reformers, missionaries, and devoted preachers, of ancient and modern times. A Christian is one who may not fix his eye upon any of the world's prizes, and, losing sight of every other object, pursue a chosen scheme of worldly ambition or aggrandizement. He cannot give himself to the pursuit of fame, or the acquisition of power, or the accumulation of wealth. He is called to an infinitely loftier consecration-to present himself a holy sacrifice to Christ. He is to give up his mind, to think as God thinks, to will as God wills, to love as God loves. He is to yield his body to be the temple of the Holy Ghost; his heart as the throne of Deity. With body, soul, and spirit, he is to consecrate his time, talents, influence, and possessions, to be held and used for Christ, regulating every decision by a filial regard to the divine requirements, withholding no exertion, and denying no endurance, which the Master calleth for. In theory, every Christian admits the duty of entire consecration. In the very outset of his religious life he devoted himself to God. But who has not observed that our very acquaintance with first principles has led us to overlook them? The truth has been too familiar to detain our attention. Practically, truth is no longer operative than whilst borne in mind. Forgetfulness is as pernicious in its effects as ignorance. The Apostle, writing to those who were already the "called of Jesus Christ," ""beloved of God," did not deem it superfluous to beseech them, by the strongest motives, to present their bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God. There are acts of the Christian life which must be frequently repeated. To rest satisfied with their single performance would be ruin. Among these are acts of faith, prayer, and consecration. Would it do to be satisfied with the act of faith once performed? The life which we live in the flesh must be a life of faith. So frequent must be the exercise of faith that our whole life may be described as one continued aet. Again, what would be said of the man who should avow that he had only once prayed? would he not be held an utter stranger to the life and spirit of a Christian? Just as the acts of faith and prayer require to be frequently repeated, so does that of entire consecration. We must again and again yield ourselves to God. If our spirit should be that of ceaseless prayer, so our attitude should be that of ceaseless consecration. Beautifully does the devout "Thomas a Kempis" represent Christ as saying, "As I willingly offered up myself unto God my Father, so oughtest thou also to offer up thyself willingly unto me every day, as a pure and holy oblation, with all thy might and affections, in as hearty a manner as thou canst. What do I require of thee more than that thou entirely resign thyself unto me? Whatsoever thou givest besides thyself, is of no account in my sight; for I seek not thy gifts but thyself." Do we err in supposing that the importance of entire consecration is not generally felt? Can an intelligent observer look round upon the Christian Church without a painful conviction that many professors do not practically recognize Christ as their king?-that they do not serve him with their best ?—that though the ideal of the church is a community wholly subject to the will of its Supreme Head and Lord, it is comparatively seldom exemplified? How vast the amount of influence and talent which is withheld! Christian professors of average ability do nothing! their talents are buried! Some who have the gift of prayer seldom employ it for the edification of others! Some of fluent speech say nothing for Christ! Men of large resources content themselves with small gifts! Could some parties be more forcibly reproved than to be compelled to wear this inscription, "I am consecrated to the service of Christ"? And yet this is the language of our Christian profession before men and angels. O that there were perfect harmony between our profession and our practice. The deep-seated consciousness of defect, the overwhelming sense of shortcoming, the bitterness of self-reproach in view of unfruitfulness and failure, would then be unknown. To a defective consecration may be traced all our impatience in suffering, and all our inactivity in doing the will of God. Only let us lay ourselves unreservedly upon the divine altar, and in the exercise of unwavering faith believe that God accepts the offering, and we shall know the higher forms of spiritual life. To stimulate us to this entire consecration, let us rapidly glance at a few considerations. Entire consecration is possible. Many are apt to regard it as a theory beautiful to look upon, but really impracticable. They imagine that entire devotion to Christ will not be attained till the hour of death. So long as this view is held no sincere determination can be formed to live wholly to Christ. It is frequently said, that a Christian must aim at entire consecration though he will not attain it. But if "I disbelieve in the possibility of being holy, I can never put forth a volition, that is to say, a fixed