1 Peter 2:25

REFLECTIONS

Blessed Lord God the Holy Ghost! since by regeneration thou bringest the children into their adoption character in Christ Jesus, give me the daily influences of thy grace, that I may live and act up to the high character of my calling; and laying aside all the old corruptions of the old nature, of malice, and guile, and hypocrisies, and evil speaking, as one new-born in Christ, may all the longings of my soul be after Jesus. Having tasted his graciousness, excite in me a thirst for unceasing enjoyments of him. And however my Lord becomes a stone of stumbling and a rock of offence to the world, may my soul be building upon him, as Jehovah's chief corner stone, elect and precious in Zion; everything that is blessed for faith to rest upon, in life and death, in time and to all eternity, And amidst my weakness and unworthiness, and the slenderness of my faith, give me grace to attend to what thou hast here said as a token of faith; unto you therefore which believe, he is precious. Surely Christ is more precious to me than thousands of gold and silver. And therefore, my God saith, this is faith. Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief.

Precious Jesus! thy people is a chosen generation; God the Father hath chosen them, and made them so. They are from the same source, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people! And will not the same grace which hath so distinguished them, cause them to be distinguished also as lights in the world, among whom they shine in a crooked and perverse generation? That grace must be from thee, for all grace is in thee. Enable them, 0 Lord, to abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul, and to adorn thy doctrine in all things. And while rejoicing in being delivered from sin, and all its tremendous consequences, by thy blood, may they follow, through the sweet influences of Holy Spirit, thy example!

Yes! thou Almighty Shepherd and Bishop of souls, thou hast brought back thy blood-bought sheep to thy fold, and thou wilt keep them thine forever.