of His dear children. The dear writer of the first letter from which we quoted encloses a leaflet, in which this thought is blessedly embodied, under the supposed utterance of "A Sparrow." It is quite new to us, and we feel we must transfer it to these pages, for the encouragement of our readers. We refer them to a later page. The ideas that precious leaflet contains are both sweet and Scriptural. Oh, the promises, what an ever-constant source of plea and argument. How are they identified with divine faithfulness. "And Thou saidst, I will surely do thee good." "Remember the word unto Thy servant, upon which Thou hast caused me to hope." Dear reader, could you strictly analyze your state of mind at this moment, how large a proportion of your peace, satisfaction, hope, trust, would be based upon the promises! Not what you have in hand, but what you have in hope; not a vague, reckless, fleshly hope, but a Godenkindled, a God-maintained, and what shall finally prove a Godglorifying hope.

Lastly. The word or the statutes of the Lord becomes the songs of Zion's pilgrims, upon the basis of power-living power, divine power, omnipotent, resistless, overwhelming power. That is a precious testimony, dear reader, respecting Abraham: "He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; and being fully persuaded that what He had promised, He was able also to perform.'

Dear reader, whatever doubts and fears there may be about the willingness of God to do certain things, it is a mercy by no means to be despised, to be enabled, without a wavering tongue, to say, "Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou CANST make me clean.’ It is a decided step in advance of him who exclaimed, "If Thou canst do anything, have compassion on us, and help us!" And yet, in order that none should be discouraged in the contemplation of the smallness of their faith, we have, in immediate connexion with the utterance of the poor distressed father, one of the most blessed and brightest actings of faith, setting forth at sight the almighty power and divine majesty of Jehovah-Jesus. "Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth." Then we read, "And straightway"-at once, without any dallying, disputing, or doubting; and why? Because the Lord accompanied His own words with sovereign and irresistible power. "And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help Thou mine unbelief." We believe that there is not a more precious example of the power of a God-wrought and divinelyinfused faith throughout the whole Book of God.

Well, indeed, dear reader, may such constitute a song in the house of our pilgrimage.

The Lord permitting and enabling, we will take up this subject again.

St. Luke's, Bedminster, March 10, 1874.

THE EDITOR.

WHAT A SIMPLE VERSE DID; OR, AN INCIDENT IN THE LIFE OF THE LOVED LORD RODEN.

"In peace let me resign my breath,

(Luke ii. 29.)

And Thy salvation see; (Luke ii. 30; Gen. xlix. 18; Isa. xii. 2.) My sins deserve eternal death, (2 Thess. i. 8, 9; Rom. vi. 23.)

But Jesus died for me." (Rom. v. 6; 1 Cor. xv. 3; Gal. ii. 20.)

THE above lines were written by Dr. Valpy, an eminent scholar, before his death, and they contain the confession of his faith. The verse was repeated by the Rev. Dr. Marsh at a Bible-reading in Earl Roden's family. Lord Roden got it written out, and fastened the paper over the mantelpiece in his study (where it still hangs, yellow with age). Some time after this, one of the old heroes of Waterloo, General Taylor, came to visit Lord Roden. He had not, at that time, thought much on the subject of religion, and preferred to avoid all discussion of it. But, whenever he came into the study to talk with his friend alone, his eyes invariably rested for a few moments upon the motto over the mantelpiece. At length Lord Roden broke the ice by saying, "Why, general, you will soon know that verse by heart." 'I know it now by heart," replied the general, with emphasis and feeling. From the time of that visit a change came over the general's spirit and life. No one who was intimately acquainted with him could doubt its reality. During the following two years he corresponded regularly with Lord Roden about the things which concerned his peace, always concluding his letters by quoting his favourite motto. At the end of that time the physician who had attended General Taylor wrote to Lord Roden to say that his friend had departed in peace; and that the last words which fell from his dying lips were those which he had learned to love in his lifetime.

It happened, in after years, that Lord Roden told the foregoing story at the house of a near neighbour. A young relative of the family, an officer lately returned from the Crimea, heard it, but turned carelessly away. Some months later Lord Roden received the intelligence that his young acquaintance was in a rapid decline, and was desirous of seeing him without delay. As he entered the sick room, the dying man stretched out both hands to welcome him; at the same moment repeating those simple lines. "They have been God's message," he said, "of peace and comfort to my heart in this illness, when brought to my memory, after days of darkness and distress, by the Holy Ghost the Comforter."

