indeed." (John viii. 36.) His poor soul enjoys it, and casts from him with abhorrence the traditions of men. Instead of toiling at the law of works, under fears of distraction, the grace of the gospel gladdens his soul, while he follows the footsteps of his Redeemer.

(To be continued.)

POETRY.

A REST TO THE PEOPLE OF GOD.

"There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God."-Heb. iv. 9.

O, gracious Father! God of love!

On us thine Holy influence shed,
To imitate the bless'd above,

To praise and bless our glorious Head.

Thou hast a people, dearest Lord,
In this poor, giddy vale of tears,
To whom thou dost thy grace afford,
To dissipate their gloomy fears.
Thine, O God, in destination,

Thine ere the starry sky was spread;

Thine they were in first creation;

Thine-thine by grace, through Christ, their Head.

Thine they are by new creation;

Thine they are by Spirit's teaching,

Thine they are by dedication,
Thine they are by preservation.

There is a rest remains above,

A rest from toil, and pain, and strife,
For those the God of gods doth love ;-
A rest from all the cares of life.

A rest that is to faith revealed;
A rest that far excels our thought;
A rest where Deity's unveiled;
A rest for saints, by Jesus bought.
A glorious Sabbatism of joy,
Where weary saints for ever rest;
Where the wicked cease to annoy
The pilgrim's soul in Abraham's breast.
A rest that's full of highest love;
No more of sorrow they'll complain:
They'll soar on wings of faith above,
To walk with joy the heavenly plain.
That rest eternal, and on high,
O may we reach, great God of love;
That we on wings of love may fly,
And praise with all the blest above.
August 11, 1835.

MINIMUS.

72

PRAYER FOR THE GOSPEL STANDARD.

Amidst the bustle of our monthly scene,
Lo! forward steps a little magazin”,

The Gospel Standard named:

Great God! protect it with thy watchful eye,
And for uplifting Jesus Christ on high,
Long be its pages famed.

May no malignant pens its leaves misuse,
To pour on good men's' heads their vile abuse,
And grieve the saints of God;

But, like refreshing cordial, may it cheer,
Make light the load of many a pilgrim dear,
Oppress'd on Zion's road.

Errors abound, and infidels grow bold,
And love, that should be warm, is waxing cold;
Yet in these chilling days,

Our hearts are cheer'd, another little band
Of faithful men, agree, throughout the land,
The Gospel Flag to raise.

We greet you, friends beloved! and may success
Attend your labours; may the Spirit bless,
And your Dictator be:

Let us hear much of Christ, our risen Lord;
And what you've seen and tasted in his word,
That glory we would see.

Exalt the riches of the Saviour's grace,
And tell us of his love and faithfulness,
Whose blood did once atone:

And while you dwell thereon with sweet delight,
Remind us also it is meet and right,

That saints his sceptre own.

O, Holy Spirit! with thy rays inspire!
Each writer's heart retouch with heavenly fire,

And may the sacred flame

Proceed, and reach, and warm, each reader's soul,
Till one and all beneath thy sweet control,
Give glory to the Lamb.

Dear Jesus! on the Standard deign to smile,
And let its pages oftentimes beguile

The weary pilgrim's hours:

Make it an eminence, from whence to spy,
With eager heart, and with delighted eye,
Fair Canaan's peaceful bowers.

Where Jesus reigns all-glorious on his throne,
With mansions ready, waiting for his own,
And soon he'll fetch them home.

Many we loved have reach'd that land of light,
And soon out-willing souls will take their flight!

Jesus will quickly come!

August, 1835.

ANN.

THE

GOSPEL STANDARD,

OR,

FEEBLE CHRISTIAN'S SUPPORT.

"Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled."-Matt. v. 6.

"Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began."-2 Tim. i. 9.

"The election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded."-Rom. xi. 7. "If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest.-And they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."-Acts viii. 37, 38; Matt. xxviii. 19.

No. 4.

NOVEMBER, 1835.

BAPTISM.

2d.

"If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest.-And they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."-Acts viii. 37, 38; Matt. xxviii. 19.

