men in general, and especially for our enemies, and for all the sons of men, that God would bless us all with every thing needful for the body, and that he would supply the wants of all our souls by giving us repentance, remission, and reformation.

Having now laid before God the great scene of human wants, and pleaded with him for ourselves and for others, we cannot upon the whole, from a view of so general a need of divine protection, but redouble our entreaties. Son of God, we beseech thee to hear us" Lamb of God, who by the sacrifice of thyself takest away the sins of the whole world, grant us thy peace,' even the peace which thou hast purchased with thy own blood-have mercy upon us and all mankind in this our misery. O Christ hear us,' thou anointed of the Father, hear our supplications. O Father of mercies, 'O Son of God, O Holy Spirit, pity and forgive us.'

Remember now that you can no way come unto God but by Christ, nor express your petitions so effectually as in his words; present therefore all these your supplications to God, in the prayer your Lord hath taught you. Beseech your heavenly Father that you may henceforth hallow his name, that his kingdom may come upon you, his will may be done in all his dispensations, that he will give you the daily blessings of this life, but especially that he will forgive your trespasses, nor lead you into temptation of falling into sin, but deliver you from the evil and punishment of it.

We have now but one thing more to do before we conclude this excellent exercise of devotion, which is,

that seeing we have besought the removal of present evils, we may endeavour to obtain favour with God for the preventing future. Here then we begin humbly to beseech God, that he will not henceforward 'deal with us after our sins, neither reward us after our iniquities.' This we more largely entreat in the following prayer, wherein looking up to God, our merciful Father, with sighing, contrite, or sorrowful hearts, we pray not only that our supplications may be heard, in all troubles of mind and adversities of body, but also that all evils, which men or devils contrive against us, may be brought to nought,' so that we, unhurt by any kind of persecution or distress, may evermore come before God's presence, with thanks and praise for our safety and protection. If your sense of danger and misery hath been any thing lively in the foregoing litany, you will not fail to back this request by your own hearty application to God in the words which follow, and call upon him to help and deliver you for his name's sake. Nor will you cease your importunity, till you have again and again called upon him with a vehemence of desire, only to be expressed in the short sentences which follow. 'Lord thou hast done great things of old, deliver us for thine honour.' Glory be to thee, Father, Son, and Spirit! 'Defend us, O Christ, from our spiritual and temporal enemies, and we shall be safe; we are in great distress, look graciously upon us; behold with pity our sorrows, and we shall be comforted; mercifully forgive our sins, and we shall be at peace.' At length this eagerness of supplication being, as it were, run down and tired, the mind is instructed to give

K

itself up to God, and to repose upon him in a most gentle, humble, and resigned prayer, that God will pity our weakness and 'look mercifully upon our infirmi ties;' that he will turn from us all those evils which we have indeed most righteously deserved;' that he will give us grace in all our troubles, to 'put our whole trust in his mercy,' so that we may evermore serve him in holiness and purity of life, to his honour and glory, and our peace and comfort, through Christ Jesus.

We have now seen the most lively method, whereby to remove or prevent any misery which may fall upon or threaten us, and also a most lovely exercise of the highest Christian virtues, faith, hope, resignation, patience, and charity. Let this induce us all not to pass over so admirable a service, with a cold insensibility and an unaffecting indifference, but to join in it with fear and trembling, yet with assurance and faith, that our addresses to God may be as warm and lively as our necessities are urgent, and that we may find rest, when it can only be had in making our requests known unto God. May he so enlarge our hearts in the use of this most excellent duty of prayer, that by a constant communion with God, we may be transformed into his likeness, and prove by our own experience what is that good, acceptable, and perfect will of God. Now to that eternal almighty God, even the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost be given all praise and glory, and thanksgiving for ever, Amen.”

While this indefatigable pastor most anxiously endeavoured to instil into his people, such a sense of the

nature of our public services, as might tend to produce in them an earnest desire to join, when assembled before God, in a united outpouring of kindred aspirations after his promises, and sympathetic breathings for true holiness of heart and life, he did not forget to convey to them instruction on the design and administration of the church's ordinances. In his lectures on the catechism, he enters fully upon the subject of baptism as the first sealing ordinance; nor is there to be found in the works of any other writer, a more profitable treatise on that sacrament. It is not however within the province of this volume, to enter on the abstract question of baptism, but to shew how Mr. Walker enjoined its celebration, with a view to the spiritual advantage of parents, sponsors, and children-in fact to describe, as was proposed in the outset, his mode of working the machinery of our church, with a view to illustrate its power and value.

He instructed his followers, that the sum and substance of their duty under the baptismal vow, was "solemnly to deny sin in the life, and reject it with the heart;" the evident obligation of those, who had publicly expressed their engagements of renunciation, faith, and obedience.

With regard to the choice of sponsors, Mr. Walker advised parents to be guided solely by this rule, "who will be most helpful to me in the Christian education of my child? He thus guarded against the carelessness of selection, that has caused this interesting custom to degenerate into a mere form; by which one of the loveliest bonds of Christian society has been

loosened and rendered almost useless.

"The only thing in view," he further urged, "is the procuring such godfathers and godmothers, as in all respects are judged fittest for helping to bring up the child like a Christian, without regard had in any means to interest, convenience, or grandeur. This is plainly the duty of the parent upon this occasion, and were this but duly done, the disgrace which this prudent institution lies under, would soon be removed, and it would quickly vindicate itself from such objections as have too justly arisen from the abuse of it."

He likewise reprobated the unbecoming practice of making the day on which this ordinance is administered an occasion of festivity. “It were altogether needful," he said, "that all due moderation and decency be used, in the entertainment of friends upon such solemn seasons; and a very solemn thing it is truly. For tell me, I pray you, do not you dedicate, present, and offer up the fruit of your body to God, to be made partaker of God's mercy through Christ? Do you not call upon God to receive him into the ark of Christ's church, to wash him and sanctify him with the Holy Ghost, that he may be delivered from God's wrath; and do you not earnestly plead with God, that he may be stedfast in faith, joyful through hope, and rooted in charity; that he may so pass through this world as to come to everlasting life? Are not these matters of more serious concern to you, than how you may acquit yourselves in the entertainment of your friends, which, it is likely, too much engages your thoughts at these times." "Baptism you may be sure," he continued, "is no trifling mat