the midst of a statement of the difficulties in the way of salvation, by any natural power we possess, the evil of our heart, the weakness of our best endeavours, and the defilement of our services, Jolin remarked, "I must put off my sins." It was asked, what he meant by putting off his sins. His answer manifested at once the simple, but clear, manner in which he had received the Scripture illustration which had been pointed out to him the day before, and was truly glad dening to the feeling of his visitors: "Did you not tell me yesterday about the live goat on whose head the sins were laid?" The applica tion of the type of the scape goat had thus been made by him to his own state; and he had arrived at the conviction, that whatever might have been his sins, and whatever were his hindrances, he was permitted to "put them all off," upon that great all-sufficient atonement, the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world. He had thus been enabled to feel his burden, to bring it to the cross of Christ; and at once it seemed to have fallen from him at the feet of his Redeemer.

The nature of faith is illustrated in a very interesting manner, by the simple development of it which Jolin now exhibited. The sinful ness of his own state he knew, and felt deeply. He did not, however, seek to excuse himself, or to palliate his offences: he did not think that past services would be any compensation to God; that any circumstance of his life or character would screen him from Almighty wrath; or that by repentance he might be pardoned through the mere mercy of his Heavenly Father. In himself, therefore, he had no ground of hope whatsoever : he was as a debtor who had nothing to pay; as a sick man whose case was desperate but he felt an assurance that Christ was able to pay his debt, and to cure his disease, and that in his own particular case he

would do it; and he himself did in heart, what the high priest did with his hands, transfer all his sins to the Atonement. Thus he came to feel, not indeed presumptuously, but with great humiliation, all his sins laid upon the Sacrifice; and he was able to substitute in his mind a conviction of the efficacy of the atonement of Christ in the place of his own most grievous burden; and to contemplate the Saviour's mercies instead of his own merited doom as a sinner. The ground of this faith in his mind was en acceptance of the simple testimony of God, that he would blot out his transgressions. He believed in this word of promise, and joy in believing was at once imparted to him. The simplicity with which Jolin received the testimony of God in this instance characterized his religious experience during the whole of his remaining course. The Scriptures were as a message of God to his soul. He received them as feeling there could be no doubt but every word of them was true. I often, said Mr. Hall, in the after part of his history, tried to persuade him that it was, naturally speaking, an incredible thing that God should have come in the flesh and atone for sin. But he always said that he believed it, because it was so written in the book which is the truth.

I have before noticed the indifference which Jolin appeared to feel to outward circumstances; I have yet to observe another point connected with it in this day's visit, which was the brightness and almost cheerfulness of aspect which his manner and countenance gradually assumed. In the period before his condemnation, his downcast look and general air of wretchedness might have betokened a state of despair; but now he lifted up his head, and even his voice seemed to have changed its tone. This surprising change was observed by others. M. Hammond, Jolin's advocate, told M. Durell, as he him self has recorded it in a tract which

he published on the trial and exe cution, that when he saw the prisoner on the 27th of September, he found him "in really a distracted state, torn by every conflicting passion, and all his faculties hurried by the unutterable anguish of remorse. The dread of death was uppermost in his thoughts; and there was nothing to which he would not have submitted to avoid capital punishment: but when he saw him again on the evening of the 26th, he was astonished at the sudden and rapid change which had taken place in him he was calm, placid, and resigned; he hoped that God had accepted his repentance; [this was probably not his own phrase, but Mr. Hammond's impression of what he said;] and he had not one wish to live. I then," continues Mr. Durell," mentioned to Mr. Hammond, that I had found him exactly in that state on my first visit (the 26th), which had preceded his own only by a few hours." He adds, "The opinion of an impartial and enlightened man, like Mr. Hammond, was certainly very important: but M. de Quetteville, the mayor of the town, and other laymen of the highest respectability, who had formerly known the prisoner, had been equally struck with that great and salutary change. From a comparison of dates," adds Mr. Durell, "I am inclined to believe, that his change must not only have been rapid, but that his heart must have been almost as instantaneously and as miraculously touched as that of the penitent malefactor in the Gospel." Now how was this wonderful change to be accounted for? We read in Acts xvi. 34, that when the keeper of the prison in Philippi had received the Apostle's message, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved;" that he took them the same hour of the night, and "rejoiced, believing in God." It was perhaps precisely this very feeling of joy which Jolin now experienced; a joy which, however rapidly it entered into the mind, CHRIST. OBSERV. No. 337.

yet necessarily arising from a clear, full, well-grounded belief in the doctrine of justification by faith. This doctrine, which is promised (Rom. v. 1) to give peace with God;" is always (verse 5) attended with an experience of " the love of God shed abroad in the heart by the Holy Ghost." It is the removal of the dependence for salvation from man's miserable confidences, and the fixing it on the sure foundation of the Saviour's merits, which gives real peace and joy in religion. Every previous conviction only brings the mind into bondage, and it may be into misery; but this is the "joyful sound," which when the sinner hears, he walks at once," in the light of God's countenance." Whilst men remain unexperienced in the efficacy of the Cross of Christ, however deeply they may feel their own sins, and however they may labour in good works, they cannot obtain peace, because in an honest examination of themselves they still find enough to condemn. But joy in believing is the point of union with Christ; and the more entirely the Christian is enabled to renounce every work in the way of merit, and to believe in him that justifieth the ungodly, is he enabled to enter into the Apostle's direction, "Rejoice in the Lord always; and again I say, Rejoice."

