Spirit? If you have, you have been called with an holy calling, according to his purpose by his Spirit working in you, and that you can give some account. If you have not, you are no christian, therefore you have no evidence at present that you belong to him. You say again man has the choice of either place; so that instead of God's will being done, he is made to depend on the will of the creature, so that the creature's counsel must stand and not God's. This is atheism, for he is no longer a God bút is at his creatures' beck. When you go to church, do not repeat Thy will be done" for you do not believe it. Who will have all men to be saved; who gave himself a ransom for all to be testified of in due time for there is a set time to favour Zion. Therefore it means all that the Father hath given him for himself shall come to him and no man can come except the Father which hath sent me draw him. For he hath redeemed them to God by his blood out of every kindred nation and tongue: he is to be testified of to them; he gave himself a ransom for all. When he the Spirit of truth is come (not before) he shall testify of me. For thou hast given power over all flesh, that he might give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him and no more. Eor as many as were ordained to eternal life. believed and no more. For some are now suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. If Christ had died for them, he could not have seen of the travail of his soul and been satisfied, for his blood would have been shed in vain. Then devils would have triumphed. But a man can receive nothing except it be given him from above. For it is by grace we are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. The lot is cast into the lap; the disposal of it is of the Lord. Shall freewillers sow their hurtful tares, Telling how God from wrath may turn, How all mankind he fain would save, Blush, Pusey, blush at thy disgrace, Yours in love W. CROKER. LETTER TO THE EDITORS. Messrs. Editors, THROUGH the generosity of a public Editor, an isolated individual in humble life, has sometimes an opportunity to vindicate himself when publicly attacked. Although a person but little known and loving privacy, I solicit the favour of addressing a word through your periodical, to the readers of Mr. Edmund Greenfield's pamphlet lately fulminated against me, entitled, (query?) God's Witnesses' Rule." Whatever might be the character of my letter to him, (and persons who have not seen it may not act unwisely in suspending their judg ments,) as a private letter, it could be but a private trespass of one member of the visible church militant against another. The rule for God's witnesses in such a case, is clearly laid down in Matt. xviii. 15, 16, 17. By rejecting that rule, and gibbeting my name as a scarecrow, to deter every person in Christendom from daring to shew an author what are the unpleasant feelings created by reading his writings; he has not only discredited the first word of his title, but shown that his boasted ability to conquer and chase a thousand such correspondents as I am, is but foolish bombast. For, if a man strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned a victor unless he strive lawfully. I am, Mr. Editor, your very hum- supplicated the exertion of almighty (Concluded from page 156.) WE should now in the order proposed proceed to remark upon the extensive influence which presumptuous sins at times obtain over the servants of God. But the Sermon by our brother Tite, which formed the first article in the July number, is so much to the purpose, as to ren der it altogether unnecessary. We therefore at once proceed to the fourth division of our subject, namely, The necessity of prayer to be kept from the dominion of presumptuous sins. This arises from a variety of causes. 1. The impossibility of keeping ourselves. 2. The dishonour it brings upon the cause of Christ. 3. The distress it occasions in the minds of true christians. And, 4. The heartrending anguish it procures to ourselves. 1 1. The impossibility of keeping ourselves. To some it may appear unnecessary to occupy time on this part but aware that this lesson is not learned in a day, and that many of the dear family of God have not been fully convinced of their impotency; fully, did we say? this none ever can know well then, many have not been so deeply convinced of it as others: therefore we refer them to the cases already mentioned, and also to the prayer itself, which is expressive of weakness and helplessness; for if David could have kept himself back, it were then hypocrisy to have power to do it for him. May we then be enabled at once to reject the idea, that any thing short of the influence of almighty grace can keep us back even from presumptuous sins. Again, the dishonour it brings upon the cause of Christ, is a second reason why we should be importunate in our cries for preservation. For although the essential glory of God can never be tarnished by any act of his creatures; yet his declarative glory can. And since the new principle, the new man, the spiritual part of every christian, must necessarily aim in all its actings at the manifest glorification of Christ; the desire when divine grace is in exercise must be, to avoid that which is calculated to produce the contrary effect. This, presumptuously sinning is necessarily adapted to accomplish; therefore earnest importunity to be preserved from its influence is both desirable and necessary. Again, the distress which our being overcome occasions in the minds of our brethren, is a cogent reason why prayer against presumptuous sins is desirable. For the delightful union running throughout the family of God, renders it impossible that it should