July 27

John iii.—1. There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:

2. The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God; for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.

3. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

4. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?

5. Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

6. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

7. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

8. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

9. Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?

10. Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?

11. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.

12. If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe if I tell you of heavenly things?

13. And no man hath ascended up to heaven but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.

14. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up;

15. That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

16. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

17. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved.

18. He that believeth on him is not condemned; but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God.

19. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

20. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

21. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest that they are wrought in God.

Christ here laid down the uniform condition of admission into his kingdom. Natural birth, position, advantages, cannot determine this; outward reformation, education, intellectual and moral culture, will not suffice for this; baptism, confirmation, church-membership, are not its equivalent. Every man must be renewed in the spirit of his mind, by renouncing selfishness, the love of this world, and every form of sin, and consecrating himself, as his supreme purpose and his highest delight, to the service of God, in a holy and blameless life. This inward renewal is required of all alike, because, in the light of God's holy law, all are sinners in heart and deed. This renewal is made possible to all, because

Christ came to deliver men from sin through his sacrifice upon the cross; and to turn to him in faith, to renounce the evil of our lives, and trust, love, and serve the Lord Jesus as our Saviour, is to be thus renewed. This renewal is urged upon all; since for this the Holy Spirit seeks us, draws us, quickens us, and, if we do heartily yield to his grace, will renew and sanctify us. The love of God meets us in his truth, reaches forth to us through his Son, follows after us by his Spirit; and, with all these influences of mercy to draw us into his kingdom, nothing can keep us out but our own unbelief. The responsibility of our eternal future rests wholly with ourselves.

APPROPRIATE HYMNS.]

Prayer.

[Nos. 10, 17, 93.

Oh! grant us grace, Father in heaven, to hear thy Word, and to obey it. We would make haste, and delay not, to keep thy commandments. Thou hast a right, O Lord! to our time, our gifts, our hearts, our persons; to all that we are, and all that we have: for thou hast created us, and hast redeemed us with the precious blood of thy Son. We would begin this sabbath in thy fear: help us in all things to please and honor thee.

We give thee thanks for the mercies of the night, and for all the mercies of our past lives,—for home and its blessings; for friends, and all the ministries of love; for health, knowledge, comfort, and prosperity; but, above all things, for thy grace in the

gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. May we ever be ready to acknowledge him the Son of God, the Saviour of the world! May men in the high places of power and influence consecrate themselves to him! may the poor and lowly trust in him! may children sing hosannas to the Son of David! Show forth this day, O Lord! thy glory in the sanctuary. For all thy mercies in the gospel, we bless and magnify thy glorious name; humbly beseeching thee to accept this our morning sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving for His sake who lay down in the grave, and rose again for us,—thy Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ; to whom be glory and dominion, world without end. Amen.