Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in every time of need....Heb. iv. 16.

VERY few, comparatively, of the subjects of an earthly monarch are permitted free access to majesty. This is too high an honor to be made common. Kings' courts are for the noble and eminent. The poor and destitute, the miserable and distressed have no admission there; but, ye poor, distressed subjects of Jesus, the King of kings, it is not thus with you. Your King, though ever on a throne, where majesty and glory shine with the brightest. lustre, yet grace, mercy, and kindness are freely dispensed to needy souls. Hither you are invited to come; yea, more, to come boldly. Why? Because you are rich, and increased in goods, and have need of nothing?" Nay, but because your King knows you are "poor and miserable, blind and naked creatures in yourselves" day after day. Nothing to present to your King to procure his favor....nothing to bring, which deserves his acceptance of you. But he loves your persons, and has riches for your poverty, eye-salve for your blindness, a garment for your nakedness, a robe for your rags, and mercy for your misery; yea, a heaven of grace for your hell of deserts.

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Your Mediator with his blood, your High Priest with his much incense, always intercedes. There can be no period of your life but what is a time of need. Who has obtained all the mercy? Who has found all the grace which can be dispensed from this throne? Thou art still a sinner, and wantest mercy and grace; thou hast still need of both; and as thou findest thy want of mercy, thy need of grace, hither thou mayest always repair with boldness; here thou mayest ever expect a rich supply; for God the Father, is the fountain of grace and mercy; Jesus thy Saviour, is the treasurer; "All fulness of grace dwells in him;" the Spirit, the comforter, is the dispenser of mercy and grace. Why then, O soul, that backwardness, that shyness, which too, too often hangs upon thee? What privilege so great? what encouragement so strong?

"Come with boldness," yet consistent with awe and reverence. Boldness of faith is grounded on something without a man, on nothing in him; not on the fervent heart of love, the bleeding heart of repentance, the active life of obedience, the suffering mind of patience; but faith fixes on Jesus, and the believer comes with an empty heart and hand to be filled with the free gifts of grace. He may come with boldness of speech to Jesus as his friend and brother, freely to pour his complaints into his loving heart, and to tell him of all his sorrows. Sweetest encouragement from the friend of sinners! "Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden," (most blessed promise!) " and I will give you rest."....Matt. xi. 28.

Unto you who believe, he is precious....1 Pet. ii. 7.

WE are loved with PRECIOUS LOVE; redeemed by PRECIOUS BLOOD; comforted by PRECIOUS PROMISES; justified by PRECIOUS FAITH: yea, righteousness, holiness, heaven, we have all by union with a PRECIOUS Jesus. Surely then, "to them that believe he is precious."

Say, ye sons and daughters of poverty and affliction, is not this a time when friends grow cool and desert you? But in such a season, did you find one friend who visited you in your distress....was ever saying kind things to you....ever doing all possible good for you... when in prison, he sought you out, and set you at liberty....when sick he was your physician and healed you....when naked he clothed you.... when in abject poverty he made you rich....thus was always pleased when he could make you easy and happy....say, is not this a friend of ten thousand? a friend who sticketh closer than a brother? Is not such a one precious indeed?

All this, and infinitely more than all this, hath Jesus done for a poor wretched race of sinners. Therefore he is indeed to them, a precious "Friend, who loveth at all times: the precious brother, who is born for adversity."....Prov. xvii. 17. "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever." Precious in what he hath done yesterday.... shed his blood for the guilty....wrought out a righteousness to clothe the naked soul. To-day he is pleading our cause before the throne, where "he ever lives to save to the uttermost all them that come unto God by him."....Heb. vii. 25. He is making love-visits, sending kind tokens, refreshing manifestations of his favor, causing poor hearts to rejoice in him, filling them with peace and comfort through him. O he is inestimably precious in what he is doing, and in what he will do; for Jesus will never leave one of his members till he has brought them all safe through a wicked world, given them the victory over sin, Satan, and death, and lodged their precious souls in the arms of his embraces; "for where I am, there shall all my servants be,”saith our loving Saviour. O who can say how infinitely precious Jesus is to the saints above! This we must die to know. Though "now we know but in part, and speak but in part;" yet what we do see and know by faith, we can say, "he is precious indeed."

However distressing our circumstances to sense and feeling, yet his eye seeth us, his heart of love is towards us, he is Immanuel, God with us. Are we sick of sin? he is our physician. Is sin our burden? he is our mighty deliverer. Doth the law accuse and condemn us? he is THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. Do lust and corruption rebel

against us? he is our sanctification. Do the world, sin, and Satan, threaten our destruction? he is JESUS, our Saviour, our salvation; our ALL and in ALL....Col. iii. 11.

Who hath saved us, and called us with a holy calling.... 2 Tim. i. 9.

SUCH as our natural notions of sin and danger are, such is our judgment of salvation and deliverance. In our natural state we see only the fruits of sin in outward actions? but consider not the corrupt, cursed root from whence they spring. Hence poor souls thinks it no great and difficult matter to be saved: especially if they have some specious shew of the external adornings of sobriety, morality, and religion. Happy souls, who have escaped this dangerous rock of pride and selfdeceit! for when the scales of ignorance fall from the eyes, and the veil of unbelief is taken off the heart; when the true light shineth in the mind, and the purity and spirituality of God's holy law is made manifest in the conscience, then the sinner sees his state truly desperate. Sin appears exceeding sinful; justly deserved hell and wrath are most dreadful; and most deplorable of all, he finds he must utterly sink into despair, and perish, for any thing he is able to do to save his soul. "God be merciful to me a sinner!" is the cry of his heart, "In that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book; and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity," saith the Lord....Isa. xxix. 18. The book of God's eternal counsel shall be disclosed; his purpose and decree of salvation shall be made known by his revealed truth to the heart; the joyful sound of salvation by Jesus shall be heard in the soul, and the poor sinner shall see Christ's finished work as his only hope. Love presided in the counsel. Grace shall reign to salvation. The gospel trumpet sounds reconciliation to ungodly sinners, salvation for lost souls. Their good works produced it not; their sins, however numerous and great, shall not deprive them of it. We are first saved, then called to know it, and glorify God for it.

