of the Mother of Harlots, go forth inviting her invasion, and at the same time that they embrace nearly all her erroneous and persecuting tenets, with but a slight alteration assume also her name. In the quietude of their richly furnished studies, and reposing on their silken couches, they have ransacked from forgotten folios dogmas long exploded,-dark sentiments of dark ages, —and investing them with the tinsel of modern verbalism, they venture to propagate follies repugnant to common sense, and which they cannot find a word in the pages of inspiration to establish. Such men should have lived in the ninth instead of the nineteenth century. When ignorance and superstition, beneath the fostering care of Romish cruelty, brooded over the nations, error might scatter her wildest absurdities; but light hath gone into the world, the moral light of more matured civilization,-which will prompt even the natural man to revolt_at the haughty priestcraft and intolerable bigotry of a papistical Puseyism. "There are many devices in the heart of man, but the counsel of the Lord that shall stand." If it be, as some of the wisest and greatest of men have considered scripture plainly to declare it shall be, that the Papacy will once more obtain dominion, and fill up the measure of her iniquity, by becoming yet again drunken with the blood of saints; then it may be, that Puseyism, by breaking down the partition walls which our forefathers erected, and by striving to render by degrees palatable the black draught of Rome's wretched superstitions, is permitted by God to lull the nation and the nation's rulers into a slothful and lamentable security. Very much to be admired, therefore, is the conduct of those who, uniting themselves into a Protestant Association, uplift heart and soul in renewed protests against a system which, falsely though it may be, claiming infallibility, shuts out even from itself, the pretension of being otherwise than it was when the stake, and the rack, and the dungeon, became chariots to convey martyrs to their heaven. As far as our influence may extend, we would urge all around us to strive, in God's strength, to avert from England-Protestant England! the foul mark of the beast from her forehead, the foul mark which we fear too surely hath been already impressed on her hand. Amid all the uncertainties and changes of this time-state, how delightful is it to reflect that God, our own God, sitteth in the heavens, and doeth as he pleaseth among the inhabitants of the earth;" that all vicissitudes are overruled by him to his own glory and the real good of his people; and that the world, with all its complicated machinery, is but the scaffolding for the erection of a spiritual temple which shall eternally celebrate his praise. Dear brethren, in ascending the hill of observation and looking back over the pathway of every year's pilgrimage, we shall not only find abundant cause to bless our God and Father for numberless manifestations of his protecting and preventing grace in behalf of his church and people, but individually, in the survey of our own personal experience, we shall each of us remember many seasons of affliction and danger, when an unseen hand was present to shield and to direct-when in answer to the scarcely uttered prayer of faith, the Almighty sent deliverance, and light, and joy. And could the believer but know, as most assuredly he one day will know, the hidden traps, and snares, and unthought of dangers which the great adversary of souls had prepared, and from which, all-unsolicited, his kind and ever-watchful Lord hath delivered him, he would indeed exclaim with the Psalmist, "Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty, how great are thy mercies, who can tell the number of them?" In a confident reliance on this same Almighty Deliverer, let us, dear brethren, pursue again another year's pathway, looking unto Him to uphold, to guard, and to guide; and ascribing to Him, as is most due, all the praise. THE EDITORS. THE SPIRITUAL MAGAZINE, ZION'S AND CASKET. "For there are Three that bear record in heaven, the FATHER, the WORD, and the HOLY GHOST: and these Three are One."-1 John v. 7. "Earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints."-Jude 3. 'Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience."1 Tim. iii. 6. AN ADDRESS TO THE JANUARY, 1840. LIVING CHURCH OF THE LIVING GOD, At the Opening of the Year 1840. BRETHREN, beloved in the Lord, permit the less than the least of all saints to greet you, as the choice of God the Father, predestinated to the adoption of sons by fixed, irrevocable decree, and made heirs of an eternal inheritance. Yea, permit me to greet you as the redemption of God the Son, standing complete in him as your covenant Head, divine Surety, and Substitute. Permit me also to greet you affectionately as the workmanship of God the Holy Ghost, the regenerated family of the Most High God, distinguished from the world by special grace, and described in the word as "the household of faith." Grace, mercy, and peace be with you, from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ. May I presume to give you a watch-word for the new year, or rather, to recommend that which our glorious Lord has given? Take it then from the 17th of John, THAT THEY ALL MAY BE ONE." Never was there a period in the history of the church when this January, 1840.] 