occasions. A man of a sober turn of mind may, therefore, under a profession of religion, procure the applause of his fellow-creatures, and be reckoned a very good Christian, merely because he so lives in society, and because he professes, in words, to love and serve God, while yet he may be in reality a stranger to apostolic charity. Not only reputation, but profit is connected with decency of deportment, and with moral rectitude: and professions of the love and fear of God, who is not seen, may pass for charity, or love to God, while the grand Scriptural evidence of that love is overlooked and neglected. He, therefore, who alone knows the heart of man thoroughly, has put the proof of love to him on a course of self-denial in obeying commands, which requires a greater sacrifice than either verbal professions of love to God, or sobriety of manners, in external abstinence from what he has prohibited. Accordingly, we find that the Scriptures put the proof of Christians love to God, whom they have not seen, on their love to their brethren, whom they daily see, and have with them.-'A 'new commandment I give unto 'you,' said the Lord to his disciples, when speaking of laying down his precious life for them, That ye love one another, as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.'-How then is this love to be shown? By verbal professions of regard only? By no means. My little children,' said John, let us not love in word, 'neither in tongue, but in work, and in truth .'-What is the measure of this love, or to what extent is it enjoined ?— Even as I have loved • Jo. xiii. 34, 35. you,' said the Lord—a measure to which no man can attain. Hence, said Paul, after he had closed his description of charity, 'Follow after charity'; well knowing, that, whatever progress any Christian may make, the exhortation, follow after charity' will always come to him big with meaning and propriety. Knowing that the deceit and wickedness of the heart of man, which lead him to infer his love to God from a decency of external deportment in society, would also lead him to rest contented with a supposition that he loves his brethren, because he agrees with them in sound doctrine, and perhaps sparingly ministers to the needy, out of his superabundance, while he yet secretly makes provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof, the Lord directs his people to the unequivocal and irrefragable proof of his love, and requires from them an evidence of their love somewhat similar to that shown by him. Hereby,' said his apostle, 'perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him § ? ' There is no such thing as following Jesus without self-denial, and taking up the cross; nor is there any posssibility of serving him without cost any reserve for the gratification of a favourite lust, is incompatible with charity; and when one finds his mind grudging the ministration or service which his brother's needs require, he has reason to conclude that he loves not God in heart, whatever may be his professions. The activity of charity, or love, § 1 Jo. ii. 16, 17. 1 Jo. iii. 18. depends on, and keeps pace with This inimitable passage would be obscured by any commentary— With a proper view of the love and grace of God, and a just sense of a man's own baseness and wretchedness, accompanied with the glorious hope of the gospel, no heart can be untouched with charity; no sacrifice of thankfulness and gratitude will be esteemed too costly, no piece of obedience will be deemed too hard, no trial will be reckoned too severe, in the most just and most reasonable service of him, 'who came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many!' But let any such man's notions of himself be changed, (and who is he that is exempted from such changes?) and his ideas of the love and grace of God will be proportionally contracted; his love will, by the same proportion, become cool and languid, every act of obedience will become grevious, every piece of self-denial will be deemed intolerable, and the trials from which he shrunk not before, will be reckoned utterly insurmountable. In these circumstances Christians inevitably behoved to make shipwreck of the faith and a good conscience, but for him whose grace is sufficient for them, and whose strength is perfected in weakness. No two of the human species are more dissimilar to each other than one man is to himself, at different times, and in different circumstances. He whose heart is most sensibly affected with charity to-day, may be the most lukewarm and indifferent to-morrow. Hence is apparent the propriety of the exhortation, 'Let him who thinks he stands, take heed lest he fall.' Companions or brethren in any particular cause or adventure, which distinguishes them from the rest of Luke vii. 41, &c. mankind, naturally conceive a reciprocal partiality for each other. Charity is distinguished from every partiality of that sort, by having the truth as the sole object of her complacence. She delights in no man but for the truth's sake.-No congeniality of dispositions, no distinction of parties, no excellence of endowments or qualifications, no brilliancy of talents admired in the world, influences her esteem or regard. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: If a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would be utterly contemned.'* The faith of Christ, which makes all in whom it dwells like minded with God, is the inseparable companion of charity. This faith, working by charity, obliterates every cause of dissention and disagreement; and as it reconciles sinners of all sorts unto God, so it likewise reconciles them to one another-It unites men of the most discordant turns and propensities. -Under its influence, the wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock,' Those whom it found 'living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another,' it joins perfectly together in the same mind and in the same judgment,-It makes them all of one heart and of one soul.' The adage so strikingly verified in the world, many men, many minds,' has no place among genuine christians. Their common faith working by charity speaks to them in the beautiful language of the Psalm, 'Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard, that went down to the skirts of his garments: As the dew of Hermon, that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there JEHOVAH Commanded the blessinglife for evermore.' † It is a common saying, that it is impossible to make any number of men cordially unanimous, especially in religious matters. But to apply this to christianity is in effect denying her existence on earth. For thus did the Lord pray to his Father, for his disciples in all ages, without any exception, That they all may be one, as thou Father art in me, and I in thee; that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me,' To suppose that this prayer of the Lord was not heard, and granted, is at once to deny the christian faith; and to say that the unanimity prayed for cannot take place among men, in any age, or in any possible circumstances, is to give up with the religion of Jesus. It must, however, be admitted, that this unity is impossible with men. This is indeed implied in the words of the Lord. For he considers it as so striking an evidence of the immediate agency of his Father, that it would bring home conviction even to the world, that God had sent him. The oneness of the disciples of Jesus is therefore a standing miracle, visible in all ages, wheresoever any church belonging to him is to be found. And hence it follows, that, if we cannot perceive this, we have no reason to suppose that we now see any genuine church of Christ. But, it is said, how can these things be?