the friend, Father, and defender of his people to him, unfolding the perfection and attributes of God as they are seen in Christ his Son; this brings a fulness far superior to all created things, and the man is contented with what has been provided for and assigned to him by a covenant settlement. The true knowledge of God ever influences the heirs of mercy to love and revere his name and authority. We witness the invincibility of eternal love when we behold a ransomed sinner leaving his old habits and customs, and confessing with adoring gratitude that it is by grace alone that he has been rescued from the slavery in which he was born, and converted to love the things which he once hated. The dawn of endless life that has opened upon him in this dark world has pointed his hope where his treasure is laid up, and he very often sends his heart by his prayers to the region whither the Redeemer is gone. Connected with him in the love of God, he is the ladder by which he climbs to the skies, and feels the holy influence of it while by it he is ascending above the confusion which is beneath his feet. It is far better to have our lot with Christ in this world, although it may be one of much suffering and conflict, than it is to abound in the pleasures of sense beneath the sentence of unrepealed wrath for sin committed. Think of this, ye humble christians, as ye are travelling to your Father's house above. The church on earth is not your final place of abode: in it there are many persons found who are like Israel of old, they are not of it; but let not your heads be unnecessarily troubled, for it is the will of God your Father that you shall here taste his love, but that on high you are to enjoy pleasures which shall never end. It is matchless grace which has given you a name and a place amongst his saints on earth, but the Book of Life is the fair transcript of his unbounded love, and there by his own hand your worthless names are written, and the inscription will not be consumed when he will destroy by a general conflagration the world, and you will be found with the Lord of Life in his kingdom.

CHOICE SAYINGS OF EMINENT MINISTERS. THE Sweetest fruits we gather, grow in the valley of humiliation.-Rev. John Newton.

Christ loves to be the soul's confidant.-Rev. John Berridge. If we receive a mercy, and are given to see ourselves unworthy of it, we receive two mercies in one; for a sense of our unworthiness is one of the greatest mercies that God can bestow. -Rev. W. Romaine.

A moral action when done in a christian spirit is changed into a heavenly grace.-Rev. W. Romaine.

Sin is death in the bud.-Rev. Mr. Heath.

UNPUBLISHED CORRESPONDENCE OF THE LATE REV. SAMUEL EYLES PIERCE.

My very dear Sir,

No. 3.

Peckham, Oct. 24, 1796.

Your's came safe to hand, and truly glad am I to understand that you are looking to believing on resting in Christ, and living by faith of the Son of God. Let such as know not Christ live on themselves, such as know him and believe to the saving of their souls will live on him alone. He is all in all to them. They are nothing out of him, and without him they can do nothing. It is truly a blessing when the eye of the mind is fixed on Jesus; when the heart is satisfied with him, and believers trust wholly in the Lord. But, alas, few know Christ, and such as know him are too apt, through the legality of their own hearts, to neglect him and to look more into and on themselves than to Christ alone. It is heaven on earth to know Jesus; he is the heaven of heaven of heavens; his love is the wonder and standing miracle of eternity: on earth it passeth knowledge, in heaven it is above all blessing and praise.

Though I have had a large field before me, and many places to preach at, and very many to preach the gospel unto, yet I do not think that people in general enter into the spirit of the gospel. This man's opinion and the other man's preaching is more attended unto, than what God hath revealed of Christ in the infallible word and testifies concerning him therein. And so it will be, until people know Christ from the word and by the infallible teaching and revelation of the Holy Ghost. For my own particular part, I am quite unconcerned what others think and say of Jesus, I know him to my soul's satisfaction, and would aim in all my preaching and writing to set a fresh crown on his head. He is worthy to be crowned by all his saints in earth and heaven. God's beloved people, quickened by the Holy spirit, fail in this, they do not love Christ nor live upon him for all the purposes of spiritual life. It is the principal thing in experience to make use of Christ as our every day's wants call for and require. It is a blessed part of the Holy Spirit's teaching, to shew us how to improve all the views and knowledge he gives us of our sins, wants, corruptions, weakness and emptiness, to make the greater use of Christ, his salvation, grace and fulness. Here we want much light from the holymaking Spirit, and much of his spiritual teaching. We need much renunciation of self, and much dependence on the Holy Spirit, whose work and office it is to guide us into all truth, to exalt Christ in our understandings, enthrone him in our affections, and crown him in our hearts, that we may live wholly on Christ. As long as self is any thing, Christ will not be all in all. Christ

only is exalted in us as self is dethroned,

Sin is not, will

not be brought down, but as we look to and believe on the name of the only-begotten Son of God. It is only well with us as Christ gains the pre-eminence in our hearts. It is views of Christ make us superior to sin, keep our hearts from the love of it, and which alone can dethrone it. Sin, alas, though we are the subjects of it, we know but little of it. The tremendous effects which it hath produced in us in alienating our hearts from God, the fountain of all, in corrupting all our faculties, defiling all our senses, and filling us throughout every member with evil, so that we are exceedingly sinful; we feel something of it. When we have an inward sight and sense of this, to whom can we betake ourselves but Christ Jesus, whose work is salvation, whose office it is to receive, save and bless us, whose blood cleanseth from all sin, whose righteousness justifies from all things, in whom is everlasting health and cure for sin let its wounds be ever so desperate, let its guilt be ever so tremendous. To one who sees himself in the light of the Holy Spirit to be vile, most vile, how precious is Christ, how is his blood and righteousness highly prized, and to be healed and cured of all the disease of sin, by believing the virtue and efficacy of the blood of the Lamb, this is beyond all other blessings in our spiritual experience.

