sary to accomplish the design of grace; and both are secured through the infinite merit of Immanuel's death. O adorable plan !-how perfect, how glorious, and complete! Satan had still held his captives, and the world would have claimed her vassels, but for the exertion of the power of God; but now the strong man is conquered, all that is in the world is overcome, and grace sets her children free, yea, and makse them free indeed. "Salvation is by favour conferring blessings. Salvation is one vast blessing, which, like the rod of Moses, swallows up all other blessings in itself. It is not the payment of a debt, but the conferring of a favour. He hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, given us in Christ Jesus before the world began. All we are, and all we shall be, flows from favour: conviction of sin, a sense of danger, the cry of want, the longing for freedom, the appetite for righteousness, the confession of guilt, wrestling at the throne, the good tidings of pardon, the enjoyment of liberty, the witness of the Spirit, the unutterable groan, and the delightful cry of Abba, my Father and my God,-all flow from favour, and are but effects produced by rich and sovereign grace. Every blessing necessary for time or eternity is included in the word "salvation." Grace hath provided, promised, and proclaimed all blessings to all who believe in Jesus: faith evidences our right to all the blessings of the covenant, all the merit of the Son of God, and all the privileges of the everlasting gospel.-Salvation is by favour commanding obedience. Grace is the expression of the favour of an infinitely holy God, and therefore cannot in any sense sanction sin. It requires obedience not as a term of life, or to procure a title to heaven; but to evince our gratitude to God, out of love to the Lord Jesus,-to prove the power and purity of our principles, and to benefit society. Grace removes sin meritoriously, by the sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross, and efficaciously, by the work of the Holy Spirit in the heart. She hates sin above all things,it is abhorrent to the very nature of grace, and therefore it is strictly prohibited, and invariably corrected. The doctrines of the gospel exhibit grace in its supremacy, majesty, and glory,-the promises in its liberality, forethought, and bounty,-and the precepts in its hatred to sin, its holiness, and righteousness. That which tolerates or sanctions sin is not the grace of God; grace breaks the heart for it, leads us to hate and forsake it, and to sigh and cry for perfect freedom from it. The commands of grace are imperative, necessary, and salutary; they are intended for our good as much as the promises, and should be loved equally with them. He that trifles with the commands knows but little of the power of the promises, or the energy of the doctrines for these rightly known and experimentally enjoyed, produce love to holiness, and concern to glorify God, by observing all his statutes. Grace on the throne produces sanctification of heart; and grace in the heart produces holiness of life. We look to the doctrines for instruction, to the promises for support,-and to the precepts for direction, and honour grace in each. Has "Salvation, then, originates in the free grace of God,-flows in the channel of the Redeemer's blood,—and aims at the glorification of Jehovah in all his persons and perfections. It was planned in eternity, executed in time, and shall be realized and enjoyed until eternity can end. It is divine in its contrivance, execution, and application,-holy in its character, tendency, and design,-and free in all its bestowments, operation, and fixation. It is of God, by faith, to holiness, for ever. Art thou saved? the grace of God brought salvation to you? Is your heart changed, your will renewed, and your conscience purified and made tender? Do you love holiness, hate sin, walk uprightly, fear God, and aim at the honour of Jesus in all you do? Do you groan, being burdened with inward corruption, live by faith on the Son of God, watch against temptation, resist Satan, conquer the world, and look for glory, honour, immortality, and eternal life? Is Jesus precious; grace delightful, mercy sweet, and your conversation in heaven? The Lord give you to know, enjoy, and confess this to be the case to the glory of his grace. Amen. The Great Assize, or Day of Judgment, Folio Page. What is the Bible, by a Minister of the Gospel, 4to. Page. Palmer. The first of these is drawn up in the form of a play bill: it may perhaps be calculated to arrest the attention of the thoughtless; but for ourselves, we cannot approve of sacred subjects being thus employed it is, however, done with much ability, and the frequency of its republication, is a proof that it is esteemed by many. The second is, we understand, extracted