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tion of spiritual delusions into Mr. Irving's church; and therefore he gives that doctrine a place every where, often without the least foundation. He states, for instance, of the prayer-meeting, which has continued to be held every morning uninterruptedly for more than two years in Mr. Irving's church; "This prayermeeting was first instituted when the General Assembly of Scotland was expected to sit in judgment upon Mr. Irving's writings, particularly that on the Human Nature of our blessed Lord" (p. 12). It is not true that the prayer-meeting was instituted on this account; it was called together to pray for John Campbell, and began on the day when he was expected to appear before the General Assembly, and has been continued in consequence of the spiritual refreshment which was therein experienced by the flock.

The complete absurdity of Mr. Baxter's erroneous notions, that the flesh which Christ assumed was different from the flesh of the brethren, appears from the slightest consideration of the doctrine of the Trinity, or the indwelling of the Holy Ghost. It is a fundamental doctrine with Mr. Baxter and the other opponents of the truth, that our flesh is incurably corrupt, and that it is derogatory to the character of Christ to suppose he could take so vile a thing into personal union with himself. But the indwelling of the Holy Ghost brings every child of God into union as close as this with the Third Person of the blessed Trinity; and if the union contended for by us would degrade God the Son, the union conceded by our opponents would degrade God the Holy Ghost, whose Godhead is precisely the same with that of the Father, and that of the Son: they all concede that the bodies of the regenerate are temples of God.

Notwithstanding all its mistakes and all its errors, we consider this publication of Mr. Baxter as a great benefit to the church; and, as far as our observation goes, we should say, that where the faith of one has been staggered by it the faith of ten has been strengthened by it. A supernatural work is clearly proved to be going on, and large portions of the utterances are given with sufficient accuracy to enable any one to judge of their general tendency, and to prove that the supernatural work was holy in its character and tendency. This book is like the armory of a slaughtered foe, whence the children of God may furnish themselves with weapons; it is like the sword of the prostrate champion of the Philistines, of which David said, "There is none like it :" wield it against the Philistines, ye who have the faith of David.

One passage, by way of example, we transcribe, both from its agreement with the scriptural notices of the gift of tongues, and from the weak and flimsy manner in which Mr. Baxter endeavours to get rid of it, "A few days before the prophecy of my

call to the apostolic office, whilst sitting at home, a mighty power came upon me, but for a considerable time no impulse to utterance: presently a sentence in French was vividly set before my mind, and, under an impulse to utterance, was spoken. Then, in a little time, sentences in Latin were in like manner uttered, and, with short intervals, sentences in many other languages, judging from the sound, and the different exercise of the enunciating organs. My wife, who was with me, declared some of them to be Italian and Spanish: the first she can read and translate; the second she knows but little of. In this case, she was not able to interpret nor retain the words as they were uttered. All the time of these utterances, I was greatly tried in mind. After the first sentence, an impulse to utterance continued on me, and most painfully I restrained it; my conviction being, that until something was set before me to utter, I ought not to yield my tongue to utterance; yet I was troubled by the doubt. What could the impulse mean, if I were not to yield to it? Under the trial I did yield my tongue for a few moments, but the utterance that broke from me seemed so discordant, that I concluded the impulse, without words given, was a temptation; and I restrained it, except as words were given me, and then I yielded. Sometimes single words were given me, and sometimes sentences, though I could neither recognise the words nor sentences as any language I knew, except those which were French or Latin."..." When I went to London after this, I questioned those who spoke in the tongues, whether they had the words and sentences given, or yielded their tongues to the impulse of utterance, without having them. They answered almost entirely the latter, though sometimes also the former."...

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My persuasion concerning the unknown tongue, as it is called (in which I myself was very little exercised), is, that it is no language whatever, but a mere collection of words and sentences; and in the lengthened discourses is, much of it, a jargon of sounds; though I can conceive, when the power is very great, that it will assume much of the form of a connected oration."

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It must be obvious to every one, that not only the "discordant utterance" which broke from Mr. Baxter, but also the Italian and Spanish, were to him unknown tongues; and he surely does not mean to say that these sentences were no language;" nor has he any other ground for asserting the discordant utterance to be a jargon of sounds, than the mere postulate of its being unknown, because unknown to him.

"One day, in the Scotch Church, when I was meditating on the propriety of yielding my tongue, and was in prayer to God for teaching on it, an utterance broke from Miss E. C., ' Yield your tongues to Jesus;' and going on exhorting to an entire resignation of ourselves to the Spirit of Jesus speaking and

dwelling in us. The instances of such obvious discernment of thoughts are so numerous as to take away the possibility of their being accidental coincidences. In the case of one individual, when praying in silence in her own room, in three or four distinct instances, answers were given, in the power, by a gifted person sitting in the adjoining room. And in almost all the persons with whom I have conversed, who were brought into a belief of the power, instances of obvious discernment of their thoughts, or references to their particular state of mind, have been so striking, as to conduce to their recognition of the power. This is a very mysterious dispensation; but as a spirit of divination, when any put themselves unfaithfully under the influence of the power, it certainly is able, and does make manifest the thoughts of their hearts, imitating the manner in which we may suppose the Spirit of the prophets in the Corinthian church laid open the thoughts of the unbeliever, as referred to by the Apostle." (pp. 133, 135.)

Truly mysterious must it be to any one who can suppose such things to be the work of Satan, thus giving to him the attributes of the heart-searching God. For this is no imitating the manner of the Spirit, as Mr. Baxter says, but doing the very same thing; it is not seeming to know thought, but "obvious discernment of thoughts," an attribute beyond any spirit of divination, the province of the Holy Spirit.

