minds, all reformation and pretence to amendment, is but a dead and superficial thing; a mere garment of hypocrisy, to hide us from ourselves and oth

ers.

Nothing can truly awaken a sinner, but a true sense of the deep possession and power that sin has in him. When he sees, that sin begins with his being, that it rises up in the essences of his nature, and lives in the first forms of his life; and that he lies thus chained and barred up in the very jaws of death and hell, as unable to alter his own state as to create another creature: when, with this knowledge, he sees that the Free Grace of GoD has provided him a remedy equal to his distress; that he has given him the holy blood and life of JESUS CHRIST, the TRUE SON of God, to enter as deep into his soul as sin has entered, to change the first forms and essences of his life, and bring forth in them a NEW BIRTH OF A DIVINE NaTURE, that is to be an immortal image of THE HOLY TRINITY, everlastingly safe, enriched, and blessed, in the bosom of FATHER, SON, and HOLY GHOST; when a man once truly knows and feels these two truths, there seems to be no more that you need do for him. You can tell him of no humility, or penitence, or selfabasement, but what is less than his own heart suggests to him: humility can only be feigned or false, before this conviction: he can now no more take any degree of good to himself, than assume any share in the creation of angels; and all pride or self-esteem of any kind, seems to him to contain as great a lie in it, as if he was to say, that he helped to create himself. You need not tell him, that he must turn unto God with "all his strength, all his heart, all his soul, and all his spirit;" for all that he can offer unto God seems

to him already less than the least of his mercies towards him. He has so seen the exceeding love of GOD, in the manner and degree of his REDEMPTION, that it would be the greatest pain to him, to do any thing but upon a motive of DIVINE LOVE: as his soul has found GOD to be All Love; so it has but one de sire, and that is, to be itself All Love of GOD.

This is the conviction and conversion that necessarily arises from a right understanding of these truths: the soul is thereby wholly consecrated to God; and can like, or love, or do nothing but what it can, some way or other, turn into a service of love towards him ; but where these truths are not known, or not acknowledged, there it is not to be wondered at, if religion has no root, that is able to bring forth its proper fruits. And if the generality of Christians are a number of dead, superficial consenters to the history of Scripture doctrines, as unwilling to have the spirit, as to part with the form of their religion, loath to hear of any kind of self-denial, fond of worldly ease, indulgence and riches, unwilling to be called to the perfection of the Gospel, professing and practising religion merely as the fashion and custom of the place they are in requires; if some rest in outward forms, others, in a certain orthodoxy of opinions; if some expect to be saved by the goodness of the sect they are of, others by a certain changé of their outward behaviour; if some content themselves with a lukewarm spirit, and others depend upon their own works; these are delusions that must happen to all who do not know, in some good degree, the true nature of their own fallen soul, and what kind of regeneration alone can save them.

D

But all these errors, delusions, and false rests, are cut up by the root, as soon as a man knows the true reason and necessity of his wanting so GREAT a SAVIOUR. For he that knows the essences of his soul to be so many essences of sin, which form sin as they form his life; entirely incapable of producing any good, till a birth from God has arisen in them; can neither place his redemption where it is not, nor seek it coolly and negligently where it is.

For knowing that it is the hell within his own nature, that only wants to be destroyed, he is intent only upon bringing destruction upon that; and this secures him from false religion.

And knowing that this inward hell cannot be destroyed, unless God becomes his REDEEMER, or REGENERATOR, in the essences of his soul; this makes him believe all, expect all, and hope all, from his Saviour JESUS CHRIST alone.

And knowing, that all this redemption, or salvation, is to be brought about in the inmost ground and depth of his heart; this makes him always apply to GOD, as the GoD of his heart; and, therefore, what he offers to GOD, is his own heart; and this keeps him always spiritually alive, wholly employed and intent upon the true work of religion, the fitting and preparing his heart for all the operations of God's HOLY SPIRIT upon it. And so he is a TRUE INWARD CHRISTIAN, who, as our blessed LORD speaks, has "The kingdom of God within him," where the state and habit of his heart continually, thankfully "WORSHIPS THE FATHER IN SPIRIT AND IN TRUTH.”

The INGENIOUS and PIOUS AUTHOR of THE AMARANTH, a COLLECTION of RELIGIOUS POEMS, printed in 1767, gives the following AccoUNT of THOMAS à KEMPIS

ALL that I have been able to fearn in Germa

ny, upon good authority, concerning THOMAS ȧ KEMPIs, is as follows. He was born at Kempis, or Kempen, a small walled town in the dutchy of Cleves, and diocese of Cologn. His family name was Hamerlein, which signifies in the German language "a little hammer." We find also that his parents were named John and Gertrude Hamerlein. He lived chiefly in the monastery of Mount St. Agnes; where his effigy, together with a prospect of the monastery, was engraven on a plate of copper that lies over his body. The said monastery is now called Bergh-Clooster, or, as we might say in English, Hill-Cloyster: many strangers in their travels visit it.

"KEMPIS was certainly one of the best and greatest men since the primitive ages. His book OF THE IMITATION OF CHRIST has seen near forty editions in the original Latin, and above sixty translations have been made from it into modern languages.

"Our author died August 8th, 1471, aged ninetytwo years. He had no manifest infirmities of old age, and retained his eye-sight perfect to the last.

"In the engraving on copper above mentioned, and lying over his grave, is represented a person re

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spectfully presenting to him a label, on which is written a verse to this effect:

O! WHERE IS PEACE? FOR THOU ITS PATHS HAST TROD."

"To which KEMPIS returns another label, inscribed as follows:

"In POVERTY, RETIREMENT, AND WITH GOD."

"He was a canon ruler of Augustin's, and sub-prior of Mount St. Agnes' monastery. He composed his treatise OF THE IMITATION OF CHRIST, in the sixtyfirst year of his age, as appears from a note of his own writing in the library of his convent."