THE SAVIOR'S INTERCESSION

But now One Offering, never to be renewed,
Has made our peace forever. This now gives
Free access to the throne of Heavenly Grace,
No more base fear and dark disquietude,
He who was slain- the Accepted Victim- lives,
And intercedes before the Father's face.'

"Who then will condemn us? Will Christ Jesus? No, for he is the one who died for us and was raised to life for us and is sitting at the place of highest honor next to God, pleading for us." Romans 8:34

"Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save everyone who comes to God through him. He lives forever to plead with God on their behalf." Hebrews 7:25

'It is by Him that we have our access to God, not only by virtue of His merits, but by His continual act of mediation: it is He, that with the golden censer, at the golden altar before God, offers up the incense of our prayers, consecrated and perfumed by His hand.' -Barrow.

THE SAVIOR IN HIS INTERCESSION.

Now by the throne of God He stands,
Aloft the golden censer bears,
And offers, with high priestly hands,
Pure incense with His people's prayers
Well pleased, the Father eyes the Son,
And says to each request, "It is done.'
-Montgomery.

One of the most pleasing and profitable themes that can be presented for the contemplation of the Christian, is the Savior in His intercessory work for us at the right hand of God. It is calculated to be a perpetual source of joy to the believer amid all the duties, the trials, and the conflicts of His earthly course. But this subject is sometimes too much overlooked by professing Christians, and its value not sufficiently estimated. We dwell repeatedly, and with peculiar satisfaction, on the grand events of the Savior's life; we trace with fixed attention His footsteps from the manger to the cross; we think very often of the last days of His divine pilgrimage; we dwell intently on the scenes of His agony, His trial, His crucifixion, His burial, His resurrection, and His ascension; but we too often lose sight of Him as a Priest on the heavenly throne- as interceding for us within the veil. Now, while our minds are engaged in devout meditation on a suffering Redeemer, we should also view Him with equal interest as reigning and interceding for us in the courts of heaven- as our Advocate with the Father before His throne of righteousness. We should fellow Him from the Mount of His ascension to the unseen world, and behold Him at the right hand of the Father, making intercession for our daily sins.

THE SAVIOR IS A COMPASSIONATE INTERCESSOR. This delightful and endearing characteristic of the Savior as our Intercessor, is expressly asserted in the Scripture. 'Therefore, it was necessary for Jesus to be in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. He then could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people.' 'And because he is human, he is able to deal gently with the people, though they are ignorant and wayward. For he is subject to the same weaknesses they have.' 'This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same temptations we do, yet he did not sin.' Our great High Priest has a perfect knowledge of all our miseries; for He has Himself emptied the cup of human woe. Having experienced all the sinless infirmities of our nature, He knows how to feel for us in those trials which we are called to endure in our passage through life. He was made perfect through suffering. His pathway through earth was strewed with the thorns of affliction. The waves of the greatest sorrow went over Him in Gethsemane and on Calvary. All this He endured that He might have a sincere feeling of our infirmities, and finish the work of our salvation. And, as no one can comprehend the greatness of His sufferings, so none can fathom the depth of His compassion. He has lost none of His immense goodness and pity for us since He has left this world of sorrow. Though exalted at the right hand of the Majesty in the heavens, His nature and affections are still the same. Yes, He is still a most compassionate Savior- a most sympathizing High Priest.

'Exalted high at God's right hand,
And Lord of all below,
Through Him is pardoning love dispensed,
And boundless blessings flow.
And still for erring guilty man
A brother's pity flows;
And still His bleeding Heart is touched
With memory of our woes.'

Let us rejoice that we have a compassionate High Priest in the heavens; and never fail to apply to Him for an interest in His merciful intercession. This cheering truth should encourage us to exercise strong faith in Him, as our Almighty Savior. In all the trials and temptations of life, let us repair to Him with the plea of the Psalmist, 'Lord, have mercy on me. See how I suffer at the hands of those who hate me. Snatch me back from the jaws of death.' Let us cleave more closely to our compassionate Intercessor, when most severely tossed upon the ocean of life, and when ready to sink beneath the foaming waves. Then we will taste and see that the Lord is, indeed, merciful and gracious- then will we experience the sweetness of His promises. 'For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.' 'Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the Lord has comforted His people, and will have mercy upon His afflicted.'

