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OR
CHRISTIANS
CHRIST'S REPRESENTATIVES AND AGENTS
FOR THE
CONVEESION OF THE WORLD.
BY
THOMAS ^SMYTH, D. D.
PUBLISHED BY BEQUEST OF THE SYNOD OF SOUTH CAROLINA.i
PHILADELPHIA:
PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION.
No. 265 Chestnut Stbebt.
Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1856,
By JAMES DUNLAP,
In the Clerk's office of the District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man ■will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me.
As thou hast sent me into the -world, even so have I also sent them Into the world.
For none of us liveth unto himself, and no man dieth unto himself.
And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying. All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you ; and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
The Rev. C. Simeon thus wrote: — ''Religion in its rise interests us almost exclusively about ourselves ; in its progress it engages us about the welfare of our fel- low-creatures ; in its more advanced stages, it animates us to consult on all things, and to exalt to the utmost of our power the power of God."
''The believer in Jesus Christ is the universal bene- factor ; and it is by such free giving of his free receiv- ings, that he not only enriches the world, but that he obtains grace for grace, and augments the strength, the beauty, and the happiness of his own soul. By such scattering he increases." — Dr. James Hamilton.
"If any man doubts whether, as a Christian, he is bound by the terms of his discipleship, to aid by prayer, self-denying sacrifice, and personal exertion, in preach- ing the gospel to every creature, let him, as the Duke
OF Wellington once appropriately and graphically- said, ' look to his commission, and there find his march- ing orders.'"
'"Take my yoke upon you, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.' Truth, Lord ! a light burden, indeed, which supports him who bears it. I have looked abroad through nature, to see if I could find anything that could bear some analogy to this ; but I cannot find it, unless it be the wings of a bird, which, while borne of the creature, bear him aloft. In trath, to bear the Lord's burden is to be permitted to cast it, together with our- selves, into the arms of Omnipotence and Grace. — Bernard op Clairvaux.
Luther says: — <<The command of love is a short command, and a long command, a simple command and a multitudinous command, no command and every com- mand ; for the command of love destroys all commands, and yet establishes all."
"It has been an intense and a growing conviction in the minds of some of us, that there is not at this moment one single Church in Christendom, as a whole, in any way adequately alive to the reality, the true nature, and transcendent grandeur of God's greatest work on earth, even that of the evangelization of the world." — Dr. Duff.
CONTENTS.
Page. Preface 7
The Kingdom of Christ destined to become uni- versal 9
This Universality of the Kingdom of Christ to be brought about thi-ough the instrumentality of Man 17
Self-Denial, and living for others, a universal law among all holy beings, and restored by Redemption 25
This principle of Love, and living for others, illustriously exemplified in God, and in Christ our Saviour 30
Christianity the embodiment, and Christians the living models, of this spirit of self-denying love 33
Selfish piety not only not Christian, but anti-
christian 42
6 CONTENTS.
Page. The extension of God's kingdom has always been
a trust for which man has been responsible 50
Active, self-denying and liberal co-operation in the cause of Christ, not indifferent, but essential to Christians and Churches 58
All can do something 64
This is the only way to secure prosperity and peace,
here and hereafter 66
No man liveth or dieth unto himself. 73
Our churches and church members must do more. ... 80
What can be done ? 81
Motives for doing what every one can do 83
Appendix 95
PREFxiCE.
The author's design in this argument is to bring the subject of liberality and devotion to the cause of Foreign Missions not only to the consideration of the understanding, so as to awaken conviction, but into the more inti- mate presence of the affections of the heart, so as to make it feel that this is a work that comes home to every man's business and bosom. He would appeal, therefore, not merely to faith, but also to hope; not merely to a sense of obligation, but also to that of interest and self-love. He would show that the conversion of the ivorld is not only a work that shall be, and that ought to be, ac- complished, but that it is one in whose ac- complishment every individual Christian and church has both a partnership and a pro- prietorship; both a labour to perform and
(7)
8 PREFACE.
remuneration to secure. He would thus im- part to his readers not only conviction of a trust, but a willingness to recognize, and power to fulfil it. He would enkindle not only a greater readiness and desire towards this "good work," but love itself. And by showing the relation in which activity in this mission of the Church stands to immortality, to union and fellowship with Christ, and to spirituality, and hope, and joy, he would desire to make that a labour of love and a life of pleasantness and peace, which, in the light of obligation merely, might wear to some the aspect of hopelessness, self-denial, and unrequiting, if not useless toil.
May He who has graciously declared, that he is glorified when his disciples bear much fruit, and that they prove their love to him by their obedience to his commandments, ac- company this appeal with his Spirit, and cause his Church and people to arise and shine, the glory of the Lord having arisen upon them.
BY WHOM IS THE WORLD TO BE CONVERTED?
THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST DESTINED TO BECOME UNIVERSAL,
Evert one who receives the Bible as "given by inspiration of God," must believe that it will be all verified through the work- ing of that infinite wisdom and power with which he makes all things to conspire for the fulfilment of his purposes, so that though heaven and earth may pass away, one jot or tittle of all he has said shall in no wise pass away till all be fulfilled.
Every believer in the Bible must there- fore be convinced that the kingdom of Christ is destined to extend its spiritual conquests, until it shall include within its dominion all kingdoms and nations. Nothing can be more explicit than the repeated declarations of this purpose, contained in the word of 2
10 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
God. "I ■will declare the decree. The Lord (L e. Jehovah) hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the utter- most parts of the earth for thy possession." This is a part of the covenant which has been entered into between the Father and the Son in " the counsel of peace that was between them both." Therefore all nations and kings are commanded, at their peril, to recognize and be in subjection to Christ. (Psalm ii; see also Psalm ex.) This is no doubtful interpretation. Of this same decree we have another account by the prophet Daniel (vii. 13, 14, 27); "I saw in the night \isions, and behold, one like the Son of Man <;ame with the clouds (the myriad host) of heaven, and came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, na- tions, and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that
TO BE CONVERTED? 11
which shall not be destroyed. And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions (or rulers) shall serve hira."
This dominion was assumed and estab- lished by our Lord Jesus Christ, who laid its foundation in his finished work of obedi- ence unto death, and secured its ultimate and certain accomplishment by his resur- rection from the dead, his ascension into heaven, and his resumption, as " Head over all things for the Church," of that "glory which he had with the Father from before the foundation of the world." When, there- fore, after his resurrection, our Saviour appeared to the members of his kingdom, as far as then existing, who were gath- ered together by his special appointment, he said unto them: "All power is given unto me in heaven and on earth: go ye therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing
12 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."
We repeat, therefore, our declaration, that every man who believes in the Bible, and in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Saviour of the world, must also believe that the kingdom of Christ is destined to be universal.
Everything about it is universal, and no- thing local, national, temporary, or exclu- sive. Christ, its King and Redeemer, is " the Saviour of all men," and "the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world." As "God our Saviour, he will have all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth." He gave himself, therefore, a ransom for all to be testified in due time unto all.
The knowledge of this Saviour, and of the propitiation made by him for the sins of all in the world who believe upon him, is the gospel, — the good spell — " the glad tidings which shall be to all people," — " good will to- ward men." As this gospel is " everlasting," so it is universal, and to be proclaimed "unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every
TO BE CONVERTED? 13
nation, and kindred, and tongue, and peo- ple."
The provisions, the promises, the com- mands, the obligations, the ordinances, the sacrifices, the benefits, and blessings of this kingdom are equally and alike for all men. It has no respect for persons, and makes no exceptions. It regards every man as a sin- ner, and guilty before God, and sweeps with the " besom of destruction" all the sublunary distinctions and difi'erences among men. In the administration of this kingdom "there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female," there is neither high nor low, rich nor poor, wise nor foolish, learned nor ignorant, Saxon nor Celtic, European, Asiatic, African, nor American. "All are one" out of Christ, equally helpless and hopeless; and " all are one in Christ," "for all are the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus."
This great fundamental truth, which levels all human distinctions in one common type of sin and misery, and melts all human rela- tionships into one common brotherhood, and
9*
14 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
one common fatherhood — God in Christ — is made equally certain by negative, as well as by positive, teaching. For as Christ is the Saviour of all men, so that whosoever of the sons of men believeth on him shall not perish, but have everlasting life, so also is it declared from heaven that " neither is there salvation in any other, for there is none other name under heaven, given among men," by which any man can be saved. He, therefore, that believeth not on the Son of God (be he who or what he may) shall be damned. He is even condemned already, because he hath not believed on the only-begotten Son of God, and the wrath of God abideth on him.
But further: as this kingdom of Christ is thus universal in its provisions and in its ad- ministration, so is it uniform in the mode by which men secure the appropriation of its blessings. Salvation can be appropriated by any human being, only through the exer- cise of faith. This is the only possible me- dium by which that which is external to the Boul, that which is spiritual, invisible, or
TO BE CONVERTED? 15
founded upon the testimony of another, can become ours. Christ and his salvation can, therefore, become the joyful experience of any soul only through faith, by which, though now it sees not Christ, yet, believ- ing upon him, it rejoices with joy unspeak- able, and full of glory. The exercise of faith, in order to salvation, is thus made es- sentially prerequisite, not by any arbitrary arrangement on the part of God, nor by any- thing peculiar in the gospel, but by the very constitution of the human mind, and of the world around it. All knowledge, and there- fore all conduct, — for this depends on know- ledge,— and all the happiness or misery of life, are based ultimately on the principle of faith.
But as faith results from the certainty of testimony and the authority and veracity of the testator, in order to its possible exer- cise, that testimony and that authority must be present to the mind. Man, as a rational being, can only believe when he has what he regards as sufficient authority for what is believed. He may be grossly deluded and
16 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
deceived, but he believes, because ignorant of, or unwilling to admit, the delusion. For a man, therefore, to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and in salvation through him, and to have that peace with God which is the consequence of such faith, he must neces- sarily possess sufficient knowledge of Christ and of the salvation he has accomplished. This is what is so logically, so philosophi- cally, and, at the same time, so authorita- tively, taught by the Apostle Paul (Rom. x. 13.) After stating the universality of the gospel, and that faith is the only condition made necessary for its reception, — "for who- soever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved," — he goes on to ask, " How, then, shall they call on him in whom they have not believed ? and how shall they be- lieve on him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? So, then, faith cometh by hearing, and hear- ing by the (preaching of the) word of God." In every point of view, therefore, in which they can be considered, the kingdom of Christ and the gospel of the kingdom,
TO BE CONVERTED? 17
(whether we regard them as founded on the decree of God or as established bj Christ,) with all their provisions, promises, means of grace, and mode of appropriation, are uni- versal, adapted to man as man, free and full to all alike, and offering to every creature, in all the world, the unspeakable gift of God's only begotten Son, so that whosoever believeth in him may not perish, but have everlasting life.
May it not, then, be laid down as a first principle, an incontrovertible truth, that every one who truly believes the Bible, and in Christ as the Saviour of the world, must also believe that his kingdom and gos- pel are designed to be as universal as the family of man ?
THIS UNIVERSALITY OF THE KINGDOM OF CHRIST TO BE BROUGHT ABOUT THROUGH THE INSTRUMENTALITY OF MAN.
