ber when I lay in the crucible, where God was pleased to consume all my sins, that an invisible something asked, "What do you want this blessing for?" You know, I replied: "that I may be better qualified to preach the gospel." I wanted to be able fearlessly to preach Jesus and his matchless love. And, dear reader, if you are seeking this blessing, let me ask, Is your motive pure? or do you seek to consume it upon your lusts? We may burn incense, and snuff up all the odours ourselves. With such sacrifice God is not well pleased. It is the honesty of motive that will bear your soul on the palanquin of faith, speedily and wonderfully, and, while you are yet aspiring, lay you in the bosom of your God. My soul says, while writing this sentiment, "Amen! Hallelujah!"

I verily believe, in taking a review of my own experience, that more than half my struggles, in seeking both justification and sanctification, have been for the loaves and fishes-the comfort and satisfaction of being freed from sin. It is true that God, in his promises, holds up the joys of his salvation as an inducement to seek his favour. But whoever seeks pardon or perfect love for its joys alone, may toil, like Baal's worshippers, from morning until noon, and from noon until the offering of the evening sacrifice, and with a like success. Seek purity with a single eye, and joy will as surely follow in its wake as light follows in the track of the sun. I am the more explicit, because so many have

stumbled here. When you are brought to see your own impurity, compared with the character of the God you love; when you see how your very thoughts are mixed with worldliness, pride, and selfishness, and, as you struggle to get free from what you begin to loathe, discover that you have no power to regenerate your nature, that there is in you no good thing, how you will groan, "O who shall deliver me from this dead body?" And then comes the looking to Jesus, and the eye grows ravished with the perfection of his loveliness, his infinite condescension, his amazing mercy, his perfect purity; and O, how the soul longs to be like him! How it begs and prays to be made a fit temple for the Holy Ghost to dwell in! Do you think of joy in that hour? Is it not joy to be like Christ, the adorable, the blessed Saviour? Is not that joy enough?

Well, you remember I promised to preach the gospel in Frankfort. I had an opportunity the first Sabbath after my return from camp-meeting. God has promised to make his ministers a flame of fire. I always spread out the writing before him when in court, and I will say to the glory of his grace, from that Sabbath to this, which is about six years, I have endeavoured to preach once, twice, or thrice every Sabbath, with a very few exceptions, and he has always answered by fire. O how good, how rich, how glorious is the promise left on record by Jesus: "In that day ye shall know that I am in

the Father, and you in me, and I in you." Here is our coat of mail, and it is bullet-proof. It is said that Napoleon once contracted with an artist to furnish him a coat of mail, for which he was to pay nine hundred ducats. In due time the artist came, and laid it before the emperor. Napoleon inquired if he was sure it was impervious to a bullet? The artist answered at once in the affirmative. "Then," said Napoleon, "put it on yourself, sir, and stand out a few paces." The order was quickly obeyed. The emperor drew his pistols and fired several bullets at him, but they fell harmless at his feet. The emperor took the armour, and gave the artist eighteen hundred ducats. Our armour has been proved; it has been able to stand the united assaults of three great princes, the World, the Flesh, and the Devil; and whoever puts it on must expect an assault from these enemies of all righteousness, and, alas! from some in the Church too.

It was the chief priests that consulted to put Lazarus to death, "because that by reason of him many of the Jews went away, and believed on Jesus." The sum and substance of the devil's business upon earth is to destroy witnesses, to put out the light; and the greater the light, the greater his anxiety to have it extinguished. Why, at the time of the Revolutionary War, the British would have given more for the head of Washington than for half a regiment of common soldiers. And never think that Satan is not as cunning as the British.

He would like well, if he could, to spike the cannon, or stop the mouth of one of God's sanctified invincibles. Whoever, therefore, puts on this armour, must expect to be made a target for all hell to fire at. When I class myself among God's witnesses, I feel like curling down at the feet of my brethren as less than the least of all saints. There is a piece of ordnance used in the armies of this world's warfare, called a blunderbuss, which is discharged without taking any direct aim; it very often hits those who are least expecting it. So with my preaching: I generally fire at random, not caring who is hit; many times receiving a text from the Lord while reading the hymn or chapter, or while upon my knees at prayer. I have often had more liberty in preaching from such texts, than from those premeditated.

I believe it is somewhere written in the good book, "Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.” About the last advice Paul gives to Timothy was, to bring along with him the cloak that he left at Troas, and the books, but especially the parchments. This especially means, if you forget cloaks, books, and everything else, do not by any means forget the parchments. These seem to be all important and indispensable. Just so with the qualifications necessary to be a useful minister of the gospel. If we can bring along the cloak of education, together with books or much useful literature, and have all fully consecrated to God, it is well; but whether you bring into the

field a college diploma or not, I beseech you, for your own soul's sake, and for the sake of those that hear you, do not leave behind you the parchment of perfect love. A general may load his cannon, and direct it with mathematical skill against his enemies; but one element is always indispensable, or he will never start the mortar on the enemies' fortress he must touch fire to it. Even so the minister may have a sermon correctly and beautifully arranged in all its parts; but if he is destitute of the perfect love of God in his heart, he will need Old Sammy Hicks's prayer before he can rout the enemy: "Clap fire to him, Lord!"

CHAPTER XIX.

No

In this chapter we are to speak of one that you have been introduced to in the foregoing chapters as my wife-one that forms part of myself. figure used in the Bible so beautifully illustrates the union of the soul with Christ, as that of the marriage tie. The true Church is called the Lamb's wife. In the marriage covenant, whether temporal or spiritual, three things are mutually promised by the parties. The bridegroom promises to love, cherish, and protect. So does Christ his Church. The bride pledges herself to love, serve, and obey