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are deliberately set at nought, and every violation of them not only increases the guilt, but tends to prostrate the moral powers of the sinner. The voice of God which resounded as thunder in the ears of the transgressor when commencing his course of gross wickedness, soon ceases to appal him. It, by degrees, loses its majesty, and terror. He sins without compunction, reflects upon his transgressions without remorse. This is the consequence of indulgence in sin, of indulgence in any sin. The observations just made, will apply not only to the notorious offender,-to the Sabbath breaker, the profane swearer, to those who live in habits of intemperance, or of dishonesty, but will be pertinent when made with reference to those who live in the indulgence of any sin. All sin hardens the heart and blinds the mind-leads man from one degree of guilt to another, and prepares him to walk the rounds of iniquity with alacrity and with cheerfulness, undisturbed by any corroding reflections, by any monitions of the voice of conscience, which is the voice of God.

A worldly minded man for example, will when commencing his active life, occasionally, if not frequently, meditate upon the guilt which he is incurring, by refusing God the love and service which are his most just due, business, however, soon occupies his attention, engages his affections, and he serves the god of this world with assiduity and zeal. The concerns of his soul once thought of with solemnity, are now seldom adverted to, they now occupy less, and now again less of the attention, until at length the aged sinner, without a thought of God, of Heaven, or of Eternity, is busied only in contriving the ways and means of increas ing and securing his substance, in pulling down his barns, and in building greater. So effectually has he quenched the Spirit.

4. The Spirit is resisted by directly attempting to stifle his influences. Vol. 3.-No. X.

65

Sinners are, often, brought to a consideration of their spiritual condition. They know and feel that they are guilty before God. Comparing their conduct with the requirements of his holy law, they see that in all things they have come short, that in many they have most grievously offended, and that their only hope and their only safety consists in making their peace with God. With this knowledge, instead of walking in the path of safety and of peace, to which God has directed them, instead of exercising "repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ," they desire and attempt to rid themselves of serious thought, and feeling.

Carefully avoiding whatever may be calculated to prolong, or increase their solicitude, they seek for mental quiet. In the bustle of business, they attempt to drown the voice of that monitor which proclaims, "There is no peace to the wicked."-Any book but the bible, any house but that of God, where they believe or fear his word will be faithfully preached, any company, but that which is religious, any employment, but that which is holy, is chosen, searched for, and cherished This murder of the soul is ac complished with a cruelty which baffles description, and a perseverance the most desperate. In the company of the vain, the vicious, and the sensual, they continue the courses with whose termination they are acquainted, and hasten on to destruction.

What a spectacle! To see an immortal being, informed of the destiny of the righteous and the wicked, made to feel, and to feel deeply, that he is a sinner, that a way and but one way is open for his escape from ruin, go on in the road to hell, cannot but excite astonishment and horror. To see him, instead of kneeling before his Maker in humble adoration, dancing to the sound of the viol, and compose his features for the smile of pleasure, while his conscience loudly reproaches him for his sins, and in

spires his soul with terror, is indeed a spectacle without a parallel. Who beholding or knowing of it, can re frain from adopting the language of inspiration, and saying, "The heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead." It cannot be thought singular, that such conduct will effectually quench the Spirit in his breast, and that relieved from conviction he will soon sin with an high hand, and seal his own damnation. }

5. The Spirit may be quenched by the commission of the unpardonable sin.

There is a sin which has no remission; no, neither in this world, nor in the world which is to come. "All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men; but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.”

The circumstances under which this portion of scripture, and which is the language of the Saviour, was spoken, were the following: There had been brought unto Christ one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb; and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw. But when the Pharisees heard, they said, "This fellow doth not cast out Devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the Devils." It was this declaration of the Pharisees, which drew observations from our Saviour, among which was the passage we have noticed. The sin of the Pharisees, was probably the sin against the Holy Ghost, and it appears to have consisted in attributing the operations of the Holy Spirit to Satanic influence, and this when there was sufficient evidence to the contrary.

From the facts that this declaration respecting the unpardonable sin, was made when a miracle had been wrought, and that the days of miracles are now past, some have concluded that the unpardonable can no longer be committed. Upon this momentous question who can decide? The subject amazes and chills us.

Permit me however to point out a sin in some respects similar to that of the Pharisees; a sin which if not unpardonable, must surely be eminently calculated to quench the Spirit.

In these latter days, the manifestations of the Spirit with which we are favoured, may be considered as consisting in revivals of religion. At times, God is pleased to bow the hearts of multitudes, as the heart of one man, to turn many sinners from the error of their ways, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just. Many at such times are offended, and wish as did the Pharisees of olden time, to decry what they ought to ponder, and admire. They attribute these revivals to any thing but their real cause,-to any excitement, but that of the Holy Spirit. They speak of the power of sympathy, of the arts of designing men, by whose devices it is pretended that these revivals are conjured up, or of hypocrisy, and say that what is pretended, is not felt. If there be a sin against the Holy Ghost, is there not some reason to believe that this may be that sin?