"VVe proceed to make another remark, and that is, that, as in accordance with the will and word of God, the kingdom and gospel of Christ are designed to be universal, and as
18 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
all the resources and attributes of Deity must be considered as pledged for the fulfilment of this purpose, every one who truly believes the Bible, and in Christ as there revealed, must believe that this universality will be brought about through the agency of man.
This is the only way by which, in consist- ency with man's nature, as a free, rational, and responsible being, and in accordance with the analogy of God's government in the natural world, the kingdom of Christ can become universal.
We might conceive it possible for God miraculously to convey the gospel of this kingdom, by angelic or human agency, to every nation, singly and individually. But besides being in contrariety to the whole analogy of the divine government, such a me- thod would be contrary to the generic, funda- mental laws of unity, simplicity, and repre- sentation. It would involve an unnecessary multiplication of causes for the production of a desired result, in contrariety to those great laws, by each of which, singly and alone, we see innumerable results constantly secured.
TO BE CONVERTED? 19
It would break up the human race into indi- viduals, in violent opposition to every organic principle of human nature, and of the divine procedure in all departments of the natural world; and it would contradict that principle of representation by which the many are bound together under one law, one centre of influence, one head or representative. This law is found lying at the foundation of all order, both in the natural and moral gov- ernment of God, in the family, the commu- nity, the state, the kingdom, and the world at large, and is the basis of all association, intercourse, and business between different individuals and countries.
As this method, therefore, would involve the adoption of supernatural, miraculous, and anomalous agency, where natural means might be employed, the only plan left for the universal extension of the gospel and kingdom of Christ, was the appointment of some one people, nation, or church, pre- pared for the purpose by proper training, provided with all necessary evidence, know- ledge, gifts, and graces, and under the
20 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
assurance of divine guidance, efficiency, and success — as witnesses, heralds, and instruct- ors of their fellow-men.
Such a plan is in perfect accordance with the whole analogy of the natural world, and with all the laws mentioned. It recognizes the unity of the human race, their common nature, their common origin, apostasy, and ruin, their participation in the same miseries and forebodings of that judgment which is after death, the common salvation and Saviour, and the one and only way in which any man can be- come a partaker of this "so great salvation."
This plan is adapted, therefore, to the nature of man, as well as to the principles of God's government in the natural and moral world. There is also a perfect congruity be- tween the plan and the agent who is to carry it out. Man is an active being, and finds all his powers developed by exertion, without which he is unhealthy, unhappy, useless. Man is a social being, and can find full play for his faculties, and perfect enjoyment for his desires and affections, only in companionship and association with his fellow men. Man
TO BE CONVERTED? 21
is endowed with the gift of language and ■with intelligence to learn from others, and to communicate knowledge to them, and in doing so he is aided by the marvellous power of the human voice, with its accompanying tones, looks, sympathies, and gestures. Man is a fearless, enterprising being, fond of tra- vel and of change, capable of endurance, and nerved by danger and exploits, and can thus roam the earth in search of adventure, and inhabit every climate. Man was designed, and ought, to be a benevolent being, capa- ble of love and pity, generosity and dis- interested philanthropy. He is sensitive to calamity, touched with woe, sympathizing with distress, and impelled to acts of charity and labours of love, by the whole power of his affections, and the commanding authority of his conscience requiring this as his duty. Happiness, therefore, according to the very constitution of man's nature, is connected with activity in doing good to others; and a man might just as reasonably expect to be happy in the solitude of a desert, or to be in health without food, as to be happy in the in- 3
22 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
dulgence of a selfish inactivity. Millions have tried the experiment, but with the same result. In proportion to their capacity to do good, and their devotion of that power to selfish purposes, they have destroyed their own true felicity, like Swift, one of the most selfish as he was one of the most talented of men, and of whom Archbishop King said that "he was the most unhappy man on earth." "And surely it is a striking testimony to the divine benevolence, that God so arranged the world that every generous impulse does as much for the giver as the receiver, while a man is never so happy as while intent on the happiness of others."*
Man is also a spiritual being, possessed not only of bodily powers, and senses, and appe- tites, but of mind and heart, by which he comes into contact with other minds and hearts. He finds that as face answereth to face in a glass, so does the heart of man to man, and that independently of all other means of communication, men can enter into
* See Xote A.
TO BE CONVERTED? 23
each other's feelings, rejoice with each other when they rejoice, and weep with each other when they weep; and that through the me- dium of language spoken and written, they can convey to each other their ideas, their sentiments, and their convictions.
Man is further a representative being. He is a type and model of his race. In him- self he has all the essential laws and princi- ciples of humanity, personal and yet homo- geneous— individual and distinct, and not a link in the chain, a drop in the ocean of life, a ray in the sunshine, a pulsation of the com- mon heart. Everything common to man is his, and nothing strange. Bearing the stamp of the same original and the same degrada- tion, he can therefore stand up among his fellow-men, and from the admitted principles of a common experience, tell them of their sins and sorrows, and need of salvation, by unfolding to them his own.
To all this we would add, that man is a religious being, capable of knowing, loving, serving, and finding his supreme and only satisfying happiness in, God. As such, man
24 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
cannot but admit that his relations to God are his highest, his obligations to God un- speakable, his duty to God paramount. He must feel that as God is the common Father of all men, all men are brethren, and that as it is his first and great commanded duty to love God with all his heart, and soul, and strength, and mind, so is it his se- cond great duty to " love his neighbour as himself," to love the soul of his neighbour even as he loves and values his own soul, that is, as infinitely more important than any- thing that is merely temporal, and, by the communication of spiritual knowledge, to im- part to the souls of his fellow-men, even as he would desire and feel it right, and kind, and merciful in others, to communicate to him, that spiritual good on which depends everlasting life.
" He who needeth love, to love hath right ; It is not like our furs and stores of corn, Whereto we claim sole title by our toil. The God of love plants it within our hearts, And waters it, and gives it sun, to be The common stock and heritage of all."
TO BE CONVERTED? 25
SELF-DKNIAL, AND LIVING FOR OTHERS, A UNIVERSAL LAW AMONG ALL HOLY BEINGS, AND RESTORED BY REDEMP- TION.
It has thus heen shown that man is so constituted as to be not only adapted to the work of extending the kingdom of Christ, but to be incapable of the full development of his nature and the full measure of his happiness, except in active exertion and self- denying charity, and prayer, and interest in this glorious end and aim of life. It was, therefore, necessary for the happiness and the moral elevation of man, that the fulfilment of this great purpose of God should be entrusted to his agency as a "steward of the manifold mercies of God," that in doing good to others he might himself be blessed, and find by experience that " it is more blessed to give than to receive." Man's chief end was that he might glorify and enjoy God. To enjoy God, however, he must glorify him. His will must be conformed to God's will, his life to God's law, his aim to God's purpose, and his whole heart to God's service. This was the spirit of Christ as our incarnate 3*
20 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
exemplar, and filled his heart with joy, so that he counted it even as his meat and drink to do the will of God. This is the spirit of angels, and makes angels what they are — holy and happy. This is the spirit of heaven, and fills heaven with satisfying bless- edness. This, too, was the spirit of primeval man, while as yet he was unacquainted with grief, and untainted with sin.
Indeed, this spirit animites all the works of God. "For others and not for myself," is the life of all that lives, the growth of all that grows, the existence of all that exists. It is the utterance alike of animate and inan- imate nature. In the light that enlivens us, the air that sustains us, the water that puri- fies us, the earth that nourishes us — in the deep mines that warm, and enrich, and gar- nish our persons and our habitations — in all the beauty, the grandeur, and the sublimity of nature — in every flower that blooms and sheds its fragrance — in every tree that spreads its branches so as to delight the eye, and ripens its fruit so as to gratify the taste — in every shower that waters the earth,
TO BE CONVERTED? 27
and every dew-drop that glistens in the morning ray — everywhere, and in every thing, "we find written, "not for myself but for oth- ers." Most surely, then, will this be true of man who was made in God's image, but a little lower than the angels, God's exemp- lar, representative, and almoner upon earth. "No man liveth unto himself" is the law impressed upon his nature, the condition of his being, the prerequisite of his well-being, the inflexible rule and measure of his worth, and the inexorable awarder of his propor- tionate recompense in present enjoyment and ever-abiding happiness.
A man, therefore, who lives to himself, is an anomaly in the universe. He is the only being and the only thing, in all the cre- ation of God, that so exists. He is a moral monster, ugly, misshapen, deformed, without natural affection, an abomination in the sight of God and of all holy beings — "earthly, sensual, devilish." Yes, selfishness is the law of Satan, not of God ; of human corrup- tion, not of human nature ; of man fallen, not of man upright. It is sin, and guilt,
?8 BY AVHOM IS THE WORLD
and misery. It is the black and damning proof of man's rebellion against God, and subj^tion to the Evil One. It undermines man's nature, God's law, earth's happiness, heaven's holiness, the very throne and majes- ty of God. It has driven out legions of apostate angels from heaven, peopled earth with criminals, and hordes of beings more reckless and ruthless than the beasts of the forest ; prepared hell for the devil, his an- gels, and ungodly men ; and filled every breeze that blows with the sounds of weep- ing, and wailing, and bitter lamentations.
In the plan of redemption we may be very sure, therefore, that — as it is designed to remedy man's great calamity, renovate his corrupt nature, and reinstate him in holiness and happiness in the service, glory, and en- joyment of God — man will become the instru- ment, in God's hand — made effective by God's working in him and with him — of proclaim- ing peace and good-will to men, the domin- ion of love, the reign of charity, and the universal brotherhood of the human family. Man will himself be made, by the power of
TO BE CONVERTED? 29
God through the gospel of his Son, the pat- tern of renovated and redeemed humanity. Exorcised from the spirit of selfishness, and possessed of the spirit of love — love to God, love to Christ, and love to the souls of men, he is "compelled" to go forth among his fellows, proclaim to them " the unsearchable riches of Christ," tell them what God has done for his own soul, and as "the Spirit and the bride say, Come," to say "who- soever will may come, and take of the water of life freely." Man's individual good is thus promoted while securing the good of others. "Self-denial is made the cure of selfishness." Living for others invigorates and establishes the true life of man, and serving Christ, following him, enduring the cross, and counting all things but loss for the honour of his name and the advancement of his kingdom, fills the heart with peace and joy, and enables it to rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
"This holy work, this heavenly task, Will furnish all we ought to ask ; Room to deny ourselves, a road To bring us daily nearer God."
30 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
THIS PRIXCIPLE OF LOVE, AND LIVING FOR OTHERS, ILLUS- TRIOUSLY EXEMPLIFIED IN GOD, AND IN CHRIST OUR SAVIOUR.
Such, assuredly, is the nature and design of the gospel in its operation upon the heart of every individual believer of it. Salvation is so imparted as to create in every recipient the desire to impart salvation to others, and a spirit of self-denying charity, liberality, and effort to extend the gospel and the king- dom of Christ, according to his ability, to every creature.
"The blessed God," whose "glorious gos- pel" it is, liveth not for himself. He is the parent of all good, "the Father of lights,^ from whom cometh down every good and per- fect gift." Ages before the creation of man he established the foundations of his future habitation, laid up in store-houses, all ready and prepared for his use, everything that was necessary for his future comfort, and beautified and adorned it with all that is rich, varied, and delightful to the most refined taste. And when man had plunged himself into the abyss of misery, God, who,
TO BE CONVERTED? 31
had hitherto worked for his temporal com- fort, "so loved him as to give his only be- gotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.'* God has thus made himself known in the gospel as LOVE, that we may learn that love is the spirit by which he "brings us back unto God;" that "love is the fulfilling of the law;" that in loving him we will love also our fellow-men ; and that if we are not actu- ated by a spirit of charity and benevolent exertion for them, the love of God cannot dwell in our hearts.
Christ as the author and finisher of our faith, the subject and the spirit of the gospel, its altar-sacrifice and priest, its foundation, superstructure, and security, its life and power — Christ liveth not for himself. "He loved us and gave himself for us." He gave up the glory "which he had with the Father from before the foundation of the world," that he might come down to earth to "seek and to save those who were lost." He entered into our nature, assumed our earthly relations, trials and toils, endured our griefs
32 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
and carried our sorrows, and was in all points tempted even as we are, that in this body of flesh, in this earthly life, and in this world of duty and of danger, he might set us an example, and induce us to walk in his steps. In a representative world, under a system of universal representation, in a na- ture eminently and in every way representa- tive and represented, he became the repre- sentative of humanity, "the second Adam," that " as in Adam all died, so in Christ all," who become related to him by faith, "may be made alive." He did not his own will, but the will of Him that sent him. He pleas- ed not himself. He went about his Fa- ther's business. " He went about doing good," bearing reproach, receiving evil for his good done, malevolence for his kindest actions, and persecution, even unto blood, for his God-like devotion to the interests of humanity. Self-denial was the spirit of his life, self-sacrifice the character of all his actions, and love — living not unto himself, but for others, for strangers and even ene-
TO BE CONVERTED? 33
mies — the very element in which he lived, and moved, and had his being.
CHRISTIANITY THE EMBODIMENT, AND CHRISTIANS THE HV- ING MODELS, OF THIS SPIRIT OF SELF-DENYING LOVE.
Now, what Christ was, Christianity is, and Christians are to be. Christianity is the religion of Christ ; the worship and service of Christ ; union to Christ by faith, which is his own gift and the fruit of his Spirit ; love and devotion to Christ ; living not unto ourselves but unto him who redeemed us with his own precious blood, that we might be a peculiar people, zealous of good works. To be a Christian, is to live by the faith of the Son of God ; to live with him, to live as Christ lived, to do as Christ did, and to have the Spirit of Christ. If Christ is the vine, every Christian is a branch, nourished with his sap, growing by his life, blooming with his fragrance, and bearing fruit '' for the healing of the nations." If Christ is a head, every Christian is a member, acting in unison with that head for the accomplish- ment of its purposes of grace and mercy. 4
84 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
Christ is the divine sculptor. From him sprang the glorious ideal of regenerated man. He himself became the mould and type of man "upright," man "holy, harm- less and undefiled ;" knowing no sin, neither having guile in his heart ; living among them, and yet "separate from sinners;" in it, and yet not of, the world, and unspotted by it ; diligent in business, and yet fervent ia spirit, serving God, and having his affec- tions set on things that are above. And as the sculptor hands over his model to his workmen, that they may imitate and repro- duce its likeness, guiding them by his eye and correcting them by his skill, so does Christ give into the hands of his disciples his divine model, that under his eye, and the power of the Holy Ghost working in and with them in quickening and transforming energy, they may be his instruments in fash- ioning other hearts, and making them "new creatures in Christ Jesus." As we have borne the image, and the spirit, and the selfish life of the earthly Adam, we must also bear the image of the heavenly. The
TO BE CONVERTED? 35
form, the features, the benevolent expres- sion, the tones of melting tenderness, the words of love and power, the life of good- ness, the doing good to all men, will all be transferred to "the living epistle seen and read of all men," written not on tables of stone, but on the fleshy table of the heart of every one who is chosen of God, and changed into the image of Christ.
The universal law of Christ is, "if any man will come after me," that is, come out from the world and be separated from it, renouncing its dominion and authority, and becoming subject unto Christ, " he must deny himself." He must renounce all claim to be his own property and his own master. He must make the will of Christ, and not his own will, the authority and obligation of his actions. He must make the word of Christ, and not his own opinions or the opinions of others, the rule and measure of duty. He must make love to Christ, and not love of self, the motive of all his actions, and he must make the cause of Christ, and the kingdom of Christ, and the glory of
86 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
Christ in the salvation of souls, and not money-making, or money-hoarding, or mo- ney-spending, the end and object of his life. To human nature as it is, this is a heavy cross, but it must be borne ; a mortifica- tion of the body, but it must be suffered ; and a crucifixion to the world, but it must be offered up. Transformed by this re- newing of his mind, and receiving power and grace from Christ, the believer follows him, through evil and through good report, in doing good and abstaining from evil, " willing to communicate, ready to distri- bute, and zealous in all good works."
The Christian is a good soldier of Jesus Christ, "sworn liegeman of the cross and thorny crown." Christ is now the com- mander and leader of his soul, " the cap- tain of his salvation." "The field is the world." The banner given him to unfurl in the cause of truth and righteousness, is the banner of salvation, the gospel of the grace of God. This word of life he is to hold forth. Under this he is to march. After this he is to follow. For this he is to
TO BE CONVERTED? 37
fight manfully the good fight of faith. Around this he is to press. To this he is to cling in every fiery assault of the adversary. And to plant this on every fortress of the enemy, and see its white pennons floating in the winds of heaven, and carrying with it the assurance of victory and of peace, and good will to the vanquished ; this, 0 this, is the exultant joy of every loyal heart, as he shouts glory to his divine and exalted Sa- viour.
Ye who your Lord's commission bear
His way of mercy to prepare —
Augels he calls ye — be your strife
To lead on earth an angel's life.
Think not of rest, though dreams be sweet,
Start up and ply your heavenward feet.
Is not God's oath upon your head,
Ne'er to sink back on slothful bed;
Never again your loins untie,
Nor let your torches waste and die,
Till when the shadows thickest fall
Ye hear your Master's midnight call ?
As the gospel knows no distinction, and
Christ's kingdom no limit of time or place,
or people or country, so is it with the Chris- 4*
38 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
tian. To him there are no Home and Foreign Missions in 'princiiAe, though for convenience and division of labour, as in the science of the several kingdoms of God's one universal dominion, he may admit the distinction. But in Christ there is no difference, except that of destitution, ignorance, barbarity, and rela- tive precedence in their bearing upon the universal, ultimate result. All such distinc- tions are founded in selfishness and not in love, in temporary and not permanent re- lations, in physical and not in spirituarl equa- lities. They are not of the Father, but of the world, founded in man's present weaknesses and wants, and terminating with his present sublunary condition. They indicate to man i\\Q order but not the ZmiYs of duty ;- where, he is to begin and how he is to proceed, but not the boundary within which his love, and charity, and labour are to be circumscribed. Piety must begin in the individual heart. "We must learn to shovr piety first at home, in the family, then in the church, and the commu- nity. But it will not, cannot stop there. If it does, it is selfishness under the garb of
TO BE CONVERTED? 39
religion. It is carnal and worldly — the good olive branch grafted on the stem of the origi- nal wild olive tree of the natural heart. Such a man loves his own, and in so doing what does he more than others? Do not even infidels and Christless men the same ? If he did not do this much, would he not be " worse than an infidel?" and in merely doing this, therefore, he can be no better. This, when made a substitute for Christian piety, is hypocrisy.
" The gospel is the expression of God's love, and the believer is a man, who, filled with heaven's emanating kindness, becomes in his turn a living gospel. There is an ecclesiastical Christianity, and there is a dogmatic Christianity. The former regards it as the main thing to belong to a particular church ; the latter lays all the stress on maintaining certain doctrines. But the Christian of the Bible, while he is all this, is also a great deal more. By believing what God reveals, he becomes what God desires — a holy, devout, beneficent presence in socie- ty; a sick world's healer; a sad world's com
40 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
forter; a sympathizer and a fellow-worker with the Supreme Beneficence." Remem- bering
"That, throned above all height, He condescends To call the few who trust in him his friends; That, in the Heaven of heavens, its space he deems Too scanty for the exertion of his beams, And shines, as if impatient to bestow Life and a kingdom upon worms below ; Like him the soul, thus kindled from above, Spreads wide her arms of universal love ; And, still enlarged as she receives the grace, Includes creation in her close embrace."
In other words, important as are sound- ness in the faith and steadfastness of principle, these are but the roots and stem from which spring love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gen- tleness, goodness; and it is hardly uncha- ritable to doubt whether that man's piety be true who does not visit the fatherless and afflicted, as well as keep himself unspotted from the world. True piety is the life of God in the soul. It is a transfusion into the disciple of the mind of the Master. It is a ray of the divine gladness kindling the
TO BE CONVERTED? 41
human heart, converting it into a living sacrifice, and filling all its circle with such a fragrance, glow, and brightness, as can only be created by fire from heaven.
The roots and stem, therefore, without the fruits, are but the assumption of the name of Christian, without the spirit which animates and characterizes it. It is " faith without works, which is dead." It is the spirit of the flesh, saying like Cain, "Am I my bro- ther's keeper?" It is the spirit of the self- righteous Pharisee, asking, "Who then is my neighbour?" and passing him by on the other side as you carry home your good things to your family and kindred. True piety is light set on a hill, unobstructed by any barrier, and shedding its rays far as the eye can reach. It is leaven which, while it must be cast in at some particular spot, and diffuse itself from it as from a centre, never rests until it has leavened the whole mass. And thus, also, is it compared to salt, which if it loses its power of savouring any portion of the fluid, is good for nothing.
42 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
SELFISH PIETY NOT ONLY NOT CHRISTIAN, BUT ANTLCHRIS- TIAN.
Piety restricted to self, or family, or kin- dred, or church, or country, is not therefore Christianity. It contradicts the gospel, in its provisions, promises, commands, ordinan- ces, obligations, and blessings. It is not the spirit of Christ. He knew not even his own mother, according to the flesh, when about his Father's business, and has declared, that whosoever doeth his will, is his mo- ther, and sister, and brother. While his body was in Judea, his heart, his prayers, his prospective blessings were everywhere, and with all who should hereafter believe on him, to the end of the world. While in order to "fulfil all righteousness" and all prophecy, he personally went no farther than Judea, and required his disciples to begin at Jerusalem, and there await the outpouring of the Spirit, he commanded them not to tarry there, but to go far thence among the Gentiles, preaching the unsearchable riches of Christ to every creature. For thus it is written, and thus "it behoved Christ to suffer.
TO BE CONVERTED? 43
and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." Christ loved men as men, as *' enemies," as "ungodly," as *' without strength," "without God and with- out hope." To have the spirit and the love of Christ is, therefore, to love the souls of perishing men, and to the utmost of our ability and opportunity, to save them from death. This only is "the love of the spi- BIT," with which Christ imbues every believ- ing heart, renewing them in the temper of their minds and enlarging their desires and efforts so as to comprehend the wants and woes of a perishing world.
0 thou, who keep'st the key of love
Open thy fount, eternal Dove, And overflow this heart of mine,
Enlarging as it fills with thee, /
Till in one blaze of charity, Self and its will are lost, like motes, in light divine.
