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the value of Christ, how happy is your state when compared to the man of learning who is a stranger to Christ: you find in Christ a friend that loveth at all times, a brother born for adversity; whilst the other has no source of comfort in affliction, no inheritance beyond the grave. Ye servants of the Most High, seek for an increasing knowledge of Christ; all your fruitfulness and comfort depend upon Christ; without him you are and can do nothing. The more knowledge of Christ, the more stedfastness in religion; the more love to the divine commands, the more ardent desires after heaven. O may the eternal Spirit lead you to richer contemplations of Christ, that you may say with the church, "His mouth is most sweet, yea, he is altogether lovely: this is my beloved, and this is my friend." CLERICUS.

Mr. Editor,

(For the Spiritual Magazine.)

OBITUARY.

IF the following account of Jehovah's distinguishing love, as exemplified in the experience and death of an aged sister in Christ, should be thought suitable for the Saints' Treasury, its insertion will afford the church of God another proof of the sovereignty and allsufficiency of divine grace, and greatly oblige, Your's, &c.

Margate, Dec. 11, 1826.

A SON OF JESSE.

On Friday evening, Nov. 3, Mrs. Sarah Franklin, of this town, fell asleep in Jesus, at the advanced age of 79, after giving a scriptural evidence of regeneration, and an honorable profession of the gospel more than sixty years. It pleased God at a very early period of her life, to impress her mind with ideas of the importance of divine things, which often restrained her from the sins of youth previous to conversion. At the age of fifteen she professed to have been more effectually wrought upon by the Holy Spirit, under the ministry of his honoured servant, the late Jonathan Purchase, (through whose instrumentality the gospel was first established among the dissenters from the church of England in this town) of whom she often spake with great affection, as God's messenger of light and life to her soul. The exact period of her bondage, under the condemning sentence of the law, is not known; but at the set time to favour her, the Lord graciously spoke peace and liberty by a personal application of Isaiah xliii. 25. "I, even I am he, that blotteth out thy transgressions for my name sake, and will not remember thy sins." This (said she) was one of the most happy seasons in my life, when the Lord not only pardoned my sins, but discovered my union to his person from Hosea ii. 19. and Isa. liv. 5. and thus blest with a knowledge of my interest in Christ, my Maker, Redeemer, and Husband, my rejoicing in his love

was great, and comforts increased, with more enlarged apprehensions of the preciousness of Christ.

After these heavenly manifestations, like Abraham, and all the worthies of Zion, she experienced the most painful exercises by temptations from satan, poverty and affliction in the family, and the depravity of her heart, which often shewed its pollution by a hasty and repining temper. From her spiritual knowledge and experience of God's goodness, she was instrumental in comforting her husband, who was then walking in bondage to the law and fear of death, which continued near twenty years, but who is now an established believer in the faith and fellowship of Christ. But as my acquaintance with our departed sister was only of a few months, I shall confine my remarks to some of those things which came under my own observation.

At my first interview, I was fully satisfied with her views of gospel truth, and while speaking of the Lord's dealings such a union of spirit commenced between us, as will, I trust, be perpetuated in glory. Her general remarks upon her conversion to God, and her confidence in him under many difficulties, fully evinced a deep sense of her own helplessness, and the sovereignty of his grace. She possessed very scriptural ideas on the articles of our faith: such as the doctrine of the divine trinity, the election of the church in Christ, the everlasting love and covenant of God, the fall of Adam and total depravity of his posterity, the union of the two natures in Emmanuel, his mediation, obedience, suffering, death, resurrection, and intercession; the blessedness of the saint's union to his person, and interest in his salvation. And on all occasions, she took great delight in bearing her decided testimony for the necessity of the unaided operations of the Holy Spirit, in the renewing, enlightening, and comforting all that truly believe in Jesus; and from more than sixty years experience of the depravity of her heart, the devices of satan, and the complicated trials of life, she proved the preciousness of the promises, the faithfulness of God, the benefits of prayer, the power of the gospel, and the certainty of perseverance to glory through faith in the Lord Lord Jesus Christ. These were the truths which supported her through life, and enabled her to triumph in death.

And to shew the pure tendency of these doctrines in her life, she was blest with much tenderness of conscience, and concern for the Lord's honor, through whose grace she was kept so many years walking in his fear, and the comfort of the Holy Ghost. Her prayer to the last was for divine succour, lest through continued sufferings, and the power of temptation, she should dishonor the Lord by her unbelief and want of submission to his holy will. Very frequently with self-loathing have I heard her say, "Oh! what a grief is my desperately wicked heart; its hardness and uncleanness astonish me more and more! and I now feel, after my long profession of faith in Christ, that I am the chief of sinners, and unless salvation was wholly of grace, I must eternally despair!" Her infirmities of body

and age prevented her from attending the Lord's house, which caused her often to say, "Oh! my sad and barren sabbaths; when shall I leave this tabernacle in which I groan, being burthened."

The last sermon she heard was upon Sol. Song ii. 16. " My beloved is mine, and I am his;" the truth of which she said I have often proved, and it rejoices my heart to hear such precious truths in Margate before I go hence. When asked of her frame of mind, her common reply was, I am waiting for my better inheritance; I will not say the Lord's summons because death has nothing alarming to me; but I am waiting till my blessed Lord shall come and receive me to himself. Oh! that I may depart without once calling in question my Lord's faithfulness! After praying and conversing with her, she would break out in holy gratitude, saying, how precious and refreshing are these seasons to my soul-I, that am the Lord's poor prisoner at home; yet, a prisoner of hope. During her protracted affliction she seldom possessed much rapture of soul, but a steady assurance of God's faithfulness, and her union to Christ; accompanied with the Holy Spirit's witness to her relationship, supported and finally carried her through many floods of tribulation.

