promises to the glorious results that have followed the prayers and labors of pious men in every age.

Indeed, how can the christian be otherwise than active, who sees a communication with heaven opened, and himself able to engage an influence that shall make his efforts productive of blessings incalculable to the human family. With the glory of Jehovah, the cause of Christ, and the worth of an undying soul, in full view, he must exert himself. It is not talking of our being adopted into the family of Christ that proves it. Little claim has any person to be considered a joint heir with the Saviour to an inheritance incorruptible, who does not feel and act in view of motives powerful as those which called the Son of God from a throne to a cross. I will show you my faith by my works, was the language of one whose heart was fired with holy zeal; and this should be the language, the determination of every disciple of our Lord; and then throughout Christendom, revivals would be reaching revivals, and the light of truth, with all its quickening energies, would be spreading itself into every dark corner of the earth, and the whole world would present a happy people, whose God would be the Lord.

Extracts from an Address delivered before the Society for Missionary Inquiry, in the Theological Institution at Newton.

It has been often said, that the spirit of missions is the spirit of christianity. It is indeed pre-eminently the spirit of Christ, who left the court of heaven, and came on a mission of mercy to our fallen world. Jehovah had seen sin, as a deadly pestilence, sweeping over this portion of his dominions, effacing his own image from the heart of man, banishing holiness and happiness from earth, introducing vice and wretchedness, and planting the seeds of death both in the bodies and souls of men. It was to recover the human race from this dire apostacy, and restore them to the image and favor of God, that Jesus Christ undertook his embassy into the world. In leaving the realms of celestial light, and subjecting himself to the weaknesses and woes of human nature, and the malice of human depravity. did he not make an incomparably greater sacrifice than any of his followers ever did in renouncing all the blessings of civilized society, and in taking up their abode with the Heathen? Our Saviour may therefore, with the utmost propriety, be styled the first missionary-the leader of that glorious band who take their lives in their hands, and go forth into the whole world, to proclaim the glad tidings of salvation.

The benevolent design which swelled the bosom of our Lord, when he visited the world, was of an enlarged and liberal character. Codrus, the generous king of Athens, sacrificed his life to secure the liberties of his country; but Christ offered his life as a ransom, not merely for his own nation, the Jews, but for every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, under heaven. The remedy which he provided was designed to be as extensive as the

wants and the wretchedness of man. It was the human race that had sinned, and for the human race was the atonement made.

The general nature of our Lord's mission into the world, and the universal provision which he has made to remove the guilt and the punishment of sin, are considerations which give the subject of missions a strong claim upon our attention. If we have availed ourselves of this gracious provision to heal our spiritual maladies, and wash away our guilt, surely we shall be solicitous that these invaluable blessings be extended to all our fellow men-that the boundless benevolence of God, in the gift of a Saviour, be made known to all for whose sake the gift was bestowed.

Indeed, the gospel breathes a spirit of universal benevolence, and they who cordially embrace it, drink deeply into that spirit. Wretchedness, wherever found, they endeavor to relieve; and sin, wherever it exists, they labor to suppress.

But our Lord has not left us to gather our duty, in respect to the cause of missions, merely by inference from the benevolent character and universal provisions of the gospel. He has left on record explicit directions to his followers, to spread that gospel through the world. When he had finished the great work which his Father had given him to accomplish, and was about to asceud again to his native heavens, he gave this last solemn injunction to his disciples: 66 Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature, and lo! I am with you always, even to the end of the world." This command of Christ made it the plain and indispensable duty of his followers, individually, and as a body, to spread the glad tidings of salvation, by every possible method, till the knowledge of the true God and of Jesus Christ, should cover the whole earth.

