BY THE HON. ISABEL PLUNKET. SUBJECTS:- "Rest in Work," "Jesus called a Little Child unto Him," "Jesus of Nazareth is Passing by,' 'Kind, Tender-Hearted, Forgiving," "The Duty of Praise,' ""Pure in Heart," "The Lame Man at the Beautiful Gate," "The City of Pure Gold," "The House of the Lord," "The Cup of Blessing and the Bread of Life," "Good Gifts," "Not Alone." "The topics and the treatment are all strongly evangelical. They are admirably fitted to be read as well as spoken at mothers' meetings. The style is so simple and yet so full of life that the volume is one adapted for very extensive circulation."- Times of Blessing. GALL & INGLIS, EDINBURGH AND LONDON. Cod Liver Oil rendered agreeable and doubly efficacious by the use of MACKENZIE'S COMPOUND Cod Liver Oil Emulsion, Composed of Select Cod Liver Oil, Pepsine, and Hypophosphite of Lime, Which can be taken with pleasure by Children and the most delicate Invalids. 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They dread the influence of blank unbelief, which makes the world so dark and dreary, and still they wish to adapt their Christianity, if possible, to the theories of the most advanced. They are ready to accept almost any theory, however sweeping, of certain scientific men, and to represent that Christianity is not opposed to it, but has been misunderstood by narrow-minded theologians. Now, full allowance must be made for human misrepresentations of Divine truth. The mind is naturally inclined, and almost forced, to understand statements about regions unexplored, according to the state of knowledge at the time. It thus happens that, as knowledge is enlarged, false impressions and interpretations are removed. Science, so far as it is science that is, so far as it rests on ascertained facts-must be true, and the interpretation must be adapted to it. But though science has modified interpretations of Scriptural statements, it has not, as I may consider more fully afterwards, falsified the Scripture cosmogony, while it has exposed the utter absurdity of the astronomical references of the sacred books of all heathen religions and also of Mohammedanism. It is a very strong confirmation of the Scriptures having been written under Divine direction that they contain none of the monstrous fables, as to the earth and the heavenly bodies, common among all nations, at the ages of the world in which they were :::: PAGE 44 45 45 45 46 46 written, and incorporated, we believe, in all professed sacred books of the heathen world. So far from this, there are in many passages, as in the Psalms and Prophets, indications of that vast extent of the universe which has been clearly shown by astronomical discoveries, only in recent times. These passages still furnish the fittest language for celebrating the glory of God in the heavens, as now seen in their vastness. It is one of the marvellous powers of Holy Scripture that it adapts itself to all stages of history and of knowledge, and is ever found to give expression to the sublimest thoughts, and to the deepest feelings of the heart. But still, as the range of vision enlarges by researches of knowledge, new views of its meaning often arise, and previous false impressions disappear. There is, however, a disposition on the part of many to adopt every new theory of supposed philosophers or scientific men or critics, without often even knowing the larger hypotheses on which it rests, and to treat it as established beyond doubt, when it has, perhaps, no foundation whatever, except in the imagination of him who has propounded it. It is a well-known fact that though science, so far as it is science resting upon clearly-ascertained data, is one, there are divisions of opinions innumerable in the scientific world. There are many who become dogmatic and overbearing in the assertion of opinions which are not only not established, but which have the strongest presumptive evidence against them. There is at present, for instance, a noted school who are determined, by the force of repeated regards the special question, are almost forced to conclude that there is no possible dispute. This semi-sceptical school, the echoes of which are to be heard in the sensational pulpit, and the spirit of which is felt in numerous popular writings and newspaper criticisms, does more to undermine the faith, especially of the young, and to sow broadcast the spirit of infidelity, than all other influences combined, and yet it is for the most part, as I hope to bring out in considering special questions, utterly irrational-its sneers but the noisy laughter of the fool, its boldest assertions without intelligent foundation, its implied certainties all uncertainties, its cavillings the revival, in new forms, of assaults long since met and overcome and of errors again and again exploded. statement and denunciation of opponents, to get their posi-gested, inuendoes are thrown out, till those unlearned, as tion generally acknowledged, that there is nothing mental or spiritual apart from the material, that the whole universe is a self-developing