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EXPLANATION OF THE TYPE,

who had followed JESUS from different cities, and who had been listening to His teaching, found themselves to have been led by Him into a desert place, where they had nothing to eat, and where there was every prospect that they would faint by the way if they attempted to journey back in their own strength. Their blessed LORD, seeing this, had compassion on them. Taking a very small and apparently insufficient portion of bread, He gives it to His disciples, and on their distributing it to the multitude, it is found to be quite sufficient for all their wants.

Now what does that typify, but ourselves, who have, according to the teaching of the Church, been following, ever since Christmas, the steps of our LORD and SAVIOUR, and listening to His teaching? We find that this has led us into the wilderness,-that we are unable of ourselves to help ourselves, and that the journey is too hard for us, and we stand every chance of fainting by the way. Our LORD seeing this, and having compassion on us, takes a very small portion of bread and wine-a means altogether insufficient to work such great works-distributes to His disciples the Ministers; they set it before the multitude, who eat and are filled, and return to their homes, strength. ened for all necessary work in CHRIST. Nay, we might even carry on the parable, and talk of gathering up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost, distributing them to the communicants afterwards, and eating and drinking them reverently in the Church; but that would lead us away from our main subject, which is, the parable of the Five Loaves typical of the blessed Communion, whereby we are received by CHRIST, reconciled to Him, and having had that renewed by the HOLY GHOST which had been decayed by the fraud and malice of the devil or by our own carnal will and frailness, we are preserved and continued in the unity of the Church, and are gifted with fresh strength for the continuance of our spiritual journey. This is the other lesson that we learn from this miracle, and this is the reason why, besides forming part of our preparation for the doctrine of CHRIST as Man in Christmas, it is also part of our preparation for the doctrine of CHRIST as GOD in Easter.

AUTHORISED BY OUR SAVIOUR.

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Now, what warrant have we for putting this spiritual interpretation on a plain narrative. In this first place, the Church evidently takes it in this sense when she couples it with a collect confessing our unworthiness, and yet praying for relief. In its literal sense, the Gospel has nothing to do with that, but in its spiritual sense everything. It is the claiming of one of the three promises GOD has made us in our Baptism-that we should be considered parts of CHRIST, and strengthened by His SPIRIT.

But, in the second place, we have CHRIST's Own words to show that He meant us to consider the miracle in this light. "When He had returned to the western side of the sea, and still found the same people following Him and seeking Him, He warned them to look for a spiritual meaning in what He had done." This had become quite necessary, because so thoroughly were they impressed with the idea that the great Prophet they had acknowledged was a temporal restorer of their country and nation, that, immediately after the performance of this miracle, JESUS had been obliged to leave them to prevent their taking Him forcibly and making Him a king. The very first words He speaks therefore, on seeing them again, are a caution that there is something in all this of a nature far more spiritual than they seemed to have any idea of. "Labour not for the meat that perisheth, but for that which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man shall give you." They say unto Him, "What shall we do that we may work the works of GOD ?" JESUS tells them that they must believe on Him Whom God had sent. They are yet doubtful, and return to the manna in the wilderness, not quite certain in their minds whether, after all, this was so great a miracle as that of Moses, inasmuch as the bread did not in this case come down from heaven. But He said, evidently regarding the whole transaction in its spiritual sense, "I am the Bread of Life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger, and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst. You have far higher privileges than your fathers: they did eat manna in the wilderness and are dead, whereas of this Bread a man may eat and

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PARTAKING OF CHRIST,

not die; and the Bread that I will give is My Flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."

