than the sacred awe inspired by the solemnity of the act, she now, in experimental verity, did lay hold upon the terms of the covenant by which God has condescended to bind himself to his people, being willing, yea, even desirous, to bring down the responsibility of a perpetual engagement upon herself, even in the sight of heaven. So intensely was she desirous that earth should usurp a claim no more, she asked that the solemn act might be recorded before the eternal throne, that the "host of the Lord that encamp around about them that fear him" might bear witness, and also the innumerable. company of the redeemed, blood-washed spirits, should behold yet another added to their choir in spirit, and also in song; and though still a resident of earth, they should witness the ceaseless return of all her redeemed powers,through Christ, ascending as an acceptable sacrifice. The obligation to take the service of God as the absorbing business of life, and to regard heaven as her native home, and the accumulation of treasure in heaven the chief object of ambition, was at this solemn moment entered upon.

On doing this, a hallowed sense of consecration took possession of her soul; a divine conviction that the covenant was recognized in heaven, accompanied with the assurance that the seal, proclaiming her wholly the Lord's, was set while a consciousness, deep and abiding, that she had been but a co-worker with God in this matter, added still greater confirmation to her conceptions of the extent and permanency of those heaven-inspired exercises, by which a mighty work had been wrought in and for her soul, which she felt assured would tell on her eternal destiny, even after myriads of ages had been spent in the eternal world.

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But she did not at the moment regard the state into which she had been brought as the way of holiness," neither had the word holiness been the most prominent topic during this solemn transaction. Conformity to the will of God in all things was the absorbing desire of her heart. Yet after having passed through these exercises, she began to give expression to her full soul thus: "I am wholly thine!Thou dost reign unrivalled in my heart! There

is not a tie that binds me to earth; every tie has been severed, and now I am wholly, wholly thine!" While lingering on the last words, the Holy Spirit appealingly repeated the confident expressions to her heart, thus: What! wholly the Lord's? Is not this the holiness that God requires? What have you more to render? Does God require more than all ?— Hath he issued the command, "Be ye holy," and not given the ability with the command for the performance of it? Is he a hard master, unreasonable in his requirements? She now saw, in a convincing light, her error in regarding holiness as an attainment beyond her reach, and stood reproved, though consciously shielded by the atonement from condemnation, and enjoying the blessedness of that soul "to whom the Lord will not impute sin."

And now the eyes of her understanding were more fully opened, and founded on eternal faithfulness did she find the words of the Saviour, “If any man will do his will he shall know of the doctrine."

"THE WAY OF HOLINESS."

IS THERE NOT A SHORTER WAY?

SECTION V.

"Let us, to perfect love restored,
Thine image here retrieve,
And in the presence of our Lord
The life of angels live.

But is it possible that I

Should live and sin no more?

Lord, if on thee I dare rely,

The faith shall bring the power.",

SHE now saw that holiness, instead of being an attainment beyond her reach, was a state of grace in which every one of the Lord's redeemed ones should live-that the service was indeed a "reasonable service," inasmuch as the command, "Be ye holy," is founded upon the absolute right which God, as our Creator, Preserver, and Redeemer, has upon the entire service of his creatures.

Instead of perceiving any thing meritorious in what she had been enabled, through grace, to do, i. e., in laying all upon the altar, she

saw that she had but rendered back to God that which was already his own."

She looked upon family, influence, earthly possessions, &c., and chidingly, in view of former misappropriation, said to her heart, "What hast thou, that thou hast not received? And if received, why didst thou glory in them as of thine own begetting?" And though with Abraham in the sacrifice of his beloved Isaac, she was called seemingly to sacrifice that of all earthly objects surpassingly dear, yet so truly did she now see that the "Giver of every good gift" but rightfully required his own in his own time, that she could only say, “The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord."

And O, what cause for deep and perpetual abasement before God did she now perceive, in that she had so long kept back part of that price which, by the requirement of that blessed word, she now so clearly discerned infinite love had demanded; and when the inquiries were presented, "Is God unreasonable in his requirements? Hath he given the command,

ve holy,' and not given the ability with