machine, and that all higher life has sprung from the lower. They try, by a few isolated phenomena, to maintain their position, while they ignore or treat with contempt the vast number of facts which bear against them. Some of those who do this are able enough in their own departments of science, but this does not imply that they are men of comprehensive intellect. There are just as able scientific men who take an entirely different view, and who believe in the presence and power and active interference of a living God, as clearly seen in the works of His hands. In fact, the majority, we believe, of scientific men have not had their faith shaken, but only strengthened. We might instance Brewster, Faraday, and many others in recent times. The truth is, that science, as such, has no connection with these strange theories, and able specialists are often but poor philosophers. There are, again, those, as dogmatic as the popes themselves, who laugh to scorn the belief in the supernatural as childish folly. There follow in the train of these, critics of the Holy Scriptures, many of whom are to be found in Germany and Holland especially, who, starting with this axiom, that all supernatural action in the affairs of the world is impossible, tear to pieces the Scriptural books and statements, to suit their foregone conclusion. They might as well attempt to level the Highland mountains, and convert the space they occupy into monotonous plains like the plains of Holland. But we see often in the press, even in portions of it professedly Christian, a tendency to assert conclusions based on a philosophy utterly anti-Christian-because it denies a personal, consciously acting God-as if they were the certain deductions of disinterested scientific investigation. "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing," especially when it is puffed off as great. The dogmatic way in which many of our newspaper and magazine writers assume that certain theories are indisputably true, as, for instance, of the descent of the human race from the lower creation, which has not the slightest scientific basis, but is the baseless fabric of certain able scientific men prejudiced in favour of materialism; or again, of the origin and character of many books of Scripture derived from the theories of those who sweep away all miracle and prophecy as fabulous, on account of their atheistic philosophy;-the cool and dogmatic way in which these writers assume that such conclusions are fixed and certain truths, would be ludicrous, if the interests involved were not of such vast importance. There are many writers who seem to think that Hegelianism itself is a support to Christianity. They broaden out their Christianity to suit what appears to them, in their superficial investigations, the advance of knowledge. They pay immense deference to all opinions, however crude and even absurd, of men of the most pronounced atheism, while they sneer at defenders of the first principles of revealed religion as narrow-minded people, unfitted to cope with the intelligent progress of the nineteenth century. There is a flippancy in this semi-sceptical school which would retain the name of Christianity without the power, a superficiality of knowledge, a tremendous self-assertion,-fitted to impose on those whose field of knowledge is circumscribed, and to startle even men of faith. Can it be that conclusions which are so distinctly stated to be incontrovertible, opposition to which is treated with such contempt, have been established, and that the ground on which we have rested is at length giving way beneath our feet? Doubts are sug Scripture Texts for the Week. SABBATH, October 19.-"Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down."-Isa, lxiv. 1. "Prayer can obtain everything; it can open the windows of heaven, and shut the gates of hell; it can put a holy constraint upon God, and detain an angel till he leave a blessing; it can open the treasures of rain, and soften the iron ribs of rocks till they melt into tears and a flowing river."-JEREMY TAYLOR. MONDAY, October 20.-"Pray before the Lord."-. ZECH. viii. 22. "Prayer can unclasp the girdles of the north, saying to a mountain of ice, Be thou removed hence and cast into the bottom of the sea.' It can arrest the sun in the midst of its course, and send the swift-winged winds upon our errand, and all those strange things, and secret decrees, and unrevealed transactions which are above the clouds, and far beyond the regions of the stars, shall combine in ministry and advantages for the praying man.' -JEREMY TAYLOR. TUESDAY, October 21.-" After this manner therefore pray ye."-MATT. vi. 9. "In prayer come away from thyself, pray for something out of thine own soul, be generous in thine intercession, so shall thy peace be as a river. Have you never observed how entirely devoid is the Lord's Prayer of any material which can tempt to self-inspection in the act of devotion? It is full of an overflowing of thought and of motion towards great objects of desire, great necessities, and great perils."