"PERPETUAL VERDURE." How it must btive, rustic, bold and zealous wood OW delightful it must be to a pious and heaven-instructed and bush districts of New Zealand! It is called "the land of greenwood." The teeming growth and vigorous freshness of the wild shrubberies and forests have been the admiration of every visitor since the days of Cook. A Christian, always fruitful and fresh, vigorous and lively, strong and zealous, is a wonderful illustration of the unspeakable value of the true grace of God; and looks like a living answer to the little prayer contained in Watts's Psalm, where he says "Lord, 'tis a pleasant thing to stand, None that attend its gates shall find, Edward Stanford, of 6, Charing-cross, has issued a richlyladen sixpenny volume, entitled "The New Zealand Hand-book; or, Guide to the Britain of the South." Read it, if ye think of emigrating. LINES ON A VOLUME OF CHEERING WORDS. little book, and if God's will, And far from Sinai's awful din, At The seeking soul, with rapture fill, The thund'rings of God's law within, Point to the Cov'nant love of God, Lift up the soul, direct the eye- London. THE JOY OF A BELIEVER WHEN HIS HEART IS 66 FULL OF CHRIST. BY DR. LEASK. THE Rainbow" is the expressive title of a new monthly, Commencing this year, under the editorial management of Dr. Leask. The first number contains some nice papers, and to the devoted Millennial believers, and to those who say, as Dr. Leask says, "Christian! never, never doubt," to the assured and happy believer-this will be an acceptable little messenger. In the second paper-" Gems from the Gospel "—we have Simeon's embracing Christ most blessedly drawn out. Here are a few sample lines: "He who promised to Abraham that in his seed all nations should be blessed, always keeps His word. Simeon believed it, and see now how he stands in the temple with the child Jesus in his arms-precious burden!-blessing God that he has lived to see that glorious hour! What rapture fills his soul! What transports of holy joy! The Consolation of Israel is in his arms, is pressed to his heart, is welcomed with devout emotions too strong for words. He felt the tide of bliss swelling too high for his aged frame, and wished to pass away on its flood. "Let me die now. There is no time like this. I have seen my Saviour. I am satisfied. I have no longer anything to do in the world. Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation." Such a scene as this, so far as its external features are concerned, could only occur once in the history of the world; but the essential fact which it suggests, the joy of a believer when his heart is full of Christ, has occurred times without number. Many of the Lord's servants have rejoiced with a "joy unspeakable and full of glory "-have felt as if a "weight of unbearable happiness, a burden of bliss, had fallen upon them; and they have consequently longed to get away, not from it, but to its holy source, and from the world which would soon try to rob them of it. "Christ in the heart" has often turned the heart into a sacred presence chamber, and the blessedness of communion with Him has risen to an ecstasy of which no man, who has not himself experienced it, can have the faintest conception. We cannot sufficiently adore the Lord for these glimpses of glory, these instreamings of the light which will shortly bathe His saints with its peerless splendour, when he shall appear and they shall see Him as He is. By such visitations their hearts are strengthened for the wilderness conflict; they are songs in the night, messengers of comfort in the dark and cloudy day, and they deepen and strengthen gratitude for the distinguished privilege of being able to say, "Truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.' THE TWO GATES OPENED BY A DEATH: THROUGH WHICH SHALL YOU DEPART? T the threshold of 1864-is it not well to pause--and, if you can, pray God to shew you the path in which you are travelling? Is it the broad road to death? Or, is it the narrow way to life? Robert Newton saw the end of two men whom he describes in the following powerful manner : I will adduce two facts, one of very recent occurrence; another that occurred some few years ago; both came under my own personal observation. Behold first an awful instance, a man living in this world without piety, without God, without Christ, without hope. And yet this man at one period of his life had made great professions of religion, and as far as man can judge of man, had walked worthy of that profession. But that man like many other men besides, became by and by ensnared by the vice of drunkenness. Of course he soon gave up all professed regard to religion, and then as a sort of antidote to the accusations of his conscience, he tried to persuade himself that religion was all a nonentity and a dream. Thus the man lived-not very long however, for by and by disease came upon him, and I fear that disease was superinduced by his ungodliness. What then? If ever I saw a human being who to all human appearance was abandoned of God, and of whom God had said, "he is joined to his idols, let him alone," let him alone consciencelet him alone ministers-let him alone God's Spirit-don't strive with him again" I think he was that man. I could tell you where he lived, I could conduct you to the spot. I forbear to mention names-relations survive him. His agonizing wife besought me to converse with and pray for him. I did so. Never can I forget his looks: I saw the horrors, the malignity, the despair, that was painted in this man's countenance. When I spoke to him, what reply did he give? "I want none of your advice-I want none of your prayers-I am lost!" In vain did I try to talk to this man of the mercy of God in Jesus Christ; in vain did I tell this man that Jesus came to save the chief of sinners; in vain did I speak to him of the super-abounding mercy of God. "I want none of your adviceI want none of your prayers-I am lost-I am a fallen spirit!" I besought the God of mercy, for the Saviour's sake, to be gracious to the man; not a single assent to any prayer I offered up. And in this wretched condition did I leave him. His wife still anxious, still agonized, sent for a pious neighbour, who was treated by the man in the very same way. At length, alas! as if his poor emaciated skeleton body, by some sort of preternatural influence had been worked up to an unnatural strength, he sprang from the bed on which he was laid, crying out, "O God, I cannot die;" and rushing towards the door, fell down, and expired! "O my soul, come not thou into their secret; and with ungodly and apostate men, mine honour, be not thou united." Behold another case-the reverse of this, blessed be God. A case which occurred very near my own residence at Liverpool, the death of a pious man. He was a man in humble life, who had long been distressingly afflicted with an asthma: and with whom I had many a pleasing opportunity of conversing. day a message came to me, and I have often been thankful that, I had an opportunity of witnessing the closing scene of that man, One of God-the messenger informed me that if I wished to see John alive I should go immediately. I hastened to the spot. Oh, what a contrast to the former scene; the man as to outward circumstances indeed, a poor man, but O! rich in faith. When I entered the room he recognized me, and with a smile upon his countenance, he said, "O, the Lord is good." And when I talked to him about his situation, and the love of God in Jesus Christ, his eyes were suffused with tears, and looking at me through those tears, he said, 66 Sir, the fear of death-the fear of death is taken away; my blessed Redeemer liveth." Yes, He that died and rose again was remembering this man, and blessing this man, even at the trying hour of nature's dissolution. In a short while his breathing was interrupted, and you could scarcely suppose him to breathe again; after some time, however, he did breathe again, and he looked up, and with the mellow placidity of the dying Christian enthroned upon his countenance, while the eyes that appeared all but shut for ever were lit with heaven's sweetest radiance, he exclaimed, O, to depart and to be with Christ!-none but Christ, none but Christ." Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his." 66 Give me the religion that makes me happy while I live; give me the religion that makes me triumphant when I die; that is everything I need; I wish no more." The way of the pharisee seems right to him,-the way of the self-righteous man seems right to him,-the way of the workerfor-life seems right to him,-the way of the free-willer seems right to him-the way of the expediency-monger seems right to him -the way of the rationalist seems right to him-the way of the natural man in connection with religion seems right to him; but the Scriptures declare each of them to be a way of death, for each repudiates the only way of salvation, and that is God's way. |