I know not, my reader, whether your walk in life is a high or low one; it matters not before God, who "accepteth no man's person" (Gal. ii. 6); for, though man looks on the outward appearance, the Lord looketh on the heart (1 Sam. xvi. 7). But it may be that these lines, abounding as they do in Gospel truth, may prove to you, as they have undoubtedly proved to others, a guide to lead you for salvation to the Saviour Christ, so that you too may learn to say,—

"My sins deserve eternal death,

But Jesus died for me."

Wayside Notes.

GLEAMS OF SUNSHINE ON THE PILGRIM'S PATHWAY.

"And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope, and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt."-HOSEA ii. 15.

How very many of the Lord's dear people are often plunged into spiritual distress, depression, and darkness. It is with an eye to such that we have taken up our pen at this time, praying that the Spirit of the Most High may so direct us that we may be the means of opening the door of hope with the hand of faith, that they may catch gleamings of sunshine on their pathway, and gain a little soul-cheer that shall cause them to go on their way rejoicing.

The Valley of Achor was in the territory of Jericho, and about twelve miles from Jerusalem. The children of Israel in this valley became conscious of sin in their midst; on account of which, and the hidings of God's countenance for the same, they became so weak that they were smitten of their enemies, " and the heart of the people melted and became as water." The Lord instructed Joshua how to take steps to discover the transgressor, and Achan, of the tribe of Benjamin, being found out to be the guilty one, he and his sons and his daughters were stoned to death; after which the fierceness of the Lord's anger was turned away; "wherefore the name of the place was called the Valley of Achor unto this day," or, as its signification implies, the Valley of Trouble. And, beloved, what made it a valley of trouble? Sin! Ah! is it not this that has brought, and still brings, us into trouble? True, we may be mercifully kept from what the Psalmist so emphatically calls "the wickedness of the wicked;" but we know, in bitterness of spirit, not a little about the wickedness of the saint; by which we do not mean the new nature, which cannot sin, and is pure and holy, but that wretched old nature that is always worrying us and bringing us into trouble. Well, dear reader, if this is so, it is yet a mercy that you are concerned about sin; the very anxiety and felt-guiltiness marks your adoption; the very sighing on account of it shows your sonship; and the very loathing of yourself proves your love; and,

"If such a weight to every soul

Of sin and sorrow fall,

What love was that which took the whole,
And freely bore it all!"

But Joshua, in a rebellious and unbelieving spirit, expresses surprise to the Lord that such distress should fall upon them: "Alas! O Lord God, wherefore hast Thou at all brought this people over Jordan, to deliver them into the hands of the Amorites, to destroy us?" and very angrily adds, "Would to God we had been content, and dwelt on the other side Jordan." Ah! dear reader, are we not verily guilty too upon this score? Are we not sometimes expressing ourselves in a similar spirit to David, when he said, "Why hast Thou cut us off? why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?" We must acknowledge it is so to our shame and regret. It may be that our cup seems much oftener “filled with the wine of astonishment" than with the wine of the Gospel;

P

it may be that things seem crooked enough with us ofttimes, but do we really wish to go back to Egyptian unregeneracy and servitude? Do we, with all its drawbacks, wish we could give up a spiritual life? Do we really desire to have expunged all we know of Jesus? No! no! It is the uprisings of that wretched old nature again. May the Lord forgive us!

But to refer again to the narrative. Achan is dead; the Lord's anger is turned away; it will be no longer a valley of trouble to Israel-all now will surely be peace. Not a bit of it! Directly after all we have referred to has taken place, we read that the kings on this side of Jordan gathered themselves together, and fought with Joshua and Israel with one accord, and did wilily. Ah! it must ever be so in a spiritual sense. There is no peace this side of the grave. Some think that literal Canaan is a type of heaven. In some particulars it may hold good; but, certainly, there is (and thanks be to God that there is) one point of difference very wide, namely, that in literal Canaan it was fighting work to the end; in spiritual Canaan it will all be sweet peace. But as long as we are here on earth it will be warfare! warfare! warfare! The soldier of the cross must make short work of resting in his tent, for the enemy is on the alert. The Lord purposely will not let our armour rust upon us, or give opportunities for putting it aside. The pilgrim will find but little time for wiping the dust off his boots ere he must be on the road again. The machine must be kept going to be useful, but the Lord will supply all the oil needful for its working.