This, Messrs. Editors of the Gospel Standard, is the last passage of Scripture with which, as a declaration of your principles, you head your valuable little work; but implying, as it does, the personal manifestation of the glorious truths contained in the others, connected with the approbation, nay, the absolute presence, of the adorable Trinity, I think you will agree with me that, though last, it is by no means least. In the first, you have the heart-soothing, soul-supporting fact, that they that hunger and thirst after righteousness are blessed, and shall be filled;" in the second, that those very same saved, and called with an holy calling, not acpersons are cording to their works, but according to God's own purpose and grace, which was given them in Christ Jesus before the world began;" in the third, their name, or character-“ the election," in contradistinction to the rest, who are "blinded;" and here, you have their confession of personally experiencing

66

D

the blessedness of hungering and thirsting, of being called according to God's purpose, and of having a good hope, through grace, that they are amongst that happy number," the election," acknowledging, at the same time, as sensibly lost yet saved sinners, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, that had it not been for free, sovereign, almighty, discriminating mercy, so highly favoured they would not have been; and this is connected, as I have already intimated, with a solemn proof of the existence of Three Persons in the Godhead, and the absolute presence of those Personsan evidence of his almighty approbation, and that the ordinance is of his own divine instituting.

Before entering upon the subject, however, I must premise, that I have been considerably tossed about in my mind as to the propriety or impropriety of doing so at all, knowing, as I do, that many of your readers, whom I sincerely esteem for the truth's sake, differ from me on this point, and fearing that you, perhaps, might be the ultimate sufferers. But seeing, on the one hand, that you have requested it, and, on the other, that I am upheld by Scripture in being faithful, whether in season, or out of season, my scruples have all vanished, and I have determined upon not mincing the matter, in so far as I have been taught, but honestly, though briefly, commenting upon my text, appealing to the consciences of those who profess to have tasted the pardoning love of a dear Redeemer, as to the truth of what I may advance, and leaving the result in the hands of that God who searcheth our hearts, and trieth our reins.

"If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest."

Beginning at the 26th verse of this chapter (Acts viii.), we shall find that the Spirit of the Lord sent Philip to preach Jesus to an eunuch, of great authority; and it is clear, from what subsequently took place, that the same Almighty Person opened the heart of the eunuch to receive and understand the word, while Philip preached it unto him. As it is written: "As they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?"- -And when he was baptized, "the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing." So that, no doubt can be entertained, that he not only "gladly received the word," but that he experienced powerfully the presence of the Lord in his soul, otherwise he could not have so rejoiced. Now observe, for this is the cream, doctrinally,

of the argument; Philip did not immediately comply with the eunuch's request, but first required his confession of faith, saying, "If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest.'

Each of your readers, Messrs. Editors, who truly knows the plague of his own heart, finds daily, that to say, with all his heart, "I believe," is one of the hardest things conceivable,— so hard, that nothing short of the power of almighty God the Spirit can enable him so to do. Well; hard as it is, Philip lays upon the eunuch the strict injunction that he must confess his faith, and say he really believed with all his heart, before he could baptize him,-implying, that none, save such as did believe, were proper subjects of that ordinance.

How different is this to the conduct of many ministers in the present day, some of whom, in other respects, are sound in the truth! Philip required a belief in the Son of God, and a capability of expressing that belief, before he would baptize: they make it a common-place thing, and say it is the duty of parents to have their children baptized, thereby reversing the order of Scripture, and prostituting a most important and solemn ordinance to a mere Popish and unmeaning ceremony.

،

Now, I know what some will say to this: Were not Lydia and her household baptized? and can you say there were no infants amongst them? And were not the jailor and all his baptized, as also the household of Stephanus? To which I reply, Yes, truly; and I am thankful that such a testimony of the all-quickening power of God the Holy Ghost is left upon record: for, as regards the former, if we refer to the 40th verse (Acts xvi.), we shall find, that Paul and Silas, being delivered from prison, went into her house, and having seen the brethren, they comforted them, and departed." So, no doubt can be entertained that, under the apostle's ministry, Lydia's household were all converted to God, otherwise the apostles would not have called them brethren; and not only so, but it is added, "they comforted them." What with ?-sugarplums, and other sweetmeats? O, no; but with the word of God's grace. Besides, no mortal can tell whether Lydia was a maiden woman, a married wife, or a widow, saying nothing about her having come a great distance to sell her purple, Therefore, the cause must be bad indeed which needs the proof of her having children to support it. Well might the poet say, Pray, Mistress Lydia, let us know,

Are you in social life, or no?

If married, what's your husband's name,
And why hath Luke conceal'd the same!