The Sheepfold and the Common; Or, Within and Without. Vol. 1 (of 2) — John Shaqi
The Sheepfold and the Common; Or, Within and Without. Vol. 1 (of 2)East, Timothy
Religion
The Sheepfold and the Common; Or, Within and Without. Vol. 1 (of 2)
East, Timothy
Christian life; Christian life -- Pictorial works
Her heart was full, and she gave vent to her enraptured
feeling at the footstool of His throne who had caused grace to
abound where sin had been reigning nigh unto death.
At supper her son appeared very sedate, absorbed in deep thought;
yet there was a serenity in his countenance, and an ease in his
manner, which bespoke the composure of his mind. "I think," said
his mother, "that the discourse we heard this evening placed the
happiness and security of the Christian on such a firm basis, that
we might have concluded the service by singing the beautiful lines
of Toplady:--
'Yes, I to the end shall endure,
As sure as the earnest is given,
More happy, but not more secure,
The glorified spirits in heaven.'"
"You might have sung these words, because you are a Christian, but
how could I have responded to them?"
"I hope, my dear George, you liked the sermon."
"I never heard such a sermon; at least I never heard a sermon which
produced such an effect on my mind. I could have listened till
midnight. I felt what I never felt before."
Yes! that night he felt the power of "changing grace," and the
change produced in his opinions, taste, and habits, soon became
conspicuous; and while it excited the ridicule of some, the
gratitude of others, and the astonishment of all, it was as a
witness raised from the dead to give a fresh testimony to the
divine origin of the truth which had been the means of effecting
it. He who had been a bold blasphemer, now became a man of prayer;
the intoxicating cup was exchanged for the wine of the kingdom;
the Sabbath was hallowed as a day of rest; and the amusements
and dissipations of the world were forsaken for the more refined
enjoyments of devotion.
As soon as his health was re-established, he began to prepare for
his return to his situation in London; and though he recoiled
from the prospect of being compelled to associate with his former
companions, yet he indulged the hope of being able to reclaim them
from the destructive paths of sin. He wrote to his friend, Mr.
Jordan, with whom he lodged when he first went to London, to inform
him of the change which had taken place, and to request permission
to become once more an inmate in his pious family. To this letter he
received a very encouraging reply; and the following week was fixed
on for his departure.
But he could not consent to leave the place where he had passed
from death to life--from the miseries of one world to the sublime
anticipations of another--till he had borne a public testimony of
his gratitude to the Redeemer, by receiving the memorials of his
death. He waited on the faithful minister who had been employed as
the angel of mercy to his soul, to express his desire; and on the
following Sabbath, with his honoured parent, he sat down at the
Lord's table, thus making a public profession of the faith which he
once scornfully rejected.
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