"The as having all the lustre of the emerald. It is ovoviviparous, depositing its eggs, fourteen It would far exceed my limits to extend these remarks to lizards generally; but there are one or two species which should be noticed connected with the genus, and necessarily referred to in remarks on organic remains. THE TRIUMPH OF THE SAINTS: BY THE REV. EDWARD PHILLIPS, "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord." THE uniform and careful reading and searching of the holy scriptures, as by the Jews of Berea, is most truly noble, and well becomes the presence of their divine Author; and the us, who are capable of knowing and enjoying consequent knowledge of the scriptures is a most excellent attainment, more precious than gold. But surpassing either, and every thing else in this world, is a personal interest in them, in the promises they contain, and, therefore, in the blessings which those pro The monitor, or "safeguards," as they are termed by the French, from the opinion that one of the species (monitor Niloticus) assists in the diminution of the crocodile, since, like the ich-mises convey to the mind and the heart of neumon, it devours its eggs and even the young ones; on which account, it is supposed to be sculptured on the monuments of the ancient Egyptians. This name was given because they were believed to warn people, by hissing, of the approach of the crocodile or other venomous reptiles (Kirby, Bridgewater Treatise, ii. vol. 430). Dr. Buckland says " "They frequent marshes and the banks of rivers, in hot countries." He regards the notion of their making the noise for the purpose referred to as quite absurd. the humble believer. Can any thing on earth equal such a personal interest in such divine promises, so peculiarly adapted to the nature and the rest of our souls? They, who truly know what this world is, painfully know it to be a world of snares and sorrows. What, then, can equal an interest in this twofold promise of God to Moses: "My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest" (Exod. xxxiii. 14)? And many know, with aching hearts, that this is a world of troublesome enemies and distressing wants. Would to God they all knew the rich comfort of his "I will never leave thee nor forsake promise, It is a The iguana is about three feet long; rarely five. The skin is covered with small scales; and on the back are prickles like the teeth of a saw. The male is considerably longer than the female, and has a skin under his throat reaching to the breast, which he inflates when enraged. very harmless animal. It sleeps much on the branches of the trees, near the rivers, which it haunts. On these trees sportsmen find it, and easily entangle it in a noose. Its chief food is fruit-seeds and leaves. The female deposits her eggs in the sand of some river: they are about the size of pigeons. The iguana inhabits the warm regions of America. In the spring of 1829," says Dr. Buckland, "Mr. W. J. Broderip saw a living iguana, about two feet long, in a hot-house at Mr. Miller's nursery-gardens, near Bristol. It had refused to eat insects and other kinds of animal food, until, happening to be near some kidney-bean plants that were in the house for forcing, it began to eat of their leaves, and was from that time forth supplied from these plants." In 1828 Captain Belcher found, in the island of Isabella, swarms of iguanas, that appeared carnivorous: they fed voraciously on the eggs of birds and the intestines of fowls, and insects. thee" (Heb. xiii. 5). And need we remind you that this is a world of dangers? But you who are the friends of Christ, mark his promises: to you he has made them; as your shepherd he calls you his sheep, and describes your character: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me" (John x. 27). And in the next verse he adds: "I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand." I appeal to your hearts, can any thing equal in comfort and security such a personal interest? an interest in his word who is the God of power, truth, and grace, the unchangeable Jehovah! I add, who knows not that this is a world of slanders? But to the friends of God, what a shield, a refuge, and a rest, is this assurance in the words of the text! "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judg ment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord." These are a few of those "exceeding great made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness." "When ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness;" "but now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life." and precious promises" which are given in the book of Jehovah to his church, which in the text is intended by "the servants of the Lord." For, properly speaking, the church of God-the church of Christ-is a society of persons called out and separated from the rest of mankind by the word and Spirit of God, I again remark, that, as the servants of the and who are taught "to know him as the Lord were the servants of sin, so, by necessary only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom he connection, they were the servants of Satan, hath sent" to be their Saviour, to "worship" the prince of the power of the air, the spirit him in spirit and in truth," and to serve him in holiness and righteousness unto the end of their days; and then to be translated to heaven, to be the glorious church of Jehovah, in full perfection and bliss for ever. In the words before us we have this general truth, that the servants of the Lord, however they may be opposed and ill-treated in "this wicked world," shall finally prevail. They shall be as Gad, one of the sons of Jacob, of whom the dying father thus prophesied "A troop shall overcome him; but he shall overcome at the last" (Gen. xlix. 19): so "the servants of the Lord" "shall overcome at the last:" "Israel shall do valiantly." May the divine Spirit of light and grace shed upon us his teaching and sanctifying and comforting