name. God says of Christ," Behold, my servant!" He has many servants; a heaven full of them; but none to compare with Him. And the world may say the same, and use the same expression,-"Behold, my servant!" We have no servant like Christ; who had done so much for us; who 66 came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many."

There cannot be much weight in any man's name, if there is no service in his life. If you wish your name to be feltserve. Serve God and man. All great names belong to men who have done great service. But infinitely above all is the name of Christ, because of an infinitely more important service done by Him. Heaven will be the place to see clearly the great service of His life and death, for God and man. "Who made himself of no reputation, humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." "Who by his own blood entered into heaven, having obtained eternal redemption for us." Thus, asking in His name, is to have all the weight of the service He had done on our behalf. These things give weight to the name of Christ; His blameless character; His high position; and the great service of His life and death. They fill His name with an all-powerful influence. And He gives it altogether to back your prayer, to assist you to succeed in your life, and for every blessing you stand in need of, before the throne of grace.

Reader! Think often of the hold which God has given you upon Himself,—the name of His Son. He has given you hold of all His heart and strength. He says, "Take hold of my strength, that you may make peace with me.” How can I do that? By taking hold of Christ's name, and plead it before Him. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, what

soever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you."

Ystradgynlais.

THOS. LEVI.

SUBJECT:-Phases of Piety.

"But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre, and seeth two angels in white sitting, one at the head, the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She said unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him. And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seeketh thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni ; which is to say, Master. Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and to your God. Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these things unto her."-John xx. 11-18.

Analysis of Homily the Fibe Hundred and Eleventh.

We use this strange and touching scene to illustrate piety in three phases;-piety in tears;-piety in raptures ;-piety in action.

graves.

First:

I. HERE WE HAVE PIETY IN TEARS. 66 Mary," that is Mary Magdalene, "stood without at the sepulchre weeping." In these tears of Mary we discover four things. Intense affection. What is it that makes bereavement painful? Love. Had we no love towards the departed we should never drop one tear into their All the anguish at sepulchres streams from love. Mary's great distress therefore on this occasion demonstrated the strength of her affection towards Christ. And truly she had good reason for loving Him. He had wrought wonders of mercy on her soul. In these tears of Mary we discover :-Secondly: Remarkable courage. She "stood without at the sepulchre." The grave has with most a power to excite fear. Few of the bravest men enjoy walking through a grave-yard in the "dark." Explain it how you may, we feel timid amongst the regions

VOL. X.

Y

The tears

of the dead; and perhaps no grave is so terrible to us as the grave of him we love. But in Mary's case there was something more than this natural fear. To stand by the sepulchre of Jesus was really a perilous position. The Roman soldiers had strict charge to watch that grave; and to show love to Him who slept in that tomb was to incur the displeasure of the rulers of the country. Yet Mary stood there in the "dark," alone, weeping. Love is courage. Her affection raised her above the fear of the ghosts of the dead and the drawn swords of the living. of love are not the expressions of weakness, but bols of a force unconquered and unconquerable. tears of Mary we discover:-Thirdly: Great distress. Though she saw "two angels in white sitting, one at the head, the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain ;" and though they spake to her in kind words of celestial love, enquiring the cause of her distress; her anguish remained unabated, and her tears flowed as copiously as Angels "bright and fair," cannot do for us instead

ever.

of Christ. Though—

"For us they watch and duly ward,

the sym

In these

And their bright squadrons round about us plant,
And all for love, and nothing for reward,"

They cannot supply the place of Christ. In these
tears of Mary we
discover :- - Fourthly: Lamentable
ignorance. She was mourning the removal of Him
who was present with her. She actually spoke to Him,
whose loss she was so bewailing, and yet did not
recognise Him. She supposed Him to be "the gardener."
Her ignorance was inexcusable;—it was unbelief. Had she
not been informed that He would rise on the third day?
She ought therefore to have expected to find an empty
grave. She wept, when in fact she ought to have rejoiced.
There was the living Christ with her, but she did not know
it. How often is this the case with us. Poor blind crea-
tures! We often see nothing but a "gardener," where in
reality stands the divinest messenger of God. O, for eyes to see

the divine, even under the humblest forms of life, and to detect blessings even in disguise. How often do we weep when we ought to rejoice. Like Jacob we say, "All these things are against me," whereas in reality, as in his case, they are for us.

II. HERE WE HAVE PIETY IN RAPTURES. "Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou? She supposing him to be the gardener saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him Rabboni; which is to say, Master." Christ does not condemn the "tears." There is no harm in weeping. He himself wept.

"The very law which moulds a tear,
And bids it trickle from its source,

That law preserves the earth a sphere,

And guides the planets in their course."-ROGERS.

Her ex

He only suggests the impropriety of the cause. clamation, "Rabboni!" and the command of Christ not to touch Him, indicate that she had with a bound risen to an extacy of soul. It would seem as if for a moment she was wild with rapture. Two things are suggested by this :-First: The rapidity of our mental changes. This woman passed as in a moment from anguish to ecstacy. To such rapid changes we are ever exposed, at least, while in this world. We can pass with the swiftness of lightning from one pole of experience to another. Though clouds of darkest gloom and most portentous shapes may overspread the heavens of the soul, one thought can sweep them clear away, and make the azure arch blaze with the light of noon. The awful swiftness with which we can pass from mood to mood urges the necessity of implicitly confiding in that God who alone can keep us in "perfect peace." The other thought suggested by the rapture of this woman is-Secondly: The power of

Christ's voice. What effected this change? One word of His; the word "Mary." He pronounced it no doubt with an intonation which she recognised. She knew the voice, it rang with the old notes of love. Neither the mysterious sorrows of Gethsemane, the agonies of the cross, the tortures of death, nor the darkness of the grave, had changed that loving voice. It sounded " Mary," now as ever. Thus by a word Christ can lift the soul into the highest bliss.

"Go to my bre

III. HERE WE HAVE PIETY IN ACTION. thren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and to your God." This she promptly attended to. This command would serve to impress her with three facts :-First: With Christ's merciful identification with His disciples. "My Father and your Father." The souls of the good are one with Him. Blessed thought! Secondly: With the heavenward direction which her sympathies should take. "I ascend," &c. Look upward. "If Christ be risen seek those things that are above." Thirdly: With the right direction of high religious feeling. Do not live in mere sentiment: turn your feelings into action. Action will at once express and temper your emotions. Go and work. Piety in duteous action is piety in its highest and safest state. Sighs of sorrow and shouts of rapture are verily worse than worthless, unless they pass into duteous deeds and consolidate the character. "Tears" should invigorate the moral heart, as rain strengthens the oak.

SUBJECT:-The Things that Make the Bible.

"And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself."Luke xxiv. 27.

Analysis of Homily the Fibe Hundred and Twelfth.

WHERE did Christ prosecute this exposition? In a quiet chamber or magnificent temple? No, on the road to Emmaus; a little village which lay about eight miles to the north-west