But not only is such piety not -Christian — it is anti-christian. Is Christ divided ? Is the kingdom of Christ divided against itself,
44 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
or partitioned out into national, sectional, and family compartments? Can I circum- scribe Christ in his claims, blessings, and requirements, by me and mine, by white or black, north or south, bond or free, home or foreign? Nay, if I do, I am none of his. For if any man love father or mother, or family or kindred, or country, more than Christ ; if he do not hate them all for Christ's sake and the gospel's, that is, hold them in subordination to the higher and paramount claims of both, he is none of Christ's. He cannot be Christ's disciple. Christ never knew him. He is not with Christ, but against him. He is a rebel, a traitor, an unfaithful steward, a disobedient son, a wicked and slothful servant, hiding his lord's talent in a napkin, or burying it "like a crock of gold in a coffin."
Christ did not leave this matter to mere precept and example. He has made it im- possible for any man who is not wilfully blind, to believe a lie so palpable, and a delusion so gross, as that a piety whose spirit, principle, prayers, sacrifices, and ef-
TO BE CONVERTED? 45
forts, are limited by home, or church, or country, is Christianity. He has done this by identifying himself with a perishing world, and with the poor and miserable, and blind and naked, and outcast, wherever and who- soever, they be. Like as a father is repre- sented by every member of his family, and a prince by every one of his subjects, and a government, whether municipal, state, or national, by every one of its citizens, so that what is done for the one is done for the other, and what is done against the one is regarded, and resented, as done against the other; so it is with Christ as he stands related to all those who are " perishing for lack of knowledge." The heathen are his inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth his possession. In them we see him. By them is he represented, and brought within the reach of our neglect or kindness. And according as we do unto them, we do likewise unto him.
We liave our younger brothers, too,
The poor, the outcast, and the trodden down,
Left fatherless on earth to pine for bread !
5
46 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
They are a hungered for our love and care ; It is their spirits that are famishing, And our dear Father, in his testament, Bequeathed them to us as our dearest trust. Wherefore we shall give up a strait account. Woe if we have forgotten them, and left Those souls that might have grown in fear and love — Left them to feel their birthright but a curse.
But as Christ is represented in the mute objects of charity and compassion, so is he also in the agents of his bounty, to whom he has imparted gifts, graces, and the gold and silver which are the Lord's. In the one Christ represents himself passively; in the other, he is represented actively. In the one he is the object and the recipient of charity ; in the other, the agent and the donor. In the one class of representatives we see his resources, his power, his munificent benevolence, his free, sovereign, and disin- terested compassion. In the other class we behold — as John did in the earthly mother, to whom Christ directed him while on the cross, saying, *' Behold thy mother" — the deep misery of humanity, its need of salva- tion and a Saviour, its utter hopelessness, its
TO BE CONVERTED? 47
inability and indisposition even to its own spiritual good, and the absolute necessity that, in order to be saved, man must be drawn with the cords of a man, melted by kindness, unprejudiced by love, and thus made willing to come to Jesus. In every Christian, the world sees — expects, and ought to see — one who exhibits the traits and temper of Christ — who feels that he is in Christ's stead — who acts as he thinks Christ would have acted if in his circum- stances— and who does unto others what he believes Christ would have rendered unto them, and not what is dictated by his own self-interest. In all the trying conditions of humanity Christ lived. He knows well what they are, and what they imply, for he has felt the same, "though without sin." He is able to sympathize both with the sufferer, and with the agents of his intended bounty. He knows the individual, personal worthless- ness of the one, — so far as any claim of merit or desert can reach, — and his unrequi- ting and ungrateful spirit. And he knows the unselfish, disinterested labour of love
48 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
required on the part of his servants. On this very account, however, does Christ regard that labour as love to himself, and lay up for it a grateful recompense in the world to come,
For 'mid tlie throng of selfish hearts untrue, His glad eye rests upon his faithful few.
This is no figurative representation. It is a plain and unquestionable verity, in con- formity to all human principles of equity and of action, and the proclaimed rule, not only for testing the sincerity of our present faith, and hope, and love, and charity, but for that judgment in the court of heaven by which the future destiny of every man will be determined. (Matt, xxv.) No man, therefore, can have any difficulty in under- standing what is the will of Christ, the spirit of Christ, and the command of Christ, since he has identified himself with his kingdom, and made our faith, and love, and obedience co-extensive with the gospel — that is, with the entire brotherhood of humanity.
Ah! wherefore persecute ye me, ' Tis hard, ye so in love should be With your own endless woe.
TO BE CONVERTED? 49
Know, though at God's right hand I live, I feel each -wound ye reckless give To the least soul below.
I in your care these souls have left, Not willing ye should be bereft
Of waiting on your Lord. The meanest offering ye can make — A drop of water for love's sake,
In heaven, be sure, is stored.
Still as we walk our earthly round. Still may the echo of that sound Be in our memory stored: Christians! behold your happy state, Christ is in these, who round you wait ; Make much of your dear Lord.
The conclusion, therefore, is irresistibly plain, that every man who believes the Bible and in Christ, must believe and feel that it is his first and paramount duty, as a Christian, to identify himself with Christ and his kingdom, and to live so as by his in- strumentality to extend that kingdom, as far as his means and opportunity will enable him. Faith in Christ will shed abroad in his soul love to Christ, and this will constrain him to live so as to please, and honour, and 6*
50 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
glorify Christ, by obeying his command- ments, imitating his example, and labouring for the salvation of a world lying in wicked- ness.
Wouldst tliou the life of souls discern ?
Nor human wisdom, nor divine, Helps thee by aught besides to learn;
Love is life's only sign.
The spring of the regenerate heart, The pulse, the glow, of every part. Is the true love of Christ our Lord, As man embraced, as God adored.
The heart which loves the Lord aright, No soul of man can worthless find.
All will be precious in his sight, Since Christian all hath shined.
THE EXTENSION OF GOD's KINGDOM HAS ALWAYS BEEN A TRUST FOR WHICH MAN HAS BEEN RESPONSIBLE.
Such is God's instrumentality for the universal establishment of the kingdom of Christ and the universal diffusion of the knowledge of salvation. Men are put in trust, and made responsible for this work, and to them will pertain the glory or the shame, the honour or disgrace, the victory or
TO BE CONVERTED? 51
defeat, the recompense or retribution, since in God's stead they are made ambassadors and witnesses, and co-workers with him.
Such has ever been God's plan. Salva- tion for the world, through the knowledge and belief of the good news of a divine in- carnate Saviour, has been the trust put into the hands of the Church, that is, of the people of God, from the very beginning of the world. The fulfilment of this trust was made man's great work and business upon earth. For this was a dispensation of good- ness and mercy vouchsafed to him, through the mediation of Christ, and the long-suffer- ing forbearance of God. He pursues other work, and eats, drinks, marries, and is given in marriage, that he may live; but he lives that he may work out his own salvation and the salvation of others, and thus honour, obey, and enjoy God. To this work is man consecrated and life devoted. The "seed of the woman," from the beginning, recognized and received this trust. The echoes of their loud and earnest warnings and appeals to the unbelieving world around them, come to
52 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
US through distant ages, and over the waters of the flood, crying, "Behold the Lord Com- eth with ten thousand of his saints, to execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them, of all their un- godly deeds which they have ungodly com- mitted, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him." And when God's people waxed faint-hearted and worldly, and that voice died away amid the sounds of merriment and the hum of business, the flood came and swept an un- faithful and unbelieving generation from the earth.
The gospel for the world was then put in trust with Noah and his seed, and afterwards with Abraham and his seed, in whom all the families of the earth were to be blest; and then a single nation was chosen, edu- cated, corrected, and purified in the fires of persecution from idolatrous tendencies, that they might be God's faithful witnesses in the earth. And as the descendants of Noah and Abraham were dispersed abroad over the earth that they might carry with them,
TO BE CONVERTED? 53
and sow, the incorruptible seed of divine truth to take root and flourish in all lands, so also when the Jews failed to execute their mission, they were peeled and scattered, and thus constrained to bear the Scriptures and the knowledge of a Saviour into the most dis- tant climes. So long, and so far, as they were faithful stewards and evangelists, they prospered, and entered most prominently into the history of the world. But when selfishness and self-seeking pride became their ruling principle, and they refused, as a people, to become the heralds of their incar- nate Saviour, the body died. They became barren and corrupt, until finally the nation was annihilated and became extinct, broken ofi" and severed from the good olive tree, instead of being developed into full matu- rity, beauty and fruitfulness by union to Christ Jesus.
This trust of the gospel was therefore taken from them and given to Christians who are of the seed of Abraham, and to whom is now imparted the high calling, the glorious privilege, and the paramount and trans-
64 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
cendent of all duties, that of conveying the gospel and extending the kingdom of Christ to every creature. This duty comprehends, includes and inspirits every other Christian work, and is therefore enjoined upon believ- ers in the one expressive and final com- mand of the departing Saviour, and reit- erated and enforced by his subsequent com- munications from heaven. It is made by him the basis of success, the law of progress, the source of life, permanency and prosper- ity, the condition of his promise, presence and divine efficiency; the test of obedience; the measure of love ; the way of self-impart- ing peace and joy; and the rule of future recompense. Recognition of this principle, adoption of this spirit, living by this rule, and consecration to this work, are therefore essential to Christian character and life, to faith, love, loyalty, obedience, spirituality and happiness. How can a man believe the gospel and not say "come" to those who are perishing for lack of its knowledge, which he is required to proclaim ? How can a man receive Christ and enter into union with him,
TO BE CONVERTED? 55
and not desire to draw all men unto him? How can a man imbibe the Spirit of Christ and not travail in soul for the salvation of all men? How can a man bring his will into unison with the will of Christ by pray- ing always with all prayer, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven," and not feel the extension of that kingdom and the consummation of his "will that all men should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth," to be his highest and holiest purpose? How can a man be the servant of Christ and be sent by him into the world, even as the Father sent him into the world, and not live and labour for the promotion of that great work of which Christ laid the foundation, and which he has hired them as labourers to carry on? How can a man honour the Lord with his substance, and prove that his love to Christ is greater than his love of property and wealth, and not willingly communicate and cheerfully distribute it to the furtherance of the gospel, and to the support of Christ's
56 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
ministers and cause? How can a man love Christ and show gratitude to him, and not endeavour to secure for him the heathen for his inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth for his possession ? And how can a man be animated by the love of the Spirit, and not conspire in his great mis- sion, that of convincing the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment ?
Largely thou givest, gracious Lord, Largely thy gifts should be restored; Freely thou givest, and thy word
Is "freely give" — He only who forgets to hoard,
Has learned to live.
Pastors and elders, people, all Should feel the showers of mercy fall, And starting at the Redeemer's call.
Give what he gave, Till their high deeds the world appal,
And sinners save.
And as it is with individual Christians so it is with churches. What is fundamental to one, both as to principle, life, duty, and prosperity, is essential to the other. A
TO BE CONVERTED? 57
church is made up of individual Christians, and is under obligation to believe, profess and do, what is required of each and all its members. The only difference is in the increased measure and weight with which the pressure of the powers of the world to come, and the divine command with its solemn trust, rest upon churches. If every Christian is to be a light, the church is a luminary. If every Christian is a workman, the church is a combination of labourers under eflScient master workmen. If every Christian is a soldier, the church is a pha- lanx, with its bold, daring and gallant lead- ers. If an individual Christian is weak, or poor, or uninfluential, the church is propor- tionably strong, competent, and powerful. And if, therefore, the recognition of the gos- pel as a trust, and the extension of the kingdom of Christ as the primary duty of life,* is essential to the character, progress, and prosperity of every individual Christian, much more is this the law of every church.
