A Goodly Heritage

Christ'sBride. Being called Christ's bride imports . first , the abandonment of their original connections and conditions . A bride leaves father and mother , and all her kindred and natural relations , for her husband , who henceforth becomes her partner in life and object of her chief regard . The church does the same for Christ . As he loved and gave himself for her , so she renounces all , as is duty bound , for him . Hence the exhortation addressed to her in the 45th Psalm "Hearken , O daughter , and consider , and incline thine ear ; forget also thine own people , and thy father's house ; so shall the King greatly desire thy beauty , for he is thy Lord , and worship thou him ." They who constitute the true spiritual church of Christ were originally far off , aliens and strangers , enemies to God and Christ , and without hope ,- having no love to him , no desires after him . At that period they served other lovers . In the day of conversion , however , they o

We must commit the government of the tongue to God himself Every command in Scripture may be turned into a prayer ; for their is no command to which there is not an annexed promise , in which He engages to give the grace needed for the performance of the commanded duty . "Lord " said Augustine , " give what thou commandest , and then command what thou wilt ." We may do the same in regard to the command before us . We cannot keep it ourselves . "The tongue can no man tame ," but God can tame it , and can enable us to do so . He can keep us from sins of the tongue , as well as from all other sins . While doing our part , then , we should at the same time put the work into his hand , as David does in one of the Psalms , when he says " Set a watch ,O Lord , before my mouth ; keep the door of my lips ,."     Seek heart purification , as a radical and only effectual remedy for sins of the tongue . Our words , like our actions , proceed from the heart

We find a multitude of providences so timed tyo a minute , that had they occured just a little sooner or later , they had mattered little in comparison to what they now do . Certainly it cannot be chance , but counsel , that so exactly works in time . Contingencies keep to no rules .. The angel talks to Abraham , and shows him another sacrifice just when his hand was giving the fatal stroke to Isaac . A well of water is shown to Hagar just when she left the child , as not able to see its death (Genesis 21 :16) Rabshakeh meets with a blasting providence , hears a rumour that frustrated his design , just when ready to make an assault upon Jerusalem (Isaiah 37 : 8)

Let not fortune , which hath no name in Scripture , have any name in thy divinity . Let providence , not chance have the honour of thy acknowledgements , and be thy Oedipus in contingencies . Mark well the paths and winding ways thereof ; but be not too wise in the construction , or sudden in the application . The hand of providence writes often by abbreviatures , hieroglyphics , or short characters , which , like the laconism on the wall , are not made out but by a hint or key from that Spirit which indited them .

The goodness of God is not the primary attribute of the Divine nature ; for if it were so , this would represent him as a dependent Being ; but although goodness is not the first or primary exellence in God , yet it is peculiar to Him ; for according to the words of Jesus Christ , "there is none good but one , that is God ."  This benignity of God towards created beings , is the overflowing of that immense glory which is in the Godhead . Now , the healing work of Christ is a grand display of the goodness of the Divine mnature . We have already observed , that there are prejudices entertained by sinners against the justice and sovereignity of God ; but they also entertain prejudices with regard to his goodness . For men naturally reason in this manner, God is said in the scriptures to be a "Consuming fire,"- and they regard this and similar expressions , a defect in the character of God , as to his goodness . But when the soul , by faith, apprehends the grace and tru

The word reveals the holiness and justice of God , and the requirements of his law , and its awful sanctions ; it also reveals , at the same time , his rich mercy and grace in Christ , and a way of deliverance and salvation through him , and is thus fitted to alarm sinners and give them peace ,- and thereby humble and soften them , and bring them to lie in the dust of self - abasement , at the foot of the Redeemer's cross . Hence , the Divine Word is represented as a hammer which  breaks the rock in pieces ; as quick and powerful , and sharper than any two edged sword ; is mighty to the pulling down of strongholds , casting down imaginations , and bringing every thought to the obedience of Christ . It is equally evident that the ordinance of preaching is an instrumentality peculiarly suited for the dispensing of the Word to sinners - for bringing its awakening , convincing , humbling , and saving truths to bear on their minds . Neither the Word itself , however , nor the preaching

He" was heard " says the Apostle , "in that he feared ", that is , on account of his fear , namely , his reverential fear of God , unfeigned submission to his holy will , firm trust in him , and supreme regard to his glory , all which he displayed while enduring the effects of Divine wrath . Wicked men , when punished for their sins , instead of acknowledging the righteousness of God in their punishment , blaspheme his name on account of it , and the heavier their punishment grows , and the longer it continues , the more obstinate do their enmity and impiety become .  Thus they persist in refusing to do homage to their Judge , and this is one reason why their sufferings never atone for their guilt .  Christ , however ,when " he was stricken , smitten of God and afflicted ," for the sins of his people , accepted the punishment thus laid upon him as their Surety , cordially submitting to it in honours of the Divine law . And when he endured God's wrath i

These are the feelings of all true and exercised believers when the church is in a suffering and depressed condition . They have many trials of their own , personal trials , relative trials , trials of a spiritual and trials of a temporal kind; but it is the afflictions of the church which ought to grieve them most , and which do grieve them  most - so far as grace is in exercise - they feel most keenly and most deeply . She is their common mother , and as her spiritual children they all more or less sympathise with her in the changes and vicissitudes of her lot , rejoicing when she prospers , sorrowing when she is in adversity . . It is to the latter exercise , we apprehend , that Zion's children are more especially called at this present time . We do not deny that there are some tokens for good , some hopeful signs on the horizon , and these are grounds for thankfulness and joy . But whatever signs or tokens of a favourable character may be appearing , and whatever comfort and en

If the Lord Jesus Christ made full satisfaction unto God the Father , how is it that believers , many of them have their consciences so perplexed in regard of sin , as if there were no satisfaction at all made ? The reason is , that men do not study this truth , but are ignorant of it . As , suppose that a man owe three or four hundred pounds to a shopkeeper for wares that he had taken up there ; a friend comes , pays the debt , and crosses the book ; but the debtor when he comes back and looks on the book , he is able to read all the particulars , and he charges it still upon himself , because he does not understand the nature of crossing the book . So now it is here ; the Lord Jesus Christ hath come and crossed the book with his own blood ; the sins are to be read in your own consciences , but we , being not acquainted with the nature of Christs satisfaction , we charge ourselves , as if no sin at all were satisfied for us . William Bridge