JESUS SOUGHT.

"Fear not ye; for I know that ye seek Jesus which was crucified."Matt. xxviii. 5.

THE two Marys came early in the morning to the sepulchre in which Jesus was laid. No sooner had they come, than there was a great earthquake, and a mighty angel, in dazzling glory, descended from heaven. His appearance made the Roman guards tremble, and fall down as dead men. The women also were filled with alarm, and in order to dissipate their terror, the angel said unto them, "Fear not ye; for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified." Think of the person who was crucified, the seeking of that person, and in seeking Him there is no reason to fear.

The person "Jesus, who was crucified." It was Jesus, the innocent Saviour, the suitable Saviour, the mighty Saviour, and the accessible Saviour. He " was crucified." What was the history of this crucifixion? The wicked Jews, determined to reject Him as the true Messiah, falsely accused Him before Pilate, the Roman governor. That judge was convinced of His innocence, but, yielding to the clamour of the Jews, in order to please them, he delivered Him up to be crucified. "And when they were come to the place

which is called Calvary, there they crucified Him." Yonder is a little hill just outside the walls of Jerusalem. It is situated in the midst of a garden, and skirted by a public road, which leads to and from the great city. On its summit the eye catches three crosses, on which are suspended three sufferers, to die a lingering and ignominious death. On the centre cross hangs Jesus of Nazareth, the centre of ignominy to wicked Jews, but the centre of interest to a perishing world. Thus Jesus was crucified. What is its mystery? In this crucifixion we see the claims of divine justice satisfied, and a new way opened to heaven by the blood of Jesus. We see Satan vanquished, and a foundation laid for our salvation. We see a great atonement made, on the ground of which we are invited to Christ, for pardon and heaven. Though Jesus was crucified, He was an object of interest after His death, hence, the Marys were early at the sepulchre seeking Jesus.

The seeking of Jesus. The women had greatly loved Jesus, and desired to honour Him after His death; hence they had prepared spices for His dead body, and came early with the spices seeking Jesus. Where should we seek Jesus? We should seek Him in His word, we should seek Him in His ordinances, and we should seek Him at a throne of grace. In one, or other, or all of these places, we are sure to find Him, and find

life. How should we seek Him? We should seek Him deeply feeling our need of Him; we should seek Him earnestly, and we should seek Him perseveringly. Thus sought He will be found. When should we seek Him? We should seek Him early in the morning, we should seek Him without delay, and we should seek Him especially in early life. He is the treasure hid in the field, and shall we not search till we find? He is the pearl of great price, and shall we not part with our sins and lay hold on Him? "Those that seek Me early shall find Me."

In seeking Him there is no reason to fear"Fear not ye." We need not fear angels, "Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?" We need not fear God. He is a kind Father in Christ Jesus, reconciling the world to Himself. We need not fear men. He who could prostrate in a moment the brave Roman soldiers, can restrain wicked men, and prevent them from injuring us, or, if they should be permitted to injure us, He will strengthen, and support, and reward us. We need not fear devils. They thought their triumph was at hand, when they stirred up the Jews to crucify Jesus, but they were mistaken. We need not fear

death. Its deadly sting is gone, and who would fear a shadow?

Thirty-First Sabbath—Morning.

SECRET PRAYER.

"When thou prayest, enter into thy closet; and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly."-Matt. vi. 6.

SECRET prayer is the key that opens heaven. It knocks at the heart of God, and His heart flies open. It gives us a power which overcomes all obstacles, and conquers all enemies. Let us attend to the place-the duty-and the reward.

The place. This is the closet with the door shut, or some other retired spot, where no eye sees but the eye of God. Our Lord's reasons for requiring closet prayer are obvious In a place

of retirement there can be no ostentation-no exhibition of gifts-and no desire to be heard or seen of men. Others have nothing to do with the lifting up of my soul to God, and, therefore, they are excluded that I may be alone with God, and plead with Him. A place of retirement prevents distraction. The mind should be occupied with one thing, above all other things. It should wrestle with God, free from restraint, and free from disturbance. The business of life, the transactions of the world, and the matters which belong to others, should be excluded. A place of retirement puts me in a position to open my whole heart to God. I confess sins there, which

cannot be confessed, if any one were present. I thank God for mercies received, of which others have no right to know. And I plead for blessings and enjoyments, which ought to be known only to God and myself. In retirement, I can plead and wrestle with freedom, and earnestness, and perseverance, which I could not well do in the presence of others. Without ostentation, and distraction, and restraint, let me daily open my heart in secret to God.

The duty-"Pray to thy Father." Christ commands it, and His word ought to be law to me. He knows where and how the battle can be best fought, and the victory most easily won. He knows my weakness and helplessness, and He directs where I can get strength and courage. If I would be a prevailing Israel, I must first be a wrestling Jacob. I must claim God as my Father and address myself to Him. A child can breathe freely into a father's ear, what he could not reveal to any one else. So, I have sins to confess and blessings to ask from my Father in heaven, which concern no one but myself. He looketh on my heart, more than on my speech, and therefore, I can freely open my heart to Him. In prayer I confess my sins-I supplicate mercy and pardon-I intercede for blessings on others-and I give thanks for blessings enjoyed; and I do all this, remembering that God "seeth in secret." Reader, God sees whether you pray or not. He