On the 25th, he narrated to his visiter the whole history of his melancholy life; his difficulties and discomforts, arising, not so much from others, as from his own sinful wilful heart. Like so many other young persons, he had chosen to take the way of pleasure and of folly, instead of that which many circumstances had led him to see was a happier as it was a safer course. It is indeed true, that his parents were not in a state to check him in his proceedings; but he seems to have had at many intervals those convictions of conscience which were sufficient to have guarded him from the transgressions into C

which he fell, and even to have guided him to seek the paths of religion. His unrestrained immoral education, however, came in aid of his natural self-will, and soon prevailed in establishing a character given up to those vices which led to his ruin. The workings of his conscience had been chiefly in the painful apprehensions which he gained of his state of sin. The remembrance of a life of ein St. Paul strikingly describes in Romans vi. 21, where he says, "What fruit had ye then in those things of which ye are now ashamed; for the end of those things is death." Jolin seemed in a certain measure, to have felt this, but without its bringing him to a resolution of turning to God. His state had been, as he himself described it, at times miserable and wretched; but drinking had quickly driven away this view of himself, and he soon returned again to his mad career. He observed to Mr. Durell, that since 1823 he had not seen one happy week.-There are two things to observe on this feeling of the evil of sin, as it was felt in his unconverted state by Jolin. Until the Spirit of God has enlightened the heart sin does not by any means, in all cases, appear as it invariably does to the renewed heart, or as it did to Jolin, a grievous burden. The life of many wretched sinners is one course of prosperity. They are described in the seventy-third Psalm as passing from their cradles to their graves without one source of grief or one apprehension of death. The Bible, however, teaches, that such a state of unmixed prosperity is the most dangerous in which a man can be placed; that the sinner, when thus left alone of God, is on that very slippery point from which he will fall to his eternal ruin. On the contrary, whom the Lord loveth he chastiseth; and those whom he brings to a crown of glory, he leads through much tribulation. Ministers cannot, therefore, always press upon their ungodly hearers the con

viction of their own feelings of the misery of sin, because sin does not in this life uniformly prove itself so miserable. It is, indeed, a state which comes as short of the real spiritual happiness of the true Christian, as darkness does of light; but in itself it often affords a very unmixed portion of worldly or sensual indulgence, satisfactory to the unrenewed heart, nor indeed does this leave the sinner till his condemnation begins, and the door of hope is shut against him for ever. Another observation arising from Jolin's feeling of wretchedness in his former state, is, that the mere sense of horror at the pain of sin, or the consideration of its consequences, will not, unassisted by the Spirit of God, produce the real repentance which the Gospel requires. It is true, the compunctions of conscience, like the afflictions of life, are means very often used to bring the sinner to that state of mind in which he is prepared to receive the doctrines of the Gospel. Yet, in how many cases do we find men only wounded, and not brought under the sentence of death by the power of the law; only stunned, and not really affected by the deepest distresses of life. Thus we learn that it is not one dispensation of Providence or another, as it is not one situation in life or another, which necessarily brings men to that knowledge and faith which is needful for salvation. It is true, that God does bless the endeavours of the willing mind whenever he sees them; but the mind is not necessarily made willing because it suffers, any more than a child is necessarily made more compliant by the punishment which is inflicted. A man may therefore very easily feel all the waves and the billows of sorrow flow over him, yet not have his heart touched with one single feeling of real religion. For this he must be born of the Spirit, he must be quickened by the power of God, he must have an entirely different sense imparted to him from the

mere feeling of the misery of an evil course, or the afflictions of life; he must be convinced of the condemning power of sin, of his own desperate state in the sight of God, of the need of that sacrifice which the Saviour has wrought out, before that good work is really begun which, it is promised, shall be carried on till the day of Jesus Christ. So far, then, from the common notion, that the sufferings of our life wiil atone for its offences, those sufferings have no connexion whatever with our state hereafter, except as they may have been a means of bringing us to seek that sacrifice by whom alone any of our sins can be pardoned.

(To be concluded in our next Number.)

and fermentation of men's spirits' which characterise the present age, it is also distinguished for an increase in the external means of grace, which, however far from being commensurate with the wants of a rapidly increasing people, is yet inconceivably greater than the most sanguine hopes of our forefathers could have dared to anticipate. New edifices, dedicated to the glory of God-the enlargement of the ancient fabrics-increased attention to the accommodation of the poorBibles circulated with a zeal unparalleled-pious books and tracts lending their aid to awaken the dormant conscience, or strengthen some holy conviction-religious societies for promoting, in the most efficient manner, every conceivable object connected with the salvation of man -the facilities for instruction in the principles of our faith afforded to

THE DISTINCTIVE TOKENS OF CHRISTIAN COMMUNION *.

