his assistance, and also we must use all the appointed means of grace. And these

means are :

Constant and earnest prayer to God, through Jesus Christ.

Frequently and attentively reading and hearing the Holy Scriptures.

Religiously observing the Lord's Day, particularly by attending the public service of the Church.

Regularly receiving the Holy Sacrament of Christ's precious body and blood, for which we are to make a due and proper preparation'.

Now we are assured, if we observe these things, as sincere Christians, to the best of our power, that we shall obtain the blessings of pardon, grace, and salvation, and that we shall enjoy peace of mind, the comfort of a good conscience, and the hope of everlasting happiness, through the merits of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour.

Now concerning the means, we are desirous of offering a few observations.

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1 See a little tract on Confirmation, published by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.

These means you will remember are appointed by God himself, and what greater privilege can he vouchsafe to his creatures than that of prayer? By it we can, as it were, converse freely with God; we can confess our sins to him, who will, through the merits of his Son, pardon us. We can unburden our hearts to him, who is both able and willing to relieve us. We can, by prayer, secure the assistance of the Holy Spirit; for God has promised to send him to all those who desire his possession. Prayer indeed is a necessary duty. "Men ought always to pray, and not to faint.' "Is any afflicted among you? Let him pray." "Ask, and ye shall receive-seek, and ye shall find-knock, and it shall be opened unto you." Whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive." The Scriptures throughout show the necessity of prayer; and this duty is incumbent alike upon the young and the old. God will hear the voice of the child with as great delight as that of the aged. Children indeed are the objects of his love, as our Saviour showed, when he took them

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up in his arms and blessed them.

You then who are young in years, let me affectionately exhort never to forget your heavenly Father; he has, and does kindly protect you; from him proceed all mercy and loving-kindness; and you, who receive so constantly his aid, for every moment of your existence, your life, your health, your comforts, all proceed from him, are in duty bound to return him thanks, to pray for the assistance of the Holy Spirit to enable you to avoid the troubles and the sins of the world, so that as you increase in years, you may increase in spiritual strength, and as you approach nearer to the house appointed for all living, you may approach nearer to your reconciled Father in Christ. So that at last you may be in possession of the full benefit of those blessings which Christ has prepared for all those who love him.

Reading the Scriptures is also a necessary duty. From them you will learn the absolutely degraded condition of man. You will read of the primitive purity of Adam; you will read how he lost that divine image that was stamped upon him;

how he entailed misery upon himself and his posterity by sin, but you will also read how the second person in the Trinity reconciled the Father-atoned for sin, ascended to the Father, and sent his holy Spirit to assist us in arriving at that place unto which he has gone. Every thing necessary for your salvation is contained in your Bible. From that sacred book you will learn how to live, and how to die. Search the Scriptures," they testify of God. "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works."

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But there is another important duty that we are desirous especially of pressing upon you, viz., the strict observance of the Lord's day; and this includes your regular attendance at the house of God, and your partaking of the Lord's Supper. After you have been confirmed, you will be admitted to partake spiritually of the body and blood of Christ. And this is a duty D d

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our Saviour expressly commanded his disciples to observe. Do this," said he, “in remembrance of me." This was the last dying command of our Saviour Jesus Christ. He commanded us to receive the Sacrament in remembrance of his death, in remembrance of his atonement. And shall this command be forgotten by you? No, my brethren, receive that holy sacrament to your soul's health. It imparts not only blessings that are temporal, but those especially that are eternal. Think not

that you are too young to approach this holy feast, or that you will live so long in the world as to afford you many opportunities to approach the Lord's table. Those opportunities may never come. Embrace then, therefore, those which are in your own keeping. Lay hold of the time present, for the time cometh, when no man can work.

We have but hastily gone through the necessary duties of the Christian, but we trust that your observance of them will not be the less. They are important to us while we are in this life, and will secure

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