“'Tis to hear the Holy Spirit

Prompting us to secret prayer,

To rejoice in Jesus' merit,

Yet continual sorrow bear.

To receive a full remission

Of our sins for evermore,
Yet to sigh with sore contrition,
Begging mercy every hour."

Beloved, I do not know what you feel in connection with the ups and downs of spiritual life, but I candidly confess that, although I have known the Lord for five-and-thirty years, such language describes my experience begging mercy every hour."

And now, whatever exercises of soul make this Achan wilderness a valley of trouble to us, we purpose, as the Lord shall enable us, to open with the hand of faith "the door of hope, " and seeing if we cannot, in the sunshine of His truth, see beaming upon us glittering and golden words, which may well constitute a source of joy and encouragement. Here, for instance, are two precious words-eternal life! Oh, how precious are the beginnings of that life! Though, with some of us, time tells upon us, yet it seems to the writer that the Christian will never be too old to look back to the dawnings of divine grace otherwise than with the most grateful joy; indeed, the Holy Spirit puts into operation His character of the Remembrancer, purposely bringing to mind those very beginnings and dawnings, to reassure us in downcast moments of the reality of the work within, and that God's beginnings will have no endings; for, if the work is of the creature, it will come to naught, but, if it be of God, it must stand.

In family reading the other morning how sweetly and with what bedewing influence did those words arrest our attention, "He will come and save you (Isaiah xxxv. 4). They brought to remembrance the beginnings of eternal life in one's own experience. Ah! this is the way we realized Christ. It was His coming to me, and not my going to Him, that was

the origin of what we know of divine things; therefore is the basis strong and to be depended upon. In youthful days we thought we had come to Him; and, under a softened, flesh-pleasing ministry, we believed we did God service in a regular attendance at the appointed place of worshipnay, from certain flattery received, we thought we were very good-but when the light of divine truth shone into our hearts, oh! then the contrary was seen, and we felt far from being very good-we were the vilest of the vile. And, when completely undone and turned upside down, then our extremity was God's opportunity, and we realized the truth of the assertion we have drawn attention to, "He will come and save you." But let faith again look through the door of hope the Lord has opened for us, and through it we shall see two more precious words; they are these -"free grace." If I could only see through the door of hope "free will," it would be no hope for me, for I cannot find in my free will anything but what would lead to evil and result in destruction; and it is to our mind astonishing how ministers will preach man's inability to do anything good, and then almost with the same breath tell them to exercise faith, which is at once bidding them to put in operation a spiritual power they do not possess. Their cry to dead souls is, Only look, only believe, only accept, only embrace, and salvation is yours this moment! And then follows, of course, the misconstrued, but usual, passage, "Now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation." Surely there must be eyesight ere we can look, life before we can believe, grace before we can accept, and hands before we can embrace. All these are spiritual acts, the result of life eternal. As the beloved John writes: "Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God; and every one that loveth Him that begat, loveth Him also that is begotten of Him."

But, if I see through the door of hope these two words, "free grace, written by the hand of God, oh! then my sinking soul revives. They are words that suit my case, and I am melted as I read on: 'By grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God." To the same point how sweet are those words: "He will give grace and glory." Will He? Well, then, I'll ask Him to give it me. I am sure I need it; and He says, Ask, and it shall be given you." I will bend the knee at His throne; I will remind Him of His promises; I will say in simple language, "Lord, I need grace; give me grace." Is such the desire of your heart, dear reader? If so, it springs from the grace already bestowed, the possession of which makes you desire for more, and which shows that there is a spiritual appetite, the result of spiritual life; and then, if you must acknowledge, "Yes, I have felt what grace within is; I may be cold and dark and downcast now, but I did believe I had grace at such and such a time;" then do not forget those other two redundant words, "and glory." The day of small things is not to be despised, for it will culminate in eternal sunshine. Those feeble desires will terminate in the fulness of realization; the tiny spark will be fanned into a flame that will burn brightly in heaven. Oh, then, how joyous are these two words, "and glory!" Others might, if they will, take their fill of free will; we poor undone ones must rest upon free gracethe free favour of our merciful God.

But we open again the door of hope, and there outshine two more sweet words, despised by many, but precious to the children of God. They are, covenant salvation." Paul speaks of those who are "strangers to the covenant of promise." There must be a vast army of such in the