Page:Sketches of conversations with James Wilson, alias M'Lusky.pdf/3

 I then made some inquiry respecting his former course of life, and whether or not he had been favoured with a religious education? He very frankly told me he had lived an abominable and very wicked life, and never had enjoyed the privilege of any religious instruction. Of him, it might with propriety be said, “no man cared for his soul.” He was suffered to run on in the career of crime, without any one to check him in his destructive and wayward course.—His relations, he said, were Ro-man Catholics, and wished him to receive the visits of Mr. S. the Roman Catholic Priest, but these he posi-tively refused, and declared his determination to seek the pardon of his sins from Jesus Christ alone. He lis-tened with intense eagerness to the varied statements given him of the plan of salvation, through faith in the Redeemer’s blood. His soul seemed to mourn deeply over its own vileness and pollution, and bitterly lament-ed his past wickedness, both of heart and of life. On one occasion, lie said to me, “O Sir, that I had my life to live over again.” Stop, James, said I, remember that if life was granted you, unless your heart is changed, by the grace of God, it is more than probable you would just return to your old courses again. True, said he,I now see that nothing short of that change of heart will do.-I was afraid lest he should rest satisfied with mere efforts to obtain the favour of God, and trust in these, or in a confused and indefinite faith in the atone-ment of Jesus Christ. I pointed out to him the case of the Philippian jailor, as recorded in the 16th chapter of the Aets of the Apostles, where an answer is given to the poor alarmed sinner, who is inquiring, “What must I do to be saved?” I also directed him for encour-agement to the account given of the Canaanitish woman, (in the 15th chapter of the Gospel by Matthew,) who, after many seeming repulses, was at last successful. However, I endeavoured to guard hiin against expect-ing the blessings of salvation on account of his prayers, or any worth in them, saying, your importunity must be that of a poor needy beggar, who earnestly implores