THE SAVIOR'S INTERCESSION IS EFFICACIOUS. Its efficacy is founded on the atonement which was made on Calvary. When Christ laid the foundation of our eternal redemption, by the pouring out of His blood upon the cross, and His rising again from the dead, He entered with His own blood into the Holy Place, even into heaven, as the great High Priest of our profession, to appear in the presence of God for us. The Father now hears Him always in our behalf, for He has rendered a perfect obedience to all the Divine requirements. He has magnified the law, and made it honorable. He has finished the work which the Father gave Him to accomplish for a fallen world; and, in consequence of this, He can say, respecting His intercession for us: 'Father, I thank You that You have heard me.' 'I know that You hear me always.'

If our Savior was heard on earth in the supplications He offered with strong crying and tears, while encompassed with the sinless infirmities of our nature, will He not now be continually beard, while exalted far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and crowned with the ineffable glories of heaven? Will not every plea be rendered most efficacious by the greatness and dignity of His Person- by His relation to God- by the love which the Father has for Him as His only begotten Son, and the brightness of His glory- by the righteous plea which he ever makes- by His being set forth by the Father Himself as the propitiation for our sins- by His having performed all the commands of the Father respecting the redemption of a fallen world- by His holy life of obedience and sufferings on earth- by His agonies in Gethsemane, and His expiatory sacrifice on Calvary?

From a consideration of the prevalency of His intercession, Christ says to His disciples, 'Whatever you shall ask the Father in my name, He will give you. Hitherto have you asked nothing in my name; ask, and you shall receive, that your joy may be full.' How efficacious is the intercession of our Lord and Savior; and what rich blessings has it obtained for us! It has procured the gift of the Holy Spirit as our guide; sanctifier, and comforter. It has effected the pardon of innumerable transgressions. It has reclaimed the backslider, and sustained many a tempest-tossed and despairing soul. It has furnished the believer with strength in the midst of weakness, and enabled him successfully to repel the attacks of his spiritual foes. It has rendered his services acceptable in the sight of God, and put gladness in his heart. It has opened the gates of heaven to an innumerable multitude of ransomed saints who have already passed from earth; and its infinite efficacy will forever preserve them in that holy and happy abode, where they are now resting with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and singing the songs of salvation, unto God and the Lamb.

THE SAVIOR IS OUR ONLY INTERCESSOR. 'If any main sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.' That we have Jesus as our Advocate with the Father, pleading our cause in heaven, is one of the most precious and cheering truths in the whole Bible.

While in this world, where depravity universally prevails, and where the work of sanctification is incomplete, we are constantly liable to fall into sin, and grieve the Holy Spirit. And how frequently do some of the most eminent saints actually commit sins of an aggravated nature! Hear the language of inspired penmen. 'For there is not a just man upon earth that does good, and sins not.' 'Innumerable evils have compassed me about, my iniquities have taken hold upon me so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head, therefore my heart fails me.' 'O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?' 'We lie down in our shame, and our confusion covers us: for we have sinned against the Lord our God.'

Sometimes the waves of temptation are so mighty, and dash so violently against the Christian, that he is overwhelmed, and ready to give up all for lost. At such a season, while he remembers his sin, how unspeakable is his distress, until he looks again to the proper source of consolation! His soul is overspread with fearful darkness, while conscience condemns; and Satan, his subtle enemy, accuses him before God. Then be is bound in affliction and iron- his soul is melted because of trouble- he remembers God, and is troubled. He is afraid to look up to His Heavenly Father. The thought of God's inflexible justice, and the horrors of the second death, fill him with dismay. All is midnight with his soul- a darkness that may be felt. Then he feels like David when most deeply distressed on account of sin: 'a sword is within his bones;' 'tears his food;' while his soul is cast down within him. While the shadow of spiritual desertion thus overspreads his mind, he is ready to complain in the bitterness of his anguish with the tried Psalmist; 'Save me, O God, for the floodwaters are up to my neck. Deeper and deeper I sink into the mire; I can't find a foothold to stand on. I am in deep water, and the floods overwhelm me. I am exhausted from crying for help; my throat is parched and dry. My eyes are swollen with weeping, waiting for my God to help me. 'Pull me out of the mire; don't let me sink any deeper! Rescue me from those who hate me, and pull me from these deep waters. Don't let the floods overwhelm me, or the deep waters swallow me, or the pit of death devour me.' 'You have laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps. Your wrath lies hard upon me, and You have afflicted me with all Your waves.' 'I hear the tumult of the raging seas as your waves and surging tides sweep over me.'

