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THE ASSURANCE OF IT.

XX. Of Justification, therefore, believers have a subjective [inward] assurance, according to the testimonies adduced, and the examples of Job, David, Paul, &c.-Nay for the necessary glorifying God on account of this benefit. Papists object, 1st. That no one is conscious of perfect purity. Prov. xxii. 9-Job ix. 2, 20. Answer-Perfect internal purity, which is, indeed, the property of none, is very different from the forensick acquittal of God. Objection, 2d. Remission is dubiously connected with repentance. Dan. iv. 27—Joel, ii. 14. Answer-Repentance is always a requisite to assurance, but there may be occasional doubts, either as to the reality of the repentance, or the removal of external punishments. Objection 3d. Fear is every where commended. Answer-A filial fear in regard to disobedience; but this does not infer any uncertainty of the divine favour. Objection 4th. We are to pray for the remission of our sins. Answer-By this is meant a continuation of it, and the clearer evidence of it, and especially its completion.

IT IS IRREVOCABLE.

XXI. Justification is clearly irrevocable, Rom. viii. 30-" Whom he justified, them he also glorified," &c., since the foundations on which it rests are perpetual, and through it all sins are remitted. Papists object, 1st. "That a righteous man may turn away from his righteousness," Ez. xviii. 24. Answer-The duty of persevering in our endeavours after practical righteousness, is here taught, as a condition of the divine favour. Objection 2d. That what is taught in the parable, Mat. xviii. 35, is contrary to irrevocable justification. Answer-Only the scope of that parable is to be regarded, which is the connexion of our duty with the divine beneficence. The issue of justification therefore is certain salvation, and its solemn

adjudication to be hereafter pub. lickly and graciously made.

From the London Evangelical Magazine, for Dec. 1822.

CHRISTMAS THOUGHTS.

That season is now at hand in

which the great majority of Christians throughout the world recognise the birth of the Saviour,—an event most worthy to be had in everlasting remembrance, not once in the year only, but every day in the year:-an event which will be celebrated eternally in heaven, when the incarnate God shall be seen with our bodily eyes.

Forty centuries had rolled away, between the day on which the promise of a Redeemer was first granted to our trembling parents, and the fulfilment of it, when a heavenly envoy announced the nativity of the long-expected Messiah, and "the good tidings of great joy" were proclaimed;" To you is born, this day, in the city of David, a SAVIOUR, which is Christ the Lord."

And where shall this celestial visiter be found? Shall we repair to the royal palace? Shall we find him in a bed of state, surrounded by the dignified ecclesiastics of the Jewish church? Ah, no!" THIS SHALL BE THE SIGN-ye shall find the babe-lying in a manger!" ye shall readily distinguish him, for no other child will be found in a situation so mean and degrading. But did this humbling commencement of his mediatorial work offend the glorious spirit who declared it? By no means; for he was instantly joined by a multitude of the angelick armies, who united in one grand hallelujah chorus, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men." Doubtless these benevolent spirits were acquainted with the great mystery of godliness thus developed; and thus they expressed, as far as the human language they adopted could ex

press it, the astonishing love of God in the gift of his only begotten Son: and that transcendent display of his divine perfections so exhibited, and which were to be exhibited in the whole of the Redeemer's humiliation, now commenced;-in the glorious exaltation which should succeed it, and in the complete and everlasting salvation and happiness of unnumbered myriads of redeemed men.

Well might the shepherds, as soon as they recovered from the panic which the appearance of these celestial strangers occasioned, determine to go immediately to Bethlehem, then a little village, but for ever after to be ennobled above every spot upon earth; and by ocular inspection prove the truth of this extraordinary report. They lost no time, "they came with haste," and found it all to be true; "they found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe," the heavenly, the holy, the divine babe, "lying in a manger." "Those that left their beds (says Bishop Hall) to tend their flocks, now leave their flocks to inquire after their Saviour. No earthly thing is too dear to be forsaken for Christ. If we suffer any worldly occasion to stay us from Bethlehem, we care more for our sheep than for our souls."

This extraordinary occurrence seems to have made little or no stir in Judea. The shepherds were persons of little consideration in society, and their report was little heeded. The prophetic and swan-like song of Simeon, the thanksgiving of the venerable prophetess Anna, and the devout acknowledgments of the truly pious few, who were looking and longing for redemption in Israel, made no general impression. Nor did even the visit and inquiries of the eastern magi for the new-born King of the Jews excite the regard of the supine and carnal priests. How true is it that "he was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the VOL. V.-Ch. Adv.

world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not."