-AUSTIN PHILPS. WEDNESDAY, October 22.-" No man cometh unto the Father but by me."-JOHN xiv. 6. "Let them who come unto God for mercy be sure they come to Him by the Ark, Christ, for grace, as it descends to us from above the mercy-seat, so that mercy-seat doth rest upon the Ark; wherefore, sinner, come thou for mercy that way, for there, if thou meetest with the law, it can do thee no harm, nor can mercy, shouldest thou meet it elsewhere, do thee any good."-J. BUNYAN. THURSDAY, October 23.-" Thy servant hath found in his heart to pray this prayer."-2 SAM. vii. 27. "While a man can pray he is never far from light; he is at the window, though perhaps the curtains are not drawn aside. The man who can pray has the clue in his hand by which to escape from the labyrinth of affliction. Like the trees in winter, we may say of the praying one, when his heart is greatly troubled, 'his substance is in him, though he has lost his leaves."--SPURGEON. FRIDAY, October 24.-"Behold he prayeth."-Acrs ix. 11. "Prayer is the soul's breath, and if it prays it lives, and living it will gather strength again. A man must have true and eternal life within him while he can still continue to pray, and while there is such life there is assured hope."-C. H. S. SATURDAY, October 25.-" They who seek me early shall find me."-PROV. viii. 17. "The soul that longs to see My face, Is sure My love to gain; And those who early seek My grace, What object, Lord, my soul should move, What beauty should command my love, FAITH AND UNBELIEF. SERMON BY MR. SPURGEON. ANON. THE meetings connected with the Baptist Union were held last week in Glasgow. The Rev. C. H. Spurgeon preached in St. Andrew's Hall, on Wednesday afternoon, to a very large audience. Mr. Spurgeon chose for his text Numbers xiv. 11-"How long will it be ere they believe me." God's eye sees to the bottom of things. He is not deceived by appearances, but He knows the reality. He strips all our actions naked. We may clothe them as we may, but He sees them as they are. Now, in this case the discouragement and sadness and murmuring of the children of Israel no doubt seemed to them to be very different from what it seemed to be to God. He divines it at once. He says that they did not believe Him. That was the top and bottom of it. "No," some of them said; "our trouble arises from these Anakims. If they were ordinary men, we would go up and fight them, but these are monsters in human form. We are not able to resist them; and they dwell in cities walled up to heaven, and they have chariots of iron. The difficulties are more than usual, and therefore it is that we are discouraged." To which the Lord replies in effect" Not so; it is not the Anakims that have brought this discouragement upon you. It is that you do not believe Me." And this is clear enough, because there could be no Anakim that could stand against the Eternal power. It may be that some of you have said "You don't know my discouragements; mine are unusual and extraordinary; my position is one which is rarely occupied by a minister or a child of God; my discouragements are very great, and my distress of mind and my dismay arise from that fact." But the Lord sees thy heart, my brother, and He knows that if thy difficulties were greater still, if thou didst believe in Him, they would not appal thee; if thou hadst such confidence in Him as He deserves, if thou hadst a sterner task still, thou wouldst still be brave about it, and go forward to the victory. Oh, didst thou believe, thy weakness would be thy glory, thou wouldst rejoice even to be nothing, that in this the great All-in-All might the more resplendently display Himself. God, therefore, strips us if our consciences be awake of the excuses we are making for our unbelief out of our sense of infirmity. Possibly, however, these people said," But we feel that our great weakness is Moses and Aaron. They led us out of Egypt, but perhaps unwisely. Looking back upon it, we do not know but what we might have bettered our condition in the land, and perhaps have stopped there. They succeeded tolerably well for a time with us, but now they have brought us into a very awkward position. There is the land, but we cannot possess it. it. It flows with milk and honey, and that is the more aggravating because we evidently cannot drive out the Canaanites who have it in possession. If we had some abler men than these perhaps the thing could be done." And so they began possibly to think that their murmuring was not murmuring against God nor want of faith in Him, but they murmured against Moses and against Aaron. Yes, but the Lord strips that too, and sees the truth despite all that hides it, and He says"How long will it be ere ye believe me?" So have I known a Christian church feel that God could not display His power by such a minister as they had. They muts have quite another-I know not of what sort verily there are some that have had many sorts and have rejoiced in them by turns, and have discarded them almost without reason. But shall it be thought or imagined that this unbelief as to