the enjoyments, pleasures and happiness that ever entered into your experience before.

The Means of Grace.

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.'

Notice here: If we confess, He forgives. Can anything be more simple than this? If we confess, He forgives; if we HAVE confessed, He HAS forgiven.

Again: "If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship, one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin."

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Again: "For as much as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot." 1 Pet. 1:19.

Again: "In whom (Jesus Christ) we have Redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sin, according to the riches of His grace." Eph. 1:7.

Again: "But to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness."

Here notice the blessed truth, that God justifieth the ungodly, and when they, (the ungodly) believe on Him, that belief is counted unto them for righteousness.

This is an old reliable doctrine. Abraham was saved by faith, just by believing God's word to him, as it is written: "Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.'

In Isaiah 43:24, 25, we read: "Thou hast made me to serve with thy sins, thou hast wearied me with thine iniquities." Think, how true this is! We have made him to serve; we have wearied him, with our sins and iniquities. To comprehend the awful sinfulness of sin, look into Gethsemane! Behold your Lord and Saviour before the court of the high priest, behold Him receive the crown of thorns, and notice the blood ooze from His wounds, and drip and stain that pale face, the loveliest among children of men; behold Him carrying His cross, and dropping from the weight of it on His wounded, bleeding shoulders; behold Him on the cross, hands and feet stretched, and the nails driven into them-the hands that had healed the sick, the feet that had walked from place to place to find sickness and suffering, to comfort and to bless-behold, but listen, as you hear the hammer-strokes that drive the nails into His blessed hands and feet-listen: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Behold Him as He hangs there on the cross, listening to the supplication of the robber and saving Him; behold Him as He cries: "Father, Father, why hast thou forsaken me?"

O, what a sight! The sun puts on a veil, the earth trembles! O, that we had a heart-rending trembling in our hearts, that we may be fully aware of the sinfulness of our sins, and the far-reaching consequences of our sins!

But now, by reason of this service, this suffering, this sacrifice for our sins, and in our behalf giving His life as an atonement for our sins, now by virtue thereof, He makes to the penitent, sorrowing, confessing sinner, this announcement:

"I, EVEN I, AM HE THAT BLOTTETH OUT THINE TRANSGRESSIONS FOR MINE OWN SAKE, and will not reinember thine sins."

And again: “Come, now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow. Though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." Isaiah

1:18.

Justification and Sanctification.

When the sinner confesses his sins and asks forgiveness, his past records before God in heaven and that mind and heart photograph we have called attention to are obliterated and the photograph destroyed in the sight of God and His angels.

This is JUSTIFICATION, the forgiveness of sin.

When the sinner accepts Jesus as his personal Savior, approving the sufficiency and efficacy of the atoning blood of Jesus, as it has been approved in heaven, as a ransom for all his sins, and rests his faith upon the promises, the assurances, the announcement of God, as above set forth, then this same word brings with it the cleansing blood of Christ to the mind, heart and conscience of the sinner, and there, in his mind, heart, and conscience, cleanses that negative we have alluded to, so that the sinner's entire past life is blotted out in his mind, heart and conscience as it is blotted out in heaven.

A Clean Slate.

This, then, gives to the sinner a clean slate to start life anew, profitable life in the sight of God and in obedience to God.

a

This is SANCTIFICATION, the new birth, conversion, consecration.

This is the WEDDING-GARMENT, the justification being the warp, and sanctification the weft in the weaving and tailoring of that garment, the whole then washed in the atoning blood of Christ. Reconciliation is made, peace restored; rejoicing before God and His angels; salvation, happiness, good will among men. PRAISE TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST!

Dear brother, you are now welcome to the wedding feast.

O HAPPY BOND THAT SEALS MY VOW.

"O happy day that fixed my choice

On Thee, my Savior and my God!
Well may this glowing heart rejoice,
And tell its rapture all abroad.

Chor. Happy day, happy day,
When Jesus washed my sins away!
He taught me how to watch and pray,
And live rejoicing ev'ry day;

2. The ten virgins. That heaven is not a privilege or a permission or a favor, that may be granted or refused, is further illustrated by our Savior in the parable of the ten virgins. These were seemingly all alike outwardly. All had started together to meet the bridegroom. All had lamps, well polished and in fine condition, but the bridal suite tarried. Toward midnight all became sleepy, and went to sleep. Just then there was a cry made: "Behold, the bridgegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him."