influence, that we may partake of the rich blessing the text is so adapted to convey! The following method of discourse is easy and natural, namely, the character expressed; the privilege attached; the title to that privilege. I. Observe the character expressed: "the servants of the Lord," their character by divine grace. For, if we "ask the days that are past, they will tell us that their character then was widely different; we will, therefore, "call to remembrance" what they once were. And here we remark They were the servants of sin. For so St. Paul confesses (Titus iii. 1-3), where he exhorts to the Christian duties of subjection to principalities and powers, and obedience to magistrates, and a readiness to every good work; to speak evil of no man; to be no brawlers, but gentle, showing all meekness unto all men. "For," says he, "we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another." Thus they were the servants of sin, even as others, and then there was no difference; but now, by the Spirit of God, they are "the servants of the Lord." And (in Rom. vi. 17, &c.), the same apostle thus thankfully acknowledges the grace that makes such a difference: "God be thanked that ye were the servants of sin"-that ye are not so now" but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then that now worketh in the children of disobedience. Among whom, also, we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others" (Eph. ii. 2, 3). Thus ye servants of the Lord, ye were the servants of Satan. O most degraded and degrading state! And again, by necessary connection, we remark, ye were "the servants of men,' servants to "false prophets," by tamely hearing them, by imbibing their poisonous, pernicious, and destructive errors, and by encouraging and comforting yourselves in this evil practice-servants of men of pride and pomp, of appetite and sensuality, of covetousness and cruelty-men of vanity and fashion, of levity and pleasure, of irreligion and profaneness-servants, as lovers and followers of such sinful men. Thus ye were the servants of men, the servants of Satan, the servants of sin; but now, by the sovereignty and power of divine grace, ye are the servants of righte ousness, the servants of God, the servants of Christ. We remark Ye are the servants of Jesus Christ; his servants as your one chief Lord and Master; the subjects of his spiritual kingdom, as your one supreme sovereign; submitting yourselves to his will and government, in opposition to the prince of darkness, who rules the ungodly. Ye are the servants of God, aiming to honour him in all things, as it is written: "Whatsoever ye do, whether ye eat or drink, do all to the glory of God" (1 Cor. x. 31); doing it by choice, as that which is his will; doing it by his authority, as that which he commands; and doing it in honour of him, as your highest aim. Hence Ye are the servants of righteousness; and ye are so From principle: "The love of God shed abroad in your hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given to you," and that love which worketh no ill to your neighbour, and is the fulfilling of the law." And hence ye are the servants of righteousness By rule: "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself;" and says our Lord, "This is my commandment, that ye love one another;" and says St. John, "If a man say, I love CHURCH OF ENGLAND MAGAZINE. God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar; for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, that he who loveth God love his brother also" (1 John iv. 20, 21). We add, ye are the servants of righteous ness has risen, and has shone forth in greater beauty of righteousness and truth, and as a splendid proof of the verity of the promise that no weapon formed against the credit of the church of God shall prosper, nor against the existence of it in the world. Though many a time she has been suspected and treated as an enemy's vessel on the sea of life, and red-hot balls of malicious fury have been poured into her, and though she has re In practice. As it is written: "The wicked borroweth and payeth not again, but the righteous showeth mercy and giveth:"peatedly appeared on fire, yet, like the burn"He is ever merciful, and lendeth." If his brother of the human family has need of fuel, of food, of clothing, he contributes what he can to his comfort, not in word only, but in deed. Nay, "if his enemy hunger, he feeds him; if he thirst, he gives him drink." Thus, ye are the servants of righteousness from the principle of love, and by the rule of God's word, and in the duties of life; servants of God and of Jesus Christ. II. Behold your privilege-the heritage of complete victory over all your enemies. "This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord." St. Peter (1 Pet. i. 4) mentions "an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation." The apostle means a heritage that is a state, a possession, a kingdom. But in the text the prophet means a heritage that is a final conquest to the attainment of that state and kingdom. For observe his words: "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shall condemn. This"-this promise, this assurance of conquest over every enemy" this is the heritage of the servants of the Lord." But can this be true? Have not the weapons of persecution, the weapons of slander and slaughter, taken shocking effect, as if they prospered more or less against the servants of the Lord, from the death of righteous Abel, through all succeeding ages, unto this day? Yes, they have suffered tremendously in "this wicked world," in every way that the most inventive head, under the influence of a most cruel heart, assisted by Satan, has been able to find out. Nevertheless, the promise is sure; for we remark The credit and existence of the church in the world prove it. Though showers of the arrows of slander, of mockery, and of scorn, have been shot at the church of God from the bows of malicious