THE PRIESTHOOD CHANGED. Heb. viii. 12. IN the Lord Jesus there is a summing up, a consummation of all the appointments under the Mosaic economy; as to Him gave all the prophets witness, so all the dispensations of Jehovah to His visible church had this one object, to prefigure the seed of the woman who, in the fulness of time, was to bruise the serpent's head. In the appointment of the high priest, there were striking evidences of the weakness of the creature appointed to this exalted position, and the shadowing forth of Him who was to come; for, on entering into the holy of holies, it was with an offering, first, for Himself, and then for the people; shewing His incompetency to the work without a special offering, and thereby declaring the mutability of His high office: that He was but the shadow of good things to come whilst the body is of Christ; but now that the Lord hath come in the flesh, it is not with a rejection of that which goeth before; for Christ came not to destroy, but to fulfil; to change both the priesthood and the law; the one being magnified and made honourable, whilst the other is to receive its full honour in the Son of God taking to Himself His great power, and humbling Himself that He might be the sacrifice of a better covenant than that of bulls and goats. Jesus is not only the sacrifice and the altar, but high priest for ever; for in the covenant of grace He is all and in all. And what a glorious, certain, and blessed change to the true spiritual Israel; there can be no failure through the weakness in the performance of this high office, for the Lord Himself has taken flesh and changed the priesthood as He had by the mouth of His prophets declared should be, and has thereby of necessity, made a change of the law, removed the type which could not take away sin, and brought in an everlasting righteousness, the blessed assurance of which, is His ceaseless presence in the holy of holies, before the golden altar, to give repentance unto Israel, and the remission of their sins. THE NEW BIRTH. Ye must be born again.-John iii. 7. THE lips of infallible truth once declared the above as a solemn fact. But it was more than a master in Israel could comprehend, and he exclaimed-" How can these things be?" The doctrine is of the greatest importance, and will be till time is no more; "For except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." Two things are prominent in the text. I. The new birth. II. The necessity urged. Of the creation it is written-" God saw that it was good." Omniscience discerned no flaw perceived no error. Adam was created in holiness, and therein he stood till he transgressed the law of his Creator, whereby sin entereddisabled and prevented man from communion with God. His affections were alienated-his mind, will, and judgment were darkened to God and godliness. 'In Adam all men died.' I. What is the new birth? It is the quickening of the election of grace into spiritual life, according to the eternal purpose of Him, who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will. Notice three things. 1. Its origin. 2. Its nature. 3. Its evidences and tendency. 1. It is from above. Of God-of his will-love, choice, and power. The work of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, on the heirs of promise, who were set apart ere the world began. Jehovah having loved a people, secured their interest and all spiritual blessings in himself. And then he appointed the means which should qualify them for the enjoyment of their inheritance. By oath, purpose, and covenant settlements, ensuring their welfare in time and lasting happiness in the world to come. Love being set on them, the Lord evidences His love by choice, ancient and eternal. This unconditional election comprised deliverance from sin-effectual calling by grace-free justification from all things, and right of admission into eternal glory. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to quicken this loved and chosen seed. He is the quickening Spirit who breathes into them, and they become alive unto God, through Jesus Christ. It is the Spirit that quickeneth, and the Lord is that Spirit. In its derivation, the new birth is of God.-John iii. 5. As no man can keep alive, certain it is no man can give life to his soul. 2ndly. The nature of this birth. 1. It is spiritual. God's kingdom is not of this world. "It cometh not with observation," consequently the carnal and worldly understand it not. It is higher than the thoughts of those who try to find it out, by natural conclusion and deductions. That such understand not the birth intended here, need not surprise, since Christ himself was not known when upon the earth. 2. It is influential-causing holiness, sobriety, and a walk according to the gospel and will of God. All who pass under this change, possess a capacity for serving God aright. Where there is this change, it will produce a change of life-of companions and pursuits. There is life and light, grace and truth. All who are born of God, love these things. They have bowels of compassion and mercies; their kindness will flow to the needy, and they love the brotherhood. They fear the Lord. And all companions of Jesus love holiness, and hate sin. Christ is their Lord, and Him they worship and serve with love and reverence. 3rdly. Its tendency. 1. It raises the mind above-fixes it on heavenly things- and elevates the thoughts. So that there is thinking of God's name and greatness, and a thankful remembrance of His works and unceasing good. 2. It tends to God and godliness. Soaring higher than created things, it presses on to, and into heaven after Jesus. It seeks God everywhere, delighting in Him, desiring Him before and above all things. It is a state, wherein a person is risen with Christ, in union to Him; a receiving from Him, the fountain of life, and attracted to Him, as the Great Centre of a vast circumference. 