God's work by any agency is an unbelief in the agency? It is an unbelief at bottom in God Himself. He can bless Paul, Apollos, or Cephas. He can bless Paul and Apollos and Cephas. He can bless the patient, meek Moses, though he be slow of speech; and Aaron, too, shall be worthy to stand at his side. Oh, if we prayed for more power upon our leaders instead of asking for others, we might see greater influence than we do. I have often heard excuses, too, about doubts and fears, which are spoken of as if they were a kind of complaint that all God's children must have-a little eruption upon the skin that will soon pass away; and we generally pity the dear friend who is the victim of it. I am persuaded it is unwise to treat it so, and that to doubt God is the sin of sins; that it is a disease which strikes deep to the heart, and that the least appearance of it ought to be mourned over and carried with tears to God's mercyseat; and that the tendency to doubt is to be struggled with, and strangled if possible-not to be petted and tolerated and looked upon as needful, but exterminated at the sword's point, the Sword of the Spirit-that is, the Word of God being brought to the breast of it. Let us say a little by way of describing this not believing God; and at first sight it seems to me that it would seem incredible if it were looked at calmly-if our observation did not tell us otherwise-it would seem to be incredible that we should ever doubt the word of God, the promises of God, the truth of God-in a word, should doubt God Himself. A new-made angel standing here this afternoon for the first time to learn the things which concern this world, after having bathed his forehead in the glory of God, and joined in the song of "Holy, Holy, Holy," which continually rises before the Majesty of Heaven-if he came down here and stood here, and one of us were to tell him that these creatures that God has made often doubt the truth of God, I think a horror would seize upon him, and the next thing he would do would be to say-"It is impossible. There cannot surely be beings so daring as to impugn the veracity of the Eternal. While angels veiled their faces yonder before Him, it cannot be that creatures inferior to them should have the audacity to raise a question as to whether God will keep His word or not in any case." He would say, "It cannot be!" and, when well ascertained that so it was, I can imagine indignation passing over his face, till he said, "Let them be accursed!" Jehovah has promised such and such a thing in His Word, but we fear that it will not come to pass. Why? Do we mistrust His power? He made the heavens and the earth, and He supporteth all things by the power of His hand, and He has but to Do we will and it is done, to speak and it stands fast. What is this wonderful thing that God cannot do? what is this trouble of thine out of which He cannot deliver thee? He who split the Red Sea in parts. What are those awful needs He cannot supply? He that fed myriads in the wilderness, and yet angels lacked not a meal for all the hosts that fed on their bread. You do not suspect His power-you cannot. What is it, then, that you do suspect? His goodness? Hath He been so unkind as to tantalise with a word which will not stand the test, to buoy the trembling spirit up with a soft whisper of love that after all shall be deceit ? Dost thou, canst thou, mean that? Hast thou ever lain in His bosom; hath He ever spoken to thee and given thee songs in the night; hast thou ever seen the way by which the Lord thy God hath led thee these many years-and dost thou doubt His goodness? Oh! canst thou? O my soul ! doubt thine existence; but thy Maker's goodness, thy Father's goodness, thy Redeemer's goodness, the goodness of the Spirit that dwells within thee, how canst thou think of doubting? No, that can't be the point. Where, then, can our doubts lie? Is it in His wisdom? suspect that He must have promised unwisely, as we sometimes have done, and been surety and wished that we never had taken the surety upon us? O my brethren ! you do not suspect God's wisdom I know; you dare not, for the world teems with it, and His Word is bright with it, and you know He cannot make mistakes. You are sure that He seeth the end from the beginning, that He foresaw the difficulty of fulfilling the promise before He made the promise, and knew all the surroundings that ever would come to His Word before He gave His Word, and therefore Infinite Wisdom, which first gave it, will see that it is kept. It is His truth surely, it is His truth that you suspect. But I will not dwell upon that just now, for methinks if you look that in the face you cannot suspect the truth of God-God which cannot lie, God which cannot deceive. Oh no! you must grant it-however the doubt may sometimes come-you must grant it, that there is no attribute of God upon which unbelief can fix as a real and rational ground for doubting the promise of God. This doubt of God, if we were right-hearted, would be impossible. If we were not false-hearted ourselves we should never think