tongues, to ruin her good name, yet it has been remarkable for sobriety and righteousness and godliness and truth and peace in the earth. And though sometimes she has been brought very low, as if mortally wounded and dying, yet again she ing bush which Moses saw, she has not been consumed; nay, she has still remained unhurt, like the three Hebrew confessors in the burning fiery furnace. Her enemies have set her on fire, and she has seemed as if sinking into perfect ruin; but her Lord was in her, as in the burning bush and the burning fiery furnace, and she again appeared uninjured, and pursued her course towards the heavenly country in majesty and triumph. Blessed be God for his preserving mercy! "No weapon that is formed against thee," O, church of God, "shall prosper," to ruin either thy being or thy credit in the earth. We add-many individuals also have found the promise sure. We will mention only one instance, and that will suffice for ten thousand. It is the Man of Nazareth, the Head of the church of God. "The archers hated him and shot at him: they sorely grieved him, and wounded him" (Gen. xlix. 23). Both Jews and Gentiles "set themselves against him round about" (Psa. iii. 6). Yea, they mortally wounded him, so that he died; and they shouted for the victory. But the noise of conquest was soon hushed, and the triumph short; for what could they do against the Lord of life? He fell to rise. He stooped to conquer. He died to live-to live, no more to die; to conquer, no more to stoop; to rise, no more to fall. "Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers took counsel together against the Lord, and against his Anointed" (Psa. ii. 1, 2). "For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together, for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done" (Acts iv. 27, 28). "Thou hast set thy King upon thy holy hill of Zion" (Psa. ii. 6). "Hosanna to the Prince of life, That clothed himself with clay, "See, how the Conqu'ror mounts aloft, And thus our Lord triumphed over every | And how will they also be glorified by him! enemy, and gloriously illustrated and con- For, in that day, instead of their being the firmed the truth of the promise," No weapon criminals, treated as such, and accused, judged, that is formed against thee shall prosper." and condemned, as in this sinful world, they And every individual believer in him shall shall be the judges and their enemies the find it so. We further remarkcriminals, as it is written: "Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world" (1 Cor. vi. 2)? "No weapon that is formed against them shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise up in judgment against them they shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord” That "the noble army of martyrs" praise God for the truth of the promise. Behold, on the one hand, the vast camp of the ungodly; and, on the other, the little tents of the martyrs. See, from the former, the antichristian host-pagan, papal, and infidel-pour forth their numbers, and prepare for the fight their many and various instruments of cruel tortures and deaths-saws and swords; pincers, thumb-screws, and brazen plates; iron chairs and gridirons; racks and crosses; dungeons and fires; wild horses and wild bulls; hungry lions, and other beasts of prey. Horrid preparation which persecutors have made, and their various modes of cruelty which they have employed to torture and murder the saints! How ghastly the scene! And what infidel threats are heard to press the friends of Christ to forsake him! "Deny Christ, revile him, renounce him; and you shall have life and liberty, ease and honour; but, if not, torture and death await you." And now behold the faithful confessor of Christ, with the courage and patience of faith in his soul, standing firm, and breast to breast with his tormentor, and, with an unwavering tongue, replying, "I am a Christian." And now, behold him enduring, unmoved, the torture and the death; stretched on the rack, or sawn asunder, or torn limb from limb; or in the fire, gradually burning to a cinder. And thus in patience the Christian martyrs possessed their souls, and were victorious over the cruelty of their enemies by faith in the captain of their salvation, the Lord Jesus Christ. "The noble army of martyrs praise thee" for thy faithfulness and truth in the performance of thy promise: "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper." But we add a yet more glorious assurance of the truth of this great and precious promise, namely, when it shall be applied to all the saints in the judgment of the great day. How solemn will be that day when all the righteous and all the wicked, the accusers and the accused, shall be assembled before the judgment-seat of Christ, and deliver up their account, and every one his own account of himself. And if any one has any charge to bring against any one or more of the saints on the opposite side, he must then and there bring it, or else be for ever silent, for that will be the last decisive day. O, how the Lord Jesus Christ will be glorified in his saints, and admired in all them that believe! III. We come now to the last observation, namely, their title to so great a privilege: "Their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord." Righteousness is the title and assurance of their heritage; a title given them to which they have no right, by birth or by merit, because of sin. It is of the Lord, and therefore unquestionably good; and of his grace, and therefore unquestionably free; and a title suited in all respects to its object, and beyond the possibility of failing to secure the heritage. This title consists of two distinct but inseparable parts. There are, we fear, many professed Christians who separate them, but it spoils the title and hazards the heritage. The two parts are usually distinguished by the righteousness that justifies, and the righteousness that sanctifies. 