strikingly manifested in the case of that | Germany, France, and England from the kingdom of heaven which the Lord Jesus sleep-thetorpidity-of ages of medieval Christ came to establish in the world. darkness, superstition, and death. Yes, it We have traced the growth and progress was as a modern poet has finely said, of the grain of mustard-seed, from the A solitary monk that shook the world. planting of the minute seed itself, to the Such was the seed God sowedproduction of the mighty tree under small, inadequate, almost contemptible whose wide-spread branches the fowl of in man's opinion; but oh, what a glorious the heavens have their habitation. But harvest has it produced! What a harvest other illustrations of this principle, of light, and knowledge, and freedom though none perhaps of equal magnitude even from the world, and what a harvest and importance, are not wanting. Does of precious souls rescued from the God, for example, in the exercise of his deadly delusions of Popery, who have sovereign will and pleasure, determine left to us their children the shelter of to choose, from among all the nations those goodly trees, the Protestant of the earth, one nation to be " a peculiar Churches of Europe, which they planted people unto himself, above all the nations amid many tears, and had too often to that are upon the face of the earth" water with their blood. Here again, (Deut. xiv. 2)? And how does he pro- then, we see the same great principle ceed? Does he choose a people already manifested-here again we may learn in the zenith of their power, and strength, not to despise the day of small things. and glory? Does he select the most populous, the most enlightened, or the most mighty of the nations of the world? Nay, verily; but he calls one solitary man from the midst of his idolatrous kindred, saying to him: "I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed" (Gen. xii. 1-3). He calls Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees into the land of Canaan, giving him "none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on but promising that he would give it to him for a possession, and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child" (Acts vii. 5). Surely if we compare this poor pilgrim and stranger" wandering about in his ignorance and helplessness, not even knowing whither he went;" with the glory of the Jewish nation, his descendants, during the reign of Solomon, we see again all the disparity between the insignificant "seed" sown, and the mighty "tree" produced from it.

Or, to speak of later days; look at the instrumentality which God was pleased to employ in bringing about the glorious Reformation of the sixteenth century. Then again he raised up a man; but what manner of man? Did he in his infinite power and wisdom convert a Pope, or call forth another Cyrus, or put it into the heart of a Constantine to espouse his cause and effect his gracious purposes? Oh, no; but a poor wood-cutter's son-an obscure German monk, and from this feeble hand he launched the thunderbolt which smote the vatican, and whose reverberations awoke

And thus in his providential government of the world, God, in accordance with the inspired declaration of the great Apostle of the Gentiles to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are (1 Cor. i. 27, 28). Nor have we to search far for a good and sufficient reason; it is, the Apostle informs us in the very next verse, "That no flesh should glory in his presence.' But that the world many see, and know, and understand together, that the hand of Jehovah hath done this, and the holy One of Israel hath created it" (Isa. xli. 20).

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Oh, then, beloved, let us not despise the day of small things. God works, we see, by small things; our lives are mainly made up of small things; yea, it is upon small things that all great things themselves depend. The day of small things is the time of sowing; the day of great things is the time of reaping. Great things mighty events and results-are like the tall mountains which, only at great intervals, rise up almost to the skies, and seem to fling their giant shadows across whole ages and generations: but little things-the petty circumstantialities of daily life—are like the grains of sand which compose the mass of the entire globe, and out of which these mountains themselves arise. it has been well said, "is in history:" in the history of the world, in the history of the Church, and in the history

"God,"

of our own lives. And God, it is equally important to remember, is in all history; not in the greatest event of it more than in the smallest not in the history of a nation more than in the history of the humblest of his saints. As the humble daisy of the sod supplies us with as clear an exhibition of the Divine power and wisdom, as the star-gemmed firmament itself; even so in all the turnings and windings of his lowly lot, the Christian can trace the finger of his God as distinctly as in the world-famed career of earth's mightiest potentate or conqueror. God is as truly in the turning of a street as in the revolution of an empire; in a sparrow's fall as in the subversion of a throne. As nothing is great enough to merit his regard, so nothing is small enough to elude his attention. He hears the orphan's sob as distinctly as the archangel's shout, and counts the mourner's tears as exactly as the number of the

stars.

one to hear him, he went through the
whole service, prayers, hymns, and ser-
mon with his one solitary hearer. When
all was over, he hastened down from the
pulpit to speak to his congregation-but
he had departed. Time rolled on; the
circumstance had almost faded from the
mind of the minister, when about twenty
years afterwards, travelling in a different
part, he met with a younger brother in
the ministry whose labours had been
much blessed, and who to his great as-
tonishment greeted him with affection
and delight as his spiritual father in
Christ. 'I do not remember you," said
the minister. "I suppose not," said
the stranger; "but we once spent two
hours together in a house alone in a
storm." "I do not recollect it, sir,"
added the old man ;
pray when was
it ?" "Do you remember preaching,
twenty years ago, in such a place, to a
single person ?" "Yes, yes," said the
old minister, grasping his hand, "I do,
indeed; and if you are the man, I have
often wished to see you." "I am the
man, sir; that sermon saved my soul,
made a minister of me, and yonder is
my church. The converts of that ser-

Let us not, we would say, despise the day of small things in providence. Do we address a minister of Christ? one who has laboured, and had patience, and has not fainted-who has gone forth weeping bearing the precious seed-mon, sir, are all over Ohio!" sowing beside all waters-preaching the Word in season and out of season-but who yet can see little result, little fruit; few seals to his ministry, and little blessing to the Church? Is he ready, like the prophet of old, to say feelingly, if not despairingly, "Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed ?" To him we would say, Brother, despise not the day of small things if there be any souls saved, however few; if there be any fruit produced, however little; if there be any blessing manifested, however small; let it comfort thee. The seed may be small, and yet the harvest plenteous; the beginning may be little, and yet the end glorious; the minister who cannot tell on earth, that he has a single seal, may find, in heaven, that he has many.

