December 19

1 Peter 1.—13. Wherefore, gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

14. As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:

15. But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation:

16. Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

17. And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in

I forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from our fathers,

19. But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot;

20. Who verily was fore-ordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,

21. Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

22. Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently;

23. Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.

24. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away;

25. But the word of the Lord endureth forever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

The creation is here set forth in its ground, its means, its fruits, or evidences, in the life. The ground—change of heart which introduces one to a new life—is the atoning sacrifice of Christ. Our restoration is made possible through our redemption with the blood of Christ. But that redemption can avail our voluntary, personal seeking of his grace in God, and to bring us to this frame, God has no ministration of his Word and of his Spirit. The Spirit, as bringing home the truth to our hearts, and bringing us to feel, acknowledge, and receive the truth, is the honor of regeneration. But nothing is accomplished without our concurrent action. We ourselves must obey the truth, and so shall purify our souls: for the very nature or

essence of this new birth is the turning of our minds from the pursuit of worldly good unto righteousness as the law of life, and to faith and hope in God as our portion; and the fruit of the proof of this turning is the habit of childlike obedience to God, and of love to our fellow men. Where such a change is real, it is rendered permanent by cherishing in the heart the Word of God, which is an incorruptible and imperishable power of life. Love has a purifying power. In the degree that the love of God gains possession of the soul will it cast out whatever is contrary to the pure and holy mind of God; and in the degree that the love of our fellow-men is strengthened in our hearts by the grace of Christ will it overcome every selfish passion, every unholy desire. Hence there is no higher evidence of renewal than fervent love out of a pure heart.

APPROPRIATE HIMNS.]

Prayer.

[Nos. 169, 170, 185.

We come to thee this morning, heavenly Father, with hearts full of thankfulness for the mercies of the night. We have rested in safety and in peace under the shadow of thy wing. Thou hast kept us quiet from the fear of evil: nor sickness, nor death, nor tempest, nor fire, nor any calamity, hath overtaken us or our dwelling. How sure are the mercies of thy covenant, O Lord! All thy promises in Christ Jesus are Yeas and Amen. Fulfil unto us, we beseech thee, these thy mercies and promises, and cause that this day we may rejoice in thy salvation.

Bless to us thy Word which we have now read. Oh! sanctify us by thy truth; and, while we receive its instruction and comfort in our hearts, may we carry out its precepts in our lives, and adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things! May we be just and true, loving and kind, gentle, forbearing, and forgiving, and so shine as lights in the world, holding forth the Word of life. May every day witness some new victory over evil

desires and passions within us, and over the evil that is in the world! By feeding upon thy Word, the bread of heaven, may we grow up into Him who is our Life and Head, even Christ! [Oh, may these children grow in grace as they grow in years and in knowledge! May they shun evil companions and evil ways, and walk in the way of thy commandments!] Keep all dear to us even as the apple of thine eye. Bless our neighbors, and send thy Spirit upon this whole community. Bless our rulers, and the schools and churches in our land. May all who rule, and all who teach, be led and taught by thee! Have pity upon the poor and the sorrowing; upon homes made desolate by famine, pestilence, or war. Stay thy judgments, O Lord! and send peace and salvation to all people. Mercifully forgive our sins, and bring us unto the perfection of knowledge, of holiness, and of blessedness, in Jesus Christ our Lord; to whom, with thee and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory, world without end. Amen