It affords us consolation, however, to remember, that though he was unknown on earth, it was not so in heaven. When God introduced his first-begotten into the world, he said, "Let all the angels worship him," Heb. i. 6. This command was, doubtless, obeyed. A multitude (how great a multitude of these we know not) did so, as we have just observed, when they sang in the hearing of the shepherds; and probably all the angelic inhabitants of the celestial world, numerous perhaps as the sand on the sea-shore, and compared with whom the whole nation of the Jews, and all the dwellers upon earth are as the dust of the balance, proclaimed aloud their joy and delight in witnessing the great work of redemption, from the creation anticipated, now actually commenced. And if these "morning stars," as Job calls them, exulted at the completion of the first creation, they would exult with far more abundant joy when the new creation commenced. The "angels desire to look into these things;" though they have no personal concern in redemption, yet they rejoice that glory in the highest degree redounds to the God of love, and that inferior and guilty creatures are raised from the depths of guilt and wo to resemble themselves.

O then, with what sentiments of admiration and gratitude should we hail the advent of the Son of God! How joyfully receive him into our world and into our hearts, exclaiming in the words provided for the purpose ages before the incarnation, "Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof. Let the fields be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice before JEHOVAH: for he cometh to judge (govern) the earth; he shall judge (govern) the 3 Y

THE SABBATH BELL.

BY MRS. CORNWALL BARRY WILSON.

world with righteousness, and the From the London Forget-Me-Not for 1828. people with his truth." Psalm xcvi. 11-15. These highly figurative expressions are employed to signify that the advent of King Messiah is a cause of universal exultation, and the whole creation is summoned to celebrate the grand event. Bishop Horne thus comments on the words:

The heavens, with the innumerable orbs fixed in them, which, while they roll and shine, declare the glory of beatified saints; the earth, which, made fertile by celestial influence, sheweth the work of grace on the hearts of men here below; the field, which, crowned with a produce of an hundred fold, displayeth an emblem of the fruit yielded by the seed of the word in the church; the trees of the wood, lofty, verdant, and diffusive, apt representatives of holy persons, those trees of righteousness, the planting of Jehovah,' whose examples are eminent, fair and extensive;-all these are, by the prophet, excited to join in a chorus of thanksgiving to the Maker and Redeemer of the world."

After the entertainment and enjoyment of such views as these of the advent of Christ, it is painful to descend and turn our eyes to the conduct of the giddy and thoughtless throng, charitably called Christians, who under the pretence of honouring the Saviour's birth, indulge in an unusual excess of gaiety, carnal amusements, chambering, wantonness, and drunkenness; from such scenes the spiritual believer turns away with disgust and grief, and longs so to behold the incarnate Redeemer as to imitate him in his lowliness and loveliness; to honour him on earth by grateful obedience; and to be prepared for beholding his mediatorial glory in heaven, and so "to be for ever with the Lord."

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Pilgrim, that hast meekly borne
All the cold world's bitter scorn,
Journeying through this vale of tears,
Till the promised land appears
Where the pure in heart shall dwell—
Thou dost bless the Sabbath Bell!
Idler, following fashion's toys,
Seeking, mid its empty joys,
Pleasure that must end in pain;
Sunshine that will turn to rain;
What does whisp'ring conscience tell,
When thou hear'st the Sabbath Bell?
Poet, dreaming o'er thy lyre,
Wasting health and youthful fire;
Wooing still the phantom fame,
For, at best, a fleeting name:
Burst the chains of Fancy's spell-
Listen!-'tis the Sabbath Bell!
Monarch, on thy regal throne;
Ruler, whom the nations own;
Captive, at thy prison grate,
Sad in heart and desolate;
Bid earth's minor cares farewell-
Hark! it is the Sabbath Bell
Statesman, toiling in the mart,
Where Ambition plays his part;
Peasant, bronzing 'neath the sun,
Till thy six days' work is done;
Ev'ry thought of bus'ness quell,
When ye hear the Sabbath Bell!
Trav'ler, thou whom gain or taste
Speedeth through earth's weary waste;
Wand'rer from thy native land,

Rest thy steed and slack thy hand,
When the seventh day's sunbeams tell,
There they wake the Sabbath Bell;
Soldier, who on battle-plain,
Soon may'st mingle with the slain;
Sailor, on the dark blue sea
As thy bark rides gallantly;
Prayer and praise become ye well,
Though ye hear no Sabbath Bell,
Mother, that with tearful eye
Stand'st to watch thy first-born die,
Bending o'er his cradle-bed,
Till the last pure breath has fled;
What to thee of hope can tell
Like the solemn Sabbath Bell?
"Mourner," thus it seems to say,
"Weeping o'er this fragile clay,
Lift from earth thy streaming eyes,
Seek thy treasure in the skies,
Where the strains of angels swell
One eternal Sabbath Bell!"

Miscellaneous.

PHILOSOPHY SUBSERVIENT TO RELI

GION.

Essay IX.

