At the passover, i.e. when they celebrated the fact of their having being spared, the joy of the other feasts was not found. Doubtless, they recognised the deliverance accomplished, but the unleavened bread, type of purity and simplicity of heart, is called the bread of affliction; they had gone out of the land of Egypt in haste to save themselves.

Holiness was an imperative requirement. Would they perish in the territory of Satan, prince of darkness? But every one turned in the morning, and went to his own tent. Yes, it is grace to be delivered, but, so long as it is, barely that there is the consciousness of deliverance but from ruin, from slavery, still present to the heart as that from which we have been delivered; that holiness is a requirement; we see the purity of Christ, as demanding that the leaven of sin be entirely put awaywe are, no doubt, in a true position of heart; deliverance was needful for such slaves; holiness is obligatory; without holiness no one shall see the Lord; we have a solemn feeling of the grace which has saved us-of the truth of the profound reality and need of that sacrifice, the blood of which has stayed at our threshold, the sword of the holiness of God-but it is not joy; it is not communion. Every one retires apart by himself.

In the feast of Pentecost, prefiguring the gift of the Holy Spirit, there was joy; they offered a voluntary offering to God, according to the blessing which the Lord had vouchsafed. There was joy in communion; they raised up the downcast heart of the widow, of the orphan, of the Levite, and of the stranger; they rejoiced before the Lord their God, in His presence, where He had set His name.

They recalled the thought that they had been slaves, but it was while enjoying their freedom, before God, who had shed abroad His blessing upon the people whom He had set free. Here we find, again, the true spirit of worship. It will be noticed that they offered according to the blessing of the Lord.

The feast of Tabernacles went a little further; they rejoiced in like manner, and the joy diffused itself over the others, whose heart God would lift up. The spirit of joy

and of peace still characterized the worshippers gathered together in the presence of their God; characterised the communion which is the effect of that presence, and of the drawing near to him of His people. But the feast, the spirit of the feast, had to be kept up during all the seven days, and "thou shalt rejoice," it is said; for now they are in the full consciousness of the rest of God. The ingathering of the corn-floor, and of the wine-press was ended. In full and abundant enjoyment of all the fruits of the land, in the rest of God; they celebrated the bounty of Him who had given them these things; not according to the blessing he had given them, but because the Lord their God had blessed them in all the works of their hands.

Doubtless, for us, the accomplishment of this feast (typical of the rest which Israel shall enjoy from all their toils in the age to come) will be in heaven. But, in so far as we realise our portion, we anticipate that joy; and we bless God according to the sentiments which we have as to him by the Spirit.

I will next direct my readers' attention to chapters iv. and v. of the Revelation.

In Revelation iv. 8, we find the four living creatures ascribe to the Lord God Almighty the glory of all that which He is in His holy and eternal majesty.

The celebration of this glory leads those who represent the saints in glory, in their character of kings and priests, to strip themselves of their crowns and to leave their thrones-falling down and worshipping him that liveth for ever and ever-more exalted in morally appreciating and recognising the glory of Him to whom all majesty belongs, than by being clothed with the insignia of their own glory; in sufficiently seizing, as the object of adoration, the supreme glory of God, so as to employ the measure of glory which had been vouchsafed to them, only to exalt His, while casting the insignia of it before Him-than in bearing them before the armies of Heaven or the inhabitants of the earth. That in which we draw near to God is more excellent than that which distinguishes us from His creatures.