* Matthew vi. 31.
58 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
ACTIVE, SELF-DENYING AND LIBERAL CO-OPERATION IN THE CAUSE OF CHRIST, NOT INDIFFERENT, BUT ESSENTIAL TO CHRISTIANS AND CHURCHES,
How plain it is, and yet, oh ! how little is it understood and felt, that Christian ac- tivity, and sacrifice, and contributions for the cause of Christ, are not things expe- dient, important and beneficial merely; not what a Christian is at liberty to do, or, if inconvenient, not to do ; not matters which depend upon our ability, or means, or sup- posed capacity. They are elements of Chris- tian character and life ; the fruits and evi- dences by which the Spirit witnesses that we are born of God; acts of worship; ac- ceptable sacrifices unto God; and means ordained by him for the spiritual good of his people and his own glory through them. They are not acts of charity, the promptings of impulse. They involve the integrity and growth of Christian character. They are invariable and universal. Like faith, repentance, prayer, and praise, they will be manifested by every Christian, and by every church according to that which they have
TO BE CONVERTED? 59
and are. Inactive, selfish and uncharitable they cannot be, for "it is not to be pre- sumed," as has been said, "that God gives an individual or a people a soul niggardly from meanness, parsimonious from covetous- ness." These acts and exercises of Chris- tian life must, therefore, in all cases, be de- veloped according to our resources. No Christian liveth unto himself. No church liveth unto itself. If they do, they will dwindle, languish, and like the heath in the desert that knows no water, remain stunted and dwarfed, and finally perish.*
* " The use of our property furnishes one of the most striking developments of the heart. We are bound, therefore, to make use of it to show our love for God — our attachment to his cause. It is the most efficient method within our reach of declaring the glory of God to a world of sinners. It shows the subjection of our selfishness, and the triumph of the Spirit of grace in the heart, and over the life. It brings to view, as no- thing else can, the heaven-born principle of benevo- lence in its control of human conduct. It shows the transforming power, and the unspeakable beauty and loveliness of the religion of the cross, and speaks strongly to the hearts and consciences of men, to turn unto God, and bring forth fruits meet for repentance."
60 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
And is not this the reason why so many Christians and churches do actually live at such a poor dying rate, so cold and languid, so barren and unprofitable ?
A fouler vision yet, churches of light — Light without love, glare on the aching sight.
They look to themselves, not to Christ. They consider their own things, not the things that are his. Like the fearful and unbelieving sinner, they are seeking for peace, and prosperity, and blessing, not in the way of cheerful and confiding obedience, but as direct gifts from God. They can do little, and therefore they do nothing. They can give but a small sum, and, therefore, give none at all. Their influence is limited, and therefore they roll it up carefully and hide it in the earth. They cannot grow and strengthen and mature because they are "always learning, and never come to the knowledge of the truth," always desiring and never ''doing the will of God," and, in so doing, receiving his promised blessing and assurance. They sit cold and shivering, lean and hunger-bitten, rubbing their hands to-
TO BE CONVERTED? 61
gether and wishing they were warm, instead of rising up, and invigorating and warming their hearts by acts and exercises of Chris- tian charity and well-doing. May He who is to dead bones, dead bodies, dead hearts, dead souls, dead families, and dead churches, *'the Resurrection and the Life," breathe upon us the word of his life-inspiring, love-enkin- dling and power-awakening Spirit, and from these dry mouldering bones, whitening in the sun, raise up children to perfect his praise, and an army of self-sacrificing soldiers to fight valiantly for the cause of truth and righteousness.
And so it ever will and must be. He that liveth to himself shall not prosper, and can- not be happy, and that church which liveth to itself shall not receive the blessing of the Lord. The eternal law of God's government in nature, providence and grace, will so de- termine it. "Faith without works is dead." "To him that hath shall be given, and he shall have more abundantly, while from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he seemeth to have. He that soweth 6*
62 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
sparingly shall reap also sparingly, and he that soweth bountifully shall reap also boun- tifully. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that ye, always having all-sufficiency in all things, may abound in every good work."
What blind infatuation, what deplorable ignorance is it, then, for any Christian, min- ister, or church, to plead weakness, feeble- ness, poverty, and manifold necessities and wants, as a reason for living in inactivity, forgetful of this unalterable relation between sowing and reaping, labour and recompense, liberality and reward. Self-denial, sacrifice, and the contribution of our property accord- ing as God hath prospered us (not grudg- ingly, for the Lord loveth a cheerful giver,) are made by Christ essential to our Christian hope and happiness. The poor widow gave but a farthing, but it was "all that she had," and she gave it and was blessed. The churches in Macedonia out of their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of liberal- ity, and were blessed. And so must every Christian and every church give, and labour,
TO BE CONVERTED? 63
and pray for the kingdom of Christ and the salvation of the worhi, if they would receive the full blessedness of the gospel. There is not a member of our churches in this coun- try that could not spare something and lay it by in store, weekly, for this divine cause. There is not a member, in any of our church- es, that could not increase, or double, or multiply an hundred fold, what he now offers to Christ, if he really believed that in so doing he would please him, profit him- self, and bring a rich return of blessing to his own heart. There is not a minister who could not so present this matter to his peo- ple as to lead the weakest and most impov- erished congregation in our land to feel that it was a duty, a privilege, and a blessing to give, and to give freely, in proportion to their means and other expenditures, to the work of the Lord. And there are thousands of our largest and most liberal givers, who, were their minds thoroughly imbued with the conviction that they are agents, stew- ards, and trustees for Christ's kingdom and gospel, and that the blessing comes far more
64 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
in giving than in receiving or increasing gain, would increase their contributions and their efforts, in some cases thirty, in some sixty, in some an hundred fold.
ALL CAN DO SOJIETHING.
"Why should not all the godly member- ship of the Church take their share, accord- ing to their varying capacities and opportuni- ties, in this blessed work, some in one way, and some in another? If I cannot speak, I can carry with me a tract, or perhaps I can read to those who cannot read for themselves. Methinks that the churches will never be in a sound condition until somewhat of such a state of things be realized — till this develop- ment in the application of doctrine to prac- tice is realized — till the membership of our congregations become not only hearers of the word, but, in the peculiar gospel sense, doers also; for surely Paganism 'itself can scarcely be so hateful to a righteous God, as the barren orthodoxy of mere abstract be- lief, and idle talk, and unproductive pro- fession. Ah ! were this better spirit to pre- vail more widely through all Protestant
TO BE CONVERTED? 65
churches — the spirit that would prompt men to be not receivers only, but dispensers also of what they had received — the spirit that would lead all ecclesiastical bodies to make the doing of some active work for the Lord, in his own vineyard, as indispensable a con- dition of church membership as the abstract soundness of a creed, and the outward con- sistency of moral life and conduct, what a strange and happy revolution would soon be effected ! how soon would infidelity and home- heathenism be cast down ! what a new spirit of ennobling self-denial would be evoked! what a spirit of large-heartedness, which would flow forth in copious streams in behalf of a perishing world! Were this realized, we might then suppose that the dawn of mil- lennial glory was upon us. But, alas ! alas ! though the horizon seemed already redden- ing with the dawn, the churches of Christ are still mostly drowsy and fast asleep. Ah ! it is this that saddens my own spirit. Of the cause of Christ I have never desponded, and never will. It will advance till the whole earth be filled with his glory. He
66 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
will accomplish it, too, through the instru- mentality of churches and individual men. But he is not dependent on any particular church or men. Yea, if any of these prove slothful or negligent, he may in sore judg- ment remove their candlestick, or pluck the stars out of the ecclesiastical firmament."*
THIS IS THE ONLY WAY TO SECURE PROSPERITY AND PEACE, HERE AND HEREAFTER.
Liberality, activity, and devotion to the cause of Christ, is the true way to personal prosperity and peace, and to the favour and blessing of God. In the kingdom of hea- ven, as in God's moral government, obe- dience and reward are correlatives, and in- separably conjoined, even when apparently divided. In loving and living to God, we truly love and live to ourselves, and promote our own happiness here and hereafter. We are under obligations to seek and to secure our best interests, however, in that way alone which God has pointed out. A right- eous, enlightened, and sanctified love of
* Dr. Duff.
TO BE CONVERTED? 67
ourselves, is made the measure of our love to others. A man not only may but mu%t love himself. This he must do, by acquiring a perfect knowledge of his rela- tions to God, and his law, and of the para- mount importance of the honour, glory, and kingdom of God, and of what is spiritual and eternal, over all bodily and temporal inte- rests. Whatever pertains to the salvation of our own soul, its sanctification and growth in grace, and its everlasting felicity, we are under primary obligations to work out, according to the will of God. And as this is to be done by activity, sacrifice, service, and liberality, in the cause of Christ's universal reign and triumph, as surely as by reading the Scriptures, by prayer, and praise, every Christian is bound to be as faithful, as hearty, as zealous and exemplary in the for- mer, as in the latter. This is essential to the right and required love of self, to per- sonal salvation, and to our own individual Christian character, hope, happiness, and heavenly recompense. It is only in this way a man can truly love God, be made a parta-
68 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
ker of the divine nature and of the divine benevolence, overcome the spirit of worldly selfishness, which is idolatry, subdue all self- will and all self-opinionated prejudices to the authority of God's will, as made known in his word, and lay hold firmly of eternal life, secure *Uhe pearl of great price," "the treasure hid in the field," "lay up treasure in heaven," gain "an abundant entrance into the everlasting kingdom," make sure of "an eternal weight of glory," "reap abundantly," "be great in the kingdom of heaven," "build upon the foundation" of a good hope in Christ Jesus, "gold, and sil- ver, and precious stones" that shall abide for ever, transport his riches to heaven, be followed by his good works in their ever- during results, shine forth as a star of brilliant glory in the firmament of heaven, and having well and faithfully employed his talents for the glory of his Lord and Mas- ter, receive a crown of righteousness, and be applauded with the welcoming gratulation, "Well done, good and faithful servant, thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will
TO BE CONVERTED? 69
make thee ruler over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord."
This shall take thine hand, and lead
Thy steps to find thy Saviour in his poor;
Yea, thou shalt find him in the cry of all ;
And Lazarus, who lieth at thy door,
Hath friends above who walk the heavenly floor,
And he shall sue for thee, and thou shalt find
That thine own prayers gain wings and readier soar,
No more blown prostrate by the wandering wind,
Aud light \inknown before, shall touch thine eyelids blind,
Such in the blessed courts that are above,
Within the living centre of all space,
'Mid their blest companies shall find a place
Where God himself reveals his glorious face.
This assuredly is the only way in which a man can work out his own salvation, which is his one great business here below, by living, labouring and praying, by giving and sacrificing so as to secure permanent and everlasting riches, "where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through and steal."