There are many lights in which we may profitably regard the Holy Communion. We may speak of it as an act of duty, as an act of obedience, or, higher still, as an act of remembrance, or, again higher, as a means of grace-as a means whereby we are strengthened; but the doctrine of this day seems to place it in the very highest and most spiritual position in which it can be viewed-as a means whereby we partake of the nature of CHRIST. We have no right to forgiveness, we have no right to defence, we have no right to anything at GOD's hands for our own sakes; and the more we examine our obedience by the rule of God's Commandments, and our Faith by the articles of the Apostles' Creed, the better we shall be convinced of this. We have no right to expect or hope for any of these things for ourselves; how, then, can we hope for them? By drawing near to CHRIST, by being made one with Him, by being in communion with Him, and being considered by GOD as part of that beloved SoN in Whom He is well pleased. We are justified-that is to say, considered just, good, righteous-yet we are not so; how is this, except by being considered belonging to One Who Himself is just, good, and righteous? Well might our SAVIOUR say, "Except ye eat the Flesh of the Son of Man, and drink His Blood, ye have no life in you." How indeed can we? We have no life in ourselves; in whom have we life except in Him? and how can we have life in Him except in the way in which He has given it us. Why should we try to seek it in any other way? And what is that way? Our SAVIOUR Himself shall tell

you :

"Whoso eateth My Flesh and drinketh My Blood hath eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day: for My Flesh is meat indeed, and My Blood is drink indeed." "He that eateth My Flesh and drinketh My Blood dwelleth in Me and I in him." "As the living FATHER hath sent Me, and I live by the FATHER, so he that eateth Me shall live by Me."

Is not this a plain, downright, open promise, that

THE REAL BREAD FROM HEAVEN.

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though we can do nothing of ourselves to help ourselves, yet there is help for us? Is not the means of this help clearly and distinctly pointed out? "Whoso eateth My Flesh and drinketh My Blood shall live for ever." Is not the reason why it must be so set forth as clearly and as distinctly, because "He that eateth My Flesh and drinketh My Blood dwelleth in Me and I in him,"—because such a person is considered by GoD actually part of His holy and just and righteous Son, and is treated accordingly,-insomuch that, as the Son lives by the FATHER, So we who thus become part of the Son shall live by Him.

Is not this indeed the bread that came down from heaven? Is it not so in a far higher sense than the manna of which our fathers ate? That was indeed a type of this that preserved them alive through all their wanderings in the desert, which typifies this life to the Christian; in the barren and desolate regions it sustained their life, and gave them strength to reach the promised land, which to us typifies heaven. But, after all, it was but a type: "Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness and are dead." This is the reality, of which that was merely the shadow, this is the true bread from heaven, he that eateth of which shall live for ever.

The Communion of this Sunday is the last Communion from which you will be excluded. Before we again meet at the Table of our LORD, you will have received your mission in life, and will have been endued with strength to perform it. The next call to spiritual food and nourishment will be made to you as perfected Christians-that is to say, as Christians entitled to the full privileges of your calling. See that you do not neglect it. You cannot work in the strength of your SAVIOUR unless you are united to Him, nor can you plead His righteousness and His merits, and the atonement which He has made for your sins and your shortcomings, unless "He is in you and you in Him."

SPECIAL LECTURES

On Matters of Conscience,

ADDRESSED TO THE CATECHUMENS AND THEIR SPONSORS IN THE SCHOOL-ROOM OR IN THE CHURCH, ON WEEKDAY EVENINGS: TOGETHER WITH QUESTIONS FOR SELFEXAMINATION ON MATTERS OF CONSCIENCE.1

LECTURE I.

You will remember that when we considered the covenant of grace, we found one part of it to consist of faith and obedience 2-two qualities which we separate for convenience of description, but which in practice cannot really be separated at all. For, in fact, we obey God because we believe Him; and we should not obey if we did not believe. On this necessary union of works and faith I

1 The Parson must remember that these are not intended as catechetical questions, but as helps to self-examination. They should be read to the Catechumens as part of the Lecture, and then given them as a guide to their own meditations.

In practice these generally do form the subjects of subsequent conversations, not only between the Parson and his Catechumens, but also between the Parson and the Sponsors. Still, it will be better that the subject should be started by the Catechumen himself, who will generally come of his own accord for assistance or explanation. Conscience should not be treated with the rough hand with which we treat intellect. Some of course there will always be who will take no trouble about the matter, but upon characters like this there is little hope of making impression at all.

2 See Sermon No. I.