PRAISE. IF the subject of Prayer needs to be impressed on our minds, PRAISE also needs it; perhaps even more. Are we not more ready to ask for what we require, than to acknowledge the mercies we receive? One striking instance of such conduct aroused even the pained astonishment of the Lord-" where are the nine ?" those who should have returned to bless the hand that healed them, Luke xvii. 17. Which of us does not often grieve Him in the same way? The habitual neglect of prayer is a sure sign of an unconverted heart; the child of God will be often communing with Him. The neglect of praise does not strike the mind as equally guilty and dangerous, but the scripture draws no such distinction; indeed, the precepts on praise are far the most numerous and imperative, foreseeing and guarding against the natural neglect of the duty. A sense of need produces prayer-only love kindles praise. THE COMMAND TO PRAISE GOD. The Book of Psalms abounds with the topic; the sweet Psalmists, who loved prayer, loved also to give thanks, and their inspired invitations have served to kindle the gratitude of God's people ever since. See especially Psalms cxlv. to cl. God himself has honoured the performance of the duty, Psalm 1. 23. It has been counted as especially becoming to his people Psalm xxxiii. 1, of whom it is expressly said that they were formed and redeemed to show forth God's glory, Isaiah xliii. 21, 1 Peter ii. 9, Rev. i. 5, 6. And the glimpses afforded us of Heaven (where prayer will be no more needed) show us the Heavenly Host and redeemed men in the full and constant exercise of praise, Rev. v. 9-14, vii. 9—15. FOR WHAT SHOULD WE PRAISE GOD? We may well turn to the well-known and beautiful words of our service, which lead us to thank God for CREATING, US, PRESERVING us, and REDEEMING us. What child of God will not thank Him for CREATION? Life has and must have its cares and trials, but mercies far outweigh them; and if this world is to us a preparation for Heaven, we have cause to bless Him who placed us here. FOR DAILY PRESERVATION, too, we must thank Him, Ps. iii. 5, iv. 8, lxvi. 9, cxxvii. 2, Acts xiv. 17, xvii. 28. What countless dangers surround every human life! How constant, then, and how faithful, the Almighty friend who preserves. us, see Ps. xci. We are too apt to forget our dependence on Him, and to take our safety as a thing of course, till some sudden blow reminds us how helpless we are, if left alone. For REDEEMING LOVE we praise God, that love so free and undeserved, Rom. v. 8, ❝ inestimable," for who indeed could value that which passeth knowledge? Ephes. iii. 19. Angels praise God- surely we for whom He sent his Son have far more cause. For "THE MEANS OF GRACE" also: the Sabbath that He ordained, Gen. ii. 2, 3; the Word that He inspired; the House that He hallowed, Isaiah lvi. 7; the Christian fellowship that helps us; the Ministry that nourishes us. For "THE HOPE OF GLORY," too, we praise Him; the blessed comfort of believing that in his own good time we shall enter into a joy that we cannot even imagine, Ps. xvi. 11, lxxiii. 24, Isaiah lxiv. 4; to be for ever with Him, 1 Thess. iv. 7; and like Him, 1 John iii. 2. M LOVE. Or all the bright graces of the Spirit enumerated in Gal. v., Love stands first; and of all the points in which Christianity outshines all other religions, this is the chief. God is Love, not only possesses it, but is love, 1 John iv. 8, and His is declared to be love so wondrous, as to be beyond all description, 1 John iv. 10. The love of Christ is said to surpass our knowledge, Ephes. iii. 19, whilst the love of the Spirit is strongly shown in his pleading for us and with us, Rom. viii. 26. If then man, redeemed by God's free love, is to bear the image of the Heavenly One, (1 Cor. xv. 49) love will be one of the first and brightest graces-love to God and love to his fellow-man. I. LOVE TO GOD. Is this natural to us? No; by nature we desire not God; sinners shrink, as Adam did, Gen. iii. 8, from his presence, content to live without God in the world, Ephes. ii. 12, and that very want of love being one of the strongest proofs that they know Him not, 1 John iv. 8. Many men, not converted, delude themselves with the idea of being grateful to God for His goodness, whilst there is no heartfelt love to Him shown by obedience; and without obedience, there can be no love, John xiv. 21, 23, 24. "Lovest thou me ?" What is the answer of our hearts to this ? Not to love God with our deepest love, is to show base ingratitude, and an utter forgetfulness of all that He has done for us. And when we learn to love Him, our language will be that of the Psalmist, Ps. cxvi. 12. HOW WILL THAT LOVE BE SHOWN? Our Lord supplies the answer, as just quoted; BY TRYING TO PLEASE HIM. How could we willingly grieve any one whom we truly loved? And it will be no mere outward service, to be seen of men, but the service of the heart, the deep desire that He can see, and loves, Isa. xxvi. 8; and there will also be the frequent communion with Him. The estrangement of the natural heart is gone-the renewed heart "made nigh by the blood of Christ," Ephes. ii. 12, 13, is not happy without constant communion with God -a blessing which He himself holds out as one of the best He can bestow, John xiv. 21-23, Rev. iii. 20. Such is love. II. LOVE TO MAN will surely follow; the second of the two great command. ments, Matt. xxii. 40. There is a natural love, deserving no praise, and not to be counted a fulfilment of this law, Matt. v. 46, 47; Luke vi. 32-34. The love that distinguishes the Christian is of a far higher character. What are the MOTIVES assigned for it? the chief one, that we may be like God, the loving Father, of whose perfection love is a part, Matt. v. 45-48; Luke vi. 35, 36. His gifts are poured out, not only when we love Him, but that we may love Him; and so freely, so generously, should our love go forth to our fellow creatures. Gratitude is another motive. If God has so freely loved us, so should we love each other. Not wrapt up in our own welfare, living to ourselves alone, Matt. 1. 