forth spontaneously into a hymn of praise expressive of their feelings. They sung with their whole soul, as birds escaped from prison; it seemed as if they never had known what it was to sing before; and it was with such a deep sense of the presence and goodness of the Saviour, his loving kindness and tender mercy, and their entire dependence upon him, out upon the wide ocean, that nothing could be more suitably melodious. Jesus, at thy command, For thee I fain would all resign, And sail to heaven with thee and thine. Thou art my Pilot wise, While I have such a Lord. I trust thy faithfulness and power, Though rocks and quicksands deep Yet thou wilt safely keep And guide me with thine eye. My anchor, Hope, shall firm abide, And I each boisterous storm outride. By faith I see the land My soul, thy sails expand, And fly to Jesus' breast. O may I reach the heavenly shore, Whene'er becalmed I lie, And storms and winds subside, Lord, to my succor fly, And keep me near thy side. For more the treacherous calm I dread, Than tempests bursting o'er my head. Come, heavenly wind, and blow A prosperous gale of grace, To waft me from below, To heaven my destined place. Then in full sail my port I'll find And leave the world and sin behind. Now when they had finished singing, it chimed eight bells, and the watch was set for the night, and every one on board went with a glad and grateful heart to his duty, and Peter and John resumed, in the quiet of the evening, beneath the stars, the conversation which the ominous sight of the wreck had led them into. CHAPTER IX. MOURNING OVER SIN AND GAINING GRACE AFTER GRACE.- OF HIS OWN JEWELS.-THE SUFFERINGS AND YET THE BLESSINGS OF THE CRUCIBLE. THE DANGER OF SUNKEN ROCKS, AND CONCEALED CURRENTS. My brother, said Peter, did you ever know a truly good man who did not daily mourn over his own sins? I am sure the more there is of such sorrow, the more proof there is of God's work. And sometimes afflictions themselves may be given as a reward of such sorrow for sin, and a means of taking the sin more effectually away. The sparing of the rod would spoil God's children. There is a perfection in reserve for them, in the righteousness of Christ. And we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end.2 The righteousness of Christ is ours now, to stand upon, and be justified and forgiven on the ground of it; and if we hold fast, it will be ours by and by 1 Prov. xiii. 24. 2 Heb. iii. 14. in his perfect likeness. We shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. And meantime even in this world, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, we shall be changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. But that is a great work, and providence and grace are both concerned in it. Sometimes it goes on by fiery trials. But one way or another the work surely goes on, and of Christ's own fulness we all receive, and grace for grace, to make us like our Saviour.5 Well, said John, you say true; and there is no other way to account for it, why God sometimes seems to afflict those the most severely, who appear to be the most earnest in doing his will. I know an experienced and wise old naval Commander, who used to say that the Church in this world is God's workshop, his jewel-shop, where his jewels are apolishing for his kingdom and glory above. They are to be his crown-jewels, adorning the crown of the Redeemer. But while they are here below, in the shop, he has many sharp tools for their filing and cutting, and they lie among these tools, and often have to come under their operation. And those that the King most esteems, and means to make the most resplendent, he hath oftenest his tools upon. That was a beautiful saying, and a true one. 3 1 John iii. 2. 4 2 Cor. iii. 18. 5 John i. 16. Indeed, it is true, answered Peter. Those whom he loves, he rebukes and chastens." And O, to be such a living stone, to be a jewel fit to shine in the Saviour's crown for ever, what would not any man in his senses be willing to give or to undergo for such glory! Why, I think that to get rid of sin, say nothing of the crown, to have God mercifully work upon us to remove our sin, is infinite love, mercy, and glory. And then to think that he has promised to make us perfect, if we will submit to his discipline! Oh what joy there is in that! And then to think that all this is done for the Redeemer, that he who died for us may be glorified and admired in us, when he comes to take possession of his inheritance in the saints; indeed, that raises the joy and the glory infinitely higher, to think that it is Christ's own joy, and Christ's own glory. Yes, said John, it is the love of the Father to the Son, as well as to those who are sons by Adoption, that makes him deal thus with his children. There is a great mystery in affliction, sometimes, to those who do not see by faith, but it is sweetly clear to those who do. For what dear son is there, whom his father chasteneth not? I have known some, who have gone in a tempest all the way, and others who have had fair weather. But the tempest-tossed 6 Rev. iii. 19. 8 |