Mr. Baxter has said that his joy, and thanksgiving, and nearness to God, appeared to be greatest when he was under that power which he now calls Satanic; which he now endeavours to explain by saying, that Satan so successfully imitated those holy affections, that he was deceived, and took it for what it really was not. This explanation leaves the case just where it was before; for he did not discover any thing evil in the affections themselves, but, persuading himself that he was at that time under the power of the evil one, concludes that these holy affections came therefore from Satan. But as they seemed to him the most pure and holy that he had ever enjoyed, how does he know that his previous and present less vivid experiences of the same kind are not delusions also? If he was deceived in his greatest joy and peace, much more may he be deceived in his ordinary experience. And he himself has stated, in another place, that "The Holy Ghost alone can spread abroad the love of God in our hearts, and fill our souls with thanksgiving and praise." (Pref. xii.)

Another rash and headstrong character, who, like Mr. Baxter, has renounced the work, has declared, that, though he thinks it to be a work of Satan, he was taught thereby one great truth, namely, the love of God! Can this unhappy man really be of sane mind? Love is of God; and every one that loveth is born

of God. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love, dwelleth in God, and God in him. (1 John iv.) Is it possible that any one can maintain this to be a lesson which Satan can teach? If so, such a man proves conclusively that he, in so thinking, is under the delusive power of Satan. In like manner, when Mr. Baxter declares that he was seduced by Satan "as an angel of light;" and maintains, further, the monstrous proposition, that this disguise of the enemy "is an array of truth as well as holiness and love, which Satan is permitted to put on to accomplish and sustain his delusions;" we assert that Mr. Baxter is befooled by Satan, or he could not broach such an absurdity. What! the father of lies teach truth! the foul fiend preach holiness! the enemy of God and man inculcate love! Our soul revolts from such a thought, as the acme of contradiction and folly. Well has it been said, by one of those who have replied to him, "This is a fearful statement; but we may rejoice, and I pray God that Mr. Baxter himself may yet rejoice and give thanks with us, that no such statement is contained or countenanced in the Scriptures. When an evil spirit came upon Saul, were the restlessness, and fear, and cruel envy, which raged in his heart, any proof that the devil appears as an angel of holiness and love? Had the temptation in the garden of Eden, or in the wilderness of Judea, even the semblance of holiness? do the sore pains of Job, or the grievous state of those of whom it is said that Jesus went about healing all that were oppressed of the devil'-or the cruel treachery of Judas, when Satan entered into him-or the deliberate and sustained falsehood of Ananias and Sapphira, when Satan filled their heart to lie unto the Holy Ghost-do these things, or any other manifestation of the power of Satan recorded in the Bible, afford us any warrant to assert that Satan puts on, or can put on, the appearance of an angel of holiness and love?" (Remarks on Mr. B.'s Nar.; Seeley, London; and Davenport, Liverpool.)

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The fruits of the power which came on Mr. Baxter are declared in Scripture to be the fruits of the Spirit: these fruits still continue in multitudes to whom the Spirit in him imparted them; who were strengthened by his strength, and who stumbled not when he fell. May the same Spirit put forth His Almighty power to break the snare into which he has fallen; and may he have grace given to escape for his life from the bondage of Satan into the glorious liberty of the children of God; into the Everlasting Arms, ever ready to receive all who with hearty repentance and true faith turn unto Him!

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CONCLUSION OF THE MORNING WATCH.

Ir is now become necessary to make known wherefore this Journal, which has been so greatly blessed of God in spreading abroad the knowledge of his truth-which we know to be greatly prized by its readers-and which our publisher informs us is more and more extending its circulation-should now be brought to a close. And to one whose eyes are enlightened to discern the signs of the times, and who has been taught to interpret the progress of those momentous events we witness, by the sure word of God, a short explanation will suffice.

Such an one will have learned, from the Spirit of prophecy, which is the testimony of Jesus, that all things are now working together for the open manifestation of the two antagonist principles which have been warring in secret ever since the Fall; for the bringing forth the Seed of the woman, and the seed of the serpent; for the revelation of Christ and of Antichrist. Both principles are now mightily at work in preparing the way of the Man of God's right hand, and the way of the Man of Sin; in the Holy Spirit fitting the followers of Jesus for taking part with him in the kingdom of heaven shortly to be revealed; in the spirit of delusion working in the children of disobedience, darkening their minds and hardening their hearts, to make them willing instruments of the beast that was and is not, and yet is.....and goeth into perdition.

The followers of Christ and the followers of Antichrist are now gathering; each is now requiring, not merely the nominal, but the personal services of their respective adherents: Christ is gathering his children into the true church, to do him service there, and in so doing to be prepared for his coming; Satan is gathering his hosts, under the standard of Liberalism, to become the pioneers of that" wicked one, that man of sin, the son of perdition," the personal Antichrist (2 Thess. ii. 3, 8).

In the progress of this work of gathering and preparing his followers, Christ, for some months past, hath been calling for the personal services of nearly all the regular correspondents of this Journal, one after another; and he hath at length called the Editor to take the place of an elder in His church, and hath claimed all his time and services for the special duties of feeding and overseeing a sixth part of the flock of Christ in London. To this higher calling the Editor now resolves to devote himself wholly, and at the same time brings the Morning Watch to a close, as he will not transfer to any other person such a solemn responsibility.

We might stop with this simple account of the matter, which is all that is absolutely necessary to be stated; but, in the cir

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