EIGHTEENTH WEEK.—TUESDAY. — Morning

BLESSED art Thou, O Lord! Teach us thy statutes. Oh! grant us clearer apprehensions of heavenly things. Open Thou our eyes, that we may see wondrous things out of thy law. We are strangers in the earth; hide not thy commandments from us. We are sinners, and suppliants for mercy. Oh! help us, that we, turning from our iniquities, may now understand thy truth.

Great God! with Thee there is mercy; yea, there is forgiveness with Thee. Thou hast even engaged Thyself, by a gracious covenant, to grant pardon and eternal redemption to all who will take hold of its promises. We see Jesus bearing our sins, in mysterious sufferings on the cross, that He might put away sin from us. We see that without the shedding of his infinitely precious blood, there could be no remission, no peace to the guilty conscience, no access to thy holy presence, here or hereafter. O righteous Father! we tremble at thy word. We mingle awe with faith in coming to thy blood-besprinkled throne. But Thou hast done all things well. All that thy law required, thy love has provided and secured. Unto us a Son is given. For us He freely died, and ever lives to make intercession. And now, O Thou, mighty to save, we take hold of thy saving strength. By thy all-sufficient sacrifice, and by thy priesthood on thy throne, save us to the uttermost, who come unto God by Thee!

We thank Thee, O Father, for safety and rest during the night, and for the light of life and health this morning. Help us, we beseech Thee, to carry the influence of these heavenly things into all the scenes and duties of the day. May we set the Lord, our Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, always before us. May thy hatred to sin stir us up to watch, and pray, and strive in thy Spirit’s might against it. May the blessings of salvation, so free to us, because so dearly purchased for us by thy Son, inspire us with alacrity in his service, and prompt us, whatsoever we do, for our neighbours or for ourselves, to do it unto the Lord. May we adorn the profession of his Cross, by purity, humility, and meekness, by all goodness, and righteousness, and truth. May we ever fervently desire and invoke, as now we do, for all sorts and conditions of men, but especially for our kindred, friends, and countrymen, a saving knowledge of thy grace. And for ourselves and all whom we love and would remember before Thee we pray, O holy and merciful Saviour! that we all may be found of Thee, severally in death, and together in the last great day, in peace, without spot, and blameless, through the blood of the everlasting covenant. Amen.