1. We remark the righteousness that justifies. And that is a righteousness which precisely suits the sinner who, in every point, has transgressed the holy law of God, and therefore is under the demands of it, which he must answer to the utmost from the beginning to the end of his life, with all his heart and mind and soul and strength; but for which, as a sinner, he has neither will nor power, and therefore cannot, by his own obedience to the law, inherit heaven. And this righteousness suits the sinner as being under the penal curse of God's law, and therefore the object of his wrath and liable to everlasting punishment, because it answers for him in such a wretched case of guilt and condemnation, a case so helpless and desperate. The righteousness therefore that thus precisely saits the guilty sinner, by answering all the demands of God's law both of obedience and penalty, is very properly called the righteousness that justifies the sinner before God; since thus his unrighteousness is forgiven, his guilt removed, and God reckons and accepts him as righteous. Nay, more, he is now received into God's special favour, and treated with peculiar honour and joy as once a prodigal but now a penitent son-a son that had been rebellious, but is now humbled and pardoned; that had been lost, but now is found; that had wandered far away from his heavenly Father, but is now returned; that was dead in sin, but is now alive to God. And thus, as the fond and glad father said on the return of his prodigal but penitent son, so the Father of mercies says of the penitent and justified sinner: "This my son was dead, but is alive again he was lost, and is found;" and "there is joy among the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth." Such, my brethren, is the righteousness which justifies the sinner before God. But where is such a righteousness to be found that can be so suitable and sufficient for such wonders of grace? Surely it cannot be the righteousness of any created being, man or angel. Man is the sinner intended; what righteousness then can he have to justify himself before God? And the angels, being creatures only, what righteousness have they bat for themselves, though perfect, though splendid? They have none for sinful man. Not the righteousness of any creature will answer the great, the gracious purpose of the sinner's justification before God, the sinner's deliverance from "the wrath to come." It is, and it must be, the righteousness of the uncreated Son of God in our flesh, the incarnate God; as it is thus written of him: "The Lord," the Father, "is well pleased for his righteousness' sake: he will magnify the law and make it honourable" (Isa. xlii. 21). And he has done it by "his obedience unto death, even the death of the cross." And (in Jer. xxiii. 6), he has this divinely distinguished and most gracious name: "the Lord our righteousness." And (in 2 Cor. v. 21) St. Paul thus testifies of him: God "hath made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.' And the same apostle thus writes: "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus; whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; to declare at this time his righteousness; that he might be just, and the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus." "Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law," and "boasting is excluded" (Rom. iii. 25-28): "Their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord." Thus, the righteousness of Christ, by his obedience unto death, and approved of the Father, is that, and that only and exclusively, which justifies the sinner before God. And this is the first and chief part of this glorious title which shall have such a happy effect in the day of judgment, when "it shall be discerned between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not." 2. We will now remark the second essential part of this title, namely, the righteousness that sanctifies. We must repeat it, this is an essential part of the title to the promised heritage; for this is so connected with the former part that we cannot have the one without the other, nor is the title complete without both. If the righteousness of Christ which justifies be imputed to us by faith in him, a santifying righteousness is imparted to us by the Holy Spirit. By the former we are justified for heaven, and by the latter we are sanctified and sweetened for that holy place. The first we receive from Christ, who, in his life and death, has wrought it for us; and the second we receive from the Holy Spirit, who works it in us, as the church thus confesses: "Lord, thou wilt ordain peace for us, for thou also hast wrought all our works in us" (Isa. xxvi. 12). And for all those who are thus favoured with a sanctifying righteousness, this splendid, divine order shall be given: "Open ye the gates," of the heavenly Jerusalem, ye angels in waiting, "that the righte ous nation which keepeth the truth may enter in" (Isa. xxvi. 2). And then how glorious the promise in its absolute and final fulfilment! "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord." "Firm as his throne his promise stands, "Then will he own my worthless name Appoint my soul a place." In conclusion, we appeal to your consciences what state, what character is most desirable? Is it not that of the servant of the Lord? He may not indeed be "clothed in purple and fine linen, and fare sumptuously every day;" nay, he may be, as Lazarus, clothed in rags, and full of sores, and lying at the rich man's gate, and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fall from the rich man's table. But let us not judge according to the present state and the outward appearance, but rather let us look to the end; let us look with the eyes of our Lord beyond the grave, and by faith in his word. He tells us, "It came to pass that the beggar died, and was carried by angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; and in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip |