fulfil all the demands of the holy law, and didst satisfy divine justice for all my cursed sins; didst conquer death, and him that hath the power of death, even the devil; and hast ascended up on high, and taken possession of the inheritance, and ever livest to make intercession for my poor soul. And O thou Holy God, thou blessed Spirit, one with the Father and the Son, blessings, honours, majesty, and glories for ever be unto thee, that ever thou didst pick up my poor soul out of the ruins of the fall; didst kill me to all works of righteousness which I could do; didst reveal justifying righteousness and pardoning blood to my heart, and didst bear thy solemn witness to my spirit, that I am an heir of God, and joint heir with Christ. O thou that hast preserved me from falling a prey to the world, the flesh, and the devil, all these years up to this moment; that hast lifted up a standard in my soul again and again when the floods of horrid, awful, and unspeakable blasphemies have plunged my poor trembling soul into such despair that I have many times given it all up as a lost matter. O holy, blessed, Trinity of persons, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, One God, whom reason cannot fathom, but faith believes, love embraces, and praise adores, bless thy holy name; it is in thy light that I see light; it is thy smiles that make my smiles; it is thy strength and power made manifest in me that holds me up and makes me strong; it is thy Spirit of grace and supplications poured into my heart that brings my soul to pour it out unto thee; it is thy precious gift of faith, and thy precious power, that draws it into exercise, which enables my soul to come with confidence, and say, "My Lord and my God; it is thy precious presence as my Father, and my Friend, and my eternal All, that changes a dungeon into a palace. Without thee I am more and more confident that I can do nothing. O ever keep me, ever teach me, ever uphold me. O never leave me to myself, my dear Lord, for two are better than one." POETRY. Messrs. Editors,-Having been favoured with the perusal of some hymns and other short poems written by a young man now no more, but whom when living I highly esteemed and loved, and whose memory I affectionately cherish, I have asked permission of his friends to insert one or two occasionally in the Gospel Standard. They breathe such a spirit of humility and godly sincerity that I believe they need no other recommendation. Stamford, Dec. 3, 1839. J. C. P. "Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness." (Judges xiv. 14.) We read of one in days of old And loudly roaring too- 'Twas Sampson, full of power and might, Who boldly ventur'd to the fight, And quick the monster slew. His hand put forth, and took from thence And wear a heavier chain; Oakham. 'Twas put to Sampson's friends we learn, Though feebly 'tis, methinks I can, And sighs, and groans as well. And turn'd my night to day. T. C. THE GOSPEL STANDARD, OR, FEEBLE CHRISTIAN'S SUPPORT. "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled."-Matt. v. 6. "Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began."-2 Tim. i. 9. "The election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded."-Rom. xi. 7. "If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest.-And they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.-In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."-Acts viii. 37, 38; Matt. xxviii. 19. No. 51. MARCH, 1840. VOL. VI. GRACE. What is grace as generally received by the religious world in our day? A cant phrase, a bubble, a Will-o'-the-wisp, a lifeless theme of lifeless professors' lifeless conversation. To hear the multitude of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram speak of this divine, eternal, glorious, saving, soul-melting blessing, essential to and revealed by the unchanging Jehovah in his work of salvation, externally and internally, one would think it a matter of little import, a toy for fullgrown pious children, a kill-time hobby, a round-about for school boys to ride in, a swing to please a mob at a fair, a something to be talked of, but nothing to be felt or enjoyed. How few know anything of grace as it is in Christ Jesus, as set forth in the pure faithful word of God, the Holy Ghost! How few feel their need of it, as a free pardon to condemned criminals for all their sins and evil deeds; as an ark to save them from the flood of everlasting wrath, which is revealed from heaven against "every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;" as the hand of a faithful, affectionate, and watchful Prince, who, though hated, opposed, fought against, despised, and spat upon, and used with the utmost contempt and scorn, yet still determined to do him every good, and to save him at all hazards, seeing him in distress and danger of destruction, his life demanded as the penalty of his offences, and tortures unspeakable to be inflicted, freely, joyfully, willingly, and with all his heart (disregarding all that is past, and knowing that his goodness will not keep the criminal from still fighting against him) steps forth, becomes surety for the stranger, lays down his life for C his sins, and rising again for his justification, ever lives to make intercession for him, so that he cannot damn himself, do what he may, however low and shamefully he may fall, or however bold and heartless, ungrateful or vile he may show himself, seeing "he will have mercy on whom he will have mercy, and he will have compassion on whom he will have compassion." How few, I say, know the nature of free grace on this wise, and from a sense of their wretchedness, rebellion, vileness, hell-deserving enmity, hardness, coldness, and ingratitude, are fully persuaded nothing but unchanging free grace can save them and deliver their souls from the wrath to come! And yet every one who is saved must be brought thus to receive it, and, like David, dance in their hearts naked before the ark, though Michals despise him, and dead professors shun him, because they cannot feel union with him in spirit, though they agree with him in doctrine. The grace of God that bringeth salvation cannot be known or enjoyed, but by supernatural and divine manifestation; it cannot be apprehended, but by the faith of God's elect; it cannot be sweet or precious, but when bitterness and soul-trouble have been felt, and the face has been turned to the wall. As in the case of Josiah, sooner or later, the book must be found and opened, read and felt in the conscience, and the seeker of God must fall down a convinced sinner, naked, unclean, and leprous before the Holy Jehovah, crying, "Unclean, unclean, unclean!" Woe is me for I am undone because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts." Such, and such only know what it is to have a tender heart, to humble themselves before God when they hear his words against sin, and to rend their clothes, and weep before God. Nakedness, soul-poverty, a being humbled under the righteous hand of God, self-loathing, trembling at the word, perfect weakness, emptiness, want, total bankruptcy, and real fervent internal desire, and rejection of all salvation save that revealed in the soul, the blood of the atonement