THE CHRISTIAN NATURALIST. 211 



or any other of the gospel doctrines because these contain 

 things " hard to be understood," we shall rather esteem 

 them as evidences that they have proceeded from the 

 same God who has written the characters of mystery, 

 no less than of beauty, over all his works. 



Connecting also the history of Redemption with that 

 world which forms the theatre of this great event, 

 every object in it is invested with a charm, inasmuch 

 as it is a precious memorial of the Son of God, and of 

 the circumstances under which he came to visit us, in 

 mercy. * It is the glory of the world,' says a dis- 

 tinguished preacher, 'that he who formed it, dwelt 

 on it ; of the air, that he breathed in it ; of the sun, 

 that it shone upon him ; of the ground, that it bore 

 him; of the sea that he walked upon it; of the ele- 

 ments, that they nourished him ; of the waters, that ■. 

 they refreshed him ; of us men, that he lived and died 

 among us, yea that he lived and died for us ; that he 

 assumed our flesh and blood, and carried it to the 

 highest heavens, where it shines as the eternal wonder, 

 and ornament of the creation of God.' 



The progressive character of our knowledge of na- 

 tural as well as of spiritual things, is another argument 

 for the cultivation of both these kinds of knowledge. 