Phil. iii. 3.-We are the circumcision which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.

It is an unspeakable blessing, that amidst the restlessness and passion

The following discourse is from the pen of the Right Reverend the Lord Bishop of Winchester, being, with only the omission of a few local references, the sermon delivered by his lordship at the recent consecration of St. James's Chapel, Clapham. It was not originally designed for publication; but his lordship having allowed a small edition to be printed to meet the earnest desires of those who heard it and wished to possess copies of it, we have obtained his lordship's obliging permission to adopt it as a Family Sermon. How admirably it is calculated for spiritual edification, it were better for our readers to discover, than befitting for us to premise. We have the greater pleasure in presenting it for their instruction, because having laid before them the substance of his lordship's recent Charge, which, from circumstances, was of necessity chiefly conversant with important matters of episcopal regimen and supervision, we are

increased, and, blessed be God, the increasing spiritual strength of the clergy of our church-the many Christian men who are doing the work of Evangelists, in their several spheres, at home and abroad, in simple reliance on the promise that God will be always with them-the beautiful feet of the messengers of the Gospel of peace in lands which before had not so much as known the name of Christ, or heard whether there was any Holy Ghostthese are amongst the signs of the times on which the mind of him will most love to dwell who is looking for that blessed period when the Lord shall accomplish the number

thus enabled to place side by side with it a discourse from the same pen, of a directly pastoral and spiritual character. We find in the writings of St. Paul whole chapters devoted to the details of ecclesiastical regulation and discipline, followed by others immediately relating to points of doctrine, subjects of self-examination, or the hopes, the consolations, and the duties of the individual believer. Both are necessary in due time and place, and with judicious mixture; a point of some importance to be kept in mind, especially in composing or perusing what are called "occasional sermons."

of his elect, and when "the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever."

But, brethren, amidst all this prodigality of outward means, let us look inwardly into the spirit of our own hearts. A great and strong wind is abroad--but the Lord is not in the wind. An earthquake is shaking the nations-but the Lord is not in the earthquake. After the earthquake comes a fire-but the Lord is not in the fire. He is in the still small voice. Are we listening for its sound? Are our ears attentively watching for its warnings? Are our hearts prepared to obey its biddings? We have opportunities of meeting in many a visible temple, made with hands: is the Divine Spirit present with us there? and do we open the door, that he may come in and sup with us? We stand reverently as on holy ground, and kneel in lowliness of outward obeisance as in the immediate presence of God: are our souls melted into holy love, and our hearts touched with a live coal from the true altar? We dedicate temples to the Lordhas the temple of the heart been swept and garnished, and made meet for the entrance of the Holy Spirit? We shew much love in outward seeming-love for God's honour and glory-love for the best interests of our fellow-men,-has our love burned inwardly, as well as in the world's sight? Has our zeal led us to cast out first from our own hearts, in the strength of God, those evil affections which war against the soul? Has our desire to sit in the sanctuary of God, and to be numbered amongst his people, led us to seek him through Christ, and to worship in spirit and truth? Do we exhibit those characteristic marks of the members of God's proper church, on which St. Paul lays so much stress in the text? "We are the circumcision," he writes to his beloved converts, "the saints at Philippi," "which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in

Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh."

May that blessed Spirit which dictated to the Apostle these distinctive tokens of Christian communion, dispose our hearts by his grace to take a right view of the scriptural evidences of our faith, and to apply them personally by serious and searching self-examination, to our own individual cases! The text mentions three particulars :—

I. "We are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit." How much of meaning is condensed in this forcible and comprehensive expression! What closeness of walk with God does it denote! What intense devotedness of body, soul, and spirit! How much of deadness to the world and indifference to all those earthly objects of attraction on which so many make fatal shipwreck of their faith! How much of entire surrender of the natural will to the leadings of Divine grace! How earnest a pursuit of the things which belong to the eternal peace of the soul! What a postponement of other cares to secure the one thing need. ful! What spiritual-mindedness, and longing desire to be freed from the bondage of corruption, and from all those worldly thoughts which weaken or divide the affections, and remind us daily of that humiliating truth, that the natural man is enmity against God!

I know not, indeed, in what passage of Scripture I can find a more expressive outline of the Christian character than is conveyed in this single sentence to the mind's eye. It sketches at one stroke the portrait of the man of God. Contrast him with the Jew, seeking year after year, in his observance of the painful ordinances of the Mosaic ritual, to catch a glimpse as it were of better things to come, through the veils and shadows of the ceremonial law. Contrast him with the heathen, erecting an altar to the unknown God, sacrificing their sons and their daughters to devils, "changing the glory of the incorruptible God into