To receive God's testimony into the heart by faith, and give full credit to all which he speaks concerning Jesus, this is the only way for us to have our guilt removed, our consciences purged, and for us to enjoy that peace with God which passeth all understanding. You must look at nothing but Christ's work for salvation, you must trust in nothing but Christ's word, you must derive all your peace and hope in God by believing the everlasting perfection of Christ's life and death, and you must give God full credit for the finished salvation of his Son. Very few fetch their all from Christ. Many of God's beloved have no proper views of the necessity of believing. Faith is so simple an act, that we overlook it, neglect it, live much of our time without it, have some notions about God's salvation, but are not alive to it, because we see not its glory in the light of the word and Spirit. When we really believe by the power of the Holy Ghost into Christ, then we are more than a match for all our spiritual enemies. May the Lord the Spirit increase our faith in Jesus. Amen.

I have preached at several places in Kent, and in and about London, where I still am. I hope to leave London next week. I wish you would write a line to our friend at Wileoaks, and say I shall be there next week. If you have not received your *** I will inquire about it, and endeavour to send it you, unless you come to Moreton. I hope to be there and celebrate the Lord's Supper the second Sunday in December. If I come to

you it must be on the third Sunday in December. I hope I shall either see or hear of you at Exeter or Moreton.

If my letter is barren do not be angry, as I assure you my time is so swallowed up I am quite tired myself and long to be in the country. Well, give me my retirement at Boskenna, and who will may live here for me. You must not think I slight you in not answering your's before. I left it because I expected to fix the time when you might expect to see me. My love to all our believing friends, and your beloved minister. I hope you all increase with the increase of God. My kind respects to your wife. I am, yours in the Lord,

S. E. PIERCE.

RELIGIOUS INTELLIGENCE.

WE are requested to announce, that the Rev. Mr. HEAP has funded in the Three per Cent. Consols., in the joint names of Messrs. POTTER, WARREN, LEWIS, and ELLIOTT, One Hundred and Fifteen Pounds, for the Use of the Widow and Three Children of JOSIAH PAINE, being the nett amount of the profits, exclusive of some sums given previously to her, arising from the sale of the Sermon delivered by him at Bury Street Chapel, entitled "The Prayer of the Dying Thief," on occasion of the execution of the said Josiah Paine.

SUNDAY TRADING SUPPRESSION SOCIETY.-We have been favoured by the Secretary to this Institution with their recently issued circulars; the length of them prevent the possibility of our complying with his request to insert them, but we cheerfully express our hearty concurrence in the object had in view, and solicit for the Society the aid and countenance of our readers.

The Rev. R. H. CARNE'S Third Pamphlet in reply to the pieces in the Morning Watch, on the Humanity of our Lord, is now just ready for publication.

We beg to state, in reply to the Letter of “ A Minister," that the publications of the Gospel Tract Society, such as still remain in print, continue to be sold by the Publisher of this Magazine; but we regret to add, that the Institution, for which we had cherished enlarged prospects, has long been in an entirely dormant state.

GOSPEL UNION SOCIETY LECTURES for April, 1833, at Cumberland Chapel, Shoreditch :

4, Mr. IRONS; subject-Christian Fellowship.

18, Mr. CROKER; subject-Trophies of Victory.

N. B. Service will begin on the Sundays at Three o'clock, and Week Days at Seven in the Evening.

On Good Friday Two Sermons will be preached for the Benefit of the Sunday Schools; that in the Morning, by the Rev. J. KIRKNESS, of Ebenezer Chapel, Deptford; and that in the Evening, by the Rev. C. BRAKE, of Mill Wall.

REVIEW.

Immanuel; being the Scripture Testimony of the Truth as it is in Jesus Christ our Lord. By a Minister of Christ's Gospel. 12mo. pp. 65. Baynes. Palmer.

"GREAT is the mystery of godliness, GoD manifest in the flesh." It would be well if men were content with the plain testimony of God the Holy Ghost as revealed in the sacred scriptures, but the times in which we live present to us many who are sufficiently bold and impious to attempt the explanation of mysteries at which Satan himself would tremble; hence we find some bold blasphemers asserting, that the humanity of Christ was "devil-possessed;" and now, with the same hardihood, they are blaspheming the Holy Ghost, by counterfeiting his gracious influences; and we do not hesitate to assert of such awful deceivers, that though many shall follow their pernicious ways (doctrines), by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of their judgment of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. Others there are whose uniform and bold testimony for the grand and leading truths of our holy faith have much endeared them to our affections, and ranked them very high as the ambassadors of Christ, and grieved have we been when we have felt it to be our duty to remonstrate against any thing which they have written contrary (in our view) to the truth as it is in Jesus; our readers will recollect, that we have been uniformly opposed to the doctrine of the pre-existence of the human soul of Christ, fully believing it to be unsupported by scripture. The pamphlet before us is directed expressly against this doctrine; it is written in a catechetical form, and the author throughout the whole displays an enlarged and spiritual understanding of the subject, with an intimate and experimental knowledge of holy scripture, his quotations from which, in support of his statements, are very numerous and well chosen; but while we coincide with Mr. SILVER in his general remarks, and think he has done well, we are free to say, we cannot regard the sentiment in the fatal light in which he views it. We do consider it is a dangerous opinion, inasmuch, that it certainly is the portal to Sabellianism, but we do believe that many entertain it who have never in idea passed that portal, and of whose eternal state we can have no doubt. We do not know that we can do better, to give our readers a fair specimen of the performance, than by subjoining one section, which, though long, is too connected and important to abridge.

Is not JESUS called the first-born?

The Greek word, rendered first-born, is a compound word. It is a title VOL. IX.-No. 108.]

R