applied and sprinkled on the conscience, and righteousness imputed put on the soul, must be experienced in such a manner as to cut him off from all hopes or trust in an arm of flesh, the law, natural or notional religion, from a name to live only, and resting in mere opinions or sayings and traditions, before he can speak with power of the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost. Grace is nothing unless felt; faith is a shadow, unless it bring" the substance of things hoped for" into the soul, and be "the evidence of things not seen." All hope is false but that which lays hold of God's mercy and love, faithfulness and truth, as revealed in Christ Jesus; and is the hope of the operation of God. Faith looks for grace only in "the new and living way which he hath consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, his flesh." It cannot be satisfied as to salvation unless the love of God be shed abroad in the heart by the Holy Ghost, given unto him that has the faith of God's elect. Such a one cannot boast or lift up himself as being any better than others, for boasting is excluded. "By what law? Of 66 works? Nay, but by the law of faith." He cannot be satisfied with a ready flow of language and liberty in prayer, except that liberty comes from the Great Deliverer, making him free indeed, and testifying that there is, therefore, now no condemnation for him, for he is in Christ Jesus, and walks not after the flesh but after the Spirit; for the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made him free from the law of sin and death. He cannot rejoice in Christ Jesus, unless he feels Christ rejoicing over him. He cannot cry, Grace, grace unto it," unless he sees the Headstone, and his own name graven on it, while his feet are held fast and established in the foundation of God which standeth sure, having this seal, the Lord knoweth them that are his." He cannot feel all he receives to be mercies flowing from the grace or eternal love of God, except his heart be lying low before the throne of grace, and all the goodness of the Lord be passing before him, and Jehovah proclaiming himself," the Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity, and transgression, and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty," that is, those whose guilt is not atoned for and put away by Christ, who "having been made sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him," now justifies the ungodly, and in him God can be just, and yet the justifier of them that believe in Christ Jesus. (Rom. iii. 26.) To know what grace is savingly, is to know ourselves to be deservedly and justly damned, without an interest in Christ, and to feel that he can have mercy, and has had mercy on us who were ignorant and out of the way, and, therefore, the Spirit has glorified Him in our souls, by showing us that our sins and uncleannesses are cleansed and washed away in the fountain opened for sin and for uncleanness; and that when dead in our sins and the uncircumcision of our flesh, God quickened us together with him, having forgiven us all trespasses; blotting out the hand-writing of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and has taken it out of the way, nailing it to the cross. Grace is in the mouth of millions, but in the heart of few; consequently, the multitude are never truly established in Christ, or receive all their consolation from him with humility, and wonder at his love, and earnestly desire to be kept free from sin, that it may not grieve them. But the few, the few men in the little city, that are delivered by the poor wise man, the followers of the Lord of Hosts, are all in due time-in the set time to favour Zion--established with grace by the Highest; and groan, being burdened with a body of sin, which they hate and feel to be their worst enemy and opposer. These are made sensible of what Christ has done for them, have fellowship with the Father and with the Son, and rejoice in Christ Jesus; have no confidence in the flesh; look to the Lord alone for help, strength, supply, comfort, and peace, and cannot bear the thought of foolishness, which is sin; are afraid of themselves as much as of the devil, and from their hearts cry, "Lord, hold thou me up, and I shall be safe;" "Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me:" "Give me out of thy fulness grace for, or upon grace;" "Keep me as the apple of thine eye;" "Guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me into glory." To such gracious men nothing is sweet in religion but Christ, the full, precious, and dropping honey-comb; the mercy and consolation, love and kindness of the Father, and the soul-teaching witness and communion of the Holy Ghost the Comforter. Works done by man, in his own strength, they hate; and count all their righteousness as filthy rags, and enter into that worthy, precious saying, "Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name be the praise." To all such, and to such only, do I 66 say, The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God the Father, and the fellowship and communion of God the Holy Ghost be with you." Stoke. G. I. ON THE REAL CHRISTIAN'S BIRTH-DAY. "Ye must be born again."-John iii 7. There are very few in the age in which we live that know anything of the new birth, or the beginning of a real Christian's existence in the divine life. However, there are some who do, for Jehovah is not left without his witnesses, nor ever will be. Jesus, the true God and eternal life says, concerning the other sheep which are not yet brought into the fold, (I mean those of the "election of grace," dead in sins,) Ye must be born again." There is an imperative necessity; "Ye must." And although a "vessel of mercy afore ordained to glory" may be born of very pious parents, and be brought up as strictly and as piously as was Saul of Tarsus, insomuch that he thinks that as touching the law he is blameless, and exultingly asks, "What lack I yet?" yet this is not being born again. The individual is still in his sins, is still an alien from the commonwealth of Israel, and hates the God of salvation by grace. Wretched soul! whoever thou art, in such a case, thou art wholly earthly, sensual, and devilish. And although such pious being has decked himself off with a beautiful dress of human piety, human charity, human free-agency, &c., and has got to fleshly perfection according to the views he has of himself as reflected from a lying vision out of his own deceitful heart, yet he is going at full gallop in the way which seemeth right to man, not knowing that "the end thereof is death." The soul in the state described is totally dead in a spiritual sense, and the whole man naturally loves nothing but sin; every faculty of the soul is employed in the service of sin; it hates the God of election, or salvation by grace with a perfect hatred; it also hates with as perfect a hatred Jehovah's plan of salvation, and in opposition to it, is going about to establish its own righteousness, fully determined not to submit to the righteousness of God. What the soul in such a case calls righteousness, Jehovah in his revealed word calls "filthy rags," and "a stink in his nostrils;" and God calls things |