chiefly from the writings of the late Mr. Huntington: it is concise, yet diffusive: comprehensive, and yet full: we feel much pleasure in recommending it to our readers. A Letter to the Editor of the Gospel Magazine, occasioned by his Review of the Author's Sermon, entitled, "The Stumbling Block Removed;" or, the Nature and Use of the Precepts of the Gospel Considered. BY ROBERT CREASY, 8vo. pp. 20. Leicester. Creasy. London. E. Palmer. The Sermon to which this letter refers was received by us in our May number, and while we considered it desirable that in every sermon the faithful minister of Christ would do well to combine doctrine as well as precept, yet we felt satisfied from the discourse itself that Mr. C. was only defending the manifestative proof of divine life, by the close adherence to the precepts enjoined, not as working for life, but from life first imparted. The editor of the Gospel Magazine, it should seem, has in his review of the sermon, unfairly treated the author; and from his remarks. led his readers to conclude that it was the production of one deeply imbued with arminianism. Mr. Creasy has, in this letter, defended himself from the inferences of the editor of the Gospel Magazine, and shown very satisfactorily that they must have arisen from a mis-conceived view of his sermon. Had our friend C. been of our opinion, he would not have wasted his time in writing to one whose known opposition, particularly of late, to any thing bordering even upon the preceptive parts of God's word is almost proverbial. Near York, THE ROSE. THE lovely wild rose decks the fields, But Sharon's rose for me. There's none like this attracts my sight, This rose I love to see. Jesus, how bright thy glories shine, Fair blooming rose, thy sweet perfume, T. THE Spiritual Magazine; OR, SAINTS' TREASURY. "There are Three that bear record in heaven; the FATHER, the WORD, and the HOLY GHOST; and these Three are One." * Earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints." SEPTEMBER, 1835. 1 John v.7. Jude 3. ZION'S BANNER DISPLAYED, AND TRUTH TRIUMPHANT: A FEW THOUGHTS ON PSALM XVIII. 35. AT THE REQUEST OF A FRIEND, "Thou hast given a banner to them that fear thee, that it might be displayed because of the truth." IN noticing this blessed portion of God's word, there are five particulars which stand prominent to view-1. The banner-2. The gift-3. To whom-4. For what it is given-5. The great end. man. 1. The glorious banner, which is the Lord Jesus Christ as GodThe Holy Ghost has not left us to guess at it, but has given us the most decided testimony on the point. In Exod. xvii. 15., he is there called "Jehovah-nissi, the Lord is my banner." Again, in Isa. v. 26., "He shall lift up an ensign to the nations from far." In Isa. xii. 10. it is said, "And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek, and his rest shall be glorious." Again, in xlix. 22., Thus saith Jehovah, "Behold I will lift up mine hand, and set my standard to his people." Again, in lix. 19., " When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit Jehovah shall lift up a standard against him." All these prophetic expressions point to the Lord Jesus, the great standard bearer, who is the chief among ten thousand. It is God the Father speaks, and therefore is distinguished from him. It is Jehovah the Spirit that is to lift up the standard, or set it up. Divinity, simply considered, would be no standard to me, for I could not draw near; and mere humanity would not be dignified enough for me to stand by in the heat of battle; but, in the complex person of my Lord, I see a standard that all the innumerable hosts of Jehovah may rally round, and shout victory, for the VOL. XI. No. 139.] 2 L triumph is sure. If we look at the use of the banner we shall see the fulness of his person, and how glorious he shines in this character to the eye of faith. men unto me. come unto me. It is for assembling and gathering together all the troops, Isa. xi. 12., and v. 26. The Holy Ghost has said, "To him shall the gathering of the people be. And I, if I be lifted up, will draw all As many as the Father hath given unto me, shall To gather together in one all things in Christ." For directing. He is made unto us wisdom. "In him are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." All the orders for Zion's movements come from the head quarters. He directs all the marches of his people, he guides their steps with infinite skill; knows all the plans and schemes of their enemies, and how to baffle their designs; arranges all their steps, and directs their routes. It distinguishes them from their enemies, Ps. Ixxiv. 7. So does Christ dwelling in the midst of his people. They reflect his image, breathe his Spirit, and walk in his footsteps. Christ is in them, and upon them, and distinguishes them from the world. It encourages them, Ps. xx. 5. Inspires their souls, fills them with vigour, cheers their spirits; they surmount difficulties, stand the hottest of the battle, and will die before they will suffer the banners to be taken. Again, we shall see how suited this character is to the Lord Jesus, if we notice what ensigns are called. They are designated ancients. And is he not most ancient, who was set up from everlasting, who was in the beginning with God, who was present and had his delights with the Father before the world was? Who can declare his generation? for his age would defy the intellect of angels and men. The banners were always placed in the centre. So was the Lord Jesus erected between the old and new testament church, at the close of the Jewish dispensation, and the beginning of the christian era; at the end of the Jewish day, and the beginning of the gospel day. The banners are always the seat of attack; this is the great aim in fighting to take the colours: so it has been with all our spiritual enemies; it is Christ the devil hates, the pharisee opposes, the world despises. Satan has always levelled at our great ensign in all his malice against his spiritual soldiers. The more we cleave to the standard, and boast of its glories, his hatred to it will grow. It was not the martyrs he so much hated, (considered in themselves) but their raising up this ensign, and the thousands that flocked to it; therefore, he was for getting them out of the world. It is their glory and honour. Many have been cut to pieces rather than surrender their colours; all their imaginary honour springs from it; desert it, they would sooner die first. So is the Lord Jesus Christ, the glory and honour of his people. What a dignity and honour is put upon all who marshal under this glorious banner. "God forbid, that I should glory save in the cross," (the glorious banner) said one of the standard bearers. Peter reckoned it a honour to suffer in unfurling this banner. Stephen's face shone as an angel's when the enemy was pouring a volley of shots on him; still, he gloried in standing to his colours; and thousands of others have not counted their lives dear to die cleaving to the cross, maintaining its honours, and gloried in its sure victory and triumph. Thus, my dear friend, I have given you a scriptural view of the banner in the text. It 2. We notice it is a gift. God the Father gave this ancient banner to the church in the councils of peace. He gave his only begotten Son in the fulness of time. He gave it in the first promise to the old testament church, set it up in his incarnation day, unfurled its colours in Gethsemane's garden, uplifted it on the summit of Calvary, and elevated it on the banks of eternal glory. has been lifted up to view more or less ever since. He gives it to one nation and not another. God has given this banner to Britain for centuries. Here it has been uplifted, nor earth nor hell can get it down. Well might one of the old warriors exclaim, "Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift." He is expressly called the gift of God; God so loved his people that he gave his only begotten Son, &c. "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered (or gave) him up for us all.” "In the fulness of time, he sent forth his Son;" many other passages but let this suffice. Thus, we see he that was begotten could be given. He gave his first-born; not one person in the Deity giving another, this would be too low an idea for uncreated majesty. and 3. The banner is given "to them that fear thee." The church under the old testament period were denominated by this name, as we are under the new by believers, which distinguished them from those who fear not God. A few instances will make this clear. "To you that fear my name, shall the Sun of Righteousness arise. Those that feared the Lord spake often one to another. Job feared God, and eschewed evil. Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord. Who is among you that feareth the Lord ?" Thus, the banner was given to the church of God. 4. That it might be displayed. Let us look- 1st, how it was displayed in the old testament age. There she was represented as "terrible as an army with banners." All hell opposed Jehovah's army, and took them prisoners under Pharaoh; but they raised up their banner, mustered their forces under Moses, rallied round the standard, unfurled its colours of faithfulness, covenant promises, &c. marched forth in the face of their enemies, and triumphed in the God of salvation. Here did the army of faith appear terrible as an army with banners. How terrible does this little army appear under Joshua! When he drove out the inhabitants, and destroyed the kings of the nations, how were its glories of might and power unfurled: they were the terror of the nations while their banner was displayed. |