The inquiry now to be made is, Have christians fulfilled this great command of their Divine Leader. We stand at the distance of eighteen centuries, and look round in vain, on the present state of the world, for evidences of its fulfilment. Indeed, owing to the increased population of the earth, there are probably nearly as many human beings in the world at the present time, who are ignorant of the way of life, as there were at the very period when our Lord issued the command to preach the gospel to every creature. For a century or two, the disciples of Christ appear to have felt the obligation of this command. Though confiscation of goods, alienation of friends, universal odium, relentless persecution, and even death itself stared them in the face-though they were opposed by the combined power of Jew and Gentile, rulers and people, yet they determined to obey God rather than man, and went everywhere, fearlessly proclaiming the "words of this life." And had the same dauntless spirit continued to animate the bosoms of christians, long ere this would the whole world have been regenerated and disenthralled from the bondage of sin. But such, alas! was not the case. The spirit of missions died. The command of Christ was forgotten, and vast multitudes of our fellow beings, in every quarter of the globe, have been permitted, generation after generation, to move onward, in unbroken columns, to the land of

silence and death, uncheered by the bright promises of the gospel, and unsanctified by a belief in its purifying doctrines.

But though the christian church is chargeable with a long and criminal disobedience to a plain injunction of her Lord, yet we rejoice in being able to admit, that in the present age there are numerous indications of better things. During the last half century christians have awoke from the sleep of ages,-they have looked around on the miseries of a world lying in wickedness, and begun to feel their obligations to spread abroad the knowledge of a crucified Redeemer. Feeling has been followed by corresponding action. Christians of almost every name have put their hands to the work, and have sustained, by vigorous and untiring efforts, the noble enterprises in which they have embarked. Already "about two hundred missionaries are employed in christian lands, and fifteen hundred in pagan countries, assisted by two thousand native teachers. Forty printing presses are employed in heathen countries, diffusing light and truth around them. Many unwritten languages have been reduced to form and system, and the people taught to read in them the wonderful works of God. The bible has been translated and distributed in one hundred and sixty different languages. Fifty thousand pagans have joined christian churches; four hundred thousand have renounced paganism, and three hundred thousand more are brought under religious instruction. Nine million copies of the word of God, or parts of it, have been distributed, and two millions of children are taught the way of life in sabbath schools." The most savage and degraded nations have been visited by the heralds of salvation, and many individuals among them have embraced the gospel, and by their intellectual elevation and renovated lives, exhibited convincing proofs of its sovereign efficacy to restore the ruined creature, man. Such are a few of the effects which have resulted from the pow erful impulse given to the minds of Christians within the last half century.

Compared with the inefficiency of the church in former times, much has been done, but nothing compared with what remains to be done. Not more than one million of the heathen, at most, have yet been blessed with the gospel, while about six hundred millions, exclusive of the semi-pagan countries, where popery prevails, still remain in the darkness and guilt of depraved nature. Thus it appears that not more than one six-hundredth part of the work has yet been accomplished. It is a mere beginning that has been made. The duty of preaching the gospel to every creature still rests upon the christian church in its original unabated force. We are under obligations strong as those which bind us to the Saviour, to make vigorous exertions to advance the cause of truth. Whatever may be our situation in life, we must act for the glory of God and the salvation of mankind. Said the venerable Carey, when on the eve of departure to India, "Brethren, I am about descending into the well; you stand at the top, and have hold of the rope. Oh! brethren hold fast on the rope." The remark of that worthy man

shows how deeply he felt that the arduous enterprize in which he was then about to embark his all, depended upon the interest felt for him among his brethren at home, and upon the efforts which they should make to sustain him in his labors. Indeed, the missionary, while engaged in his work of faith and labor of love, deprived of the sweets of christian fellowship, and often in a destitute, cheerless situation, leans for support, upon the affection and prayers, as well as upon the contributions of the church. His heart would sink within him at the thought of being forgotten by his brethren; his arm would fall nerveless by his side, and he would be ready to abandon, as hopeless, the task of reclaiming the perishing idolaters.

