the flesh, and that it was not necessary for him to be born of the Spirit, what would he say? "I know that in my flesh dwelleth no good thing; I know that I was once carnal, and sold under sin: except a man be born again, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God; for what is born of the flesh is flesh: I know this to be a fact from my own experience, and you cannot make me believe otherwise." This is the answer he would make, and here would be an end to the controversy, because you cannot reason a man out of his own experience. When he appeals to the evidence of his own consciousness, when he tells you of things which he has seen, and heard, and felt, you must admit their reality. If you try to convince such a man that there is no eternal punishment, that it would be unjust to punish sinners throughout eternity, for sins which they committed in time; he will prove to you from the Bible that this is perfectly just and right; he will show you that sin is an infinite evil, and that it consequently deserves an infinite punishment, and that God is just in casting from his presence, for ever, those workers of iniquity who will never cease to do evil. If you undertake to prove to the true believer, that wicked absurdity, that Jesus Christ was a created Savior, he will tell you that he can find no such thing in his Bible; but that, on the contrary, the Bible teaches him that the Word was God, and was so from the beginning; that by him all things were made ; and that when God commanded all the angels of heaven to worship his First-Begotten, he did not mean that they should commit the sin of idolatry, and worship a created object. He will refer you to his experience, and the experience of all truly converted men. They were never saved by a created Savior,they were never rescued from the powers of death and hell by an arm of flesh. Their load of condemnation, guilt, and misery, was never removed from them by a created power. No, it was the eternal Jehovah, the Lord their righteousness, God manifest in the flesh, who performed all this; and He it is who hath sent down his Spirit from on high, to strengthen and support them by

his almighty power. And by the gracious influence of this almighty power, the true believer is constantly sustained. This helpeth his infirmities; this is his strong fortress, in which he repels all the attacks of the enemies of his salvation; this is his shield and buckler, with which he encounters the fiery darts of the wicked one; this is his comforter in all his troubles and afflictions. "His cross is heavy, but he has not far to carry it." He rejoices in the hope of the glory of God; and this hope, like an anchor of the soul, is sure and steadfast. He knows in whom he has believed: his trust is in the Lord, and he will never leave nor forsake him. The Holy Spirit is with him, and God gives him many glorious manifestations of his gracious presence. The purposes of his pilgrimage shall soon be accomplished, when all his earthly trials and sufferings shall end. His heart is already cheered with the prospect of a speedy deliverance. He already anticipates the glory that shall be revealed in him, and enjoys a foretaste of heavenly bliss. Still, it doth not yet appear what he shall be; but he knows that when Jesus Christ shall appear, he shall be like him, and see him as he is, in all the fulness of his joy and the brightness of his glory.

This is experimental religion. And this is the only religion that can save us. Here let us not be deceived. We may have great pretensions to piety, and talk much on the subject of religion, when we know but little about it. We may attend to the outward forms and duties of the Christian profession, and think that this is all the religion that is required: but God thinks otherwise; he never will be satisfied with forms and ceremonies, professions and promises, which have no intrinsic value, and are but too often used as the false coverings of corrupt principles and wicked intentions. He requires something more substantial," My son, give me thy heart." It is the heart, and the whole heart that God requires; and he will accept nothing less. "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart." This is the sacrifice which we

are commanded to render, and this is the only offering which God will accept, because he knows that nothing else can test our sincerity.

The time will come when this test must be applied to us all. We may now view religion as a subject of no great importance; and while we are thus making light of it, satisfy ourselves with vain hopes and groundless expectations: but we shall soon view it in a far different light. When we come to die, many of us shall think and feel on this subject very differently from what we now do. In that trying hour it will not be sufficient for us to say, "I am willing to die, and I hope that God may have mercy on my soul."-We shall then want something which will enable us to say, "I know that my Redeemer liveth; I am not afraid to die; O grave, where is thy victory! O death, where is thy sting!-thanks be to God, who hath given me the victory." And there is only one thing that can enable us to say so-experimental religion: this is the religion that we shall want, when we come to die. If, therefore, we would not be left comfortless in that trying hour, let us now give our hearts to God. If we would die like Christians, let us live like Christians. Let us live truly devoted to God, and we shall know that we are his children. In life, he will cherish and preserve us; in death, he will not forsake us; and when we pass through the dark valley, we shall fear no evil, for his rod and staff shall comfort us. Thus the righteous hath hope in his death." And,

"the dread path once trod,

Heaven lifts its everlasting portals high,
And bids the pure in heart behold their God."

THE BELIEVER'S TRIUMPH.

"THE good man's hope is laid far, far beyond
The sway of tempests, or the furious sweep
Of mortal desolation.—He beholds,
Unapprehensive, the gigantic stride

Of rampant Ruin, or the unstable waves
Of dark Vicissitude.-Even in death,
In that dread hour, when with a giant pang,
Tearing the tender fibres of the heart,
The immortal spirit struggles to be free,
Then, even then, that hope forsakes him not,
For it exists beyond the narrow verge
Of the cold sepulchre. The petty joys

Of fleeting life indignantly it spurn'd,

And rested on the bosom of its God.

This is man's only reasonable hope;

And 'tis a hope which, cherish'd in the breast,
Shall not be disappointed.-Even he,

The Holy One-Almighty-who elanced

The rolling world along its airy way,

Even He will deign to smile upon the good,
And welcome him to those celestial seats,

Where joy and gladness hold their changeless reign"

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CONTRIBUTORS.

UPWARDS of fifty Clergymeu, of five Christian denominations, and belonging to sixteen different States, most of whom are well known to the public as Authors, have furnished, cr encouraged. the Editor to expect from them, Sermons for this Work; among whom are the following:

Rev. Dr. Richards, Professor in the Theological Seminary at Auburn; Rev. Dr. Proudfit, Salem, and Rev. Mr. Beman, Troy; Rev. Drs. Mason, Milnor, Mathews, Spring, Woodbridge, and De Witt, New-York City; Rev. Dr. McDowell, Elizabethtown, N. J.; Rev. Drs. Alexander and Miller, Professors in Princeton Theological Seminary; Rev. Professor McClelland, Rutgers College, New-Jersey: Rev. Drs. Green, Skinner, and Bedell, Philadelphia; Rev. Dr. Taylor, Professor in New-Haven Theological Seminary; Rev. Dr. Fitch, Professor of Divinity, Yale College; Rev. Asahel Nettleton, Killingworth, Con.; Rev. Dr. Wayland, President of Brown University; Rt. Rev. Bp. Griswold, Salem, Ms.; Rev. Dr. Griffin, President of Williams College; Rev. Dr. Humphrey, President of Amherst College, Ms.; Rev. Dr. Beecher, Cincinnati; Rev. Professors Porter, Woods, and Stuart, of Andover Theological Seminary; Rev. Dr. Fisk, President of the Wesleyan University, Middletown, Ct.; Rev. Daniel A. Clark, Bennington, Vt.; Rev. Dr. Bates, President of Middlebury College; Rev. Dr. Matthews, Hanover Theological Seminary, Indiana; Rev. Dr. Rice, Union Theo. Sem., Virg.; Rev. Dr. Tyler and Rev. Dr. Payson, Portland, Me.; Rev. Dr. Lord, President of Dartmouth College; Rev. Dr. Church, Pelham, N. H.; Rev. Dr. Leland, Charleston, S. C.; Rev. Dr. Coffin, President of E. Tennessee College; Rev. Prof. Halsey, Western Theo. Sem. Rev. Drs. Perkins and Hawes, Hartford, Conn. Rev. Dr. Cuyler, Poughkeepsie. N. Y.