THE LONDON SAMARITAN SOCIETY (LATE HOMERTON MISSION). Owing to the widely extended operations of the late Homerton Mission, which embraced the entire Metropolis with its Free Meals for the Destitute Poor, together with the Convalescent Home at Dover, which will receive patients from all parts of the United Kingdom, the Council have altered its name as above. The Rev. W. TYLER: "The free breakfasts given in the Ragged Church, King Edward Street, have been a great boon to many hundreds of the poorest of the poor congregated in the district of Spitalfields. During the last few weeks the gifts have been renewed. The recipients have been of the type of former years. There is something truly distressing in the general appearance of those persons who come for a meal of the most frugal description. A small loaf of bread and a pint of cocoa would not be a bribe of sufficient attraction to the professional beggar, to bring him from the bright fire of the London lodginghouse on a cold and wet winter's morning. May the resources of the Society be equal to the demands made upon its funds." Mr. RANDLE, Superintendent of the Memorial Hall: " My fellow-workers and myself thank you and your Committee, and numerous subscribers, for the free breakfasts given at the Memorial Hall every Sunday morning; and I am sure, if the very smallest subscriber could witness the distress which exists, and which is manifestly increasing, they would feel that they could not give for a more charitable purpose. Many of the men have been out of work for ten, eleven, and twelve weeks, and have little prospects of getting work while the frost lasts; and I have heard from several that, poor as the breakfasts are, it is the only meal they get in the week, the individuals existing on what food they found in the streets, and, often not able to procure the money to pay for their lodgings at a threepenny lodging-house, have had to walk the streets all night. Many eat the loaf that is given them ravenously, and ask for more. Last Sunday many more came than we had breakfast for." For this sketch, representing a Free Breakfast to the Destitute Poor, by the LONDON SAMARITAN SOCIETY (late Homerton Mission), we are indebted to the Proprietors of The Illustrated London News, in which Newspaper it appeared. To give the Reader some idea of the London Samaritan Society's Work among the Destitute Poor, we give the following information : At the following places FREE BREAKFASTS were given on Sunday Mornings during last Winter, and at Fiftynine other places several meals have been given at different times. No meals are given except at the request of Clergymen, Ministers, District Visitors, or City Missionaries, who distribute all tickets: FIELD LANE RAGGED CHURCH AND SCHOOLS, Clerkenwell, E.C. GRAY'S YARD RAGGED CHURCH AND SCHOOLS, James Street, Oxford NELSON STREET RAGGED SCHOOLS AND MISSION, Camberwell, S.E. MISSION HALL, St. John's Lane, Clerkenwell, E.C. [E.C. ARTILLERY LANE MISSION HALL, Artillery Lane, Bishopsgate Street, REV. J. C. WHITMORE'S WHITEFIELD HALL, Drury Lane. (Soup Suppers.) About 8000 Free Meals were given weekly to the Destitute Poor last Winter, in connection with Sixty-nine Churches, Chapels, and Mission Halls. Will not the Lord's people help us to continue these? Free Breakfasts on Sunday mornings, and Soup Dinners and Suppers throughout the week, to the Destitute Poor who are unable to work, or cannot get it through the depression of trade throughout the country. £10 will give 1000 of our poor fellow-creatures a Free Breakfast, Soup Dinner, or Soup Supper; £5, 500 ditto; £4, 400 ditto; £3, 300 ditto; £2, 200 ditto; £1, 100 ditto; 10s., 50 ditto; 58., 25 ditto; 2s. 6d., 12 ditto; 1s. 3d., 6 ditto. Donations will be thankfully received by the Director, JOHN JAMES JONES, 98 High Street, Homerton, London, E., Or by the Auditors of the Society, Messrs. JOSIAH BEDDOW & SON, Public Accountants, 2 Gresham Buildings, Basinghall Street, London, E.C. P. O. Orders to be drawn on the General Post Office. Cheques and Drafts to be crossed FULLER, BANBURY, & Co. Published by GALL & INGLIS, 20 BERNARD TERRACE, EDINBURGH, and 25 PATERNOSTER SQUARE, LONDON; mbra ales Co CHRISTIAN WEEK A WEEKLY RECORD OF EVANGELICAL THOUGHT AND WORK. "Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light."