Of the Theory of Utility. That utility constitutes the essence of virtue, and the foundation of moral obligation, has, under different modifications, been maintained by many writers, both in ancient and in modern times. According to Epicurus, pleasure and pain were the only ultimate objects of desire and aversion. Prudence, fortitude, temperance, justice, veracity and beneficence were not excellent in themselves, or desirable on their own account; but solely because they promote our happiness and tranquillity, the only ultimate objects of desire. Imprudence, injustice, falsehood and malevolence were not evil in themselves, or the objects of disapprobation and aversion on their own account; but solely because of their tendency to produce pain and disquietude, the great and only ultimate objects of aversion.

In modern times, the doctrine of utility has been presented in a form much better adapted to recommend itself to liberal and generous minds: General expediency, instead of individual advantage, is made the foundation, and the measure, of all that is excellent and commendable in moral conduct. Of this system, Dr. Paley, and Mr. Hume, have been, perhaps, the most distinguished patrons. "Whatever is expedient, says Dr. Paley, is right. It is the utility of any moral rule alone which constitutes the obligation of it. But then, it must be expedient on the whole, at the long run, in all its effects collateral and remote, as well as those which are immediate and direct; as it is obvious, that in computing conse

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The advocates of the theory of Optimism have, as it might be expected, generally adopted this system. "If virtue, remarks Dr. Dwight, brought with it no enjoyment to us, and produced no happiness to others, it would be wholly destitute of all the importance, beauty and glory with which it is now invested.-And were sin in its own proper tendency to produce, invariably, the same good, which it is the tendency of virtue to produce, no reason is apparent to me why it would not become excellent, commendable and rewardable, in the same manner as virtue now is."

Very similar to this is the language of the ingenious but fanciful Soame Jenyns. "They who extol," says he, "the truth, beauty and harmony of virtue, exclusive of its consequences, deal but in pompous nonsense.-The production of happiness is the essence of virtue."

This system, however beautiful and plausible it may appear on a superficial view, cannot be reconciled with the facts, which it is the business of the moralist to record and to generalize. To me it appears an unquestionable fact, that the fundamental duties of piety and morality are perceived to have a character, and an excellence peculiar to themselves, and which can by no means be resolved into a sense of their utility. It is agreeable to the apprehensions of all enlightened and virtuous minds, that love to God, justice, veracity, fidelity and gratitude, are right and commendable in their own nature, separate from any consideration of their consequences. On the contrary, it is equally manifest that impiety, injustice, fraud and fal

hood, are intrinsically wrong, deserving of disapprobation and punishment, without any regard to their tendency. All men distinguish between what is right, and what is merely useful; between what is wrong, and what is merely hurtful. Nothing could be more useful, was the report of Aristides to the Athenians, than the project of Themistocles, which was to burn the fleet of the allies, but at the same time nothing could be more unjust. Whether the opinion of Aristides, concerning the utility of the plan, were correct or not, it is certain that both he, and the people of Athens, conceived that justice was one thing, and utility another. They voted unanimously, as they were bound to do, on the side of justice.

There are many facts, however, which give a resemblance of truth to this celebrated theory. The tendency of virtue to promote the welfare both of individuals and of the community; and on the other hand, the tendency of wickedness to produce misery, are obvious to every person who attentively reflects upon the established consequences of human conduct. Accordingly, those, who attempt to persuade others to the performance of their duty, especially if, from their irregular and vicious practices, it appear that they have but little regard to the distinct obligation and peculiar excellence of virtue and piety, never fail to insist on this topick. The beneficial consequences immediate and remote, to ourselves and to others, of a strict regard to the duties of morality and religion, are amply and justly recounted: and on the other hand, the numberless evils, which follow in the train of immorality and wickedness, are set forth with fervour and eloquence. In many instances these considerations are almost exclusively employed, because it is supposed any other language would have no influence

upon the minds of those to whom they are addressed. But surely this will not prove that in the judgment of good men, the sole excellence of virtue and holiness consists in their utility.

The important influence of utility, in modifying our judgment respecting the beauty and propriety of different objects, has been remarked by many authors, and is indeed obvious in numberless instances. Any work of art, if happily adapted to the end for which it is intended, appears to derive from this source alone a kind of beauty which is always regarded with satisfaction and delight. On the contrary, the want of adaptation to the purpose designed is regarded as a deformity, for which, no beauty of colouring, or elegance of figure, can compensate. Part of the pleasure, which we enjoy in contemplating works of art, may arise from the indica tion which they furnish of the admirable skill and ingenuity of the artist; since it seems evident, that the exertions of a superior understanding are contempted with delight, apart from a consideration of the useful purposes to which they may be applied. It cannot be questioned, however, that the appearance of utility and convenience, of the accurate adjustment of means to an end, confers a kind of beauty and propriety upon different objects, distinct from every other consideration.

There is no work of art, no machine or instrument, better adapted to accomplish the end intended, than the practice of piety and vir tue is to promote our own happiness and that of others. A regard in all our conduct to the duties of morality, is the best and the only effec tual means which we can employ; whether the end we have in view be our own happiness, or the happiness of those with whom we are connected. It is equally manifest that vice and iniquity are the high

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