Now, when a Christian has deeply fallen into sin, and is experiencing all that distress of mind consequent upon transgressing God's holy and righteous law, the thought of an interceding Savior, a divine Advocate with God, is the very thing calculated to banish darkness and sorrow, and bring solid peace and joy to his mind. The remembrance of these precious words, brought home to his soul by the Holy Spirit, saves him from despair; 'if any man sins, we have an advocate with the father, Jesus Christ the righteous.' How deliciously does his soul feed upon these words; they are the joy and rejoicing of his heart. Now he is enabled to confess his sins with tears of penitential sorrow, and to look upwards with confidence, remembering that he has an Advocate with the Father in the courts of heaven- that Jesus there stands to plead with God for him- that He is always there to present the memorials of His death before the Father, and to ask Him, that for the sake of the atonement made on Calvary, his sins may be forgiven, the joys of salvation restored, and the loving-kindness of our God continued to him. Now does the sorely afflicted saint feel how precious Christ is as an Advocate with the Father. Now hope returns once more; the Sun of Righteousness shines; and the tempest-tossed pilgrim of Zion again enjoys the rest and peace which Jesus gives, and the smiles of Heaven.

'The trembling sinner now
Can boldly plead with God;
And mercy can bestow
The pardon bought with blood
Your truth, which never fails,
A blessed assurance gives;
For Christ the Lord prevails,
And high in glory lives.
He lives, to intercede;
To send His Spirit down
To help His people's need,
And all His mercies crown.'

THE SAVIOR'S INTERCESSION IS PERPETUAL. He ever lives to intercede for all those that come unto God through Him. 'He ever lives to make intercession for them.' His priesthood is unchangeable. 'But this man, because He lives forever, has an unchangeable priesthood.' Christ is made a Priest after 'the power of an endless life.'

Under the Old Testament dispensation, incense, a 'rich perfume made of sweet spices, was commanded to be offered morning and evening continually. This was called 'a perpetual incense,' and typified the continual intercession of our Redeemer, as well as pointed to the infinite merits of His sacrifice to God- a sacrifice of a sweet-smelling savor. The intercessory work of the Savior will continue without intermission, until all the redeemed are presented before the throne, as the perfection of His mystical body- as 'the fullness of Him that fills all in all.' It will reach into eternity. It will continue through the ceaseless ages of glory. The continuance of the happiness and holiness of the redeemed will then be the great subject of this intercession.

The high priests under the law entered but once a year into the Holy of Holies, but our great High Priest forever sits in the most holy place on high, that He may render His intercession perpetual, and give continual efficacy to His atoning sacrifice. Yes, in the inner courts of heaven He ever appears in the presence of God in our behalf; living to intercede for us- to plead for the pardon of our daily sins- to procure for us strength in the hour of temptation- to answer the accusations of our adversary, the devil- to render our services acceptable in the sight of Heaven- to bless us with ample communications of His grace- and to send us the Holy Spirit, that by His divine and saving influence, spiritual life may be imparted to our souls, our graces quickened, our spirits refreshed, edified, and comforted amid all the tribulations of the world.

How happy they who have a saving interest in the perpetual intercession of our great High Priest! They are the objects of His supreme regard. Their names are engraved upon the palms of His hands- their ways are continually before Him. The Holy Spirit is given to them- the love of Emmanuel pervades their hearts- they rejoice in the Lord always- their souls are feasted with the bounties of divine grace- they eat of the hidden manna, and drink of the living water. Their souls are purified, and their affections sanctified and elevated to the throne of God. They know that their Redeemer ever lives for them in the courts of Paradise. By faith they see Him standing at the altar of incense as the great High Priest, with His golden censer full of incense, to offer it with the prayers of all saints, upon the golden altar which is before the throne.