As the last conflict drew near, such was her bodily weakness that the conversation of her most familiar friends became a burden; except on some occasions, when from her delight in spiritual subjects, she afforded the most lively comment on 2 Cor. iv. 16. "Though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day." And in her was seen the full vigour of a spiritual mind, amidst the utter decay of nature. On the day of her departure, a friend said, "you are going home,

To bathe your weary soul,
In seas of heavenly rest.”

To which she replied, "O yes!

And not a wave of trouble roll
Across my peaceful breast."

In the former part of the day on which she died, her head was much confused, but the Lord in mercy relieved her; and during the last two hours, the sweetest composure was possessed; and being informed that I was waiting to converse with her, she stretched forth her feeble hand, saying, with a peculiar firmness, " Come in thou blessed of the Lord, for wherefore standest thou without?" and considering her end very near, I could only say, "There remaineth a rest for the people of God, and we that believe do now enter into rest;" to which she heartily replied," I know it!” “ I know it !”

During the last hour I perceived every symptom of a speedy dissolution, when with difficulty she said, "go to prayer ;" and imprest with the idea that she was then in the swellings of Jordan, and contending with the last enemy, I felt an indescribable solemnity of mind in praying for her release from suffering, and her triumph over death. Shortly after, she closed her eyes in peace, and her ransomed

favoured servants of the Most High, we freely communicate our own soul took its flight, " to Jesus the crown of her hope!" with whom she has fully realized all that is expressed in the following lines of the late Joseph Swaine :

"Come in, thou blessed, sit by me,
With my own life I ransom'd thee,

Come, taste my perfect favour;
Come in, thou happy Spirit, come,
Thou now shalt dwell with me at home;
Ye blissful mansions, make her room,
For she must stay for ever."

Now let all who love our Lord Jesus Christ, and under whose notice this narrative may fall, unite in ascribing honour, glory, and salvation to him who, of his own love and distinguishing grace, did thus make our departed sister a monument of mercy, and an everlasting witness of the faith once delivered to the saints. And like her, may he that writes, and those who read her dying testimony, be found accepted in the beloved, to the praise of the glory of electing, redeeming, and regenerating grace.

P. S. On Lord's day evening, Nov. 12, at her own request, her funeral sermon was preached at Ebenezer Chapel, from Isa. xliii. 25, and the service was concluded with the following hymn :

Another saint is gone,

To join the church above;

To dwell with Jesus on his throne,
And feast upon his love.

Her mortal race was run,

Her glorious change was come ;
Her heavenly Father's will was done,
And then he took her home!
The armour's laid aside,

The warfare's closed in peace;

In Jesus' likeness satisfied,

Her joys can never cease.

Like her may we be found,

As sinners sav'd by grace;
And with immortal glory crown'd,
Behold the Saviour's face.
She's only gone before,

Where we through grace shall rest;
The storm of life will soon be o'er,
And heaven shall be possess'd.
There all the saints shall meet,

And palms of vict❜ry bear;

Nor can their triumphs be complete,
Till we, with Christ appear!

FRAGMENT.

If you are crucified to the world, the world will crucify you; you must part with all that is good and great. When a man comes

to Christ, though he was the wisest man living before, yet he is then thought the greatest fool: though he was a man that bore a very good name amongst his neighbours, and was looked upon as blameless in his life and conduct, yet, when he is given to see that all his works are nothing worth, and enabled to cast them behind him as dung and dross, and would not give a straw for the best of them,-the worst word in their mouths is then too good for him.

ORIGINAL ESSAYS.

XXV.

ON RICHES.

IN our Essay on Poverty, pp. 282-5, after describing the character of the spiritually poor, we just glanced at the large provision" in heavenly things" treasured up in Christ, expressly for the supply of those who know they least deserve, and who often conceive they are the identical persons to whom they do not belong! And we must be pardoned by our readers for thus repeatedly directing their attention to a branch of spiritual science so simple to the taught of Godso fruitful of information to those whose soul's interests we labour to promote. We might pause to remind such as have advanced beyond the rudiments of divine knowledge, that we have inducements sufficiently strong to justify the procedure; but we apprehend there are not many who require the statement of them. One observation only shall be added before entering on the present topic.

It is not many years since we ourselves travelled the same dreary journey as our feeble brethren, in darkness and distress of mind for want of the light of the Lord's countenance upon us. Like Israel of old, and multitudes of the Lord's Israel now, we were conducted to and fro, hither and thither, knowing not which way to take, and supposing with afflicted Asaph, that our God had forgotten to be gracious; and in the midst of the most trying exercises often concluded, that we were given up to the just reward of our aggravated rebellions against God. A peculiar trait in past experience--which we record to the honour of a faithful gospel ministry, and for the instruction of those who are similarly circumstanced-was, that throughout the period of which we speak, our judgment was clear in the apprehension of divine truth, though faith could not yet appropriate the privileges of the church as her own.

But the Lord's people do not generally appreciate-and never as they ought-the unspeakable advantages of being well informed in the external knowledge of divine truth. We are not led now

to mention the deplorable effects wrought on those whose understandings assent to the truth, while the heart remains in its natural obduracy; but to speak for such as are found in the way of ordinances under a gospel profession, to whom the Lord the Spirit has revealed the internal displays of his grace, and applied the fulness and all-sufficiency of Christ for the salvation of the soul. To these

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