part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away," 1 Cor. xiii. 8-10. Then shall be the perfect manifestation of God, that God is love. Therefore brethren, pray ye continually for it; pray that the Lord would make it known, and that he would complete the number of his elect, and hasten his kingdom.

equal with God, not that we are as God, but standing in that personal bond and union with the Father, and with the Son, and with the Holy Ghost, we have by way of right and interest, not by way of gift, all that the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost, hath, even as Jesus Christ said-" All that the Father hath is mine," and even as ye know that all things that Christ hath are yours, for "ye are Christ's, and Christ is God's."

things." These words explain what is the nature of that change which the apostle speaks of in the preceding verse, namely,-" when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be

person experiences in passing from the state of childhood to the state of manhood. In the one condition we are able to manifest God only in a partial manner; in the other, perfectly. But we must not think lightly of this condition of childhood. It is a necessary condition for us to be brought into. Our Lord himself says,

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THE SECOND ELDER:-"What agree ment hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; THE THIRD ELDER :- "When I was as God hath said, I will dwell in them, a child, I spake as a child, I understood and walk in them; and I will be their as a child, I thought as a child; but when God, and they shall be my people." I became a man, I put away childish Dear brethren, there is no blessing higher than that which is contained in these words-"I will be their God." And by it God meaneth merely, that we are under his care and protection, that the providence of God, as men speak, watch-done away." It is that change which a eth over us, and is everywhere at hand to protect us. What God meaneth is this, that he hath given us himself; that God's gift unto us is himself, not a gift of God, not a gift from God alone, but the gift is God. And, dear brethren, seek ye to rise up into this, for it is the fountain and source of all your blessings. All that we should seek, and all that we can receive, just cometh from this, that God has given us himself. Yea, be not startled at the largeness and greatness of this truth, but seek ye to comprehend it; that all that God hath, his infinite wisdom, his infinite power, his infinite love, is yours. Yea, as truly yours as if it were inherent in you. All that the Son of God hath, all is yours, all that he hath as your brother, all that he hath as your husband, all that he hath as your head, all is yours as truly as if it were inherent in you. And in the gift of the Holy Ghost you have the person of God given to you. You have all that is in the Holy Ghost, whether it be for sanctification, for direction, for consolation, or for the manifestation of God, all is yours, to be used and enjoyed by you dear brethren. You know that the wife receiveth the fellowship of all her husband's honor, of all her husband's wealth, of all his strength, and of all that he hath; not that she is the husband, not that she is equal with the husband, but standing in that personal bond and relationship to him, she hath not by way of gift, but of right and property,so to speak, all that her husband hath. And this should be our standing with God, not that we are

Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven." We must not be surprised to find that we are in that condition; that we only speak as children, and that we think and act as children. We must not despise this state of things, for God does not despise us because we are children; but God cherishes us even as a nurse cherisheth her children. Nevertheless, at the same time, we must remember that we are only serving God and manifesting God partially; that we only act and speak as children. And we should desire and long after that state of childhood.

When we become men we shall be able to put away childish things; and knowing that God has prepared means for accomplishing this, and that he has given gifts for the edifying of the body of Christ, and that we may grow unto perfect men, we should earnestly desire to manifest God's love. THEFOURTHELDER:-When the apostle Paul says in the 13th Chap. of the 1st of Corinthians, that although a man might possess every gift of God and have not love, it would profit him nothing, he does not mean, dear brethren, to say that a man ought to seek after love to the exclusion of the other great gifts of

Here another Member of the Church gave a second

MANIFESTATION :

"Ye are sealed with your Father's seal. Ah! it is the earnest of your inheritance, until the redemption come. Cry for it! Despise it not! Ah! the glory of the Lord shall be revealed. The whole earth-the whole earth shall be filled with his glory. See that ye despise not the earnest of your calling and inheritance.

