God." God is the Good I His sceptre is no iron mace of authority, but he is the Father of our spirits, and the God of our salvation. What will to-morrow brin"'? 'rhe seed-time and the harvest.. The summer sky and the son"'0 of the reaper. The release of the ice-bound fountain and the beauty and fra;;rance of a thousand fields. To-morrow there is to be more and more departure of ignorance and wrong, of rlesolation and darkness. The li!(ht is to shine more and more unto the perfect day; for Christ must reign. Every season of life will ha.ve its kindness. If father and mother forsake us in childhood, the Lord will take us up. If widowhood comes, Christ will be the. Husband of the widow. Frosty, but kindly, as Shakespeare says, will old a~e be itself, when the evening comes, and death too will be kind when it comes, taking down the tabernacle with a quiet hand, and gently hushing us into the calm sleep of the child whose morning is heaven. Let us get rid, then, of the habit of dark foreboding, for thereby we deprive ourselves of the music of to-day. "\Ve all sometimes think of Divine mercy as though its meridian had passed, and as though God's grace was setting over the plains of life. We have an ever-living Saviour, an indwelling Spirit, the blessing of spiritual sonship, the foretaste of the sweet vineyards of Canaan, and a fountain ever open for sin and uncleanness. Let us seek to make God's kindness in its constancy the image of our own. Love is the law of heaven; the angels are all ministering spirits. When poor Hagar, with haggard eyes and dishevelled hair, was in the wilderness, it was an angel-hand which led her to the well. When Gideon was threshing his wheat, his face pictures forth the great sorrow of bis people, and we hear him saying, "0 my Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is all this be[allen us?" And an angel's voice then reassures him with the promise," Surely I will be with thee." When the ship is driven helplessly through the storm, an angel-voice says to the apostle, "Fear not,, Paul I" Yes; there is a sympathy and a constant k.inrlness in the angelic ministry. .And we are to be ministering spirits too. A part of our nature, constituted as it is to live in others, would be shorn of its blessedness if we could not also be ministers of kindness. Onward, then, my brethren, with these words on your banner. The light which falls on the letters of gold will attract the eyes of others, as you show them what a religious faith can do in renewing the life of the worid. Faith in God our Saviour will change the countenance, strengthen even the physical nerves, and make us better companions and brighter friends. Like a talisman, these words will keep you from the dread which has darkened man's earthly life in every age. You will bear them aloft on your banner, not as rejoicing in a God who loves and cares for you alone; but you will say to the world, "Let our people be your people, and our God your God." Yield your hearts to him. "Look unto me, aud be ye saved, all the ends of the earth." You will fear no evil, for the Lord is with you! There will be manna in the wilderness; the Jordan itself will be dry; the warder will throw wide the open gates at your home-going, and the Saviour will give you the welcome rest. These words are those of the faithful and true. " My kindness shall not depart from thee."-W. M. S, Ver. 2.-Enlargement and consolidation. "Spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes." Applying these words to the Church of Christ in its attitude of holy expectation, and its sacred duty under all circumstances, but particularly in the time of growth, we learn of it- I. THAT IT SHOULD CONSTANTLY BE ANTIOIP.o.'ITNG ENLAR0EME1'"T. The challenge comes from its Lord, " Spare not, lengthen thy cords; " i.e. take the attitude and the action of those who are looking for increase, for the incoming of those who are outside. The Church of Christ is well warranted in doing this; for it has: 1. .Ample scope in a vast unredeemed world beyond its borders; souls that are capable of brotherhood, of sonahip, of heirship. 2. All the materials it wants for successful enterprise, in authority to work and win, in truth perfectly fitted to the deepest wants of the human bee.rt, in the potency of Christian love and zeal. 8, Divine promise that its labour shall not be in vain. IL THAT IT SHOULD CONTINUALLY BE ENGAGED IN OONSOLIDATION. As a multitude of armed men do not make an army, so a number of people with Christian words on their lips and Christian ordinances in their practice do not make a Christian Church after Christ's ideal. The accession of numbers is not everything; it may prove to be IBA.UH-II y THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET ISAIAH. [ea. Liv. l-17.
Vl"ry little; before now, in certain cases, it has proved to be "less than nothing and vanity." The Church must "strengthen its stakes" as well as "lengthen its cords." It must not spare its strength in providing for permanence and stability as well ns increasE1. It must aim at, and must pray and labour for: I. The intelligent acceptance of the truth of Christ in its integrity. 2. Spirituality in worship. 8. Consistency or conduct and consequent illustration of a large part of Christ's will in its daily life. 4. Order and discipline in its regular action.-C.