-Answered, with God all things are possible-If any man be in Christ, he is a new 'creation,' to all intents and purposes. He learns from the cross a set of principles altogether dissimilar to those he had imbibed before: And these produce such a correspondent dissimilarity in judging and acting, that the man will be, by those who formerly knew him best, reckoned little better than out of his mind. The dissentions and animosities common to human kind, and which must, in the present state, occur from time to time, even among christians themselves, (though among them they cannot be suffered to continue,) are the effects of their lusts which war in their members. These lusts must therefore be destroyed or subdued, ere unity can take place. This can be effected only by the faith, hope, and love of the gospel. The faith of Christ presents to his disciples one common ground of glorying in the sight of God, which is unto all and upon them all, without difference. This puts an end to all efforts, struggles, and researches for righteousness or merit. Boasting is excluded, and envy cannot have place. The hope of the gospel, altogether dissimilar to every other hope, is equally common to all the disciples. The foremost of them has nothing to hope peculiar to himself; and he who seems to be last, has no cause to envy the foremost. There is abundance of room for both. The exceeding great and precious promises of God in finitely surpass the utmost stretch of all their imaginations; and the possession or attainment of one, or of thousands, no way endangers or obstructs the enjoyment of the rest. Charity, or the love of the gospel, being the offspring of the love of God, is, like him, devoid of partiality and respect of persons. All who hold the truth are the objects of her delight-She delights in them, because they appear to be objects of the love of God; because they are the purchase of his precious blood; because they are children of one and the same family; because they are members of his body; and, in a word, because the honour and joy of one of them is, and must be the honour and joy of them all. Now, as there is, among the mea of the world, nothing similar to the faith, hope, and love of the gospel, so it is not to be wondered at, that they cannot conceive the possibility of that oneness of mind which is produced by these gifts of Heaven. And as nothing short of omnipotence and infinite wisdom can preserve the unity of a church of Christ, so it is as little to be wondered at, that the world should treat the idea of any such thing as altogether chimerical. This may be easily accounted for; because, as no man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of a man who is in him, so no man knoweth the things of God, save the Spirit of God.' (To be continued.) THE HISTORY OF THE PAPACY. Third period or period of Maturity. AFTER this base submission, the legate went to tell the king of France that John was now an obedient son of the church, and there fore his dominions were not to be molested. But although Philip could easily understand the Pope's power to give away kingdoms, he could not understand his power to take them again; so he determined, in spite of the Pope, to carry on his preparations for the invasion of England. The interdict was continued for thirteen months longer, to see how John would behave. At last it was taken off on the 29th of June, 1214, after having been on for six years, three months and fourteen days. During the same period that the Pope carried on this struggle with the king of England, he was waging another warfare with a very different sort of enemy. In the south of France, as we have already stated, there had arisen in the twelfth century, several individuals who protested strongly against the errors of the church of Rome. Peter de Bruys, Henry of Toulouse, and Waldo of Lyons, and each of them laboured in this way, and their labours were not without success; so that by the end of the century, the whole district of country in which they had lived was noted as a land of heretics,—the bible was read and the priesthood were despised. It is not to be supposed that the bulk of the people in that quarter were true spiritual worshippers, or that the views generally prevailing were scriptural. Perhaps it might be more just to consider it to be something like England in the present day, a land of religious liberty, where no one was called in question for their belief, and where those who were persecuted every where else, might find a shelter. Hence no doubt there were many in that region equally opposed to Popery and christianity. It is at the same time abundantly manifest that it contained a numerous population, who understood the spiritual nature of Christ's kingdom, and kept the commandments of Jesus. There the practice of war was carried on less than elsewhere, and the arts of peace much more. The country flourished under the hand of industry, and literature was assiduously cultivated. France at this time could scarcely be considered a kingdom; it was rather a multitude of independent principalities and republics, yielding a nominal submission to the king. The cities of the south, in particular, had scarcely any connection with the rest of France, or the French monarch, or even with each other. Still less were they connected with the Pope. for in some of them it is affirmed that mass had not been said for thirty years. Pope Innocent, whose eyes scanned the whole of Europe, quickly took notice of this abode of the enemies of Rome, and in the first year of his pontificate, sent legates to stir up the zeal of the clergy against the heretics. The consequence was, that during that and the few following years, a considerable number of them were persecuted to the death. But it was soon discovered that the country generally was so thoroughly antipapal, that there was no likelihood of purging it in the usual way. So in the year 1207, a more summary mode of proceeding was commenced. The local authorities were found to be too lenient, and therefore foreign assistance was called in to perform the work. The Pope wrote to the king, and to all the barons and counts in France, that they should assist in exterminating the heretics, because |