-COL. i. 12. is to a life of thanksgiving that the Apostle calls us, to a service of continuous song. And He to whom we owe this thanksgiving is "the Father;" He to whom we have learned to say Abba, Father. For He who hath done all for us is the Father, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blest us with all spiritual blessings in the Son of His love. To Him our morning and our evening psalm is to arise, "Blessed be the name of Jehovah;" "Bless the Lord O my soul." For the undoing of the curse; for the deliverance from wrath; for the loosing of our bonds; for being begotten again; for the cleansing and purifying of our souls; for all this even were there nothing more, we owe boundless thanks. But the special theme of thanksgiving noted by the Apostle here, is the inheritance, and in connection with that, our preparation for it. Could we but see what eye hath not seen, and could we but hear what ear hath not heard, we should be at no loss to comprehend the greatness of the theme, nor to sympathise with the apostolic summons to give thanks to the Father. I. There is an inheritance.-As it was to an inheritance that Israel was called, so it is to such that the Church of God is called, though the portion of the latter infinitely transcends that of the former. Heirship is our privilege. We are heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ. And that which God calls an inheritance, must be worthy of the name. God is not ashamed to be called our Father, because He has prepared for us an inheritance. We must notice what pains God has taken to show us that the inheritance is something in addition to forgiveness. The first message to the sinner is, "Be it known unto you, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins." But the next is, "The Kingdom of God is at hand." First reconciliation, and then the inheritance as the portion of the reconciled. II. It is an inheritance in light." That inheritance which is in the light," is the fuller translation: for the contrast to this is given in the succeeding verse, "who hath delivered us from the power of darkness," or "the darkness," from the dominion of him who is "ruler of the darkness of this world." The expression must mean an inheritance, (1.) Under the rule of the Prince of Light,-the opposite of the prince of darkness,-even Him who is the light of the world. (2.) In the land of light. The possessions of the saints are in the region of light, where all is light above and around. (3.) Of which the city of light is the centre. Of that city it is said that the Lamb is the light thereof. Of our inheritance this glorious city is the metropolis,-a metropolis of light. (4.) Of which every part is full of light. It is made up of light; light everywhere, above, beneath, around. All light, no darkness, all day, no night. And all this light refers not merely to the outward glory or material splendour, but to the perfection of holiness, purity, truth, blessedness,-all coming from the Lord, for "the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and thy God thy glory," for they need no sun nor moon; Jehovah is their only and all-sufficient sun. III. It is an inheritance of the saints.-It is a holy possession; (1.) destined; (2.) purchased; (3.) prepared for holy men. Into it nothing that defileth shall enter. Once sinners, now saints, they enter on an inheritance suited to their character and name. For all in it is holy, the owner of it, the dwellers in it, the service, the employment, the worship, the songs, the joy. Holiness to the Lord is written on every part of it, the commonest as well as the most glorious. Perfection, nothing less than perfection, is found in every part; the perfection of perfection, the beauty of holiness, the excellency of glory are the characteristics of this habitation of holy men. IV. It is the inheritance of the Father.-To Him it belongs, and He gives it to be redeemed from among men. Its ownership proclaims its excellency. It is the Father's workmanship and it is the Father's gift. It is the Son's purchase, and it is the Son's gift. We are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ. It is our inheritance because it is the Father's; it is our inheritance because it is the Son's. As one with the Father and the Son, we obtain our title to it now; and as such we shall find entrance into it hereafter. To us the Father says, “All that I have is thine." It resembles the Father, in perfection, beauty, glory, purity. "Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed on us, that we should be called the sons of God." What manner of love, that the Father should give us such an inheritance! But the thanksgiving is not merely to be for the inheritance, but for our own personal preparation for it. "He hath fitted us for a share of the inheritance of the saints in light." Without this God-given fitness or meetness, what would the inheritance have been to us? In two ways the Father fits us for it; (1.) by bringing us to accept of it freely, as His gift, just as Israel accepted from Him the land of promise. "Except ye receive the kingdom of God as a little child ye shall in no wise enter therein." (2.) By preparing us for it in the course of our life on earth. This