needed. But these give no answer to the great question, how shall I find acceptance with God? Cain did this, and yet was the vagabond of his race. Most seasonable are those counsels of heavenly wisdom which announce that one great sacrifice, and tells of him who is the only way, the new and living way. There is no holiness, no pardon, no peace, no heaven, where is no atoning. Saviour. There is but this one foundation of hope. There is but this one gospel, and this one system of truth and duty. Nor is there any embarrassment on this great subject if men will go to the word of God. Abel, though dead, "yet speaketh," and shows the way of life.

Those who, like Cain, follow their own fancies in opposition to the instructions of heavenly wisdom; who devise a religion of their own in neglect of that which God has revealed; who trust in refuges of lies, and turn away from the only hope set before them in the gospel, show what is in their hearts, and that they possess a character which is unfitted for the kingdom of God. This was the test that brought out the true character of Abel and Cain; and it is equally decisive in its application to ourselves. Abel fell in with the method of redemption revealed, obscurely as it was, in that early age of the world; Cain fell out with it; and their course of conduct toward that great Sacrifice decided their character. We also

have the same test, more clearly revealed, and therefore more easily applied. A method of salvation has been disclosed to our fallen world which is the wonder of the universe. It is the wonder of God's wondrous government, that he can maintain his truth and justice, and yet pardon and save such creatures as his truth and justice condemn. God manifest in the flesh, Deity united with humanity--an atoning sacrifice by the death of the cross---salvation by that cross, through faith in the name of the great Sufferer,-these are the truths which are stumbling-blocks and foolishness to the men of the world; and to those who believe the wisdom of God and the power of God. Let every man ask himself how he is affected by them? what interest do they awaken in his bosom? what hopes does he build upon them? A true answer to these questions decides his character and destiny. If he revolts from these great truths and such a method of mercy as too humbling to human reason to be received, and still more humbling to the pride of his heart; and if he continues so to do, he puts himself beyond the reach of reform, and beyond the possibility of acceptance with God. He treads under his feet the blood of the Son of God, and in doing this he opposes and rejects that great goodness and mercy, that wondrous wisdom and glory of God manifested in the cross of his Son. No matter what else the sinner does, if he is hos

tile to this method of mercy, he is lost. No mat ter how good, how moral, how religious he is, if he rejects this method of mercy, he is lost. His acceptance or his rejection of this method of mercy decides his goodness, his morality, his religion, his eternal destiny.

The dwellers in these Christian lands occupy a high eminence of privilege, in that from Sab,bath to Sabbath, from one new moon to another, Jesus Christ is evidently set forth crucified in the midst of them. Wisdom hath killed her beasts, and mingled her wine, and prepared her supper, and sent forth her.messengers to say, All things are ready. Beware of turning a deaf ear to these solicitations of redeeming love. Beware of the guilt of Cain, lest you be partakers of his spirit, bear his woes, and become an eternal exile from the presence of God. His guilty course was coming to its maturity, when he deliberately rejected the truth, that "without the shedding of blood there is no remission." Only to think of that state of mind in which a man regards himself as not needing an atonement! Do not thus trifle with this great Sacrifice. No, do this no longer. Relying on the help of Almighty grace, listen to the God of heaven and honor the sacrifice of his Son. If you say, "I am embarrassed; I know not what to do; I am in darkness; I cannot see my way clear:" then earnestly cry for

light. Only let your heart be toward your duty and your Saviour, and light will soon shine upon your path. You will come to him as you are, because the Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost. You will come as you are, because he came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. You will come as you are, because when we were without strength, Christ died for the ungodly. You will come as you are, and because you are poor, and miserable, and blind, and wretched and in want of all things, to be filled from his fulness, and be clothed upon with a righteousness that is not yours, but his who wrought and gives it; yes, he gives, freely gives it. It is all of grace, matchless, unmeasurable grace. You cannot purchase it, for it is above all price; the highest bidder for it will find that the greater Giver disdains a bribe. You cannot make yourself worthy of it, or in any way merit it, by waiting ever so long. The best deserve nothing but destruction. He gives it, and to those who see and feel that they have no righteousness of their own to plead; that they have nothing and are nothing; and that the most fitting qualification for receiving it, is a heart that gives him all the praise.

CHAPTER XV.

The First Art of Discriminating Grace.

God's truth is always the same. Moses was as staunch a believer in the doctrines of grace as Paul; nay, Paul himself refers to Moses as himself inculcating the great doctrine of God's discriminating grace. There are those who would fain have us believe that there is no such thing. So the devil taught our credulous mother, when, with impudent and lying tongue, he uttered the words, "Thou shalt not surely die." There are those also who would have us carried away by the modern notion, that God saves all he is able to save; and that if any are lost, it is because his almighty power cannot convert them. If this theory were true, instead of uttering the language, "I will have mercy upon whom I will have mercy," we should somewhere have heard him say, I will have mercy upon whom I am able to have mercy.

It is not the most popular theme, when we speak