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THE KING’S BUSINESS
‘living in the Spirit.’ It is a fearful thing to be going through the world with a light kindled by the Holy Ghost to guide souls to Jesus, and yet to carry this as a dark lantern which can give no benefit to any one, but ah ! how vain it is on the other hand to hold up a lamp to one when the light is almost.out and the oil is almost done. May I always be like a lamp full of oil (the Holy Ghost) burning brightly with the love of Christ and guiding those that are in darkness to the straight gate and nar row way that leadeth unto life." Here is another extract from the diary : “In the evening I spoke from Rom. 5:1, but felt much straitened and was so filled with self-complacency, vain elation and spiritual blindness that I had to stop in a very, short time and felt called on to tell the people that I believed and had been made to feel for some days that unless we- were humbled under God’s mighty hand and the people cease from their idolatrous confidence in instruments, and looked moré to God alone, I was convinced His work would not go on.” “The next day,” he writes, “I was alone during the greater part part of the day seeking humiliation before the Lord and began through grace to dis cover how far, alas ! I have fallen from that contrition of soul for sin which I once enjoyed. Lord, I am indeed set in soli tary places, Lord, remember me and keep me from falling into the snare of the devil.” The next entry reveals the outcome of this heart-searching time. It was of the Sabbath that he wrote : “Preached in Mr. Gray’s church from Rom. 12:1 with some degree of brokenness of heart and comfort in the Lord. Evening, preached in Dr. Findlay’s church from Eph. 4 :30 on the work of the Holy Spirit. It was a sol emn season and an immense assembly. I had great liberty, especially in pressing sin ners not to resist the Holy Ghost.” Passing by a public house (saloon) in Perth one evening he saw a crowd of men and women enjoying themselves, and said to them, “You are making work for the Day of Judgment.” “They all ran in,” he
and whom Thou earnest to glorify in/the hearts of sinners. Amen.” His humility is shown in the following prayer, the occasion of which was the receipt of a letter from Mr. McCheyne who had just returned to Scotland: “Had a let ter from dear Mr. McCheyne written in a spirit of joy for the work of the Lord, which shows a clear triumph, I think, of divine grace over the natural jealousy of the human heart. O Lord, I would praise Thee with all my heart for this, and would intreat that when Thy dear servant the pastor of this people is restored to them he may be honored a hundred fold more in winning souls to Christ than I have been in Thine infinite and sovereign mercy.” How this letter exhibits the character of McCheyne! What a delightful friendship these two kindred souls had linked together by their all-absorbing love for the Saviour! Mr. Burns remained with Mr. McCheyne a little while in order to help him to get hold of the running of the church again, as the latter’s strength was far from equal to taking up the burden immediately. EVANGELISTIC WORK Of course Mr. Burns had been doing evangelistic work, but he was confined largely to the one church. After leaving St. Peter’s he was free to go where the Lord might direct him. The next four years he spent in preaching the Gospel in Scotland, England and Ireland. He visited a great many places, and always with some blessing, the results not being the same in every place. Among other places he vis ited St. Andrew’s, the seat of the univer sity where in his audience there was a great company of learned men, including Robert Haldane and Sir David Brewster. We find the following entry in his diary made on one,of his journeys from place to place: “In the afternoon I sailed down the Clyde, but was in a very dead frame of soul, and could hardly bring myself to speak for Jesus to any of the passengers. Indeed, though it is always our duty to be, doing the work of an evangelist, it is a duty entirely dependent upon the prior one of
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