ture and extent of your true du ty; and is there not a sober study of divinity, which would introduce you to a better ac. quaintance with it? You plead the urgency of your worldly business; but may not that which you call business, be fairly denominated ambition? May not your prudence be covetousness; your professed regard to your family, modified selfishness; and is not that degree of abstraction which religion promotes, the best remedy for all this self deceit, and the most ef fectual protection against it? But above all I would ask, Whether you would wish to meet God face to face, without having ever seriously contemplated his nature and his perfec. tions? Are you ready for sudden death? Would you on this very night venture your eternal interests on the soundness of your reasonings? And here let it be remarked, that if the Scriptures are true (and you are by no means prepared to deny their truth,) the plea which you set up will not serve you; for they continually represent an acquaintance with God, with Christ, and with his gospel, as necessary to salvation. They denounce "Vengeance on them that know not God, and obey not the gospel of Jesus Christ." They identify the careless person with the unbeliever. The man who turns from the offer of the gospel, though it be only "to his farm and his merchandize,” is represented as having no part in its blessings. You may go to public worship, it is true; but you worship like the Athenians,

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an unknown God," until you begin to give your mind to the

revelation of himself which he has afforded to you.

How happy, on the other hand, is the man who has ac. quainted himself with the great objects of faith, and, to borrow a Scripture expression, "both knows God," and is known of him! His heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. "Whom," says he, "have I in heaven but thee; and there is none upon earth that I desire in comparison of thee." When he contemplates the dissolution of the body; when he hears of sudden deaths around him, and reflects that his own departure may perhaps be equally abrupt and unexpected; he is able to say, Lord, I have

loved the habitation of thine house, and the place where thine honor dwelleth." I have delighted myself while on earth in frequenting thine holy temple. I have hallowed thy Sabbaths. My private supplications have also, day by day, been devoutly made unto thee. On thy law, indeed, have I meditated both day and night. In the intervals of wakefulness on my bed, my thoughts have often turned to heavenly things; and amidst my occupations in the world, thou knowest that my heart hath fre quently addressed thy throne for grace to enable me to fulfil the whole extent of my duty. Thou knowest, also, that I have done good to my fellow creatures for thy sake; that in feeding the hungry, in visiting the sick, I have remembered that I have been thy steward; and that I have not been eager to lay up for myself a treasure on earth, because I have looked to a treas ure in heaven, where I have placed my heart also. I feel,

nevertheless, that I have greatly sinned against thee. Many have been the transgressions of my youth, and many those even of my best days. Many have been the errors of which my fellow creatures have known, and many those of which thou, and thou only, hast been the witness. But I have learnt to understand something of the riches of thy grace, and to look my own num. berless iniquities in the face, knowing that if I confess my sins, thou art faithful and just to forgive me my sins, and to cleanse me from all unrighteousness. I have often meditated on the great work of my Redeemer. I have learnt, I trust, to know him,' and the benefit of his death, and the power of his resurrection ;' and, firm in the faith of Christ crucified for me, I am ready to obey thy summons to the eter. nal world, by whatever messenger it may be sent, and even in the most unlooked-for moment. 'I will walk through the valley of the shadow of death, for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.'

I am

now, indeed, in the midst of life, but I know that I may be laid low even in a moment. 'All the days of mine appointed time I will wait, till my change come.' If it be thy will to send infirmi. ties which shall announce to me the gradual approach of death, continue to me thy wonted consolations, and take not thy Holy Spirit from me; but if thou shouldst see fit to call me by a sudden stroke, accept, for my Savior's sake, that repentance in which I daily exercise myself, and receive, O Lord, that soul which thou hast redeemed."

Ch. Ob.

VOL. II. New Series.

HINT TO MINISTERS.

Messrs. Editors,

THE following extract from Bogue's History of the Dissenters, contains excellent remarks on the duty of some ministers, whose situation exposes them to controversy As it contains a Word in Season," I should be much gratified if you would give them a place in your valuable magazine. CLERICUS.

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"WERE this divine pattern" (that of the Holy Scripture) constantly before the eyes of every minister of the gospel, to observe and copy, what improvement should we observe in their discourses! That it should be held up before the face of those who are engaged in controversy, is peculiarly necessary, as they are in imminent danger of having their minds turned aside from the purity and fulness of evangelical truth. It is needful too for the preacher, who lives in the place where the dispute is carried on, though he himself may take no active part, as the error designed to be overthrown may have extended its ravages into his flock, and as his own mind is also in danger of reced. ing to the opposite extreme. the persons appear to verge to the Antinomian system, let him preach the riches of divine grace, and all the peculiar doctrines of the gospel, as fully as he possibly can. If, on the contrary, they run into what is called the legal and self-righteous scheme, and seem to overlook the great principles of the gospel, let him not be afraid to bring forward and enforce the duties of christianity, and the commands of God; but let him inculcate them with as much earnestness and force as it is in their power to do. Let

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this difference however be seen between him and them; instead of confining himself to one part of divine truth, and nearly forgetting the other, let him, according to the pattern shewn him in the sacred Scriptures, dil. igently attend to both.

"While he enlarges with cordial delight on the doctrines of grace, let him display their sanctifying influence on the heart and life of the disciple of Jesus; in. sist on the absolute necessity that these effects should be produced; and maintain that where they are not produced, it is an evident proof that the doctrines are neither believed nor understood.