And yet, under the delusion of laying up treasure for children and friends — a tempta- tion and a snare to drown them in perdition 7
70 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
and in sloth, and in prodigality and vice — oh, how do men, yes, even Christian men, live poor, and meanly, and niggardly, and die poor, and go into eternity poor, with few or no friends to welcome them, no works to follow them, no treasure exported before them, and no inheritance invested in heaven? Yes, look around the church of which we are each members, and of how many may we say, as has been strikingly said, here is an acquaintance of ours, and he has been spend- ing the energy of a very good understanding, of exceedingly strong will, or well formed habits, in conducting business and making a fortune. He owes no man anything. He assists the struggling poor. And he says, I have invested something for every one of my children. But what, we may ask such an one, have you invested for yourself? You ought not, with all your love for your children, to think only of them. What do you propose to invest for yourself? This is the question, and it is a business one. You have but one way of investing money permanently. You may invest it in houses, or in lands, or in
TO BE CONVERTED? 71
banks, but when the great fire comes that will burn all that up, and your beautiful mansion will be no more to the flames than the dust you tread on, what portion of your property is invested for yourself, and will re- appear after the fire, to enrich you for ever? None, but what you have given up to God — literally and absolutely none but what you have consecrated to the Saviour — what you have expended for the poor — what you have given out of love to Christ and love to fellow men. This is in Christ's hands, and all and only this, and he will remind you of it, and show it to you in another shape at the last day. Oh, what a word that is, "Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unright- eousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations."
Thus thy -works may pass before Waiting thee, — a blessed store, — In their number, weight, and measure, Laid up in enduring treasure.
These earthly friends, for whom you live and toil and hoard, cannot procure a habita- tion. They cannot even prepare a habitation ;
72 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
they can give no title to a habitation. All this is done only by the free grace of your Father through the merit of your Saviour and Redeemer. The title being thus given, and the house being prepared for you by Christ, make friends of the mammon of unrighteousness, that they may receive you into everlasting habitations. A wonderful thing it is to take a cold shilling into my hand and turn that cold piece of metal into a friend, who, when the Lord shall lift up my head on that day, will be there to receive me, and bid me wel- come to the land of rest. None of us would like to die poor. Who then is he that dies rich ? That man dies rich, and only that man, who, when he leaves behind him a little or more, or nothing, has before him a treasure laid up in heaven. Who dies poor? He that, whatever he leaves behind him, has nothing laid up before him. He dies poor. Thus do multitudes pass away " with nothing but the avenging memories of lost opportunities to follow them, angels of mercy struck down here to rise in the judgment against their murderers."
TO BE CONVERTED? 73
NO MAN LIVETH OR DIETH UNTO HIMSELF.
No man therefore liveth to himself; the law of universal nature, the law of man's own being, the law of providence, and the law of the kingdom of heaven, alike forbid and pre- vent it. And yet these laws equally require, as we have seen, every man to love himself, to live for himself, and to seek and secure the highest good of his own entire and per- manent being. There is here a divine para- dox but no contradiction. "He that findeth his life (in living for himself) shall lose it, and he that loseth his life (by denying him- self) for my sake, shall find it." " For who- soever will save his life (from this self-deny- ing course) will lose it, and whosoever will lose his life (of personal ease, indulgence and aggrandizement) for my sake, shall find it. For what is a man profited if he shall gain (for his present, sensual, and temporal life) the whole world and lose his soul, or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? And he that taketh not his cross, and follow- eth after me, is not worthy of me. For the Son of Man shall come in the glory of his 7*
74 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
Father, with his angels, and then shall he reward every man according to his works." In the Christian, the present natural and sinful life of selfishness is dead, being cruci- fied with Christ. He has denied this self by the power given to him by Christ to be- come a son of God. This life, therefore, he loses, and finds the life of faith, and love, and consecration to God in Christ. The life that he now lives, therefore, he lives by the faith of the Son of God, who loved him and gave himself for him. "I live,'* says the Christian, "but not I. It is my Be- loved that liveth in me. I love myself, not with my own love, but with the love of my Beloved, who loveth me. I love not myself in myself, but myself in him and him in me.'*
Nor time, nor place, nor chance, nor deatli can bow
My least desire nnto the least remove ; He's firmly mine by oath; I his by vow;
And knit we are by strongest bonds of love: He's mine by water ; I am his by wine ; Thus I my best Beloved's am; thus he is mine.
He is my altar; I his holy place;
I am his guest; and he my living food; I'm his by penitence; he mine by grace;
I'm his by purchase; he is mine by blood;
TO BE CONVERTED? ' 75
He's my directing helm ; and I his vine ; Thus I my best Beloved's am; thus he is mine.
He gives me wealth ; I give him all my vows ;
I give him songs; he gives me length of days; With wreaths of grace he crowns my conquering brows;
And I his temples with a crown of praise Which he accepts; an everlasting sign That I my best Beloved's am ; that he is mine.
Feeling thus, the Christian lives no longer unto self but unto Christ, and yet, never- theless, in living unto Christ, and in yielding body, soul, and spirit, wife, children, houses and lands, as a living and loving sacrifice unto Christ and the interests of his kingdom, he secures his own salvation, his own peace, and joy, and happiness, the presence and blessing of God in all he does and on all he loves. "For every one who hath forsaken (the selfish appropriation, and holds in trust, and for the glory of Christ) houses, or breth- ren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundred fold, and shall in- herit everlasting life."
For any man to live to himself is mon-
76 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
strouslj sinful, and for any professing Chris- tian to do so, is to exaggerate such guilt by the most flagrant insult, hypocrisy and fraud. It is the most daring presumption and rebel- lion against the glorious majesty and great- ness, the perfect holiness, infinite all-suffi- ciency and goodness, and the absolute power and supremacy of that divine Lord and Mas- ter, to whom he has sworn allegiance. It is ingratitude black as hell, mingled with rebel- lion daring as that of devils, against Him to whom we owe ourselves, and all that we are or have, or hope, inasmuch as it takes the very members, faculties, talents, and oppor- tunities, which are his — redeemed, regene- rated and consecrated by him, for his own service and glory — and employs them, like the unfaithful servants, for our own selfish pur- poses. The selfish man, with a heart, as has been said, no bigger than his coffin, just large enough to hold himself, is like those creeping insects which having no object around which to twine, cleave to the dust, encircle them- selves, and there, by their rank luxuriance and unwholesome smell, rot and die. He destroys
TO BE CONVERTED? 77
himself. Selfishness itself perishes, ex- hausted by its own excess.
Oh what indignity, what wickedness against a jealous God is this! But such selfishness is not only suicidal. It gains no- thing! It can only treasure up indignatioa and wrath against the day of wrath. After all, no man really lives unto himself. He may pervert and prostitute the being and the powers entrusted to him. He may live, and labour, and eat, and drink, as he thinks, for himself; but he lives for others and for God. So are man, and society, and nature constituted by God, that while man labours for himself, and the distinctions of pro- perty become a stimulus to exertion, he is filling up his place in the comprehensive plan and benefitting his species. Of all the earth, he can possess at most but little, and enjoy but little, and for a very little time. All his labour and strength, all he makes and accu- mulates, and invests and hoards, and spends, he does for others. His life, his spirit, his principles, his conduct, are all acting upon, and impressing and influencing, others. For
78 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
good or for evil, for weal or woe, for salva- tion or damnation, he is living for others. Soon he dies; his grasp relaxes; his titles are all extinguished ; his name and his me- mory rot like his body, and are forgotten. The place of business, the rounds of duty, the haunts of pleasure, the home of selfish indulgence, the bank, the courts, the ex- change, know him no more for ever, and he has no further interest in anything that is done under the sun.
No man, therefore, can live unto himself. Equally but still more fearfully true is it that "no man dieth unto himself." He dies under this law of universal being, and of Chris- tianity, and under its penalty. He dies as he lives. He dies to all further enjoyment of this world and this life, and these means and opportunities of extending the gospel and kingdom of Christ, and of saving souls from death. He dies to meet that judgment which is after death, and as he has here sown the wind of his own selfish, cove- tous and indolent indulgence, he reaps the
TO BE CONVERTED? 79
■whirlwind of sorrow and disappointment, and everlasting regret — ^'for there is no repent- ance in the grave." Whether we have loved God or have loved self,
These are tlie mirrors wherein souls are seen; These are the books; on this heaven's scale depends; Judgment announced to the eternal years.
Man can do nothing of himself but sin, and nothing that is right or acceptable in the sight of God ; and when by gra1;e he does all he ought to do, to the utmost of his ability, he is an unprofitable servant, sinful and imperfect. The acceptance of his ser- vices and gifts, and the entrustment to his hands of "the high calling" of being a ser- vant unto God, for the benefit of the perish- ing world, is the gift of Christ's infinite good- ness; and the recompense of reward with which it is followed, the bestowment of his free, sovereign, and unmerited munificence. But this only makes selfishness and disobe- dience, and eye-service, and love of family and friends, while there is mean niggardli- ness towards Christ's cause and kingdom, the
80 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
more disgracefully foul and abominable in the judgment of heaven and earth.
OUR CHURCHES AND CHURCH MEMBERS MUST DO MORE.
Brethren, what is to be done ? Something must be done. We cannot remain as we are. The best of our ministers, and churches, and members, but feebly realize and act accord- ing to the great law of living unto others, unto "Christ, and for the salvation of the world. Many, however, feel, or do nothing to show that they love Christ, or value his promised presence, by keeping his last great and all comprehending command. Oh, it is incredible to believe, and beyond measure humiliating to tell, one-third of our ministers, elders, churches, and members, give not the evidence, by a single reported dollar, of any recognition of their duty as pure, Christ- loving disciples, to cooperate in the procla- mation of the gospel, and the extension of the kingdom of Christ to every creature. These principles were fully and ably pre- sented by our last General Assembly, and
TO BE CONVERTED? 81
"wisely urged upon the practical considera- tion of our Presbyteries, and enforced upon our church sessions generally.*
WHAT CAX BE DONE ?
But still, the great practical hinderance remains, and that is, to get these views and principles into the minds and hearts of those ministers and churches who seem to take their ease, to fold their hands, and go asleep in Zion, and who neither read, nor hear, nor feel the power and cogency of these truths. And to reach this ultimate end, what other method is there left to the Church, than for each Presbytery to adopt the course of voluntary and mutual inter- change of pulpits, so that brethren, appoint- ed by Presbytery, and clothed with its au- thority, may kindly, but faithfully, and as often and long as may be necessary, stir up the hearts and minds of all who call upon the Lord Jesus, to the remembrance of their relation to him and to his kingdom, and of
* See the Report and Resolutions on Systematic Col- lections, added as Note B.
8
82 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
the inseparable connection established be- tween obedience, activity, and liberality, and their own spiritual life, maturity, power, and progress.
Here then, is something we can do. It is simple, scriptural, unexpensive, in accord- ance with our spirit and principles as a Church, and implied in the injunctions of our General Assembly. We have the gospel. It is given to us in trust for the heathen and "the uttermost parts of the earth," as "light to enlighten the gentiles." Of this trust every Christian, still more every deacon, more emphatically still every elder, still more solemnly and responsibly every minis- ter, and — to an extent which combines in itself the responsibility and the ability of all these severally — every church is a steward, who will be honoured and recompensed in proportion as they are found faithful. This truth is power — "the power of God to every one" that "receives it into a good and hon- est heart," and whose "faith works by love." To impart this truth, therefore, and to make it effectual in the hearts of our brethren, who
TO BE CONVERTED? 83
either misconceive or but partially believe it, is a portion of the very trust and agency com- mitted to us. In love to them, in love to the Church of God, whose honour, and influ- ence, and pov^er, and prosperity are invol- ved, and in love to the souls of perishing men, and to Him, the travail of whose soul they are, let us avail ourselves of every means within our reach of bringing up all our ministers, churches, officers, and mem- bers, to the right knowledge of Christ and keeping of his commandments, which is the complete work and business of a Christian. For surely conformity to Christ, and unison of heart, will, spirit, and purpose, with him, is the very being of a Christian, without which he is without Christ as the source of life and the spring and fountain of happiness.