not occasion sorrow to those who are born of the same. Spirit, taught in the same school, loved with the same love, partakers of the same rich grace, travellers to the same blissful home, and expecting to enjoy throughout an unceasing eternity the presence of Him, who washed them in his blood from all their sins, and made them one and all kings and priests for ever and for ever. The fourth reason we assign is the heart-rending anguish which the indulging in presumptuous sins procures to ourselves. So thought Jabez when he cried, "Keep me from evil that it may not grieve me." And so thought David, when in the words before us he said, "Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins.". Of the painful effects resulting from his deviation we may judge, by his touching and expressive appeals, admissions and solicitations in Psalm li., as we also may by various other parts of the Psalms, together with his history as recorded in the Kings and Chronicles. Many other cases, as recorded in that only faithful biography the word of eternal truth, might be pointed out, which serve to shew the deep distress, the pungent sorrow, the heart-rending anguish, which has resulted from the commission of presumptuous sins. And could we hear the groans and sighs, could we see the tears, which perhaps are escaping from the burdened heart, or trickling from the downcast eye, at the moment we are engaged in writing this, we should not want proof of the results arising from the practice of presumptuous sins. The thought has struck us, and we have been tempted to suppress it; but as we cannot conscientiously do so, we will, we must give it publicity, and risk the issue, since to the pure all things are pure. And we see not sufficient reason in the fact, that as some may abuse the plain, unsophisticated statement of the exercises of the tried part of God's family, that it is therefore best to conceal or disguise them. The thought we say hath struck us, that some poor presumptuous sinner, whose eye these lines may meet, may say with a deep drawn sigh, Alas, alas, the writer does not explain my state. He speaks of the desirableness and necessity of praying to be kept, but I, alas, have already fallen, and woe is me, what shall I do? Oh, wretch that I am, ah, whither shall I fly? I tampered with the sin, I parleyed with the foe, until the former appeared to have lost its awful features, and the latter held me fast in his dreadful fangs. That, against which I have sometimes felt the purest and most holy antipathy; that, upon which I had been accustomed to look with profound disgust; I have very often since felt an unholy pleasure in cherishing, and an awfully carnal delight in entertaining. So that with all my efforts I could not produce in my mind that holy disdain which in by. gone and much lamented days I have often felt, and for increase of which I have with real earnestness at those delightful seasons so feelingly offered up my most ardent supplications. But, sad reverse, guilt has since ciosed my lips, my heart is hard, my conscience appears seared, and with awful forebodings I look forward to the dark and dreary future, justly fearing that the whole of my remaining passage will be distinctly marked by the most solemn tokens of the righteous displeasure of a despised, insulted, and offended God; and that the termination, oh, dreadful thought! vibrating through every avenue of my poor disconsolate soul; the termination, oh, lamentable change: that I, who ere now have anticipated that period with the most solemn rapture and sacred delight, should instinctively shrink from it, and fear and tremble in the anticipation, expecting that if saved, it will be so as by fire, and that perhaps without giv ing the least evidence of it on earth. Oh, dreadful thought-to die! To die apparently a reprobate: to die in such a way as to blast the hopes of those who once confidently received me as an heir of glory, but whose hopes are now suspended upon a very slender thread. Ah, wretched, sinful me. Would I had never been born: would that I were any thing but a rational creature. Oh that it were with me as in months that are past. Ah, me, whither shall I fly ? Have these been thy exercises; are these now the workings of thy mind; dost thou desire thus; are these thy inquiries, poor, downcast, harrassed, weather-beaten, tempest-tossed and almost despairing soul? Then listen while while we attempt to shew thee, lastly, as proposed, the superiority of the gospel to the law, in having provided a sacrifice for wilful or presumptuous sins. In doing this, we observe, first, that 'all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven:" so says truth itself. Are we reminded that the sin against the Holy Ghost is an exception, we reply, briefly, that our opinion with regard to that sin, is, that we must again be placed in apostolic times, we must be witnesses to the performance of miracles before we can commit that sin, as it plainly appears to be just this, that while they knew that Christ performed his miracles by the power of God, yet they maintained that he did it by the power of Beelzebub. If we are right, and we confidently challenge proof to the contrary, it follows that the sin against the Holy Ghost cannot be committed now. This unbounded forgiveness arises, as we observe secondly, from the unbounded efficacy of the blood of Christ, for "the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin.' This blood hath cleansed and will cleanse. This is the only sacrificial offering that is adequate and adapted. The blood of the Son of God, wherewith he, the Son of God, was sanctified, or set apart, is the exclusive sacrifice. And therefore "if we sin