When called with an effectual calling to Jesus, by the word and power of the Spirit, we possess and enjoy hope in God, and comfort from him. Effects prove their cause. A bold, confident assurance 'that I am elected, I know my sins are pardoned,' is not of the essence of gospel faith, or that applies the comforts of gospel salvation to the soul; but election to salvation is made manifest by "a holy calling." Paul did not only confidently assert he was an apostle; but, says he, "truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you."....2 Cor. xii. 12. And verily, disciple, if thou art saved in purpose and decree from eternity, redeemed by Jesus in time, effectual vocation is the consequence; whereby thou art called to the knowledge of a holy Saviour by a holy faith; art a partaker of a holy nature, and wilt "shew thy faith by thy works." Inward purity of heart and outward holiness of life will ever be the study and joy of thy soul. "Without holiness, no man shall see the Lord."....Heb. xii. 14. VOL. I.

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Striving against sin....Heb. xii. 4.

"WHAT poor, low, legal work is this?' say some. 'We are happy in Christ without such a strife.'.... We are perfect, fully born again, perfectly sanctified and freed from all sin; therefore our strife is at an end,' say others. Alas! poor, honest, upright christian, thou art ever in danger; on the right hand, of licentiousness; on the left hand, of pride and delusion, and also from a deceitful heart within. What with the white devil of pride, and the black devil of lust, thou art ever liable to be seduced from the truth. What a mercy to have a true touchstone to try men and doctrines by! The experience of christians of old, as recorded by the Spirit of truth, affords us quite different sentiments of the influence of gospel-grace..

The regenerate soul being restored to the life and love of God by the faith of Jesus, ever, while it is imprisoned in the body, is surrounded, within and without, with foes of every kind. These, like mighty combatants, strive and fight against its rest, holiness, and comfort. Here the christian, under the influence of the Spirit, cannot, will not dare be passive to suffer sin, in its tyrannizing nature, to lord it over him: but he will be active; fighting, striving, wrestling against his bosom inmate, his worst foe, in-dwelling sin. It reflects a dishonor upon the author and the grace of faith, to suppose that it leaves the soul in an idle kind of waiting, or melancholy sitting still; or that it can be satisfied with carnal gratifications, and sensual delights of a perishing world. No: being alive to God, possessing the faith of Jesus, we shall strive for the mastery, and be temperate in all things. Our very sighs and groans, sensible weariness and heaviness, evidence our conflicts and struggless our cry to Jesus for strength proves our wisdom, and forebodes our victory; our patient enduring, submissive waiting, steady persevering, and constant striving, till deliverance, perfect deliverance is granted, shew that "we have the mind of Christ"....the life of Christ....the Spirit of Christ; that we are the beloved brethren of Christ, and that soon we shall be for ever with Christ.

Now the Lord's promise is, "I will drive out your foes by little and little." In a very, very short time, (O christian, lift up thy head with joy, thy redemption draweth nigh) the joyful sound of perfect victory shall be proclaimed, "and the enemies you this day see, feel, and groan under, strive and fight against, you shall see them no more for ever."

Lord, I esteem thy judgments right,

And all thy statutes just: Thence I maintain a constant fight With ev'ry flatt’ring lust.

My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up....Psalm v. 3.

In the Lord we all live, move, and have our being; therefore it is the indispensable duty of all men to call upon the name of the Lord in prayer. But what is a duty from nature and reason, is esteemed a rich privilege, an inestimable blessing, by the children of grace. The pouring-out of the Spirit of grace and supplication, is one of those spiritual blessings wherewith they are blessed in Christ Jesus. In the exercise of this, saints in all ages have experienced sweet fellowship and communion with God, and have been indulged with many mercies which they sought for from him. "And this is the confidence that we have in Jesus, that if we ask ANY THING according to his will, he heareth us."....1 John v. 14.

This duty seems to be the first employ of David's heart. He began the day in prayer: as soon as his eyes were favored with the morning light, he directed them to look up unto the Lord: after his tongue had been locked up in silent sleep, the first sound of his voice breaks forth in address to his God. Why is this holy man's practice recorded? Doubtless it was written for our instruction; to remind us that it is sweet to begin the day with God. Better to go from a throne of grace into the business of life, than after worldly concerns have intruded on our minds. Wisest to seek and serve our best friend first. But is not this an affecting truth? Though a throne of grace is ever accessible; though believers are always acceptable thereto in Christ; though we have the greatest encouragements to draw nigh to God; though we have so many strong corruptions, powerful lusts, and sinful passions, ever ready to break out, yet that we should be so often beset with backwardness to prayer! May we not justly charge many of the slips and miscarriages, sins and failings, the breakings forth of our unholy tempers, to the neglect of this duty? How carefully oughtest thou, O soul, to begin the day with seeking the power of the spirit to enable thee to mortify thy sins, and to live unto God. Thou complainest of deadness and barrenness of soul; who can enliven and make thee fruitful but the dear Lord whom thou neglectest to cry unto? If thine outward walk is a reproach unto thee, if the peace. of thy mind is frequently ruffled and disturbed through want of peace and power from Jesus, doth not thy closet testify against thee, as too much neglected? May. not this accusation be justly charged upon us? "Ye have not, because ye ask not."....James iv. 2. But our beloved invites; his command is for our blessing. "Ask and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full."....John xvi. 24.