God, for in the 1st verse of the 14th chap., he says "Follow after charity, and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that ye may prophesy." And when again he affirms this thing and says, that knowledge passeth away, he does not mean to affirm that any time shall come in the Christian dispensation when these various gifts of God are to cease; "for," he immediately adds, now we know in part, and we prophesy in part, but when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away." THE FIFTH ELDER said :-God has Now, brethren, that which is perfect been pleased from the beginning to rehath never yet arrived, for it was God's veal himself by various dispensations unintention in giving the gifts of his Holy to his people. As one dispensation Spirit that his Church should be brought passed away, another and a fresh maniinto that state of perfection, that is, that his people should be made holy. And we need not be surprised that when the Holy Ghost was quenched in the church, the effect which was to be produced was immediately seen as the consequence. For the Church, ever since that time has not been in a state of holiness, neither has it arrived to a state of perfection. If you desire to be made perfect, which it is God's intention that you should be, if you desire to be holy, for unto holiness he has called you, then you will surely desire and earnestly seek from God that he would give you the gifts of the Holy Ghost. But if you do not desire to be holy, and you cannot if you are entertaining sin in your hearts, then you will never desire the gifts of God to be given you or to the Church at large. For there must be found in you an unison of purpose with God before you desire the gifts of the Holy Ghost.The Lord desires that you should manifest the life of Jesus and not that you should be the witnesses of his death only; but of his resurrection.

festation hath taken its place for the revelation of his glory. Not that one was set aside as being merely ephemeral and needing a substitute, but those dispensations have been as the light shining more and more unto the perfect day. The latter has been successively greater than the former. The one being as the dawning of the morning preparing the way for the shining of the noon. This dispensation in which we live is the preparation and introduction to that kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is about to be revealed. The first fruits of the Spirit prepare us now for receiving the earnest of this inheritance; and for entering into the possession of it. It is right to understand these things that we may not be tempted by Satan from looking for that kingdom, or to despise God's present manifestation of himself.

"And he gave

THE SIXTH ELDER. some, Apostles; and some, Prophets; and some, Evangelists; and some, Pastors and Teachers; for the perfecting of the Saints, for the work of the ministry, The Church at present is only the wit- for the edifying of the body of Christ." ness of the death, but not of the life of We have all been instructed, my brethren, Jesus Christ; and there is no means, as to the purpose of God. We have dear brethren, of manifesting to the been shown from time to time, that the world that secret union which subsists Lord is now about to manifest his power between Christ in heaven and his body in his church, and that you are called to on earth, except the manifestation of his manifest forth the mighty power of God, Holy Spirit in the church. Therefore and to serve him as the body of Christ. seek that ye may obtain it; knock, and Now, brethren, I will just speak to you it shall be opened unto you. Be not concerning the pastor and teacher here afraid that God will give you a stone for spoken of. The Lord hath ordained bread, or a serpent for a fish, or a him pastors and teachers to his Church, scorpion for an egg. "For if ye being and be ye sure the ministry daily minisevil know how to give good gifts unto tering morning and evening, which the your children, how much more shall Lord has set up is not a vain thing. Be your heavenly Father give his Holy ye sure that ye will not be strengthened Spirit to them that ask him!" A 2 and borne up in strength, but in the

THE ANGEL then pronounced the benediction-" The Lord bless thee and keep thee," &c.

ways of the Lord. If ye come unto him | Holy Ghost," &c., was then sung to Lyye will be strong. And if your ministers dia tune. bring blessings to themselves, you will be upheld as the body of Christ. And ye will do the work the Lord has given you to do, if ye will come up unto the House of the Lord and attend on him morning and evening.

THE ANGEL OF THE CHURCH -The end of all creation, and of all redemption, is for the manifestation of God, and God is not changed by being revealed. He is revealed, but he is revealed as that which he is, and as that which he eternally will be. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; the one substance of the Godhead, in the three-fold personality in which they have existed from all eter nity. God has not been eternally made known unto men; but now, brethren, God hath revealed himself! The only begotten Son hath come forth from the bosom of the Father, and hath been personally manifested; and hath made known and revealed unto us the Father. When he ascended up on high he received the Holy Ghost, and hath given the Holy Ghost unto the Church, that the Holy Ghost may be manifested in the Church, God dwelling in the creature and bearing witness unto the Son of Man. In this is the work of the Holy Ghost in the Church, to take of the things of Christ, and to show them unto us, and to bear witness unto Jesus. "When the comforter is come He shall bear witness of

THE APOSTLE pronounced the benediction-"May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ," &c.

The Members of the Church departed, and the service for the General Assembly of strangers followed.