66 prayer of Christ was more important than now; when every description of organized plot against the true church of God is maturing with satanic art and the little flock of Christ, against whom earth and hell are confederating, is divided and subdivided by petty distinctions, so as to make themselves an easy prey to their enemies. Brethren, we are one in essentials : -one body,—one family,—one fold. Our life is the same, it is divine and hid with Christ in God; our faith is the same, it is a grace of the Holy Spirit, fixing upon, and resting in the person, offices, and work of Christ: yea, we are one fraternity of spiritual heaven-born souls, so that what is the interest of one is the interest of us all, and the interest of us all is the interest of Christ our Head. We enter upon this new year in the enjoyment of our sacred public privileges, sitting under our vine and our fig tree unmolested, but you cannot now be ignorant of the fact that the beast (popery) and the dragon (infidelity) are in league with each other to destroy our privileges and to set up antichrist with all the horrors of his reign: nor can you now be blind to the rapid progress which Б these combined conspirators against God and man are making toward their diabolical purpose and end. Look which way we will the clouds gather blackness and threaten the storm of persecution upon the true and living church. In the political world papists and infidels have every thing conceded to them. In the religious world degeneracy from pure gospel truth, and the revival of popish dogmas proclaim the speed with which they are journeying towards Rome; and the division of the religious world between national and nonconformist is widening and increasing in every respect, save one, they are awfully agreed, for the most part, to reject the doctrines of free-grace and set up the idols of universal redemption and free-will, the two main pillars of popery. Nor is the scene less gloomy if we look into the moral world, for there the demon of insubordination stalks forth at noon-day, threatening anarchy and confusion on every hand. Indeed the foundations of the earth are out of course from the court circle to the cottage fire-side; but, our mercy is that the foundation of God standeth sure." What then is the course which the elect family of God ought to pursue under such circumstances? Shall we join with political agitators? God forbid! rather let us suffer patiently. Shall we form allegiance with nominal christians and hypocrites? our affinity with Christ disdains it! Shall we petition infidels and papists? it is hopeless and vain, as was proved in the fatal year 1829. But, brethren beloved, there is one door of hope open to us yet; the throne of grace is accessible, with no popish guards around it to shut out our prayers from the royal ear of Jesus: let us than adopt our new year's motto " That they all may be one," and with one accord surround the throne of God, "giving him no rest till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth." Isa. lxii. 7. Who knows, whether God may not, in answer to prayer, work deliverance for his church in this land as he did for his people when Haman of old had plotted their destruction (see Esther iii), though the diabolical plot of a modern Haman may be as nearly matured as was that of his prototype. Let us, brethren, with one heart and voice cry “ Spare thy people, O Lord, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen (papists) should rule over them; wherefore should they say among the people where is their God. Then will the Lord be jealous for his land and pity his people," Joel ii. 17. I have felt it an imperative duty to call upon the dear people of my charge to unite with me in this sacred exercise, and we commenced a special prayer-meeting on the fifth of November last, to be repeated on the first Tuesday evening in every month, for the deliverance of the church of God in these realms from the popish yoke, for which purpose one hour is set apart after the usual evening lecture; and I rejoice to add, we were favoured with much of the spirit of prayer at both the meetings which have been held. If every God-sent christian pastor, and every spiritual christian church, would, in this sense, adopt our new year's motto and “ALL BE ONE" in supplicating the throne of God on this subject, we might confidently expect the same success, as when Abraham pleaded for Sodom-when Moses held up his hands against Amalek-when Samuel cried unto the Lord against the Philistines—and when Jehoshaphat pleaded with God against Ammon and Moab; for the spirit of prayer would be to me the pledge of the blessing prayed for. 66 not expressly declared that the last perilous times should be ushered in with many running too and fro and knowledge increased, Dan. xii. 4. "Let no man deceive you with vain words," Eph. v. 6. Let no man deceive you by any means," 2 Thess. i. 3. For that day is even now preceded by a general falling away from the truth, and if the decree is already gone forth, and popery must have its last short reign of three years and a half, yet, the consciousness of having resisted, by faith and prayer, this sworn enemy of Christ as long as we could, refusing to wear the mark of the beast; will afford us peace of conscience when called to suffer privation or martyrdom for Christ, which those who have aided the growth of popery will be denied. Finally, my brethren, stand fast in the Lord; contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the saints; proclaim, embrace, and live the doctrines of electing love, divine suretyship, and invincible grace, as the best and firmest bulwarks against popery and infidelity. Love one another with a pure heart fervently -shun formal professors and licentious religionists as you would a pestilence-maintain your high and holy distinction from the world, and pass your watch-word throngh all your ranks, THAT THEY ALL MAY BE ONE!!!" The very God of peace sanctify you wholly, and your whole spirit, and soul, and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ," when he shall deliver up the kingdom to the Father consecrated to his use by the Holy Ghost, and God, even our own God FATHER, SON, and HOLY GHOST-be ALL IN ALL. Peace be with you all, prays your brother in our glorious covenant Head, Camberwell. JOSEPH IRONS. "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."