It is related of an eminent American minister, that having engaged to preach on one occasion for a friend in the country, and the day proving exceedingly stormy and inclement, he found on his arrival at the little chapel where he was to preach, only one hearer present. For a little while he hesitated whether, under these strange circumstances, he should proceed with the service; but feeling he had a duty to perform from which he was not released, because there was only

Do we address the father or the mother of a numerous family-a. family which they have borne upon their heart before the throne of grace? Has, "Oh, that might live before Thee," been the cry of their soul for months and years; and still is there little ground for hopelittle appearance of blessing-little encouragement to persevere in prayer? Oh, weeping mother-oh, yearning father-is there no hope? no cloud scarce bigger than a man's hand-no glimmer of light giving promise of a coming morning? If there be, however little, despise it not. Still let thy faith, like Elijah's servant, ascend the watch-tower, and "look towards the sea," even seven times; and bye-and-bye the little cloud may dissolve in a gracious rain-the feeble glimmer "shine more and more unto the perfect day." Or do we speak to a believer whose opportunities of glorifying his Lord are few, and the sphere of his influence extremely limited? Is the "cup of cold water all that he has to offer in the name of Christ, and the "two mites" all he can cast into the treasury of his precious Lord? Still let him not despise the day of small things: those feeble efforts may not only obtain the commendation bestowed upon the woman who anointed our Lord in Simon's house (and no

higher praise could be given even to an apostle), "She hath done what she could" (Mark xiv. 8); but be used by God, in his sovereign will, to the promotion of his glory and the edification of his Church. God can make the walls of Jericho fall down before Joshua, and overthrow the hosts of the Midianites by Gideon's little band with lamps and pitchers. He can cause the tears of a little Welsh girl to result in a Bible Society; or answer the prayers of a hidden one in a Reformation; or cause in a thousand ways the most unimportant actions (humanly speaking) to have issues which eternity itself shall not exhaust.

do not "make that heart sad, whom the Lord hath not made sad." "Him that is weak in the faith," the Apostle tells us, we are to "receive, but not to doubtful disputations" (Rom. xiv. 1). Christ is very jealous of his lambs. "Take heed," He says, "that ye despise not one of these little ones (Matt. xviii. 10): He is more tender of his lambs than of all the rest of his flock; He calls the old sheep indeed, and they hear his voice, and follow Him, but He carries the lambs in his arms. He does not despise the day of small things: though faith be only as a grain of mustard-seed, He will water it with his Spirit; though love be only as a spark, He will blow it gently Again; let us not despise the day of to a flame:"A bruised reed shall He small things in grace. Have we to do not break, and smoking flax shall He not with babes in Christ while we ourselves quench, till He send forth judgment unto are young men or fathers? Or do we victory" (Matt. xii. 20). Let us then perceive in some youthful Abijah "some follow the example of the good Shepgood thing towards the Lord God of herd, let us deal gently with the lambs, Israel;" some small measure of faith-remembering the words of Paul, how he some little dawn of spiritual light-some | said, "We that are strong ought to bear glimmering spark of love? Oh, let us the infirmities of the weak, and not to not dare to despise it; let us not dare please ourselves" (Rom. xv. 1). to look down upon it with sour suspicion or contempt; let us be careful that we

Liverpool.

(To be continued).

M. M.

66

A PAGE FOR THE LITTLE ONE.

'MOTHER," said a little girl of seven years old, can you tell me what our minister meant last Sunday, when he said in his text, 'Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live ?'

Well, now what do you think about it ?" asked the mother.

"Why, I suppose he meant we should wash out the house, and put everything as tidy as we possibly can before we die," said the child; "for indeed, mother, if you and I were to die, I'm sure there would be nobody to keep this house clean; father and brothers wouldn't trouble, I know."

So saying, the child wrung out the flannel with which she was washing the floor, and seating herself on a little stool, said,

"But mother, it may mean something else."

"Oh, yes,” replied her mother, "I'm sure and certain it does. I think it means about our heart; that we must wash our heart, and try to be as good as ever we can, and prepare ourselves for the kingdom of heaven."

"And how can we get good?" asked the child. "I should so like, dear mother, to go to heaven when I die."

"Well, then," said her mother, "you must try to do all I tell you; and you must never beat the streets, or go with bad children; you must mind your book, and say the Lord's Prayer very often, and I think, with the help of the Almighty, you will get to heaven."

The child pondered upon these words, and said at last,

Yes; if it depended upon anything | M

JESUS CHRIST, THE SAME YESTERDAY, TO-DAY, AND FOR EVER. 305

"JESUS CHRIST, THE SAME YESTERDAY, TO-DAY, AND FOR EVER."