This inspires there with a lively hope, and enables them to come boldly unto the throne of grace. Like the Psalmist, when God had enlarged his heart, they now run in the way of the divine commandments, favored with many a sweet foretaste of the everlasting pleasures of the redeemed in glory, until they are carried by angels to the celestial realms, where the intercessory prayer of the Savior is fulfilled, 'Father, I desire that those also whom You have given to me, be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory which You have given me.'

Our eternal safety consists in Jesus ever living to intercede for us. While His hands are raised in prayer, we shall prevail over all our foes- our spiritual life will be continued- and we shall at length cast anchor in the peaceful haven of a blissful immortality. 'Because I live, you shall live also.' Let us then entrust our cause to Jesus, our great High Priest, who has passed into the heavens. He will not fail to plead it continually and successfully in the inner courts of the celestial temple. His ever living to intercede for us in the presence of God, shows that His sacrifice for sins has been accepted by the Father- that He has overcome death, the grave, and hell- that as the Prince of Life He holds in His hands the keys of the invisible world, and can open the doors of heaven to all who by faith in His blood are knocking for admission into the regions of light and felicity. Oh, it is a happy thought, that in those bright celestial courts above, Jesus our faithful and merciful High Priest ever lives to sprinkle the blood of His atoning sacrifice upon the mercy-seat, and to cover it with the cloud of incense which arises from His own sacrificial offering unto God, that our sins may be covered, that we may be freed from the curses of the law, and that, through His mediation, our persons and services may be accepted in the sight of the everlasting Father! What sounds more animating in the ears of believers than the declaration, 'He ever lives to make intercession for them?'

Precious truth! Should it not establish us on an immovable foundation? Should it not fill our hearts with joy unspeakable and full of glory? Should it not call forth new songs of praise unto our God? Should it not cause us to dwell daily in sublime and holy meditation on the home of the blessed ones in heaven, where Jesus ever lives, and reigns, and pleads on His priestly throne, and where all is love, and peace, and never-ending bliss? Should it not lead us to exult with the apostle over every foe that would now condemn us in the sight of God? 'Who is he that condemns? It is Christ that died, yes, rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.'

'Tis Jesus died to save,
'Tis Jesus lives to bless;
On high He dwells- the sinner's Friend,
The Lord, our righteousness.
Then, oh, my soul, rejoice,
Extol Your Savior's name;
Make mention of His dying love,
And celebrate His fame.
He claims your heart, your love;
He claims you for His own
Oh, cast yourself in willing bonds
Before His heavenly throne.'

IN HEAVEN THE SAVIOR INTERCEDES FOR US BY PRESENTING THE MEMORIALS OF HIS SACRIFICE BEFORE THE THRONE. The manner of His intercession by presenting His sacrifice before God, was typified by the Jewish high priest sprinkling the blood of the sacrifice on the mercy-seat, in the most holy place. Christ appears in the midst of the heavenly throne as the Lamb that was slain. John, in his sublime vision of the celestial world, says: 'And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the throne, and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain.' His intercession is a continual memorial of His vicarious death. He continually presents the merits of His blood before God, and pleads for us sinners. The Father will not condemn any sinner who now relies on the infinite merits of the Redeemer's death. All is now pacified. The blood of Christ's atoning sacrifice is sprinkled upon the mercy-seat; and sinners may now approach unto God and live forever.

THE SAVIOR INTERCEDES FOR US BY PRESENTING OUR NAMES BEFORE THE FATHER, WITH THE MOST TENDER AFFECTION, AS OUR REPRESENTATIVE. On the great Day of Atonement, when the high priest entered into the most holy place, he bore the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, engraved upon twelve precious stones, in the breastplate of judgment upon his heart. So Jesus, the faithful High Priest, and representative of His spiritual Israel, bears the names of all believers upon His heart, while interceding for them within the veil, in the heavenly sanctuary. What an inspiring thought! How great the privilege of the true child of God! His name is affectionately remembered before God by our merciful High Priest in the heavens. The promise of Christ is, 'He that overcomes, the same shall be clothed in white clothing; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before His angels.'