determination, to be so. I may put forth a volition to grow in grace; but to put forth a volition, a fixed, unalterable determination, with divine assistance, to resist and overcome every sin, to be wholly the Lord's-to be holy-when I believe such a result to be unattainable, is what, on the principles of the philosophy of the mind, I am unable to do. I might as well put forth a volition to create a continent, or to remove the Rocky Mountains into the Pacific Ocean, or to do anything else which I know it to be impossible for me to do." But if we accept the guidance of the Word of God, we can scarcely miss the conclusion, that the provisions of divine grace are sufficiently ample to enable us to live wholly to the Lord. There are given to us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these we might become partakers of the divine nature, and escape the corruption that is in the world. If by our unaided efforts entire consecration to Christ were to be maintained, we should utterly despair of its realization; but on the word of "the faithful God, which keepeth covenant," we ought to place an untrembling reliance. The oath sworn to Abraham provided that he would grant unto us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness, all the days of our life." Here is a guarantee of our entire and perpetual consecration to the service of the blessed Jehovah: And "Behold numerous are the promises which speak the same language. the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people." -Jeremiah xxxi. 31, 33.- "Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness and from all your idols will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments and do them.". Ezekiel xxxvi. 25-27. "Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwelling-places wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God."-Ezekiel xxxvii. 23. Can any one look at the fair import of these and similar promises, remembering that they are not confined to the Jews, but that they are all yea and amen to them that are in Christ Jesus, and yet see cause to believe that Satan, despite the very utmost reach of the provisions of divine grace, has rendered entire holiness in our world utterly unattainable? It cannot be that the adversary has thus prevailed. The commands and promises of holy writ, the prayer which Christ taught us to present-" Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven "—the experience of holy men,-all combine to assure us that it is our blessed privilege to stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. This entire consecration is demanded by Christ. He can ask for nothing less without violating the principles of eternal justice, and becoming the minister of sin. Instead of magnifying the law he would repeal it, instead of delivering up the kingdom to the Father in the consummation of all things, with all things subdued, there would be only a partial subjection were he to require less than entire devotion. But such is the supremacy of his claims that he requires that the dearest earthly relationships, nay even life itself, shall be subordinate to them. "Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple." If we were told that somewhere in the illimitable regions of space there were a race of beings whom Christ had created, preserved through many centuries, and for whose welfare he had made sacrifices which had filled the universe with admiration, should we not feel that they, of all other beings, were bound to serve Christ? that every moment of their time, and every particle of their influence should be the Lord's? We need not say that this earth bears that very race. His hands have made and fashioned us. Our minds, with all their varied capabilities of thought, enjoyment, and endurance, are His offspring. We have been warmed by His sun, nourished by His bounty, clothed from His wardrobe. But more than this, He has bought us with a price-bought us from condemnation from a death of unutterable agony. We were ruined, as though the blackness of darkness had already gathered around us, as though we were already encompassed by the fire, and subjected to the torment of the undying worm, and He descended to our condition, with sore agony and travail, and a baptism of blood, He wrought our deliverance, brought us forth from our awful prison, and placed us in His own house, constituted us children of God, members of His rejoicing family, and heirs of the blessedness of the divine nature. And after such favours can he require less than entire consecration? If you had expended your last fraction of earthly property-your all-in the purchase of an object, could you be indifferent as to its possession ? And could the great Redeemer, after expending his life that we might live to God, be indifferent as to whether we did so or otherwise? No; all the churches shall know that he searcheth the reins and hearts. His eyes, as a flame of fire, rest upon us continually, observing whether we follow him fully-whether our works are found perfect before God. To each of us he is ever proclaiming, "I know thy