 
 
262 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 thee on in the glorious career, by the assu- 
 rance of necessary aid and final success ! 
 And how will every step in this heavenly 
 course, influence and augment thy future hap- 
 piness and glory ! Pressed by such motives, 
 wilt thou not put forth every exertion to 
 grow in grace, and to approximate towards 
 a state of perfect holiness; that at last thou 
 mayest be prepared to take thy station, with 
 all the Redeemed, around the throne of God, 
 to praise and enjoy him for ever and ever? 
 
 This, then, be thy high aim. Look to it. 
 Keep thine eyes constantly on it. Pray for 
 the aid of the Holy Spirit, to help thee on- 
 ward in thy heavenly course ; and daily be- 
 seech God, that thou mayest grow in grace, 
 and finally reach " the unity of the faith, and 
 of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a 
 perfect man, unto the measure of the stature 
 of the fulness of Christ:" Ephes. iv. 13; and 
 that when he shall appear, thou mayqst ap- 
 pear with him in glory, and be like him, and 
 " see him as he is." Col. iii. 4. 1 John 
 iii. 2. 
 
PRAYER. 263 
 
 PRAYER. 
 
 O! most holy God, the heavens are not 
 clean in thy sight, and thou charged st thine 
 angels with folly. How, then, must I appear 
 in the sight of infinite purity ! By thy free 
 and rich grace, I have been, I trust, renewed, 
 and sanctified, and changed into thy image. 
 But how unlike to thee am I still ! My mind 
 is dark; my will rebellious; my affections 
 cleave too much to this earth ; my love to 
 thee is cold ; my heart is not occupied, as it 
 should be, with heavenly things. How much 
 yet remains to be done, before I can reach 
 that perfection in heart and in life to which I 
 am destined ! Oh ! never suffer me to be 
 satisfied with any attainments that I have 
 made, or shall make, in the present imperfect 
 state of human nature. I pray, that I may 
 ever press on in my career of holiness, and 
 constantly endeavour to grow in grace. Duty 
 calls for it ; the design of Christ's death de 
 mands it ; ample encouragement is given to 
 expect help from on high ; the more I grow 
 in grace, the more peace of mind shall I en- 
 joy, the more useful in life shall I be; and a 
 
264 SACRAMENTAL MEDITATIONS. 
 
 brighter crown will hereafter encircle my 
 brow, and I shall occupy a higher seat in 
 heaven at last. 
 
 O my God, grant that I may ever feel the 
 quickening influence of these great motives ; 
 so that my exertions being stimulated, I may 
 make greater progress in the divine life. Let 
 me never, I beseech thee, O my God, lose 
 sight of the great duty of growing in grace 
 May I constantly aim at it ; and strive to 
 become more and more conformed to thy 
 most holy .image. Crown my efforts with 
 success ; and, at last, may an abundant en- 
 trance into thy everlasting kingdom be minis- 
 tered unto me, through Jesus Christ, thy Son. 
 " Now unto him that is able to do exceeding 
 abundantly above all that we ask, or think, 
 according to the power that worketh in us ; 
 unto him be glory in the church, by Christ 
 Jesus, throughout all ages, world without end. 
 Amen." Ephes. iii. 20, 21. 
 
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