is our day of preparation, of education for the kingdom. Step by step we are advancing; in ways and by processes we little think of; by trials, by sickness, by conflict, by sorrow, by prayer, by study of the Word, by daily providences, by intercourse with Christians; by all these God is training us for the inheritance. Let us accept the training with thankfulness; watching over ourselves, and noting our progress that we may not faint, nor stand still nor decline. Meetness for our share of the inheritance! Let this be our watchword! There is little here to help us forward, much to hinder; let us watch, let us with all earnestness gird up our loins and resolve on a swifter race and a braver battle. THE Stoics say, "Turn in upon yourselves; there you will find repose." Others say, "Go forth from yourselves and seek happiness in diversion." Neither is true. Alas! happiness is neither within us nor without us. It is the union of ourselves with God.-Pascal. Scripture Texts for the Week. SABBATH, December 28.-"It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord.". -Ps. xcii. 1. "O Lord our God who hast made the Sabbath for man, and given it to be a sign between us and Thee, we bless Thee for all the vast mercies and privileges of our Christian Sabbaths during the past year; but while earthly Sabbaths are passing away and we lose one after another, do Thou, O God, ripen our souls in them, and through them for keeping that eternal Sabbath which Thou hast promised to Thy people. Nor let this last Sabbath of the year pass without a gracious revival and refreshing from Thy presence, impress upon our minds the lessons of this day, the shortness of time, the nearness of the judgment to come, the unspeakable importance of Thy favour, the inestimable value of our never dying souls, and the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord, for whose worthiness we now ask these great things."-E. BICKERSTETH. MONDAY, December 29.-Thou hast dealt well with thy servant."-Ps. cxix. 65. "In heaven all God's people will be abundantly satisfied with all His former dealings and dispensations with them, and shall see how all conduced like so many winds to bring them to their desired haven, how even the roughest blasts helped to bring them homeward."J. MASON. TUESDAY, December 30.-" For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away."-JAMES iv. 14. 66 'My life is a frail life which the more it increaseth the more it decreaseth; the further it goeth, the nearer it cometh to death-a deceitful life, and full of the snares of death."-ST. AUGUSTINE. WEDNESDAY, December 31.-The end of all things is at hand; be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer."1 PET. iv. 7. "O my soul! how hath the year been hastening from thee, and thou hastening in it from the world! Where are the days fled? the years beyond the flood, and thou art now standing on They are gone to be numbered with the isthmus of time; yet a little while and He that shall come will come and will not tarry. O Lord Jesus! for grace to live by faith on Thee, and so to live that when we change worlds, we may not change our company; for if in time we live with Christ and enjoy Him, we shall not live less with Christ, nor enjoy Him less, when we exchange time for eternity! Lord Jesus be Thou our watchfulness unto prayer now, and then in life and in death Thou wilt be our portion for ever. Amen.”—Dr. HAWKER. THURSDAY, January 1, 1880.-"Made nigh by the blood of Christ."-EPH. ii. 13. "Treading cautiously on the misty pathway of an opening year, I know no better words we can carry with present, and link us to Calvary. . . . First, these words us, than those which brighten the future, hallow the suggest that there has been, or is, a dividing gulf; be cause, if we are 'made nigh,' it clearly follows that we were not always so. 2nd, A bridge made nigh by the blood of Christ. Yes; thank God there is a bridge. 3rd, A life of nearness. Ah! that's what we often forget. Oh, to abide in Him! Our prayers, our life-long yearnings being, More love, more holiness, more likeness to thee, O Christ!' Thus living, we need not fear entering the cloud of another year, for the King makes the clouds His chariot, and by-and-by they shall be rolled away, and we, who are 'made nigh by the blood,' shall stand in the presence of the King."-Late W. MITCHEL. FRIDAY, January 2.-"Watch, therefore, for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come."-MATT. xxix. 42. "The day of the Lord cometh as a thief in the night, the years are moving forward, the world is waxing older, the harvest and the vintage are ripening, the perilous times are revealing themselves, the signs in heaven and earth are becoming more visible, the vials of the wrath of God are filling up to the brim, and, in an hour, when we think not, the Son of Man will be here."-Dr. BONAR, SATURDAY, January 3.-" Bound in the bundle of love with the Lord thy God."-1 SAM. xxv. 29. 66 Ebbing, and rising, and flowing, such is life's ocean below, He who doth tread on the billows carries o'er tumult and strife, PREACHING AND PRAYER. PREACHING is one thing, and prayer is quite another. An address in a prayer-meeting is one thing, and prayer there is another. Sermons and addresses are for instruction and exhortation; the soul of prayer is adoration, praise including thankfulness, and petition. Sermons and addresses are addressed to men, prayer to God. A preaching prayer is neither one thing nor the other, is of very doubtful profit to men, and not acceptable to God. Men are indeed to pray in public assemblies to the edification of those who listen, but that does not mean that they are to preach to them through the supplications. The listener is edified by the prayer that leads him to adoration, to praise, to pour out his wants before the throne of grace. If the prayer is delivered to men, the hearer is led to look to the arm of flesh, and is not lifted out of his worldliness; but if the prayer is addressed to God, the hearer is lifted up to communion with the high and holy One, and is inexpressibly benefited by it. Very sweet and precious to God is the adoration, and praise, and petition of His creatures. How He pleads for such offerings! What infinite pathos in the yearning of the great heart of love as expressed in His invitations! When He chides men for neglect to praise Him, to acknowledge His mercies, to cast their care upon Him, what tender, affectionate grief the language seems to convey! God speaks as though His heart had been wounded, as though the expectations of His love had been disappointed. It is not much one can say on such a theme beyond what was said a moment ago, that the praises and petitions of His creatures are very sweet and precious to God. bears such tribute to His throne receives a blessing words cannot carry, and whoever leads others, in the sanctuary or prayer-meeting to bring such offerings, leads them to an action, and disposition, and relation that is heaven begun below. Such prayers edify-open the eyes of the soul to a region of beauty and glory like that of Paradise, a region perhaps never seen and therefore never known before, but never thereafter to be forgotten. May the Holy Spirit help us so to pray! Whoever Hast thou loved Him? 'bove all others? hast thou sought "The Better Land?" Or hath self been idly worshipped, mammon been thine only joy! Hast thou found the heaven-born treasure? or art thou grasping earth's alloy? Hear the gentle voice which calleth with this year's departing sigh, All thy lifetime, I have loved thee, turn unto me! why wilt thou die? was CHRIST FIRST. "You will see Charlie, soon," whispered in the ear of a dying saint, referring to a beloved son who had preceded her, who was now so near the eternal home. The almost sightless orbs unclosed, and with a smile of ineffable sweetness she exclaimed: "I shall want to see my Saviour first!" "Your sufferings are almost over, mother, said a devoted son repeating those beautiful lines: "And there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain.' Triumphing over the intense agony which racked the frail body, she replied: "I shall be satisfied when I awake in His likeness." "And you are soon going to your reward," was suggested to an aged divine, after speaking of his long life spent in the Master's service. "I shall see my Saviour, and that will be enough," was the emphatic reply. Love for the Saviour must reign in the heart of every true believer, and will eventually triumph over every other consideration.-E. C. E.-N. Y. Evangelist. ISA Little Bullets from Batála. BY A. L. O. E., AUTHORESS OF "CLAREMONT TALES," ETC. ETC. A SON OF HEALING. CHAPTER XI. THE WILD ELEPHANT. SA DÁS left the mud hut with very pleasant feelings. It was the first time that he had seen a native Christian family, for in his own town he had been the only convert. He had known Christianity in its power to sustain and comfort, he now saw how it can beautify and brighten even the humblest lot. "However poor he may be, Ditu is a happy man," thought Isa Dás, "and he who weds the modest Tara will be a happy man too." Isa Dás did not now at all regret having missed the sport of hunting for the wild elephant. He had heard a good deal about it at Ditu's house, for the exploits of this formidable creature formed a topic of conversation in every village in the district. It appeared that this elephant had been captured some time before, and partially tamed, but that he had apparently gone mad. He had snapped his tether, killed his