is no God else beside me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me. Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else."Isa. 45: 17-22.

God made, and He will remake. We were His workmanship in creation, and we are His workmanship in redemption. And He takes pleasure in His own work.

"Thou art_worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created."-Rev. 4: 11.

"For the Lord taketh pleasure in His people: He will beautify the meek with salvation."-Ps. 149: 4.

"The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear Him, in those that hope in His mercy."-Ps. 147: 11.

It is a universal instinct to "take pleasure" in anything we create. How we look at it, and turn it round to view it on every side, and walk off to see it at a distance, and delight to show it to those who will appreciate it and share our pleasure.

"And God saw every thing that He had made, and, behold it was very good."-Gen. 1: 31.

When we look on man as he is now, and when we hear the groans and cries of creation, we wonder that God could call His work "very good." But in redemption we behold the consummation of this work which in creation was only begun, and see God's ultimate purpose for man carried out, and the excellence of His work manifested.

To illustrate. we have the declaration that man is "made to have dominion," but in Hebrews we are told that this is not yet seen; "but now we see not yet all things put under Him. But we see Jesus."

"Thou hast put all things in subjection under His feet. For in that He put all in subjection under Him, He left nothing that is not put under Him. But now we see not yet all things put under Him. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that He by the grace of God should taste death for every man. For it became Him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both He that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause He is not ashamed to call them brethren."-Heb. 2: 8-11.

Jesus therefore is the Head of the new redeemed spiritual race who are to fulfill God's purposes in creation, just as Adam was the head of the present imperfect earthly race. And as we have borne the image of the one, so are we to bear finally the image of the other.

"And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly."-1 Cor. 15: 45–49.

This, then, as we have seen, is the ultimate purpose of God's workmanship, to "conform us to the image" of His Son, to "create us in Christ Jesus unto good works." And He alone is able to accomplish such a mighty transformation. Let us then take our own hands off of ourselves, and put ourselves unreservedly into the hands of the Lord, believing that, although we are not able, He is able: and that nothing is too hard for His almighty power.

"And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work."-2 Cor. 9: 8.

"Now unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen."Eph. 3: 20, 21.

Nothing can give more utter rest of soul than this. If we are "God's workmanship," and if He is making us, we cannot find any room for fear or anxiety. No matter how bad we may feel ourselves to be, no matter how grievously out of order our inward machinery may seem, if God has us in His workshop and if He is at work on us, how can we have a care as to the result?

Moreover if we are God's workmanship we may be very sure of His abiding presence with us; for a man who is making anything must necessarily be close to it all the time he is at work on it. “What can there be so close as making and made?" Therefore, while God's blessed processes are going on, we cannot have a doubt or a question as to His continual presence with us.

God's part then is to work, and our part is to abandon ourselves utterly to His working, and to see to it that we do not hinder Him by disobedience or doubt. He has undertaken to "create us in Christ Jesus unto good works," and we must yield ourselves up submissively to His blessed making processes, and must be content with the

way of His working. We must yield, and trust, and obey without wavering, let come what may; and we must never be discouraged because we do not see ourselves perfect all at once. "The Maker hath not done" yet, but He will assuredly perfect that which concerns us at last.

""Tis, shall thy will be done for me? or mine,
And I be made a thing not after thine,
My own, and full of paltriest pretense?
Shall I be born of God, or of mere man?
Be made like Christ, or on some other plan?
What though thy work in me transcends my sense,
Too fine, too high, for me to understand,

I trust entirely. On, Lord, with thy labor grand!
I have not knowledge, wisdom, insight, thought,
Nor understanding, fit to justify

Thee in thy work, O Perfect. Thou hast brought
Me up to this; and lo! what thou hast wrought
I cannot call it good. But I can cry

"O enemy, the Maker hath not done;

One day thou shalt behold, and from the sight will

run."

BIBLE READINGS.

XVIII.

SUBJECT-THE PRESENCE OF GOD.

"Thus doth thy hospitable greatness lie
Outside us like a boundless sea;

We cannot lose ourselves where all is home,
Nor drift away from thee."

FOUNDATION TEXT.-" Whither shall I go from thy Spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.Ps. 139: 7-10.

The all pervading presence of God with us is the one absolutely certain and unchangeable thing amid all that is so doubtful and changeable in this world of ours. And yet very few people realize this. Even christians will cry out for the Lord to "come" to them, as though he had gone off on a journey or were in the remote realms of space. "How can I get into His presence?" they ask with eager longing; when all the while they are already in His presence, and cannot by any possibility get out of it, not even if they "make their bed in hell," or if they "dwell in the uttermost parts of the earth."

"Even there,"