MOTIVES FOR DOING WHAT EVERY ONE CAN DO.
Brethren, would we be honest? There is one debt we owe, which is ever pressing upon us, which we can never fully pay, which we must be ever owing and ever pay- ing, and in so doing experience "an over-
84 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
payment of delight" — and that is "to love one another, to love and do good to all men as we have opportuity," that "through our mercy they may receive mercy." Are we paying punctual interest and constant divi- dends on this debt, and thus in giving, re- ceiving, in scattering abroad, increasing, and in blessing, being blessed, yea, so blessed as to have the windows of heaven opened, and God's grace poured out upon us in such meas- ure that we shall not be able fully to receive it?
Would we, as Christians, be happy, and live in peace and joy? Then we must live in love. Christian happiness is society, fel- lowship with God in Christ, with angels, and with saints. God is love, and every one that loveth is born of God. "If any man love God, he is known of God," and so knows God. " He that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God." Love is the nature of God, and the element of Christian life — love to Him that begat, and to all those that are begotten of him. Love shines as a light into the Christian's heart, acts as a torch or a fire
TO BE CONVERTED? 85
Within him. His knowledge of Christ in- flames his love and hatred. As surely as he sees hira, he abhors himself, and is transported with the love of Christ shed abroad in his heart. Thus humble and happy, he cannot restrain his feelings. He is consumed with an inward and irresisti- ble desire for others that they also may be saved. Every soul saved is a soul to love, a new well-spring of joy, an object of wonder and delight, another child added to the family of God, another companion in tribulation and in trial, another star lighted up in the firmament of heaven, another gem sparkling in the crown of the Redeemer, another harp, with his, to swell the song of the Lamb before the throne.
Hosanna, sound from hill to hill, And spread from plain to plain,
While louder, sweeter, clearer still, Woods echo to the strain.
Hosanna on the wings of light,
O'er earth and ocean fly, 'Till morn to eve, and noon to night,
And heaven to earth reply.
8*
86 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
Brethren, we have but a day in which to live, and labour, and work, and that day is far spent. The night is at hand, when no man can work. We have but one season in which to prepare for ourselves a plentiful harvest, and the spring is past, the summer is gone, and the harvest season nearly over, and we can only reap according as we have sown. We have but one life and one body "to spend and be spent for Christ," and as " herein he is now glorified if we bear much fruit," so " will he render to every man who, by patient continuance in well-doing, seeks for glory, and honour, and immortality, eter- nal life."
Brethren, what mean these aches and pains, and this weariness, and these often in- firmities, these wrinkles, and hoary hairs, and these other failings of our natural strength ? Oh, are they not all designed to show us that our stay here is short, our connection with earth transient, our continuance in this earthly house but as that of the wayfaring man who turneth aside from his far journey for a night ?
TO BE CONVERTED? 8T
Oh, let us, then, now enter into fellowship with Christ in the work given him to do, and which he has commanded us to fill up — even that which is behind and still unfulfilled, of the universal efiicacy of the sufferings of Christ, and "the glory that is to follow" the preaching of the gospel, "whereof we are made the ministers" or agents. Christ, though in the form of God, and being God, entered into the fellowship with us in all our infirmities, nay, in our miseries, in our guilt, in our condemnation and death, in all our pains and penalties, in all our sorrows and solicitudes. To be able thus to sympa- thize with us, and succour and save us, Christ united himself with our very nature, and became a projntiation for the sins of the world. Having done all this, he now invites us to enter into fellowship with his divine nature, with his gifts and graces, his glory and blessedness, his death, resurrection, and ascension, his ever-living power and presence with his people — by preaching the good tidings to every creature in all the world, making them his disciples, and teaching them
88p by whom is the world
his will. To have such communion with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ, is the honour, the dignity, and the happiness of the believing heart. Oh, then, being exalted to such a heavenly privilege, let us not be like brute beasts, understanding it not, but rather let us rejoice in it, and count all things but loss for the excellency of being lifted up from death and pollution to this fellowship with the throne, the society, the friendship, and the service of the great God and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Oh, let him come in and take possession, and have full and trans- forming fellowship with these cold hearts of ours, these dead and carnal affections, these low and grovelling desires, and with what- ever in our hopes and powers, our influence and activity, our money and our means, he will be pleased to use for his glory, and our mutual endearment and happiness. This, yes this, will be the felicity of heaven, and this, yes this, may impart to us heaven be- low, and, by the full exercise of this grace, ripen into an early blossom the fragrant flowers of Paradise.
TO BE CONVERTED? 89
And as it has pleased Christ in his infi- nite wisdom and mercj to represent himself as present and visible in these poor and per- ishing souls around us, and in these heathen who are his inheritance, and heirs to his testamentary blessings, oh, thou divine and blessed Saviour, who canst give power and quicken into life, oh, give us faith to look upon them as such ! Help us to look through their unworthiness, their vileness, their in- gratitude, their hard and impenitent and blinded hearts, and to see in them thee, our Lord and our God. As strangers let us take them in. As sick with the foul leprosy of sin, as bound in the prison of the great adversary who leads them captive at his will, as hungering and thirsting and yet spending their strength for naught, and their labour for that which satisfieth not, help us to visit them, to give them the bread of heaven, and the water of life, and in so doing, to feel that we are doing it all to thee, and that we shall in no wise lose our reward, W'hen thou, our righteous Judge, shalt say to all such " Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom
90 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
Give us, then, 0 divine and merciful Sa- viour, faith and love, to break through this selfishness, this self-seeking, this worldliness, this covetousness which is idolatry, this flesh- lusting spirit, which freezes up our warmest affections. Help, 0 help us to bring these objects of thy love, which are distant, near; to render them visible to the eye of our minds though unseen ; to make them present though absent; creditors though debtors; friends though foes; dear and beloved though black and uncomely ; and all this because they are thine, and dear to thee, and yet to be brought nigh and given to thee for thy possession.
Most blessed Saviour! Thou who only art
The sacred fountain of eternal light, All-powerful magnet of my inmost heart!
Oh, thou, my heart's desire, my soul's delight! My soul irradiate and thy power impart.
And then my soul shall prize no good above thee,
And then my soul shall know, and knowing, love thee, And then my trembling thoughts shall never start
TO BE CONVERTED? 91
From thy commands or swerve the least degree, Or even desire to move but as they move in thee. Thus living, loving, serving thee below, Do thou thy strength, thy grace, thy peace bestow.
" God be merciful unto us, and bless us ; and cause his face to shine upon us. Selah. That thj way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations. Let the people praise thee, 0 God ; let all the people praise thee. 0 let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the na- tions upon earth. Selah. Let the people praise thee, 0 God; let all the people praise thee. Then shall the earth yield her in- crease; and God, even our own God, shall bless us." Psalm Ixvii. 1-6.
" It shall come, that I will gather all na- tions and tongues, and they shall come and see my glory." Isa. Ixvi. 18. " It shall come to pass in the last days, that the moun- tain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow to it; and many people shall go and
S^ BY WHOM IS THE WORLD
say, Come ye, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, and he will teach us his ways, and we will walk in his paths." Isa. ii. 2, 3. And again, " Behold, thus saith the Lord, I will lift up my hand to the gentiles, and set up my standard to the people, and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daugh- ters shall be carried upon their shoulders.'* Isa. xlix. 22. And again, "Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that know not thee shall run unto thee, because of the Lord thy God„ and for the Holy One of Israel, for he hath glo- rified thee." Isa. Iv. 5. 0 blessed, then, ever blessed be thy name, 0 mighty and most merciful Saviour, who hast been pleased to make thyself known among us gentiles. "Give unto the Lord, 0 ye kindreds of the people, give unto the Lord glory and strength ; give unto the Lord the glory due to his name." Psal. xcvi. 7. "All the earth shall worship thee, and shall sing unto thee, they shall sing unto thy name." Psal. Ixvi. 4. "All the ends of the world shall remember, and turn
TO BE CONVERTED? 93
unto the Lord, and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee." Psal. xxii. 27.
0 that the Church on earth could travail in earnest prayer for this glorious day of grace, with the Church of the redeemed in heaven.
"And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held : and they cried with a loud voice, saying. How long, 0 Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them ; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow-servants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled." Rev. vi. 9—11.
"And I saw as it were a sea of glass min- gled with fire ; and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of
94 BY WHOM IS THE WORLD, ETC.
his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God, and they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. Who shall not fear thee, 0 Lord, and glo- rify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest." Rev. XV. 2 — 4.
So vast the electric chain, such the appeal!
Start we to hear the overwhelming claim ?
Yea, more than words the covenanted seal,
For there are Three in heaven; the glorious name
Whose word of promise sure shall never fail.
Lift then thy voice, get up unto the mountain,
Say unto Zion, from thy trance awaken,
Thy sea goes forth, in every land a fountain
Springs forth to thee! 0 now no more forsaken,
City of Grod great things of thee are spoken.
All nations have discerned the glorious token,
Lift up thy mountain voice ; the spell of death is broken.
APPENDIX
Note A.
As this is a truth which enters into our conclu- sion of the obligation and duty which this consti- tution implies, I will give some illustration of it. The late Amos Lawrence, among his private en- tries has the following : '^ Jan. 1, 1849 — I adopted the practice ten years ago, of spending my income. My outgoes since the first of January, 1842, have been upward of $400,000, and my property on the first of this year is as great as on January 1, 1842. The more I give, the more I have." Again : "Jan. 1, 1852 — The outgoes for all objects since January 1, 1842 (ten years,) have been $604,000 more than five-sixths of which have been applied in making other people happy." Here is an ex- ample of reproductive profusion — " The more I give, the more I get;" scattering, yet increasing. And, along with the increase of substance, what is still rarer and more precious, the increase of personal felicity. Instead of scattering, had he
(96)
96 APPENDIX.
concentrated all this outlay on himself, had he spent the half million on dainty viands and costly wines, on sumptuous furniture and glittering vehi- cles, he would have done no more than many do, on whose careworn, dissatisfied countenances, God has inscribed the curse of self-idolatry; hut by spending it in the effort to make other people happy, Amos Lawrence extended the sphere of his enjoyment as wide as the objects of his philan- thropy, and in his shining face he habitually showed that God had given him the blessedness of a man, for whom many prayed and whom He greatly loved.
So essential to the truest enjoyment is a gener- ous disposition, that we cannot refrain from quot- ing the words of one whose kind deeds were almost as numerous as his brilliant sayings, and who gives the following '^receipt for making every day happy:" — "When you rise in the morning form the resolution to make the day a happy one to a fellow-creature. It is easily done; a left- oft" garment to the man who needs it, a kind word to the sorrowful, an encouraging expression to the striving; trifles in themselves, light as air, will do it, at least for the twenty-four hours ; and if you are young, depend upon it, it will tell when you are old ; and, if you are old, rest assured it will
APPENDIX. 97
send you'gently and happily down the stream of time to eternity. By the most simple arithmeti- cal sum look at the result ; you send one person, only one, happily through the day; that is three hundred and sixty -five in the course of the year; and, supposing you live forty years only after you commence that course of medicine, you have made fourteen thousand six hundred human beings happy, at all events, for a time. Now, worthy reader, is not this simple ? It is too short for a sermon, too homely for ethics, and too easily ac- complished for you to say, ^ I would if I could.' "
What Sydney Smith recommends, was the prac- tice of Cotton Mather, two hundred years ago. Few men have ever condensed into the narrow limits of human existence so much substantial service to their fellow-creatures as that good man, whose name is still a household word in new Eng- land homes. And it would appear that it was his custom every morning when he awoke, to con- sider these three things. What is there I can this day do for the welfare of my family ? What is there I can do in the service of my neighbour? What is there I can do for the glory of God ?