8; John xv. 12; xiii. 34, 35. Again, we look on those for whom Christ died-how can we feel no interest in them? Any stranger we meet, may even be already his-shall we run the risk of treating a fellow-disciple with cold indifference? compare Rom. xiv. 15. How will that love be manifested? The rule is given in Matt. vii. 12; a wide one indeed, and that only God's grace can enable us to keep, but so clearly divine, that it may well be called the "royal law," James ii. 8. They that live by this rule, are blessings to all around them, denying themselves (like their Master, John xiii. 35), that they may minister to the good of others, temporally and spiritually, especially the latter, as the highest reward would be to bring those we love to Christ. Joy. WHEN we find JOY mentioned second amongst the fruits of the Spirit in Gal v. 22, we learn thereby what importance is attached to it as a part of the Chris. tian character; and we are also taught that in the highest and noblest sense of the word joy is possessed only by the children of God, those who have his Spirit at work in them. There is a sorrow that worketh death, there is a different sorrow that worketh salvation, 2 Cor. vii. 10. So also are there two kinds of joy; one, of which the end is "heaviness," Prov. xiv. 13; the other, that is a foretaste of heaven, John xv. 11; xvi. 22. And to know the utter worthlessness of the former is one step towards valuing the latter. All men seek happiness, but in how many different ways? Each promises himself enjoyment when he has reached what he aims at. The love of pleasure, the love of money, the love of power, each in turn, tempt men to pursue happiness in that path. But is the effort successful? Solomon tried all three, and he possessed means of making the experiment beyond any other man; and WHAT WAS THE RESULT? We read his melancholy confession in the Book of Ecclesiastes,—he found no real joy, Eccles. i. 13—18; ii. 1–11. Too few take warning by his experience; men rather flatter themselves that they can succeed where he failed, and they go on vainly striving for enjoyment until the last opportunity has past away. JOY IS A DUTY; a joyful, happy spirit is what the children of God ought to possess, and where there is none or little, the work of the Spirit is but imperfectly wrought; "it BECOMETH WELL the just to be thankful." WHAT HINDERS IT? One great hindrance is a sense of unforgiven sin. When our faith in Christ is weak, or when we have been careless and grieved the Holy Spirit, we lose our joy. So did David when he spoke of himself as overwhelmed, weighed down, broken-hearted, Ps. vi. ; xxii.; xxxviii.; xlii. ; li. So did Peter when he had denied his Lord. And so it must be with all God's children. They have learnt the blessed truth that joy is His gift, and how can they be happy if they have wandered again from Him? Isaiah lix. 2. It is well for them that it is so; and that they find no peace till they return unto Him, and He RESTORES to them the joy of his salvation, Ps. li. 12. Trials often rob us of our joy. They should not, if we took them aright. They are God's messengers, mercies in disguise, and it is possible to rejoice in them, 2 Cor. vi. 10. We must feel them; God means that we should, and they are not in themselves joyous, Heb. xii. 11; but if our faith be what it ought we shall trace all to the hand of our Father, and rejoice that He is leading us, even though the path be rough. HOW SHALL WE CULTIVATE A JOYFUL SPIRIT? By thinking more of what God has done, and what He has promised to do, and by thinking less about ourselves. Also by taking to Him all that threatens to interrupt our joy, Ps. lv. 22; Matt. xi. 28, 29; 1 Peter v. 7. What has God done for us? Given his Son for us. He could do no greater thing to make us joyful; and we may well rejoice, as the angels and the shepherds and Mary and Simeon, and the wise men did; and as all believers have done. If He has taught us to know and love Him, then indeed shall we rejoice, see Isaiah lxi. 10. We may well rejoice also for his promises; strength, grace, and glory, all that we need on earth, and more than we can imagine in heaven, Ps. xvi. 7; Is. lxi. 7. And let us remember that JOY IS STRENGTH, Nehemiah viii. 10. The Lecture. THE PREPARATION OF SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSONS. ▲ Paper read before the Sunday School Teachers' Class of the Islington Branch of the Church of England Young Men's Society, on November 27, 1860, by T. ADAMS PHILLIPS, Esq., Hon. Sec. THE departure of the last expedition in search of Sir John Franklin will be fresh in the minds of most of my hearers. When it was decided, three years ago, by the friends of the lost navigator and his companions, that the little yacht "Fox," under the gallant Captain McClintock, should make a final voyage of exploration in the icy seas of the far north, much was the care and great were the preparations for provid. ing the crew with all possible comforts and necessaries for the alleviation of the sufferings they were expected to encounter, for protecting them and their vessel from the many and great dangers by which they were about to be surrounded, and for enabling the greatest amount of work to be done in