How blessed are those who are have a saving interest in this intercession! The world may despise them; but Jesus will love and honor them. In all circumstances and conditions in life, they are ever precious in His sight. They live near His heart; they are set as a seal upon it; they are engraved on the palms of His hands, and carried in His bosom. They are His precious jewels; and will ever adorn His mediatorial crown. His loving kindness will never depart from them; nor will their names ever be erased from the book of life. 'Behold, I have engraved you upon the palms of my hands; your ways are continually before me.'

Arise, my soul, arise;
Shake off your guilty fears;
The bleeding Sacrifice
In my behalf appears
Before the throne my Surety stands,
My name is written on His hands.'

ONE OF THE GREAT BLESSINGS FOR WHICH THE SAVIOR INTERCEDES IS, THAT WE MAY BE PRESERVED FROM THE EVIL OF THE WORLD. 'I pray not that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.' 'Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save everyone who comes to God through him. He lives forever to plead with God on their behalf.' Before he reaches the blissful shores of the heavenly Canaan, the Christian pilgrim is compelled to pass through a land stained by sin, where he finds a thousand evil influences thrown around his pathway, tending to draw him from God. Now, Jesus prays, that we may be delivered from all evil, and especially from the assaults of Satan, the prince of darkness. In the words which Christ addressed to Peter, we have a very explicit allusion to the intercession that is made for us when the Wicked One is endeavoring to draw us from the path which leads to the joys of heaven. 'Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith fail not.' Thus is our Savior, in His intercessory work before the throne, exercising the tenderest concern for our preservation from all evil, and the continuance of our Christian graces, until we come to enjoy the sunshine of eternal glory, and to be forever beyond the reach of all the evil of this present world.

SALVATION TO THE UTTERMOST IS ANOTHER GLORIOUS FRUIT OF THE PERPETUAL INTERCESSION OF THE SAVIOR. 'Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost, who come unto God by Him, seeing He ever lives to make intercession for them.' Where can we find more sustaining and soothing words? Oh, blessed and cheering truth- that our divine Intercessor is able to save to the uttermost!

Our Redeemer is described by the prophet as being 'mighty to save.' He is able to save to the uttermost because he is the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of peace. He is able to save to the uttermost because He has, by His atoning work on the cross, made reconciliation for our iniquities, and removed every barrier in the way of our access to God. He is able to save to the uttermost because He ever lives to present the memorials of His sacrifice before God continually, as a complete satisfaction for all the sins we daily commit.

Here then is salvation for the vilest transgressors. Look up, you awakened and anxious one, whose sins are as scarlet- a burden too heavy for you to bear. Here is salvation for you. Salvation from sin and wrath- a complete, eternal, glorious salvation! You may now be in the horrible pit and the miry clay; but the blessed arm of our great Intercessor can raise you up, and put the new song of salvation in your mouth. You may be one of the vilest transgressors on the earth, yet He can bring deliverance to your soul, and procure the remission of all your sins, though they may have been committed with increasing aggravation through many a year. Then direct your troubled eyes to Jesus, remembering that He ever lives to intercede for us; that His salvation is to the very uttermost; and that it is still His delightful work to save souls from death, and to hide a multitude of sins.

'The Lord of Life, with glory crowned,
On heaven's exalted throne,
Forgets not those for whom on earth
He heaved His dying groan.
The promised joy He then obtained
When He ascended hence,
Up from the grave to God's right hand
A Savior and a Prince!
His glory now no tongue of man
Or seraph bright can tell,
Yet still the chief of all His joys,
That souls are saved from hell.'

THE SAVIOR INTERCEDES FOR THE FINAL GLORIFICATION OF THE SAINTS. 'Father, I desire that those also whom You have given me be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory which You have given me.' Here, we see what is the will of our blessed Savior respecting us. It is that we may be with Him in the heavenly home, to behold His matchless glory, and to rejoice with full, unending joy in His presence. And as soon as our work on earth is accomplished, and we are fully prepared for the joys of heaven, we are removed hence. We fall asleep in Jesus; we depart to be with Christ; to behold Him face to face, and to enjoy through heaven's unclouded day, the full manifestations of His amazing love. Then will His intercessory prayer be answered; then will we truly behold His transcendent glory, and be forever with Him.