Of this principle, Sydney Smith affords a most pertinent example of what the experience of Wil- berforce, Howard, every philanthropist, mission- 9*
98 APPENDIX.
ary, and liberal-minded and liberal-hearted Chris- tian will confirm.
''I was very poor/' says he, ^Hill I was appointed to St. Paul's/' The valuable living of Edmonton, which was in the gift of St Paul's, fell vacant. Ey the rules of the Chapter, he could have taken it himself, or given it as he pleased. The late vicar, Mr. Tate, was a friend of his own, who, years before, as a Yorkshire clergyman, had stood up with him in favour of Catholic Emancipation. He left a family behind him, his eldest son having been his curate ; and Sydney Smith writes to his wife the following account of his interview with the widow and family, after he had determined to give the cure to the son of his old friend, in place of giving it to himself.
^' Dear Kate, — I went over yesterday to the Tates, at Edmonton. The family consists of three delicate daughters, an aunt, the old lady, and her son, then curate of Edmonton : — the old lady was in bed. I found there a physician, an old friend of Tate's, attending them from friendship, who had come from London for that purpose. They were in daily expectation of being turned out from
house and curacy I began by inquiring
the character of their servant, then turned the conversation upon their afi'airs, and expressed a
APPENDIX. 99
hope the Chapter might ultimately do something for them. I then said, ' It is my duty to state to you (they were all assembled,) that I have given away the living of Edmonton; I have written to our Chapter-clerk this morning, to mention the person to whom I have given it : and I must also tell you, that I am sure he will appoint his curate. (A general silence and dejection.) It is a very odd coincidence,' I added, ' that the gentleman I have selected, is a namesake of this family. His name is Tate. Have you any relations of that name V ' No, we have not.' ^ And by a more singular coincidence, his name is Thomas Tate. In short,' I added, ' there is no use mincing the matter; you are vicar of Edmonton.' They all burst into tears. It flung me also into a great agitation of tears, and I wept and groaned for a long time. Then I rose and said, I thought it was very likely to end in their keeping a buggy, at which we all laughed as violently.
" The poor old lady, who was sleeping in a gar- ret, because she could not bear to enter into the room lately inhabited by her husband, sent for me, and kissed me, sobbing with a thousand emo- tions. The charitable physician wept too. ... I never passed so remarkable a morning, nor was more deeply impressed with the sufierings of hu-
100 APPENDIX.
man life, and never felt more thoroughly the happiness of doing good.''
^'I never was happy/' said a certain king, "till I began to take pleasure in the welfare of my people; but ever since then, in the darkest day I have had sunshine in my heart.'^
Note B.
'^ It is not to be presumed," says our last Gen- eral Assembly in its Report on Systematic Contri- butions, " that God gives people a soul niggardly from meanness, or parsimonious from covetous- ness; and yet their contributions to the treasury of the Lord are amazingly disproportioned to their blessings and resources. This can only be resolved into ignorance of duty, or a failure to apprehend the real relation of liberality in alms- giving to their Christian profession. As '' what- soever is not of faith is sin," so whatever does not appeal to their faith cannot permanently inter- est their hearts. It cannot be denied that our churches have been too much accustomed to look upon giving as purely a matter of Christian liber- ty, a thing which might or might not be done, ac- cording to the impulses which happen to prevail
APPENDIX. 101
at the moment, without in either case involving the integrity of Christian character. What has been given, has been regarded as a bounty, and those who solicit it represented as beggars. This has been a feeling implicitly recognized where it has not been explicitly announced.
" Appeals in behalf of the dearest interests of Christ's kingdom have been in many cases coldly received, in others formally repulsed, on the plea of repugnance to so much begging.
"It was not that the people were penurious or mean, but that they did not understand the nature of the case ; and the way to remove the difficulty is not by denunciation or invective, but by famil- iar exposition of the scriptural principle upon which these appeals are made. The law of the Lord, when clearly apprehended, can never fail to tell upon the hearts and consciences of the chil- dren of Grod. That law in relation to the ques- tion before us, is, that liberality is a grace of the Spirit, alms-giving an office of Christian worship, and collections for the poor and the spread of the gospel an ordinance of God.
''Giving, in the Scripture, is put upon substan- tially the same basis as prayer; the one is the sac- rifice of the lips, and the other of the substance; and the acceptance of our gifts is a greater proof
102 APPENDIX.
of the Divine condescension, than the acceptance of our petitions. God needs none of our oiferings ; the cattle upon a thousand hills are his, and if he were hungry he would not tell us. But though needing nothing at our hands, he has condescend- ed, for the purpose of uniting our hearts to him in profounder sympathy, to assume a position in which he appeals to us as really and tenderly as if he needed all things. Though our alms and our righteousness extend not directly to him, yet the Saviour is comforted and refreshed with the humblest ministrations to his saints upon the earth ; it is he who receives the cup of cold wa- ter administered to his disciples. The believer, accordingly, who enters into the spirit of the Christian doctrine, must feel it almost hardly less a grievance to be debarred from the throne of grace, than to be prevented from casting his mite into the treasury of the Lord, and would as soon think of turning Christ from his doors, or leaving him unvisited in sickness and in prison, as think of slighting the appeals of Christ's earthly king- dom to his contributions and his sympathies. It is Christ whom we honour in serving the interests of his kingdom, or rather it is Christ who honours us, in thus permitting us to honour him, and as all Christian duties are at the same time privi-
APPENDIX. 103
leges, and every precept stands upon a promise, so tlie child of God habitually experiences that " it is more blessed to give than to receive." He is the beggar who solicits the favour of having his gift accepted, and he feels it to be a distinction that he can glorify God with the fruits of his sub- stance, having given himself to the Lord. All that he possesses is equally devoted, and what he uses for himself is rather by permission than by right of property. It is this principle which makes alms-giving a species of thanksgiving, and gifts a part of our spiritual worship. This prin- ciple underlies the whole subject of Systematic Benevolence.
" The recognition of this principle, in its full- ness and energy, is all that is wanted to infuse new life into the Church, and to make our offer- ings commensurate with our resources.
"Alms-giving being at once a duty and a pri- vilege, an ordinance of God and a means of grace, it is manifestly incumbent upon the courts of the Church to impart this, as well as every other bless- ing of the gospel, to the Christian people. Any believer has a right to complain that his soul is neglected, and the fulness of his Christian inheritance impaired, if he has not the opportu- nity of presenting his gifts as well as of hearing
104 APPENDIX.
the word. The General Assembly accordingly has done no more than it was bound to do, in en- joining upon the Presbyteries ' to adopt some prac- ticable method by which an opportunity shall be aflforded, and an invitation given to all the mem- bers of their congregations to contribute regularly to the objects of Christian benevolence, recognized by the Assembly in the organization of the Boards of the Church, and to such other institutions as to them may seem right/
^^ But it is not enough that the Assembly should command in the name of Christ, it must also see that its injunctions are obeyed, and hence it has required an Annual Beport from every Presbytery in its bounds, of the diligence of ministers and church sessions in complying with its requisi- tions. Therefore our General Assembly enjoins upon the pastors and churches to give greater prominence, in the ministration of the word, to the doctrine of the Scripture as set forth and in- terpreted in our standards, (more particularly chap- 26, sec. 2 of the Confession; in quest. 121 of the Larger Catechism : in chap. 7 of the Form of Government; and in chap, 6, sec. 5, of the Directory for Worship,) namely, that 'saints are, by profession, bound to maintain an holy fellow- ship and communion, in relieving each other in
APPENDIX. 105
outward things according to their several abilities and necessities, which communion, as God offereth opportunities, is to be extended unto all those, who in every place call upon the name of the Lord Jesus,' ' giving and lending freely according to their abilities, and in conformity to this doctrine, recognizing as one of the ordinances established by Christ,' in connection with the sermon, prayer and praise, a ^collection raised for the poor and other purposes of the Church/
*' 2. Rewlved, The Presbyteries, which have not anticipated the provisions of this action of the Assembly, are most earnestly and affectionately enjoined, (1) at their meeting following the rising of this Assembly, to take order that the ministers and church sessions in their bounds, shall be di- rected to adopt some practical method, by which an opportunity shall be afforded, and an invitation given to all the members of their congregations, to contribute regularly to the objects of Christian benevolence, recognized by the Assembly, in the organization of the Boards of the Church, and to such other institutions as to them may seem right.
" And (2) at every spring meeting to institute a proper inquiry into the diligence of ministers 10
106 APPENDIX.
and church sessions in executing the provisions of such method.
^^3. Resolved J The Presbyteries are further en- joined to enter on record and report to the next General Assembly, their action on the first part of the foregoing resolution, and also to record at their next and all subsequent spring meetings, the result of the inquiry prescribed, and report the same to the G-eneral Assembly, with the usual annual Presbyterial reports, stating the delin- quencies and diligence of pastors and church ses- sions/^
Never did our Church, or any other, more plain- ly and practically hold forth the truth on the rela- tion of Christian activity and liberality in the cause of Christ, to all Christian prosperity and progress, than in the principles and provisions here set forth.
We trust they will be universally responded to by all the Presbyteries in our Church, in the same spirit in which they were acted upon by the Presbytery of Huntingdon, at its recent meeting, when it adopted the following resolutions :
^'Resolved, 1st. That love to Christ's cause is an essential element of Christian piety; and a regular communication of our worldly substance, accord-
APPENDIX. lOT
ing as God hath prospered us, an ordinary and im- portant part of practical religion.
'^2d. That accordingly, it is as much the duty of the pastors and officers of the churches to make arrangements for the cultivation of the grace of benevolence, for the performance of this part of practical religion, as for any other of the offices of religion. Therefore,
" 3d. That it be affectionately enjoined upon the pastors and the other appropriate officers of the churches, to adopt and put in efficient opera- tion, some plan for making regular collections for the four Boards (and Church Extension Commit- tee) of the Church, so that a contribution for each shall be made at least once every year.
" And it is further enjoined, that one or other of the following plans be adopted by each church, provided there is not an equally efficient one al- ready in operation.
''Plan 1. A card or book with the names of all the members of the congregation upon it, with columns for weekly, or monthly, or quarterly sums, such as they may voluntarily offer to pay. The sum to be paid either to the elders, the deacons, or to persons specially appointed in each district of the congregation.
^'Plan 2. Monthly collections in the church
108 APPENDIX.
to be divided amongst the Boards, at the discretion of the deaeonSj or (in case there be no deacons) of the Session.
"Plan 3. A quarterly sermon in behalf of the Boards, (assigning a quarter to each,) to be fol- lowed by a collection or subscription for the Board whose cause was advocated in the sermon." i
THE ENP.
Princeton Theoloq.cal ^emmary-Speer Ub'ary
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