"Mark the beginning of my law,--
Fear ye the LORD with sacred awe :
Mark the fulfilment of the whole,—
Love ye the LORD with all your soul."
We hear; we learn ;-may we obey.
Jesus the Life, the Truth, the Way,
Wisdom and righteousness we see,
Grace and salvation, all in Thee.
THE heathen perish; day by day,
Thousands on thousands pass away:
O Christians, to their rescue fly;
Preach Jesus to them ere they die.
Wealth, labour, talents, freely give,
Yea, life itself, that they may live.
What hath your Saviour done for you?
And what for Him will ye not do?
Thou Spirit of the LORD, go forth;
Call in the South, wake up the North;
Of every clime, from sun to sun,
Gather GOD'S children into one.
"LET there be light :"-thus spake the Word: The Word was GOD;—“and there was light." Still the creative voice is heard:
A day is born from every night;
And every night shall turn to day,
While months, and years, and ages roll;
But we have seen a brighter ray
Dawn on the chaos of the soul.
Nor we alone:-its 'wakening smiles
Have broke the gloom of Nature's sleep;
The Word hath reached the utmost isles,
The Spirit moves on yonder deep.
Already from the dust of death,
Man in his Maker's image stands,-
Already draws immortal breath,
And stretches forth to heaven his hands.
From day to day, before our eyes,
Glows and extends the work begun :
When shall the new creation rise
O'er every land beneath the sun?
When, in the Sabbath of His love,
Shall GOD from all His labours rest,
And bending from the throne above,
Again pronounce His creatures blest?
As sang the morning stars of old,
Shouted the sons of GOD for joy;
His widening reign while we behold,
Let praise and prayer our tongues employ:
Till the redeemed in every clime,
Yea, all that breathe, and move, and live,
To Christ, through every age of time,
The kingdom, power, and glory give.
AT A SERMON FOR AN INFIRMARY.
WHEN, like a stranger on our sphere,
The lowly Jesus wandered here,
Where'er He went affliction fled,
And sickness reared her fainting head.
The eye, that rolled in irksome night,
Beheld His face,-for GOD is light;
The opening ear, the loosened tongue,
His precepts heard, His praises sung.
With bounding steps, the halt and lame
To hail their great Deliverer came;
O'er the cold grave He bowed His head,
And spake the word that raised the dead;
Demoniac madness, dark and wild,
In His inspiring presence smiled;
The storm of horror ceased to roll,
And reason lightened through the soul.
Through paths of loving-kindness led,
Where Jesus triumphed, we will tread;
To all with willing hands dispense
The crumbs of our benevolence.
Hark! the sweet voice of Pity calls
Misfortune to these hallowed walls,
The breaking heart, the wounded breast,
And helpless poverty distressed.
Here the whole family of woe
Shall friends, and home, and comfort know;
The blasted form, and shipwrecked mind
Shall here a tranquil haven find:
And Thou, dread Power, whose sovereign breath
Is health or sickness, life or death,
This favoured mansion deign to bless ;
The cause is Thine,-oh, send success.
AFTER AN UNFAVOURABLE HARVEST.
To GOD, most awful and most high,
Who formed the earth, the sea, the sky,
To Him on whom all worlds depend,
Our humble hearts in sighs ascend.
Will He who hears the ravens' cry,
Reject our prayers and bid us die?
Will He refuse His help to yield,
Who clothes the lilies of the field?
Pale Famine lifts, at His command,
Her withering arm, and blasts the land:
The harvests perish at her breath;
Her train are want, disease, and death.
But when He smiles, the desert blooms,
New life is born among the tombs;
O'er the glad plains abundance teems,
And plenty rolls in bounteous streams.
Father of grace! whom we adore,
Bless Thy large family, the poor:
The poor on Thee alone depend :
Continue Thou the poor man's Friend.
Content to live by toil and pain,
May we eternal riches gain;
Meanwhile by Thy free bounty fed,
Give us this day our daily bread.
"O THOU THAT HEAREST PRAYER!"
THOU, GOD, art a consuming fire,
Yet mortals may find grace,
From life's distractions to retire,
And meet Thee face to face:
Though Holy, Holy, Holy LORD!"
Seraph to Seraph sings,
And angel hosts, with one accord
Worship with veiling wings;
Though earth Thy footstool, heaven Thy throne,
Thy way amidst the sea,
Thy path deep floods, Thy steps unknown,
Thy counsels mystery;
Yet wilt Thou look on him who lies
A suppliant at Thy feet,
And hearken to the feeblest cries
That reach Thy mercy-seat.
Between the Cherubim of old
Thy glory was expressed;
But GOD in Christ we now behold
In flesh made manifest :
Through Him who all our sickness felt,
Who all our sorrows bare,
Through Him in whom Thy fulness dwelt,
We offer up our prayer.
Touched with the feeling of our woes,
Jesus, our High-Priest, stands ;
All our infirmities He knows,
Our souls are in His hands:
He bears them up with strength divine,
When at Thy feet we fall;
LORD, cause Thy face on us to shine;
Hear us ;-on Thee we call.
"THE PREPARATIONS OF THE HEART IN MAN."
LORD, teach us how to pray aright,
With reverence and with fear;
Though dust and ashes in Thy sight
We may, we must draw near:
We perish if we cease from prayer;
Oh, grant us power to pray,
And when to meet Thee we prepare,
LORD, meet us by the way.
Furdened with guilt, convinced of sin,
In weakness, want, and woe,
Fightings without and fears within,
LORD, whither shall we go?
GOD of all grace! we come to Thee,
With broken, contrite hearts;
Give, what Thine eye delights to see,
Truth in the inward parts:
Give deep humility,--the sense
Of godly sorrow give;
A strong, desiring confidence
To see Thy face and live;
Faith in the only sacrifice
That can for sin atone;
To cast our hopes, to fix our eyes,
On Christ--on Christ alone:
Patience to watch, and wait, and weep,
Though mercy long delay;
Courage our fainting souls to keep,
And trust Thee, though Thou slay:
|