What joy should this impart to us in prospect of death! And what consolation should it administer to those who are mourning the loss of pious friends! This thought is beautifully illustrated by an excellent writer, who says: 'When our pious friends are taken from us, we are apt to give way to the violence of our feelings, and to mourn as if a sad calamity had befallen them. But should we not consider, that the event which we deplore, is to them unspeakable gain, the end of their faith, and the completion of their hope? They have gone to behold Him whom they love, and to rejoice forever in His presence. Should we not remember that, in this case, the prayers of Christ have prevailed over our wishes and entreaties? For why have they died at this time? Has death come by chance, or by the blind operation of natural causes? Have they fallen without special appointment? Has God no concern in what has taken place upon earth? If not a sparrow perishes without the knowledge of God, still less can it be supposed that a holy man leaves the world without His call. His death is the answer of the Father to the prayer of His Son. It is the means of introducing into the presence of the Savior, and into the embraces of His love, His dear disciples, for whom He shed His precious blood. He desires that they should be with Him, and this messenger is sent to conduct them to their home. This is the reason that our tears, and sighs, and fervent supplications, were of no avail; for how could they succeed in opposition to the prayer of the all-powerful Intercessor! This is a pleasing view of the death of believers. It shows us that it is indeed a blessing to them; and, as it is calculated to moderate our sorrow, so it should make us pray for their life, with entire resignation to the will of the Head of the Church.'

THE THOUGHT OF THE SAVIOR'S INTERCESSION SHOULD EXCITE US TO OFFER PRAYERS TO GOD, AS THEY ARE ACCEPTED IN THE NAME OF THE GREAT INTERCESSOR. Prayer is the motion of our renewed hearts towards God. It lifts the soul to Him in sweet and heavenly communion. 'Unto You, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.' It calls down upon us the choicest blessings of heaven. It brings our spirits near the throne of God, and fills them with inexpressible delight. It elevates our views and affections far above a world of sensual and perishing enjoyments. In the Scripture, prayer is called a breathing as well as a cry. 'You have heard my voice; do not hide Your ear at my breathing, at my cry.' It is the vital breath of the Christian. No true child of God can live without it. If we have the spirit of adoption, we will be often crying, 'Abba, Father.'

Now, the intercession of Christ should cause us to come with confidence to the throne of grace. The inspiring thought of an ever living and sympathizing High Priest in the heavens, who is there, interceding for us by presenting our prayers before God, led the apostle to draw the noble inference, 'So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it.' And if we would find acceptance in the sight of God, we must offer our prayers in the name of Christ. We are 'accepted in the Beloved.' Our prayers must be put into the golden censer which Christ, as the angel of the everlasting covenant, holds in His hands; and they will then be presented by Him with much incense, and acceptance before the throne of God. This characteristic of our Lord's intercession is forcibly represented in the Revelation. 'Then another angel with a gold incense burner came and stood at the altar. And a great quantity of incense was given to him to mix with the prayers of God's people, to be offered on the gold altar before the throne. The smoke of the incense, mixed with the prayers of the saints, ascended up to God from the altar where the angel had poured them out.' Our prayers can never come up with acceptance before God, unless they pass through the hands of Christ, the Angel of the everlasting covenant, the only Mediator between God and man, whose infinite merits are continually rising up in a cloud of fragrant incense before the throne of heaven.

Let us highly esteem this great privilege of praying in the name of an interceding Savior, and be more engaged in so delightful and profitable an exercise. Let us be daily expressing the sincerest desires of our souls to Him, whose ear is ever ready to hear us, whose eye is always watching over us, and whose hand is ever stretched out to bless and save us. We are strongly encouraged to come to the throne of grace with boldness, since Jesus the Son of God, our great and sympathizing High Priest, has passed into the heavens, to live and act for us in the capacity of an Intercessor.

Would you now taste and see that God is good? Then come to the throne of grace in the name of Jesus. Would you receive the remission of all your sins? Then come to the mercy-seat. Would you obtain the inestimable blessings of the better covenant? Then come by prayer to Him who is the glorious Administrator of this covenant, and by whom grace and truth are extended to the world. Would you be prepared for the pure, and holy, and sublime joys of heaven? Then come by prayer to Him who has gone to prepare mansions for us in our Father's house above.