The wise virgins had something which the foolish lacked, something very essential. For what good is a lamp without oil? The wise virgins had oil in their vessels, trimmed their lamps, and went to meet the bridegroom, but the foolish now, for the first, took the matter seriously and concerned themselves respecting oil.

While the foolish virgins fretted and lost time in finding oil, the bridegroom, and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage and, alas, the door was shut.

Afterward came also the other virgins, saying: "Lord, Lord, open to us."

But he answered and said: "Verily I say unto you: I know you not."

O what disappointment! What self-accusation! What lamentation, what shame, what dispair!

What's the Matter With the Foolish Virgins?

What is the matter with the foolish virgins? This is a very important question about which every honest, upright, sincere Christian is very much concerned. Nothing is more dangerous in

Christian life than self-deceit. Let us earnestly and prayerfully look into this matter, so as to ascertain the actual deficiency of the foolish virgins. Here we notice:

(1) That outwardly no difference is discernible. All WENT OUT to meet the bridegroom; all went in the same direction; all had lamps; and all were talking and singing with their minds occupied with the expectancy of enjoyment at the wedding feast.

(2) The difference: The wise had provided themselves with oil in their vessels, but the foolish had no oil. If they had vessels, their vessels were empty. In this we notice:

(a) Going out-the stepping out of the world in general and niting with the church.

(b) In the confession, signified by the lamps. One could not be distinguished from the other. All the ten virgins confessed Christ as their Savior, and seemingly rejoiced to meet Him.

(c) The foolish virgins relied upon an outward comparison and similarity-the going out and the trimming of the lamps. And in the trimming some of the foolish excelled some of the wise virgins. For that is a peculiarity with outward, superficial Christians, that they are very strict in etiquette and ceremonies.

(d) The oil signifies or typifies dedication and consecration, thus the inner spiritual life, the communion with God, and the filial trust, absolute reliance and sweet refreshing repose in the Lord. And it was this, the most important trait of mind and heart that was wanting. The trouble was with their hearts, their inner life, their communion with God in prayer.

(e) A peculiarity with the foolish virgin is that she has no trouble with her heart. Things passing in the secret chamber of the heart such as sinful thoughts, emotions, impulses, hatred, vanity, insolence, do not disturb her equilibrium.

It is different with the wise virgin. She is mindful of a pure, clean heart. She realizes that God is the searcher of hearts, and she, the wise virgin, is just as much concerned about the purity of her heart, in matters of thoughts, emotions, impulses, which God sees, as she is with her conduct and deportment which her associates see.

The actual difference. The wise virgin is just as solicitous and careful about her heart sins, and needs to confess them and to have her heart cleansed, as she is about her outward life, her doings, to confess and receive forgiveness. And like David she admits and prays: "Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from

secret faults." The foolish virgin, on the other hand, failed because she gave no attention to her heart. She found out, when the Lord approached, that she did not have a clean house worthy of his acceptance.

"BLESSED ARE THE PURE IN HEART, FOR THEY SHALL SEE GOD."

Only the PURE IN HEART can see God.

So here again we have substantiated and proved the THESIS, that heaven is not a privilege, a permission or a favor to be

granted or refused, but that it is a STATE, A CONDITION, A RECTITUDE.

"There is no true strength for any man save in inward rectitude-in right relations between his own soul and God." E. H. Chapin.

3. The third illustration. We have, in the third place, a direct statement, a very heart-searching, illuminous declaration by our Lord, in His remarkable sermon on the mount. He says.

"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

"Many will say to me that day: Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works.

"And then I will profess unto them, I never knew you; depart from me, ye that work iniquity." Matt. 7:21-23.

So it is possible to phophesy in the name of Christ, to cast out devils in the name of Christ, and to do many wonderful works in the name of Christ, and yet to be known to Him in reality as a worker of iniquity.

How touching this is for us my brothers in the Christian ministry.