THE FIRST EVANGELIST offered up a prayer, and read part of the 3rd chap. of Jeremiah_beginning at the 12th verse. An Evangelist spoke as follows:-"And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.” And in the same book, concerning pastors, the Lord declareth in the 1st. verse of the 23rd chap. "Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of iny pasture, saith the Lord. Therefore, thus saith the Lord God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock and driven them away, and have not visited them behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the Lord.” And he maketh another promise in the 3rd verse," And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase." Brethren, these words contain God's

me, and ye shall bear witness also." But, promise unto his people which are brethren, however great the glory of this scattered and divided, and not brought dispensation of the Spirit is, it is, com- into the unity of the faith. And while pared with the glory that shall be re- he has specially promised to raise up vealed, but as the dawning of the day | pastors after his own heart, you are not, compared with the light of the sun at therefore, to conclude that he alone is noon-day. Now we know but in part, manifested in that office alone, or that now we see through a glass darkly; that office can alone manifest the heart then we shall see him face to face of God. : When the father did bring "When that which is perfect is come, again from the dead that great Shepherd that which is in part shall be done of the Sheep, and when he did receive as away." But it shall be done away a risen man, the Holy Ghost, he began as you are taught, only by the full mani- to manifest himself in a fourfold ministry; festation of the light and glory of God. Hold fast then to that which ye have, and seek that the present purpose of the Lord shall be accomplished in his Church; that the Holy Ghost may be manifested, dwelling in the body of Christ, the living Temple of God; that ye may attain unto the fallen glory; that the glory of God may be revealed, and that all flesh may see it together, Amen.

The doxology "To Father, Son, and

he put forth his care and manifested his love by giving to his Church four special gifts, that his shepherding men might be cared for, and that his sheep might have these folds to fly unto. Therefore, brethren, these four ministries through which Christ manifests himself, are more essential to the life and well being of society than many of the world suppose; for, without these things being manifested, the Church could not have existed, neither could the

world have endured for so long a time world, witnesses to the need of the pastor as they have. And in order to teach who hath a similar office in the Church you your need of these things, behold of God, in order to keep and to sustain how they are partially manifested in their that which always has been established acwork. First, there is the ministry of cording to the word of God. Now these Rule, sealing the world in kings, in em- things exist among the children of men ; pires, and in governments of every kind. they exist in every state of society, in a But he that ruleth over men must be degree. For the world, as well as the just, ruling in the fear of the Lord. Church, liveth and moveth in God, and Therefore hath God through one, that is, hath its being in him. And it is the Jesus Christ, an Apostleship to teach raising up of selfwill in any one of these this to those who believe, and those manifestations of the life of God that has only. Secondarily, there is the light of produced all the war, all the revolutions, knowledge and the understanding of hard and all the bloodshed, that have ever sentences. High soaring knowledge, happened upon this sin-laden and sin-purwhich penetrateth the dark and subtle suing earth. It is the restitution of these minds of wicked and designing men, and ministries by the raising up of men after discovereth the secret paths of human God's own heart, and by his renewing cunning; strengthening the hand of and reforming word that shall bless the authority, and upbearing the rule of souls of men and prepare them for the rulers, sealing the world in men of skill coming and kingdom of our Lord and and men of master minds; which rule Saviour, Jesus Christ. Know you then, ever seeketh unto for help and for sup- brethren, that these things do exist in port. And sealing also the Church in man, who is the image of God, and hath prophets; for the word of knowledge, as the love of God in him, and even seeketh well as the word of wisdom, must descend to manifest itself in this four-fold characfrom above, purified from all that is sen- ter. But God seeing the vain attempts sual, earthly, and devilish, in order to of man, seeing how fruitless all his efforts bless the souls of men. Therefore Christ are without His word and direction, hath sent to his Church, secondarily, hath in these latter days begun to take prophets to teach and manifest these these things in hand, and to manifest things. The Church hath the sure word these four things in this four-fold ministry of prophecy unto which she doth well to through which, Christ the pastor and take heed, as unto a light which shineth shepherd of men, may manifest himself, in a dark place, until the day dawn and for though there be diversity of operathe day star arise upon her. Thirdly, tions and manifestations it is the same brethren, in the world ye see the out- Lord that worketh all in all. falling and forth-sending of these things in words and messages, gathering into one body to bind under one headship, manifested in lawyers and judges, interpreting the laws of the realm, to bring the people into the form of Government set over them in the land; and sealing the Church in Evangelical teaching and preaching, which is set to speak according to the law, and to the testimony, and to rebuke the world which speaketh not according to this testimony, because there is no light in it. And, brethren, ye see fourthly, the diligent care and maintenance, the continual support and cherishing of those things which are established and esteemed as good and honest among the children of men, manifested in lesser headships, and in governors of all kinds, whether they be called mayors, judges, or magistrates, or whatever they are termed; wherein ye see even in the