We will briefly, but yet distinctly. trace the resemblances between these two offences,-that of the Pharisees, and that of these modern sinners. There are in both cases operations of the Holy Spirit. The same Divine Agent which wrought in the maniac, brings sinners to a knowledge of the truth, and transforms them into the image of the Saviour. In both cases there was sufficient evidence that what was done, was wrought by the mighty power of God. It was a miracle that speech and sight were restored to him that had been dumb, and blind. How distinct is it from a miracle, that hardened sinners are brought to cry for mercy, that the tear of penitence is made to trickle down the cheek of the veteran in wickedness, that the haunts of vice become houses of prayer, and that the ways of Zion rejoice in beholding multitudes flock to her solemn feasts, where of late the multitude walked in the way of their heart, and in the sight of their eyes?

In both cases, the influences of the Spirit are attributed to the evil influ

ence.

In the case of the Pharisees this was directly done. "This fellow doth not cast out Devils, but by Beelzebub, the prince of the Devils." Is it not, however, to attribute a revival of religion to evils, or Satanic influence, when it is declared to be produced by the arts of bad men, or to be the result of an hypocrisy on the part of the pretended subjects of it, equally detestable?

If it is doubted whether ridicule of revivals of religion, knowing them to be such, be indeed of so black a dye, as to throw the author of it, without the pale of mercy; still we may rest assured that it is a crime of the first magnitude, that there is fearful reason to believe that the author of it will not participate in those influences which he denies and despises-will not become possessed of that vital piety, which he declares does not really exist. We may conclude that he takes the most effectual method of quenching the Spirit, and are almost authorized to say unto him, "behold thou despiser and wonder, and perish, for a work is wrought in thy day, which thou wilt not believe, though a man declare it unto you."

Thus have we attended to some of the methods by which the strivings of the Spirit may be resisted; permit me in conclusion to warn you against them.

Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. By the influences of the Holy Spirit, must you be made meet for heaven; if destitute of them, you will have your portion with all those who know not God, and who obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Quench not, then, the Spirit. An adoption of those methods which have been pointed out as calculated to check the strivings of the Spirit is to be avoided with the utmost caution. Adopt them, and you must expect to be given up to your own hearts lusts,-to be permitted to commit iniquity with greediness, and self-security, until in

iquity prove your ruin. The day of Divine vengeance will assuredly come. 66 My Spirit," said God before the deluge, "shall not always strive with man." The multitudes of the Old World, who would not hearken to the voice of reason, of friendly council, or of divine monition, were by the waters of the flood involved in one common ruin. "Woe to him that striveth with his Maker! Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the earth."

When we are informed of a man deserted by the world,-passed by with cold neglect, and permitted to spend his days without the usual comforts of social life, we pity him.-When informed further, that his intimate friends, those with whom he had been accustomed to take sweet counsel, and upon whom he has conferred unnumbered benefits, have abandoned his society, and given him over to solitude and sorrow, we mourn for his misfortunes. But when amongst those who have deserted his declining interests, we number his relatives, his family, the wife of his bosom, and the children whom he has cherished, when we behold him an outcast, poor, forlorn, and friendless, we wish to sympathize in his distress, and can almost unite in his fervent supplications, that God would in mercy terminate the life which was prolonged only for suffering.

But how light the affliction, how happy the condition of such a sufferer, when compared with the affliction, and the condition of him who is deserted by the Holy Spirit. Here, what mind can conceive, or what language paint, the wretchedness; whatever may be his temporal condition, however rich, however honorable, however his friends may love him, or the crowd chaunt his applause, he is yet wretched, and poor,and miserable, and blind, and naked, and in want of all things,-destined to exist forever, and forever destined to sorrow, and anguish; deprived of happiness and hope; an outcast from the favor of God, and classed with the Devil and

evil spirits. Such a being has no refuge in affliction, no present help in time of trouble. In sickness nothing to support him upon his bed of languishing, in death no rod and staff to comfort, or faith to give the victory,-in the day of Judgment, no surety, no precious Saviour, no deliverer from the pains of hell.

If you would not have this to be your condition, quench not the Spirit,-refuse not the service which God requires of you. "To day, therefore, while it is called to day harden not your hearts. Behold now is the accepted time. Behold! now is the day of salvation."

For the Christian Spectator.
On the character of Melchisedec.

THIS extraordinary personage, who met, and blessed Abraham, as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings, has been the subject of much inquiry. So long ago, as the days of the apostles, the same doubts were entertained respecting the identity of this wonderful person, that now exist; and this probably gave rise to what St. Paul wrote on this subject in his epistle to the Hebrews.

From the elaborate discussion of this subject in the epistle abovementioned we are assured that the feelings of the Jews were peculiarly interested in it; and that in the opinion of the apostle, it was with them a weighty subject. On the same ground, we may judge that he considered it to be highly importan. that they should have correct notions on this subject; for had not this been the case, he would not have dwelt on it so long as he did.