"When, like a faithful minis. ter, he changes his theme, and treats on the duties and virtues of the christian life, and presses them home on the hearts and consciences of his hearers, let him distinctly point out their connexion with christian princi. ples, their dependence on the doctrines of the gospel,-the manner and spirit with which they are to be performed,-and the absolute necessity of divine influence on the soul in order to render man's obedience agreeable to the nature of God, and acceptable in his sight. By this method, errors, which threatened ruin, will most probably be arrested in their progress, and in time banished from the place. At any rate, whatever may be the issue, it is the way in which God has commanded his servants to act; to which therefore they ought carefully to attend. Should they, instead of observing the divine direction, follow the bias of the heart and lean to the opposite side, the error which they wish to oppose will gain ground;

the souls of the people will be injured from not having the whole counsel of God presented to their view; and an error di. rectly contrary to the other be unhappily generated.

"From such beginnings, with out any design to mislead, but merely to guard against erroneous opinions, the purity of the gospel has, in many places, been gradually lost."

FRAGMENTS.

....

HEART-Searching preaching, where it does not convince, is sure to offend. Nothing is so cutting to an unrenewed heart, especially where there is a decent outside, as to have its rottenness exposed, its refuge of lies swept away, and the pillow of forms, whereon it was sleeping, removed from under the head. Whosoever attempts this must expect to see the old man rise and fume, since to approve the real Christian, and the real truth, would cause the Pharisee to condemn himself.

In most cases, we ought to weigh our intentions, before we put them into execution, to see whether we run any risk in of fending God in what we are about to do; but where our fleshly lusts are concerned, it is quite otherwise: the less we ar gue and deliberate, the better. Whilst we are debating, our pas. sions are kindling, so that rea soning with ourselves here, is like flinging oil upon fire in order to extinguish it.-But flight and prayer are special helps.

WATCHFULNESS will not avail without prayer, nor prayer with. out watchfulness. Watch and pray saith our Lord.

To a believing soul there is something wonderfully sweet in viewing all his trials, troubles, afflictions, temptations, desertions, spiritual conflicts, ups and downs of every kind as ordered of God for his good; decreed to come upon him just at such a time and place as his heavenly Father's wisdom sees fit and meet; to remain with him just so long and not a single moment longer than till they shall have answered some

salutary purpose for his soul's good; that however sore and griev. ous these things may be to flesh and blood, however thwarting to his own will and wishes, yea howev. er contrary to what hewould judge to be for his spiritual welfare; yet he who ordereth all things after the counsel of his own will, causeth them to work together for his good, and that they are all the effects and emanations of infinite wisdom, infinite love, and infinite power united to accomplish his salvation in the way that shall be best for him, and most for his heavenly Father's glory. Sir R. Hili.

6 As many persons talk of Religious Madness and Religious Melancholy who, I am persuaded, know nothing of the matter, I think it my duty to make a few observations on the subject. I have known several patients who have appeared, some suddenly, and others gradually, to be seized with a species of relig ious horror, despairing of salvation, distrusting divine Prov. idence, asserting that they had committed sins which could nev er be forgiven, who had never previously appeared to be under religious impressions. In these

cases, friends have often interposed, procured visits to them by religious people, and perhaps have taken them to hear different ministers, whose mode of preaching was supposed to be well calculated to dispel gloomy apprehensions, and excite religious confidence. The use of these means has appeared, for a time, to answer the desired. end d; but speedy relapses into a fear of immediate judgments,' or 'of being reduced to beggary,' &c. have taken place; so that all hope of restoration to mental sanity has been cut off. In

6

these cases, attempts at suicide have been resorted to by the unhappy sufferers; and, when not closely watched, they have suc ceeded in putting an end to their lives. Others, by proper care and medical treatment, have recovered; and have been completely restored to their former soundness of mind, and to their station in society :-and, what has been peculiarly remarkable in the cases of those who have recovered, is, they emerged precisely as they immerged: for, as before their seizure, they were, like too many in the world, quite unconcerned about religious matters, so, on their recovery, the inquiry after sal. vation, and the sense of their sinfulness, ceased with the removal of the hypochondriac affection, and they became precisely what they were before; so that the whole of their indis. position seemed to have been a perfect parenthesis in their lives, partaking of nothing that preceded, of nothing that followed after.

This indisposition, because it assumes a religious aspect, has been injudiciously ascribed to religion, with which it has no kind of affinity or concern, as the preceding and succeeding circumstances sufficiently evince; and I am persuaded, from my own experience in medical prac. tice, that in ninety nine cases out of a hundred, no religious impressions, no true or false views of any Scriptural doctrine, have any thing to do in the business; and, that whatsoever is felt or expressed on this subject by these hypochondriacs, should be con. sidered merely as the symptoms by which this almost non-de.

script disorder may be ascertain. ed, but no cause whatever of the complaint.

'I have only further to ob serve, that this disorder almost invariably exhibits the same symptoms; and these are fairly reducible to two points, Despair of temporal support, or Despair of final salvation. I am sorry to find that, in many instances, this is treated as a spiritual disease, which may yield to consolatory exhorta tions drawn from the mercy of God, &c. But from the fullest means of information, through an extensive acquaintance with deranged persons, I can say (with the highest respect for the gospel of God, and all the con. solation which may be legiti mately derived from it) that they are utterly inapplicable to such cases: and that the Medical Practitioner, and not the Di vine, is the proper person to be consulted.

'I would earnestly advise religious people not to be too for. ward to take cases of this nature out of the hands of medical men. I have known several, more remarkable for their zeal than for their knowledge or discretion, who have incautiously asserted, that the disorder was wholly of a religious nature; and thus, its numerous fatal issues have been charged on religion itself, caricatured for the purpose, under the names of Fanaticism, Enthu siasm, &c. I need not say that it is perfectly disingenuous, as well as grossly absurd, to attri bute to the means of cure, wheth er judiciously or injudiciously applied, the disorder which existed previously to that applica tion, and for the removal of