We should keep our heart in a continual praying frame, and come to the throne of grace with confidence, perseverance, fervency, and deep reverence, depending on the assistance of the Holy Spirit. We must come with holy affections, relying on the sacrifice of Christ, and viewing Him as our Intercessor before the throne. Then will the light of God's countenance be lifted upon us, and He will graciously hear and answer us. The sacred command is: 'Watch and pray;' 'Pray without ceasing.' Christ is ever reaching out the golden censer towards us; and waiting to present our prayers to God the Father, and to perfume them with His 'much incense.'

Let us be much engaged in the holy exercise of prayer in seasons of affliction, in the day of trouble, in the hour of temptation, and in times of spiritual desertion. 'How sweetly,' says Leighton, 'can the soul retire into Him, and repose in Him, in the greatest storms! I know nothing that can much dismay him who can believe and pray. Continuing always in prayer. If afraid of fainting, yes, if at the point of fainting, this revives the soul, and draws in no less than the strength of God.'

Let us rejoice that we have such an Intercessor in heaven; One who prays for us, that our faith may not fail; One who presents our petitions before the throne; One who has encouraged us to come with boldness to the throne of grace; One whose will is that we may soon be with Him where He is; that we may behold His glory. As we journey towards our heavenly home, may we spend a part of every day in pouring out our hearts in communion with God through our only Mediator and Intercessor; and when the time of our departure is at hand, may we be found breathing out our souls to our Heavenly Father, in earnest prayer, until the very sunshine of Paradise gladdens our weary spirits- until we stand on those blissful hills which are encircled with rays of heavenly glory, and of which God is the everlasting light.

'Prayer is the soul's sincere desire,
Unuttered or expressed;
The motion of a hidden fire
That trembles in the breast.
Prayer is the burden of a sigh,
The falling of a tear,
The upward glancing of an eye,
When none but God is near.
Prayer is the simplest form of speech
That infant lips can try;
Prayer the most sublime strains that reach
The Majesty on high.
Prayer is the Christian's vital breath,
The Christian's native air;
His watchword in the hour of death,
He enters heaven with prayer.
Prayer is the contrite sinner's voice,
Returning from his ways,
While angels in their hymns rejoice,
And cry, "Behold he prays!"
O You by whom we come to God,
The life, the truth, the way,
The path of prayer Yourself has trod,
Lord, teach us how to pray.'

IN THE INTERCESSION OF OUR SAVIOR AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, WE HAVE A MANIFESTATION OF THE GREATEST LOVE. The same divine love that caused Him to lay down His life for us sinners, still constrains Him, in a state of glory, to carry on the design of salvation- to make intercession for transgressors. His love for us is so strong and constant, that amid all the sublime joys of Paradise, the delight of His Father, the adoration of angels, and the songs of the redeemed, He never forgets to plead the cause of our souls before the throne of God. Oh, the grace of our interceding Redeemer, our Advocate with the Father! How rich and boundless! May it be the sincere desire of our hearts to know more and more about the love of Jesus, in His intercession, that we may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Adorable Redeemer, we bless You for the great love which You have manifested in the performance of Your atoning work for a world of transgressors. You have not only died for our sins, but live to plead our cause in heaven, that we may be saved by Your life. We rejoice that You are an able, compassionate, righteous, and prevalent Intercessor. Oh, may we experience the blessings of Your intercessory work, and have an interest in those all-prevailing prayers which You offer to the Father, in the heavenly sanctuary. Be our Advocate on high; continually plead our cause before the throne. And oh, when our last earthly conflict is past, may we reach those blessed realms, where our griefs shall be changed to songs, and the prayer answered, with respect to ourselves, 'Father, I will that those also whom you have given me be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory.'

'Tis Jesus pleads His people's cause,
Before the eternal throne;
Presents the merits of His blood,
And claims them for His own.
Oh! for a lively, vigorous faith,
To feel this blessing mine;
Make me, oh Lord, of saving grace
A monument divine.
Father! behold me in Your Son;
Oh! send Your Spirit down,
To fit me for eternal joys,
And seal me for Your own.

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