wilfully, after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sin." For although the Jewish high priest presented his daily offerings, our Melchisedec, when he had once offered up himself, for ever sat down, having no more sacrifice to offer. Therefore we again repeat it, that if we sin wilfully the gospel provides a remedy. Does this truth, then, want guarding? No, we scorn the idea, but say with dear old Kent, THOUGHTS ON EZEK. Xxx. 11. THIS text is a divine mystery, in union with all the Scriptures, which cannot in any part or manner be truly known, opened or elucidated, only in the blessing and divine teaching of the self-existing God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, in " whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." In elucidating the text, under the teaching of the Holy Spirit, I would say that the life" and "the death," declared therein, first signifies natural life, or the moral life and conduct of the Israelites of old in civil, ecclesiastical, national, family and individual protestantism, in resisting idols, idolatry and immoralities, and obeying and worshipping the one true God, according to their various stations and abilities, both as individuals and as a professing body, called "the house of Israel;" who in departing from God's ways of truth and morality, were to be visited with judgments, woundings and afflictions unto temporal death. This is the first meaning of the passage; and by it we are assured, as by all the Scriptures, that God hath no pleasure in the death of the wicked," although his justice and law, for their wickedness and demerit of sin, in Church and State, demands judgments, and woundings, and afflictions, and temporal deaths, which his almighty power executes, as we see in Caius' case and in the case of millions of other sinners unto the flood, Gen. iv., vii., unto succeeding generations, to Korah, Dathan, Farewell, beloved brethren, that we Abiram, and their household's deaths, "Let no unhallowed feet, Within these limits tread; Num. xvi. 28-33, after all warnings and callings of God by his prophets and public witnesses, and onward to Ahithophel, who was protestant king David's prime minister and privy counsellor, to Joab, the commander in chief of the armies of Israel, unto Shimei the rebel. All these were visited with dreadful and violent temporal deaths, for sins and evil ways, after all warnings. "" Bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days," Psalm lv. 23. 1 Now Sincere Inquirer' will find by this scripture line of elucidation, that to the end of the Old Testament, and in the New Testament, unto the case of the wicked king Herod, with Pilate, and the priests, also with Judas and others, for their sins and wicked ways, after all warnings and callings of God, died most awful temporal deaths. Go on to succeeding ages, even to the apostate Julian, and to that noted man Spira, and to Tom Payne, with their successors, unto this year 1844, and we find that God warns and calls all people to turn from their evil ways to a life of morality, unto natural temporal death, according to the passage under consideration. Therefore all God's public witnesses, from Adam to Noah to this day, have declared scripturally that "God hath no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that they turn from their wickedness and live. Yea, as Ahab, the notorious king of Israel, at God's warnings, threatened judgments, and callings by Elijah the prophet, turned from his wicked ways, and so lived a time longer. See 1 Kings xxi. 17 -22. Ahab knowing his responsibility to God, through the warnings of the prophet, and fearing temporal death, a prelude only to eternal punishment, as a just desert for breaking the law of God and despising his testimony, by gross idolatry, by succouring the priests of Baal, by allowing the murder of Naboth, and then siezing upon his estates, repented himself before the Lord, desiring the favour of natural life, as did also his househoid, whilst the substance of the words in Ezekiel sounded in their ears and consciences, "Turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?" You will notice, that as soon as God, who watcheth over all, saw that Ahab turned from his evil ways and humbled himself before him, that God said to Elijah, “Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before me; I will not bring the evil in his days," 1 Kings xxi. 29. Hereby we have proofs from God himself in his government of the nations and people of the earth, that human or natural humblings, under Bible warnings and threatenings and callings, and turning by natural repentance to live a more moral life, according to the law and testimony of God, averts for a time God's judg. ments, even temporal deaths, from kings, queens, governments and peoples. See Ezek. xxxiii. 11; 1 Kings xxi. 29. This scriptural elucidation which you have publicly solicited, no doubt arose in your heart and issued from your pen, by and in the divine will and workings of God the Holy Ghost, whose powerful inabiding and gracious operations, by and in his ingrafted law and testimony in you, was his pleasure, in order that through "the Spiritual Magazine and Zion's Casket," one of his messengers to the protestant Church and State of this nation and its colonies, and to other nations, the people might be warned and called to turn from their wicked ways, whether it be in indulging in Papistical, Mahometan, Arian, Sabellian, Puseyite, Socinian, and other idolatries, immoralities, blasphemies, and all abominations, and also from labouring, by Satan's temptations and sinful infirmities, according to the proposed Socinian Endowment Bill,' to set up nationally the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet, chap. xi. 31, 32, · |