-Rev. ii. 20. "It is the voice of my Beloved that knocketh."-Sol. Song v. 2. We live in a day of much boasted light and reason; in a day when much is said about the spread of the gospel, and the increase of the dear Redeemer's kingdom; but alas! upon reflection we find that we live in a day of rebuke and blasphemy, of coldness and indifference to all the truth as it is in Jesus: a day wherein error abounds, and love to truth is indeed waxed cold. Truth is fallen in our streets, and very few dare to plead her cause: the very few names in Sardis who have not defiled their garments, are represented in a most odious light, as men of dangerous sentiments, enemies to the law, and inimical to holiness; branded with the reproachful epithet of antinomianism, and encouragers of licentiousness. To set these few faithful at nought, to degrade such, and perpetually to misrepresent them to the church and the world, is the work of many of our master Babel-builders. While error is propagated from the pulpit and the press, calculated to poison and destroy immortal souls, and professors love to have it so; the blind leading the blind, and crying Peace, peace,' where God never spoke it, forgetting it is written, "Cursed is he that causeth the blind to wander out of the way:" and surely if he be cursed of God that P. S-Is it practicable for the min- does this, to what a curse must that man be entitled, that gives him his hand to lead him into the ditch, Some of God's own dear people, who are weak in judgment, vainly suppose that there was never such a day of truth as the present; but I am grieved at heart to assert, that perhaps there never were such times for the abounding of error. It is true, that through mercy we are protected at present by our excellent laws, for which we cannot be too thankful to the Lord: but, though the lions of outward persecution are hindered from destroying, or even terrifying the church; yet are we not in greater danger from serpents in the grass, adders in the way, and the viper that appears outwardly beautiful in his pretended holiness, good works, and zeal for the conversion of persons to their own party, but are secret enemies to the leading doctrines of the gospel, haters of truth, and of course of the God of truth: this is evident from their preaching, writings, and the conversation of such mere empty, noisy professors. The infidel is at open war against the Bible, and in his mad rage for reason, most unreasonably opposes the only hope of an immortal soul. Some characters, it is true, have written in defence of the Bible, some of whom are equally as blind as the infidel they have written against: one carnal man opposing another, like two blind men quarrelling about the beauties of the rainbow; but the open infidel is not so much to be dreaded, with his wooden sword of reason, in opposition to the sword of truth, the word of God. There are far more awful enemies to truth under the garb of christian profession. Nor have we much to fear from the dead formalist, who attends his church sometimes on Sunday, and never troubles his head about religion; he considers he has done his duty, is a good neighbour, a honest man, and, as he thinks God is all-merciful, he hopes he stands as good chance of being saved as any body else, although he makes no profession of religion: thus he is quietly and securely slipping into hell. But the errors in the professing church are alarming; the awful disaffection to the sacred doctrine of the adorable Trinity, not merely from the Socinian (who is only a Deist a little garnished), but from those who profess some very high and very precious truths, yet having never been humbled by the grace of God, cannot bow to the most solemn, sacred, and sublime mystery of the Tri-une Godthat there are three sacred, divine persons, or subsistences, in the glorious Godhead. How they stumble and take offence; stumble at the essential and eternal Godhead of the Lord Jesus and of the Holy Spirit. This is the snare laid for many high, bold, presumptuous professors, who are totally destitute of the humbling power of grace upon the heart. There are others who may soar high, and on doctrinal subjects talk well, but who are strangers to the work of God the Holy Ghost upon the soul, who know nothing savingly; yet they think all is peace, because they know the truth in the theory, and their conduct in life is perhaps very decent and moral. Certainly these are two good things, but may we not say to such, thou lackest one thing yet, even the genuine work of the Spirit to break up the fallow ground of the heart, and to bring such feelingly as a poor sinner to Jesus, manifestatively to receive in the conscience the pardon of sin. The doctrines of pardon, justification, adoption, and perseverance, are but of little avail merely floating in the brain, however correctly, without this divine influence. "For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power." But while we thus lament these delusions, have we not equal cause to regret the wretched system of freewill, the walking of arminianism? The system of arminianism is in direct opposition to every precious doc |