We are assured also, that the things which the apostle was about to say, would be extremely disagreeable to his Jewish brethren: for he no sooner mentions the name of Melchisedec, than he adds: “ of whom I have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing;" that is unwilling to hear as Christ says of them, (Matt. xiii. 15,) "for this peoples' heart is waxed

gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed," &c. The apostle said his discourse on this subject was hard to be uttered, because he knew them to be exceedingly averse to those truths, which related to Christ. He knew that in treating this subject he should attack their violent prejudices against the truth concerning Melchisedec, and he told them beforehand what he expected

We are assured by Josephus, that it was the received opinion of the Jews that Melchisedec was but a mere man-a king, who reigned in Jerusalem, and officiated as a high priest there in the days of Abraham. Of this belief they availed themselves to oppose every idea of a divine priesthood. They were sensible that the kingly authority of the Messiah was spoken of by the Psalmist, as being of the same order as that of Melchisedec; and if they could reduce the latter to the dominion and priesthood of a mere man, the former must be reduced to the same grade. On this account the Jews so obstinately preserved silence, when our Savionr asked them why the Psalmist called the son of David his Lord. They knew that if they acknowledged the son of David to be a divine person, they must acknowledge his divine priesthood, and this would establish the divinity of Melchisedec's priesthood also. Therefore, they could not, or would not answer him, for they were determined to deny the divine priesthood of the Messiah, and to support their objection by pleading that of Melchisedec, which was of the same order as the Messiah's.

We shall endeavor to show that this Melchisedec was a Divine Person.

Before we enquire particularly into the real character of this person, it will be proper to notice a few things respecting the state of the land of Canaan, when Melchisedec met Abraham. This may help us to form some idea of this kingdom and priesthood at Jerusalem.

1. When Abraham entered into this land, (which was only eight years before Melchisedec met him,) the Canaanites were then just beginning to settle in the country. When mention is made of Abraham's going there, it is remarked that "the Canaanite was then in the land." The expression only intimates that they had the pre-occupancy of it; yet they were so few in number, that they were no interruption to him, or his vast droves -to them. He found this inconvenience from his brother Lot, and they were obliged to separate; but no such difficulty arose from the Canaanites. If there had,it would have probably been mentioned; for the same difficulty is repeatedly spoken of in the days of Isaac, about a century afterwards, when the country became more thickly inhabited. In addition to this, when Abraham and Lot separated, Abraham said to Lot, "is not the whole land before thee ?"--intimating that there were no interruptions but himself and his herds.

2. The expedition of Chedorlaomer and his confederates will show us the state of Canaan at that time. This army in their descent on the cities of Sodom, Gomorrah, &c. pas sed and repassed through the whole length of the land of Canaan, from north to south; and yet it does not appear that they found any thing in it worthy of their marauding purposes, till they came quite to the south part of what was afterwards Judah, where they began their depredations upon the Amalekites, and the inhabitants of Mount Seir and Kadesh. These, though much older nations than the Canaanites, (see Num. xxiv. 20th, and Gen. xxxvi. 30 to 40,) were unable to withstand the invaders. If there had been cities built, and kings reigning in the land of Canaan, would this hostile band have passed through the whole length of this country, without any notice of its inhabitants; or would the Canaanites have suffered such an invasion, without the least resistance, except what was made by Abraham and his servants? They must have

passed very nigh Jerusalem, if not directly through it, in their way from the land of Shinar to the country of the Rephaims, and thence to the Amalekites, where they began their hostilities.

3. Abraham with three hundred and eighteen men routed this whole army on their return. This he might have done, if the army had been ever so numerous, the Lord being with him; but when we consider that the spoil of nine kings was brought back by these three hundred and eighteen men, we may conclude this to be the day of small things; so that had there been any considerable settlements in the land of Canaan, this small force might have been easily withstood. Again; had Melchisedec been a reigning king at Jerusalem, at this time, he would certainly have assisted Abraham in his expedition, for Abraham passed directly by Jerusalem in his way from Hebron to Dan, the scene of action. Melchisedec was a friend to Abraham, and the expedition; otherwise, he would not have met him on his return, with bread and wine, and have blessed the most high God for granting him victory over his enemies. These things cannot be accounted for, on the supposition that Melchisedec then flourished as a migh ty prince at Jerusalem. Had this been the case, would he have suffered his country to be invaded, his neighbours to be laid waste, and his friend Abraham to risque his all with a handful of men, without affording him the least assistance in such an hour of distress?

4. It is difficult to account for the conduct of Abraham in other respects, if Melchisedec was a king and highpriest then reigning at Jerusalem. Abraham was distinguished as a religious character, and a lover of good men. He was then a stranger among a wicked, idolatrous people. Such a person as Melchisedec is represented to be, must have been unspeakably dear to him, and their connection exceedingly intimate. Jerusalem must have been Abraham's principal place

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