THE THIRD EVANGELIST having read from the 16th to the 19th verses of the 3rd chapter of Jeremiah, said,―This is the beauty of it-they shall not turn away from the Lord their Father. The Jewish Church, the people of Israel, as you know were the family of God, but they fell from him and are divided into sections and parties. The family of God is scattered and broken up, and the first step which he has to take before he can bring anything like a blessing on them, is some step that may bring about unity. That is the first step, and as you find the prophet Malachi in his last chapter says, speaking of the day that shall burn as an oven, that the sun of righteous shall arise with healing in his wings, unto those that fear his name, and that before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord, he will send Elijah, and here is the thing that Elijah was to do-" And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to

about to seek out the faults and errors, and sin-committings of God's children; for then you are working to the hindrance of the purpose of God, which is to put away all envy and strife and to bring his children together that they may cry—

the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers." Dear brethren, God is about to establish in this world, what he has ordained to himself, his own glorious kingdom. The Lord Jesus Christ is about to come, not to destroy the world, brethren, but to rule the world" Thou art my father." In the prophecy in righteousness. This is the thing which of Malachi it is said when the prophet he is coming to do, to put an end to all was looking forward to this," Rememthat is evil and unrighteous, for it is now ber ye the law of Moses my servant." ruled in unrighteousness, and to rule it in Now you know the law which was given faithfulness and righteousness. This is to Moses contained the statutes and the thing he is about to come to do. And judgments which were the constitution of behold what a state the family of God is the Jewish Church, that to which he in! It is scattered and broken. The gave it, being in existence first of all. children of God are divided in every land; | So he points them back from the divisions they are divided into sects and parties. into which they had fallen to the one Every one does what he can to injure code which he himself gave them, to the another. The Lord hath sent a message which is the ministry of Elijah the prophet, for the purpose of turning the hearts of the fathers to the children, before that day. This ministry, the Lord has sent. It is the prophecy of Malachi that is beginning to be fulfilled. If you think the purpose of God is to raise up some other sect, just that the body of Christ, the family of God, may be a little more torn and scattered, you do altogether mistake the purpose of God. He values one sect no more than another. He cares no more for a Calvinist than he does for an Arminian, or for a Protestant than he does for a Papist. For in his sight no class of people is more valuable than another. They are every one of them his dear children; they are every one of them marked and stamped with the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, and God is no respecter of persons. He loves his children. He loves them all. But his blessing he cannot pour on them, because they are divided and scattered, and his family will not come near him that they may receive his blessing. The thing which is to be done is to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, to put down all sectarianism, and to bring all to acknowledge God as their Father. It is not necessary that you should come out of the Church in which you are, that God should bless you. He can bless his children wherever they are. It is God that can reconcile you by putting away strife, and envy, and enmity out of your hearts; God can pour out in the places where you are, his blessing on you. It matters not a straw how religious you may be, or how correct your opinions of this book may be, if you go

law that Moses gave his statutes and judgments, as being the only thing around which they were able to rally. If every man fled to his own definition of the law, to his own construction of the judgments and statutes of it, no such unity ever could come about; therefore he points them back to that which had been lost many times, and found again, as the only thing which could bring them back to one centre. Now, brethren, the constitution of the Christian Church is the law of Jesus Christ, which God gave by Jesus Christ. Moses was a prophet who went up into the mount and received the constitution of the Jewish Church, which he gave down to the people. Jesus Christ, as a prophet, went up into the holy mount of God, and received gifts for men, 'apostles and prophets," and so on, as you have heard often. Therefore God at this time points his Church, as the only hope of bringing about unity, to the law which by his servant Jesus Christ he gave to his people. Dear brethren, did God give the law to Moses, in order that a permanent establishment of that state of things should take place, and nothing else? No, God gave it only until Jesus Christ should come; as now God hath given Apostles and Prophets, and Evangelists, and Pastors to his Church, in order to establish a permanent state of things that should remain, and that we should rejoice in them. He has so given them only that by them our hearts may be lifted up to hope for the coming of the king himself. These are but instruments for uniting the Church together, and for doing the work of the ministry until she comes to the state of a perfect man in Christ Jesus.