the short space of time available for exertion under those inclement skies. The undertaking of the projectors was great, the means at their disposal small, but they were determined that if care and foresight could ensure success it should not be wanting on their part; and glorious was the success which crowned their noble effort. Our work, as Sunday school teachers, is, I deem it, not unlike that expedition. Their vessel was small and slight compared with those which had been previously employed on similar service, and many of which had met with defeat, if not destruction. Our means are small, and our instru ments weak in comparison with those of other missionary efforts. They had to force their vessel through the mo tionless fields of the frozen ocean, we have to launch our lessons into the icy sea of childish carelessness and inattention; they had to steer their frail bark amidst the rolling surge of the drifting pack, we have to teach amidst restless playfulness and stormy passion; both have to strive to go forward against opposing head-winds, or still worse, because unseen and deceptive, secret under-currents; and like them we are exposed to benumbing influences, to the chilling frost of worldli ness, and the soothing sleep of indolence. They knew that a day lost might make them a day too late to save the friends they sought; and may not a lost opportunity in our schools, a lost lesson in our class, make us just too late to save the souls whose welfare we profess to seek? Those who projected and commanded that noble expedition equipped their vessel in all respects to the best of their power, to seek and to save, if possible, the bodies of their lost friends; we have to give our lessons in the midst of like difficulties to save not bodies but souls. Should not our lessons have like care bestowed, and if that care be given, shall not a far more glorious result ensue ? Our preparation for giving Sunday school lessons may be considered under two aspects, our general preparation for the work, and our special preparation for any particular lesson. Neither of these is sufficient without the other. The teacher who depends on his general knowledge of the truths of the Bible and of Sunday school teaching, and who goes to his class with a lesson not specially studied, trusting to the inspiration of the moment, will, in nineteen cases out of twenty, fail, if not in interesting his class, at least in bringing the lesson home to them; while he who studies for a particular lesson without general preparation will find it very hard work, and will probably frame a lesson meagre, cold, and unattractive. It is often imagined most erroneously, and that even by Sunday school teachers, that to prepare a lesson for a few children, is an easy matter, and requires but a small amount of mental exercise; and one of the reasons why Sunday school teachers so often fail of success, is because they neglect to employ their whole powers of mind as well as of heart in the subject. Now, on the con. trary, it often requires a very clear understanding to make things perfectly well understood by ourselves intelligible to the young,—it requires considerable exertion of the intellect to suit thought and expression to a lower standard of ideas than our own, to instil knowledge into hearts and minds unprepared for its reception, and still more, to elicit thoughts from a mind not yet trained to think; and it is "no unworthy use of the treasures of a well cultured mind and well stored memory to bring the apt illustration, the striking anecdote, the historical event, the phenomena of nature, to commend and enforce the lesson of practical instruction." I have no sympathy with those who regard all efforts aimed at the intellect, all applications to the mental powers of the children, as out of place and inappro same priate in a Sunday school, for I believe that all God's gifts are capable of, indeed, are made for, promoting his glory; while, at the same time, I quite agree that the humblest and most uneducated of his servants may be the means of producing a very large amount of good. We must use all the talents committed to us to bring about the great end we have in view, at the time remembering that the result depends wholly and entirely on God. We must use all the means and leave the rest to Him. Need we say aught as to the necessity for preparation? Scarce a teacher could be found who would in word deny its great importance, but how is it in fact ? Do teachers always prepare their lessons carefully and sufficiently? We fear not. It may, then, not be out of place to point out very briefly a few of the results of want of preparation. "An unprepared teacher will ever be an unsuccessful teacher" is a sentence continually found in works on Sunday school teaching, and a very true one. It is one prevailing cause of the ineffici ency of Sunday schools, for how can we teach that which we have not learned ourselves? Again, how embarrassing and unpleasant is it to be unable to answer some intelligent enquiring child, beIcause we have not made ourselves masters of what we profess to teach. And this is a thing much more likely to occur now than formerly, for so well are the children instructed in our National Schools, that if Sunday school teachers are not careful in preparation they will run a chance of being beaten by their own scholars. Again, if we do not take care (and this can only be done by diligent preparation), that we ourselves understand not only the meaning of the words, but also the lessons which the appointed passage, taken with the context, is intended to teach us, we may teach error out of God's truth. |