works;" intimating that we cannot leave our first love, be dead whilst having a name to live, present to Him the shrivelled and stunted service of lukewarmness, without awakening his displeasure; and, on the other hand, that supreme love and entire devotion cannot fail to secure His approving regard, but will be remembered with a view to the final recompence. An enlightened conscience can approve of nothing short of entire consecration. If we keep back a part of the price-if, losing sight of our high obligations, we live to ourselves-hiding our talents-sleeping in our Master's work, we cannot avoid condemnation. The voice of reproof must sound in our ears, "Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee." Regarding the condemnation of conscience as a feeble utterance of the condemnation of the holy God, every Christian sincerely deprecates it. He fears the hidings of God's face. He wishes to retain the clear unclouded light of God's countenance. When this is withdrawn, he is ready to exclaim with the poet Quarles "Why dost thou shade thy lovely face? O, why The sunshine of thy soul enlightening eye? "My light thou art without thy glorious sight, How painful is the interruption of wonted communion with God! What a sense of desolation chills the heart, when a dark cloud seems to cover the throne of grace, and religious ordinances are as wells without water. The sense of condemnation will not only dry up our happiness, but it will prove destructive of faith in prayer. It is impossible to exercise confidence in a Being whom we are perpetually offending. "For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight." -1 John iii. 20-22. Here it is obvious that a good conscience is a necessary condition of prevailing prayer. Faith rises in proportion to the completeness of our consecration, and when no defect attaches to this, we have a conscience void of offence, and our prayers have the utmost possible efficacy. The necessities of the world move us to entire consecration. Upwards of eighteen centuries have elapsed since the Saviour committed to the church the task of evangelizing all nations. Yet how small a part of this great work is done. We are thankful that enough has been effected to show that the activities of the church, rightly directed, and accompanied with divine power, do not fail of their result. But there are whole nations where little or nothing has been effected. Continents are in darkness. The world lieth in wickedness. Hundreds of millions have not heard of the Saviour. Hundreds of millions more know nothing experimentally of his great power to save. Here they are, coevals with ourselves-a generation standing with us on the same platform of probation, and with us passing forward to a changeless destiny. Are we hastening to the realms of light? Alas! they are going down to the blackness of darkness for ever and ever. And no angel will be despatched to interpret their sense of guilt, or to point them to the blood that cleanseth from all sin. To us alone is committed the great work of making known a Saviour's sacrifice and power. Around us, and stretching outwards on every side, are untold masses of men, dead in trespasses and sins, while we have the words of life. Oh! can we fail to speak to them? They die of hunger, while we have the bread of life. Can we hide from ourselves our brother's ruin? Can we remember the love and pity that redeemed us, and yet withhold ourselves from the Redeemer's service? Oh! to stem the tide of death, to accomplish in any degree the work of saving men, were worthy of a consecration a thousandfold more protracted than the little span of our mortal life. We will not dwell upon the fact, that entire consecration would be attended with the highest advantages to ourselves, lest we should be guilty of an undue prolixity. Besides, it is so obvious that in offering up our all as a living sacrifice, we shall infallibly secure the happiness, the honour, and the recompence, which God has reserved for devoted piety. Never does human nature rise to such lofty capabilities as when it is placed in union with the divine will. The movements of a creature along the line which Omnipotence keeps, are attended with a divine energy. The finite grasps the infinite. All things are possible through Christ which strengtheneth him. The weak is as David, and David as the angel of the Lord. A creature thus consecrated to Christ finds himself in union with all the forces of nature. Providence goes before him opening his way. He is cheered and stimulated by all lofty examples. Prophets, martyrs, confessors, cast their mantle upon him. Divine words of encouragement, ever and anon, speak in the depths of his soul. Devils behold his career with dismay. Whether in the courts of princes, or in the humblest walks of life-whether cheered by success, or tried by failure triumphing in the sheaves of harvest, or sowing precious seed in tears-he is alike doing the will of him that sitteth on the throne. Angels are his fellow-servants; all blessed intelligences bid him God speed. The Father himself honoureth him, |