To give energy and success, then, to our missionary operations abroad, there must be felt a missionary spirit at home. For the purpose of obtaining this end, the first and indispensable requisite is ardent piety, without which we shall have little anxiety to save the perishing. Without ardent piety, however well informed our understandings may be, our hearts will be cold, and our efforts inefficient. Present the wants and the woes of the benighted heathen to the minds of lukewarm christians, and you kindle no flame-you arouse them not to action.

Another means of enlisting our feelings in the subject of missions, is to acquaint ourselves with the actual state of the heathen, and with all the operations in progress for spreading the gospel among them. Our interest in any subject depends upon our acquaintance with it. Time was, when christians thought not of sending the gospel to nations "sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death.” A few at first considered facts, felt and acted. Others were informed and put forth their exertions. At this day, those who are best acquainted with missionary operations, are the most active in carrying them forward. It is our duty then to obtain as vivid an idea of the situation of the heathen as possible, by contemplating the picture of their state drawn by the hand of those who have visited them. We must acquaint ourselves with the history of each missionary station in pagan lands,-view its origin, progress, and present state. We must examine the formation and proceedings of the missionary societies of different denominations, become acquainted with the characters of the various missionaries and with the customs, manners and habits of the heathen among whom they labor. Indeed, let every christian become well informned upon the subject of missions, and the efforts of the church would be vastly increased, and a far greater amount of her resources would be employed in raising the distant and degraded to light and life. Then the death of a missionary would no more pass unnoticed than the fall of a standard-bearer in the heat of battle, or the extinction of a bright luminary in the midst of heaven.

Another means of enlisting our feelings in the success of missions is a frequent contemplation of the promises of God, and the certainty of the final triumph of the gospel over all its enemies. The scriptures are explicit on this subject. “The kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole

heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him." The heathen will "cast their idols to the moles and the bats "-" the isles shall wait for Messiah's' law."

Ethiopia shall stretch out her hands to him, and all nations shall call him blessed." How does the prospect of success animate men, even in their worldly undertakings? Now if the hope of ultimate success has a power in it that impels those in pursuit of earthly objects to endure privations and hardships, to face dangers and death, what ought to be the conduct of christians engaged in a cause of no doubtful issue-engaged in a cause in whose behalf the word of God is pledged that it shall go forward until "the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and his Christ-engaged in a cause also, in which a deep interest is felt by the inhabitants in the world of bliss, and for the establishment of which, the Son of God left heaven and passed through a scene of poverty and reproach, and through the agonies of a death, in view of which the sun was darkened and the earth convulsed. What a cause is this! How elevated is the employment of the engaged christian. Oh! it is a great privilege to be workers together with God in rescuing the world from the dominion of sin-a privilege after which an angel might aspire.-This privilege is ours. Let it not be neglected. No! we must not neglect it, if we would hear it said unto us, in eternity, "Well done, good and faithful servants; enter ye into the josy of your Lord."

MR. EDITOR,

FOUR DAYS MEETINGS.

I have desired to see, in the Magazine, an essay from some judicious pen, on the subject of what are called "Four Days Meetings."—It is, I think, a subject of great and increasing interest to the christian community. These meetings have become very frequent, and in many cases have been attended with a wonderful effusion of the Holy Spirit. This fact naturally creates a desire in all the churches, worthy of the name, to enjoy such a meeting themselves, and some of them probably suppose that these "protracted meetings," as they are sometimes called, cannot be held too often, nor continued too long. In some cases, they have been held fifteen or sixteen days, in succession. There is some danger, that an instrument, of immense efficacy, may be injured, by overaction. Correct views, on this subject, are greatly needed. I hope, that some of your correspondents will discuss it, in all its bearings. If you have nothing more acceptable, you may insert a few extracts from a plain, practical discourse, recently delivered, on the benefits and disadvantages of these meetings. It was not possible to exhaust the subject, in a sermon, nor to treat it in that elaborate manner which would be If these exproper in an essay written expressly for the Magazine.