'Thy desire shall be to thy husband." 66 II. The necessity urged. This appears in several particulars. 1. Before a man can call upon God, or serve him acceptably. "The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord." The kind of worship which God requires is foreign to the sons of men till born of the Spirit. 2. It is necessary to an enjoyment of the things of God: man by the fall was incapacitated to enjoy them. He is naturally averse to them, and he refuses to know God. Paul says, "They do not like to retain God in their knowledge." There must be a change, ere a inan can love and enjoy the things of God. 3. The new Birth is necessary to the development of the purposes of the Eternal Three. It is a solemn work, declarative of His will concerning the election of grace, whom He calls with a holy calling. 4. It must be in order to the sealing of the sons of God. This is in fact, the softening of the heart for the Divine impression, which the sealing Spirit gives each one of the family. "Who hath sealed us and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.". -2 Cor. i. 22. "Ye must be born again," or be without hope; and dying without hope, ye must sink into the abyss of endless despair. Mile End. J. H. DEARSLEY. FIRE. THE world is at length to be destroyed by fire" But the heavens and the earth which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment, and perdition of ungodly men."-(2 Peter iii. 7.) Geology shows that this is a possible and probable destiny of the globe, for its crust is by no means thick, and molten fires glow and burn beneath it; so that the heat increases every yard you descend from the surface. Volcanoes are but safety-valves from these central furnaces, and the shock of the earthquake indicates their power and intensity. THE REFORMATION. POPERY is an enormous wall erected by the labour of ages between God and man. The Reformation is a power which has overturned this wall. Popery interposes "the Church" between God and man. Christianity and the Reformation make God and man meet face to face. D'Aubigne. JESUS, Thy name, Thy work, Thy truth, Are sacred things to me, Since Thou hast taught the saving worth Of what belongs to Thee. Thine honor, and thy glory too, In all thy righteous ways, Then would I, in a bold defence, And though my name be cast out hence, A suff'ring way my Saviour led, No tempter caused His soul to yield, And shall not I, at any cost, A stand maintain for Him, Who stood for me in storms, the worst, That rag'd from hell and sin? My soul the glorious truth would know, Nor would I hold His honors back, God's power's as great to strengthen me, Nor shall prince legion bid me flee, But valiant men in Israel found, TIME OF PEACE. Though David was for "peace," he said, So now, the faithful live to prove Who" hatred" will return for "love," But when the foes too strong appear, The fire of truth before him goes, 'Tis peace when God says, Nor need you fight at all; It gladly then returns to rest, Sav'd by the arm of God; The weapons of our sinless rage, At once are cast away; My soul, behold! the Victor comes, As sure as God Himself abides, Thus may His "sons of thunder" know There is a " time of war," we're told; E'en Israel's God's a "Man of War," Chelmsford, Feb. 1, 1852. JOSIAH. LIVES OF LIVING MEN. (A REDEEMED SMUGGLER.) (Continued from page 26.) SOON after this there broke out a theo.. logical controversy amongst those who congregated in the upper room, of which I was apprised by two of the body coming to me in the room, to know my opinion about which was the first grace that was in exercise in the heart of a conscious sinner. I replied-repentance! Because a man could not understand the person of Christ, except as a Saviour from sins; and if there was no personal knowledge of sin, how could Christ be comprehended in His great value, so as to put faith in him? In the first awakenings of somne sinners, they have hardly so much as heard whether there be any Jesus-any object of faith! and many times they lie beneath the stings of a guilty conscience without seeing the Deliverer, or having any sight of " the Lord that healeth." It is the work of the Holy Ghost to convince of sin, and in his own good time to lead to Jesus, by granting that faith which, in proportion as it is put in exercise, makes the "yoke of Christ easy, and his burden light." (Of course, I could not make myself understood in such plain language as I am now able to use; but what I have written is the spirit of my reply to the question asked me. Yet I made them understand, that repentance which was unto salvation, was accompanied sooner or later with believing unto righteousness.) It appeared that we were not all of the same mind with regard to the great doctrines of the Gospel, which, in fact, was at the root of our differences. However, we all continued to worship together, though we could not see eye to eye. I My soul now became greatly harassed through the fear of death, which terror was fearfully increased by the dreadful springs of evil which arose within. was greatly harassed by the belief that I had committed the unpardonable sin; for that I should not experience such wretched sensations unless I had sinned myself out of mercy. And, oh! what restlessness I suffered! and what confusion of reasoning took place in my mind! for I feared I was certainly given up a prey to the powerful corruptions of my own heart. But the Lord was ready with the means to deliver me, and had been all the while, having an eye to my lamentable condition, as will be seen by the following circumstance : A few months before, two women, the wives of soldiers, were on their way from Plymouth to London, when