mahout, and had then rushed off to the jungle. There he had since taken up his abode, a terror to the villagers around, for he not only devoured sugarcanes, and trampled down crops, but he attacked every human being whom he met. A reward had been offered by Government for the destruction of such a dangerous animal, but hitherto all attempts to kill him had failed. It was believed that several bullets were lodged in his body, but they appeared to have no effect unless that of rendering the beast more savage. It was a dangerous and difficult thing to follow him up to his haunts. "I wonder where this fierce brute is hiding now?" thought Isa Dás. "He was last heard of three cos from this village, when he killed a poor fellow who was driving a bullock-waggon. Three cos is no great distance for an elephant to traverse. He would be an awkward customer to meet on a lonely road." Even as the thought passed through the mind of Isa Dás, he heard a sound at some distance, as of some large animal breaking through the brushwood. The moon was at the full, and shining with a glorious radiance which made objects almost as distinctly visible as by the light of day. Looking in the direction whence the sounds proceeded Isa Dás was startled to see the huge head and part of the back of a large elephant above the jungle which he was about to enter. The animal was moving fast, and towards a spot not far from the place where Isa Dás was standing. The village was quite near, and the traveller's first impulse was to rush back to Ditu's house which he had quitted not many minutes before. But he was afraid of being overtaken, and in a large mango tree close beside him Isa Dás saw a nearer place of refuge. The tree was too large for the strongest elephant to tear up by the roots. Isa Dás was an active man; he swung himself up into the tree, and in two minutes had mounted up high enough to be out of reach of the elephant's trunk. The animal did not appear to notice Isa Dás, hidden as he was amongst the thick green foliage. It was a grand sight, from a place of such safety, to behold the monarch of the jungle bursting forth from his retreat! The elephant had not seen Isa Dás, but it was clear that the animal had caught sight of some one else, for turning sharply to the right, and trumpeting loudly, he rushed towards the well which has been before mentioned as being at the entrance of the village. Isa Dás from his high position had a clear view of the well, with its silent wheel and brick parapet distinctly seen in the moonlight. A maiden had gone thither with earthen vessel on her head, to draw some water. It was she of whom the elephant had caught sight. The sudden noise startled the poor girl, she dropped her pitcher, and with a shriek of terror fled for her life. But Isa Dás saw that poor Tara -for it was she had not a chance of escape, for the elephant gained on her at every stride! "Shall I see her trampled to death before my eyes, without making an effort to save her!" exclaimed Isa Dás. He shouted at the top of his voice, but the elephant did not turn. Isa Dás could do nothing for the girl, unless he could draw the wild beast's attention upon himself. But to descend from his tree would be like courting certain death. There were but few moments for thought; but in these few moments Isa Dás recalled the Saviour's words, Ye ought to lay down your lives for the brethren. With another, yet louder, shout, Isa Dás dropped down from the branch on which he had mounted, and, taking up a stone, flung it with such force and good aim that it rebounded from the monster's tough hide! The blow did not injure, but it was enough to divert the attention of the elephant to another victim. Leaving the girl, whom he had almost overtaken, the beast turned and rushed straight at Isa Dás, who had no time to mount again into his tree. He felt that he had saved the maiden's life at the cost of his own. On came the monster at furious speed. Isa Dás's brain reeled; he was conscious of being struck to the earth; he saw the huge uplifted trunk waving above him,—the enormous head descending with deadly force! Then there was the loud report of a gun. The elephant had been struck in the vulnerable part just over the eye, and the bullet had entered the brain. With a scream of pain and rage, he rolled over on his side, and lay a helpless, quivering mass on the plain! "Alas! I have come too late to save my poor servant!" cried a voice which was that of Mr. Madden, who now came up with his gun. "I saw the monster strike the poor fellow to the ground!" It was almost with the astonishment with which he would have beheld a corpse restored to life that Mr. Madden saw Isa Dás rise to his feet, bruised and shaken, indeed, but without a bone broken, or a scratch on his |