God false. The man who goes about suspecting is one who ought to be suspected. A truly honest man is believed by honest men; it is only when he gets among thieves that his honour comes to be suspected, and oh! this is one of the greatest proofs of our false and ruined state-that we dare to suspect God, who cannot lie. Ah! thou art untrue, thou art unfaithful, thou hast broken thy covenant, thou hast failed to do as thou shouldst do, else hadst thou never suspected such a thing of thy God. Shall I doubt my Father; my Father who has loved me so and proved His tenderness? No! if I be right as a child I shall say, I cannot be driven at point of bayonet or push of pike, I cannot be driven to doubt my Father. Have you anything to say against my Father's Word? I will not hear you, or if I hear you, it shall be as if I heard you not. I am inconvincible in this respect. My foot is down; I stand to it. Let God be true, and every man a liar. If you want to get rid of all doubts and fears it seems to me you must know God better. A man may doubt the dearest one he loves when he has been weeks, months, years away; but if any one should whisper an unkind word of her whose kiss is yet upon my cheek, and whose farewell is still in my ear-I know better, I know better; and if you commune with God you will know better. They cannot you do tell make you doubt Him. If you live with Him, if doubt Him, get away to Him, get away to Him; Him all about it; this will render it impossible to doubt your God. Now, I will pick out a brother here-he must certainly be the best man in the whole room-who never doubted God but once, and that was only about one thing, and that only in reference to himself. My dear brother, stand there a minute while I just say to you that if that doubt had anything in it, if there were any truths to back it up, remember you have just as much destroyed the character of God as those poor sinners around you that are always doubting Him, because it is said, "God, who cannot lie," and if He did lie once, He could. God must be true. If there is one case in which He is not, then His character is gone; it is fatal to His perfect truthfulness. If, then, I doubt Him about one thing, I have marred His perfection as far as I could do it. I know I have said sometimes-"Well, I can trust God about everybody except myself;" and when you can trust Him about everything except that one thing, that is to say you have got a faith that is a capital faith when it is not wanted. You have a splendid anchor for dry land. Now, it may help us to deplore this sin if we recollect our own tenderness about our own truthfulness. Have I not seen the eyes flash fire when there has been an insinuation that a man was untrue? The more quiet spirits have sat down with their mouths full of bitterness because they were mistrusted-to have it said you promised, but you won't do it; you have pledged your word, but you won't keep it. Now, in God's case we know that He is a very jealous God -we have His own word for it-very susceptible and tender of His own reputation, and for us to touch His truthfulness is indeed to touch Him in a very, very tender point. We feel it so. I put it to you in another way. There is not a man here but would be full of indignation if he were accused by another who said "You took an oath the other day in a court of justice, but I don't believe you, and I will not believe you on your oath." Ah, brethren, our manhood seems gone if we can bear such an imputation as that. And behind this it is written that Jehovah hath lifted His hand to heaven and swornbecause He could swear by no greater-He hath sworn by Himself, and confirmed His free word of promise by the blood of Jesus and by His own absolute oath. Alas! at the present time a believing man is reckoned to be an unpractical person. Many stories are told about answers to prayer, but a good many of these stories are just porcelain. Is it such a wonderful thing that God has been keeping His promise? One person may say "I once trusted God on such and such an occasion, and He heard me." Oh! this is a wonderful thing. Quite an event; something to be recorded, because it does not occur often. Oh! the Church of God, hast thou fallen down to this? I sometimes think that if we once got out of the dead level of routine and preached the Gospel, and believed in it, how soon the end might come. It were difficult to prognosticate, but there is no reason to doubt why God should not convert all the inhabitants of this land within next week. There is enough to preach to them. That Spirit of God which may have saved one last Sunday is able to save a thousand. If He fills us with faith we will have this island saved. Give one single spark of fire, how long shall it take to set the whole prairie in a flame? You do not figure it; give us a stiff wind and it will all be ablaze in half-an-hour. Let us but have confidence in God, and only this one thing will result this afternoon. God help us, for all faith is of Him and the work of His own Spirit. God helping us, we will not give way to un |