they were taken by a French privateer, and brought into our prison. Finding there was a place of worship aloft, they soon mingled with them. But they had not been there long, before Buonaparte ordered them to be sent home. (It being understood that they were soldiers' wives, one of our number asked them who their husbands fought for? and they replied-' For two Kings King Immanuel, and King George III.!') When they left the prison, they left a good assortment of books, tracts, &c., of the good sort, especially a pack of Dr. Hawker's writings. Amongst these, there was a sermon of the Doctor's on the text-"Faint, yet pursuing." This fell into my hands by Divine predestination, which I read, and it was graciously useful to shew me that I had not committed the unpardonable sin, and to give me a better faith and hope to see that in the midst of all the rubbish within, there was "the good thing," and though truly "faint," I was yet" pursuing." I might mention a great many things more which might be interesting, but I am desirous to abridge my history as much as possible. Prayer was wont to be made in the upper room, and sometimes I was requested to plead with the Lord. But I ever felt myself the least of them all, as far as any capability in me to put words together; especially, I was so rough and ignorant. But I well remember the first hymn that preceded my first public prayer : "When thou, my righteous judge, shall come Be found at thy right hand? Oh! I thought and felt, that if a saint, surely the least of all saints! and if I was destined to stand at His right hand, this was all my desire. But the time was drawing nigh when I was to bid adieu for ever to Arras, and those prison walls which for six years had enclosed me. Great and marvellous things which I looked not for, did my gracious Lord perform in me, and for me. Made a prisoner by the French, they were the agents in the hands of the Lord, in putting me in the place wherein it was ordained I should be born. While a prisoner I was made free, and the subject of liberty, not of the flesh, but of the spirit. In the house of natural bondage, I found spiritual freedom! The Russians crossed the Rhine, and all the prisoners were ordered to march, in three divisions, to the South of France, so that we should not come near each other; and, after having marched about 1500 miles, we then embarked for Plymouth. In company with 150 I arrived in dear old England, and applied to the Government authorities at Stonehouse, who granted us £1. each, and another £1. at Plymouth from Lloyd's, as we understood; and in the dock we received 1s. each, and a passport to our respective homes, which, of course, was to prevent our being pressed on our way home, as we were then at war with America. The next morning, myself and two others, professors of the Gospel, started for Exeter, and arrived there the same night, a gentleman in a carriage condescendingly giving us a ride part of the way, seeing who we were by our clothes, and hearing our tale. The following morning I took the coach to London, and, wearied with the journey, alighted in Holborn. At once I started for Folkestone on foot, but about six miles out of London a man overtook me driving a post-chaise, who, knowing me, invited me to ride, and I got home in quick time. I first enquired for my mother, and was soon amongst some of my relatives; but I could see that I was not wanted, for, I must now say, when my conversion took place in Arras, I wrote to my wife at Dover, telling her what God had wrought. This had come to the knowledge of all my friends at Folkestone, so that some received me coolly, and others said'What! you have turned very religious now! Here is the worst of the family come home to reprove us !' I kept a copy of the letters I sent, and the following is the first of them :ARRAS PRISON, February 24, 1812. My dear Wife, Having sent you several letters since your's dated Oct. 2, 1810, but not having received any answer, I therefore embrace an opportunity of sending you another, in order to inform you of my health and situation, hoping you may receive it safe. I am well in health, for which I ought to be very thankful; but I am in a far different disposition to when I left you, which you will see by the following lines. When I was with you, you upbraided me for not going to church, or some place of worship; and I have been in this same case till lately. But I trust the Lord has taken hold of me, and given me to repent of my former life; and turned me from those ways, to seek after God in those paths which I have said I would not go in; and has given me to feel the weight of those sins which I have lived in all my life-time. And I hope that you are not in the delusion that many are in this world-that all will be right at last; and that, if we go to church, God will reward us for so doing; which is a fatal error, and a sandy foundation for us to build upon; for the Apostle Paul says, "if it is of works, then it is no more of grace; and if it is of grace, then it is no more of works; for then grace would be no more grace: that is, it would not be a gift from God if a man worked for it. There would be no need for Christ to come into the world to save sinners, if we could work for our salvation ourselves. And I believe you are not far from this working principle, for you go to church with your prayerbook, and I think you esteem it far above the Bible, which is the mother of all good books. And not only so, but you read many books of history as if there was nothing of the kind in the Bible. If you want to see histories, look at the history of Joseph, and many others. If you want prayers, look at Hannah's prayer, and others. If you want to read of great travels, look at the Children of Israel in their march through the desert, |