To esteem their glory, although it was true as being

given of God, as nought save as an offering, because they understood the glory of Him who had loved them, and who was placed far above them, was, to a certainty, a position more exalted than highly to appreciate it, and to clothe themselves with it in sight of those who were beneath them. I repeat their glory was real because it was conferred of God; but it was vouchsafed to them to recognize a glory infinitely more excellent, to enjoy it, to see it, to delight that He to whom alone it belonged should possess it and should manifest it, should alone be glorified. The object was more excellent, the spirit more exalted, for they thought no longer about themselves. They were really exalted God-ward, while thinking only of him-although he alone was glorified. It is the perfection of the state and of the position of the creature in that respect. Another element, however, enters here in order to make it complete; an element, the existence of which is pre-supposed in that which I have just said, and which is plainly presented in this passage (lovely and precious privilege for us); it is, that there is in these twenty-four elders, representatives, as I have said, of the saints, kings and priests-the understanding of what it is which makes the Lord worthy of praise: "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created."

That

He is the source and final end of all that exists. which he is, and that he is worthy to receive all glory, because of the manifestation which He has made of Himself, is what we see to be the subject of the homage rendered by the saints to the Creator God.

Chapter v. has redemption as its subject. The Lamb that was slain is worthy to take the book of the ways of God in government, because he has redeemed. Here again the understanding of his work, of the glory which will thence result in the relationship with God of those who were the objects of it, and in the dominion confided to them, is found recited in the praises addressed to the Lamb by the heavenly saints. We may also remark that praises are addressed to Him who is the object of them. The prayers of saints accompany them. The praises

(in this case of angels), not directly addressed to the Lamb, are excited by the adoration of the saints. Lastly, all that inhabits the universal creation of Godtogether celebrates, in chorus, the glory of God most high, and of the Lamb, with the "Amen" of the living creatures; direct adoration of the Lord being the part proper to the twenty-four elders, kings and priests. We may observe here, that these passages do not present to us the character of Father it is God, the ruler and sovereign. This is the character of the book. It will be remarked that adoration is the characteristic, par excellence, of the twenty-four elders: as is also intelligence as to the foundation of the glory of God, as manifested in his acts of power and of grace. I cite these various passages, not as giving us the precise revelation of that which is Christian worship, but as furnishing many precious elements to enable us to seize the thought of worship in general. The Psalms furnish other examples, only we must bear in mind that God is there also, presented as Governor of the earth, and not as Father of His beloved children, who participate in His nature of love. Our position is to adore the Father in spirit and in truth, in the sweet confidence of being the children whom He loves, without His losing in our eyes any part of His majesty.

"JESUS saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.”—John iv. 21-26.

No. XXII.

REMARKS ON THE PRESENCE OF THE

HOLY GHOST IN THE CHRISTIAN. ·

I DESIRE to make a few remarks* of a practical tendency and of deep interest, on the effects of the presence of the Holy Ghost in the Christian.

The Spirit of God as dwelling in us, may be considered in two aspects: for He unites us to the Lord Jesus, so that His presence is intimately connected with life, that life which is in Jesus (John xiv. 19, 20; Gal. ii. 20). "He that is joined unto the Lord is one Spirit;" and further, His presence is that of God in the soul. The Scripture, speaking of Him in the first of these characters (which is sometimes linked to the second), says (Rom. viii. 2, 9, 10), that "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus frees us from the law of sin; so that the Spirit is Life, because of righteousness." It is, however, also said (ver. 9), "if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you;" and then His in-dwelling and action are blended, since, (inasmuch as both are manifested by the formation of the character of Christ in the soul), "the Spirit of God" becomes "the Spirit of Christ." The "Christ in you of ver. 10. expresses the idea more clearly, especially as the Apostle adds, "if Christ be in you, the Spirit is life." But in ver. 16. the Holy Ghost is carefully distinguished from the Christian, for "He beareth witness with our spirit." In verses 26 and 27, the two characters of the presence of the Spirit are there remarkably shown out in their mutual connections:† for "the mind of the Spirit," known to God, who searches the heart, is the life of the Spirit in the saint. But, on the other hand, "the Spirit helpeth our infirmities," and "maketh intercession for

This paper forms a sort of Appendix to the edition in French of "The Operations of the Spirit."

This is largely unfolded in the Second Part of "The Operations of the Spirit."